Isn't it Amazing What a Little Paint Can Do?

No truer words have ever been spoken. I LOVE PAINT! I will always profess my undying love to this amazing mood changer!

In the course of over three years (the time we've owned our house), we have repainted almost every room in our home. Each room must convey a single emotion when we enter.

Kitchen = Sunny

Living Room = Cozy

Our Bedroom = Relaxing

Office = Calm

Mudroom = Inviting

Laundry Room = Fresh

Being an artist makes me a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to color.

I'd love to share some of my tips for picking out the perfect paint colors. Hopefully this will protect you from making a bad decision. But, rest assured that if you really don't LOVE the color after you have painted one wall, you can take your paint back to the store and ask the "paint guy" to tweak the color for you. Or worst case scenario, you have to buy a new gallon. (Well, okay, that can get expensive.)

But, if you find a color you truly "LOVE", it will translate into loving your home. So worth it in my book!

Before I paint any room, I go to several paint departments and gather several color chips that appeal to me. The colors that I REALLY think I'm going to like, I will grab a few extra chips of (shhhh, don't rat me out for stealing paint chips.)

When I get home, I tuck the chips behind the switch plate cover, in the molding, or tape them on several different walls in the room. It is important to place the chips next to your trim moulding so you can see if the color will work well next to it.

After looking at the chips for at least a week during different times of day and different lighting (sunny or cloudy days) I am usually able to narrow down my choices to 2 or 3 choices.

Next I run back to the paint department and buy or have samples mixed up of the colors I like. Because I am a "work until I get it done" type person, I go ahead and paint big swatches on the wall next to the moulding on all four walls.  This is important because a color that looks good on your sunny wall may not look so good on a shady wall. And you need to see the colors and how they coordinate with the wall color in an adjoining room. If you aren't quite ready to commit to painting your wall, go ahead and buy some poster boards and paint the swatches on the poster board and hang or prop them up in your room.

A few things to keep in mind while you are looking at a color. Just be aware that the color may change as the seasons change. Winter yields brighter and cooler colored light in our home because the trees are bare. In the summer, our light changes to a greener cast and less harsh lighting as the trees fill out with leaves. I can tell you right now, that I wait for summer to roll around before choosing any colors in the green or yellow family. I need to make sure they look good with the light reflecting off the leaves and into the room.

If you are still having trouble choosing a color, invite a friend over who will give you their HONEST opinion.

If you STILL can't decide, never fear – Pretty Handy Girl is here! "Here I come to save your color dilemma!"

Introducing Paint Preview:

Some of us are visual people, we REALLY need to see the room painted before we know what a color is going to look like up on all four walls. A special thanks to Emily at Decor Chick for testing my new venture last week. I'm calling it "Paint Preview". Thanks to the wonder of technology, I can now virtually paint any room in your home or the exterior of your home! Save yourself time and money by previewing your painting project before the first drop cloth is laid.

Emily's Living Room Before - SW Baguette

Emily's Living Room Paint Previewed - SW Anew Gray

Want more information about Paint Preview? CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE.

In the meantime, one lucky reader will have the opportunity to win a free Paint Preview! But, that's not all! In addition, you will receive a Pretty Handy Girl in a box. (Sorry, I won't be shipping myself to your home. Unless you live in some amazing seaside resort cottage and will pay for my airfare and put me up for a week.) But, I will ship a box of goodies I've made on my blog in addition to some of my favorite treats (did I hear someone say caffeine & chocolate?!)

But wait...there's more! As with all my previous giveaways, I will be including a $25 Amazon Gift Card. Who couldn't use one of those beauties?

So, now that I've let the cat out of the bag, come back tomorrow for the official rules and details for entering my 1,000 follower celebration giveaway!

Until then, I'm thinking about repainting our garage doors and adding grills to them. What do you think?

Our Home Before

Our Garage Paint Previewed

Creating Seasonal Vignettes

I like to revitalize my love for a room by switching out the décor throughout the year. Decorating for the season gives the room a fresh look.

Mantles are the ideal place to begin:

Autumn

Christmas

Valentine's Day

But, if you don't have a mantle, you can use any flat surface!

Side Table

Pedestal

Pie Safe Cabinet

Built-in Bookshelf

Recessed Window Seat

Here are a few tips for creating successful vignettes:

1. Varied heights

Try to create a visual triangle. Have one tallest object, then a 2nd tallest and a shortest. I use books all the time to help elevate an object that might be at the same height as another object. Attractive wooden crates or boxes covered with cloth can work too.

2. Varied textures

Using a variety of textures creates visual interest. In the picture below I have a ceramic bird sitting on torn strips of newspaper in a plaster container on top of an embroidered linen and some books.

3. Color palette

Choosing a color palette of 3 colors or less is an easy way to create an appealing vignette. For my Valentine's Day vignette I chose to work with primary red and white with some black.

4. Odd numbered groupings

Vignettes and small groupings tend to look better when you use an odd number of objects. For example, in the grouping below, I have assembled:

      1. Birdhouse on a candlestick (visually they are one object)

      2. Bird nest in pedestal (again visually counts as one)

      3. Stack of books

      4. Picture frame

      5. Felted rose laying in front of the picture frame.

5. Varied Shapes and Scale
Vignettes work well if you can vary the shape and scale of your objects. Grouping many objects of the same size and shape will not give your eye enough to explore and study. Always take a step back from your vignette to make sure that your grouping has different shapes and sizes represented.

6. It's Your Décor

This is the most important rule! Make sure you create something you like. Use your own objects. And if you love it, that is all that matters. It really doesn't have to meet someone else's criteria of perfection. I wrote a whole post on imperfect decorating HERE.

Happy Decorating and a Very Happy Valentine's Day to you!

Did you spy Christmas cards in the background?
I love them too much to take them down yet.

If you'd like to read more "Fall in Love with Your Home" February posts, click on the button below to see a recap of this month's theme.

I Love Decorating with Books - Guest Post from Honey We're Home

On the heels of my de-cluttering post, I have a special guest who is going to show you how you can keep all your books and make them look attractive instead of cluttered! Hooray for book lovers!!! And once you see how she used her books as décor, you are going to run to your bookshelves and create another reason to fall in love with your home!

Without any further waiting, I'd like to introduce Megan from Honey We're Home
(and her fabulous helper and right hand man, James.) 

Okay, but wait, before I let her talk, I have to tell you that Megan's home is absolutely gorgeous. If you haven't visited her blog, do so NOW!

What, you are still here? Seriously! Look, here are just a few pictures from her home:

Mudroom

Her Office

And, her closet. AKA Mom Cave (Seriously, I could eat, sleep & blog in there!)

Okay, so you are back, and NOW without any further delay, Please welcome Megan!


Although I had admired Brittany’s handiwork and especially her boy’s reading nook for a long time from afar, I was thrilled to get to meet her in person at Blissdom.  Needless to say, she is so down-to-earth and personable and really listens to you when you are talking.  Eye contact and all.  And she really is purely intent on showing her readers how they can accomplish the kinds of projects she does in her home in theirs!

What I’m sharing with you today is how I’ve used books as decor in our home.  I love reading and have amassed quite a collection of books over the years.  It’s funny how you can tell a lot about a person by the books they read.  In my house, you would guess I’m into God/religion/spirituality, decor/interior design, parenting/babies, fashion, and cooking.  My husband’s books are all about business, law, and history.

I’ve received a lot of inspiration for decorating with books from blogland and I especially love those “rainbow” bookshelves and wanted to try my hand at it.  I’m pretty familiar with my books, so I’m sure I won’t have any trouble locating them even though they aren’t categorized by subject.

Here’s my rainbow bookshelf in the upstairs hallway.  All I did was group the books into rainbow order by their spines and then arrange them on the shelf.   I reworked it a couple of times, and ended up with this:

Here’s the close up:

There’s barely a room in my house that doesn’t have books, for example:

My Office

Kitchen

Pantry

James’ Nursery

 

Thanks for having me Brittany!!

Be sure to check out some other ways you can "Fall in Love with Your Home!"

Love Your Home, Not The Stuff! Taming the Clutter

Okay, we've all seen an episode of Hoarders by now. The guy that hasn't seen the carpet in his home in 5 years or the woman who saves everything! We see those extreme examples of clutter and can't imagine how they can live like that.

But, the question is, do you see clutter in your own home? I can tell you that I have clutter. Not, OMG call Hoarders type clutter, but small piles of it. A few extra knick knacks, some papers that need to be filed or those horrid happy meal toys! They start out in corners, bookshelves, flat surfaces. Sometimes they stay like that, they are there but not "bite you on the nose" noticeable most of the time. And sometimes they multiply and become little families of clutter. Even the smallest bits of clutter are noticed by your eyes, and your brain processes it. This is what I call visual clutter.

In college, I used to have to clean my entire room before I could start on my illustration assignments. I do the same thing in our garage (which is cluttered now) before I can start on a new project.

I NEED the visual calmness of a clean room so I could be more creative and more productive.

This week, I want you to pick one room. Preferably the room you spend the most time in. Is it your kitchen or your home office? Whatever it is, this is the room that will make you happy when you are done. It is the room that will allow you to "Fall in Love with Your Home."

Materials:
Four Boxes (or laundry bins)
Large Trash Bag
Different Colored Sheets of Paper
Thick Marker
Cleaning rags
Windex or general cleaners

Begin by gathering your four boxes.Label each one with these labels: KEEP, DONATE or SELL, RECYCLE, TRASH. I like to use a different color for each label so I don't accidentally toss something in the wrong bin.

• KEEP = Things that don't belong in that rom or to be stored away somewhere else
• DONATE or SELL = Goodwill, Thrift store or FreeCycle.org donation. Or sell via yardsale, Craig's List, eBay or other sales venue.
• RECYCLE = paper, glass, cans, and other curbside recycling. Also, dry-cleaner hangers, plastic bags, or other items that can be re-used. I.e. Old cloths or linens that can be cut up for cleaning rags.
• TRASH = Anything worthless in value. I like to line the trash bin with a big plastic bag to make it easier to empty.

Start in one area of the room (I like to start furthest from the door or work clockwise from the door.) This will be the first zone you are going to work in. Begin by taking any and all the items from that zone (unless the item has a place to be stored in that room. In that case, put it away.)

Once the zone is clear, clean off all the surfaces.

Now either put the items away that are staying (preferably out of sight) or place it in one of the four bins.

If you find yourself stuck ask yourself these questions:

1. Have I used or worn it in the last 6 mos? 1 year?
2. "Will this item help me create the home I want" - Peter Walsh
3. Is this item irreplaceable? 

If the answer to any of those questions is "No", then say adieu to it now!

If you find yourself stuck. Try the 1 year box idea. Create another box and put anything you are undecided about inside. Seal it up and write a date 1 year from today on it. Next year when you find that box in storage, get rid of it. Don't even open it. If you didn't miss the items inside then you don't need them. Just donate it.

Continue until you have cleared your zone.

Assess the "KEEP" items and decide which ones can go back in that zone. Be sure to store them out of sight. Don't allow them to become visual clutter in your room.

I'm going to stop here, because I have some important pieces of furniture for storing items at my reach, but not in my visual line of sight.

First is my Craig's List pie safe:

This $65 special is not very big.
Approximately 36" wide by 60" tall.

But, it stores everything but the kitchen sink!

Top Shelf:

• school papers
• school work
• kids artwork
• Workbooks
• Coloring Books
• Favorite Magazines
• Coupon Binder Sleeves

Next shelf:

• charging station (tutorial to come)
• Cell phones
• Cameras
• Battery chargers
• Walkie Talkies
• Recipe Box

Drawers:

• Left: Pretty Handsome Guy's mail
• Rigth: Pretty Handy Girl's mail

Bottom shelf:

• Cookbooks

Renee's credenza (another Craig's List find):

Top drawers:

• Left drawer: Mail for him
• Right drawer: Mail for her
• Lined baskets store all of their daughter's art supplies! Brilliant and beautiful.

Okay, back to de-cluttering. When you have finished going through the whole room go ahead and start removing the bins from the room. Empty the trash, dump the recycling in the curbside recycling and sort out any other items that aren't curbside. Put them in your car so you can get rid of them while you are running errands (drycleaner, grocery store, etc.)

Now, sort through the Donate/Sell box. Grab a notepad to jot down anything you will be donating. Then put that pile in a bag and put it in your car as well. Be sure to run by Goodwill or the thrift store one day this week. Put the items you intend to sell in a dedicated spot in storage. Make a commitment to yourself to sell them within 3-6 mos. and donate them if you haven't after that time frame. (Pretty Handsome Guy might be calling me out on this one.)

Finally, sort through the KEEP box, bring the box with you around the house, and stop in each room. Put away all the items that belong in that room. If you have to, go ahead and leave the items for that room somewhere to be put away later. Remember today you are only tackling the one room!

My closet, de-cluttered in less than 30 minutes.

Color coordinated clothes help you pick outfits faster.
And makes you aware of what colors you have enough of in your wardrobe.

Go back to the room you just de-cluttered. Sit there and breathe in. Allow yourself to enjoy the calmness of a clean and clutter-free space. Let yourself fall in love with this space. Anytime you find yourself disgusted with your home, go back to this space and rekindle that flame.

Now get crackin' and eliminate that visual clutter. Need some help controlling clutter? (Commission Links)