just beachy

Last weekend I refinished the sofa table in my entry area. Here's the before picture...

I absolutely love the way it turned out. The color is Behr's Mermaid Net from Home Depot. It's a lovely blueish green that is perfect for the warm weather. It adds the just the right amount of color to my otherwise drab entry.



Anyone remember the brass candelabra I bought in Charleston? It has been transformed with just a little white spray paint!

bath update

I've been working hard over the past week or so trying to redo our master bath. I successfully removed the huge mirror above the vanity! It has since been primed, painted and new mirrors are up! Huge improvement from what it used to look like but still so much left. Here are a few pictures of how it looks. Next I need to order new light fixtures, faucets and the shower fixtures. Then I'll remove the shower doors and get/sew some curtains.

New paint color is "Light Silver Sage" from Restoration Hardware

Found these lovely mirrors at Homegoods for only $19.99 each. I just love the beaded detail!

Charleston Finds

Since it was rainy and record cold temps when we were in Charleston I decided one way to spend the day would be to hit the antique stores! There are so many in downtown Charleston but we decide to drive to nearby Mt Pleasant to try out the antiques mall. Just a few minutes from downtown Mt Pleasant has numerous design and antique stores. I scored all of this at the mall for under $30!

I've been looking for a window like this to go in the guest room after I repaint it.

This sailboat will fit in perfectly for my summer decor!

I have big plans for these brass beauties...

We also discovered Nadeau, a chain of unique furniture and accessories that is now on my must visit list when in a city that has one. We got this fab bowl for the golf themed basement!

i'm back...

Hi Everyone! I'm back after a wonderful trip to Charleston, SC with Mr O' to celebrate our first anniversary. I have so many updates for y'all! First let me say how much I absolutely loved the city of Charleston. I went there expecting a lot, everyone told me how it was so "me" before I left. So I had high expectations. I have to say it did not disappoint. I loved the charm of such a small city where you can walk everywhere. And as everyone said, it was very much "my style." I had expected a lot of British influences but was quite surprised to see so many French details. The architecture was amazing and as a very detail oriented person I loved how there was not a detail skipped. I ate delicious food, shopped at wonderful stores (both new and old) and walked my legs off. Can't wait to go back. Here are a few pictures I took...

singing the blues...

I've been searching for ideas for our entryway in the past few weeks because I feel like it needs a little something. It's very plain right now and although I want to keep the white walls I feel like it's missing something. We're going to repaint all the cream walls in our home in a white color this summer since they were poorly done before we moved in. This is the entryway now....

I just stumbled upon this great picture on The Pleated Poppy and realized this is exactly what I need! Here's a little before and after. Doesn't it look great?!? The color she used is "Mermaid Net" by Behr. I'm going to stop at the HD on my way home to pick up a paint chip!

And the after...

cork dreams

I recently found this blog entry on This Young House and thought it was the perfect solution for some clutter in my kitchen. I'm always cutting out ideas or recipes from magazines and leaving them on the kitchen counters or putting them on the fridge. I've been trying to keep my house less cluttered and this cork board idea is just what I needed!

After reading the article I ran out to Target to find some of these cork tiles for myself! The best part is they were less than $6! They were a little wider than my cabinet doors so I did have to trim them a bit so they would be flush against the doors. They came with little adhesive squares to use to hang them, so it was really a breeze.

Here's a little before and after...

I love the way it came out... Now I just need to order these adorable pushpins from Ballard Designs!

Lettered Cottage/Hudson Goods Giveaway

Layla over at The Lettered Cottage is giving away one of these fabulous pillows from Hudson Goods to one of her lucky blog readers. I am absolutely loving the dog ones below. The second would be perfect for my living room summer decor! And it looks like my own black lab, Coach!

If you haven't read Layla's blog you must start. She has done amazing things with her cottage home and is a very inspring interior designer. The giveaway post can be found here.

Also, be sure to check out Hudson Goods other items. They have some amazing finds on their site. And they're offering 30% off any item through May 31st..plus free shipping! I am loving this white distressed lamp.

I will be ordering this green sailboat for myself. And at only $29 it's quite the steal!

wallpaper

I've always disregarded wallpaper when it comes to decorating my own home. However it seems to be everywhere I look. Long gone are the old floral motifs, now we have interesting patterns, brilliant stripes and even wallpaper that is used as an accent.

This dark chandelier wallpaper would be great as an accent wall or in a small room. It's from Ballard Designs.

I just love how this green and white trellis wallpaper really pulls the room together:

This fleur de lis pattern would be perfect for a bathroom!

I just love this room Sarah Richardson did for a hotel in Toronto. The strips were meant to go floor to ceiling but she turned them the other direction which really makes the wall pop.

And of course I love anything damask...

decorating dilemma...

So we moved into our house over last Labor Day weekend.. which makes us homeowners for all of about 9 months. The problem I'm having is that I don't like some of the choices I made when initially decorating. I know they say you make mistakes on your first house but I really feel as though my style is evolving and I want to make changes already. As you know my current project is redoing the master bath, I've painted the master bedroom twice and now I am questioning my choices in the guest bedroom. I originally painted it a color called "Caponata" from Benjamin Moore, which I fell in love with in the Pottery Barn catalog. Now I think it's too bold for for my taste as I tend to be more muted and use calming colors.

Here are a few rooms I really like: