Refining Style










Since I have begun my new journey on living a life of simplicity, I have also begun refining my style. At times I feel all over the place and I am trying hard not to waste and buy smartly. I want pieces and a home that we can grow with and me not tire of in a few sort months or even years. After much evaluation I think I came down to what I am when concerning my home. I think designer Kristen Panitch nailed me right on the head with her gorgeous designs. Her spaces look easy to live in, welcoming, traditional, with a bit of boho here and there. The textures, patterns. and the layering of all her spaces feel like home to me. This is the direction I am slowly going in. I can't wait to share my home soon!

Her goal for every space they design speaks volumes to me... to create homes that will reflect and evolve with our clients’ lifestyle, tastes, passions, and dreams... That is so what I want and am striving towards.

LIVE LOVE SMALL


Have you seen the newish blog LIVE LOVE SMALL? It is chalk full of inspiration based around the small ones. I came across this room on her blog and was rather enamored with it. It's a huge departure from my own kiddos rooms, but the wooden bed, chalky walls, star lights, and cozy bedding have me wanting to recreate this look. In the mean time I will stick to simpler things inspired by this room. My Ellie would look rather sweet in this dress, KJ loves a good hat and I sure he would be smitten with this one, and as always a fabulous piece of art is always needed.

A Bold Teen's room


I rather enjoy a bold room although I can't actually live with one. I thought I would indulge myself and play pretend for the day. I could see a young teen's bedroom painted white or maybe even a dark gray if I want to be completely daring. Imperial Trellis wallpaper would make a bold statement on one wall. A fabric headboard in a fun bird fabric could take center stage against the trellis. A simple white duvet with a lovely trim would keep it from being too overwhelming. A nightstand with a modern feel makes me ever so happy. How about a traditional chair in a stand out color for a desk where I am sure homework would be getting done. The striped pendant really could make the whole room all on it's own. Let's not forget a soft spot to rest, I think a faux sheepskin rug would do the trick.

The Marion House











Joslyn of Simple Lovely has a weekly line up of bloggers favorites. It truly has become one of my favorite reads. Well a few weeks ago she posted on Emma of The Marion House Book. Let's just say I became a tad bit enamored and soon a downward spiral of reading every single one of her posts ensued. Lucky for me she hasn't been blogging for too terribly long, ha! One of my favorites features on Emma's blog are posts on her home. This lady has an insane amount of style. Oh and I am not the only one that thinks so HGTV Canada and Bloesem blog both did features hence the crazy amount of photos. Now if I can somehow add a full black wall and a marble one to compliment I will be set.

FIVE


Today is Ellie's actual birthday. Five is such a huge year. She starts kindergarten soon and will be in uniforms almost daily. Although she is excited to get to wear what she likes to call "unicorns" I feel this fits her stylish self best. A pretty dress that her mommy would also like to wear would be her choice. The gold shoes would top it all off and if you really new Ellie you would know we buy these in bulk. As she gets to color with brother I am sure she will pause and apply her new Lip Smacker. Oh, and let's not forget my sweet girl also has an eye for design so a colorful lamp and a few pom poms would fit into her room perfectly, of course if these were to actually make it into her room the walls would have to go white. She is only five after all. Happy Birthday to my little lady. You changed my life forever when you came into this world, I thank you.

Ellie's Circus













The party for Ellie's 5th birthday was a smashing success. She is still talking about it play by play. We had a plethora of popcorn, cotton candy, cookies, and cake which make for some extra giddy children. We had a spot to get photos taken and a face painting station all under a tent of red and white pennants. My sweet sister was suppose to be the one doing the face painting, but Ellie and KJ thought it was more fun to paint her face, ha! A party for my favorite girl with friends and family makes for one lovely night. I must admit I am a bit exhausted, we also had a wedding to shoot on the same weekend, so now I rest. Oh happy day!

Ellies top hat made by me
Ellie and 5 stickers printed from here
Ellie's dress: Hijkids
210 feet of pennants: here
popcorn and face painting signs: Hobby Lobby
popcorn machine: a friends
top hats: here
cake stand decorated by me: petite square
Oh Happy Day printable: here
cupcake pennants made by me: lollipop sticks and this
Invites in case you missed them: here

Ellie's Room Makeover







Well, I finally got it done and posted! I have to say although the before was rather fun this version is a bit more soothing. Ellie loves it and says she feels like a princess. The paint color which she picked out before stayed the same. We did a bit of rearranging , the occasional mess is now hidden from the door way is a huge plus. The biggest difference for me was painting the bed. I went with the same gray that is on the dresser in our room since technically they are a set and one day the dresser will go in Ellie's room. This was also my first time to make fully lined curtains, I must say I am quite proud of the way they turned out.

Paint: Sherwin Williams Parakeet Green
Gallery wall: here
Lamp, side table, white quilt, rug: Home Goods
Fabric for curtains: Paula Prass Garden Trellis in Aqua
Pillows on bed made by me: Barbara Barry Poetical linen bought from LGN and Pink fabric bought from local shop King Cotton.
Bulletin Board Fabric: Same as on pillow
Pink and white Blanket: made for Ellie when she was a baby
Doll Houses: Pottery Barn kids
Kitchen: Target
paint on bed: gray (my own mixture made by Benjamin Moore)

I did a fun little interview with Catherine from iBlog. Her husband is the creator of the gorgeous frame that hangs over KJ's bed. Oh, and when they lived here in Birmingham her sweet little nursery was featured in Southern Living. How fun is that!

KJ's Big Boy Room








I finally finished KJ's big boy room and he could not be more excited. We kept the same wall color, dresser, and rug, but everything else has been reworked and added. The bookshelf was once in our room, the mirror is freshly painted, the shade was once our old Pottery Barn duvet cover. I found the bed at a local antique shop and painted it Benjamin Moore Hale Blue. The frame behind the bed may be my favorite piece. It was made by Kiwi Wood Works and Design and I am smitten. I am now deciding whether to add a photo or design a special print. The last image has the fabric that I am thinking about making the pillow out of. It has a touch of every color and my son loves it.

Bedding: Ikea
Rug: Pottery Barn Kids
Basket under bed: Home Goods
Gallery Wall: more info here.
Chair, bed, dresser, side table: Vintage
white frames: ikea Ribba
Frame behind bed: Kiwi Wood Works and Design

From here on out for the next two weeks everything had been guest blogged or pre-posted. I am hoping to still enjoy all your blogs daily but commenting may just not happen right now. Kellen has been my editor and he can not possibly edit every comment I have till I am fully off the meds. Hope you all understand. I am one loopy lady lately.

Green & Aqua

Ellie's room is about to go through a little redo. Nothing too grand, but I am in the mood to change something so her room wins. Here it is in it's current state...


The green walls she picked out herself so those will stay. What will be new are the curtains and bedding. I am doing the curtains in Paula Prass Flights of Fancy Garden Trellis in aqua with green piping along the top. The fabric width is only 45 inches, but will work fine for one panel on each side with lining. I will also make two euro pillows for the bed.


I will also be sure to mix in Ellie's love for pink. She currently has a raspberry basketweave linen lumbar pillow that will be used once again. I then want to move her bed between the two windows and hang my own version of this Sugarboo art piece. This is her lullaby that we have sang to her since birth.

Pretty art in white ribba frames would add more pink that Ellie loves.


Of course, this print will make it's way into the room. A gift from Brooke that I just adore.


I will continue to use the tall ikea lamp by the bed and add a white garden stool for when she reads in bed and needs a place for her books. I am thinking the bed may need a paint job too, but haven't decided on the color of that yet either. The bedding will get a simple white duvet. I would love to add our entry way table into her room since she is about to start kindergarten but I am not sure it will fit with the kitchen and doll houses. I will have to play around and see.

So those are a few of my ideas of late. Oh, and did I mention we are also transitioning KJ's room into an official big boy room? I will share more on that later.

A Boy's Room


This boys room would be perfect on the coast although I would love to recreate it here in the suburbs. Love the green painted floors with matching beds. It would be easy enough to rip up KJ's carpet and just paint the concrete then add a pretty rug. That sign with old barn wood and of course zinc letters from Anthropologie would easily top it all off. It's probably a good thing I am away or my husband may come home to a pile of mess, ha!

THREE

My little man turns 3 today. It is a very bitter sweet moment for me. He is our last child and 3 no longer feels "baby". That's a hard concept for me to swallow. Anyway, we had a surprise birthday party for him on Sunday and yes that means I did not watch the Oscars. We kept it small, just family. He was so excited and couldn't believe all the presents were for him. Here is my sweet boy...


His favorite movie is Cars, but I couldn't bring myself to go to Party City and load up on the typical so instead I did a movie theme and used all his Car car's as extra decor. Popcorn bags ready to be filled...



We had Car's playing and what's a movie without candy?


The centerpiece was a cake idea, well in this case, cupcake idea I found in this book. The confetti was made using tin foil and an extra large hole punch.



I had a cake plate full of mini cupcakes topped with a single marshmallow. He was so excited he blew out the candles before we finished singing Happy Birthday, ha!


Me and my little man...


I guess he will be my baby forever though... Did I mention how hard this is for me?

Details:

over sized balloon- I Luv Sugar {Jennifer was wonderful to work with. The balloons were a last minute addition and she got them to me fast- Thank You!}

popcorn boxes- Hobby Lobby

movie theater candy- World Market {on sale $6 for 6}

popcorn canisters- Target $1 aisle.

I have a guest blog over on So Chic today... Hostess gifts galore.

Being Practical

I had a reader ask for some kid friendly breakfast/dining spaces ideas, aka something my child can't ruin within 5 minutes. Here are a few spaces I have saved in my own inspiration folder...


What I love is the gallery wall. It can easily be mixed up with adding your own child's art work. What child and parent wouldn't love that? I also love the easily cleanable chairs in a fun color. The chairs within the otherwise neutral palette makes it all not so overwhelming.

{via Elle Decor}

I love the magic of paint. Find any craigs list, yard sale, or flea market table and chairs and just add paint. I love how they used all different chair styles, but easily made them unite with a coat of black paint.

{via Decor Pad}

Hello chalkboard! This is either a love it or hate it thing, but I personally love it. I also love the oversize lighting and the simple seating. This space is great example of modern mixed with traditional.


This space definitely packs the punch, but again it does not feel overwhelming. I could definitely see getting a lot of use out of the dining area.

Well, I hope this helps a bit. Being kid friendly doesn't have to sacrifice on style. And for those who like a bit of a padded seat, using outdoor fabric is always an option. I plan on doing this in my own dining room, now just to make an appointment with the upholsterer. Hope our weekly small group/dinner group won't mind be seat less for a couple of weeks, yikes.

Outfit to Room...

It seems I seem to favor Ellie, here and here, for my outfit to room series so I thought it was about time to do brother. He has style too... Well, actually he just dresses a lot like dad.


Outfit to little man's room...

{via Ikea}

A simple bed for a good night slumber.
{via Serena & Lily}

A two toned quilt.


{via CB2}

An industrial stool used as a night stand.

{via target}

I would hang this swing arm lamp directly over the center of the headboard.

{via World Market}

A kilim rug for extra interest.

{via Moomah}

A Moomah inspired gallery wall. Oh, and this is something I am currently doing in KJ's room.

MAAN



I first came across MAAN while browsing Black Eiffel. The kids line was too cute not to share again. Too bad it's a Belgium line so I will have to admire from afar. I am sure Ellie would love to sport any one of these looks.

A Kitchen Reno






I am so excited to be able to post this kitchen and dining renovation. This is the home of Eden Lang a fabulous photographer from Canada. She and her mother came up with the kitchen concept and her husband made it happen. What I love is that it's a kitchen made for cooking, but at the same time is extremely family friendly. I adore the clean lines, chalk board door, farm house sink, gorgeous lighting, the floors are delicious, and that huge map, wow! Did you also notice the clipboard leaning up on the counters with the calendar. Well, I did and I am so borrowing this idea to hold Ellie's school calendar. This looks much better than I just leaving ours laying out on the counter. Oh, and to see the complete transformation including before pictures you must go here. Trust me you will be in awe. I want to move in, really.

Thank you Eden for letting me share your gorgeous renovation.

Eden Lang Blog
Eden Lang Photography

Flat Living












I am a huge fan of having a yard, but if we had the money to own a flat like this then I would be more than happy to call this place home. Besides I am sure the kiddos would love to play on the swings on this roof top terrace. Of course this isn't any old loft, this is a 2 story penthouse designed by the owner/designer. I really wish the listing said who the designer was. The wall of shelves and that kitchen oh my.

{listing found here}

Fit for a Princess






As soon as I saw this room over on the Tracery Interiors blog I knew I would have to ask if I could repost it on my blog. Although this room is meant to be for a little girl I know if my little Ellie or I had it we would be equally as happy. Their children rooms air more on the sophisticated side and that is what I love. I personally love a room that can grow with a child and the only changes that need to be made is the toys of choice. The first two images are of a large hallway at the top of the stair's and is used as a playroom. I am so borrowing the peg idea to hang all of Ellie's little princess dresses. Doug and Paige did a fabulous job on this home to see the other daughter's bedroom and to get more information on this room be sure to go here.