Catalog Inspiration

I got a little fired up over a mail order catalog this week,  Land of Nod. Have you seen it? They've totally changed their format and it was goood funn lookin. Let's start with the first page and where I learned about a lovely new blog, lalalovelythings to add to my list and this heavenly little picture.

For all my loyal long Winter Michigan readers..."With four kids and a long winter, this swing is a really great thing" says Trina McNeilly. 

The disco ball was perfect timing as a client and I determined the ceiling fan had to go and a disco ball in its place. Their family will have a ball with it! And the swing! So fun. Sending this off to a client whose basement is large enough to hang seven of them, one for each of their beautiful blessings.

Set your sights on some super beautiful chalk art by Dana Tanamachi. Try this one at home...yes you can.

Totally digging the WHALE of a wall.

These herringbone poufs are ideal for extra seating of all ages. They have a nice variety of styles if you're in the market for a few poufs.

Little Twigs Wall Mirror is going up in a beach house client's home stat. Love its silvery gold finish.

Along with these anchor canvases for $29 each. Maybe a trio or a pair? Comes in a few other patterns too.

Can't go wrong with the "Up and Atom Chandelier" above right,  at $159. I've got to work that into a plan somewhere soon.

And last, but not least, I'm wild about these Lottie Dot Decals. They are so much fun anywhere! $24.95 for a set of 48 in gold, silver or white (hello...one of each).

Top it all off with this sweet limited edition print "The Party" for $19.95 unframed.

So head on over, with all that spare time you have this week, wink wink, and check it out.  You might just find a sweater for your light...

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you all are having a stellar day and found a bit of inspiration to incorporate into your happy home.

xx
Jen

Before and After: Client Dining Room

I'm grateful to have helped this client transform her dining room into a functioning space she can be proud of..

"I walk by and cannot believe its my house"

(Shucks).

Here's what we started with...

A lot of dead space on either side of the table and only enough seating for four or five people. Everything was on the block except the furniture and we could not paint it, as my client shook her head no with that look on her face like, yeah I know, I wish. Oh the sweet smell of compromise...

Here is the room after, however, these pictures came out looking very blue.  The color is actually "Misted Green" by Benjamin Moore and I contemplated even posting them as they are so off. The only thing that is not, is the slipcovered table. A big FYI (I promise I was never a fan of the smurfs).

We moved the hutch to this wall making room for the table leaves and additional seating.

Fully extended, the table took on much more of a presence.

This entire room started with the drapes. We were on a tight budget. SO on a whim,  I popped into Tuesday Morning and discovered these damask darlings and decided monochromatic would be the look we'll go for.

You'd never know these altar sticks were once high gloss black, the pair a steal for $19.99. I gave her instructions on how to paint them, along with some authentic looking candle trays on top to allow for larger candles and voila. When in doubt, rub a little of this on...

I really really liked the lines of the hutch doors but they we're getting lost with all the visual clutter behind them so we picked somewhat of a mod, updated fabric and lined the inside of them, in hopes the lines would shine brighter.

I had a small bit of this cheetah print fabric leftover (goes with everything) and suggested she try her hand at recovering the shades on her new chandelier, adding yet another layer. Its all about layers my friends. Keep laying it on until it feels just about right, then take one thing back (same goes for accessorizing your outfit). The chandelier we found on overstock.

Recovering the seats was a must and easy to do. We found a soft champagne/green/kinda mod/with a hint of honey found in the furniture/ fabric to try to sex up those chairs a bit. Ok, so sexy's a bit of a stretch with a traditional ladder back chair, but you know what I mean. ;-)

By moving the hutch to the opposite wall, it gave us a huge blank focal wall to play with. Ring, ring, drama called...so we filled them up with my favorite go-to mirror from Martha Stewart for Home Depot. $13.99 and the perfect champagne finish. If I had my way, I'd add six more and group them more tightly together. ;-))))

Would you believe this table we slipcovered in a muted green gray burlap, trimmed in ivory ribbon, was collecting dust in their basement...

The bay window needed something, and this fit perfectly and obviously very budget friendly. We had a board cut to place on top, giving us nice sharp corners for our slipcover and whatdya know, some new surface space to style and function when entertaining.

Teacups are to be treasured here,  so in the left corner we created a vignette with the small display ledges from Ballard Designs, which went tonally with our furniture, displayed in a diamond pattern (notice the wall color here- gray! Honestly, nice photo skills).

Wanting to bring in some more texture, against the wood, we picked up this oversized gray/blue wicker basket at Lindens in Woodstock (great little shop full of finds) and filled it with mercury glass balls and "bubbles". We also purchased a fuzzy wool throw from Target that we throw over the table, off centered a bit, and place the basket on top. I was in such a hurry that day, I forgot all about it and left it out of the shoot. Way to go Jen. But remember, when you're shopping for a tablecloth and not finding what you need, look to the throws!

One last look...maybe someday we can silver leaf the inside of that trey ceiling to match the mirrors...wouldn't that be devine?

Hope you enjoyed! Amazing what a little paint can do.

Thanks for stopping by today, make it a great one!

Cheers,
Jen

Back on the horse

Hi friends and HAP-PY NEW YEAR. Its been awhile since our last chat and candidly I wasn't quite sure where to begin. Do we dive right into our new year's dreams and aspirations? I'm sure many of you are already off to the races (giddy up). Part of me feels like I didn't give the holidays their due and would love a little review with a few "post holiday projects" (that's a new one for me). You could indulge me with another brag-on-my-design-friends post full of stellar, inspiring images because my girls are on a ROLL. Then there are all these photos on my phone, from my two visits home in December, I'm compelled to share. Major highs and...well...you know. I guess I'm a bit all over the board this first post of the year. Bear with me as I find my feet again. xoxo

Let's start with the highs...

The intersection of Mom and a truck load of great memories (a tacky convertible truck to be precise).

Garden Bowl, Detroit Rock City. A great retro exterior. Don't go changin.

Flippin thorugh an issue of Food and Wine, I came upon "10 places in America you need to drink wine right now" (RIGHT NOW I SAID) and I'll be, there was one in the D. The Great Lakes Coffee House on Woodward. It will be one of the first places I stop next Summer. The wine was off the chart and the kimchi kale chips: put em in your mouth!

(Art on tap at The Great Lakes Coffee House)

Anyone remember the scene from Royal Tenebaums when Owen and Luke Wilson are standing inside the board game closet, surrounded by all the greats? Risk, Battleship (the old school version, not that cardboard crap they have today), Life, Monopoly. I tried to find a pic from the movie (in which the game closet is well documented), so we could reminisce. Our cousins Bethanne, Stacey and Michael had a killer game closet just like it.

(what remains in Dad's basement)

I was looking for some old vinyl (Disco Duck... kidding... kinda) and came across all the ole Strawberry Shortcake Dolls. They had better days yet still smelled like huckleberries, strawberries, sour grapes, etc.  Too bad as Sophia thought they looked "pretty and cute" and wished I still had them. The detail of each doll's outfit was pretty amazing. I guess they just don't make toys like they use to (and I'm obviously getting old with the old toy references).

While digging for Off the Wall and Donna Summer, I came across my favorite pop-up books. Again, they don't make stuff like this anymore, do they?

Every Summer I ask Dad to trim the birch tree in the front yard and every Summer he blows me off. As kids we loved to peel back "the paper" waiting on my brother and sister to walk up the street from school.

Birch logs are a big yes anywhere and everywhere in your decor.

(Southland Mall: passing through a Maurice Salad and the ladies room)

Finally, some birch back in my life.This sweet little birch log martini table compliments of Lisa Gabrielson's Vintage Finds and Design and her Dad's company Natural Creations. You can find them on facebook HERE. 

a pair of these... a dream

Great light that first weekend home, driving to lunch to see family in Dundee...

 (imagine this barn wood under your pretty little piggies - would make for some gorgeous floors. Notice the weathervane peeking out up top)

 Charming Dundee, Michigan

Back home in the level pebble cruisin in Big Poppy's Lincoln down a canopied street. Trees are so pretty even without their leaves.

Almost cropped the bottom when I spotted the hood ornament: awe-some.

(why don't they make these anymore?) 


The new year has me running. A shot of some wallpapers in the running for a client...

Speaking of, this one gets top billing in my house! My sweet, designer mother-in-law Jan (the first person to take me to a design center) was a big fan of Brunschwig and Fils and it wore off on me.  Wallpapering my dining room didn't really make the wish list for 2013 but who knows, maybe that will change. 

I did however decide 2013 will be the year the shoemaker finally gets some shoes and have been marking things off my to do list around here. I have yet to have my home professionally photographed and this year is it. Starting with our guest bedroom (because its days are numbered ;-)).

So last weekend I threw on some stripes to help tie a salon styled gallery wall together and started to hang some art...

Big holiday weekend upon us. Any big plans? Still nursing a holiday hangover? I hear that. However I feel some projects coming on. Contemplating painting a colored wainscoting three quarters of the wall in my master bath this weekend, kind of like this...

The goal is "French Rustic" but with a little bling thrown in. I have some new sconces coming from Visual Comfort in their tasty hand-rubbed brass finish. It is divine.

The Vendome Sconce 

Its a builder grade master bath, meaning we haven't lit a match and blown it up, so I'm challenging myself to add some inexpensive charm. Special enough to last a few more years because the thought of renovating makes me feel prickly...or maybe its this scratchy sweater I'm wearing. Keep you posted on how it all comes together.

An inspiring table repurposed by my friends Kandrac and Kole for this year's Room Service Atlanta

We'll also be celebrating Dr. King's day on Monday. One of my favorite American holidays. I'll catch his speech in its entirety and get the usual CHILLS. Lay in bed and think, damn it, I have a dream. I dream about no more crazy guns and shoot outs in this country. I dream about high-tech carbon-neutral public schools, with roof top gardens, every kid in a school uniform designed by Ralph Lauren (when my boy went to private school he never wanted to take his uniform off after school - coincidence -nope I think it made him feel professional and good about himself), a music room full of shiny saxophones and every other instrument known to us, art rooms overflowing with supplies and technology to keep all the kids safe. All very doable if we'd just get our priorities straight.

What's your dream? This weekend's the time to think about it.

Wherever the weekend takes you, make it a great one. I'll be back soon with a colorful list of subjects: short and sweet holiday recap, my design wish list, the hottest home spreads from 2012, maybe revisit that Daydreaming post from last year, see what we achieved or look back through my phone at all the design that caught my eye. I have a feeling 2013 is going to be a wild one. Time to saddle up.

xx
Jenny from the rock