two straight lines

We have a pretty large foyer, but it doesn't get much use, because no one ever comes to our front door.  Our house is situated way up on a hill with a street directly behind it, so our back door is actually where we receive visitors.  We mainly use the foyer to access the stairs leading to the bedroom level, so it is more of a space to pass through. 

For a while I've been considering turning one wall of it into a gallery for my kid's art, and I came up with many complicated ways to do that.  I thought about installing a large pin board covering one wall, or getting a bunch of inexpensive frames from IKEA, but the simplest solution was devised by my friend Sarah.  On a recent night with my girlfriends at her house, I spied a wall that she had created with her son Oliver's  (a classmate of Elliot's) artwork.  She had taken an entire wall of her dining room and covered it floor to ceiling with his artwork, using nothing but a temporary adhesive of some sort (tape, poster putty?  I don't know, I forgot to ask her).  This, I decided was the perfect solution for our gallery-to-be.

I recently repainted the pegboard pictured to look like weathered wood.  It looks darker than that, but I painted it outside next to my weathered adirondacks, so it is in fact lighter than it appears in these photos.  Since we don't use the space as a traditional entry, I though it would be great for overflow from our mudroom.  Right now it is serving as a place to hang our beach towels, which seem to multiply by the hour.

Keep in mind that someday we will remove this wallpaper which spans from the main floor to the attic, and will replace it with a gray-beige paint similar to the colors I often paint with.  I know the gray tones of the peg rack don't go that well with the yellowish wallpaper, but for now it will have to do.  Now I am contemplating painting the bench below, but haven't decided on a color just yet.

I like the way the children's artwork tones down what could normally be viewed as a fairly formal space, and would give a visitor a better glimpse of our family than wall to ceiling damask.  Maybe I'll just divert our next guests to the foyer.

I've had the sign from Elliot's lemonade stand thrown over our upstairs banister for months in the hope that I could preserved it;  Yesterday, I finally got to it.  I pulled out a roll of clear contact paper and covered the surface of it, then tacked it above our little play kitchen in our sunroom.

Because of the internet art for children's spaces is widely available, but sometimes I think we take it a little too seriously. Often it's the items that seem like afterthoughts that add the most life to a room.  This item was made by us, not ordered from Pottery Barn Kids.  It isn't precious, and likely will be enjoyed for a while and then tossed.  Of course, with it comes the memories of the day last summer that Elliot had his first ever lemonade stand. 

A more permanent variation of this would be to use the pre-primed canvas intended for floor cloths and paint a sign that can be used in you child's room and play space--  and, for their entrepreneurial ventures.

Program notes:

You can now follow me on Twitter-- link here and on my sidebar.

I often receive emails from readers wanting to know where they can find the work of the former editors and contributors of Wondertime Magazine.  Several of these people are now working for an online newspaper called The Faster Times.  Find them in the Parents section.

I bought this bookshelf for $15 at a garage sale early last summer.  It's a sturdy old girl, and from what I can tell it was used to store cans of paint in someone's garage, or perhaps basement?  It has raised rings where the cans stood, and after I painted it black- two coats, after two coats of teal- I sanded it to reveal them.  I like the idea that it stored someone else's paint, as much as I love to paint myself. (before shot here)

I put it into place in my living room on Monday, and went up to the attic storage room to gather some things to place on it.  That, of course, was the fun part of the project.  Now I need to decide what will hang above it.  Some possibilities-- a linen pin board criss-crossed with ribbon to display snapshots and cards from friends?  A set of black and white botanicals I have yet to use?  Who knows.  First I need to remove the photos of fake people from the front of my Kolo boxes.

In the interest of full disclosure, I'll pan out to show you our table littered with my husband's expense receipts and work bag.  See that old bowl on there?  That was my father-in-law's gold pan, as in "panning for gold."  He's a native of San Francisco.

And another view, the armoire where we keep the family's games and some throw blankets-- formerly the hiding spot of the television.

I always hate starting a post with an apology (almost as much as I hate reading them)-- but here I am again apologizing for this long and unexpected absence.  I was so proud of myself for posting weekly throughout the summer, and just when I was about to reach the end of it, I up and deserted this spot.

We packed a lot into the last weeks of summer--  I made three trips to Indianapolis, first to see my ailing Grandmother, again for her funeral, and back for a whirlwind trip to see a family member having some tough times. We visited two zoos, the Indianapolis Children's museum, some towns along lake Michigan, and made a few trips to Ann Arbor, all while readying Elliot for Kindergarten.  I did some thrifting, consigned (bought and sold) some of my kids clothes, and painted the largest room in my house.  And my husband took several business trips in there too.  Wow, just reading all of that makes me exhausted!  It's no wonder that after the first week of school I nearly collapsed from exhaustion and missed my family reunion.

Last week, I produced my first craft for my new guest spot at B:Kids, one of my favorite blogs for and about kids.  It should be up this Friday, so please check it out.  It's a fun back-to-school craft that your kids could do with your help, or you could even do as a little gift to them.

This week I've managed little more than painting Elliot's radiator cover with chalkboard paint, something I think could make every room a bit nicer.  I've been painting things with it since way before I had kids (if you live at 6 Dwight Street in Boston's South End, you may have my first chalkboard paint project) and I'm crazy for the stuff. 

Every radiator in our home has a cover, but for some reason the one for Elliot's room was in the basement and in tough shape, so this week I painted it up and we're quite pleased with it.  The finish matches perfectly with his steel Parson's bed.  It inspired some bedtime doodling last night complete with a quick game of tic-tac-toe between Elliot and Scott.   (shhh...Elliot won)

Next on my list?  I'm going to paint a bookshelf from a garage sale and a table from a thrift store.  I will post when these projects are completed.  What are you filling your extra time with for those of you whose little ones have gone back to school?

I'm finally getting a chance to join in on Molly Irwin's Thrifty Thursday, sharing some favorite thrifting finds.  I've mentioned before that the thrifting gods have been good to me lately.  Well, they have been really good, and I can't wait to show you some of my recent scores.

Recently, I found myself wanting a few new pieces for our master bath.  Nothing I had seemed just right.  It's a small bathroom, barely fitting a double vanity, toilet and shower stall in the tidy little space.  The former owners did a great job making it look like it's always been there with vintage-y cream colored cabinetry and hex tile on the floor.  It reminds me of a hotel bathroom, with fittings I wouldn't choose (brass faucets and green marble) but actually enjoy using.

So, on a recent thrifting trip I happened upon this bird print in a wood grain frame and a faux bois planter (both on the same trip, I think) I knew they would be just the thing to make this little bathroom feel like home.  I planted two tiny plants in the planter (baby's tears), placed it on the back of the toilet, and now I love the little jewel box of a space even more.  I'm sure down the road I will paint the bathroom, but for now I'll enjoy it just as it is. 

 

Happy Thrifting! 

More detailed photo of the bird print here.

I have a long-standing love affair with paint-- the kind you put on the walls of your house, not on a canvas.  For the greater part of the last ten years, during which we've owned five different houses, I have been picking out paint, dreaming about paint, or actually painting.  Even here on my blog, questions about paint would top any FAQ list I would compile. 

I believe in buying top quality paint.  After all, the labor is the biggest expense when painting.  Even if you're doing it yourself, your time is worth a lot more than the price of a few gallons of paint.  Prepping, painting and clean-up adds up to many hours of work no matter the size of the room.  In the past I have used brands such as Benjamin Moore, Sherwin Williams, and Valspar (which is often a top pick by Consumer Reports).  In recent years we have been careful to choose low-VOC varieties which are safer for the environment, and even more important to me, safer for my family. 

One thing I didn't realize is that when companies label their paints as low-VOC, they are most often referring to the base, the can of un-tinted paint that they pull off of the shelf.  But, a lot of the VOC's are added during the tinting process, so the paint you end up with may not actually be low-VOC after all.

For the past few years, I have had my eye on the specialty paint company called Mythic Paint.  I must admit that their well-designed ads and packaging were the first things that caught my eye.  But, when I read about the company, their message, and most importantly their products, I was even more charmed.  Unlike many "environmentally friendly" paints that you will find on the market, Mythic Paint has no VOC's, yet they are still able to produce incredibly durable paints that come in a full range of colors and finishes.  While doing some online research, I found that Mythic was in fact the top rated no-VOC paint.

Recently I got the chance to try out the Mythic Paint products.  Yes, Mythic shipped me 2 gallons of eggshell paint in the color of my choice (Westie White) to try.  The verdict?  The paint was thick and creamy and rolled on beautifully.  I needed to reload my roller often, which if you have painted a room, you know is a good thing.  It means the paint is going on in nice thick coats which equals less work.  I personally am of the school that every room in every paint color requires two coats of paint.  It just looks better and is worth the effort.  But, this paint is as close to a one coat paint as I've ever encountered. 

And the most important part, the smell was barely noticable.  I didn't have to worry about keeping my children away from the odors.  In fact, the windows in our dining room don't have screens so were closed during the whole process.  I only had to open the nearby bathroom window to take care of the very low odor that there was.  My kids, especially Elliot, are very sensitive to chemicals and it made me feel a lot better that I wasn't harming him in any way by using this paint.

If you decide to take on a painting project in the near future, I highly recommend giving Mythic Paint a try.  Nothing makes a more dramatic change, for fewer dollars, than a coat of paint, and you'll breath easier (couldn't help it) knowing the health of your family is not being compromised by the products your using.  It's just a bonus that Mythic is just as durable and beautiful as conventional paint products.

You can find a local source for Mythic Paint here, and if it isn't carried anywhere in your area, you can order it from Mythic directly and the shipping is included in the price.

My post about painting my dining room is here, and there are additional photos on my flickr page.

So, I finally got my dining room painted last week.  I somehow eeked it out in one day with a lot of help from my husband with juggling the kids.  The harder part since then has been getting some decent photos of it.

I think its funny how photographing a room makes you examine it so much closer--  where the light falls, how it changes throughout the day, how the paint can look five different colors in different spots around the room at the exact same moment.  I usually sort of rush through life, and this process slows me down a bit...sometimes slower than I would like, of course.

The paint color is called Westie White, and I must admit is much subtler than I had planned.  I felt the main paint color in my last home was too dark for the long and gray Michigan winters, and chose a shade for this room that was one shade warmer but about the same depth as a favorite paint color I used in a previous home of mine.  Well, on the walls in this house, in this light, it looks much paler than I remember the other one.

I would have to describe it as a chalky white, or the palest Dove gray, or the color of moonlight if you don't imagine that being yellow.  It goes well with the things I have in here, a little shabby, a little worn.  I'm glad I chose it for this room and not a main living room, but here, with our new light fixture, it sort of glows, adds a quality to the light that I didn't plan, but quite like.

And, the light fixture is one you may have seen before.  It's from Restoration Hardware.  When my husband happened into a RH Outlet recently, he called me to see if I was interested in any light fixtures, and I said that I had always loved these, but would not be willing to pay that much for it.  When he arrived home later that night he had this one which he found for about 60% off.  He was also able to buy new lights for several other places in our house at amazing prices, so if you can find yourself an RH Outlet, I highly recommend it! 

Stop back by in the next few days for a product review of the paint I used for this project.  I also have one last project planned for this large blank wall, so keep an eye out out for that as well.

More thorough photos, including a before, found here.

It must be a Friday afternoon thing, peeling wallpaper.  The kids were home all day just like last time.  One thing lead to another and the next thing we knew, we were ripping off the kitchen wallpaper gleefully.  Even Lucie got in on the action.  Can't say I like this blue much better, but at least I'm one step closer to the bright kitchen I imagine.

PS- Thanks for the house love.  I'm quite smitten too.  There's a lot of work to be done (just surface treatment thankfully), but I feel like I'm "home."  I also wanted to say that I by no means mean to make fun of the previous owners decorating choices, and don't want anyone to feel bad if you like the stuff I'm removing.  The previous owners created themselves a lovely home here, and it was through their loving care of this old house that I saw her potential.  It's just that our things don't go at all with the current style.  So, we're stripping her down to the more spare quality that we love.

These aren't the best photos, but I may never be able to get any with good natural lighting because this area of my house is rather dark.  This week-- April 1, yes I am a fool-- was my birthday (37, thank you)  and I got myself a few treats, including this Babette Doll which I absolutely adore.  I am not the biggest collector of softies, but Babette is my favorite.  I love how French she looks.  I am a major French wanna-be (actually I am French, my maiden name is DeMoss), so this is just perfect for me.

(That's the reflection of my kitchen in the TV, see the terrariums back there?)

And I finally filled some embroidery hoops that I bought on Ebay many months ago with Joelle Hoverson's new line of fabric Cake Rock Beach.  I was so pleased when it arrived today, I bought this print as well as the companion dot in two colorways, and it is really gorgeous.  I want more, but will leave some for the rest of you.  Here you can see a few of the changes that I've managed to implement in my family room.  I've painted the mantel black, put some Denyse Schmidt throw pillows on the chairs, and some of you spied the DS quilt on the back of my couch a while back.  Now I just need to slipcover the ottoman with some tobacco colored fabric I bought a few months back.  Why does that seem so difficult?  I don't know.  I'll give you some more shots of some other changes soon, including a ladder to the left of the fireplace with three wool throws. (that I conveniently bought for my family for Christmas, how's that for multi-tasking?  Call me Homer Simpson).

Have a great weekend...

(PS- a few posts back a few of you asked about my fridge magnets.  I made them by printing large numbers on Kraft paper and putting them through my Xyron)

I'm not really sure if I'm showing you this because I want your advice or because I want to make myself accountable to actually decorate this room, but either way, here goes.  We have lived here for over two years, and this room is still a hodge-podge of random stuff.

Let's start with what's working.  The couch is khaki and the two chairs are sort of a cream with a grey ticking stripe.  The rug is a heathered wool "cable-knit" carpet (made by Ralph Lauren) which I had bound as an area rug.  All of these are neutral and in good condition.  The console table on the left and the nature shelf above it are also staying.   There are some large botanical prints behind the couch on either side that are working for me-- see here-- that's one of them.

What isn't working.  I can't stand the color of the large square red leather ottoman.  When we bought it we were using more reds and teals, and I'm hoping to go in a more green/ teal/ brown direction (see these throw pillows here).  So I purchased quilting fabrics over a year ago to make a quilted slipcover for it, and for some reason find the idea of it completely overwhelms me.

Now my biggest complaint about this room is the fact that the amount of space on either side of this rather nondescript fireplace is not equal (the window starts to the right of the Christmas tree).  I can't for the life of me figure out what to do with it.  So, in Cheap Idea #432, I bought this "leaning bookcase" and tried to balance it out with these Ikea frames (Cheap Idea #433), but the main problem is that I have no idea what to put on these silly shelves, or in these silly frames.

What I've learned.  I think I want the artwork to remain in the black and white (or maybe I should just say neutral) color range, I find I tire of it much more slowly.  I lean heavily towards botanicals and birds.  I'm also feeling the folksy trend.  Did you see this photo on Bloesem, oh my.

I want the main pops of color to come in the form of pillows on the couch, throws on the chairs, and whatever I cover the ottoman in-- which as I type I'm thinking would be nice in a patterned wool, maybe some pockets on the side (see, you're helping already).  I would also eventually like a quilt for the back of the couch (Denyse, could you send one over?)

I'm willing to lose the ottoman entirely if I could find some little floaty stool/table things.  And the Ikea frames, I'd loose them too, or just find something nice to put in them.  I'd also like to paint the mantel (see inspiration below).  But, I still have no idea what to put on those shelves.  I could cover the books, games in colored paper, or I thought about making a collection of colored bottles like this.  I could also paint or somewhow cover the red "R."  I'll put some inspiration shots below with notes below them.

So, any advice?  You guys don't have anything else to do, do you?

Love this mantle.

Denyse Schmidt, Hable Construction, Weeks Ringle, need I say more?

I've shown this before, nice neutrals with greens and blues.

Help, please.