Mission Accomplished:Bookshelves in the Foyer Finally

Summer season is just about to be over; at last 4 new bookshelves stacked against the walls in my foyer room.  I have had a strong desire to have bookshelves in my foyer for a long time. The front red door opens to the foyer; inside the foyer the French/glass door opens to the house.  I like the fact that the foyer room is a buffer between the front door and the rest of the house.  I put in enough books and some decor so I could take some pictures, but the real goal is to put books on the shelves—as is the function of bookshelves.  I don’t really like to overstyle or overdecorate bookshelves because I have many books and need each shelf for each subject heading.  I Like symmetry so I fully decorated the top of each of my 4 shelves; this way the eyes are drawn vertically upward because my foyer has high/tall ceiling. #loveyourhomechallenge.

Tween Bedroom Makeover

My daughter’s bedroom needed a major update because most of the decor was from her original baby nursery.  Since she’s about to start middle school, it was clearly time! Her window treatments are the last thing we are waiting on, but she is thrilled with the results and so am I!  We started with wallpaper from Serena and Lily and this set the tone and color palette for the room.  The ceiling is my favorite feature, because we created a tray with simple molding, then painted the inside with a mauve-type pink (BM Palermo Rose) and the outside a lighter shade of pink (BM Petunia Pink).  Both colors were picked up from the wallpaper. We added a lovely chandelier and the colors from the ceiling radiate off of the crystals.  The walls are BM Chantilly Lace.  Linens from Pottery Barn Kids and the starburst mirror from Target.  Everything else was already present in her room, including Mr. Moo Moo, who has been with her since birth!  To truly appreciate the breadth of this transformation, see the “Before” photos below!

A Room for Macy

My daughter decorated her room, all by herself :). I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised, and thought her room turned out beautiful! She wanted a white and tiffany blue room, with a beachy feel. She created a gallery wall with a variety of teal and white cottage frames. Rivulets Quilt from Anthropologie. Throw Pillows ~ Target & World Market. Fabric for Headboard Jumbo Aqua Stripe ~ New Arrivals, Inc. New Arrivals Custom Pom Pom Curtain Panels. Bedside Table ~ Homegoods.

A New Sofa and Summer Decorating

Life has been a little crazy in my world the last couple of months, and I’ve been a little absent from the ”neighborhood” lately, but I’m enjoying getting caught up on what everyone has been up to. 

We had a new sofa delivered last month (the slipcovered white sofa I’ve wanted for YEARS) and I finally spent some time adding ”summer“ to our home over the weekend.

How do you like to decorate for summer?

http://www.rusticandwoven.com/2015/07/01/summer-decorating/#more-977



My First House

                

In college, I had the opportunity to live with 5 of my best friends. We had lived in the dorms the first two years of college, and when it was time to move out we decided to rent a house together!

We started house hunting and ended up finding the cutest little brick tudor in Queen Anne at a price we could all afford. We loved the hardwood floors throughout and all the charm that came with an old house. It was small and cozy, but it still had plenty of room for all six of us to spread out. I shared a room upstairs with my best friend that I’ve had since 1st grade.

       

We called this house “The Manor”. This will always feel like “my first house” (as an adult, at least). We were about to be juniors in college and had a lot to learn about actually living on our own. 

We learned those things together, laughing our way through things like taking out the trash, calling the plumber to fix leaky faucets, spending money on boring adult things like toilet paper,, killing spiders (since our dads weren’t around to take care of it)…the list goes on.

We had a gorgeous view with the most amazing sunsets every night. If you climbed out that window to the left of the fireplace, you would enter out onto the roof of our garage with a wooden porch swing.

          

We combined whatever furniture each of us had, and scoured Goodwill for things we needed. My best friend‘s dad made us this gorgeous crackle-painted table out of an old door, we loved it!

          

          

This main room is where we spent lots of our time together. When I think of this room, I just picture us all lined up on the couches with our laptops working on homework, browsing Pinterest, or watching the Bachelor and other great quality shows like “Dance Moms” and “Toddlers and Tiaras”.

          

Our dining room table was where we had meals together and where I completed many of my interior design projects late into the night.

          

We lived in this house for a year, and I’ll never forget some of the amazing memories of living here! I lived with these girls for the next two years (in another great house, I’ll try to find some good pictures of to share here soon!), and now even though some of us live apart now, we all continue to be best friends!

Feeling At Home

I decorated this little shelf in my bedroom with two blue and white pieces I’ve collected at flea markets with my mom, a candle from a friend, and a funny little alpaca that reminds me of good memories with the girls I lived with in college. The print above (from Graceline) is one of my favorite quotes and was given to me by my best friend for Christmas! These might look like random accessories at first glance, but they all have some kind of meaning to me and it’s one of the many reasons I feel at home here!

I love how we all have little things in our home that can start to tell our story.

What are a few things you have in your house that are meaningful to you?

My Beach House Remodel

Home Entry
This is a full shot of our entryway, living room & gallery wall.  

Front Doors 
Solid Pine Knotty Adler Custom Doors with wrought iron grills.  Mexican Tile Border from Latin Accent Tiles.  #frontdoors

f

Foyer 
For our entryway, we add large pine front doors ~ My favorite part of the remodel! Rug from Anthropologie. Foyer tile from Tabarka Tile. 

Sunburst Mirrors ~ Ballard Designs & World Market.  Lamp Homegoods.  Cabinet Pier 1.

Gallery Wall

A collection of old and new photos. #gallerywall


Dining Room 

Chandelier Aiden Gray Home. #chandelier

Hallways

Family Room

Our den is a large open space and connects with our new kitchen. Features slipcovered white furniture (the ONLY way to go with kids!) #slipcovered #den #familyroom

Living Room
Slipcovered linen sofa.  Rustic accents.  Area Rug ~ West Elm

New Kitchen 
Backsplash is Tabarka Tile, white custom cabinets, butcher block island top, marble countertops.  Stools from Home Decorators.  #kitchen #remodel

Built In Subzero frigerator, Lighting over island from Park Hill Collection.


Farmouse kitchen sink from Kohler. Pendant light Currey & Co.


Eat In Breakfast Area



Hallway 

Filled with cottage armoire photos & beach knick knacks.  Diamond jute rug from Homegoods.

Master Bedroom

Closet


Master Bathroom
Sign from You & Me Signs (etsy store).  Mirrors Ballard Designs.  Sconces Cyan Design.

Linen Pom Pom Curtains ~ New Arrivals, Inc.  Wooden Curtain Rod ~ Anthropologie.  Chandelier ~ Cyan Design.
My Daughter’s Room


Jack & Jill Bathroom



Guest Bathroom



New Laundry Room

I did shiplap walls in my Laundry Room ~ Love them! Tabarka floor tile & laundry sink from Kohler.  Custom cabinets ~ handles from Anthropologie.

Sign from House of Belonging (etsy store).

Land of Sunshine Sign from New Arrivals, Inc.

Exterior


Pool

My Maltese, Harley :)

Our home is located in Atlantic Beach, Florida a couple of blocks from the beach, in the “Oceanwalk” subdivision.  Oceanwalk is a beach side community with over 250 homes and is only a bike ride away from the Beaches Town Center ~ a collection of shops and restaurants.  
See more on my website:  



Small Updates

I bought this beige/off-white table at the thrift store for $20.  I replaced the coffee table in front of the daybed with this table.  So now I can have both: home library and dining room in one.  I don’t like my dining room formal so this relaxed and mellow furniture arrangement works out for me.  In the picture below on the far right I also hung up two mirrors on each side of the french door.  I like how the door turned out.  The french door used to be my front door, but now behind that door is the foyer; the foyer is where the red front door is now.  On the very far right of the french door where you see a bit of yellow curtain is my daughter’s bedroom.  It’s rather inconsequential that I should decorate and tidy up some parts of my house one day before I leave for summer.  I like to come home to a nice and clean home.  I only did this because I am practically done with all the packing.

“Make It Pretty” and Functional:  The Modest Sunroom

Finally my small sunroom is beautifized and functionalized. It is in use so I do not over-decorate.

*pillows: thrift store; the tag says Bombay Company

*painting; the original tag still says 1990 JC Penney $190 but thrif-store price was $15 and further reduced to $3; the frame was oak wood and I painted white with some wall paint on hand

*on the left of the photo you can see my freezer

*plate on the wall shelf: Goodwill store $1.99

#makeitpretty

Favorite Corner: Kitchen/Breakfast Nook/Area

The kitchen/breakfast nook is more than just a favorite corner in my kitchen.  It has many house-to-home elements to my liking. airy space with sunligh and bay window looking out into the backyard and sunroom; built-in window seat.  The table is one of two and the main table in my house since I gave up a dining room proper.  This area is the most used in my house.  I finally took the pendant that came with the light fixture out and replaced it with a wired basket. Now there is more light in my otherwise dim life.  I recently turned a thrift-store bought bookshelf into an open hutch to shelve all of my china teaware I have collected over the years.  This area gives off an eclectically vintage, cottage, country style with colorful and bright decor.  #favoritecorner

Books + Books

At the beginning of 2014, I went through a severe decluttering phase that helped in so many other areas of life. I revamped my wardrobe, nailed my personal style and color palette, and even began helping my girlfriends rid their closets of the unnecessary.

In 2015, I discovered that I’m really someone who likes to see my favorite things displayed in the home, so I don’t fit completely in the minimalist camp. I’d like to think I’m somewhere in the middle :)

One of the greatest joys for me is seeing books lovingly stacked in all areas of a home. I dream of having a dining room with a beautiful wall of bookshelves filled with colorful volumes of fiction, memoirs, and cookbooks.

I got rid of a lot of books in 2014. I don’t think I’ll go down that road again for awhile, lol. I think books add so much to a space.

Whether the genre is home + garden or inspirational, I’d love to hear your recommendations. Thanks so much!