Four Things Friday

May 25, 2012 3 Comments

Yay, it’s Friday! And, even better…it’s a three day weekend! What are your Memorial Day plans? Remember to thank a veteran and remember those who have given their lives to allow us to live freely in this amazing country!

Here are some fun things I’ve found around the Web…

1. These stairs go along with my earlier post about mirrored backsplashes. I’m obsessed!

2. I hate to camp, but this makeshift tent looks so comfy and relaxing. Maybe I’ll set one up for myself to read under this weekend.

3. One of my favorite cities in the entire world is Charleston, South Carolina. I LOVE this print. This print is by Julia Rothman who makes fabulous prints and illustrations for a variety of publications.

4. These flowers make me super excited about summer coming around the corner.

Photo from A Country Farmhouse

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Great Gift Idea!

November 29, 2011 Leave a Comment

As the holiday season rolls around, it’s always stressful finding and giving meaningful gifts to your loved ones. For the past few years, my family and I have given money to various charities in honor of our loved ones in place of material gifts. It’s an awesome way to promote a good cause and to learn about ways you can help in your community.

A recent article in USA Today described the United Service Organization’s (USO) Wishbook website, which is an online catalog where anyone can make monetary donations towards purchasing gifts for active-duty military personnel, wounded veterans, and their families at Christmas.

Since my project focuses on giving back to veterans, I thought it was important to highlight this innovative and exciting gift idea. I hope you’ll join me this holiday season in honoring our soldiers and veterans by donating to this amazing project!

Click here to find out more!

Filed Under: Charitable Giving Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Design Look for Room Number One

November 28, 2011 Leave a Comment

As I collect furniture and other home décor items for my rooms at the veterans’ home, I realize I want to have five distinct looks for each room. I’ve picked out accessories for three of the rooms, and I’ll use these as inspiration for completing the entire design look for the rooms. I’ll need your help, darling readers, to decide what the other two rooms should look like!

Red Color Inspiration for Side Tables

It’s important to find one or two items (like a colorful lamp or fun   painting) that will then help you to decide on future decorating choices, such as paint colors, fabrics, and artwork.

For the first room at the veterans’ home, I found this awesome print of jazz musicians in an old jazz lounge, and I’ve based the rest of the room’s décor around this piece. I want the mood of the room to be like a swanky, old hotel where you could run into Duke Ellington in the lobby.

I don’t have a headboard for this room, so I’m going to take these old records I found in my grandfather’s storage unit, spray paint them a glossy black, and line them up as a faux headboard. I think it’s the perfect complement to the jazz theme!

Red and Black Color Scheme

I found some great side tables, but they are in need of some lovin’ via a new coat of paint. I’m thinking a glossy Chinese lantern red would be perfect! There’s also a dresser that I’ll be refurbishing, but that’s going to be a surprise!

Stay tuned this week for the themes for the next two rooms….

Filed Under: Charitable Giving, Color, Decor Tagged With: , , , ,

Finally, it’s time to begin!

November 15, 2011 Leave a Comment

First Bedroom in the Two-Bedroom Unit

Drum roll, please! I’ve FINALLY gotten the green light to start nailing, painting, and decorating my rooms at the veterans’ home. I’m so excited to begin this amazing project! For the past couple of months, I’ve been collecting furniture (my parents’ garage looks like it should be featured in an episode of TLC’s Hoarders TV show) to use for my veterans.

These are the two bedroom units I’ll be decorating. The wall colors will stay the same, but besides that, everything else is going to change! I want these veterans to walk into these rooms and feel instantly welcomed and comfortable. They have done so much for our country, so I’m determined to make their space the most beautiful, warm, and comforting place possible.

I think my favorite part of these spaces is the beautiful hardwood floors. I think I’m going to use a small area rug underneath the bed so that the vets have a warm place to put their feet on when they get out of bed, but I won’t cover up more than that.

Kitchenette Area Shared by the Two-Bedroom Unit

It’s going to be a challenge to find furniture that will be both aesthetically pleasing and functional. I’m on the hunt for a small circular table that can serve as a desk and dinner table.

I’ll also need an inexpensive way to provide coverage for these windows. Any ideas? I thought maybe using valances and then venetian blinds, but I hate to have anything that looks cheap and last minute. If y’all have any suggestions about inexpensive window coverings, I’d love to hear!

These pictures are to show you what I’m working with. This weekend I’m going to sketch out a rough floor plan so that I can get an idea of how much space I’m working with and where I should think about placing the furniture. Look for a post later this week about the furniture I’ve gotten so far and what I plan to do with it!

Filed Under: Color, Decor, Furniture for Small Spaces, Project Progress Tagged With: , , , , ,

Four Things Friday

November 11, 2011 Leave a Comment

Happy Friday, y’all! I hope y’all have the best weekend, and don’t forget to pay tribute to all the amazing men and women who have fought and continue to fight for our freedom!

1. Jenny, the author of one of my favorite design blogs, Little Green Notebook, is participating in the I’m a Giant! Dollhouse Challenge. It’s such a neat idea and a fabulous way to work on something together in the blogosphere!

2. This is such a neat way to make your appliances look more chic. This material is so inexpensive and really easy to apply! It’s instant glam!

Photo from Conspicuous Style

3. These tufted poufs are stylish and a great way to provide extra seating. I think I’m going to find some in more manly colors for my veterans project.

4. My sorority sister, Whitney Curtis, has an amazing home decor, garden, and lifestyle blog with great DIY tips and beautiful photographs for project inspiration. Check it out: The Curtis Casa.

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Project Progress!

August 29, 2011 1 Comment

I’m so thrilled about a project I’m working on this fall. I told y’all in June about the Ocala Ritz Veterans Village, a transitional housing facility for homeless veterans. I’ve been given the opportunity to decorate both a one bedroom and a two-bedroom unit at the facility, and I’m so excited!

One Bedroom Unit (Excuse the mess!)

Construction work is ongoing, so I can’t get to my rooms quite yet, but I was able to take pictures of the spaces so y’all could see what I’m working with. Furniture and other household items have been donated, so I’ll be combing through four storage units full of furniture to find the pieces I need for my rooms. (I’ll feel like I’ve died and gone to heaven when I see all that furniture!)

I’ll refurbish the furniture so it fits in with my overall design scheme. The space is pretty small (think 12’ by 14’) in the two-bedroom unit, so the room has to serve as a bedroom, study, and dining area (a kitchen unit is shared). I’m up for the challenge, though!

Bathroom Area. (And Ruby, the project's mascot!)

Since I’m decorating for men, I’m sticking with a color palette of navy, cream, grey, khaki, and hunter green. The occupants of the room will change every six months, so I want to make sure I have durable, easy to wash fabrics that can withstand some wear and tear. The rooms here are some of things I’m using as an inspiration board for the project.     

Cozy, Dark Room. Photo from Maggie Rose Online.

Soft Grey Color Palette. Photo from First Home.

 

Filed Under: Charitable Giving, Color, Decor, Small Space Decorating Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Exciting New Project!

June 11, 2011 Leave a Comment

Hey, y’all!

I hope this finds you having a fantastic start to your weekend. I wanted to let you know about a special project I’ll be working on this summer: I’m helping to refurbish and re-decorate an old hotel in my hometown, which will then become a temporary residence for homeless veterans.

Ocala Ritz Historic Inn, Photo from Hotel-Online.com

The Ritz Historic Inn, an 85 year-old building near the heart of downtown Ocala, will serve as a transitional housing facility for 50 veterans.

 

The Ocala community has generously donated furniture, bedding, wall decor, and other room accessories in order to make each room a welcoming, warm dwelling for each veteran. The awesome people of Volunteers of America Florida have made this project possible.

 

I’ll be posting pictures and updating y’all on my progress on the project throughout the summer. It’s such an amazing honor to be able to give back in a small way to these men  and women who have given so much to our country.

If you have any design or decor suggestions for me, let me know!

For more information about this project, please visit their Facebook page.

Filed Under: Apartment Makeover, Decor Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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