master bedroom makeover...for free!

master bedroom before

Last weekend I had an opportunity to do a fun three-hour redesign for a client. Her husband was out of town for the week, but is preparing to deploy for Iraq after the holidays. Understandably, she wanted a serene and romantic space for their master bedroom before then. The bed is missing a headboard, and the room had the unique challenge of being in a basement and therefore having a ledge surrounding most of the room. I think I turned these features into an asset by using the ledge as a headboard and having it be a staging area for candles and flowers. Here it is...

Master Bedroom after

We did absolutely no shopping for this space. We only used what my client already had in her home. We found a table from another room, lamps from other rooms, extra bedding that wasn't being used, and used flowers from her own front yard to complete the look. Wouldn't you love to see this room at night with all the candles lit? Stunning, I think.

other half of the room, before

The other end of the room was even more challenging, because my client really didn't have any bigger pieces of furniture available to create the sitting area of her dreams. Therefore, we went ahead and staged this space using what she has, but she has a shopping list for Craigslist and will be looking for a few larger pieces.

After

We took an old chair from the garage (a "project" chair that is waiting to be revamped) and temporarily dressed it up with a throw and a pillow. Even though you can tell that more furniture is needed, the space is still warmer and you can see that it is the beginning of a lovely sitting area. This is a good-sized master bedroom (what a blessing!) and my client has the following items on her shopping list for this space:

1. wood blinds - the 2" plantation ones in a warm wood finish (white will work if she can't find wood)

2. either two comfy upholstered chairs or a small love seat.. A chaise lounge, possibly with a second chair, would work as well. 

3. a small end table

4. table lamp or floor lamp (for reading)

When I first saw the space, the ledge seemed like it could be a bit of a problem child. But as I got farther into the transformation, I realized the ledge could really be a unique asset. We raided the client's kitchen for a bunch of milk bottles, since that was something she had in multiples. I feel that repetition of a simple design element is a great way to fill a long shelf or ledge like this, without the overall look becoming cluttered. The great thing is, she can put just about anything in these vases. Cherry branches in spring, flowers in summer and fall, bare branches in the winter. SO fun.

To make the bed seem more luxurious, we mixed and matched and layered linens like crazy. Thankfully, the last few times the client has bought bedding, it's all been in a similar color scheme. As a result, she has several sets of sheets and duvets that all compliment each other. I used striped sheets, a toile quilt, and a mono-chromatic patterned duvet cover layered on this bed with a variety of throw pillows. I think the overall effect is soft, inviting, and elegant.

This just goes to show that it doesn't have to take a lot of money to get a new look in your home. Sometimes just a friend with a different perspective can be the catalyst to your next makeover. Or, of course, you can always call someone like me. :-)  I just love doing this kind of thing, and I've decided that master bedrooms are one of my very favorite rooms to makeover. Usually, for most of us, it's the last room to get any attention. It should be a safe and calming place...a bit of a sanctuary...but usually, it's not! I'm on a one-woman mission to change that for America. Well, okay, at least for Oregon. Oh, all right, for the Portland area. But yes, definitely on a mission to makeover the master bedrooms of Portland, one room at a time! ;-)

and the winner is...

We assigned each comment a number, and my lovely assistants wrote down the numbers on scraps of paper. Here's my girls showing off the winning number! The winner of two sets of my custom NestInk note cards giveaway is:

Suburban Prep!


Comment #10
Suburban prep said:
"These are wonderful. I like the Contemporary Cluster for my self and the Iris for my mother. My mother loves Irises and well she has been a great help for me this summer during some stressful times."


Congrats, Suburban Prep! Please email me to claim your prize!! Thanks to everyone else who entered the giveaway. More to come!

GIVEAWAY and more lovely finds

Don't forget to enter my giveaway! Giveaway closes Monday, October 11 at midnight PST. The winner will be chosen at random from the comments.

blue mid-century chair painting by CottageHillStore

I spent time on Saturday working on a really fun redesign. A wife was re-decorating the master bedroom as a surprise for her husband who was out of town. I'm still working on getting the pics off the camera...I'll do a post about the redesign once the photos are ready. For now, feast your eyes on this loveliness, and check out these etsy shops:

"welcome" - archival art print from lovelysweetwilliam

artichoke print on vintage book page by CrowBiz

teal hummingbird with eucalyptus pillow (on sale!) by joom

Beautiful, no? Have a great week, my friend!

Fabulous Fall Finds

dripping cyan signed print by slight clutter

Usually I am not a fan of paintings or photographs of trees or forests in fall. I sort of hate to even admit this, because I feel that it's almost inhuman or something not to appreciate the colors and beauty of autumn. I do appreciate the colors, but along with them comes a deep mourning for the loss of summer. See, I'm a sun person all the way, and invariable I wish for summer to never end. I think my attitude is usually something like, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, summer's got to end, but I don't have to be happy about it!"

All of this brings me to the stunning work of Etsy shop slightclutter (pictured above and below). The photographs are gorgeous to begin with, but they have just the right amount of artistic tweaking that makes them absolutely breathtaking! These are photos of fall that I would be proud to display all year round in my home...and that's really saying something (since in general I sort of try to ignore the fact that it's fall!).

another day, another fairytale by slightclutter

Man, I'm really swooning over this tree and its brilliant leaves. It's just so magical and surreal. I really dig it.

moss green batik napkins by margotbianca

I also kind of fell in love with these handmade batik napkins. Don't you just love that color? I've included it in this collection of fall-themed things, but it could say "spring" just as easily, I think. I'm picturing these set on a rustic table, outdoors, perhaps at a little dinner party set in an apple orchard. I actually had a lady buy a huge and gorgeous candelabra from me at my yard sale this summer, and she said she was buying it for her friend who often hosts dinners outdoors in her apple orchard. Gasp! Can you imagine anything more perfect or magical in the fall? (Or anytime for that matter?)

my fall leaves no.1 original art by artofjane

This artwork really takes my breath away, particularly because it is A) original and B) 5 x 7 size (easy to frame) and C) under $10. Yep, you read it right...$10 for original artwork that's inexpensive to frame on your own! Oh. My. Goodness. I'm really smitten with the fall leaves above. The one below is gorgeous as well. 

fall is coming original art by artofjane

 deer and butterfly cupcake wrappers by masonrabbitspaperie

And moving on to the adorably cute and clever portion of today's post. Do you see those cupcake wrappers?  Is there really anything I can say about them that can add to their cuteness? I think the only thing that could make these better is having an actual cupcake inside them! Other than that, they are so sweet, I could almost eat them on their own. Having a child's birthday this fall? Why not make it a forest theme? Complete with deer, toadstools, butterflies, pinecones...you get the idea.

 cinnamon pinecone garland by sweetsomethingdesigns

And speaking of clever, look what sweetsomethingdesigns did with cinnamon-scented pine cones! Attached them to rough twine for a really simple, woodsy-looking garland that also makes your home smell fabulous. Sometimes I get tired of the over-abundance of fake leaves you see in homes during fall (the finger's pointed at me too...my own fake leaves included!) so it's refreshing to see something like this that is so organic and beautiful at the same time.   

Okay, I think I might be a little more ready for fall now! 'Cause like it or not, it's here! So I'm doing my best to revel in its beauty after all. :-)

And speaking of celebrating, don't forget to enter my giveaway!!!

no more chemo - let's celebrate with a giveaway!!!

beautiful Audrey, age six

***This giveaway is now CLOSED. Thanks so much for entering!!****

Our sweet little friend Audrey is now six years old and is in the first grade. Sounds pretty normal, until I add the fact that she has just finished TWO YEARS of treatment for leukemia! She has a clean bill of health now. I can hardly believe that it's finally over. I'll never forget when my mom called me on the phone back in July 2008 with the news that Audrey had been diagnosed with leukemia. Our hearts broke. Audrey is one of my daughter's good friends, and Audrey's mom is one of my very good friends. I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. At the time, it seemed that October 1, 2010, would NEVER get here. The end of her treatment felt so far away. But now, thanks to the thousands of prayers to a faithful God, and the capable, loving hands at Doernbecher Children's Hospital, she has completed her treatment. WOW!!

my card design called "happy"...NestInk

So, I feel like a celebration is in order! To celebrate, I'm going to give away some of custom embellished stationery...one set for you, one for a friend! There are three ways you can win:
- Please check out my shop and then come back and leave a comment telling me which style you'd choose for yourself, and which style you'd want to give to your friend.
- share about this giveaway on Facebook or Twitter and be entered to win again (leave another comment to let me know)
- write a post about this giveaway on your blog for yet another entry (leave another comment with the link to your post)

You'll have until midnight PST on Monday, Oct. 11 to enter this giveaway. So start commenting!! :-)

"iris cluster" (close-up)

And YAY for being cancer-free!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Love you, Audrey!!!! <3

corner cupboard makeover

Here's just a little project I did recently. It only took me about twenty minutes, but I think the difference is great!

corner cupboard before 

I started with this white corner cupboard. Actually, when it was first given to me by my mom, it was navy blue. I promptly painted it white and put it in the girls' playroom. Fast-forward a year or two and it took on new life in my kitchen. However, it was pretty boring and I felt it needed more color...not to mention, I have a lot of white dishes that I'd like to display, but I felt that white dishes in a white cupboard would really be BOR-ing.

cupboard after

So, I whipped out some paint I had purchased for another project, and in about twenty minutes, had a whole new look! Just one coat did the trick. Now, the white dishes really stand out more, and I have more of my favorite color (turquoise) in the kitchen now!

my kitchen

Just because I promised (and not because I'm in love with it!)...here are a few pics of my kitchen. A lot of it is somewhat in shadow...this was taken on a sunny day and the light was just beginning to really stream through the window over the sink. But, you get the idea. There's a LOT of cabinetry in my kitchen, and I love the style of it...just not the finish on the cabinets.

This is my kitchen from the other angle. You can see my "gallery wall" at the far end...the ever-rotating display of my children's artwork. It's just clothespins stuck on cables, which are jerry-rigged to the wall. I could have done it a lot more professionally, but (long story) I ended up making it happen with cuphooks and ribbons to cover the ugliness where the cables were anchored to the wall. I have close-ups of this project, but of course, can't seem to find them at the moment! So you will have to let your imagination do some of the work. (And by the way...my cabinets are not really that bright ORANGE - just that darn afternoon sunlight combined with my poor photo editing!)

Ah - there's the culprit - the one window in my kitchen without blinds (or any window treatment at all!). Why, you ask? Eh, just haven't gotten around to it. Come on, people, I've only owned the house for seven years! It takes time to do things like purchase blinds, you know?

Hmmm, tough crowd. ANYWAY...

The kitchen of my dreams would have white cabinetry, except on the island...where it might be grey or black...carrera marble countertops...some open shelving....some glass doors on a few cabinets...and maybe white or marble subway tiles on the backsplash. The whole room would be bright and clean, but with a homey, vintage feel to it. Perhaps a chandelier or two. Maybe I'll do a post on inspiring kitchens of these days. I have to confess, after starting to write this post (several days ago!) I went off looking for inspiring kitchen photos...and got so lost in all the inspiration of blogland that I never came back! So for now...you'll just have to imagine my dream kitchen. And, of course, donations are always welcome. ;-)