Bedroom Update.

One room I don't post much about is our master bedroom.  That's mostly because it was neglected for a long time.  But now that we are making some progress, I thought I would share with you where we are:

 

Here's were the exciting part comes in . . . we hired Erin of Element Interiors to give us some suggestions on accessorizing the room.  I loved the basics we had, but was struggling with wall hangings and accessories (clearly you noticed from the above pictures!). 

Here are her beautiful boards for the bedroom and sitting room.

And here's a fun mock-up of the bedroom!

We have purchased several items from the boards and are working on putting everything together.  I will post pictures of how things are looking as they progress (and I am sure, asking for some input too)!

Sarah's House: Family Room, Living Room, and Kitchen & Dining Room.

I have got to get caught up on Sarah's House since a new series started this past weekend!

Up first, the family room.  I like the masculine feel, but it's not overwhelming manly (i.e. no super dark colors or an over-sized leather couch).  In my opinion, brown and blue will always be a classic color combo.

I love the simple light fixture and the blue chairs are amazing!

Next is the gorgeous living room.  I love the color palette and am glad Tommy convinced Sarah to incorporate pink.  How adorable are the striped ottomans? 

The kitchen also turned out great (of course).  Can you believe the cabinets and counters are from Ikea?  I love the idea to paint the upper cabinets white and leave the bottom ones the beige color.  It definitely breaks up the beige color (and I love white kitchen cabinets).

And last but not least, the dining room.  My absolute favorite thing is the chandelier.  Love it!  I would have never ever thought the table would work, but with the updated chairs, it does. 

(all photos hgtv.ca)

Happy Easter.

Happy Easter!

(photo: marthastewart.com)

Entryway Wall Decor.

I received some great antique keys from my mom and mother-in-law.  After thinking about the perfect place to hang them, I finally decided in the entryway.  Here's how I decided on the layout and placement:
 
I took a large piece of paper (wrinkled paper is optional) and tried several different layouts -- some more haphazard than this more linear layout.  Once I settled on a layout, I traced the keys onto the paper.

Then, I had to rummage through the garbage bag the next day to find the paper with my tracings Justin had accidentally thrown away.  Once I rescued the paper from the trash, Riley decided he would assist by laying on it.

I taped the paper up on the wall and then, based on my outlines of the keys, hammered in the nails.  I used the paper as a reference and hung the keys on the wall.  (For a very detailed and thorough description of hanging a gallery wall, check out this post over at Brooklyn Limestone.) 

Then step back and admire your handiwork!  Well . . . after getting the keys hung, I decided I didn't like the way it turned out.  They needed to be framed out or something.  It just didn't look right.  So all that arranging, tracing, trash digging, and hammering for nothing!
 

Thankfully, my mom got me these awesome chair prints, which work perfectly there instead. 

If anyone has any ideas on how to display the keys, let me know!

Zoey Pictures.

There's rarely a dull moment anymore at our house with Zoey and Riley.  It's fun to watch them play together -- Zoey is sassy and fearless.  We try to always have the camera nearby because they are so cute!

Look at those crossed back legs!

She was asleep with her head in Justin's shoe like this for over an hour.

She takes after Riley and loves to sleep on top of the cushions on the back of the couch.

Unfortunately, she is so tiny she slides down between the cushion and the back of the couch all the time.  Here she is after she fell (and stayed asleep).  That's her tail in the back and her ears flipped up in the front.

From the pictures, it looks like she is always sleeping, but that's certainly not the case!  That's just the only time she holds still long enough for us to snap a picture of her that's not blurry!  Here are a couple of her actually awake:

Riley likes to hop up on the ottomans when he wants a break from his little sister.

Baby H Is Here!

Jeremy and Meagan had their beautiful baby boy yesterday!  Sawyer Henry weighed 6 lbs 6 oz.  Isn't he so precious?   

Congratulations to the new mom and dad!

5 things . . .

5 things I am liking . . . 

1.  This gorgeous room:

(photo: decorpad.com)

2.  The April issue of Traditional Home.  It was perfect reading on the plane this morning on my way to Dallas.  There were so many inspiring pictures!

 
3.  A restful puppy.

4.  The ice cream social we had last week at work.  Yum!

5.  That it is almost the weekend!

Kitchen Update.

I mentioned a long time ago about getting new kitchen lighting (here and here).  The lights were installed before Christmas, so besides just flat out forgetting to post pictures of them, I have no excuse for not sharing them earlier!

Here's the breakfast table area before (and notice the "boob" light, as Sarah Richardson would say, above the sink):

And after with the 18" clemson pendant from Restoration Hardware:

 The kitchen island area before:

And after with two 8" clemson pendants:

And here's a shot of all of the new lights, including the schoolhouse pendant over the sink.

I love having the extra light over the table and the island.  Looking back at before pictures makes me realize how empty the space looked.

Sarah's House: Laundry Room & Backyard.

While Zoey was taking her first nap of the day this morning, I was able to catch up on some old episodes of Sarah's House.  And, as usual, I loved everything she did. 

The laundry room was so bright and cheery.  For a second, I thought to myself that I would actually enjoy doing laundry in that room -- and then decided that's not true.  I don't like doing laundry period (even if the space is cheery and beautifully designed).

I love the carrera marble countertops and floors.  And the blacksplash is so fun!

She created a little storage area in the basement as well during the episode.  Sadly, the website didn't have any pictures, but she painted the concrete floors a very pretty blue/gray color that I loved.

The next episode was the backyard.  How amazing does that pool look?  I could totally enjoy a nice drink, a good book, and the sun in that space. 

(all photos hgtv.ca)

Sarah and Tommy were cracking me up with all of the comments about the buff guys working on the pool and how they wanted to make a calendar.  Too funny.  I also enjoyed seeing how much her plans changed as the backyard progressed.  It makes me feel better when I start with one idea and end up in a completely different direction!

Introducing Little Zoey!

We picked up our new welsh terrier puppy (Zoey) yesterday from a small town outside of Dallas.  She is super cute and so tiny!  I will have another post soon with more pictures of her after we are able to sort through the hundreds (yes, hundreds) we have taken already of her and her big brother.

In the meantime, look at that sweet little face. 

Baby H Shower.

We recently hosted a co-ed shower for Meagan and Jeremy to help them welcome their baby boy!  We had a great time planning it for them and, most importantly, we can't wait to meet Baby H!

I managed to snap a few shots of the decorations before the shower started.

Of course Martha's look better than mine, but the pom-poms are so cheap and easy to make for such a fun decoration.

To spruce up our everyday centerpiece, I just took some coordinating ribbon and wrapped it around the candles and sprinkled some "baby boy" confetti around the tray.

Here's a close up of one of the bouquets (and one of the buffet lamps):

And my favorite area . . . the dessert table, which had cake (of course), iced shortbread cookies for the favor, chocolate covered ritz peanut butter sandwiches, and sixlets.  The sixlets were Justin's pick -- he was very excited to see that Hobby Lobby carried them (I had never heard of them before), but they did look pretty in the candy dishes.

And last but certainly not least, the dad-to-be was double-fisting it at the end of the shower with a bottle-shaped iced shortbread cookie and a beer.