Design Advice - Amber's Living Room

Amber asked for some help accessorizing her living room. She and her husband just bought new leather sofas similar in color to the one shown in this room board, they also already own the "Starry Night" Van Gogh print. I thought the print was a great jumping off point to plan the rest of the room's accessories. Here's what I came up with.



1. First some pillows for the sofas. This pillow is from the DwellStudio line at Target, I love its graphic design.

2. This yellow rosette pillow is one of my favorites, the yellow ties in nicely with the yellow from the painting. The feminine roses also work as a juxtaposition to the bold graphic pillow.

3. I'm totally in love with the color of this turquoise lamp. It brings out the turquoise in the painting, whereas without the lamp you might not notice the turquoise coloring as much.

4. Every room needs a little shine, these inexpensive candle holders from Ikea come in three different sizes.

5. This carved wood tray would be great for holding TV remotes, and it brings some texture into the room.

6. Last but not least, some of my favorite curtains that Ikea carries. Again, the blue dot pattern plays off the blue in the painting.

I loved that Amber already had an art piece picked out, it's a great example of my last post - choosing a color palette. This shows how you can simply look for accessories that carry the same color as your inspiration piece. But as you can see, I paid attention to some of the more subtle colors as well as picking items with different textures and patterns. The more obvious technique might have been to only choose plain yellow and navy blue items; which would have made the room much too matchy-matchy.

Good luck Amber, I hope this inspires you!

Abstract Art

I really love the way a big piece of abstract art can add little somethin' somethin' to a room. Observe:








(all images from DecorPad)

Obviously art like this can cost thousands of dollars. Enter art.com. Here are some favorites that I picked out, all for under $25.


$19.99


$21.99


$24.99


$19.99


$19.99


$19.99

I think these would look great framed. Another option is to attach the print to a canvas for that expensive original artwork look. I haven't tried it, but here's a tutorial on how to attach craft paper to a canvas; you could easily could do the same with one of these prints.

Entryway Organization

One thing I hated about my entryway is I didn't have anywhere to put my purse, it always ended up on the floor - and Zach's hats always ended up all over the house. So a couple days ago I gathered some things I already had, and fixed the problem.

All you need is a couple of wall hooks, two empty frames, drywall anchors, and screws for this project. The whole thing took me about 15 minutes, and cost zero dollars; always the best price.

Tree Art

Love this living room by Massucco Warner Miller design firm.



The art above the sofa reminded me of this shower curtain from Urban Outfitters.

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I think you could get the same look by framing this shower curtain in a large Ikea frame, or mounting it to an art canvas with a staple gun. Easy and cheap art!

WaterLeaf Interiors

I am not a huge fan of the beachy look, but after seeing these photos from the WaterLeaf Interiors portfolio I may change my mind. I like that the look is coastal but also contemporary.

You can find a similar zebra ottoman at Target for $49.99. And yes I pretty much have a running inventory in my mind of Target's current products.

I love these sconces.

Wallpaper in the Bathroom

I love the current wallpaper trend, but it's hard for me to commit to a pattern. That's why I love wallpaper in the bathroom, you can choose a bold print because it's in such a small space. Plus, covering a smaller space is obviously more affordable.


Elizabeth Dinkel


House to Home


James Michael Howard


Amanda Nisbet


Domino


Door Sixteen


Amanda Nisbet

I want to put wallpaper in my small half-bath downstairs. Here's a little board I put together. The wallpaper is from Sherwin Williams, the site won't let me link directly to the pattern; but it's Graham and Brown number SW46124. Only $27 bucks a roll!


Mirror - Target
Sink - Lowes
Artwork - Made using key font from Dafont.com
Soap dispenser - Target
Rug - Pottery Barn
Towels - Cost Plus

Young House Love

My office makeover is over at Young House Love today, thanks for the mention YHL!

Lighting

I think finding affordable and chic light fixtures is probably one of the biggest challenges when decorating a home. Here are a few of the sources I have used.

Dining room light:



I bought this light on Ebay and got an amazing deal, $50 bucks; but the seller I used is no longer offering it. Here are some other sources for this light, unfortunately not priced as low as I was able to get it for.

Kitchen sink light:



I found this light at CSN Lighting for about $83.

Kitchen table light:



This is actually a "pendant lamp" from CB2 - $50. It is meant to be plugged into a wall outlet, meaning you would have to string the cord along the ceiling and down a wall. If you don't like that look you'll need an electrician to adapt it to function as a regular pendant light, luckily my husband was able to do just that for me so I didn't have to pay anyone.

Garage lights:



There were some seriously fugly lights on our garage exterior when we bought this house, we replaced them with these beauties from Home Depot, priced at only $32 each.

Here are some other affordable fixtures that have caught my eye:


Urban Outfitters Chandelier - $48


CSN Lighting Capiz Pendant - $55


Ikea FOTO Pendant - $30


Ikea OTTAVA Pendant - $30


Hampton Bay Wall Sconce - $45

Color Me Friday - Orange

(all photos found on Decorpad.com)


Sources: table, lamp, bowl, pillow, lanterns

Design Advice : Karina's Unique Problem

Dear Erica,
First of all, I love your blogs. I've been a lurker (there's just no way to make that sound non-creepy) for a couple months, but there's only one reason I would reveal my lurker ways: I need help with my new apartment. You see, I moved in with a friend of mine who has a very different perspective of home decorating than I do. I would like things like a couch, a table, chairs, coffee tables, end tables and a TV stand. She would like throw pillows and bean bags. I am not at all joking when I say she wants nothing but large, overstuffed pillows in our living and dining room. She calls it "little kid chic". We are both in our mid-twenties, by the way. That is our dilemma. I prefer a more furniture oriented apartment while she would prefer we take a very, very minimalistic approach. I am trying my best to meet her halfway, but I don't know how to go about it so we both get something we want. Any suggestions? Help me, Tart House. I don't think my back will survive if we go the floor pillow route.
Thanks,
Karina

Quite the challenge. I think there is a happy middle ground by selecting very casual and comfy seating, plus floor pillows and poufs that provide comfort for optimal relaxing. But then pairing it all with more sophisticated accessories. That way Karina's roommate gets the laid back feel that she wants, while Karina doesn't have to feel like she's living in a dorm. Here's what I came up with.



In the way of sophisticated accessories I chose these curtains (1), this beautiful lamp (2), and an oversized watercolor print (3).

For the furniture I wanted things that were casual and low to the ground to give that laid back lounge feel. This lounge seating from PB Teen (4) was the first thing I thought of when I got Karina's e-mail. I think it would look great paired with this low side table from Ikea (5) and this butterfly chair from Urban Outfitters (6). All three pieces are casual but are still nice to look at.

To complete the lounge look: some floor pillows (7), a brown velvet pouf (9), a cute suzani pouf (8), and a nice soft faux fur rug (10).

I think this actually a really fun look, and great for laying around with friends watching movies. Good luck Karina!

Design Advice - Cailean's Entry Way

Cailean asked me for some help with her entry way table and surrounding area. Here's her e-mail and a picture of the space as it looks now:

I'm wondering what you would do with a space like this? It's right by our front door. The entry table is very helpful for library books and to have a lamp but it ends up looking very blah. The space above our mantel is also empty. I really love bright colors with black or white as a base. I wouldn't mind an all white house with pops of color! Anyway, colors like bright canary yellow, turquoise, red or hot pink, etc. I think my main issue is we have a mantel with two blank spots on either side and I'm not sure if we should hang something on either side of the mantel AND above it or just above the mantel. The side table needs......something! But it needs to be useful for the books.



Here's what I came up with to brighten up Cailean's space.





1. I think an entry way table is a great place to hang a mirror; you can give yourself one last look before leaving the house. This one from Target is affordable and cute.

2. For above the mantle I wanted to find something large enough to make a statement without spending too much. Framing this beautiful gift wrap meets both criteria, it's size is 22"X34" and it's only $3.75.

3. Although not shown in the picture, Cailean was worried about the blank wall on the other side of the mantle. I think this is a great place for some more art work, but in a smaller scale. These butterfly prints have all the bright colors Cailean loves and are only $25 for the set.

4. An entry table always needs something to catch mail and keys. Something like this simple bowl would be perfect.

5. Right now Cailean's kids use the table as a dumping ground for their books and school work. A couple of baskets placed beneath the table would be a great way to keep these items organized and out of sight, but still accessible to the kids.

6. A few modern vases on top of the mantle would add a little interest.

7. Lastly, a canister to collect loose change would also help to organize the entry table.

Good luck Cailean! Need some design advice? E-mail me!

For Sale

We're selling our couch and matching arm chair on Craigslist. Here's the listing if you are interested, both are in pretty good shape and are well made. They would be great for a first apartment.