Feeling Blue

My decorating style has changed over the years. I remember in college, I had a light blue twin comforter with red cherries on it. I felt like I was really living on the edge then. My quiltish self had really broken the mold...

My senior year of college I was able to move into a duplex with 2 other girls. We had a smorgasbord of styles ranging from shabby chic to modern with a little dash of old school flavor. Remember console TVs? We had one of those. Yes, it can be considered a piece of furniture, and yes, we had picture frames on top of it. Remote or cable? What is that? You had to get up to change the channel. I have fond memories of 2am Bare Minerals Make-Up infommercials. I still wear it.

As a newlywed, I trended towards the burgundy and cream fabrics with foundations of dark woods. A "rich" looking style (not as in finances rich, but flavorful rich). After a year, we moved into the house we are in now. It was airy, had a loft, and different flavors of sherbety colors in each room. Needless to say, my decorating sense has changed again.

I still love creams and natural palettes, but it must have hints of color. Sometimes, hints of color aren't enough, and a big paint splotch is needed to jolt the mundane look. Textures are important to me, as well as meanings behind each piece of furniture, wall hanging, and even pillow.

The Nester, whom I follow religiously now, has inpsired me to try new things in my home. I dreamed I got to go to her yard sale, and in my dream it was in a warehouse. A WAREHOUSE. what in the world. I left with a miniature high chair for a doll and crib. Not quite sure where all that originated, but Nester, if you are reading this, just know that I'm really not as obsessed as I sound. I just really wish I could have gone to your yard sale (the real one, not the one in my dream).

The main splash of color in my living room now is blue. It is found in an over-stuffed slip-covered chair that we bought before we moved into this house. I have a beautiful, rich-colored brown piano that was my grandparents. I had a fleeting thought of painting that, but I quickly realized that in my deepest of hearts, I loved that rich color with all of its little nicks and scratches. It tells a story. The mirror hanging over the piano became the victim. I bought this mirror to go in our townhome, shortly after we were married. I took paint that we used for Jonah's nursery and slapped three coats on it.




Due to lack of sandpaper, I am not completely done roughing up the edges. I really hadn't fully decided on the whole "distressed" look, but as I was trying to hang it, I nicked the side of it. Out of sheer laziness, I decided the mirror was trying to tell me it really wanted to be distressed, not smooth. Ok, fine. I sanded it the best I could, but I can't find more sandpaper. I'm not completely done, but it hangs over the piano anyway. After all, IDHTBPTBB. If you don't know what those letters mean, you didn't visit my link to The Nester

still on table, waiting to dry


sorry the pictures are so bad


again, the lighting is bad but you get the idea...





And, in case you still couldn't find it, those letters stand for this: It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful....

Isn't that true? It applies to so much more than just decorating.....

Spare Room

"You should just imagine how exciting it was going to be for me to sleep in a spare bedroom, reserved for important company such as yourself. As it was, I had to sleep with Minnie May, and you don't know how she kicks. Mine was the sleep of the bitterly disappointed, Miss Barry. I was forced to lie awake all night with the knowledge that I had cost Diana her career as a world famous concert pianist".
Anne Shirley, talking to Diana's Aunt Josephine in the book Anne of Green Gables


Anne Shirley was taken with spare rooms. She believed it was a special honor to sleep in one, and she and Diana were having a sleep-over in the spare bedroom of Diana's home. Unbeknownst to them, Aunt Josephine was already sleeping in there. The two girls excitedly ran into the room and pounced on the bed, only to awaken Aunt Josephine. This qoute is Anne's apology to Aunt Jo, and she actually won the lady's heart over. Aunt Jo invited both Anne and Diana to her house to visit, and they stayed in the "sparest of spare rooms".

I was feeling a little "Anne-ish" tonight, which should explain my post a bit better. See, everyone needs to feel special. Everyone needs their own spare room, nook, or cranny to call their own. As a mom, my ideal spare room would be at the end of a cobblestone trail. It wouldn't be a room; it would be a cottage with sloped roofs and an arched doorway. Those gray-weathered shingles would cover it, and a porch with rocking chairs would accesorize the exterior. Inside, the cottage would be open, with each room flowing to the next. All I would need are a few over-stuffed chairs with comfy ottomans, a desk, table, lamp, and bathroom with a large claw-footed tub. Instead, I have this:





It is a nook in our bonus room. The bonus room is definitely a man cave. My husband picked the furniture for it, and I let him do whatever he wanted in there. This is where the playstation resides, the Guitar Hero accessories, bookcases, and a fridge from college:) I decided to take the nook and transform it into a woman's cave. I got this idea from another blog, and I can't for the life of me find it. SO, to the other blog, thank you. I will post your link when I remember!

This nook holds my crafting supplies. I never really was much into being crafty until Jonah was born. While on maternity leave, I changed my name to Martha, followed glue-gun blogs, and discovered a passion. My passion was creating, designing, and beautifying my home with meaningful things. Each item in my home has a story, and I want to add chapters to the book. Hence, the craft nook, aka "My Spare Room" was born.

The pictures were hard to take, as the lighting was not the best. You will still get the idea.

I took netting from a canopy Patrick bought me before we were married, since I loved that canopy-look over a bed, and draped it around the entrance. This, my fellow bloggers, is how I cope with being the only woman in the house. I make a princess-ish entrance to my domain.







I disassembled a hoosier we had, as the top part didn't fit in the nook. Yes, I know some of the drawers are missing...



I found knobs at Michael's for 1$!!! They said different things like pull, push, discover. I thought this was fitting for the big cabinet door.



I dumped all of my ribbons into a basket. Eventually, I will organize this better, but I kinda like the look.



Other accessories found a home in a plastic (hate these things) storage container. Maybe shelves are in the future???




I am missing a very important item: a chair. I am on the lookout for a small chair or perhaps an ottoman that I can slipcover in delicious fabric. Perhaps a stripe or toile.

My dining room table is sighing in relief now. It will no longer be burned by the glue gun or weighted down with wreaths.

Do you have a spare room/nook? Post a link if you do!!!! I'd also like to make a disclaimer: this is not finished yet! I want to personalize it with perhaps photos, wall words, etc. I look forward to seeing your spare rooms!

Booking it through the Seasons

As some of you may have already noticed with my previous blogs, I enjoy making things out of books. I can't say that these were my original ideas, although I do try to put my own personal touches on them. I'd like to give a blog momma shout out to the Queen of Book Wreaths, Lindsay at "Living with Lindsay". She inspired me to start tearing apart books. I do it with reverence, believe me, and I choose my books very carefully. With my tongue halfway hanging out of my mouth and a furrowed brow, I mentally list out the reasons why I SHOULD rip the book apart. Was it loved? Do I miraculously have another copy of it? Does it have meaning? Do I know it by heart? Probably the answer to all of these is yes.

So, rip away I went. Figuratively, not literally.

Here is my first ever book wreath.





My second book wreath was for my mom's birthday. She loves hymns, and she loves Jesus, so....







Some time went by, and the books collectively sighed for relief. However, I stumbled upon another beautiful blog entitled "Craftberry Bush". I saw pumpkins made of books, and I daydreamed about the moment when I could turn a beloved book into a fall momento. Last Sunday, those dreams became reality in under an hour.






I have grand plans for a certain few books that don't know it yet. They will be the chosen ones for Christmas. Christmas, being my favorite holiday, deserves the best of the best crafting genius. Stay tuned for my next "series" of BOOKS!!!!

The Good Samaritan

I was blogging along my little road of stories, when I decided to change my background, header, and possibly my sanity. Well, I posted a cry for help, and I would like to offer "The Good Samaritan Award". This award is given to fellow bloggers (girls only allowed) who help another momma out.
Christena, whom I have never met before, was the first to comment and email me about inserting a picture.
Check out her blog! She has a little boy who is absolutely beautiful and handsome. You can tell by her most recent post that she loves that boy more than cookie monster loves cookies. Not sure why I came up with that analogy, but I just ate a chocolate chip cookie. That probably had something to do with it.

Thank you, Good Samaritan fellow Mommy! I appreciate your help even though you didn't have to.

Who deserves this award in your life????

Shameless

I am shamelessly, humbly asking for help. How do I get a picture of mine into that square little frame in my header? If you know how to do it, I would be forever grateful to you, my blog friend. I would send you multiple blog hugs as well as plaster your links all over my facebook.

Pretty Please????
Email me at samsa@ecu.edu if you feel like helping someone who is desperate to fix this darn header...

Thanks:)

oh my

just wanted to say, i have been working on this blog for 2 hours, and i have thoroughly messed it up. help! i can't get the title center:(

Swag this Way

Swagger your way over to Allison's blog where my interview is posted!

Any ideas for something/someone we can feature each week? The first one to comment with an idea gets the first guest post!!!!