Quick Tip Thursday

OK readers…We were gone to Omaha last weekend and when we got back I had tons of stuff to do so didn’t have time to write a blog.  So my “Quick Tip” is a day late  (And I’m trying out a new blog appearance so I needed to do a post to see how it looks.

When I was a young mother with our first son, it seemed I was always behind and there was no time for anything but taking care of our child, making meals for me and my husband, doing laundry and getting dressed up (in something other than sweats!) to go to church.  Life was hectic to say the least!

Decorating for the Holidays/Seasons

Hi All,

I wanted to write a post about decorating for holidays/seasons other than Thanksgiving or Christmas.  But every time I started to write something, it began to sound a little like a “how to sermon”.  And that is not my intent.

So today’s post is going to be written by you the reader, at some future date, after I receive some feedback.

How will this be done?  Well, I figured I’m going to do a little “research” and ask you a few questions.  Let’s just see what we come up with

Quick Tip Thursday

Hello Everyone!

Some people call me OCD when it comes to accessorizing my bathrooms..and client’s bathrooms.  OK, I admit: I probably am slightly guilty of that

But I got the idea from reading one of Rachel Ashwell’s books…she’s the one who made Shabby Chic a “big star”.

 

She said she tries to purchase products that coordinate with her bathroom colors.  Now those of you who know Rachel’s colors, she sticks to soft pretty pinks, pale greens, pale blues and grays and of course white.  There was a photo in her book of her bathroom with some shampoo.I remember it being Clairol’s Herbal Essence with pink colored shampoo in a clear bottle and pink & green printing on the label. The bottle and label have changed since her book was written. But you get the idea.  Anyway…..

In this new house and our former home, we have/had bathrooms have a few pale green accessories.  So here’s the tip…again I can’t take any credit for this easy tip. I read it on some site a long time ago where they gave great ideas for money saving.

If you like foaming hand soap, the “secret” is not in the soap but rather the pump itself! Who knew, right?  The pump is what makes the soap foamy!  Soo….now here’s how you get the money-saving PLUS the OCD of matching your soap to your bathroom or kitchen.  First you’ve got to buy some foaming hand soap in a clear pump bottle. When it’s gone, refill it with water and some liquid hand soap, or even some inexpensive shampoo, in what ever color and fragrance you prefer! (I use something green colored.) Voila!  You’ve got matching hand soap to display on your counter and it costs way less than buying refill “foaming” soap.  BTW, that’s the reason that foaming soap is so watery…it’s already diluted when you buy it! So you’re paying for water in the bottle!

How much water and how much soap should you put into the bottle? Well you just kinda guess at it until the consistency is what you like and/or what works best with the soap you’re using. And remember not to fill it to the top. You gotta leave room for the pump in the bottle.

So yeah, I like having as many of my “keep it on the counter or shelf” products color-coordinated.  Guess that makes me OCD.  But on the other hand, it is pretty

Oh..and another quick/no-cost tip:  If the color of the bottle (shampoo, body lotion, etc.) is OK but it’s got a label on it you don’t like, so many of today’s plastic bottle labels easily pull off and then you’ve got a prettier bottle to put on your counter or even in the shower stall.  Wondering if someone’s gonna use unlabeled shampoo for body wash?  Will it really matter? {wink}  Or you could always make your own labels like I did here.   I do this cuz I want to…but if you find it a waste of time, nobody says ya gotta do it {wink,wink}

For me, it’s those little no-cost/low-cost things that can make a home prettier.  And after all since my goal is to make you “LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE IN… AGAIN!”, sometimes those cheapo things really are the “secret”.

Have a wonderful upcoming weekend!  We’re going see our son, daughter in law and one year granddaughter.  What fun!

Looking for other decorating ideas?  Give me a call.  

Until next time,

Connie

 

Lights, Lamps and Mirrors…How do YOU use them?

I know that question sounds funny but some people get stuck on the idea that mirrors are only for seeing one’s self in and lamps and light fixtures are purely for making a room brighter.

I’ve sorta been on a lighting kick lately as you recall from my post about the chandelier Eric and I created. And the little side table we made to hold a small bedside lamp in the guest room.  Lamps and light fixtures do have a purpose of lighting a room. However, sometimes a lamp’s sole purpose is to create ambiance….that somewhat elusive “feeling” you get when you’re in a room. I had some hidden up-lights in our former home’s living room that created wonderful ambient lighting for when we wanted to just sit, visit about our day and enjoy a cup of tea in the evening.

Here’s an example of beautiful hanging lights that function mainly as accessories. Due to their pierced metal they’ll cast beautiful shadows on the walls, ceiling and even the floor.  But again, these are not lamps designed to light up a space enough to read by. They’re  just “eye candy” as one of my clients liked to call it

http://www.vivaterra.com/silver-moroccan-hanging-lamp.html

What about mirrors?  Well I think of mirrors pretty much the same way I think of light fixtures and lamps.  Light fixtures and lamps have a purpose of adding not only more light to a room but also style and a sense of beauty. Mirrors have the same sort of properties to me too: they function as something in which to see your reflection AND they can be used merely as accessories to beautify a room.

Look at these:

hayneedle.com

hayneedle.com

hayneedle.com

While the first and last mirrors are very beautiful and enhance the overall decor, they are clearly placed so one can see their own reflection in them.  The middle mirror is used more as an accessory although depending on your own height, you may be able to see your reflection. On the other hand, you could place a mirror on a wall, or lean it against the wall, merely to add some glamour to a space; or even  make a “fake” window where there isn’t one.  I love this faux French door done with mirrors.

Better Homes and Gardens

At our open house, one of our guests commented, “None of the mirrors in your house are high enough to see myself in!”  Well first off, he’s over 6 feet tall and secondly several of the mirrors in our house were placed not for the purpose of seeing oneself, but rather to reflect light from the windows and/or to bounce light around the room….and of course to contribute to the overall decor.  (And in my own defense, the bathroom mirrors were already put up when we moved in and one I can barely see myself in…but then again, I’m only 5 feet tall!  LOL!)

What am I saying here?  Basically, we often have to break out of the preconceived idea that an accessory, in this case light fixtures, lamps and mirrors, serve just one purpose.

So get creative with your lamps and mirrors and see how your home takes on a whole new look!  Hey, if you don’t have the time or feel your creative self has gone south for the winter, give me a call.  I’ll help create new ideas with things you probably already own so you can “LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE … AGAIN!”

Until next time,

Connie

Thanks Readers!

After a wonderful weekend

complete with a well-attended and fun open house we held at our new home,

I just wanted to thank all of my blog readers!

My list of followers keeps growing!

If I can help you with even one small idea that helps you

“LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE IN … AGAIN!”

then I’m a happy camper

Enjoy your week ahead….I hope to start posting pics of our new home soon!

Until next time,

Connie

CNDesigns.biz

Another DIY/Knock-Off Project: Tripod End Table

Hello!

Apparently Eric and I are on a DIY, knock-off roll these days! In other words, we’re trying to feather our new nest with nice things that don’t cost a fortune.

This is a floor lamp I really like from West Elm.  Cost $149..on sale now for $119.  Not bad as lamp prices go but I like using that much money on more stuff

source

I’ve seen several DIY blogs where they’ve made great looking knock-offs of this lamp.  Some have used vintage wooden tripods and they really look great! We didn’t have a vintage tripod but we did have a brushed nickel one (quite similar to the West Elm tripod) that we haven’t used in years.  We also have a few extra little table lamps that have no place in our new house. Hmmmm……the creative mind gears are starting to turn…..

• Unused brushed nickel camera tripod?  Check
• Unused table lamp in a shiny brass finish that matches the artwork frames in the guest room? Check
• Plenty of “Oh please honey, can we make this?” to coerce hubby? Check

Wait! If we’re not actually making the lamp like it is above, we’re gonna need something to make a table top to place the lamp on, right?  Hmmm…….We’ve got a few odd pieces of left over wood from other projects.  But hey!  I remember there are some left over marble tiles in the basement  the previous owners used on the fireplace hearth.  Let’s just see if……..

OK…You get the picture!  Here’s the finished project!  Actual cost:  $0  Yup!  No money cuz we literally had all the components on hand.  (Little secret: We still have to adhere the tile to the little board that is attached to the tripod itself….just don’t bump it for now and it’ll be fine.)

I wasn’t going to use a side table in this room because of the small space between the bed and the wall and/or closet. But a friend told me “It would be nice to have one here” even though there are directional small halogens in the ceiling.  So thanks, John.  Cuz of your suggestion/request, we now have this cute side table and lamp.  Hope you like it next time you come to stay with Eric and me!

It fits nicely in this small space. And it's height adjustable!

Nice marble tile top! Thanks previous home owners for leaving these

I have another brushed nickel lamp which may look better…haven’t tried it yet. There’s brushed nickel on the ceiling fixture too. And yes, there would be room for another tripod lamp table on the other side of the bed. So if a tripod shows up at a thrift store, we may just have to make another one.

Are you looking for ideas to feather your nest too on a rather small budget?  Do contact me to see what I can help you with so you’ll  “LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE IN … AGAIN!”

Until next time,

Connie

 

 

 

More Knock Off Lighting Fixture Photos

More Knock Off Lighting Fixture Pics!

In yesterday’s post I told you all about the knock off lighting fixture my hubby and I sorta “created” from inspiration photos.

Today I just wanted to post photos of it in the daylight.  This is one of those things that, at least in my opinion, looks pretty both lit and unlit, night time or daytime.

...Ooops! Forgot to move the dog's dish from the scene

Daylight lit view

Pretty in the southern exposure sunlit dining area

She's showin' off in the sunshine!

Last but not least----Her close up sunlit view

At the end of the day, just before we fell asleep, my husband and I both said “It was a fun day!”  We like working together and making our new house our home

Do you have a home that needs a little tweaking?  Looking for some revitalizing for a place you already call home but something’s sorta “off”?  Contact me and I’ll help you “LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE IN … AGAIN!”

Until next time,

Connie

A Pretty Cool Knock Off Chandelier!

Hey All,

I just couldn’t wait to put up our knock-off chandelier my husband Eric and I made today!  OMG!  We are both SO pumped about this! (And I’m blinded from staring at the finished product so much.  Haha! It’s pretty bright!)

If you remember, I showed you here in yesterday’s post two examples of lighting fixtures I liked.  Well yeah, who wouldn’t! But then again, who’s got that kind of cash (like hundreds!) to spend on just a lighting fixture!  LOL!

But I’ve been oooohing and ahhhing over ones like that as well as these type of fixtures. Glass and crystals in a contemporary design.  Nice!  These two were our biggest inspirations.

You can find fixtures like this and the one below at Lamps Plus and Euro Lighting.

Ain't this grand...and so is the price!

Anyway, here are some photos of what Eric and I “created” today.  Now before I show you…….. (oooh the suspense! Haha!) I just want to say these sorts of fixtures can range anywhere from about $200 to a thousand or more…depending on the size.  How much did ours cost?  A mere $40!  Yup!  (Well if you have to figure in paying each other for labor I suppose it’ll be a few boxes of fancy chocolates for Valentines Day and watching a movie or something.)

Without further adieu, here it is!  (I’m still so pumped, I’m gonna put in a ton of pics!)

See what $40 can get ya

A view with it unlit. See how it reflects even the other light in the room!

It casts beautiful shadows and designs on the ceiling...

...and reflects off the glass top dining table wonderfully too!

Here's a pic of the detail at the bottom.

And another close up showing the pretty glass balls and two kinds of baubles we used.

The view looking up from the living room....

...and an unlit view from the same vantage point.

We can’t wait to see how it reflects sunlight tomorrow morning!

So….here’s how we did it. Feel free to copy it After all, Beckie’s saying  from Knock Off Decor goes “Because imitation is the highest form of flattery”.

You’ll need:

• A light fixture that has “arms”.  We used one of those 80′s fixtures that had those glass panels on it.  (Check here after you read the rest of the post to review the kind I’m talking about.) Ours had two “levels”. Sometimes you’ll find them with one, sometimes they’ll have 3 “levels”.  Cost: $7.50 from my favorite thrift store.
• Glass ornament balls.  We used 3 boxes (36 in all) from Hobby Lobby at a cost of $7.99 per box but I used the 40% off coupons two separate times. You need to put balls on each little “arm” and also hang some in between to fill up more space as you desire. Roughly about $15 for all with coupons.
• Glass or acrylic baubles.  I had 5 from before (purchased at Menards but you can get them at Hobby Lobby too) that I’d used on my chandy over the grand piano in our old house. I added 4 more (the chubbier ones you see near the top) from Hobby Lobby.  They were 50% off today.  Yay!  That’s a 2 for 1 deal!  So all together we used 9 baubles.  Cost was around $8 total with discounts.
• One spool of the thinnest jewelry wire from Hobby Lobby…but you only need to use a little.  About $3 per spool.
• One pair of black tassels from Hobby Lobby (not on sale today..oh well) for about $3 also.
• Plenty of time and patience…and a desire to get a high-end looking light fixture for your home!  Cost: Priceless (cuz I got to work with Eric which I love to do!)  I forgot to mention we spray painted the 80′s gold color of the fixture itself with satin black which we already had.

So that’s it!  We had a few options to explore and decided to get creative.  We think it worked.  What do you think?

We’re apparently getting a bit more creative again now that we have a lot more boxes unpacked after the move.  LOL! Wait till you see the fun little side table we made yesterday from spare parts in our garage and what we found lurking in our new house’s basement left over from the former owners.  Any guesses?  That’s for the next post {wink, wink}

Are you looking for ideas to spruce up your house? Getting a bit tired of your home’s look?  Give me a call or shoot me an email and I’ll help you “LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE IN…AGAIN!”

Until next time,

Connie

And yet another post about Lighting

What do you get when you like this,

and this

but have something like this to work with,

and your budget is small?

You’ll see in a few days!

Hope you’ll come back to check out the final result!

Surprises are fun and using what you already have is great!

Redesign works…I use it for myself a LOT

Give me a call to see what I can do for you so you can

“LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE IN…AGAIN!”

Until next time,

Connie

Lighting Fixtures: Which one?

Hi All!

I hope your weekend was a good one!  Ours was busy as usual but we’re still experiencing incredibly warm weather for a ND winter! So no complaints here

Today’s  blog asks this question:  Which lighting fixture would you choose?   (We have to put a dimmer switch on too! Ohhhh the bright light in early morning is too much!!!  And no ambience for romantic dinners with hubby.)

Option A

This is the current lighting fixture over the dining table.  We don’t mind it but it’s sorta “blah”.  However, it probably worked quite well for the former house owners and if they liked it, that’s great! We’re just looking for something else I suppose.

Take note of the lighting fixture above the table

Option B

This is a very heavy solid brass fixture I found on our local online classifieds.  When I say it’s heavy, I mean h.e.a.v.y and then some!  Even my hubby tells me “Get a good look fast when I hold it up cuz it’s heavy!”  LOL!

It's still dusty so it probably will shine up a bit after cleaning.

Close up of details

I already removed 3 leaves that were at the top because I thought it looked so top heavy.  There are no glass baubles…just pretty detailing in the brass.  I’ve toyed with the idea (if I use it) of

1. leaving it as is (it would “play nicely” with the brass legs of the living room coffee table)
2. spray painting it white so it looks a little less conspicuous over the table but still have the scrolly design used in various things in the living room
3. spray painting it brushed nickel to match the legs of the dining table/chairs and
4. maybe adding a few glass baubles for just a bit more bling

So here’s the thing:  I’m not sure yet if we’ll install it.  Eric (bless his heart) never makes me feel like a loser if I buy something and then don’t use it.  He always reminds me “If it’s right, it’s right.  But don’t use it just cuz you bought it.”   {I paid very little for it and could resell, probably with a profit, it if I decided not to use it.}

We’ve got a “look” going on in our house that you’ll recognize if you ever looked at photos of our other house.

View of our former house living room. See the scroll patterns?

Our new house still has a lot of traditional things but we’ve mixed in a few pieces here and there that are more contemporary….like the dining table and chairs.   We figured out that we still like a lot of our things and also really didn’t want to start over from scratch…just yet  (OK, ya got me: in actuality we can’t afford to ditch all our things and start over!  Haha!  I personally know only a handful of people who could do that if they wanted to.)

We’ve still got the scroll pattern going on in our living room (although a little less of it than in our other house) and one of the guest rooms.  There’s just something about a scroll pattern that sorta speaks to me.  So this chandelier would answer to that design. It’s also fun to mix up a very traditional piece with something contemporary.  You’ll see that a lot in photos of rooms these days.  (Can I also say I miss my red chandy in our redone laundry room in the old house?  And the pretty but simple chandy over the piano in the old house too!)

Well anyway, it’ll be fun to get your input!  We’ve got another thrift store fixture too that we might use.  On the other hand, we might just go buy a brand new one

Before I leave you, here’s a photo of our Mason & Hamlin grand piano in our new home.  It is sooooo wonderful to be playing piano in the bright sunlight of the day! In our old house the piano was in the basement. It had a nice spot with great lighting but sunlight….well, what more does one need to say

Our Mason & Hamlin grand piano in its new home

Do you have some questions about a lighting issue of your own?  Maybe need help pulling together some of your long-loved accessories?  Give me a call.  We’ll brainstorm, have fun and pull your look together so you can “LOVE THE HOME YOU’RE IN …AGAIN!”

Until next time,

Connie