Chalk Paint, New Colors and Ramblings

Okay, so I'm a little obsessed with interior design.  I'm a little obsessed with style in general.  I guess it's because I really do love all things beautiful.  Anyway, so my new abode of almost two years now is a little difficult to deal with because I truly want to wack out the retaining wall that goes to the outside and add some footage onto my home.  It's driving me crazy.  I'll post pics later.  Another thing I've been thinking about is color.  You know how things go in and out of style?  Well, I do believe that greys and blues are going to become a new hit.  I have a home filled with browns, blacks, neutrals and a kick of red and lime green.



  So, what do I really like?  What do I really feel comfortable living with?  That is the question. I do know that I truly like the spanish type theme especially since I now live in the desert, in the west. I always did love that black wrought iron.

In the meantime, one word......chalk paint!  (Or is it two words??)  My daughter had an old Duncan Phyfe china cabinet with all sorts of nicks and scuffs.  She was turned on to Annie Sloan's miracle working chalk paint.  No, this is not "chalkboard" paint.  It's chalk paint. She bought a bright turquois and the wax to go with it and it is magnificent!!! I  mean, what a transformation! 

BEFORE












 AFTER


See what I mean??

I was looking at my sister's house because she sometimes asks my opinions. She has a chair that was our mother's chair.  It's pretty classic with caning and wood and upholstery.  However it's dated.  The wood is dark and heavy looking.  The blue velvet is actually a great color though, so I told her to chalk paint it. 












Can't you just picture it with a soft grey sheen?  Maybe the caning done in white?  I can, and I think it would be fantastic!!!

I found a pic on the web of a very similar chair brought up to date:


She also has my mother's old, off white, piano that I think she should chalkpaint.  Here are some examples of these types of piano's painted:




So, these few pics give you an idea of how to make a piano come alive again.


On to the next thought I've been having: color.  Are the browns, taupe's, blacks, reds and hints of lime green just plain out of style? Dated?  God help me if they are.  (Said sarcastically, but a bit of truth there!)    This is something I have to think about, ponder.  I am NOT a slave to trends, but at the same time, I believe and am convinced that a style changes is not just about all the companies in the decor business making money. I am convinced it's about art, dreams, representations of things engaging, all things harmonious.  It's just finding what that means to YOU...it's very subjective!

I have always gravitated toward what some call 'shabby chic'. 


(via home and harmony blog)

(home and harmony blog)

There is a clean, fresh, homey look to the shabby chic style.  It's a style where you don't have to be careful of knicks and scratches.  Comfort is elegant and yes, green.  Instead of getting new, redo the old and cherished.

Okay, but on the other hand, I'm obviously loving clean lines, young look, still eclectic and whimsical .


Love the above!!! Picture via Blue Clear Sky Blog











So, you see, just me looking around trying to decide what sort of style I like, I always come back to this look.  Whites, browns, blacks.  That speaks volumes and you know the saying, "to thine own self be true."  I think if I were to incorporate all sorts of colors that are bright, young and fun, I believe it would make me a little crazy.  Maybe too much for my eye to take in, I don't know.  





From Color Me Lovely Blog

The above is absolutely beautiful!  No kidding! But making it happen for me?  Not so sure. 

Well, I've rambled on and on.  I indeed, am obsessed.  Maybe it's because what I really want is to knock that damn wall down, extend and brighten with a wall of french doors in my dining room.  Who knows.  If I finally get the nerve to start on this gigantic project and IF we finish it, I'll let you know...then. 

In the meantime...enjoy and be grateful.  And trust me, I am.  xoxoxo

Is this really good bye???? December 28th, 2010

So, we have another contract on our home.....after the last one fell through. (We waited 3 long months and then had to put it back on the market after our buyer's financing didn't go through..It's a real estate jungle out there.) We found out this morning that another buyer accepted our counter.  Now for the inspection and appraisal, which is a bit nerve wracking in itself!  ANyway, will this really be good-bye to our home of almost 20 years?  Just in case, I've taken pictures to remember exactly how it looked, up until the last few weeks.  We have a closing date of Feb. 15th or before. Soooo, we'll see.  Now we have to find a home in AZ.  I'm sooooooooooooo ready. 

Below is the entry...what you see when you first walk in.  I love it!

Below here is our beautiful old dining room table.  It was free...yeah, that's right, free.  We need to find a home that will suit our table..that is a must.

Another view of our great room.  We knocked out walls...added windows......This was to be our 'dream home'. 

We did soooo much to the kitchen since we've moved in.  I do love these cabinets although they may not be the most trendy of cabinets.  I stripped them and whitewashed them years ago. When we moved here they were painted white.  They are original to the home which was built in 1969.

Our half bath has also been turned over and over from the original.  We stripped wallpaper, added a new "old" vanity. The vanity was a library table from a church in KC. 

Our master....I love it.  We have collected solid wood six panel doors over the years and now our home has nothing but those.  Quality for sure.  

My pride and joy, the master bath. We 'borrowed' a closet from the bedroom behind the bathroom and enlarged the bathroom to fit a jet tub.  We used marble on the floors and around the tub and sink, real wainscotting from an older home in KC, MO and converted a 1940's buffet into our vanity.  I sit in the tub, glass of wine and perhaps a magazine, every now and then glancing up and admiring the chabby chic chandelier.  I'll miss this for sure!!!!

This used to be our daughter's room, but is now just another guest room.

This used to be a guest room but is now an office.

I love our blue glass entry lights.

This room used to be the dining room, but we opened everything up and now it's a sitting room off the kitchen. 

I looked and looked for lights like these and lo and behold they were at Lowes. Who'd a thought????

We tried to make perfect use of all space in our home.  So, these are the steps going to our basement. At the bottom of the steps is an office area with a door to the left that leads into another large room. We use the room as another guest room. Phil's mom loved staying here when she visited from Israel.  It has an on suite bathroom with the laundry at her desposal.  When she was here we added a small fridge in the office area in case she wanted a late night snack. 

And so it is......lots of memories here.  BUT, I'll be keeping you informed with pictures and comments about our new home, which we havent' found yet.  Wish us look and keep checking.  Love it that you read this! Peace to you all and to all a good night.

Thanksgiving Makeover at Sherry's 2010

This is Sherry's living room.  Because she is budgeting, we couldn't just 'add' the dark hardwoods she wanted. But we did break the overwhelming expanse of blue and put an oriental over the carpet.  Before, the basket was not on the entertainment center.  We put it up there to add warmth and character. One of the main things we added to this room is our grandfather's (and we're pretty old) leather chest that he used to travel with as a musician.  It is almost 100 years old and was just standing in her basement. In my opinion, it was a piece of history and art wasted.  Now, it's a coffee table that exudes charm and history.

Over the sofa is something I thought was sort of cool.  We took the wooden hangers out of Grandpa's old trunk and arranged them in a geometric way.  I love this!

Sherry's family room was also displaying an overabundance of blue carpeting.  Fortunately we had another oriental to add  here. We added  family photos over the sofa.  To add some whimsey, we put a carved, wooden "Love" sign.  It adds color, and in my opinion, a young, fresh look to old family photos. Above the mantel was a picture of Christ that meant a lot to Dan.  It was really too small for above the fireplace so fortunately he let me put a most beautiful picture of Christ and mother that is an old piece Ashley, our niece gave him for Christmas last year.  Under that we put an architectural iron piece.  On the mantel itself are some beautiful pieces of pottery.

Dining room window and stained glass.  New curtains were added that add movement and a softer,  ethereal feeling.

In the hot tub room we added a crystal chandelier.  It really gives it the luxurious feeling that Sherry wanted.  It has sliding glass doors out to the patio.  We hung linen type curtains instead of the previous vertical blinds.

Wooden hangers about 100 years old.

No changes in the beautiful sunset...God is such an artist!

Love and peace to all.....