One Room Challenge :: Week 2

Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by Minted. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own!

This week in ORC land, it was all about the gallery wall!

If you asked my husband for one of my worst qualities, he'd probably say my indecision.

In high school I had big dreams to become an interior designer, and luckily for myself and others that didn't happen because all of my clients would have unfinished spaces. Oops! I knew I wanted to move our family photos to our loft space and replace them with fine art, with a few family photos mixed in, but I was overwhelmed at the options.

Enter: the sweetest Minted Art Stylist, Cherie.

In case you're unfamiliar, Minted offers personal art styling for those of us that need a little boost in our decorating skills. There are a lot of perks besides not having to wrack your brain for the perfect art combination or spend hours looking through all of the pretty fine art options.

As part of Minted's art styling process, you receive 2 custom concept boards, 2 additional revisions, a full rendering of your wall with each option provided (for visual people like me this helped a TON!), and a 20-25% discount plus free shipping on your purchase!

You aren't required to buy everything, in fact to keep our gallery wall within my budget I opted to buy just the art and use my own frames for a couple of the prints.

To start you take a fun, quick quiz telling them what space you need art for, what your decorating style is, and the color palette. I think I selected contemporary, classic, and vintage if I remember correctly... this seemed to fit the overall Modern Farmhouse style I am going for.  Then I emailed Cherie an image of the wall and the exact dimensions she was working with.

And here is the perfection that she came up with...

 

Honestly she nailed it. I loved every piece of art, the subtle hint of blush in some of the pieces, and the mix of frames. I had my heart set on art shelves, but the second option she provided was so gorgeous I almost opted for that instead! Seriously how sweet is that Mother's Embrace print?

Here was option 2:

I asked her to tweak a couple things, like add a mat to the Parisian Windows print, and she sent a new rendering of the wall so I could see how it would look. I happily approved, so she sent me final hanging instructions and all of the details I needed to place my order.

I can't wait to share more progress next week! In the meantime my next to-dos are to find some bamboo shades to add texture, replace the rug, and find pillows that are toddler friendly (i.e. machine washable).

If you have any questions about the personal art styling process, feel free to reach out! I highly recommend it for a perfectly tailored gallery wall if you're stuck like me! Thank you so much to Minted for working with me on this space!

Now I'm off to get inspired by the other ORC projects!!

One Room Challenge Week 1: Before Photos and Inspiration

6

One Room Challenge :: Modern Farmhouse Living Room

I've been dragging my heels on finishing our living room for SO long, its almost embarrassing. It doesn't need a major overhaul but a refresh with this thing called styling will go a long way considering how much time we spend in this room! So I thought what better time than the One Room Challenge, where I actually have to meet a deadline in 6 weeks?!  

If you're hearing from Calling it Home, welcome! I hope you stick around!

 So here are the before photos....

Not terrible by any means but it just doesn't look finished. Here are a few of the big things I think this space needs:

- Our ceiling light doesn't work so that needs to be addressed or replaced

- Accent pillows. Lots of them

- Some kind of greenery. I have a black thumb AND a toddler so I'm totally going with a faux plant in here

- An updated gallery wall with a mix of personal photos and fine art 

- Replace the rug that somehow looks white in this photo but its actually super gross and worn out after having a dog, toddler, and husband trample on it for 2 years 

- One accent chair or two? Or just a different style?

- Floor lamp to hold us over when the ceiling light stops working

- The whole thing needs a bit of styling

 

I love to add hints of the farmhouse style but I really like it to be more of a clean and modern farmhouse look mixed with classic furniture.

Sofa. Coffee Table (DIY here, or similar). Pouf. Basket. Key Art Print. Paris Art Print. 

Faux Fiddle Leaf Fig (really want this one, or maybe a shorter version). Accent Chair.

Floor Lamp. Throw Blanket (similar). 

So there you have it! Any thoughts for mixing classic with modern farmhouse? I don't want to go too over the top with farmhouse but I also want it to be fun and relaxed!

 

6

Easy + Subtle Valentine's Day Decor

This post was sponsored by Minted. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own!

I know, I know, Valentine's Day decor isn't a priority for a lot of people.

But hear me out, because there are so many ways to add a little bit of festive to your home without having tacky heart cutouts everywhere.

Although if its a school project from Rowan, give me all the tacky hearts! Bonus if they have my son's smeared hand prints all over them.

Plum Target Print via Minted

If you've been around long enough you know I like to do a little bit of decorating for each holiday, its just my thing. Especially now that Rowan is starting to understand holidays, I think its so fun to add a subtle art print or garland around the house!

By far my favorite ways to make our home festive and add a little pop of color to our mostly neutral space are adding pillows, throw blankets and framed art prints. After Christmas I felt like our entryway table really needed some help... its really long and I always struggle to decorate it without making it either too cluttered or too empty. So I finally decided to try out layering some frames on our mirror and I love how it turned out!

This Plum Target print from Minted's Valentine's Day collection is so perfect because it includes pinks, purples and a neutral grey for Valentine's Day but you can also repurpose it after the holiday in a half bath or laundry room that needs some love! Minted's French farmhouse frame is so pretty if you're going for a transitional or farmhouse style, but it would also be perfect with a modern champagne silver or black frame.

I layered it with a little art project I did with Rowan over the weekend using a potato stamp and paint! By the end Rowan was just finger painting (which is basically inevitable with toddlers and paint, right?!) and I love the combo of the two so, so much!

I also have Rowan's little playroom decorated with heart garland on the book shelves and teepee. He loves the hearts and counts them every time we play in there. I'm pretty sure he takes the garland down and hides it daily, because I find it in the most random places along with a few blocks or Dory figurines he ditched at the same time. Toddlers!

Here are a few of my other favorite Minted Valentine's Day prints that bring a subtle but pretty Valentine's Day theme to your decor! I think these would also be so cute as a gift! Make sure you order by February 1st to get it in time and use the FREESHIP code!

Day in Paris Print. Come Together Print. Peony with Spring Flowers print.
Plum Target Print.  Forty Six Key Print. 

Does anyone else decorate for Valentine's Day or do you give your littles a gift? I picked up a few things in the Dollar Spot for Rowan, but his birthday is a few days before so he'll be spoiled enough as it is!

3

Christmas Around Here

It's so hard to believe there are only 4 more sleeps until Christmas! This month has flown by and I've tried to make a conscious effort to soak in all of the craziness.

But you know you've reached bad blogger status when you are posting Christmas decor this late. Oops! I had plans to do this sooner, but as some of you may have seen on IG stories yesterday, I've been dealing with some back problems for the past month and sitting in front of a computer longer than I already do for my day job was not an option. Thankfully I think I'm finally on the mend, which is great because my 30-pound toddler didn't get the memo that mommy can't hold him all of the time!

Anyway, on to the fun stuff! Usually I decorate with a lot of reds but this year I switched it up and I love the little change! I mean, aside from the garland that dried out about 2 weeks ago and the Trader Joe's wreath that somehow smells more like body odor than evergreen?

I think we may have bought one of the biggest Christmas trees on the lot this year. We loved it so much but failed to take into account our 9 foot ceiling so it sort of felt like a Griswald tree once we got it in the house. "It's all part of the experience, honey."

Rowan has done surprisingly well with the tree, knock on wood. We put all of the toddler-friendly ornaments on the bottom and he has about 5 that he takes on and off which is fine by me!

I'm really missing a fireplace mantel again this year but our tv stand is tall enough that its a decent alternative topped with some live-ish garland!

The car pillow just might be my favorite new addition... I was trying to find one that I liked everywhere but ended up adapting Lisa's idea by cutting the car from this placemat and ironing it on a white Ikea cover using this method.

If you follow on Snapchat, yesterday I shared a quick real life tour. You know, the kind that shows all of the junk and toys dispersed throughout the living area that you shove into a closet before taking the pretty photos!

I have Rowan's room and the guest room decorated a bit, but there is zero hope in making those picture ready. Maybe someday I'll get it together!

Hope you've all have a fun Christmas week!

5

Guest Bedroom Reveal + Annie Selke Giveaway!

This post was sponsored by Annie Selke as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.

I'm so excited to finally share our guest room makeover! This room has come such a long way after this post... we painted the tan walls, added beautiful white bedding with lots of texture, and hints of Charleston to make it feel welcoming for our family and friends.

While I've always loved our farmhouse metal bed and antique dresser (which was originally in Rowan's nursery here), I think I'm most excited about the bedding. Between the bright white, subtle ruffles on the duvet, and textured coverlet, the style and comfort-level is exactly what I was looking for in this room.

When I saw this ruffled duvet in the Annie Selke catalog I knew I had to have it for this room! It picks up the farmhouse style without being too frilly.

I'm still not sure if I want to put a curtain up on that awkward window or not, but this is definitely the layout that makes the most sense in this room!

The coverlet and euro shams are so soft and add some texture to the bedding. I also added DIY watercolor floral pillows, made from a cloth napkin, and added some tassels to the striped lumbar pillow which I already had.

This Anne Selke peony candle makes the room smell amazing! I don't think I've ever had a candle make the whole room smell this good without lighting it.

I love this room so much, I can't help spending time in it now! The light is amazing and with the white bedding its the brightest room in our house. And thankfully we finished just in time for a visit from Grandma while we head to Hawaii!

If you're looking for new bedding, I highly recommend the Annie Selke brand. You've probably already heard about Dash & Albert, but Annie Selke's other companies like Pine Cone Hill are some of the top brands for bedding and home decor.

Though the price is on the higher end, its so worth it for the quality! Plus if you sign up for the Annie Selke email newsletter here you can get 15% off of your first order!

Or enter below to enter for a chance to win one of 3 Annie Selke gift cards, each valued at $500! You have until October 25th to enter, good luck friends!

Annie Selke Giveaway

10

Modern Farmhouse Dining Room Inspiration

Almost two years into home ownership, and 5ish years since we started to rid our home of hand-me-down college furniture, I feel like I'm finally getting a grip on a decorating style that works for us.

I love the farmhouse trend but I have fear of commitment in the decorating department, so I think my dining room inspiration gives us a really good mix of the rustic meets classic style. Also known as Restoration Hardware.

Obviously shopping there for something other than a Christmas ornament is a no go.

But I've found some really good Restoration Hardware knockoff looks that I think will be perfect for our space, keeping it classic and beautiful but also interesting.

Sources:

ColorWatercolor Floral Watercolor Art Prints 

Home Decorators Jacques Oval Side Chairs (Similar here, here, here, and here. I also really love these!)

 Home Decorators Aldridge Dining Table (Similar here, here and here. Also love this lighter wood version)

 Antique Farmhouse Wine Barrel Chandelier (Similar here, here, and here)

 Boxwood Centerpiece

 Paint Colors: Sherwin Williams Simply White and Benjamin Moore Pale Oak

Those beautiful watercolor art prints are framed and ready to be hung, you guys they are so, so gorgeous. Hand painted on canvas and definitely the nicest piece of art I'll ever own. Do yourself a favor and visit Joanna's shop, ColorWatercolor. She is so sweet and talented and there are so many beautiful floral options! I went with the cotton because it will always remind me of living here in the South.

With just the painting left to do on our dining room, I can slowly feel this room coming together. Up until now its been a garage of sorts for Rowan's numerous vehicles, strollers, and snack crumbs.

I know a formal dining room isn't for everyone, but if you've been around here long enough you know my love for holidays and entertaining runs deep so I can't wait to see the finished product!

P.S. Has anyone seen the new Magnolia Home rugs? All the heart eyes!! 

3

Guest Bedroom Progress

Hi friends. It's been a while!

While I found myself diving headfirst into projects around the house, in a desperate attempt to finish all of the little things that have been nagging at me, this sad little guestroom has been a total struggle.

I think the rug is throwing me off because I'm stumped about accent pillows and adding more color to this space.

We finally painted the room a bright and very pale green, Spare White by Benjamin Moore. It's safe to say I'm loving it! Such a stark contrast from the angry tan which is still in 3 more rooms of our house. Ah!

 

I picked up this mirror from Target a couple of weeks before they came out with a bigger circular mirror and I'm still kind of kicking myself for not exchanging it. I do love the bronze-gold color though which is a theme I'm trying to stick with in the details of the room.

Andddd that's basically it. The double door closet annoyingly takes up a lot of space opposite the bed so this is the best configuration we can come up with.

I don't know, y'all. I'm drawing a blank! HELP!

So here's what needs to happen in this space:
Some kind of artwork above the bed
Accent pillows (Leaning toward a floral I think)
Ditch that lamp and replace with prettier ones on the nightstands
Drapes (thinking DIY french pleat with tassel trim)
Replace the mini ceiling fan
Style the heck out of the picture frames and tray

Any and all suggestions welcome!

8

One Room Challenge :: Playroom Makeover with Built-Ins

Today I'm introducing you to our hot mess of a playroom.

Behold, in all of its unkept, bland glory.

When we moved in to this house I knew this space was going to get some use as it poses significantly less danger for my wild and crazy toddler than the wood floors, steps, and nicer quality furniture in our downstairs living space.

But its really freaking boring and there is zero lighting in this room at night. Which means after putting Rowan to bed I trip over and step on the loudest toys ever on my way to the steps.

Since we don't have enough spaces in the house I want to redo (you know... that series I mentioned and haven't touched yet), I'm adding this one to the top of the priority list! Every week for 6 weeks I will be sharing progress of our playroom makeover by joining tons of other creative bloggers in the One Room Challenge hosted by Calling It Home. So fun, right?!

As with every DIY project we do, we'll take our low budget and beginner DIY skills and hope for the best!

So here is the plan:

DIY Built-in Window Seat with bookshelves - I've clearly lost my mind because we've never done anything like this before, but here in my inspiration. I doubt we'll do cabinets, just all open shelving so I can throw a basket or two in there.

The cutest toddler chairs and table 

DIY Growth Chart like this  

Add a light

Add some color with these adorable Minted alphabet and number prints, and a fun banner

Add a chalkboard, art supplies station like this 

Ditch the ugly couch (we'll replace it eventually but we really don't sit on it much right now)

I'm not even sure if all of this will fit in the space, so if anything the chalkboard area can be ditched because Rowan is only 1 and will eat any and all chalk. 

Here is a peek at my horrible drawing skills.

If the built-in shelving and crown molding trim goes well, we think it would add so much value to the house and help majorly in the organization department. The kicker is, we play in this space every day after work so keeping it kid friendly while in construction is going to be rough. Because you know, we move at a snails pace around here!

We've got a contractor friend on speed dial for advice and I'll be sure to share all of the highs and lows with you along the way.

If anyone has completed a built-in project like this before please share any insight you've got. We'll need all the help/motivation/wine we can get!

See more of the vision for the playroom here and the DIY projects we'll be using as a guide here.

And in case you're interested, scroll through some of my favorite projects we've done so far here! 

9

DIY :: Square Photo Display

If you've been around here long enough, you know I'm a sucker for an easy DIY project. I don't have a lot of time for them lately, but I've had tons of requests for a tutorial for this photo display from Rowan's first birthday party and I figured it was time to share.

I loved this photo display because it was a little different than what you see at most parties, it can be used for any of your photos (thinking Instagram photos would be so fun!), and I could glam it up with a little eucalyptus garland.

I have to share a little secret though...

I made it harder than it should have been.

So this is one of those "do as I say, not as I do" posts.

What you'll need:
Dowel Rod
Thread or some sort of thin rope
Square photos
Tape (regular or washi tape)

Determine how long you want your dowel rod to be and cut to size. Craft stores have them at varying lengths but mine was from Lowes and needed cut.

Lay out your photos and decide how you want them to be arranged.

Cut rope or thread for each of the columns and the top portion that will be used to hang your display. Tie these to your dowel rod.

Here's where I screwed up... I used hot glue to attach the photos. Like a dummy the tape never occurred to me and let me tell you, washi tape is way easier. I added some to the backs just to give you a visual.

If you want to add a garland like I did, just cut a bunch of stems and attach them with floral wire or the same thread you used if its not noticeable.

If you're a stickler with details you may end up having to hot glue a few stubborn leaves to the garland. My mom thought I was crazy doing this but I'm such a perfectionist.

And that, my friends, is all there is to it! If you end up making this be sure to email me or tag me on your photos, I'd love to see the finished products!

7

New Series: Weekend DIYs

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was going to be starting a new series on the blog so its finally time to spill the beans! I'm so excited to finally be getting back to one of my favorite parts about this blog, DIY projects!

And in case you ever think your house is a complete mess, go ahead and bookmark this post so you can come back to it and instantly feel better about your current living situation. 

It's been a while since I had time for holiday DIY projects or coerced my husband into building a coffee table, but with so many things on our new house to-do list my goal is to knock one project off every couple of weeks. While it would be fabulous if we could hire someone to do this for us, we're on a budget and I have (probably too much) confidence we can do it.

I should probably point out that we are still beginners when it comes to DIY projects around the house, in fact it took us 3 hours to comprehend IKEA instructions for a baby gate last week. Which is still not installed by the way, ahem....

Anyway I hope this series will inspire you, give you a few laughs at rogue projects that don't go as planned (there are bound to be a few in this bunch), or help if you're planning to start a similar project of your own.

First things first, we have to discuss some of said projects! There are many, many small projects like replacing the kitchen faucet that did not make this list but here are the biggies with the horrifying visuals.

Guest Room: Paint

I have been going back and forth on this room color but finally decided on Sherwin Williams Spare White. It's got the slightest hint of green in it which I think will pick up some of the colors in the rug and go well with the dark bed frame and gold details. Now I just need to find the time to paint! That dinky fan needs to go too now that I see it photo bombing this picture.

Guest Room 2/Rowan's Big Boy Room

This room is a hot mess and I can't even believe I'm sharing this photo. It's currently serving as storage obviously but it has gotten slightly better since I took this photo. The previous owners thought it was a super good idea to paint a very dark navy on alllllll of the walls, so who knows how many coats of primer and paint it will take. I want to do a board and batten statement wall like this on the wall where you see my sad little sewing machine set up.

Office: Organize

I am normally one of those people who always keeps their work space immaculate and organized, but right now it is so far from it. I've got first birthday projects everywhere, random Target Dollar section purchases on the floor, a gallery wall to hang, etc. It's bad. At least its painted and has a pretty light fixture!

Laundry: Paint + Add Cabinets 

Pretty self explanatory, nothing fancy but it could use a face lift with some prefab cabinets. 

Dining Room: DIY Wainscoting + Paint

This room has lots of potential and I think the wainscoting will add a lot of value, plus a good coat of paint will cover up whatever the eff the previous owners had going on with these walls. It also needs a new light fixture, curtains and curtain rods... just to name a few. And hey, maybe someday we'll even furnish this space!

Not pictured but something we'll most definitely hire some help with are painting our kitchen cabinets white and redoing our half bath. I just know those are not doable projects with how hectic things can get around here!

So there you have it, our project list in all of its messy, unfinished glory.

If you have any words of wisdom or suggestions for dining room paint colors, send them my way! I'll keep you all updated on our progress every couple of weeks!

9