BRING THE OUTDOORS IN

I found these outdoor pillows at JCPenney today for $7 each and thought they would be perfect in my living room.  Who says outdoor pillows are only for outdoors?!

Happy Sunday!

OPERATION HUSTLE AND BUSTLE

So the boys have four days left of school which means I need to seriously get my fanny in gear if I want to have anything completed around here before summer break is in full swing.  Here are a few things I want to have completed by next Thursday (or at least Friday!)

I pulled two of these out of my “stash” in the garage.  I’m hoping to squeeze these babies in at the end of my sofa.  So far, I ‘m thinking that may be a stretch, but we’ll see.  If not I may go for these

As far as paint is concerned (because aren’t you concerned about the color?!), I’m thinking one of these colors would work

I’m leaning towards the navy myself 

(hazy iPhone pic)

And while we’re at paint, have any of you had the chance to check out Lowes new display of their paint samples?  Cute if you ask me!

The colors that I’m working with for my living room are in this pillow

I may or may not have gotten two of them in the mail the other day

Oh and have you seen the shops at Target? I’m loving The Privet House collection to pieces! I snagged some of the salad plates for the dining room.  Again, they had to coordinate with the fabric!

And last but definitely not least, I picked up some numbers for my door

They’re brass and they will look FAB-U-LOUS against my door!

 

Do you see where I’m going with all of this? I hope so because I sure don’t

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DOES YOUR DÉCOR TELL YOUR AGE OR LIFE?

One of my favorite articles from the latest issue of House of Fifty Magazine is the article titled ‘Does Your Décor Tell Your age?’ written by Valerie Hart. 

In the article, Valerie mentioned how she shared a picture of her living room and a blogging friend of hers thought she was a “young 30-something chick”.  I found that to be quite interesting.  It made me look around my home and think about other spaces I’m drawn to.  Does my home tell my age?  Is it hip or mature?  I would like to think that it’s a combination of the two. 

Another part of the article that made me think about how I decorate my home AND how I think about myself being a young mother was a quote from Diane von Furstenberg.  She said “When I was young, I lived like an old woman, and when I was old, I had to live like a young person”.  I always think that because I have children I have to be more of a conservative woman.  I often see homes of other women my age without children and wish my home could be as chic as theirs.  I mean seriously, they don’t have to worry about juice mishaps and crayon wall art.  I also struggle with what’s appropriate in a home with children.  Like a bar? 

 

or a cream sofa…

Although I do have children, I hope that the way I decorate my home allows even a smidge of my youth to shine through.  I also hope that I don’t allow my age to determine how I decorate my home later in life.  It’s not about trying to hold on to being young, but rather not allowing your age determine how hip you can be. 

 

DOES YOUR DÉCOR TELL YOUR AGE?!

Be sure to check out the article in House of Fifty.  It really is a good read

CORAL IS THE NEW PINK!

Well, not really.  But it’s a color I’m currently digging right now! Not only is it gracing my nails at the moment, but I darkened it up a tad and used it in my home.  Can you spy where?!

I’m currently sprucing up the living room and I felt like it desperately needed a dose of color. 

And I know what you're thinking.  And yes, once the door is closed, you can’t see that color.  Well, that’s why I’m painting the back, too!

 

Oh and I can’t stop looking at my “before and after” chair

 

I love it so much!

Today was Field Day for my boys and I was there all day.  So much fun, I tell you!

Soooo…. Are you digging coral?!?!

BARS AND CHILDREN… Yes or No?

I’m working on my home in a much slower pace than before because I want it to be exactly how I want it.  One thing that I want that I’ve certainly taken a liking to are home bars and bar carts.  You may remember when I showed you a sneak peek at my little “bar” that I’m putting together in my living room

 

I’m still working on it

While setting it up, I got to thinking if it is considered inappropriate for parents of young children to have bars set up in their home?

 

via

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Here’s what I think, I have two separate living areas in my home.  One is the family room and the other is in the works of becoming my “formal” living room (one again).  I figure if it’s not a space where the children are allowed to play and do whatever in, then it’s ok to have a small bar set-up.  I think anything can be done in a tasteful manner.  My husband and I don’t drink around the boys.  During our holiday party, I made sangria and the adults did drink that while the kids were around, but I think drinking wine is different. 

What are your thoughts on a home bar with children in the house?

Ps, Want to read a great write up for creating your own home bar?  Check out Deborah Milne’s article in the latest issue of House of Fifty!

I THOUGHT I KNEW, BUT I DON’T…. HELP PLEASE!

I mentioned that I already knew what pillows I wanted on my sofa in the living room.  Well, turns out I don’t really know.  I know what I like, but I can’t decide on which set of pillows. Tell me the option you like most

Here is the space

and here are the options

Option 1

Chiang Mai Dragon in the mocha colorway

2 brown and ivory trellis pillows

along with the two citron pillows I have on the sofa already

Option 2

2 chiang mai dragon pillows in aquamarine

Two of the Cats Cradle pillows in navy

along with the two citron pillows I have now

Option 3

Chiang mai in the alabaster colorway with navy blue backs

La Fiorentina by David Hicks in the wine and magenta colorway

As you can see, I love Schumacher's Chiang Mai Dragon.  Which ever option I decide on, the fabric itself will be used on my dining chairs too.  After seeing the pillows together in this post, I have an idea of which one I would want to see in the space.  Lets see if you agree

Can you help me out?!?! Please! 

DETAILS OF MY LIVING ROOM

I want to thank you guys for all of the comments on my living room.  I really am happy with the look considering that I really did just put it together on a whim (And I was terribly tired too!).  I wanted to touch on how exactly it was done. One comment that stood out to me was LindsB about how it look like it took forever to do this.  If I’m right, she is saying that it looks like the room was pulled together over time.

LindsB said...

Seriously if thats using what you have, I'm coming shopping in your garage! LOVE that you just pulled this together, it looks like it took forever to do this! Rock on!

When you think about it, it really did take me forever to put this together! Just a year ago, I had none of these things. For example, the brass birdcage was found a few months ago for $5 bucks! The magazines that its sitting on? Well they are from my trip to NYC for Blogfest (I just found them buried in my closet!).

The coffee table is a purchase I made from another blogger over a year ago.  I paid her $60 for it after she refinished it.  I’m actually going to paint it another shade of white because this is a bright white and it kind of stands out from everything else when you look at it in person. 

The paper-weight is another item that I received from Blogfest.  It’s by John Derian.  

The lamps are from my bedroom  The brass piggy bank is a recent find from a thrift store for $1.21.  The Buddha is from HomeGoods  two years ago.  It was originally for my bedroom, but I didn’t use it in there so to the garage it went.  You’re gonna see Readers Digest books a lot in my home.  I love their covers so much and you just can’t beat the price of them from GW.  My sister in law was at an estate sale and purchased 12or 13 of them for me for 10 cents each! Now I have at least 50 of them!

I got the mirror from GW for $20.  I am planning to use it for my powder room, but it looks so good right here that it may stay for a while!  The suitcases are just three of about 15 that I have! the bottom two came together for $3.53 at GW and and the smaller one was about the same price itself.

This silver bowl with the blue inside was 50 cents at a yard sale (again over a year ago!).  And again, I love my reader digest books!

The orchid is not real at all! I found it at HomeGoods earlier this year and it was $4.00 because the pot is broke.  The regular price was either $14.99 or $19.99.  The cranes were found jus the other day for $1.21 each! I was so excited to find them! Crazy excited really!

And last but not least, the red tray that seems to be you guys favorite! I found it at J C Penny on clearance.  It was like $10 bucks.  I’m thinking maybe $13 or so because I remember using one of my $10 off $10 or more coupons which made it next to nothing. 

I’ve always liked rooms that look like they’ve been pulled together over time.  I think people fail to realize that even in design, you don’t just snap your finger and your space is done.  How I pulled my space together is a great example of when you purchase things that you love, they will work together. All of these things are different and purchased at different times, but they work so well in the space.  I am happy

USING WHAT YOU HAVE (sneak peek of my living room!)

Last night while I was painting the last cabinet in my kitchen, I got the urge to pull together my living room on the fly using what I have.

For the past year, my living room had been bare. Ok, who am I kidding, it has been my catch all room when I’m working on projects! So last night when I saw one of the boys riding the back of my sofa like a horse, I decided right then that I had to make better use out of my living room and I started by moving the sofa in there. After pulling pieces from different rooms and from my garage, I ended up with this

I’m so excited to finally use this coffee table! I purchased it over a year ago from Dayka and a few days later the glass broke. I went to Lowes today and had a piece of Plexiglas cut for it (I have three boys, remember?!) and I am so happy!

I mean, I still have A LOT to do to say that this room is “finished”. I need to add some pictures and art to the walls. I need more pillows and I know exactly which ones I want! With the holidays knocking at the door, I had to do something fast. Next is the dining room and then I’m going to finish the kitchen which is really really close to being done. Using what you have is a great way to decorate when you’re in a hurry and on a limited budget (and believe me, my budget is teeny weeny!)…. So, what do you think?!

Hope you’re having a fabulous Monday!

Linking up to Tuesdays treasures over at My Uncommon slice of Suburbia