Seasonal Decor

Spring Home Tour

I am excited to be sharing my spring home tour for the Seasonal Simplicity series (hosted by Krista of The Happy Housie and April of House by Hoff). I love home tours, and I’ve partnered with a group of talented bloggers.

Today there are five of us sharing our homes:

Sincerely, Sara D. / at HOME with the barkers / Paint Me Pink / Nina Hendrick Design Co. / A Burst of Beautiful

I find myself decluttering every spring, so my spring home tour is very simple with touches of greenery. My tour begins in our dining room. I designed a dining room for the Indianapolis Home Show this year, so several pieces are from the display.  The nameplates and chalk art was created by my crazy talented friend Cara of Word for Word Chalk Art.  The outside chairs are IKEA chairs that were dressed up with handles and gold-dipped legs. I am not normally a fan of fake greenery, but I found this amazing fake greenery at a local shop (Open Gate Design & Decor). My friend hand-lettered this chalkboard for me, and she sells the print on Etsy.  You can find it HERE. I found the long skinny “baskets” at the Ballard Design outlet, and it makes for an effortless but beautiful centerpiece. Our living room recently underwent a complete spring makeover (you can read about it here).  I went from light walls to these bold navy walls. I love the way greenery looks with the dark walls, so I have plants scattered throughout the space. I find my plants everywhere from Home Depot to Lowes to local nurseries. I water them every Monday.  I find that it helps to stick to a routine day of the week (so I don’t forget to water).  There are some plants that may require a little extra water or mist through the week, but I generally find that one day a week works for me. Our home office also underwent some renovations with a giant wall of bookshelves (you can see all the details here). I use everything from fake greenery to live plants to cut greenery in this room. I found these cute little fake greenery pots at HomeGoods for $13.  They were perfect for the top of my bookshelf which doesn’t see much light. I’m still trying to figure out Fiddle Leaf Figs.  I’m keeping this one alive, but she has seen better days. I absolutely love the fresh greenery and flowers Trader Joe’s offers.  You can buy a bunch of this eucalyptus for $3, and it last for weeks. My kitchen is the last stop on this spring home tour, and like the rest of my spring door, it is simple using touches of green. I am a fan of spray paint.  I painted the dollar store vase and transformed it into something more special (and it cost next to nothing). I can’t imagine anything that says spring (and its freshness) more than greenery.  I hope you see that spring decorating doesn’t require a lot of time or money. Thanks so April and Krista of for inviting me to participate in this fun series!

If you need some inspiration for spring or just decor in general, go visit some (or all) of these bloggers as they share their spring decor:

Monday

House by Hoff / The Happy Housie / The Turquoise Home / Maison de Pax / Refresh Restyle

Tuesday

The House of Wood / Simplicity of the South / Place of My Taste / Tidy Mom / That’s My Letter

Wednesday

Sincerely, Sara D. / at HOME with the barkers / Paint Me Pink / Nina Hendrick Design Co. / A Burst of Beautiful

Thursday

Just a Girl and Her Blog / Cherished Bliss / At Charlotte’s House / House 214 Design / Town and Country Living

Friday

Cassie Bustamante / Robb Restyle / Erin Spain / My Fabuless Life / The Wicker House

Are you new to my blog? Go HERE to see my home tour and HERE to shop for items I use in our home. Find me on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Pinterest
Home

Designing a Dining Room

I had the amazing opportunity of designing a dining room at the Indianapolis Home Show. Oh my goodness. I never dreamed how much time and energy designing a little (temporary) 10 x 10-foot space would require! I am speaking at the Indianapolis Home Show and was also asked to design a room for their Designer Showcase. Designing a Dining Room - Indianapolis Home Show Just two nights ago, I really didn’t know if it would all come together.  However, I left the Home Show today with the space finished. I started the room early Tuesday morning. I was given a space with three walls made of plywood.  I began painting the two side walls in Benjamin Moore’s Hale Navy. Look at me!  I’m so happy and unaware of the upcoming design obstacles… This first obstacle came that evening when I went back to the space (with my family) to drop off the table.  We took the table on a truck and it wasn’t supposed to rain.  But it rained our entire drive. Luckily the table looks gorgeous (despite the rain) and my husband (with Lena’s watchful eyes) assembled it beautifully. The room absolutely came together thanks to my talented sponsors. The table was designed and built by Jeremy Carpenter of J Carp Design.  His work is gorgeous, and I LOVE this table! Carmel Design donated the gorgeous wallpaper.  They are on the north side of Indianapolis and have the most amazing selection of wallpaper along with home decor items. Another design obstacle came with hanging the wallpaper.  Since I had plywood walls (and wanted to avoid the stress of hanging wallpaper at the show), I pre-hung my paper on panels.  Unfortunately, the dimensions I had were not the same as the actual space dimensions.  My paper doesn’t span the entire back wall.  Which is fine, but it was a bummer. All my gorgeous greenery, candles, mirror, and table are from Open Gate.  If you’re looking for unique home decor (in abundance), check out Open Gate in Anderson, Indiana. I created a faux light fixture that Eric Scott of Open Gate added greenery to.  Unfortunately, it was impossible to balance.  After several adjustments and guide wires, it is close to being centered and leveled. Sarah McGee of Studio No Four helped out with the stunning tablescape.  She has an amazing design eye, and you need to contact her if you’re in the Indianapolis area and need design help. Cara of Word for Word Chalk Art made the space with her stunning Chalk Art.  She hand-lettered my round artwork along with all the name cards on the chairs. ProSource provided the flooring for my room.  It’s laminate but really looks like wood. There were several more design issues that came up, but they were worked through with new design solutions.  At the end of the day (actually the end of three days), the space was complete!  It was a fun project, and I am so grateful for all my partners! If you’re local, come see the space in person!  The show runs at the Indianapolis Fairgrounds from January 20th – 29th.  I speak on January 26th and 27th and 2 pm and 5 pm. Designing a dining room at the Indianapolis Home show was an honor and thanks to all who supported me! Go create something!
Are you new to my blog? Go HERE to see my home tour and HERE to shop for items I use in our home. Find me on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Pinterest
DIY

5 Best DIY Projects of 2016

5 Best DIY Projects of 2016

 5 Best DIY Projects of 2016 Happy New Year!

I always love looking back at my most popular posts for the year (and try to understand what my readers are interested in).  Here are the 5 Best DIY Projects of 2016:

5. Decorating with Patio Lights and DIY Light Pole  Looking at this post makes me miss those warm summer nights.  I share an easy DIY (flower planter) pole to hang patio lights.

4. Guest Room Makeover and DIY Paneled Wall  I shared this post last month when I made over our guest room.  This DIY paneled wall took me one afternoon and only cost around $100.

3. DIY Large Wooden Sign  I love large wooden signs and decided to create my own using the coordinates and cities my husband and I have lived in.  I share the full DIY tutorial.

2.  All You Need to Know About Shiplap  This post was more of a research post for me when I was deciding how to create my own shiplap wall in our kitchen.

1. Why I Repainted My Chalk Painted Cabinets  My top post of 2016 involved painting – of course!  I repainted my kitchen cabinets for the second time (something I never wish on anyone), and I share why I repainted them and how to avoid my mistake. Thanks so much for the support over the past year, and I look forward to a project-filled 2017!

 

Go create something!

Are you new to my blog? Go HERE to see my home tour and HERE to shop for items I use in our home.

Find me on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Pinterest

Want to see 2015’s top DIY posts?  Click HERE And click HERE to see 2014’s tops DIY posts!