Ooh La La

I am proud to be an Arkansan.  I may live in Texas, but I'm not a Texan.  I'm an Arkansan.  I love to feature fabulous talent from my home state.  At the top of the list is Bear-Hill Interiors, a Little Rock-based boutique and interior design firm.  Here is one of their projects.  Don't you agree that it's completely divine?  And, the fact that I'm in love with purple right now makes my crush that much stronger.  Check it out~

{all images via Bear-Hill Interiors}

My Favorite Artist - Amanda Talley

I've told you before that one thing on my house "bucket list" is painted brick.  Another is an Amanda Talley original.  I've lusted after her paintings since I saw the first one.  Amanda Talley is a young artist based out of New Orleans.  You should all know her name.  Here are some of my favorites~

{above images all from http://amandatalley.com/}

Happy Weekend!

Evolution of a Living Room

UPDATE: Two commenters asked for the sisal rug source.  It's actually from CSN--now Wayfair.  I can't find the exact rug, but I think after a 20% coupon and free shipping I paid about $160 for it.  My kitchen and dining room sisals are from Overstock.  The Overstock rugs are acutally heavier.  I will order from them next time, and I recommend them more.  Overstock rug links here and here.  I wouldn't hesitate to buy either of these again.

We moved into our Texas house in July 2009.  This is a listing photo of our living room in our Arkansas house.  It was cozy~

Then we moved to Texas where everything is bigger.  This is the same furniture (plus, the previous owner's leftover gold panels) in our Texas house circa Christmas 2009.  Ha!

The first thing we did was order a set of club chairs at the beginning of Crate & Barrel's fall 2009 upholstery sale.  The husband and I agreed that he could choose the chair, but I got to choose the fabric.  I did steer him a little, but he ultimately chose the chairs.  We ordered our chairs in September.  They showed up in the middle of Janaury. 

Lesson #1: If you order custom furniture from Crate & Barrel, be prepared for to wait. 

Lesson #2: Don't make decisions that make your husband hate Crate & Barrel. 

Then I lost my mind.  I decided I wanted I wanted a modern club chair.  I chose Bassett's Fleming chair, which I still love; however, instead of getting the fabric I originally chose, I decided the room needed some flair and chose a loud fabric.  Sometimes when the husband is suddenly in a buying mood, I make stupid decisions.  The chair arrived...  I loved the chair, but it completely clashed with the kitchen paint and rug.  Now they had to be painted and replaced.  Boo.  Dumb me.

Lesson #3: Never order a loud fabric pattern without seeing a fabric swatch in your room and thinking about it for at least 3 days.

Lesson #4: Don't paint your kitchen sage green when blue is your favorite color.  You'll only have to repaint it a neutral later.

Next, I ordered a set of framed prints from art.com...they're currently for sale on Craigslist.  No joke.  Then I worked from home one day with David Bromstad's color splash on in the background.  Suddenly, I decided that I needed color.  Enter the accent wall.  I also bought a new coffee table.  It was on sale, though.

Lesson #5: Don't order online art if you question it at all and it's not returnable.  Really, don't buy anything that's not returnable or feasibly returnable.

Lesson #6: Color Splash looks good when David Bromstad does it.  Not so much when you do it yourself.  Just say no to the accent wall.

Lesson #7: Don't buy something just because it's on sale.  Find what you want and wait for it to go on sale instead.

And, this is the point that I called Emily.  Her immediate instructions: (1) paint the brick on the fireplace; (2) paint the accent wall back to it's original color; (3) start looking for a rug; and (4) buy a console table to put behind the sofa--bring the sofa further into the room to make it cozier.

Lesson #8: Hiring a reasonably priced interior decorator or commissioning an online design board will only save you from yourself.  In the long run, it's much cheaper than contining to make design mistakes. 

So, I got my paint brush out and un-color splashed myself.  Then, Bob Villa--no wait, it was just my husband--built a huge console table for me.  Love him!  Then, I took myself over to Overstock.com--why do they try to call themselves "O.com"- it's not their name--and ordered myself a rug (with Emily's approval, of course).  Although in the end, I changed out the rug, it made such a huge improvement in the room.

Next up was the great debate.  To paint or not to paint.  That was the question.  I said yes.  He said no.  After not so subtly sending my husband random pictures of painted fireplaces for 2 months, he caved.  I also painted the interiors granny apple green.

Lesson #9: Persistence is key.  This applies to all aspects of life.  Everyone eventually gets tired of listening to you whine.

I had the sunburst mirror in my entryway.  We moved it to be the centerpiece of the mantle.  It was too pale, though.  Enter spray paint.

Lesson #10: Diamonds are a girl's best friend.  Spray paint is her second best friend. 

Next, I added some dramatic lamps to the console table to frame the living room wall.  I knew what print I wanted, but I was waiting for it to go on sale.  See Lesson #7 above.

Then, the polka dot chair moved up to the game room and our old Pottery Barn Brooks Chairs got moved back downstairs (or as my husband would say, they got called up from the minors).

Next, I added my bamboo blinds.  Love them.  No lesson learned other than I love them.

Then we finally bit the bullet and ditched the carpet.  Some people like carpet, some don't.  Some warned that it was dumb to add more wood with three dogs.  I didn't listen.

Lesson #12: If you keep your dogs' nails clipped, there is no reason you can't mix dogs and wood floors.  You will have to sweep a lot, though.

So, then I was at that point.  The fork in the road, if you will.  This was a good living room, but I wasn't in love with it.  Do you settle or marry for true love.  I married for true love.  Time to keep tweaking the room. 

Then came the art~

The room still seemed too heavy though.  I have no way to describe it other than "too heavy."

After lusting for banded drapes for months...seriously, months, I broke down and ordered the fabric and had them custom made.  This was a huge deal for me.  Made me feel more adult than signing mortgage papers did.

To make the room feel even lighter, I sold my impulse purchase coffee table and my rug on Craigslist.  Becuase they were in such great shape, I made enough off of them to completely cover the cost of my new coffee table and rug. 

I have sisal rugs under my dining table and my kitchen table.  I love them.  And, I love that they're cheap.  I ordered another for my living room.  I wanted to layer my rugs, so I ordered a cowhide from Cowhides International.  I've ordered from them before and love them.  You can choose your exact cowhide from their website.  If you've got questions, call and they'll pull the rug and answer your questions for you.  And, they're the most affordable source for good cowhides that I've found.  Love them. 

I knew I wanted a gold metal coffee table.  I couldn't find one in my price range, but I found this silver one at IO Metro. 

Lesson #13: Spray paint is now a girl's best friend.

Then, I added this awesome Schumacher Zimba pillow from Etsy seller Lab Designs~

So, here we are today~



How did your living room evolve?  Did you do it all at once or was it a slow, progressive effort? 



Rome Wasn't Built in a Day- Living Room Updates

If you've followed the blog for a while, you know my biggest ongoing project is our living room.  I've been working on it for almost a year now taking things step by step adding furniture and accessories as my budget permitted.  Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was my living room.  It's not finished yet...but it's getting there.

Last year I got to a point that I was so frustrated with trying to manage the space.  I completely failed to make it cohesive.  So when my husband went out of town on a business trip, I invited Emily Hewett of A Well Dressed Home over to give me some advice.  I wanted to remain very involved in the design, but I needed help.  And, I'm just sneaky like that. 

Later that night when my husband called, I confessed that I'd had company.  He asked who, and I tried to soothe it over by simply explaining that a girl around our age from Dallas who was starting her own design business came over to give me some advice about the house. 

He quickly summized, "So you hired an interior designer without discussing it with me?" 

In my effort to maintain my status as a good wife, I corrected him.  "You could think of her more as a rug finder...an accessory guide, if you will.  And, her name is Emily."  He was aware of my burgeoning design blog addiction.  This should have come as no surprise to him.

He followed up with, "Seriously, Jenny.  A 'rug finder'?"  And that was the end of our conversation.  His silence was consent.  And, so the journey our my living room really began.  Emily was such a pleasure to work with--I highly recommend her! 

When your husband moves you away from all of your friends and family only six months after you get married, it's really amazing what you can get away with.

For today I thought I would show you the current state.  Later this week, check back and I'll take you on the evolutionary tour.  You'll be thoroughly amused.  I promise.

Without further adieu~

I must learn how to use Photoshop...  And, that white chair desperately needs a pillow.  It's so naked!

Non-Traditional Home - High End DIY

I guess I'm really focused on features from recent shelter magazines this week.  A while back I received my July-August copy of Traditional Home.  I loved the cover house so much that when I initially did a quick read of the magazine I skipped over this house~

{all images via Traditional Home}

It's the Cultural Arts Alliance Designer Showhouse in Alys Beach, Florida.  Different designers took on each room.  You can see full pictures here.  I never would have guessed that multiple designers worked on the house; it's a very cohesive design.  What caught my eye were a few of the design touches in the living room, which was designed by Susan Massey. 

Take a closer look at the window treatments.  They're hung using simple u-hooks placed into the wall; they are usually used to hang items from the ceiling.  Then the designer ran twine/simple string down to attach the drapery panels.  This gives the room such a cool look, and it's definitely something you could DIY.

Now, take a closer look at the suspended bookshelf.  It just two pieces of rope connected to additional u-hooks and knotted under each shelf to hold it in place.  What a cool way to display your art.

These are two really high end looks that you could definitely bring into your own home at a very reasonable cost.  Have you see any ideas in your magazines that you brought into your own home?

The Greyhound

Another dog often found in design is the greyhound.  The greyhound is an elegant, sleek animal with a long, rich history.  A tenor that many designers want to carry over to their spaces~

{above images via decorpad.com}

And, a post about greyhounds wouldn't be complete without adding a pic of Sherry and John's hound~

{image via younghouselove.com}

Now that's class, people!

I've been looking for a print to hang over the sofa table behind my couch for a while now.  Shortly after the first of this year, I found a print at Ballard Designs that I liked, but it was at the very top end of what I wanted to spend plus I would have to pay shipping on it.  So, the search began and ended very quickly.

I found the same print at I.O. Metro, which has two stores in my area.  It was the same price as the Ballard print but at least I wouldn't have to pay shipping.  I shop at I.O. Metro pretty frequently, so I knew they did sales from time to time.  Usually those sales only apply to one type of product, though, so I had to wait until the art sale came along.

Finally, a few weeks ago, art went on sale for 20% off for the weekend.  I called my store.  They had the print and said they would put it on hold for me.  Here it is in our living room.  It's propped for now; I'll probably hang it this weekend.

I'm so excited that the wall is finally filled!

But, the funny part is that the print is 54" x 54".  I was talking to the sales girl at the counter before I paid. 

Me: Now this will go in the back of our SUV won't it?

Sales Girl: Sure.  Unless it's a 4Runner.  I have a 4Runner, and I've tried.  It won't fit.

Me: Shit.  We have a 4Runner.

Sales Girl:  Well, we can Saran-Wrap it to the top.

Next thing I knew...

We're so classy!

If you aren't familiar with I.O. Metro check out one of their stores or their website.  They carry lots of great, modern products at great prices!  They also have a great blog!  The company was founded in my home state, Arkansas, and has slowly expanded across the southeast part of the country.  They recent brought on Vern Yip as their celebrity endorser!  Check them out!  And, they have art and mirrors on sale for 20% off right now!