Mar 29, 2013

Design Challenge!!

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Have you ever seen the “White Box Challenge” on HGTV?! Do you ever watch design shows and think “I could do a better room than that!” Well, now is your chance to strut your design and staging stuff and show off your style sense to the world- and you don’t even have to fly to L.A!

Mill 77 Exterior

Next weekend, April 6 & 7, The Mill 77 Trading Company in Amesbury, Mass will be hosting its first annual Guerilla Staging Competition!

This is a two-day event, where teams of 2-4 amateur design fanatics will compete to win cash prizes or gift certificates, all to benefit Our Neighbors Table in Amesbury.  Mill 77 Our Neighbors Table

The idea? There will be a staging area set up (not necessarily a white box, more like a cleared out space, but you get the picture.)  HGTV White Box Challenge

The teams will blindly choose a category- there is a long list of potential ones, including Cats and Dogs, Vintage Kitchen Goods, Mid Century Modern and Make Yourself At Home. Then the team has 40 minutes, that’s right, 40 minutes, to run through the shop, grabbing whatever would work to tell the story and then create a themed space, using only the items available in the store! If you’ve not been to the Mill before, there are so many great things you could use to decorate your space. Room after room of everything from antique dressers and desks, kitchenware and clocks…

Mill 77 Trading Company

to vintage toys, artwork,  lighting and sports memorabilia.

Mill 77 Trading Company

The event will be video-taped and the show-stopping rooms will be photographed for publicity and online voting. You can sign up online, its only $10 per person, and remember, the proceeds go to a great cause!

Mill 77 Trading Company

I’m a member of the team “Mother Knows Best”- two moms and their daughters who love to decorate, have fun and win money : ) So sign up today for your chance to be a design star- you never know who might be watching! Have a great weekend everyone! Susan

Filed Under: D.I.M. Do It Myself Because If I Don't Who Will?, High Five for Fridays, Inspiration, The 3 R's Recycle, Re-Furbish, Re-Love · Tagged: , , , ,
Dec 16, 2012

Holidays…Naturally

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As those of you who follow my blog know, I do love a touch of bling on pretty much everything, especially when it comes to holiday decorating. This year, I decided to try a more rustic vibe using fresh greens, burlap and jute in our recently repainted family room-sooo country pretty!

Christmas Flowerpots Candles

Here are a couple of just-completed projects, as I continue to race against time to get the house in shape for the holidays! Colorful Pinecones: On a recent episode of Sarah’s Holiday Party (for those of you who are not HGTV fanatics, Sarah Richardson is a Canadian designer

Christmas Sarah's Housewho creates breathtaking interiors in everything from a secluded island summer home to a rustic pigsty), Sarah shared many holiday decorating ideas with her assistant and “quick-to-quip” sidekick Tommy. One that I immediately fell for was colorfully painted pinecones.

Photo Source: Stich, Craft, Create

Photo Source: Stich, Craft, Create

Hers were tinted in various shades of pinks and greens, but I needed to use these for family room decorations, so I went with my recently-painted contrast color, Steel Blue by Glidden. (more on that later) This is a simple but slightly messy project. First, gather all of your materials (we happen to live near conservation land, so there is a never-ending supply of fresh greens and pinecones : )

Christmas Pinecone supplies

Take a leak-proof container with a sealable top that is large enough to accomodate the pine cones you wish to paint.

Christmas Pinecone Paint

Add a paint color of your choice- about 1/2 cup, then dilute it with some water, about 1/4 cup- you just want to make the paint the consistency of whole milk.

Christmas Diluted Paint with Water

Drop in a pinecone

Christmas Pinecone in Paint on Country Design Home

seal lid, shake, (If you have ever attempted to paint a pine cone, you know how hard it is to get the paint into all the crevices- this is brilliant!!!)remove and allow to drip, then place on wax paper to dry. Christmas Pine Cones Blue  (if you place on newspaper, the cone will stick to it when dried).

Christmas Glitter

I added a little glitter while the paint was still wet for my touch of bling.

Christmas Painted Pinecones

When dry, decorate! In this case, I had an old tin bucket from the porch.

Christmas Tin Pail on Country Design Home

Added some pine boughs that Coach and I had gathered along with the pinecones. Add the colored and plain cones, some votives and you’re done!

Christmas Tin Pail Decorated on Country Design Home

Speaking of pine boughs, I needed to decorate the mantel, and staying with the natural theme, had gathered some a few days ago while Coach and I were pinecone hunting. No bling here, just tied the boughs in lengths with jute rope until I had the desired length to create a garland.

Christmas Pine Boughs on Country Design Home

Added some berries and draped it along the mantel for a fresh and natural holiday decor.

Tree is up, family room is done-the dining room is all that remains! Susan

Filed Under: Color Class, Country Pretty, D.I.M. Do It Myself Because If I Don't Who Will?, My Little Red House · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,
Aug 28, 2012

Picture This!

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Just recently watched the season finale of HGTV’s Design Star (thank you, DVR). I loved the pilot concept by runner-up Britany Simon, “Picture Perfect Spaces“. The idea was to take photographs and make them an integral part of your decor scheme. I don’t know anyone who does not have a home filled with photos of pets, families and friends, some curated into collections, some more randomly scattered throughout. Always fun to look at, bringing back memories of trips abroad, lovely weddings, fantastic parties and family. 

I am, like millions of other bloggers, an amateur photographer, with a small Olympus 35mm camera that I use for many occasions. But, more often than not, I find myself using my Iphone to take the shots that I post on my blog. The pics are serviceable, but certainly not museum quality. But then again, my home is not a museum. It is a reflection of the way we live our daily lives, surrounded by friends, families and a few furry friends.

Most of my photos are stored away-albums and boxes for the ones before the digital era- DVDs and flash drives for the more current photos. My favorites are scattered in frames throughout our home. I have often thought about displaying them all together in one space, but couldn’t really conceptualize the look I was trying to achieve. The grand scale of this framed series of photographs draws your eye beyond the fabulous white leather sofa. While the overall effect is drama, I am not certain it is the best way to display the photos.

Below are some equally fabulous ways to show off your treasured photos. Hopefully it will inspire you to create a space to share your favorites!  Stairways and halls, long and narrow,  are the perfect place for a “gallery” effect.

 It can be more formal, as the stairway above, or you can use a series of wires and brackets to create a “clothesline” effect. Cute. Neat.

A small music studio would be the perfect place to “tile” the walls with photos that are similar in size and color. A room full of vintage star pics would be a great backdrop for a concert, yes?

Color blocking is effective in creating an overall image. This green sofa is a standout paired with this wall of green-flocked images.

Black and white photos also convey a soft, unified look.

This monotone palette is effective for creating a soft, neutral, inviting decor.

Vintage can take you in many directions: multiple sizes and pictures are unified by the frames and color tones that complement the rustic pieces, the furnishings and wall color.

This room stands the test of time. Could be from a summer cottage in the Hamptons, a prep school dorm room, a young man’s retreat. Even though the background is a large scale print (yay, buffalo plaid!), the pictures are hung close together around the headboard to create a unifying effect.

Vintage can also be colorful, as shown here with the white mats and frames on the books and pictures on a dark grey background.

Oversized wall art and murals from photographs are becoming increasingly popular. They add a whimsical, personal touch to any space.

There are many companies that will take your photographs and transform them into wallpaper or giant canvases. These fair-haired girls in black and white with the pink and grey furnishings is charming and fun.

F is for funky. LOVE. Perfect for a young beautiful couple just starting out who are decorating with trash to treasure finds mixed with contemporary pieces. Multiple colors and textures are unified with one large backdrop. Not sure if I could look at a giant pic of me and coach every day…

A sporting life: this vintage baseball photo is mounted on slats, used as a headboard. Even though the overall theme is sports, the look is soft and polished with the blue backdrop. Not your typical sports room!

Stone is a natural, neutral background for hanging photographs, especially if they are tinted the same color for an overall dramatic look. This room in sepia…

This room has more colorful photos,

but they are lightened to add a soft pop of color to an otherwise unending white room, balancing the black baby grand. For a great tutorial on how to hang your photos, click here.  OK, time to quit hanging around and collect up all my favorite family photos to create my own special gallery. Have a terrific Tuesday! Susan

Filed Under: Inspiration, Moments and Memories, My Little Red House · Tagged: , , , , , ,
Aug 20, 2012

Rejected…and Dejected…

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As everyone who reads this blog knows, I am an HGTV junkie. I read the website and blog, watch all the shows and drink the HGTV Koolaid. I wouldn’t be studying interior design or writing Country Design Home if it weren’t for the inspiration of HGTV! I have learned so much about design and honed my own personal style while watching some of my favorite shows like The High Low Project 

and Color Splash. I have often wondered, along with millions of other TV viewers, “how does someone get chosen to be on a design makeover show?” Knowing that the HGTV website has a continuous “casting call” searching for homes to renovate, I checked the listings often. Only to discover, much to my dismay, that the majority of the shows are filmed on the west coast or in the NY Tri-State area. Imagine my delight, when one day, while perusing Craigslist (searching for a whale coffee table?), I happened upon a local casting call from Powderhouse Productions, based in Somerville, MA! They were searching for large-scale renovation projects in the Metropolitan Boston area where the homeowners would contribute a certain dollar amount, and then HGTV would quadruple that amount, while providing the overhaul of your space. AMAZING. Can you say BARN WORKSHOP?!?!?

So I completed the form, attached some pics of the barn and hoped for the best.  Months went by, with little communication from the film company. Fast foward to a couple of weeks ago, when I got a call from the lovely production assistant, Jenna, who wanted to know if we were still interested in moving forward with the project we had proposed. Seriously!?

From that point on, things got a little crazy, as Coach and I had to film, and then re-film (apparently when you use an Ipad to shoot video, you have to hold it horizontally) a video of us discussing our renovation proposal. I have to be honest and say that although writing seems to come pretty easily to me, being on camera brought me back to 5th grade speech class. Painful. That was submitted last week, and then the executive producer and her assistant, along with the contractor met at our home last Monday to view the barn in person and discuss our options. We left for vacation not knowing the verdict. Today we got our answer: “Unfortunately we cannot feature your space in an episode. You guys are great, and I appreciate you sending everything along; however, just due to time and location restraints we can’t move forward with you.” Ouch. Now I have an inkling what those contestants on Design Star feel like when they shut the lights out behind their photograph and say “sorry, we won’t be producing your show”. Oh, well, it was worth a try. At least we gave it our best shot. Not sure I really wanted to be on television anyway. After all, they say the TV camera does add ten pounds…

So, back to the cleaning and sorting and stacking and re-stacking. Coach and I will keep working on it, and hopefully we will be able to produce a room that will make HGTV proud! Unless there is another home network out there looking for an old barn to renovate. Hmmm. Wonder what Norm Abram is doing these days?  Susan

Filed Under: My Little Red House, Views From My Back Porch · Tagged: , , , , ,
Jun 1, 2012

Read ‘Em and Weed

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Nothing better than waking up early on Friday mornings-no work today (well, at least not at my paying job- I do, however, have a long to-do list!) But it’s just after 5am and I have a bit of time to hang out on the porch with my first cup of coffee, and a pile of this week’s catalogs that I haven’t had a chance to look at yet. Now, I love cyberspace as much as the next girl (after all, where would you read my blog?), but is there anything better than turning the pages of a glossy catalog, dreaming of far off lands or decorating for summer? This week’s stash is all about outdoor spaces:

Ballard Designs with their gracious new Southern Living Collection:

Pottery Barn- always classic designs- this one with All-American splashes of color

PetEdge (just in case I need a life jacket for the dog when we launch the kayaks, long story-hahahahahahaha!)

Crate and Barrel-simple, colorful, so fun and oh, a 10% coupon!

Penny Lane featuring the works of David Bromstad from HGTV (already ordered the Pink Frenchies for my daughter!)

Princess Cruises – Dreams Start Here is right!

So now it’s 5:45 (yup, that’s AM) the sun is up and the first cup of turbo-charged coffee is long gone. One thing about relaxing on the porch, it’s hard not to notice that the gardens are in dire need of weeding. Off I go in my PJ’s and sweatshirt, barefoot and gloveless, ruthlessly yanking weeds and overgrown perennials. Fast forward one hour, three mountains of weeds and cuttings, muddy feet and one happy frog later.

Lots to do, time to get ready for the rest of my day! If you are lucky enough to have a little time off to yourself, savor every moment, whether it’s reading by the pool or weeding the garden. Do what you love, make it count. Have a great Friday! Susan

Filed Under: Views From My Back Porch · Tagged: , , , , , ,
May 17, 2012

HomeGoods Happy : )

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I was killing time the other night, hanging around the HomeGoods parking lot, waiting for a car to be delivered. Long story. Since the truck was over an hour behind schedule, and I was already there, I figured I may as well check out the inside of the store. You know that commercial tagline: “HomeGoods Happy?”- that’s how I feel when I wander through the aisles of my local store. Now I know some high end designers wouldn’t dream of shopping at HomeGoods. Me? I am all about beauty and value. If it’s good enough for David Bromstad from HGTV (my color splash hero), it’s good enough for me! You just never know what you might find. Like this British-inspired wing chair. These French dressing mannequins.  Or one perfect seashell.

 

Inspiration around every corner.

Then I spotted the reflection of an amazing Ikat rug in this wall of mirrors! My favorite shades of blue, hand-hooked, 9X12 for $399! I thought “Jeez, I could build an entire room around this rug!”.  I decided to do a virtual bedroom-this is what happens when I have time to kill-the voices in my head start decorating! So I wandered around some more, snapping Iphone pics of items I thought would complement the rug-going with a rustic, ethnic, elegant vibe. (As a disclaimer, I will tell you the the Iphone pics aren’t the greatest, and the colors are slightly off. The rug tends more to the dark teal and grey/blue.)

This grey/blue painted, distressed cabinet would be great as a media console-TV on top, everything else hidden inside. The Trees painting was dreamy, and I thought it would hang perfectly over the bed(which they did not have at this HomeGoods, so I am improvising here) 

An antique spool bed adds a darker element that complements the the dark rattan chair. Obviously it needs a cushion, a pillow and a nubby, woven throw to make it a welcome reading nook. Found this throw at Joss and Main, another favorite online shopping place!

These sconces and mirror would give the room a touch of bling. I needed to find

some lamps but didn’t see anything that would work in my virtual room, and I didn’t have time to drive to the other three HomeGoods in my immediate area-which is what I typically would do. So I found these gorgeous rustic silver lamps online- perfect! I still had a lot more to find, but the truck finally arrived, so this shopping session was over. Now, if I only had another bedroom, so I could transform my virtual room into a reality! Anyone got a spare room they could volunteer for a makeover!?

Wishing you a “HomeGoods Happy” day! Susan

Filed Under: Inspiration · Tagged: , , , ,
Apr 13, 2012

“Ay, there’s the rug…”

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A beautiful rug can be the foundation of any space. Whether a dreamy white shag an heirloom persian passed down through generations or a modern version of an old classic, rugs can set the tone and color scheme of a room and transform a space from dark and dreary to fabulous and fun. There is no easier way to change the feel of a room than adding or changing a rug. The rules are simple, if you love it, use it. An antique oriental goes perfectly in modern decor, and a modern chevron looks perfectly at home in an eclectic, vibrant space.

We recently had the good fortune to purchase 2 new rugs for our home. The first is our new dining room rug, replacing the one that is now in our living room. (see decorating dominoes) Vibrant red and white, classic in style but modern in design, it instantly updated our dining room, creating a focal point that no one can miss!  LOVE!! So imagine my delight when a few weeks after installing this beauty in our dining room, it was featured in an HGTV episode of Color Splash! For those of you who are not familiar with delightfully talented David Bromstad’s design show, color- and loads of it-is his style. A man after my own heart.

In this episode, the makeover inspiration was an old winery. David used two rugs together to define a really large space, with loads of dark, rustic elements.

Even more delighted to discover that I had paid significantly less for my rug on RugsUSA than HGTV listed as the price from their sources. It definitely pays to be a bargain shopper : )

The newest addition to our family room decor is this amazing Zamin rug purchased from Manzel Interiors. This Danvers, Massachusetts store is chock full of hand-made rugs, furniture, architecture and accessories from Persia and India at fantastic prices.

 The description of our rug: “Zamin means earth or land in Persian or Hindi, and Zamin carpets are truly carpets of the earth. They are woven in India in villages in the eastern part of Uttar Pradesh. They are thick dense carpets, where all the weight of the carpet is in the heavy, beaten wool pile, much like an old Persian Bidjar. The vegetable dye colours are rich and saturated. The best, longest staple new Zealand wool is used, which is hand spun. Vegetable dye stuff are collected from throughout india and Nepal. Zamin designs favour the more primitive, such as Gabbeh designs, but include contemporary experimental designs classical Persian designs.”

The rug is plush and soft, the colors deep and rich, striated blues and reds. The pattern is simple but tells a story, typical of a primitive village rug. It is now in our family room, the heart of our home. When you wander in through the back door, as all of our friends and family do, this little girl and her Llamas are poised to welcome you! As I continue to share with  you more of my home, I hope that you will feel welcome too! Have a non-scary Friday the 13th… Susan

Filed Under: My Little Red House · Tagged: , , , , ,
Mar 24, 2012

Gone to the Dogs

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If you are family or a friend of our family, you must love dogs. Even if you don’t have a furry companion living under your own roof, chances are that you’re sure to encounter some muddy pawprints and a cold, wet nose no matter what or where the family celebration. In our immediate and extended families, the dog count stands at 11 and cats round out the pet quotient to 14. We are a pet-loving family, and they’re all treated to the finer things in life.

At 16 years old, Winston the Westie is our elder statesman, and following closely behind him at 14 is our rescued Lab Mutt Daisy. Nipping at her heels is Jesse, a beautiful Black Lab.We have big boys Harry (he’s visiting with his pal Milo) and Brooks

& little dogs Bucky, Bartlet and Chessy

And then there’s Finn and Astro… Adorable, mischievous and incredibly sweet.

The newest family addition is Ronan, a handsome southern gentleman recently adopted from the Animal Shelter.

Now as you can see by the photos, our dogs are part of our lives. Most of them have free run of our homes including the comfiest sofas, beds and occasional tabletops. That’s a lot of fur flying around!!! Which is why I am happy to share this helpful posting from HGTV: 9 Tips for a Chic and Pet Friendly Home from the great book Animal House Style.

The pet journalist, Julia Szabo, presents tips on how to live in a house with pets (she has a dozen!) while keeping it clean and pawprint free. An author of several books, a writer for the New York Post’s Pets column and a frequent guest on Martha Stewart Radio’s “Morning Living” Show, she knows her pet stuff! Several of the tips are common sense, including vacuuming daily- the whole house-Yikes! That’s a lot of sucking up-literally- unless you have one of those little iRobots that magically keeps your house dust and dander free. She also suggests ditching the wall to wall carpeting and using washable covers and bed linens, which I do have on every soft surface.

And how about choosing fabrics and furniture that match your pets?! For my niece Lindsey, this seems a tad impractical, since her three dogs are black and white, which would surely limit her decorating and her wardrobe! Speaking of which, I have one additional suggestion:

If you have a pet that sheds, DITCH THE FLEECE. Got that? DO NOT WEAR FLEECE & TOSS THE FLEECE BLANKETS!

Pet fur and dander imbeds itself in this fabric, and it is virtually impossible to get it out unless you pick each hair out individually. Which really lengthens your daily prep time to get out the door. So unless you want to wear that North Face hoodie looking like an old “cat lady”, switch to cotton. In a color that matches your dog. While you vacuum.

Filed Under: Views From My Back Porch · Tagged: , , , , , ,
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