Found Items Part 1

Found this while out window shopping....... I took this pic and then went on my way to three other stores before coming back to bring it home with me. Thanks, Kel for telling me to go back! It's perfect in the half bath! I will share photos of it in place once the walls are painted. Right now the room is so small and so white that it just photos like a white blob :-/

This was found in a wonderful little antique store. It's an old radio table that had it's guts ripped out and was painted, keeping the back open to hide little goodies on the inside. I brought home the measurements of it and then went back a few days later to bring it home for the guestroom!

More pics to come of it all set up as a bedside table :)

This is the same idea as the Boston sign, only the colors are reversed and its all French locations. Again, I love the idea, but I think one of these is enough for my cozy house! I just had to share the pic so you could see the difference it makes when the background is dark and the text light and vice-y versa! :)

What have you all been up to?

New Reese Pics

Reese with his new toy - a present from graduating Basic Manners!

But this is what he really loves to do - nap on his back in the sunshine with his people close by on the couch! :)

He's also taken to this stretch-my-legs-out-as-far-as-they-will-go look while napping.

I think he's grown.... do you? :)

Basement Inspiration

Found at Ethan Allen - in my head, one of the most unlikeliest of places!

Not that I would copy this exactly, but it has the feeling I'd like to go for :)


We know we'd like a darker stone tiled floor, a wall to wall (and almost to ceiling) entertainment center for TV, gaming components, storage, etc and a brown leather sectional.

Feb 14th

For anyone that knows me, you already know that I'm not a fan of Valentine's Day.

But for those of you who love it (like my paternal grandparents who got married today many many, years ago) I wish you all the flowers, hugs, snuggles and time with the ones you love.

Dining Room Light Fixture.

Both Matt & I hate our current dining room lights. No, I do not have a picture of them to show you. Just trust me when I say they are hideous. Truly, awful! That being said, our dining room is not large enough for 2 fixtures and so it's been on the list to change out to 1 charming light fixture.

This is what we had found previously that we thought would replace the current icki-ness. It matches most of the other hardware in the house.

But when I was returning extra paint supplies the other day, I saw this one! It's still the brushed silver color that would go with the house, but instead of the glass bowl look, its a bit more traditional with lights and shades.

Here's a clearer picture of it on the side of the box.

It even comes on a chain so we wouldn't have to move the electrical box to get it centered over the table!!!

Window Shopping

... and the hunt for guestroom and study lamps!

Yesterday while out with my Mum, I found the following pieces at Christmas Tree Shops and Home Goods. While they didn't quite fit what I was looking for, I loved them and wished I had a spot in the house!


Perfect little night stands - if only they came in white!

Little bathroom cabinet for TP and other storage......

Bookcase for my study? Too light to handle books or heavy items, but it would make a lovely display piece with a plant or two!

Again, occassion table or bedside table/night stand?

I LOVE this slightly distressed white/ grey table with a dark top! The curved legs really get me :-)

Granted I have no spring green in my house. But aren't these lamps with the white ribbon accent trim darling?

These almost, ALMOST made the cut for the study, but the shades aren't a true white - they are a creamy yellowy linen which would always look dirty to me against the bright white trim of the study.

Hmm. Maybe. But, more bedroom to me than study.

So, nothing that came home with me but we certainly had fun!

Current Guestroom & Inspiration

This is our current guestroom.

It has a headboard and dresser left from my brother. Paintings from my Nana, BB, and my parents.

The rocking chair was Matt's Grandfathers, the trunk was my Grandmothers, etc. IE, most of the room is made up of family pieces with the new touches being the paint color and curtains. Even the comforter set was mine from a few years ago!

While the room is certainly serviceable and has hosted many a guest thus far, it's not thrilling me. It doesn't click or look cohesive in my opinion. Thus, I have started a hunt for inspiration to see what will click with me and create a lovely and restful guestroom (hopefully something that will go with the newly painted guest bathroom! Which also needs a touch of inspiration, but that's for another day.)
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And this is what I came across that really hit me!

The soft greys and crisp white linens look so inviting! I did a little research and this is a picture of one of the bedrooms used for the movie "The Holiday".

The transformation won't be that dramatic as we already have light colored carpet and bed linens (current comforter could even go in a white cover). Walls can always be re-painted in a jiffy, so the biggest part of this project will be the grey curtains, headboard, nightstands and lamps. The last two pieces I was already on the hunt for anyway!

Feel free to let me know your thoughts, ideas, etc!

Study Update on Painting

For the Study I wanted to do something a little different with the painting. So instead of taping the moulding, I taped the wall leaving a border of white above the moulding. My dad experimented with this in the guestroom and it tricks the eye into thinking the baseboard moulding is a bit bigger than it really is! So I took it one step further. I did the baseboard, around the window and all the doors too!

I then took a wider tape and went around the wall to give a slightly larger gap between the wall and the ceiling. I was hoping it would give the room to feel of not just bigger moulding but maybe a crown as well. (The sloppy grey paint shown on the walls is from my testing)

I used Frog Tape and I have to rave about it! Blue tape was always great, but the Frog Tape went on faster and stuck better leaving a much crisper line with less touch-ups. In this room, that was key since we were doing a trickier set-up.

Here's my Mum helping paint the Study :-) You can't see the 'wider moulding' because the frog tape is still on the walls.

Here you can see the painted wall with the stripe at the top and bottom of the wall.

The baseboard absolutely looks bigger, and from this angle the white around the ceiling makes a statement :-) I love the way it turned out and the color is warm & cozy without making the room seem tiny. It almost makes the room seem larger!

I'm still re-arranging furniture and fussing but I will be sure to share photos once it's closer to being done!

Painting Update: Guest Bathroom

This will end up changing a bit when we put up the curtain rods, towels and I figure out what kind of decor I want in the room. I was originally thinking Spa-like with soft B&W photos in nice big matted frames, but right now I'm not sure.

So here are some photos to show you the paint color, keeping in mind that the decor may change!