We made it, and a look at "French Linen"

We survived the move, and actually things went pretty well. That's because we've been "moving" in stages. We've had the furniture from the storage units delivered first, and then we moved some boxes from the storage unit and lease house, then Friday came the furniture from the lease house. So it's been much easier and more organized than any thing we've attempted before. The house was painted, cleaned, and ready to go, so that's part of what made it easy. Plus, we were mentally and emotionally ready; we've been working on this house since the end of August.

If you read my previous post about the French-y coffee and end tables, then you know that I was getting ready to paint them a shade that would "blend in" to the walls, rugs, and sofas. The antiqued white that they were before at the old house was just too "white" and imposing. 

I wanted to use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint this time, so I tried mixing, Paris Grey, Coco, and Old White, but Paris Grey has a blue undertone and that wasn't working. I needed a gray/green undertone to match the new sofas. So I picked up some French Linen and that was exactly the right color to throw into the mix. I just added a little Coco, and a little Old White. (If you live close by to the Springfield MO area they carry ASCP at The Baglady Boutique on East Republic Road)

(love the details on these tables)

...and after a few coats, this is the color they turned out. Pretty close to my original little oval accent table that worked perfectly.

I invested in a ASCP brush, and I'm so glad I did. The paint went on beautifully and no streaking or brush strokes. I've painted a few other things with a regular brush, and now I wish I'd bought one sooner.

 It really gets down into all the little crevices and crannies.

I used liquid poly on these. I know the wax is wonderful, but I had just a short amount of time to get these tables finished and my Minwax Liquid Polyurethane top coat has never let me down. I did one coat plain, then a mix of a Fruitwood Stain and Liquid Poly, then another coat of plain. The liquid poly and stain does darken it a little, but the finished pieces turned out exactly the right shade and matched the sofas perfectly...mission accomplished!

Here's a peek at the Living Room in progress. I'm really happy how things are coming together. All the planning and color matching has paid off. 

I've just done a teensy amount of distressing so far, because it sort of made me nauseous to sand on these things, since I'd spent so much time getting these "right".

Now they blend in with the wall color and furniture instead of looking huge and too noticeable. It's a pretty tight fit in here (as it is with the rest of the rooms). The room size seems bigger because of the high ceilings, but in reality, this house isn't all that big. Cozy and efficient, and we love it.

I don't have much unpacked, so nothing is on the tables yet. I'm hoping to NOT clutter things up, but keep it more simple. We'll see... I DO have that "more is better" gene. The rugs are "busy", but then they help bring all the furniture and colors together cohesively. I thought about a neutral rug in here, but these won out. These close ups make the rug look extra "busy", but overall, they are just what these rooms needed to ground the seating area and pull it all together.

It's cool and rainy, and looks like November around here. Most of the leaves are down, and we had a killing frost Saturday night. The time change has me a little thrown off, but then the moving had me thrown off too. I have boxes lined up in the garage waiting to be unpacked, but I'm trying to pace myself, and not get crazy. I DO want to get out some of my Thanksgiving Turkeys so that may be next. gobble~gobble.

Thanks everyone, for sticking with me during this last rough year, I'm hoping things have taken a turn for the better. You'll never know how much you've blessed me with your encouragement, prayers, and support. you're the best!

Joining in here:

Coastal Charm

Cedar Hill Farmhouse

Cozy Little House

A Stroll Thru Life

Savvy Southern Style
Ella Claire
From My Front Porch to Yours
Shabby Art Boutique
French Country Cottage
Miss Mustard Seed

xoxo,

A little "greige" for the coffee table....

or, how to make the elephant in the room 

not so "noticeable".

This is a project I could see coming a long time ago...

The Living Room at the old house was a little more formal than this one at the new house is turning out. The big difference is that I sold my two massive damask twin sofas to my sister (where they look fabulous), and we purchased the Chesterfield Sofa and Love seat in a gray-griege lineny fabric when we moved to the lease house. I loved my sofas, but I knew that wherever we moved they probably would not fit and that was certainly the case at the smaller lease house.

Antique white French-y coffee table and end table.

AKA Momma and baby Dumbo...

Living Room at the old house with the twin Damask Sofas

Living Room at the lease house with the new Chesterfield set.

The Chesterfield sofas are a little more "masculine" in their lines and appearance, than something French-y. I had to choose wall colors and the rugs based on the color of those sofa fabrics. So now to my predicament. I want to use my antique white French-y coffee table and end tables again, which by the way are massive. We had a huge space to fill at the other house, so it swollowed up any and all furniture that came in there. But the new house Living Room, even though it's larger, still has it's issues with traffic flow and TV viewing. So I want these massive things to "blend in" to the room and seating area; not stand out. They look like small white elephants right now, I'm hoping a coat or two of a gray-taupe ASCP mix will work.

I painted this little accent table (below) when we moved to the lease house, just to have a place to set a lamp. I'm hoping to come close to this color finish on the coffee table and end tables. (more taupe and less green) I'm using Coco and Paris Gray, maybe with a little Old White. I'm not sure of the ratios, but I'm getting started this afternoon. The little table is in Benjamin Moore with a coating of liquid poly on top, but latex paints just don't hold up on a tabletop. I love this kind of project, just not a few days before we move. We're planning on the big move this Friday...Trick or Treaters beware!

(see how this little table just melts into the background)

I'll check back in with you a little later on this project.

Keep a good thought for me, 

I'm hoping Greige is their color!

joining in on these parties:

The Scoop at Cedar Hill Farmhouse

Show and Share at Coastal Charm

Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House

Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

xoxo,

Vintage Pottery Bowl with Pumpkins

I wanted to share what will be my last vignette on the coffee table/trunk that's here in the Living Room. We've been here at the lease house since the middle of January, and if all goes to plan, we'll start moving some things over to the new house this weekend. We're waiting on carpet for the upstairs bedrooms that has been delayed. That's thrown us back about 3 weeks, but at the same time gave me more time to finish up the kitchen cabinets. Last weekend I touched up woodwork throughout the house, while Aly  (our younger daughter and right hand helper) was on floor cleaning duty. So, all in all we're done, other than waiting for the carpet.

So I have to tell you about this amazing find from last Spring. It's the bowl to what I assume was a "bowl and pitcher" set. I found it for just a few dollars because it has a pretty big crack running along the center half of it. But I'm promising to be extra careful with it.  I thought I had a photo of the mark, but I didn't and now it's too late to turn it over and shoot it.

It's Doulton Pomegranate Burslem. I did a little research and Burslem is the name of one of the towns in the Staffordshire Pottery region of England. I couldn't date it exactly because I couldn't find an accurate image of the exact markings.

It's similar to this one but says Doulton Pomegranate Burslem on the banner instead of what's pictured. It has the letter A and then 1717, which dates it to the 1880's or 1890's. I fell in love with the Autumnal colors and designs.

I had packed all my velvet pumpkins in my wicker trunk that we're using in the entry, so I just scooped them up with some bittersweet to fill this wonderful bowl for a fresh Fall look for the Living Room.

My paper mache squirrel is still in the Pottery Barn lantern.

...chewing on an acorn from a couple of years ago. I heard horror stories of nasty little creatures in the acorns, but thankfully I didn't have that problem.

 Here's a few photos from a couple of years ago of my little squirrel

with a vintage muffin tin and some tea light candles.

I've been bummed because I couldn't decorate much for Fall, which is my favorite time of the year. I've had to get my inspiration and Fall Fix from you all and Pinterest. So, thanks for being there for me! 

And Hey, if you haven't entered 

the Pillow Give Away 

with Elliott-Heath Designs

then CLICK HERE!

Dining Room, Kitchen, and Family Room furniture will be heading to the house; wow, I've missed those pieces! Hopefully from now on my posts will be coming from the new place. YAY!

Joining in on these great parties:

Share Your Cup at Mrs. Olson's

Treasure Hunt at From My Front Porch to Yours

Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

xoxo,

Rugs, mirrors, shutters and more...

Hey Everyone...

things have been a little hectic around the new house this last week. Lot's of things going on, but not much that's interesting to share here on the blog. Cabinets were re-installed in the laundry, finished up the painting in the kitchen, painted the entire 3 car garage in one weekend (whew), carpet cleaning,...that kind of fun stuff...nothing very "pretty".

But I did want to share a quick couple of photos of the new Living Room rug "unrolled" temporarily, just to get an idea of how it will look. This is the 9x12 something. I also bought it in a smaller size for the Dining Room, and a runner for the main hallway. I spent lots of time searching the web for rugs, and found several that were contenders. I knew that it would be a pricey purchase, that's another reason I wanted to be sure of the colors. Trying to re pack this rug and return it would have been a real task. It's so heavy I can't even tug it around.

I wanted wool, and that's what these are. The quality is beautiful, and they are thick and look very well made. I found them on Overstock, which is a great source for rugs. I had originally wanted to go with a lighter color rug, but the more I thought about trying to match colors, fabrics and wall paint, the more paranoid I became. So this has a little of the neutrals, some grays, and some browns and gold along with the black. The black picks up the dark bronze metals, and I think the rug will "ground" the open space and pull it all together with the sofas and chairs. 

So, you know I have been complaining about the tv niches above the fireplace. This house is 10 years old, so it's right in they heyday of "lets make a cave above the fireplaces for our honkin' tvs to live". Yes, I've had a lot of angst over them to say the least. We discussed covering it up with sheetrock or cabinetry, but in the end I would only have had about 5 inches of mantel to decorate, as the mantel recesses in the middle. There would barely be room for a mirror or framed piece, let alone any seasonal decor or candles. It's hard to tell just how big this is, but I'm 5 foot even and the top of the mantel is several inches above my head.

A few weeks ago we found this Ethan Allen beveled mirror on consignment at Relics here in Springfield, and even though it's not what I envisioned, (all gilt and scrolly) I think it will compliment the larger wood finished pieces we will have going in here. Plus, it totally filled up the "hole" and has an arched piece on top that will match the shape of our tv armoire. We have it secured onto 2x4's attached to the back of the wall. I didn't want it sliding out if a door slammed, so I think it's pretty much there to stay for awhile. 

This week the old landscaping is being removed and the new is going in. I worked with our handy man/landscaper yesterday on placement of the shrubs, so hopefully it will get finished this week. The dead tree was cut down, so now we have to wait for the stump to be ground and a new maple put in.

The newly built shutters are up. (just what I wanted) They are bigger than the old ones by several inches, so they look more size appropriate. The door and shutters are Iron Mountain by Benjamin Moore. Love the color, it's just a nice charcoal gray. 

("before", with old shutters, shrubs, and green front door)

This isn't a good pic, but shows the color pretty well. It really picks up the grays of the brick. I'm super happy with how it turned out. So now I'm itching to get this done so some mums and pumpkins can be added. I've held off because of all the outside work being done, but I've about reached my limit of restraint in the Fall Decor Dept. I've been whiney each time I see a house with pumpkins on the porch. Poor Hubbs he just doesn't "get" my deepseated Fall Decor gene.

OK, that's about it for the update this week. Now that we can "officially" call it Fall, I hope you're having a great week and that you're enjoying all the fun of "Fallifying" your homes. I'll get there...

Be watching for a fun Give Away coming soon...

Joining in on these weekly parties:

Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

Show and Share at Coastal Charm

The Scoop at Cedar Hill Farmhouse

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Treasure Hunt at From My Front Porch to Yours

xoxo,

Inspiration Board for the New Living Room

I had so much fun putting together an inspiration board for the New Living Room here at the lease house that I thought I'd try it again for the Great Room living area at our new house. I didn't use any actual photos of my own furniture pieces, but just found approximations of items that were already listed on Polyvore.

Below, you can see what I put together 

for my current living space that we're in now at the lease house. 

There will be a few differences in the two spaces, the main thing will be that the new house living space is larger, and I'm hoping it can be a little more formal than it is here at the lease house. We will have a large family/media room in the lower level walkout basement, that will be a more informal area. But upstairs, even though we will be using a tv, I want it to look more pulled together and traditional.

I'm hoping that I can use this armoire that matches our bedroom furniture to house the television. We'll be downsizing the tv a little, and putting our bigger one downstairs with the media center. In the new house we have a niche above the fireplace for a tv, but that's a "no way" for me. I'm not sure what guy first came up with that clever decorating/design idea, but I can bet you he didn't consult a woman...just sayin'...

Not sure yet how we will cover that up, but we have our contractor/handy man meeting us next week to discuss some options.

Another big change will be the lighter hardwood floors.(OK, I've gotten over the shock of them not being darker, but I'm embracing a lighter look, so I'm making sure my happy face is on at all times.) I love hardwoods, but I also want a large area rug. I've been scoping out rugs, and after trying to imagine a variety of styles and colors, I keep coming back to something that is lighter and in a traditional pattern. I'm looking for something that blends in with the hardwood's color. I haven't made any decisions yet, I'm waiting till we have the wall paint up before I make a huge commitment for 2 area rugs and a runner...big commitment. This is one of my ideas.

source

We need to find another recliner, and that's something else, that even though I looked at Lazy Boy and found just the right style, I couldn't choose a color or fabric until I find the right rug. Are we seeing the domino effect? Gotta keep Daddy comfortable, so maybe something like this...

Lazy Boy Furniture

Hopefully, not either of these...

moving right along...

Another change I hope to make is going back to my distressed antique white coffee table, end tables and sofa table. They were way too big for the lease house space, but I'm hoping that they will work at the new house. Not sure if the off white will be right, but the other option is to paint them a taupe-y gray that will blend in with the sofas and wall color.

These are photos right after I painted them back in 2011. Gosh, I got so much flack about painting these pieces. One person hounded me for days saying I'd regret it. So far I haven't.

I don't think I told you, but my sister adopted my twin damask sofas and I have to say that they "look mahvelous" at her new house!

The white Balustrade lamps that I found this Spring will be going on the end tables (hopefully...I'm using that word "hopefully" alot) Truth is, I have no idea how all this will go together until we actually get there. I can see it in my head, but who knows. At least it looks good on the inspiration board. Love love love those wonderful linen lampshades.

We stopped by to get samples of Benjamin Moore paints, and after about 45 minutes and studying them all around the store, I came home with these two sample pints. This will get me started, I imagine there will be a few more sample pots once I get these up.

Ben Moore Nimbus

(more gray undertones)

Ben Moore Smokey Taupe

(more brown undertones)

There are tons of things to do and think about. The design board just helps keep me focused. Right now I'm concentrating on paint for the walls. one thing at a time...at least that's what I'm trying to tell myself.

Hope you have a great Sunday!

Joining in with these great parties:

Sundays at Home with Thoughts from Alice
Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings
Mod Mix Monday at Mod Vintage Life
Show and Share at Coastal Charm
Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House
Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life
The Scoop at Cedar Hill Farmhouse
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

xoxo.