curtains or bust

As we close out 2014, I figured one last blog post was fitting. There's no significance, but it seems like a pretty good topic on which to end; a fresh look for a drab room. So here it is! Enjoy!

I don't normally buy expensive (or new) items for my house. Things in my home are usually from yard sales, thrift stores or the side of the road, but there are some things that you just need to splurge on. In fact, shopping the way I do allows me to spend a little extra money on other things. Like curtains.

If you've never heard anyone say, "curtains make a room," let me be the first. CURTAINS COMPLETELY MAKE A ROOM! It doesn't always make sense to have curtains, like in a bathroom for instance, but when a room is lacking that special something, curtains are usually an instant transformer.

It turns out that curtains are one of those things that you get what you pay for. If you're talented enough to sew your own, good for you. Do it. Otherwise you'll spend a FORTUNE on store bought ones. Not to mention you've got limited options when it comes to fabric, pattern and length. Enter Tuesday Morning.  Not only did they have cute patterns in a decent weight, they had 3 lengths to choose from - 84" (standard), 96" and 108". Score!! I'd been looking for curtains 96" or longer for months! You can find them at IKEA, but they are usually either super modern or very bland.

Ack!

Blah...

Now, most of the foursquare's rooms are 95% complete (I don't think they are ever 100%, especially when you're a decorator), but there was one room that was screaming "HELP!" The dining room...

Yuck, right?! It kinda resembles a padded cell, without the padding... Also, this was taken after a party, so please disregard my hodge podge of junk on the table..

Now, I wasn't necessarily looking for curtains at the time, but curtains are one of those things that when you find them at a good price, buy them! And thank goodness I did. When I finally put them up, it was instant style. I didn't event need to paint the room! It's crazy!!

So, you wanna see the after? Do ya? Do ya?? Ok, here you go!

Notice I took them straight to the ceiling. I wanted to elongate the room and allow the curtains to puddle the floor. I HATE when curtains are too short...

See how short curtains just cut a room! It's like wearing high waters! No, sir. 

I digress.

Hanging curtains added a whole new dimension to the room. And I didn't even have to paint! Crazy, right?!

The runner is from Carolina Pottery and the china is my grandmothers. The candlesticks and pitcher in the middle are from a family member on The Fox's side, and the other items are from yard sales. Like I said, I don't buy expensive often.

This is our flow over bar area. See our main one here (scroll to the bottom). The mirror is from Goodwill, cart from a flea market. Other items were picked up here and there...

I leave you with an artsy shot :). I got a new tripod for Christmas so I was testing it out! I hope you all had a great Christmas! I sure did. 

Stay tuned for upcoming projects....next is the office! Ekk!

Happy New Year!

an artist i am not...

I'm not an artist. I'm creative, for sure, but definitely not an artist. So, when I decided to free hand a design on a small table, I was a little skeptical of the end result.

This pitiful little table came from The Fox's house. I adored its lines, but it needed some love. After attempting to sell it at our yard sale AND craigslist, I caved and decided to bring its sexy back.

Before I got a hold of it (well, technically, after I sanded it and before I got spray happy...), the table was drab and boring. Again, the lines were good, but it was otherwise depressed.

I sanded down the top, wiped it down and started thinking of a design. My inspiration came from Target wrapping paper. I loved how eclectic the design is and it seemed simple enough for my first artistic attempt. To coats of gold spray paint later, I grabbed a brush, some leftover paint and went to free handing!

I probably should have tapped off straight lines, but I didn't think about that until I was 3 rows deep. Nonetheless, I finished in about 45 minutes and the final product didn't turn out too bad!

Again, straight lines were not to be had, but I'm chalking it up as a win in my book. It's not styled in the pictures because I haven't decided where to put it. I wanted to take it to work, but it's been in the back of my car for weeks now, sooooo.

Have you free painted something? Maybe a wall? Go for it! It's not so bad...if you can deal with it not being perfect. And it was fun, too! Maybe I'll attempt our powder room wall :).

Happy almost Thanksgiving, y'all!