<data:blog.pageTitle/>

This Page

has moved to a new address:

http://littlehousedesign.com

Sorry for the inconvenience…

Redirection provided by Blogger to WordPress Migration Service
My Little House Design: July 2012

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Blue, Baby Blue.

I did a crazy thing the other day. I painted my room super blue. Not just regular blue, it is seriously super blue. When I moved in my room was a creamy white. The walls were clean and the paint job was pretty new so I didn't touch it for the first seven months. In fact, for those seven months I tried to convince myself that I liked white walls. Why you ask? Because white walls are so artsy and cool. See proof: --
Source: https://www.ikeafamilylive.com/en/room/uncluttered-bedroom-779 --
Source: http://www.countryliving.com/homes/decor-ideas/bedroom-designs-gallery#slide-49 --
Source: http://ticktockclock.tumblr.com/post/5934694451/uydurrukcu -- I mean seriously, so fresh, bright, and classic. Here is my attempt at white walls: --
--
--
-- ...eh...kind of depressing, right? Somehow my 'white' didn't translate as cool, hip white. It was more like 'I'm a renter white' which is silly since I own the home and can do whatever I want. So after months of convincing myself I liked it, I changed my mind and decided to just go crazy. I'm really drawn to super saturated colors. Like these: --
Source: http://www.mixandchic.com/2012/04/home-tour-stylish-victorian-rowhouse-in.html#comment-form --
Source: http://prettystuff.tumblr.com/page/9 -- I was especially inspired by designer Emily Henderson's office space. I loved this blue.
Source: http://www.stylebyemilyhenderson.com/blog/?currentPage=2 -- That isn't the best image but from other photos I could tell I really like the color. And since one doesn't want to mess around with shades that extreme, I color matched the exact color she used. It is Loyal Blue by Sherwin Williams and I had it color matched from Behr. It was only slightly scary because, hey, it's paint so it's an easy fix if I don't like it.
What do you think? I really like it! Is it crazy bold? Absolutely. But I lived with "tranquil" white for a while and it just wasn't me. I'm no photographer so the color reads weirdly in some of these photos but the truest likeness is the photo of my bed. It's very royal blue. It's deep and my art and furniture really stand out now. In the future I'll add some lighter curtains or Roman shades to lighten it up a bit. I also may switch out that black bookcase for something lighter, but for now to darkness doesn't bother me. In fact, I feel like I'm in a warm cocoon of blue.

Labels: , , , , , , , , ,

Monday, July 16, 2012

Jenny Lind

I love Jenny Lind beds. I like that they are a classic style with a touch of whimsy. They are so cute in kids rooms, especially when there are two of them. Like this (Source: Design*Sponge):
Or in a crib, like this (Source: EmmylouBeeDoo):
But here's the thing... I don't have kids yet. And I really like Jenny Lind beds so I happened upon one on Craiglist and guess what? It was a full! The exact size of mattress I have. So I sprung and got my self my own Jenny Lind bed. I paid $150 for it. I'm very happy with that price. When I went to pick it up I found out that the bed was built in the early 1910s as a wedding gift for the woman's grandparents. Her own mother was born in it! She was very sad to sell it but no one in her family wanted it. I can't even imagine! So I assured her that I would give it a very loving home. Here she is:
I love it so much. I like how high it is. I feel special when I get up into it. It is very distressed from the past 100 years of use, but it is still very sturdy. I've thought of maybe sanding it all down and re-staining it or possibly painting it. I love the look of a bright, fun bed frame, but I'm still undecided. For now I am happy to have my very own Jenny Lind bed!

Labels: , , , , , ,

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Bathroom Mini-remodel Part Two

Bathroom part two. After I got the mirror put in I waited a few weeks and then had the tile put in. The floor in there wasn't that bad in the sense that it was all intact, but it was so ugly that I could not stand it. Here is the before:
See what a good job I did covering it up? You barely notice it, but still... I knew it was there. Initially, I told my friend that I hired to do the tile work that I would do the demolition. I thought that I could easily pull out the floor... but I over-estimated my abilities. This is how far I got:
My dog was no help. So I left it up to the professional. Apparently I wasn't that off base because the floor was hard for him to get up too. He pulled up FOUR layers of old flooring! He stripped it down to original studs and the put cement board on top of that. Needless to say it was a big old mess, but it really needed a new sub-floor so I can't complain. Here is the project mid-way through:
Yeah, it was a mess. But, it was all worth it because it got done and it looks beautiful!
So pretty right? I chose white hex tiles from Home Depot. I vacillated between the all white and the black and white for a long time, but finally decided that the white may be better for reselling the house. I also decided to add some more art and storage to the walls. This is an old orange crate that my grandma gave me. I set it on it's side and added baskets for storage.
I went to a local salvage yard and found some more crates and decided to hang them on the wall. I also decided to group together all the pencil drawings I've collected which is a total of... three. My collection is a little young but it'll get better. Here is the final collection which is above the toilet opposite of the medicine cabinet.
I'm very happy with the way it all turned out!

Labels: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Bathroom Mini-remodel Part One

Part One: Bathroom problems. Not like that though... I just really hated the bathroom when I moved in. And since there is only one in this house I was itching to make it look better fast. Here are some before shots:
It's actually not that bad. The toilet and pedestal sink are a classic style and they are white so I can work with those. The shower tile is okay. I like that the majority is white, but that green border annoys me and it all needs re-grouted. The medicine cabinet was disgusting. It was too small in the space and it was so rusty I could barely open it. The flooring was also pretty gross. Hunter green faux marble tiles, they were basically laminate stick on tiles... ugly. My game plan was this: add shower curtain, change out medicine cabinet, paint, and tile floors. A modest over haul. But since I couldn't start the remodel right away I added a few things to make it passable for a nice bathroom. I bought an awesome shower curtain from West Elm, I love the bold stripe. I also added a pencil drawing from Paris and my mini make over was done until I got the mirror installed.
While I was waiting for my handyman to make time for me (another story all together) I decided to paint. I made a rash decision at Ace Hardware one day and bought a light yellow color.
uh, it was HIDEOUS. I mean seriously, it was like a highlighter exploded in there. I couldn't stand it for even one day so the next day I went out and bought another color. This time I thought, how about a nice mint color? You'd think at this point I would have been more cautious and bought a sample but no I just went balls out and bought a whole gallon. Ugh
I really, really wanted to like this color for many reason. One, I just bought a whole gallon of it and two, I am super lazy and didn't want to paint again, and three, it wasn't that bad... right? WRONG. It was way too bright and just too much so I painted it for a third time. You should know by now I am super ashamed of how rashly I acted so many times in a row, but alas that is my personality. I decided to go back to what is was originally... a soft cream. I actually had a gallon on hand from another project so thankfully I didn't have to buy a third gallon. For now it looks good. It is a soft color that is slightly warmer than the stark white trim. Perhaps some day I'll try again but for now I'm happy with it.
My next project was the mirror. I am a Craigslist junkie so when I came across this Kohler medicine cabinet new in the box for $115 I knew it was for me. I negotiated it down to $100 and then hired a friend to help me put it in.
Unfortunately, I didn't properly measure before buying (a common problem for me) so my friend had a lot more work to do before it could be installed. After pulling out the old medicine cabinet he had to make some major cuts to make it fit. Because of the sizing problem he had to improvise by building a frame around the mirror. Here it is before I painted it.
And here it is after two coats of white paint.

I actually like it better with the frame around the mirror, it adds another layer of texture. I am so happy with this upgrade!

I'll come back tomorrow with the second half of the bathroom remodel.

Labels: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Monday, July 9, 2012

Enter Please

Entry ways are strange. It seems like they are either very formal and impractical or family friendly with lots of storage. It's hard to find inspiration for us in between a formal home and a chaotic family home. I'm a very casual person and I live alone so I don't need a lot of storage or something that takes your breath away. My entry way's purpose is to be the first taste of my style when someone walks into my house. Here is the entry when I first got my house:
So actually that is the terrible picture, but basically it is a little cream box in front of the door. There is one window in there as well. I had a lot of inspiration thanks to Pinterest. Here are few of my favorites:
I love this image and it's likely you've seen it also. It's everywhere and for good reason. That green! LOVE. I also love, love dressers not in bedrooms. But since I've already used a dresser in the living room I decided against one in the entry. (Source)
I love this table. The height and 'X' style legs. I also love idea of a lamp in the entry way, an easy way to make the space more intimate. The one thing that bothers me about this image is how styled it is... too obvious. (Image source: http://theeverygirl.com/feature/how-to-style-an-entryway/)
Here is another very popular image. Who doesn't love a deeply saturated wall with hot pink accent? Okay, I'm sure there are some, but I'm not one of them. Having a bench in the entry way makes sense to me. Because about the only thing I may actually do in my entry way is sit to take off my shoes. This image makes me a little sad though because I once had a lovely kelly green ampersand that was tragically broken with a clumsy bump from my large backside. Sad. (Source)
I really like the simplicity of this. White walls, natural wood dresser, and few well placed accessories. Simply perfect. (Source) Those being a few of my favorite inspiration images I did something completely different haha. This is just the progress update because I fully intend to do more to it in the future. Without further ado...
There she is! I threw in the Instagram just for fun. It's a simple design that I'm very pleased with for the time being. Here is a little break down: - THE RECORD TABLE The blue piece is something I acquired for free (love free!). I'm guessing it is from the sixties and I think it is an old record table. Under the book and globe in this picture there is an inset that used to be where the records would be placed. It has since been covered with a piece of wood. When I got the piece it was pink and green. Pink and green. Yikes. I painted it royal blue because I had it lying around and I still kind of like it although it would be awesome to strip it and get it back to natural wood again. Maybe some day. I like that you can still sit on one side and both sides open on top for storage (although right now they are empty). I toyed with the idea of adding fabric covered pads on each side to make it a more comfortable bench, but no progress on that front. - THE GLOBE The globe was purchase for $12 at an antiques store. I know, I know, globes are so hipster. Blah blah blah whatever. I like it. - THE BOOK The book was a Christmas gift probably 5-7 years ago from Target. What you can't see from this picture is that inside that book it is my pre-Pinterest board! I have all my magazine clippings in there for home decor and DIY projects. That always makes people laugh when the see it. - THE MIRROR The mirror is a classic sunburst mirror reproduction from Home Depot of all places and the best part is it was only $35! Sometimes I second guess myself and think... "Sunburst mirrors are everywhere, how unoriginal of you." But then I shake my head and ask myself, "Do you truly like this piece?" And if the answer is YES! I go for it. - THE STRIPE I can't remember where my inspiration came from for this. But one day I just did it. I used the paint color from my kitchen and used a measuring tape, pencil, painter's tape, and a level. I am terrible at math so it took forever but I got it done and it's looks pretty straight. I'm very happy with the effect it has on the space. Before the stripe:
During the stripe-ing:
The stripe is complete!
- THE LIGHT Like the rest of the house the entry had a generic builder's grade light fixture which I changed the first week I moved in. The light is from IKEA and I'm happy with it in that space. It's a great design, yet unobtrusive. Well, that is my entry way and officially my longest blog entry ever. Whew. That was a lot of work!

Labels: , , , , , , , , ,

Sunday, July 8, 2012

House Paint

I've made a decision. I am going to do this blog thing everyday for a month and then see how I feel about it then. I've also decided this isn't going to be a "feelings" blog. Don't get me wrong I enjoy reading "feelings" blogs, but this blog is going to be a home blog. I enjoy interior design and perhaps sometime in the future I will actually be able to do that full time but for now I will be here everyday sharing projects and inspiration from my own home. When I bought my house in January one of the first things I wanted to do was paint it. It was a dingy blue-grey color and it was very dirty. Most homes built in 1925 had wood siding but at some point in this homes' history the wood siding was replaced with metal siding. Painting the interior of a home is one thing, but painting the exterior is a totally different thing. So I hired a professional. Should I have saved up more money and waited longer and vetted my painter more? Yes. But I'm impulsive and impatient. Thankfully, it all turned out great. My house looks beautiful! Here is the before and after:
Doesn't it look great? Now I just need to deal with those stinkin' huge ugly bushes.

Labels: , , , , , ,