With all of the craziness happening around our house lately the last thing on my mind was Fathers Day! Yikes...thats a terrible thing to say!
Well, its the truth and so when Framebridge reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in creating a gift with them for my sweet husband and honestly the best father around, I jumped at the chance.
I wanted to do something fun that he would love. We've come to the conclusion over the past year that with my constant Instagramming of our kids and home there really aren't very many pictures of him. We needed to fix that!

I decided to create a gallery wall featuring our family with him at the center of it all. He is after all what makes this clock tick and he deserves some recognition and not just one day out of the year. I wanted this gift to be something he could appreciate all the time.

Framebridge is by far the easiest site I have ever used to create framed prints. It only took a few minutes to create all of these gorgeous photos of him and the kids and it probably only took that long  because I just couldn't decide which photos to choose or ones that he was actually in....this is bad I know. I sent the order out and within just a few days they all arrived on my doorstep. If you have not used Framebridge yet than I will tell you that the packaging is amazing!! There is no way, no how your frames will be damaged with how much effort is put in to the packing of your items and they always arrive with a super kind note... I love those little touches.

My favorite part of this entire project was this photo strip. I dragged my entire family to the movie theater just to make one of these(they have a booth in the lobby) and the kids could not wrap their little brains around the fact that we weren't going there to see a movie and Brian was less than thrilled about it (chuckle) but Im pretty sure he will love it when he finds out why.  All I did was mail it in to them using the prepaid envelope they sent me and they mailed it right back with in just a few days! I've been raving about this service to all my friends. I really think its pretty darn amazing and easy.

So thats it. I'm done with his Fathers Day gift and I'm pretty darn happy with it.

You can easily make your own but order by tomorrow June 3rd to be able to use the mail in option and by June 12th! You've got time people....go do this!! 

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

{Use Code HOUSESEVEN15 and save 15% off your first purchase}

My oldest's room when we moved in three years ago. It was bright and fun but as she got older she wanted something a bit softer so we started by changing out her bedding and added in some natural elements which made the room feel calm and more relaxed.

 We loved it like this but with the remodel of her little sisters room she was really hoping for something more and wallpaper for her own room was on the list. 

We searched and searched for the right paper. One that we would both be happy with. I love my girls input when it comes to designing their rooms but I also want their space to flow with the rest of the house.  Hygge & West is my first choice when looking for unique and beautiful paper and she immediately fell in love with Daydream in blush by Julia Rothman. 

Here is how it's all come together.....

A little more grown up than before but still sweet enough for a ten year old who thinks she's fifteen:)

One of my favorite touches is this No Boys Allowed pennant made by my sweet friend Erin with 

For The Love Of Letters.

Her new wood sign art work, which she chose herself, is all from Jaxn Blvd and I think its perfect for her room. 

Her bedding is Chic White from Beddy's and you guys I could probably write a entirely different post reviewing this product its that amazing!! I will be honest and say I was skeptical at first when it came to this bedding. I had a hard time imagining it in the room and I wasn't sure about bedding that zipped up? What?!? But it is awesome! Not only does it look perfect in here but you can't even tell it zips up on the sides and my daughter has a perfectly made bed everyday because its so easy for her to use. We both win! We have the matching pillowcases and dust ruffle to complete the look. I also have to tell you that the inside of this bedding is super soft minky fabric and now we all agree she has the most comfortable bed in the house! 

{Sources}

Wallpaper 

Bedding 

Pom Pom Blanket

Rug

Ghost Chair

Floral Throw Pillow

Wood Artwork 

Felt Pennant

Tufted Slipper Chair 

Lucite Tray (Homegoods)

Brass Lamp

Pom Pom Pillow, Gold Dots Pillow (Homegoods)

Valentines Day. 

Its my favorite holiday! I love it. I guess its because I love all the pink and red touches and then every year my valentine works on this special day. That is what happens when you are married to a man in the restaurant business. Well, I was determined that this year we would have that romantic evening that we always seem to miss out on. It may not actually be on Valentines day but it still feels like it for us. 

This year I was all about a cozy evening by the fire. Lots of flowers and sweet treats just for us. No kids allowed. I pulled our tufted Alcott Hill chairs from Wayfair right up to the fireplace with the softest fur blanket we have. My husband was seriously excited for this blanket! He cracks me up because he is a sucker for super soft blankets and this one is by far the softest so I knew this was a perfect touch to the evening. 

 Some champagne, french macaroons and our favorite little coconut cupcakes... all we needed to enjoy our date by the fire together. I love drinking champagne from these little glasses. The gold dotted highballs and the sweet little pink juice glasses...honestly I loved them so much I just couldn't decide so we used both..I mean, why not?!? 

I was all about keeping this night feeling like Valentines day with little pops of red so I added in this rope pouf under the table which eventually became a seat as the night went on..its always good to have extra seating even just for a party of two. I will say it was my kiddo that came in to sit down and eventually ate all of our sweets but that was just fine! 

What a fun little pre Valentines date! Our new coffee table made the perfect setting for all of our treats and now I'm thinking how fun it would be to use this same little set up for more date nights in the future. We are home bodies who don't get out much so this was perfect and so easy to throw together. I can't wait to share another night here with my Valentine...and most likely our kids will be here too because who am I kidding....if there are treats, they won't stay away! 

So every time I post a picture of this table on Instagram I get a million {okay maybe not a million but pretty close} questions asking where it came from along with the stone lamp.
They are both Homegoods finds. Unfortunately that means they aren't available to run out and grab up. They were purchased awhile back. Table about 2 years and lamp about a month ago. Its certainly the grace of the interiors gods what you are going to find there!

My main focus for our home is always to simplify and to declutter. I want our home to work for us instead of us always working to keep up with our home. Less stuff. Less to organize, clean, pick up...etc. Am I right?!?
Over winter break I was on my usual mission for the beginning of each new year to get this house in order. I cleaned out closets. I organized drawers. I tossed so many things that I can't even remember what I threw away which means we didn't need it in the first place. While I was in the midst of the great clean up of 2015 our basement flooded. UGH. At first I was really upset that we had all this work ahead of us to now clean up the basement along with the rest of the house but then I realized it was truly a blessing in disguise. It was just the excuse I needed to just throw more things away! I have to say its so much easier to let something go when its sopping wet on a basement floor. Yuck.
When I declutter it pretty much all goes so how do I decide what stays?
These are the questions I ask as I purge my home.....Would I buy it today? Do I think its beautiful? Will I miss it in a week from now?
Yes, I have sold or thrown away things that I regretted.... for like a second. Seriously, I am not sentimental about stuff and I know I breath clean air when my surroundings are minimal and cozy. Not cluttered.
When its all said and done, in the end you won't remember the stuff anyway. Its the people and the places that you go that will make your memories sweet. Don't waste your time managing the stuff when you could be making memories.
There is nothing like the feeling you get when you know you have empty closets in your home. Yes, empty because you don't need all the crap you are hoarding inside of it.
I decided that if I bring something in to the house then two things must leave. Yes, two! I also don't shop anymore unless I have a plan. I know exactly what I am looking for before I head out. I have a list and if I happen upon something I have been wanting but didn't know I was going to find then I make a promise to myself that I will sell or give away whatever I am replacing it with. It's working and our home is becoming more thoughtful and less full everyday. Its wonderful. I am also replenishing my wallet in the process which is also good!

Now that the house was in finding its way to less stuff and the closets were all cleaned out. I started really thinking about the fact that we not only needed to keep up with our mission of less but also really make our home work for us in every way!
I needed to rethink the space inside these walls. How could we get our home to meet all our needs? First, I had to figure out what those needs were? I grabbed a sheet of paper and with the idea in mind to not over think this too much ( I can obsess a little over this kind of thing) I started jotting down our needs.....

We have a five bedroom home with the fifth bedroom on the main floor. Sometimes this room is a playroom and sometimes its a guest room. Which always involved a ton of rearranging every time we had guests coming and lugging a mattress up and down stairs multiple times! So dumb.
My office is next to the downstairs bedroom and to be honest I wasn't ever in there. Most of the time I was doing my work from the kitchen table, bed or in the living room. I had an entire room in my home that wasn't even being used and we were lugging furniture around the house every few weeks. So dumb.
Another room that wasn't being used was our dining room except for thanksgiving and the occasional birthday dinner. But I loved the way it looked! It was such an inviting and pretty space and the first room that guests saw as they entered our home. I didn't want to lose all that. But what was I trading for it?
I knew what needed to be done and today it happened. I said goodbye to my pretty dining room and moved the table and chairs in to the kitchen. I wasn't going to get rid of those...heavens!
I swapped them out for the kitchen table now turned desk and added in the arm chair. I can now use this space for when I really need an office and it still looks inviting to guests.  But we can still pull in the large table and use it as a dining room come the holidays. Easier to move tables for company then a dang mattress...am I right?!?

{before}

I think I can handle the room like this and I like knowing that its going to work so much better for us in the long run. I do miss my pretty table and chairs in here but I also know that I will get used to it in  the kitchen. 

The other changes that I made was turning the playroom back in to the guest room and my old office is now the kids playroom/craft/computer room. All in one room!

I've been thinking a lot lately about how I grew up sharing a room with a sister that was nine years younger than me in a home that we had one living room and one kitchen for gathering and only two bathrooms for five people and you know what? It was fine!! We actually thought we were doing pretty good considering we actually did have two bathrooms as opposed to some of my friends that only had one! What the heck has happened that we as parents think our kids should own every room in the house? Since when did having their own rooms not become enough? Why must they now have a bedroom, playroom, craft room, media room, etc. all full of toys and their stuff and do they really need all that stuff. I believe this is another post to come shortly. 

 This might sound cruel to some but my husband and I have decided to take our house back. 

I should of been clear, when I said I wanted our home to work for us...that meant the adults..ha!  

{photos of the playroom and guest room changes coming to the blog soon}

Oh Target you always know how to speak my love language and right now you know Im all about the natural tones and elements. Give me all the wood, brass and marble!
I took a little trip there today and I loved everything I was seeing. Keep the neutrals coming and I will always be a happy girl!

Just a few of my favorites that are available on line after seeing them in person today. Who would of ever thought you could be so inspired while on your way to buy deodorant, milk and lightbulbs! 

Lamp

Desk

Bench 

Cube

Chair

Coffee Table

Ceramic Vase

Clear Candle Holder 

Its been a little while since we completed our middles room and so I thought I would share a few behind the scenes images with you all on how it all came to be!
You might not remember but her room used to look like this below

I had an idea to make the space a bit softer and so we started by painting over the Sharpie wall and tearing up the carpet to the subfloor.

Once we had new white paint on the walls it was time to lay the plywood plank floors and install the Chasing Paper wallpaper.

After these steps were completed it was on to planking all of the walls and painting the planks white. 

Before any project I always create a design board so that I can visualize the entire space and I don't waste time purchasing items that I end up not loving once I see them all in the space together.

Of course the board is always tweaked a little as I go and because I am always working on a budget I have to improvise as the project is completed. I still incorporated all of the colors in to the finished space but some of the items changed. Instead of a white bed with mint green bedding, I flip flopped the look and painted her existing bed green and used white bedding. This was huge when it came to cost. I always try to use what I have before purchasing new items. Shopping your own home is always the best way to start when you are styling a space.

I found the perfect mint green paint below at hobby lobby and the application was super easy and not much over spray at all. Two coats the red was gone!

The one thing I wanted to add to her room was this dresser from The Land of Nod. But at $1299 it just wasn't in the budget so I started thinking that I would just recreate the look myself. Using the dresser she already had in her room. I used frog tape on the front to create the pattern similar to the LON dresser.

The design was far from perfect but after a few tries I was fine with it....I stopped going for "perfect" a long time ago. 

The next step was to paint over the tape with my favorite primer HERE. If you follow the directions this stuff will stick to anything and considering I didn't prepare the dresser for painting by sanding it, I needed to make sure this stuff was going to stick!

I let it sit for a week and then pulled off the tape. I didn't paint over it but instead used a polyurethane to seal it. 

The two side by side. I still love the lighter one but saving myself $1299 was worth it! 

Im still over the moon with how the space turned out. Its a small room and so I had to be creative with the design so it didn't feel crowded or over done. I needed a real plan for the space and stick to it so that I didn't find myself purchasing things that ultimately wouldn't work and wasting time and money in the process. I also knew that if I didn't have a design we both loved that I would end up changing it again and that would make for a grumpy husband and I didn't want that! 

I had the sweetest client contact me over the holidays in need of some quick styling for her home. She was hosting Christmas and was expecting a house full of guests and she wanted her home to be ready. 

She had this console made specifically for her dining room but as you can see, she was in desperate need of the finishing touches. I have known her and her sweet family for some time now and I know how important the outdoors is to them so I wanted to incorporate that in to the design. Every time I approach a new design concept I am always thinking of the people that will be in the space and what will speak to their specific tastes and personalities. There isn't one design for everyone and I want my clients to feel at home with my design each and every time. 

A quick trip to target and Homegoods and I had all I needed to complete the design. 

What do you think? 

 

My clients are in love and thats all I ever hope for! 

The set of nesting bowls and wicker baskets are all from target and everything else is Homegoods! I added in texture by mixing clear glass jars with wood and metal objects. Created some depth and added height by using different size and shaped objects while using the lamps to anchor the entire look and create balance. The one thing that always completes any design is a natural element so I added a bunch of fresh eucalyptus to the glass vase. I love neutrals and a little greenery brings in that perfect amount of subtle color you need to keep the design from becoming boring and it was all completed for under $350. Not to shabby if you ask me!

Everything under $250 wish list 

A little Christmas wish list that I put together because I think it can be hard to give gifts, especially to people that seem to have everything! I also think that when you are shopping for gifts, especially last minute you tend to spend way too much. I love all of these items above and they are all under $250 which is even better. I used to give gifts thinking I didn't want to buy them something that they already had but then I realized that I personally want things that are similar to what I already have because its what I like!! Not to mention, I personally can never have too many grey sweaters! Ha! 

Each one of these items is a personal favorite of mine to give and to get. I actually would be pretty happy if one or all of these things were waiting for me under the tree come Christmas morning....{major hinting there}

 Oh and did I mention this is all from shopping on line. Who needs to fight those crowds or the cold? Not me! 

Twill Slim Pants 

Woven Hooded Cardigan 

J Crew Satchel

Tocca Cleopatra Parfum

Short Pea Coat 

Sorel Boots 

Watch 

Suede Booties 

Can you believe that 2016 is just around the corner?!! I am so excited to ring in the new year and of course that means party planning is on my mind! 

I love the idea of lots of guests all tucked in snug around our family room, sipping cocktails while listening to old jazz music and the roar of a fire in the background. With new years party's on my mind I had to sit down and visualize it all coming together. Of course that had to mean creating a design board of my perfect gathering space. 

Lot's of white and gold with just a bit of gray is how I envision my perfect party palette. I'm just so happy with my new Jonathan Louis furniture and I wanted to see what our family room would look like with more of a mid-century modern touch. I'm pretty much in love!
I need a few more rooms in my home because this design has me seeing with heart eyes! This Jonathan Louis Maddock sofa paired with the Mike Accent chairs.....so good!
I think that to have a great party you not only need good food and great drinks but you need good seating and enough of it! I have been to so many parties where the seating was minimal and you just end up squished in a corner with one or two people. I want my guests to fill a room and that means providing a place to sit and also a place to put their drinks. The space has to be inviting so I keep the furnishings close together which creates an atmosphere for conversation. I hate when the furnishings are so spread out in a room that you can't even hear what the other person sitting across the room is saying!
I added in the Randell Estate Cocktail Ottoman because its sleek and beautiful and it also reminds me of an amazing leather gray dress I once saw and still can't get out of my mind...the dress is long gone but this ottoman is forever!
I love the idea of a bench or in this case the Wright daybed across from a sofa. Perfect for a smaller space where you want to provide a lot of seating but you also don't want the room feel closed in or cramped. The backless design provides an obstructed sightline and the softness of the bed encourages sitting and chatting for long periods of time. Exactly what I want at my party! You don't want to throw a News Years party where everyone leaves before midnight.....that would be terrible!
So what are your New Years plans this year? Are you more of the black and gold kind? No problem...all these Jonathan Louis furnishings come in a array of fabric and color choices HERE so you can choose your own perfect palette.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!

So I wanted to update you all on my JL Furniture from the first post I had written HERE.  I have nothing else to say other than I love it! Well, maybe a little more to say.....
I really do love it you guys! I think the one thing that surprised me the most is how comfortable it is. I used to really love my sectional that was in here but now that we have had our new sofa and chair for awhile now I don't miss that old sectional one bit!
I love how you sink down in to the sofa because its so deep and the chair is exactly the same. I really struggled with whether or not I wanted a matching chair but I really fell in love with the Clarice chair so I got over my hang up and I'm super happy with my decision. Its big enough for me to snuggle up with my kiddos and yet doesn't feel bulky.
The sofa and chair are very well constructed. I tend to be a little picky about how things are made and I want my investments to last the test of time...okay, who am I kidding...I want them to survive my kids! I will say every stitch is tight and the piping is perfect and so comfortable!! Have I mentioned that part yet?!?

 The Jonathan Louis Clarice sofa can also be ordered with a chaise on the end which I also love. It was a hard choice but I'm very happy with the sofa we decided on although I think that if our living room layout was a bit different I may have gone with this one instead.

I really can't say enough about this fantastic company and their high level of quality! Its such a rare thing to find both in a company these days and I would say that Jonathan Louis Furniture has definitely raised the bar for my expectations in the future.