Etsy Feature:BrandonAddisArt

A couple weeks ago I posted about my staircase update with the Ikea Ribba frames I had purchased.  You can see that post here for a refresher.  I have been looking for different prints to put in the frames and of course went straight to Etsy.  There is such a wide variety of art and photos that I knew I would find exactly what I wanted if I just did a little searching.

I am always trying to find subtle ways to bring a beach feel to my home without being too "beachy".  I love using white paint, distressed wood, jute rugs and capiz shells in my decor.  For me, this is a way of bringing in beachy elements without going over the top.  With all of this being said, when I came across BrandonAddisArt on Etsy and saw his beach photos, I knew I had to have a couple for my picture wall.

Brandon Addis has a beautiful gallery of fine art photos that include urban an architectural shots, ocean and beach prints as well as typography (these are always fun!).  On top of everything he offers, and I can speak from experience, he was fantastic to work with.  Brandon was always so quick to respond to my questions and was even kind enough to send me a quick line when he knew his half off sale would be ending to make sure I could take advantage of that while it was still going on!  I was truly impressed and plan to buy prints from him in the future.  Thank you Brandon for your wonderful service and stunning work.

Here are the prints I bought in 10x10's:

Along the Dune

Just Over the Dune:

I know I said I was trying to bring "beachy" elements in without actually having the beach right in your face but how can you pass these pictures up?  They bring me back to my youth when I would go to the beach every year with my family and make me feel warm every time I see them.  I am so happy to have these hanging on my wall :)

Here is what they look like in my frames (FYI, there may be some glare, taking pictures of pictures is hard!)

I still need to find three more to fill the rest of the frames so I will be sure to keep you posted on what I come up with.

Have a great week everyone!

See you swoon,

A New Color Palette in the Living Room

Yes, you read that right: I changed my mind.  And here is my inspiration, courtesy of a mood board created by the uber-talented, Kirsten Krason of 6th Street Design School.

If you need a refresher on how my living room/library looks, here are some pictures:

So here's what happened.  Originally, I planned to have that space be very white-cream-grey: soothing and luxe and pretty.  As I started to put it all together, it just felt ... off.  I think part of it was the couches were taupe and not cream or white.  Another part was I was just bored with all that lack of color.  Now granted, I *love* white.  I love it so much!  But the void of color was not working for me.  So as soon as I saw Kirsten's moodboard above, I was instantly smitten.

I liked it because it's still very pretty and has lots of white, but isn't stark white.  I knew I could use the existing furniture and wall color. Even though the mood board has light blue walls, my Alabaster walls will be fine once I work in all those pretty patterns.  My curtains would work as well.  The only changes would be the pillows, some art and ... gulp ... a new rug.

I ordered a couple yards of that gorgeous fabric in the inspiration board (Braemore Jiya Cherry Blossom from Fabric.com).  I'll use it to make pillows.

I also purchased some great looking pillows based on the inspiration board: this lovely coral one from the seller ZZZ Boutique.

And this Celerie Kembel Bleeker pillow in Absinthe from the seller Pillow Talk and More.

I moved my navy and cream trellis print pillows in there, too.

I also found (read: my husband had been hiding in his office for years) this great map I bought in Rome at the Vatican Museums. The colors are spot on perfect. The frame? I will probably paint it white.

The next order of business will be to figure out the rug.  I am leaning heavily toward that coral number, though navy and white is a possibility too.  Decisions decisions!  I'll be sure to post some pictures as the room comes along.

So what do you think of my switch?  Yay or nay?  And what color rug would you go with?  An inky navy or a bright happy coral? Happy Friday, all!

See you swoon,

Strapping some on

Belts that is!  There are so many ways to wear belts with dresses, skirts, and pants so I am going to show you some of my favorite looks that you can wear for every day styles at work or for a night out.

I had to get this wedding in the post first off because I love navy dresses but secondly, look at all the different styles of belts!  They are so stylish and can be worn with many other dresses and skirts.  Loving how the belts make the decor and pictures feel so down to earth and whimsical.

Source: stylemepretty.com via Nicole on Pinterest

OK so love this dress and belt combo but what is so cool is that this picture is the product called Belt Loopy, why am I not the genius that came up with this!?  I always have this issue!!  Perfect to hold your belt end down when the tail is too long...or you can see another solution in the third picture below.

Source: beltloopy.com via Maggie on Pinterest

This is adorable right?  The color combo is stunning but I love how she has her belt tied.  This would work with a dress or a skirt like she has done here.

Source: loveoriginallyme.blogspot.com via Ivana on Pinterest

This is usually my go to style when I wear my long belt with dresses:

Source: urbanoutfitters.com via Courtney on Pinterest

This:

Source: seejaneworkplaylive.blogspot.com via Kate on Pinterest

All of these looks you can pull off with jeans or pants too!  Here are some other fun looks I have found. 

Source: 31bits.com via Lindsay on Pinterest

Source: veronabrit.blogspot.com via Becky on Pinterest

Source: kendieveryday.blogspot.com via Natalie on Pinterest

I would show you some pictures of pants and belts but I think we all know how that works...I hope :)

Do you wear belts? What is your favorite way to accessorize with them? 

Happy Thursday all, almost the weekend!

See you swoon,

Farewell Green Pleather Chair!

And hellllllllllllllloooooooo gorgeous!

This baby has come a long way from how it looked when I bought it for $15 on Craigslist!

This chair has been on my list of things to do pretty much since Day 1 in the new house.  I finally got to it, and I won't lie, it was hard and painful and tedious work!  I was definitely intimidated by the whole process, as everything I have read about stripping and reupholstering chairs seemed fraught with warnings about how un-fun of a project it is!  And I don't sew, so I was very nervous.  But I figured I should just jump in and if it was an utter disaster, I'd be out just $15.  

I certainly did not want to reinvent the wheel on this, so I read, printed, re-read and strictly followed the tutorial for reupholstering chairs on Little Green Notebook.  In particular, I followed steps one, two, and three of her five-step process (steps four and five were about sewing the cushion so I skipped that and made my own way with my seam tape).  If you're interested in redoing a chair, check out this tutorial.  I followed it to the letter.  Thank you Little Green Notebook!

The first thing I did was strip the chair of the green pleather (step one of the Little Green Notebook tutorial).  I used needle nosed pliers and all sizes of flat head screwdrivers.  My chair was upholstered with nailheads and tacks, so it wasn't too difficult to get them all out.  The key here is to go slowly and take pictures of everything, every angle as you go along (so you remember how to put it all back together when the time comes) and to save all the fabric pieces so you can cut the new fabric.  I also saved all the batting.

Step one is a very time-consuming process! It took me about two hours to do it.  Next, I cut my fabric to size.  I just put the green pleather on my new white cotton duck fabric and traced it like a pattern.  Since I cut the fabric, I could throw away the green pleather.

Next was Step Two - painting the frame.  I chose Dover White (again.surprise.always.) for the wood.  I followed the process I always follow when painting furniture: a coat of Zinsser oil-based primer and about three coats of Dover White by Sherwin Williams.  I use the Pro Classic paint, which is perfect for furniture (I have it in semi-gloss and high-gloss finishes ... I much prefer the semi-gloss, but I used high gloss for this one).  I did not go to the trouble of taking off the batting on the chair and just kind of painted around it.  Before I painted, I cut the caning out of the one side of the chair -- you can see above that only one side had the caning.  I much prefer the chair without it!

Next up was Step Three - stapling the fabric onto the frame.  This was the most nerve-wracking part of the process by a mile.  Before I stapled, I put all of the pieces together, just so I knew where everything went.  This helped a lot.  I just used my staple gun to put everything in place and followed the pictures that I had taken.   I also used nailhead trim that I purchased from Joann's.  A combination of staples and nailheads worked like a charm.  And here is the chair all put back together!

I had to cover the cushion with my cotton fabric, which was extra tricky because I used my no-sew seam tape and just ironed it on.  I pretty much just wrapped the cushion like a present and ironed the tape directly on the cushion.  And ... voila!

I am *so* glad this job is finished.  You may notice a coral pillow on the chair?  Stay tuned for my post later this week about what is going on! Someone else really likes the new chair too:

What about you? Have you ever taken a little journey to upholstery-land and lived to tell the tale? Please do share!  I'll admit it was not as bad as I thought, but I am happy to take a break from it for awhile :)

See you swoon,

A little Valentines Day Ooh La La

Happy Valentines Day!!

At first I wasn't so sure about this post but after Shanna and I went shopping this past weekend I knew I had to spread the word to the masses!  I am in love!!!  I am head over heels completely in love with my new bra from Aerie!

So I went forward with this blog post for two reasons, one because its Valentines day :)  This is a romatic, fun, sexy holiday so why not.  Second, what woman has been fortunate enough to never have to wear a bra?  If any of you are reading, kudos to you but for the most part, we all need one. 

The Maddie push up bra has the perfect amount of lift while still looking natural and for me, complete comfort to boot!  I know you will have to try this one on for yourself but in my opinion, we have a winner!

Not just a plain bra either, look at the pretty lace on the sides.  You can actually buy this without the lace but I was stepping outside my comfort zone with this one.

Aerie has a fantastic sale right now where the panties (yup, a word I never thought I would be saying on our blog) are 5 for $26.00 and all bras are 40% off! 

Here are some other things I have been checking out.  If I had an endless wad of cash I would buy everything all at once but until that happens I will be left here to swoon as always.

Aerie Paige cotton push up

Source: ae.com via Lynne on Pinterest

Aerie Lacy Tanga

Source: ae.com via Brittany on Pinterest

Aerie Slip dress

 

I know for the most part no one ever gets to see the fancy undergarments that we purchase for ourselves but it isn't it fun and just as important to feel as pretty underneath your clothing as you do on the outside?  Let me answer this for you, yes.

Don't worry, I am not going to ask about your undergarments today but I encourage you to go out there and buy something that makes you feel amazing, even if it is just for your eyes only.

Have a beautifully romantic day :)

See you swoon,