I HAVE FURNITURE!!!

Ladies and gentleman, we HAVE FURNITURE!!!!!!

I can't even stand it!! I actually have furniture in my formal living room!! I am still a little bit in shock, so forgive my excessive amount of exclamation points!! It has just been such a long road to get here!!

Saturday morning, the husband and I headed over to West Chester Ohio to visit one of my favorite places, the Ballard Designs outlet and the Grandin Road outlet. I am always so overwhelmed with the selection and the awesome prices. Both stores are FULL of great furniture and accessories right out of the catalog.

Grandin Road offers really great outlet prices and that day everything was an additional 50% off!! Gotta love that!! (I know the husband does!) Ballard had an additional 40% off all lighting, so along with furniture for my living room, I also scored a light fixture for my dining room!! Can you stnad it?? I can't!

Unfortunately, I was so excited and so in "the zone" that I forgot to take any pictures of the day!! I will take pictures of the furniture in the room and post pictures later this week!


I hope you all have a happy Monday!! I know I will! I plan to sit in my living room all day!!!

Fresh and Crisp

This family room is so crisp and fresh! I love the color combination of orange, brown and light teal. As I type those colors, it seems a bit odd that they would work together so well!! But they do!!! The white accents really make the room pop and the zebra print rug adds a little element of whimsy!!

I find myself drawn to orange lately. Well, its not really just lately, I did blog about this once before here. Maybe I have found my "signature color" if you will!! Sadly, I don't have one ounce of orange in my home! Maybe I should try and incorporate that somewhere??? Hmmmm....I smell a new project!!!

Do you have a "signature color" that you like to wear or decorate with???

Could You Do It??

So, as I have stated many times in my blog, I am a bit on the traditional side. (I like to call it transitional, but let's stay on topic.) However, I find myself being drawn to very unusual things lately.

Exhibit A: This bath tub which is actually some sort of metal tub. I can't imagine that it is super cozy, but it sure does look cool!! It's very rustic and somewhat "farmhouse" (and you know I am loving that lately). I also love the shower curtain and the rod that it is on.

Now, some of you will say that the room below is not that crazy. I agree, but HELLO it is all pink!! I don't know many people that could pull this room off. Especially me!! I would love it, Hubby, not so much! I love how rich and warm it is. Mixing in a really dark deep brown adds a lot of dimension and pop to the space. I think without the brown it would look to "sweet" and boring. The fabric and accessories are amazing as well.

So what do you think?? Could you do it? Could you pull off either of these rooms??

My Living Room, the Never Ending Saga

Now that the holidays are over and I can focus again, I am back to my same dilemma...MY LIVING ROOM!!!! UGH! It is quite the love/hate relationship I must say. I love that I have the space to do something really fabulous in, but I hate that I can't come up with anything fabulous to put in it!!! I have no problem doing this for my clients, but when it comes to my own home, I really struggle!!! It is so permanent and I have to live with it!! Now I really know how my clients must feel!!! Someday, I will have furniture and accessories in the formal living room, I will blog about it and it will be fantastic!!! That will be a great day!!! Oh, until then, here are some living rooms that I am dreaming about today. What rooms would you like to work on??? Are you stumped??? Let me know, I can actually help you!! Unlike myself!!! HEHE!!!

What do I do With Old Shutters???

Lately, I have been seeing old shutters everywhere! It seems a little insane to me, but they are literally all over the place. I can't escape them! I often look at them, invision them in my own home or in a clients home, but I just don't have a "place" to put them. Today I was visiting a blog that I really enjoy The Lettered Cottage http://www.theletteredcottage.blogspot.com/ and she has some great concept pictures for using old shutters. I love these ideas, so simple. Maybe I will bring some shutters home with me next time I see them!!

Designing on a Budget

I often have clients who are scared out of their minds to hire me. While I am extremely intimidating (HEHE!! I wish!), it is just silly. They feel like I am going to come into their home, and FORCE them to buy a bunch of expensive items that they don't need and can't afford. Well, little do they know, I am actually on their side! I know what it means to work with a budget and even to work under that budget. That is part of my job. My job is pretty simple, to make your home/office into the space you want it to be, and do so while following your budget. That has always been my main goal while running my business. I want to help EVERYONE achieve the vision they have for their space, no matter how much or how little they have to spend. Its just what I do!

With that being said, I have a few tips for decorating on a budget. I believe spring is the best time to freshen up a room and make it an inviting and functional space. Sometimes the smallest changes can make a big difference in the way your home looks and feels. Here are a few ideas:

1. Choose one new color for your room and pull it into slipcovers, rugs, place mats or curtains. It creates a newness and cohesiveness. Spray paint a lamp base or a picture frame the same shade to tie everything together.

2. Dress up a wall by adding a tight group of your favorite pictures. Pull your chosen color in with the matting and the frames. Vary the width and length of the frames to add visual interest and depth to the wall.

3. Make or purchase new pillow covers. They are actually pretty easy to make. You would not believe what a difference new pillows make in a space!! And its really inexpensive!

4. PAINT! Painting is one of the most inexpensive things you can do to a room and make a really big impact. Your room will look and feel brand new!!

I hope this gives you all some ideas to freshen up your space, without spending a ton of money!! Maybe this will inspire some of you for that weekend project!! Send me a message and pics of what you design this weekend!!