If there’s one thing I feel more and more as the years go by, and as I raise my son and watch him grow, it’s that LOVE makes the world go round and so much sweeter. As much as I enjoy keeping up with my girlfriends via text messages and all the funny notes we exchange back and forth, there’s still something special about receiving a handwritten note. It’s a tangible expression that you care, that you went the extra mile to say, “I’m thinking of you.” Don’t get me wrong- texts, emails and calls can convey the same sentiment, but it’s so nice to get something other than bills and junk mail.
There was that time I tried to paint stripes on polyester fabric and just when I thought it was going to be a total disaster, to my surprise, it turned out pretty well. (Thanks to my Instagram friends for encouraging me on!) Here are my newly painted striped curtains hanging in my office.
You might remember that before I painted the drapes, they were originally just black.
I researched how to paint fabric and read that you add Textile Medium
to Acrylic craft paint, but one site said you could use acrylic latex,
I’m often asked about the paint colors used in my home and wanted to compile a list so you (and I!) have them all in one place. All of the paint is by Sherwin Williams- it’s what our builder used and I’ve been happy with it, so I stick with it. Of course, it’s difficult to get a true reading of a paint color over the internet. Sometimes I edit my photos to make them brighter which may distort the color, but I’ve tried to pick the photos that depict the way the color looks to my natural eye during the day.
When I painted wide stripes in our entryway, I loved the result, but thought they looked a little bit out of place with just the one wall painted. Continuing the stripes around the corner and under the staircase might have looked too busy, but I’m actually loving the result! It’s awesome when you finish a project and are immediately pleased with the outcome.
I started by repainting the entire wall it’s original color (for touch-ups and to start with a clean slate). Having only painted the entry wall previously, my husband leveled, drew, and taped the lines for the two walls under the stairs.
Are you ready for a super quick and easy DIY project? A faux hydrangea floral wreath is in order! I made it with just a couple of inexpensive items and it took about 15 minutes to put together.
You can find the flowers at any craft store, Hobby Lobby sells them often for 50% off. I used 9 flowers, 3 of each color, and a large straw wreath form. A wire cutter was used to cut the stems and scissors to make a small hole in the wreath form for where the flowers would go. The steps are illustrated below.
I hope you all enjoyed a nice long weekend! I made some progress on my son’s room, including changing up the wall color and adding a colored ceiling. You might remember his nursery walls were light blue “Blissful Blue” by Sherwin Williams and the ceiling was “Divine White” also by Sherwin Williams.
Now, he’s got darker walls “Indi-go-go” by Benjamin Moore (color matched at Sherwin Williams) and a light blue ceiling “Honest Blue” by Sherwin Williams. There is a Sherwin Williams near my house, so that’s where I get all my paint.
Below are the paint formulas if you’re interested.
You’ve seen these regular wooden stools everywhere I’m sure.
I recently transformed ours into this:
I originally bought the stools from Overstock or Amazon for our bar counter. But, they weren’t the right height and I never returned them, always planning someday for a makeover. They’ve moved around the house, most recently ending up in our upstairs hallway.
I always knew I wasn’t fond of the reddish-brown color as it clashes with our floors. After painting the doors grey, and adding some animal print rugs to my office,
I’m forever rearranging the items in my home office bookshelf. I have the large Ikea Expedit which is perfect for housing books, containers, photos, decorative objects, etc. Each cube is 12×12 so there’s lots of space to play with.
While the contents of the bookshelf were generally very colorful, it used to be dominated by aqua. Now, I’m going for more pinks, blushes and golds in the bookshelf. Not wanting to purchase more magazine files, I opted to cover my existing aqua ones in wrapping paper.
A bold, wide stripe on the walls makes a dramatic impact. Our foyer needed some pizzazz, so for an inexpensive fix (a can of paint) and cheap labor (me), I added a wide, 16 inch dark gray (Sherwin Williams Urbane Bronze) horizontal stripe to the wall. What do you think?
I wanted to break down the step-by-step for you in case you wanted to do something similar in your home. Here’s the blank slate I was working with.
For this project, you’ll need:
Paint and paint tray
Small paintbrush or small roller
Large roller
Ruler
Leveler
Pencil
Frog Tape
Ladder
Ever since painting the half-bath door glossy dark gray, I’ve been wanting to paint the doors in the upstairs hallway the same way. Painting doors isn’t as daunting as you might think, and the impact adds some nice drama to a space. Here’s how the doors looked originally:
And below is how they look after two coats of paint- Sherwin Williams Brown Fox in semi-gloss for extra shine.
The paint color is a warm dark gray with a hint of brown in it.
Painting the back of our media cabinet was one of the first projects I tackled when we moved into this house over three years ago. I chose Jamestown Blue and painted the cabinets mostly while my then 4 month-old slept. It’s a pretty calming blue that worked well for a long time, but I was ready for a change- to dark gray. I considered having the whole cabinet painted, but the quote was too high and I’m not confident enough in my painting skills to tackle such a big focal piece in our home by myself. But, I can handle painting the back cabinet walls alone.
For James’ room, I wanted wide horizontal blue and white striped drapes, and made them from a West Elm Shower Curtain. The color is called dusty navy and the material is 100% cotton. Three problems: 1) I prefer a rod pocket as opposed to the way it’s meant to hang on hooks, 2) it’s too short for the room at 74×72 inches, and 3) it’s not lined.
I’m no seamstress, but I figured I could try what Amanda Carol did and buy three curtains, and use the third one for added length.
Joni, of Cote de Texas, is famous for bring us gorgeous home tours and I came across this West University home she featured back in December 2009, as decorated by Sally Wheat. Although the entire home is beautiful, what really caught my attention was the gray built-in bookcases in the family room. Ms. Wheat is definitely ahead of the trends as gray is as relevant as ever, four years later.
Last weekend, when I painted our half-bath door, I also painted the island in my closet. It needed touching up from all the scuff marks. I originally planned to paint it grey, and at the last minute chose a glossy light pink. I figured why not- and thought it would look good with the Lucia chandelier. It’s very subtle, but I’m not sure I’m sold on it.
Right before moving in, the closet looked like the picture below. It’s all painted Sherwin Williams Divine White (flat).
Here’s how the island looks in light pink and with the runner removed.
Happy Monday y’all! How awesome was that extra hour of sleep yesterday?! I was a busy bee this weekend and got lots of stuff accomplished around the house. You might have already seen our new door if you follow me on Instagram (@honeywerehome). I can’t keep away from that app! Thanks Cassie– grrrr!! 🙂
I’ve been seriously smitten with black doors since seeing them at Emily’s house (A Well Dressed Home) and around Pinterest. Aren’t they gorgeous?! She added decorative molding to her doors and painted all of them!
We have a half bath downstairs that is just off of the living room.
I mentioned last week that I was planning to paint my office gray and I just hired a painter! This room has three doors and a window, and frankly, I’m not in the mood to paint it myself. So, for $100, I’ll save myself all the taping (there’s 3 doors and a window) and let a professional handle it.
But, I need your help picking a paint color, and quickly, since the painter will be here on Saturday!
What color should I go with? I’m torn between Gray and White.
Originally, I was thinking a light or medium gray,
I’ve been on a roll with the paint lately, this time my attention was focused on a long blank wall in our kitchen. I’d been toying with the idea of turning this mostly-hidden wall into a chalkboard wall for awhile, and when I saw the gorgeous array of Benjamin Moore chalkboard paint colors, I decided to take the plunge. I thought it would be really fun for James (my 2 1/2 year old son) and a great place to put fun messages, menu items, or little reminders.
As soon as I saw the gorgeousness of Emily A. Clark’s painted kitchen cabinets, I knew I had to do the same thing to ours. She took off her cabinet doors and painted the back wall Urbane Bronze by Sherwin Williams. You can read her full post here.
Doesn’t that look great?! I chose to paint the cabinets in our kitchen that already have glass doors. I’m not sure what you’ve got going on at your house on Friday nights, but two Fridays ago, after James went to sleep, this was what I was doing .
