Pinky peach in the front room

After finding out we were expecting a girl this February, my sister 'n law Emily put together a design board for the nursery.  The concept was blue and coral.  This picture that Emily posted, reminded me of my front room with the gold in the entry way.  It inspired me to make new cushions for the spring, announcing the coming of my little girl.

Family Pictures

It used to be once in a blue moon, my laundry room would look like this.  But lately, it's been happening more and more.  And don't know what's going on, but I've been noticing that the morning house work is not overwhelming anymore.  After all these years, I'm learning how to handle my responsibilities and its wonderful not to feel weighed down with the never ending cycle of mess, clean, mess, clean.

 Anyway, I decided I want to take advantage of my little bit of new found freedom, and squeeze more into my days.  Today I made a list of extra tasks I need or want to do, all requiring 30-60 minutes of time.  After my list was written, I chose the family room picture wall to tackle today.  Oh, wait.  First I'm going to finish showing off of my laundry room.

 These are all the bulletin boards I've mentioned in the past.  This is my room, filled with books, fabric and clippings that make me happy.  Do you see my two quilt squares I made with my local quilt guild?  They're houses.  I joined in August because I wanted to spend more time with these ladies.   Then I discovered the whole time was spent doing "show and tell" instead of time for chatting.  I'm not continuing my attendance, but I think these two squares will inspire a special quilt.  You know I'll keep you updated.

                                                   My cupboard for 1 yard pieces or bigger.

                                                                   My cupboard of scraps
Okay, so on Sunday night Daniel was sitting in the family room after our dinner guests had left.  "How come the walls are so boring in here?"  he asked.  I explained I still needed to buy the floating shelves, "remember you said you didn't want all those holes again?"  "So I have to mount shelves?"  his eyebrows raised.  "Just put the pictures up, I always liked that wall."

This is what I finished today.  Me and Daniel at the bottom (I'm the big baby), our parents above us, grandparents above them and I have one great grandparent picture at the top.  I want this wall make more sense, like a family tree, in stead of all mixed up.  I am going to leave it like this for a few days.  I want to give myself a chance to add any other pictures of us and our parents before the rest of the space gets filled in with siblings, nieces and nephews.

Grandma's dishes

Sometimes when I am getting dressed I wish I still had roommates to give me their opinion on my outfit.  The same goes when I am hanging pictures.  Why don't my friends and family live just around the corner?  It forces a girl to either wait indefinitely until company arrives, or move forward and trust her choices.

Today I am doing a little of both.  I wanted to share with you my Great Grandma Gerda's plates that I have decided to hang on the dining room wall, but realized once I had them up, it looks like I need more.
Here is what they look like from a distance.

                                                                   And here is a closer look

My options right now: I could hang my favorite Christmas plate which has a popular British icon on it. 

                           I think it would be a fun contrast to the old fashioned floral design.

                                     Or, I could just hang a white plate, giving it cleaner look.
                Really, I don't want to distract from my favorite picture of Jesus with Mary and Martha

                    Or I could leave it as it is for now and not rush my creative process.  Any thoughts?

Picture Frames

Anyone who has been in my home knows I am not afraid to hang up pictures. 

 This is a wall in Daniel's home office.  

But every since the painter filled in all my nail holes and freshly painted the family room and the boys' bedroom, I have been afraid of hanging my artwork back up.  Maybe I don't know if I'm in love with it anymore, and now's a good time to change. Also I want to be more responsible this time and try hanging most of my pictures in a stud instead of plain sheet rock.

Well, Tuesday night we finished decorating the tree and Henry asked "is that it?  Is that all the decorating you're going to do for Christmas?"  Yeah, I thought.  I have decorations in the entry way and kitchen, what else is he wanting?  "Aren't you going to hang the pictures back on the wall?"  He was right.  The family room  felt unfinished with the bare walls.

So yesterday I hung up my British flag and three of my pieces of English art in red, white and blue frames.

Disclaimer: I let the boys decorate the tree this year.  But I am loving my wall of frames.  Thanks for the push Henry.  Now its time to tackle my wall of frames where I feature our extended family.

This is what I had before.

And this is what I would like to do now.  I found it on Pinterest.  I am just a little nervous about them all falling off the ledges when the door gets shut too hard or when a ball goes falling.

  But I am excited thinking about it.  Just need to shop for the shelves.  

Here is what I have hung over my fireplace mantle.

And I hope you are enjoying your Christmas season. 

 I just received my first Christmas card and went to my first party.

Auntie & Decorator

Today I would like to start with spotlighting my sister n'law Sarah.  She follows in the path of her mother and gives top priority to her family and friends.  She is number one in giving of her time, talents and love.

      

 Last month Sarah stayed in my home and looked after my boys while Daniel and I took a long trip to Italy.  Half way through the trip I received an email that warmed my heart.

we've been reading the witches, so yesterday me and em were playing witches, this is them caught in our prison, they're waiting to be be cooked!

Then when I came home, I was thrilled to see Sarah had rearranged my furniture in the front room and family room.  I have been struggling for years to figure out where to put the couches and she solved the mystery!

the two blue chairs together are my favorite part of the room

the furniture centers around the fireplace and leaves walkways open for the rest of the room.  

Can you tell that the walls have just been painted a light grey?  I haven't hung any pictures back up yet.

We have lived in our house for six years now, and have had the painter in this fall to freshen up a few rooms.

Henry has chosen a medium blue for his bedroom

 Here you can see I have changed the walls in the landing and how they look against my gold entry way

I am enjoying the blues from the front room tying into the upstairs.  This picture doesn't show it the best because the sun isn't shining on the top level like it is on the bottom.  But trust me, it works.

The boys bathroom is a softer shade of the landing color, and I think it is so pretty.

Thank you Daniel for funding our house's face lift and thank you Sarah for always being there.

New Additions

This spring I rearranged the guest room, basically switching the couch and the bed around.  Now that I am taking this picture, I am realizing there is a lot of brown going on in there.  My goal for this room has always been "A Weekend in the Country" and I look forward to adding a fur blanket and other classic fabrics.  It's a slow process because this room is not my priority, it just develops as I happen to find things.

I received a British footstool for my birthday and its new home is in the front room with the blue chair.  I usually  try to keep this room all cream and blue, but I am loving the pop of navy and red.

I found this adorable giraffe on its own special stand at the Beehive Bazaar today.  He will be living on the shelf above Teddy's changing table.

Here are the prints I mentioned I bought from Hawaii.  I am designating the wall by the bed for all ocean pictures, since it is a place Daniel is passionate about.  He always says he feels so alive after he has gone for a swim.  The floral print is above my dresser.  I have been holding on to this antique frame for years, so I am happy to finally have found a use for it.

The Nursery

After Arthur and George outgrew their cribs, the nursery became the "toy room". We are still in the process of reclaiming the space for Teddy, but here are pictures of the half of the room which I am pleased about.

The new additions to the nursery are a skirt for the crib, made with a fabulous turquoise silhouette fabric and a roman blind made from a brown and cream houndstooth. I am quite pleased with the fluffy ruffle at the top of the curtain. I also am enjoying the spectrum of blue blankets for my new baby boy.

Summer decor

I made another map of the United States and have hung it over the fireplace for the summer. Right below it sits a sea shell frame I made in Lake Powell two years ago, with a picture of Henry after he and the other children had just found pirate treasure!

I have also made my own version of the Union Jack, using blue, cream & brown fabrics
and stretching it over canvas. It hangs in the same family room along with a quote by Henry James.

Fresh Look for Spring

Last weekend I moved around artwork and made new cushions for the couches. It is amazing how pleased I am with the results, when you consider the only money spent was on four and half yards of fabric. I recovered my old cushions so there was no need to buy new inserts or stuffing.

The toy corner in the family room has been changed into a reading corner, with two footstools and several pillows, hoping to tempt the boys with a cozy place just for them.

Fall Decorating

Rotating the accent pieces in my home has become such a favorite part of the changing seasons for me. I made a couple bolster cushions for the family room, using an orange floral and a multi-coloured stripe. I have displayed my vintage poster from Italy on the fireplace. The most noticeable addition is in the entryway, with a new geometric runner in gold tones.