Archive for March, 2010
Wendy’s Design Dilemma
Wendy’s ready to spiff up her living room in a major way. Here’s her letter:
Thanks so much for your help with our family room- we definitely need it! We like clean, fresh, traditional/contemporary looks. The cream TV cabinet and the leather recliners need to stay. We’d like to replace the couch and have toyed with a sectional because we could use the seating space. Everything else can go. We’re open to wall color suggestions. We like the green in the kitchen (it’s from the previous owner), but we’re not sure it works with the more natural colors we’d like to see in the rest of the house. We like earth tones & natural colors – calming creams, browns & greens with a few splashes of red for contrast. We need curtains to diffuse sunlight and add interest. We’re thinking of adding built-in white bookshelves below the bar in the kitchen with baskets for kids stuff and I don’t know what to do with the space in front of the large family room windows. And although we’re focusing on the family room, I’d LOVE a suggestion for kitchen chairs (I have a new table for the space but no chairs). We’re very excited to see your ideas! Wendy
Here’s the plan:
And here’s the new layout suggestion:
Now for the mood board breakdown.
Read the rest of this entry »
House Crashing: Luxe & Lovely (Part Two)
You guys remember Stacie, right? She lives downtown in a gorgeous home that we actually got to help her decorate. And we even got the chance to House Crash her a while back (check out all those details right here).
Maybe the befores of her bedroom will jog your memory. It used to look like this:
And then we whipped up one of our first mood boards ever for her… which helped her transform it into this:
And we also got to help Stacie revamp her dining room for a big party that she was throwing a few months back. Here’s how the room started out:
And here are the lovely afters pics (click over to our House Crashing post for all the dirty makeover details).
You also might recognize her gorgeous spiderweb-ish window atop the dreamy french doors that lead to her kitchen…
… or her super dramatic living room with luxe dark walls and stunning supersized windows flanked by ruby red curtains…
So now that we’ve reviewed a few of the fantastic rooms that we’ve already covered in that House Crashing post of yore, let’s get on to why we’re revisiting such a fantastic home. Well, Stacie’s boyfriend Jeff painted the most stunning mural, and we just had to share the latest chapter in her casa’s brilliant evolution. Here’s the entryway before the big makeover.
And here it is in progress after Jeff designed a detailed and customized cherry blossom branch just for the space, and then blew it up by projecting it on the wall to be traced and painted.
Oh and we suppose we should properly introduce the talented and brilliant muralist himself, so meet Jeff (armed with his trusty projector):
He designed the cherry blossom (with a lot of feedback from Stacie) in Photoshop, and was even able to show her how it would look on the wall (again thanks to Photoshop) before he got down to projecting and tracing the outline of the design on her wall.
Then he started filling things in with those steady hands of his (he’s actually a full time artist) and even left intricate cut outs to create a stunningly interesting and detailed composition as he went.
And now Stacie’s entryway looks like this:
Is that not the most fantastic mural you’ve seen in a long time? We love how it creeps up the stairs thanks to being custom designed for the space. And if you think it looks good in photos you should see it in person. It’s truly spectacular.
Here’s a closer shot so you can see that the small round buds that Jeff penciled onto the wall were actually given a lot more detail and depth when he got to the painting stage. They’re almost like little rounded star blossoms so they feel elegant and sophisticated (as opposed to kid-like and cartoonish). And those little white slivers that he left on the branches really create the illusion of shine and dimension- it’s almost like the chandelier above is casting light right onto the tops of the branches.
So that’s Stacie’s amazing entryway project. Just when we thought her house couldn’t get any better she goes and pulls a stunt like this.
Oh and Jeff’s actually for hire if any locals are interested in working with him (just shoot him an email right here). But back to that gorgeous cherry blossom. Is anyone else considering a mural for any room in their house? If so, which room- and what wiould the subject matter be? Share and share alike. And if you’re in the mood to crash some other homes that we’ve featured, you can check them all out right here. Bonus: you don’t even have to wipe your feet upon entry.
Psst- We’re always on the hunt for a mouthwatering house (or ten) to crash, so if you or anyone you know has a casa that’s feature-ready just shoot us an email along with some photos of the space and if we’re ever in the neighborhood we’ll be sure to drop in.
Reader Redesign: A Cheap-o Kitchen Overhaul
When Jessica sent us her before and after kitchen photos we couldn’t believe she and her hubby stretched their $400 budget so far. Here’s her letter:
I’m always inspired by what I see going on at your pad! My husband Josh and I recently took on a cheap-o kitchen makeover and found that $400 goes a very long way toward bringing an 80′s kitchen into 2010. That budget covered paint, an electric sander, a jig saw, hardware, primer, Liquid Nails, “real” nails, and beadboard- which is all it took to really transform the space. The “before” picture was from before we moved in, so please excuse the terrible light fixture and furniture. We really hated the fake wood paneling under the bar and around the sides of the cabinets, so we covered it with beadboard that we then painted white. It was easy to install (especially since we had the wood cut at the store & borrowed a tack gun) and it’s definitely our favorite part of the entire makeover. As for our paint sources, the green is Benjamin Moore’s Mountain Lane and the white is Sherwin William’s West Highland White. Oh and there’s more info about the whole kitchen redo on our blog. Our next step is a nursery (we’re adopting a baby from Russia) and I can’t wait to see how yours turns out! I’m sure I’ll get some great ideas. Thanks for all you do! -Jessica (& Josh)
Here’s their kitchen before the big overhaul:
And here’s the same space after just $400 worth of upgrades:
Isn’t that amazing? We love Jessica and Josh’s infectious DIY spirit and we totally appreciate that they weren’t afraid to use some bold color and a little creativity (in the form of beadboard and paint for those cabinets) to cover up the things that they didn’t like and draw attention to the features that they wanted to highlight. What do you guys think? Are you itching to paint your walls a bold color, overhaul your cabinets or tack up some beadboard? We definitely love that not every kitchen makeover calls for several thousand dollars of work and tons of hired help. Inspiring!
Psst- Looking to paint your cabinets like Jessica and Josh did above? Here’s a quick and easy tutorial to help you get ‘er done.
Nursery Progress: Skirting The Issue
Some of you may remember that we wanted to make an adaptation of a crib skirt (a fitted band of fabric that would hide the view under the bean’s mattress and into her storage drawer below) so we’re back to share the simple step by step process. And if you guys know me at all you’ll fully anticipate that I didn’t even pick up a needle and thread. Yup, I used my favorite iron on hem tape along with scissors, a tape measure and an iron. About forty short minutes later I had a custom fitted crib skirt (that’s removable and washable too). Here’s how it all went down:
First, I measured the vertical space between the bottom of the mattress and the top of the drawer, which was the same height all the way around the crib. Then I measured the horizontal distance of each side of the crib, which left me with two smaller lengths for the sides and one longer one for the front of the crib (I opted to make a three sided skirt because the back won’t ever be seen). Then I added three inches to each measurement. For example, if the measured height for the side panel of the crib was 12″ I added three more to make it 15.” And if the measured length of that side panel was 30″, I added another three inches to make it 33.”
Then I simply cut out a 15″ x 33″ piece of fabric for that side and moved on to the next side of the crib, using the same add-three approach.
After carefully cutting everything out, I was left with three panels, all of the same height and two of the same width (while one was longer since that was the front panel). Note: if you’re using any type of printed fabric, be sure to cut everything out in the same direction, so you don’t end up with a crib skirt with one vertically striped panel and one horizontally striped panel- unless that’s the look you’re going for.
Then it was time to whip out my iron along with the scissors and my trusty Heat N’ Bond Ultra Hold (my favorite heavy duty iron on hem tape, available any craft store like Michael’s). Since I wanted all four sides of each panel to have a nice finished edge, I simply cut my hem tape to the length of each side of the panel and ironed it in place ON THE BACK of the fabric, as close to the edge of the panel as possible. Tip: when ironing on hem tape, keep the clear side down and the paper side up- you never want your iron to touch the clear side or it’ll get all gross and goey.
Then after ironing that strip of hem tape in place on the edge of my panel of fabric I just gave it about ten seconds to cool off a bit and got to work peeling back the paper, which left me with a strip of sticky stuff (it almost looks like clear double sided tape):
Without disturbing my little ribbon of stickiness, next I folded over the fabric so that it just covered the double-stick-tape-looking strip and ironed that fold into place.
Voila- I was left with a finished looking hemmed edge without any puckering or pinching (a common issue I have when I sew). Then I just repeated this process on all four edges of my two side panels and on the top and bottom edge of my front panel (I left the two sides of my front panel unhemmed because I’d be joining them to my already hemmed side panels).
Then place the hemmed edge of one of your side panels next to the unhemmed edge of the front panel that you want to join together (eventually you’ll be joining all three panels, but pick one side panel and one front panel to start with). Add another ribbon of hem tape right on top of that side panel edge that you already hemmed. Once you peel of the paper that strip of sticky tape on top of your side panel’s hem will be how you join the side panel to the front panel. Then it’s as easy as ironing them together…
… for a nice finished seam when you flip everything over and look at it from the front of the fabric:
Just replicate this step to join the other panel (or panels, if you’re making a four sided skirt) and you’ll be left with one long hemmed band of fabric. Of course if you had enough yards of fabric you could have just cut one long strip and hemmed the edges of that without worrying about making and joining side and front panels, but most people are cheap like us and want to be able to do this project with just one or one and a half yards of fabric (which is what we used) so cutting the panels and joining them at the edges of the crib is a necessary step.
Then all that’s left to do is secure this polished looking fitted skirt to the base of your crib. We opted to use velcro to hold our skirt in place, which also makes it easy to remove and wash (yup Heat N Bond is totally washable and extremely durable as well):
Plus since our crib’s mattress has a lower setting, we know that someday we won’t need this skirt (because the mattress will later be lowered to right above the drawer so there won’t be a gap to bridge anymore) so we love the fact that it’s easily removable. As for those velcro details, we just cut out a few inch by inch squares of it and placed them around the top of the crib’s metal frame (three or four per side) to hold everything in place. Note: You might want to give the side of sticky-backed velcro that’s attached to your fabric a stitch or two to hold it in place so you don’t have to worry about losing ‘em in the wash.
And once we put the mattress back on it was just as polished and fitted and sleek looking as we hoped.
We love how the colors coordinate without matching perfectly (we wanted them in the same family to avoid a high-contrast stripey effect since we don’t mind letting the curtains be the star textile in the room).
So that’s how we made a washable and removable crib skirt without breaking out the sewing machine or breaking the bank. In fact we completed the entire project in less than an hour and only spent money on the fabric, which was just $14 for a yard and a half (learn more about our crib skirt fabric hunt here).
And there you have one more way to make a custom crib skirt (we actually made a more traditional floor-length version right here – which is a better option if you want to be able to slide things under it for storage). Is anyone else out there planning to whip up a made-it-myself crib skirt of their own? Have any of you crafty people already crossed it off your to-do list? And while we’re on the subject of skirts, where does everyone stand when it comes to bed skirts in general? Too frilly for grown ups? A great way to hide storage systems and overflow items? Do tell.
Psst- Wanna see our nursery progress from the very beginning? Here’s our painting post, our big shopping spree, our crib hunting rundown, our curtain-making tutorial, our fun little chair search, our mirror-painting extravaganza, this DIY faux sheepskin project, our big dresser makeover, and our closet organization efforts. Fun, fun, fun.
Fab Freebie: Bundle Of Joy
***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries***
While we still have about eight weeks left ’til our little beanette arrives, we’ve assembled a different kind of “bundle of joy” for this week’s prize. With so many emails coming our way full of cool art suggestions for a baby or kid’s room, we’ve been busy putting together a “Nursery Art Bundle” prize that’s finally getting welcomed into the world today.
This week’s winner will get to choose customized pieces from three different designers to use in their nursery, to dole out as gifts or even to add a bit of whimsy to their own adult rooms. Here’s a rundown of what’s the stork is bringing one lucky lad or lady this week:
1. A framed Simply Baby Poster from Hoot Design Co. This 18″ x 26″ alphabet print comes in your choice of three colors and arrives custom framed under archival glass. This intricate graphic poster – much like the custom version that Hoot Design creates with personalized words (think “A is for Aunt Sherry”) – is bound to entertain parents just as much as their kiddos.
2. A Custom 13″ x 19″ Print from Penny People. No matter which design our winner chooses from Penny People, they’ll be getting a punchy and colorful dose of their ABCs or 123s in a size that’s conveniently made to fit right into an Ikea frame. Plus, he or she can choose from seven different colors with which to emblazon their wee one’s name across the top if they so desire.
3. A Custom Little Ape from Phil Barbato. Since touch is such an important sense to bambinos, we just had to include one of these charming and tactile offerings. Plus, these lil monkies are just so darn awesome - especially since you can customize the color of everything from the fur down to details like the ever-important belly button.
So here’s how to enter for a shot at all three highly customizable prizes:
- PRIZE: The customizable ”Nursery Art Bundle” described above (consisting of one piece from each vendor mentioned).
- TO ENTER: Comment on this post with the words “BUNDLE ME” and…
- BONUS QUESTION: … tell us your favorite part about a nursery/kids room. Is it the bright color scheme that adults just can’t get away with sometimes? Is it the fun and personalized art? Or, be honest, do you just like all of the toys they get?
- GIVEAWAY CLOSES: Wednesday, March 24th at 8pm EST
- NUMBER OF WINNERS: One
- PRIZE SHIPS: Delivers only in the USA this time
- USUAL STUFF: One entry per e-mail address is permitted. The winner will be selected using random.org and announced on Thursday. Good luck!
Find more freebie info on our Giveaway FAQs page. Pics courtesy of Hoot Design Co, Penny People Designs and Phil Barbato.
