NEW PROJECT

I've been working on a few new projects and this one is starting to take shape.

It is a huge family room with great natural light and tons of space to entertain.

This young family entertains often and wanted an updated space that was casual and comfortable. 

Here is the plan.....

This is the room now.... 

The plan is to lighten up the space with a green/gray paint color, 

paint all the trim white and replace the carpet with this..... 

The sectional is covered in this fabric.

The fireplace will be getting a makeover too.  

Molding and trim will be added to the top and go all the way to the ceiling. 

The entire thing will be painted white and the TV will be mounted over the fireplace.

It will look similar to this.... 

We are still trying to decide between the two fabrics shown on the plan for the window treatments.

We plan to do a little furniture rearranging, add a few new pieces, 

bring in some art to liven up the space and create a gallery wall.

I am so excited to see this room come together. 

Once a few more decisions are made, things should progress quickly 

and I will be sure to post after pictures.

And completely off the topic of decorating, my husband and I 

went to a fundraiser this past weekend and the theme was "70s". 

Here we are rocking our "70s"attire.  

The dress belonged to my mother-in-law back in the day.

We had such a groovy time! 

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MY FAVORITE COLOR COMBO IN ACTION

My latest project was really fun to work on because we basically started with a blank slate.  

My clients have remodeled and decorated their entire house, 

with the exception of their master bedroom.

When I met with Mrs. J., she was open to changing everything about the room. 

Their style is traditional yet fun.  I wanted the overall feel of the room to be cozy, but still vibrant. 

Here is our plan.....

The plan consists of the following:

- This bed from Sundance will be replicated by a carpenter 

- Add some warmth to the hardwood floors with a rug 

- Put a cool color, SW Topsail, on the walls to help tone down the warm colors in the fabrics 

-  Bring in a solid wood dresser 

- Paint one of the existing dressers and the nightstands 

- Add a large mirror over the bed and a gallery wall with family photos to another wall

My client is quite talented and will be doing all of the sewing herself 

and she will even be reupholstering an existing chair.  

I can' wait to see this plan come to life. 

This was my inspiration.....

I told you this was my favorite color combination.

These colors just make me happy!

Hopefully I will have some very happy clients when this project is complete.

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VINTAGE LANTERN

Last week I stumbled upon this lovely vintage lantern in the thrift store for a measly $5.00. 

The poor little thing was sitting way up on the top shelf with dust all over it.  

Even though I had no idea where I would use it, I felt compelled to rescue it. 

Once I got home, I walked around my house with the light in my hand,

searching for the perfect spot to house my new treasure. 

I got to our master closet and stopped.  Bingo!  

Our closet has been begging for some attention since we moved in.  

Here it is in its current state.

It is certainly not a huge space, but we were determined to be able to fit our laundry room 

on our second floor, so we had to skimp on the closet space.  

I have been working on purging in my closet. 

I am trying to keep only the items I wear on a regular basis 

(which would really only be workout pants and a fleece). 

Fortunately, we have a separate shoe closet in our bedroom.  

If we tried to cram all of our shoes into this closet also, that would be a problem. 

 I decided to put together a little inspiration board for our master closet. 

I don't plan to make any major changes in the space, but I do want to make it more inviting.

          1.  I will start by panting stripes on the wall behind the dresser. 

               I will be using Sherwin Williams Kilim Beige for the stripe color. 

          2.  The dresser itself will either be painted cream or switched out with another 

               dresser currently living in the garage. 

          3.  The new light will be the focal point.

          4.  I will be converting this old window into a jewelry display.

          5.  I will be wwitching out all of our mismatched hangers with wooden hangers.

          6.  I will be adding wire baskets for more storage.

I plan to start on the project this week and hopefully by the end of the month, it will be complete. 

The start of a new year always makes we want to purge, rearrange and freshen up. 

I will be joining the January Before Party at Shine Your Light.  This is Lisa's brilliant idea. 

You can link up a project  you want to tackle at the beginning of the month and then she will have an After Party at the end of the month so you can link up your completed project.  Talk about motivation.  

Let's hope I can stay on track and get it completed by the date of the After Party, January, 27th.

You can still enter the giveaway for a Cutting Edge Stencil.  Go here to enter.

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COMING ALONG

I told you about this exciting new project at the beginning of December.  It is coming along nicely.   

Most of the painting has been completed and the fabric ordered.

One of the projects I was anxious to see completed was the addition of fabric

 to the backs of the bookcases. 

We wanted to achieve the look of grass cloth wallpaper, without the high price tag. 

My client ordered the blue grass cloth like fabric for $4.00 yard 

and covered thin foam core board she bought at Hobby Lobby.  

She simply removed the shevles from the built-ins, 

pressed the foam core board up against the backs and re-installed the shelves. 

This was such an easy transformation that can be changed in a flash. 

Just to remind you, this is where we started. 

I stenciled a wall in the foyer last Friday.  It turned out great.  Pictures to come and a giveaway too!

Stay tuned.......

If you are interested in having me put together some fresh ideas for your home, 

you can contact me here for the details.

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Savvy Southern Style

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AN EXCITING NEW PROJECT

My latest client contacted me and was interested in freshening up the first floor of her home.  

She had a list of things she wanted to change, but was unsure about how to pull it all together. 

Our starting point was the beautiful chocolate brown sofa she and her husband had just ordered.

The one thing she was sure about was incorporating the color blue into the plan. 

After meeting with her and two out of three of her adorable boys, 

it was clear that a fun, casual and comfortable space is just what the family needs. 

Keeping all that in mind, here is what I came up with.

1.    Fabric for dining room drapes

2.    Fabric for family room window valances

3.    Fabric for kitchen window valance and large lumbar pillow for couch

4.    Fabric for kitchen and dining room chair cushions

5.    Stencil design for foyer

6.    The backs of the family room bookcases will be covered in grass cloth like fabric in this same blue

7.    Wall color (BM Putnam Ivory) for family room kitchen

8.    Wall color (BM Wedgewood Gray) for foyer, with the stencil design done in BM Putnam Ivory

9.    Side table for family room

10.  Bamboo blinds for entire first floor

11.  Storage for toys and books

Here are a few before photos. The plan will be implemented in stages 

and the family room will be first in line for a makeover.  

Stay tuned for details about the stenciling project and some after pictures. 

If you are interested in having me put together a plan to refreshen up your space, 

feel free to contact me here for details.

I'll be focusing my attention on sealing up the "money pit" this week.  

It's been raining non-stop and we have water coming down our chimney, 

leaking through our slate roof and coming up from the floor in the basement.  

Oh, the joys of owning an old home.   

Anyone else about to float away?

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DINING ROOM REVEAL

I finally have a reveal for you.  This dining room got a complete overhaul.  

Brace yourself for picture overload. 

The walls were painted a beautiful shade of blue (Benjamin Moore Smoke)

 and wainscoting was added to the room.

New curtains were added. 

We added some art from Homegoods and two wine racks from Ikea.  

We opted for this nice thin console from Ballard Design 

and then added the mirror, lamps and some fun accessories. 

These prints were ordered from Etsy and the frames came from Ikea.  

They add just the right pop of color the room needs 

The dining room chairs were painted black and recovered in a lovely green fabric.  

A pillow from the same fabric was added to the entry bench.

A new light fixture is the focal point of the room. 

We added this fun bulletin board above the bench.

I made it using this great tutorial from Emily at Jones Design Company.

Just to remind you, this is what the room looked like before we started. 

My client is thrilled with the outcome and she is looking forward to showing off 

the new dining room to her family when she hosts Thanksgiving dinner next week. 

Here is the design board I created for the dining room. 

If you are interested in having me help create a beautiful space in your home, contact me here for details.  

Hope you all have a great weekend.  We will be in full Thanksgiving prep mode here. 

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OUTFIT INSPIRED ROOM

As I was wasting spending time, once again, on Pinterest over the weekend, I came across this outfit.  

I  already admitted, in this post, that I'm not the best at putting outfits together.  

I love the color combination of this outfit and my mind immediately went to interior design 

and how perfectly these colors would work together in a room.  

source

So I wasted spent some more time putting together an inspiration board using the colors from the outfit.  

I had entirely way too much fun doing this, so it looks like you may be seeing more of these in the future.  Anyone want to send me an outfit to turn into a room?  I think it would be a fun challenge.  

If you're up for it, e-mail me your favorite outfit and I will put together your outfit inspired room.  

In case you are like me and need a little fashion inspiration, Pinterest is great for that too.

Send it to dsurrey@fuse.net.  

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MASTER RETREAT

I have been working with a client to help create a master retreat.  My client has three small children and she and her husband want a place where they can escape to at the end of the day, relax and enjoy a little peace and quiet.  This design screams, well, let's say whispers, peaceful.  The walls of the room were recently painted Benjamin Moore Gentle Cream. It's a lovely neutral color that will serve as a great backdrop for the room. The soft color palette is calm and soothing.  

I can't wait to see this design come to life. 

Speaking of designs coming to life, this design, I recently showed you, is almost complete.

I met with the client today.  We shopped for accessories and then we put the finishing touches on the room.  We are waiting on a few final details and then I can show you the after pictures.  

Here is a sneak peek. 

There is only one coat of paint on the wainscoting in this picture. 

Don't worry, it got a second coat and it it looks amazing.  

I'm looking forward to showing you the completed project very soon!

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REVAMPED DINING ROOM

My latest design project was fun and challenging.  My client e-mailed me and asked for help with bringing her dining room back to life.  They have lived in their beautiful home for quite some time and the dining room has remained virtually untouched since they moved in.  They want a casual dining space where they can entertain occasionally.  The challenge came with trying to work with the mission style dining table and chairs they already own.  Their home is very traditional on the outside and casual on the inside.  A lovely combination, in my opinion. I wanted to make this room feel inviting and energetic, without having to stick to shaker style decor.  

This is what I came up with....

This is what their dining room currently looks like.  

They were tired of the old wallpaper and wanted some fresh colors in there.  

The table, chairs and rug will be staying put. 

The kitchen is just through the door to the left. 

The dining room is open to their foyer and has lots of natural light.  

Changes to be made:

- The side chairs are going to be painted black and the seats recovered in the fun green fabric.
  The two captain's chairs are going to be slipcovered in a linen like fabric.

- Waisncoting will be added to the bottom of the walls and painted white.  This will continue into the
  foyer as well.

- The walls will be painted a lovely blue color (Benjamin Moore Smoke).

- The light has already been moved into the kitchen to make way for the fabulous burlap drum pendant.

- The windows will get new treatments with beautiful panels and bamboo blinds.

- A small narrow console table will be added to the wall just to right of the kitchen door to serve as a
  buffet.  Matching lamps and a large circular mirror will be added above the console.

- Art from etsy will adorn the huge blank wall (where the white mirror is currently located).

The client has already started implementing some of the changes.  I can't wait to show you the after pictures.  She has a goal of Thanksgiving to get it all done.  I love the idea of giving yourself an end goal.  I know it would help keep me on track.

If you are interested in having me create a fresh, new look for your home, 

please email me here for the details. 

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LITTLE BOY ROOM

My latest design project involves turning a guest room into a little boy's room.  My clients want a space that their son can grow into, so nothing too babyish or themed.

The walls in this room were painted just recently so they wanted to keep the walls the same color.  It's a lovely blue, Benjamin Moore blue hydrangea. They also recently purchased some black bunk beds and they will going in the room.

This is what I came up with.....

1.  rug
2.  wall color (Benjamin Moore blue hydrangea)
3.  fabric for large floor pillow & bed pillows
4.  fabric for window panels & large floor pillow
5.  wall art (already owned by client)
6.  inspiration for dresser that client will paint
7.  pillow for bed
8.  lamp for dresser
9.  alphabet cards to string up around perimeter of room

This little boy has the most beautiful smile and the best personality.  I really wanted his room to reflect happiness.  The bright colors and playful patterns scream HAPPY to me.  I love the traditional buffalo check paired with the more modern yellow print.  My clients love it too and they are excited to turn this design into a reality.  Can't wait to share some after pictures with you!

Have a happy Thursday.  We've crossed two kids off the "strep throat" list.  Both are well and going back to school today.  Yippee!!!

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