Decorating

Color Trends, Big Hair, and Blue Eye Shadow

August 24, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 35 Comments

You can ask my sister, I’ve never been one to pass up a good trend. In 1987, I had big hair. In 1993, I wore stirrup pants. In 1999, I bought a Suburban—- and in 2008, I started a blog. With age comes the wisdom to know when ‘trendy’ touches on ‘why is that forty year old woman wearing skinny jeans?’ So, although I’ve bridled my passion for fashion trends, I’m still a sucker for all things hip and ‘edgy’. Enter ‘Duchess of Windsor Pink’ (a vintage Ralph Lauren color I discovered at Home Depot).

Stop.The.World.

I’m not gonna lie. I am completely 100% smitten with this romantic, warm, and fleshy color.
But we need to set some ground rules: this color is NOT peach or mauve or coral. Forbid those words to cross your lips. It is almost exactly the color of a Wendy’s frosty. I know this because I had an ample amount of paint on my hands/clothes/hair when I took the girls for Frosty’s on Saturday. I thought it nearly divine that this very ‘fleshy’ color is so frosty-like. Not peach-like. Nor mauve-like. I’ve done mauve. This is not mauve. Southerners should never do mauve because we completely butcher that word.

“Is ‘at ‘Maaawwwve’ “—I hear my aunt say—with her almost angry southern drawl.

” No, no it’s not. It’s Duchess of Windsor Pink. “

This color so puts me in the mind of an old English study that I paused midafternoon for tea. And why an English study you ask? I have no idea. But neverthless, that’s what it reminds me of. When I got the walls done, my plain stark white trim looked frail and weak. It could not stand up to duchess of windsor. Duchess is soft and sultry and tender but she is a force to be reckoned with. It took the strength of a cowboy named ‘Coronado Dunes’ (Behr-Home Depot) to tame this duchess.

They are a match made in heaven. Love at first site. Sonny and Cher. Steve and Edie. Mawve and Blue.

I cannot stop sitting in that recently recovered $2 chair that I bought a few weeks back at a thrift store. Why, you ask? Because the romance that has ensued in my dining room is compelling. The duchess draws you in. The next installment of this love story will be posted later this week when the painting and ‘fluffing’ are done.

And just to prove that I am no respecter of colors when it comes to trends, I’ve also recently tried the canary yellow (which I adore)…..

…..and the peacock blue (which I highly recommend)

To further prove my commitment to past trends, I give you 1988, the year I—-‘had the time of my life—-and I owe it all to you-ououoou’.

There, I’ve done my part. Easy on the eye makeup Tammy Faye.
FYI, I like this link for current color trends. I like using trendy colors on objects easily repainted or in smaller rooms that are completely contained. When making daring trendy fashion statements, I recommend going all-out. Own the parachute pants. Don’t be scared.

DIY French Painting Technique

July 24, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 61 Comments

What you’ll need:

1. An inspiration photo

2. Deep Turquoise paint from the Laura Ashley collection at Lowe’s. I used Latex semi-gloss and did not prime or sand. More on that later.

3. A candle—any candle—even a candle from last year’s Advent wreath.

4. Sponge roller to paint with—so that you won’t have those pesky brush marks—unless you like those, which I sometimes do.

5. Dark brown latex paint if you choose to add a little more distressing to the piece. I did apply the brown paint with a brush.

6. Wet wipes (or damp old rag) used for wiping the paint off the edges and corners.

First, decide if your piece needs sanded. My armoire was 15 years old, dry as a bone virgin wood and was begging for paint. To sand it would have been downright cruel. But if your piece needs it, sand it. I also did not prime it because I wanted to brown wood to show through underneath.

Then take your trusty candle and rub the edges, corners, and wherever on the piece you want the actual wood to show through. You should rub the candle vigorously enough that little flecks of candle wax are hanging onto the furniture. Then take a dry cloth and remove any flecks that are visible. This will allow you to easily wipe off the paint from the corners and edges. I first saw this technique on Censational Girl’s blog, so you might want to check out this post, it’s probably slightly more detailed than mine.

I just turned the candle on it’s side and rubbed the corners. This is my banister—which is in danger of being stained or painted in the next few months.

Now, you’re ready to paint. Use a sponge roller to avoid brush marks and begin painting.
I did small sections at a time—like the one armoire door at a time–because the paint dried so quickly on my parched little armoire. Just as the paint is drying (it took about 10 minutes on this piece), take wet wipes or a damp rag and wipe the paint off the edges where you had previously rub the candle wax. You can wipe the paint off as liberally as you’d like. The more paint you wipe off, the more distressed it looks.
If you mess up and take off too much paint, just paint it again, wait for it to almost dry (usually within 10 minutes) and then wipe again. Continue on until you achieve the look you love.

The next day, I decided that I wanted it to show a little more ‘brown’ so I took dark brown latex paint and painted the edges with the brown paint and then wiped some of that off until it looked like this. Overall, I bet this project took 3 hours. I adore it. I can’t believe I went 15 years without painting it. And although I am completely smitten with this peacock blue, I have to say that when I saw Nester’s beautiful blue armoire, I was a little torn. I want two blue armoires now. Her post on painting her armoire is much more comprehensive than mine, so check it out too. You’ll learn something clever.

Other facts you should know:

1. I didn’t paint the inside doors. I’m a little bit lazy when it comes to details.

2. I left the hardware on while I painted. I’m a little bit lazy when it comes to details.

3. I painted it right where it sits and scooted some craft paper underneath—on one side. I’m a little bit lazy when it comes to details.

4. I did not paint the back yet—-and may never—you can probably guess why.

Before/After

I hope this answers your questions. Now get busy painting my friends. I’m joining Kimba’s DIY party, so visit here for more DIY inspiration.

Also, thank you so much for your sweetest little messages from my post Wednesday. I’m feeling better and am now 24 hours tear-free. Love and hugs to you all and hope you have a great weekend. I haven’t forgotten that I have one more post to finish my series. I hope to get that done before I leave for vacation!

Price My Space

July 11, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 30 Comments

I’m joining the Nester’s Price My Space party with my newly redecorranged breakfast room. (I just moved stuff around, nothing new here).

Slightly damaged armoire that I bought 8 years ago for $150 at a local furniture sale. I love this beastly mammoth and just moved it from my dining room by myself (in a rare burst of hulk strength) to make room for a new piece I bought for my dining room. I kinda like it here, even though it doesn’t truly fit in the space. I’ve also entertained moving it the bedroom to store cute sweaters and shoes.
French distressed table and chairs—bought 11 years ago for $1100. I think that was the most I had spent on furniture at that point in my life, but it’s been such a great investment. I still love the set and have resisted painting it many times. It’s beautiful, comfortable and just the perfect size for a breakfast room.
IKEA window treatment–$39 for the pair! I love this pattern and it coordinates so well with my newly painted kitchen cabinets.
Original oil artwork—-I love this artist—whose name I can’t remember or decipher–and have several pieces of her work. (I know it’s a she and she’s French.) I bought this for around $100 at an Art Finds home show. Look up the company online and attend a show if you can. They have great stuff at a fraction of the price you’d normally pay for original oil paintings.
Various plates from TJ Maxx—I’m gonna guess around $40 for all of them. I bought several of them in the last few months on clearance and LOVE them all!
Striped pillows from TJ Maxx–$6 each on clearance for a total of $24 . I had these in the guest room at my lake cottage. The colors work perfect here with my new kitchen.

Drum roll please: Total for breakfast room $1410. The lion’s share of the money is on seating, which Mrs. Nester tells me is how it should be.

Just for fun, I thought I’d show you, using Polyvore, what my new living room furniture (that I bought recently at a high-end furniture store for unbelievable close-out prices) sorta looks like (the colors at least). I bought ~$30,000 worth of furniture for $6500. 12 pieces in all, I think. I don’t have a blue armoire but am contemplating painting mine, and given the other colors in the furniture, I’m leaning to jewel blue paint or dark charcoal stain. You wood purists are gonna tell me to stain it, I just know it. Remember I’m painting the walls creamy-white. Whadya think?

My Living Room by lifeingrace on Polyvore.com

Tune in later this week for more on my Creating an Environment of Learning series and a few peeks at my new furniture. You will definitely want to visit the Price My Space party for lots more fun. And I can’t say enough ‘thank-yous’ to the Nester for so generously sharing her creative life with us. She has set a high standard for how to positively use this blogging world to help and encourage each other.

Furniture which shouldn’t be spray-painted and books which shouldn’t be neglected….

July 10, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 13 Comments

“No sooner doth the truth come into the

soul’s sight, but the soul knows her to be her first

and oldest aquaintance.”

I should first tell you that I am still working on the ‘beauty’ post. I get hamstrung by reading a lot of great writers and then feel completely inadequate with my own summation of the important points. I guess the old adage that we should listen twice as much as we speak is holding true for me. I can‘t stop listening(reading) long enough to speak (write).
I also wanted to tell show you what else I’ve been up to lately. By a stroke of luck, or by my estimation, divine appointment, I wandered into a ‘high-end’ furniture store at the end of their ‘store closing’ sale. I also just happened to have insurance money that had to be spent on furniture replacement in order to be fully reimbursed. Long story short, I feel like I’ve just won the lottery. Most of the furniture ended up being 75-90% off. For instance, I bought a $1000 kilim rug for $89. And so on. So, to prepare my house for delivery next week, I’m rearranging everything. ( or as JamieKnoxville and I affectionately call it…..’tuggin’ and pullin’).

Yesterday, in a burst of hulk-strength, I moved this large china cabinet from my dining room to the breakfast room—to make room for the $4500 mahogany sideboard that I bought for $619! It really doesn’t exactly fit here, so it may end up in my bedroom holding clothes and shoe displays. On 2nd thought, my bedroom is on the other side of the world, so it will likely stay here for awhile.

To help me celebrate this rare joyous occasion, the crepe myrtles are blooming. So kind of them. ( I love how they poke through the fence)

I also have an insatiable reading appetite lately as I’ve been preparing the last two blog posts in this series. And if you are homeschooling, you must read this Charlotte Mason book “A Philosophy of Education”—it goes right along with the Thomas Jefferson book I’ve been giddy about, and is much better than reading someone else’s summary of what Charlotte Mason said.

She reitirates the fact that self-education is the key, and that we as teachers, are to inspire and help to ‘awaken the soul’ so that children have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.

And Plato? This stuff is fantastic. I’ve been printing off maps of Greece and taking copious notes. It’s not as hard as I thought. I read the sparknotes summary of it first, which helped, then I read a historical introduction, which really helped, and then I dove in, headfirst. It must be contagious because in the antique store the other day, my 7yo got really excited and said, “Mom, I just found a book about Plato!” We were all excited about the beautiful little volume with dainty gold lettering, but mostly, I was thankful that she had been paying attention to what we were reading.

And that little notebook at the bottom? That’s a collection of lots of fun stuff—-paint swatches (I’m painting my living room—which has been the same color for a record EIGHT years—-before the new furniture arrives), magazine clippings of things I love, articles I want to read, my much neglected calendar, my somewhat neglected bible reading schedule, notecards, address labels, and so on.

I also stumbled upon a lovely aloe plant and my girls have discovered hundreds of little boo-boos lately which most definitely require aloe. Hundreds. Thank you to my friend, the Nester, for introducing me to this beautiful way of displaying my succulents.

So, as I re-evaluate my decor, and pour over design ideas, do you have any advice for me? I’m painting my living room Woodrow-Wilson Linen (a very presidential cream color) in an effort to feature my new heirloom furniture. But I’ll find a way to ‘shabby’ it up a little I’m sure. Although I don’t know how I’ll adjust to furniture that shouldn’t be spray-painted. I can’t wait to show you.

Check out my tumblr site—a place where I store links and pictures I love. And if you have time this weekend, read the post I wrote at the blogfrog about my current thoughts on blogging.

Have a great weekend and I’ll soon return to my series!

Room Makeover: from Garage to Schoolroom

June 29, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 50 Comments

When I decided to homeschool, I knew right away where the homeschool room would be; the GARAGE! I had already, four years earlier, painted the floor and the walls and converted it into a playroom, so the transition to ‘schoolroom’ was inevitable. I bought bookshelves and the most darling sofa EVER from IKEA and bought an old antique desk from my neighbor Leigh Ann for $5. My mother and I did all the painting, even the somewhat tedious job of painting the garage floor. And I conveniently positioned the bookshelves over the GINORMOUS holes in the sheetrock that my Excursion made when I apparently tried to park in the dining room. Turns out, Stevie didn’t mind so much losing a garage; it probably seemed better to him than losing the whole front of the house to my perilous parking habits. That car is big, people. Like you need a special class in parking big.

We supposedly had some help from these two, but everytime I looked into the garage, they were decked out in bedazzled cowgirl hats and jammin’ on the Hannah Montana guitars.

I guess your success with The Verity may very well have started here, boys.

This room has been a place of wonderful memories , has changed a lot over the last year and at this point needs to be ruthlessly de-cluttered. But one of my favorite additions was the large letters that I decoupaged onto the walls.

And my very favorite addition: the vintage Swingline stapler. It’s very teacherly. Who needs a cardigan with the A-B-C’s on it when you have this stapler?

The most commonly asked question about my choice to homeschool in the garage: How do you keep the temperature regulated? First off, in the fall and spring, I keep the garage door up and it’s kinda like indoor-outdoor school. I LOVE having the outdoors inside and fresh air ‘does a body good’. In the winter, we use a space heater and in the heat of the summer, we’re usually not having school. Or we do school somewhere else. Like by the pool. I LOVE this schoolroom. It greatly extends our living space and keeps our books and schoolwork from taking over the house.

Join me in a new series I started this week on Creating an Environment of Learning,

as I talk about inspiring and showing love to our families by the environment we create at home.

I’m linking with Kimba in her DIY party and with Kelly

for another episode of “Show Us Where You Live”. Check out other fun ideas here

and here.

The Verity is now in Bushnell (near Chicago) at the Cornerstone Festival and are reported to be safe and happy. They played at the new band showcase today and possibly may even have showered!! I can’t wait to see my Taylor on Monday. Keep praying for their safety!

Painted Patio Furniture: "Blue and Improved"

June 22, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 43 Comments

Edited to add: I recently did a link party for patio furniture and I thought it’d be fun to add it to Kelly’s party too. Hope you enjoy the links. Thanks for visiting!

Welcome to my 2nd Linky Party which I shall call ‘Painted Patio Furniture: Blue and Improved’. This patio set that I rehab-ed today is almost 15 years old and has been painted 4 times. Today the color of choice: aqua. I seem to be obsessed with blue lately as you can tell from this post. I am also excited to be joining ‘Metamorphosis Monday’ hosted by Susan from Between Naps on the Porch—a new blog to me! Make sure and visit her site too.

This beautiful before-storm sky is a beautiful backdrop for my ‘before’ picture.

So, how does one solicit the appropriate help for such a project, you ask?

All it takes is a little good food. A little gourmet on Father’s Day.

And they come running. Or spraying.

And less than an hour and a half later: voila!!!! Blue and improved. I give you:

Retro Patio

And these children enjoyed some pool time AFTER I read them the ‘pool rules’ which you can

read here. ‘Hank’ is the 50 pound 7 month old golden retriever.

My patio is a plethora of colors……

as are my legs.

My trusty side-kick Nicholas aka Nick aka JohnnytheNightStalker then began using the ‘dropcloths’ from our project to create this suburban cul-de-sac art creation. He requested us to sit in as ‘props’. And I’m a little bit scared to inform you that he’s starting a blog. Consider yourself warned.

Now it’s your turn. Please, pretty please, show us your patio. If it’s fantastic, show us and we’ll oooooo and ahhhhhh and if it needs work, show us and we’ll tell you where we bought our blue spray paint. K?