The palette of interior design is vast and endlessly diverse. However, one color that has been gaining notable attention over the years is Sherwin-Williams' SW 6140 Moderate White. This unique shade is a testament to
Ditch the sea of white and add a darker color to your baseboards, trim and millwork with one of these beautiful contrast trim ideas.
Hello! My name is Ellie, and I live with my husband in a small rented duplex in Lincoln, Nebraska. This month will mark just our second year of marriage - and even though we are many years away from owning a house of our own, I'm so thankful for the cozy little home that we have. Please come in! The livingroom is my favorite spot in the house. I love rustic french country style, and that's the look I went for in the livingroom, with lots of drapey linen curtains, antique textiles, a casual white slipcover on the sofa, and worn, rustic wood. The livingroom has a mostly neutral palette, but gets a touch of color from vintage blue ticking feather pillows and antique european grain sacks... a few of my favorite things! With the huge west-facing picture window, the livingroom turns into a bright, warm sunroom in the afternoon. A television is not usually something you see featured on design blogs, but let's face it - if you watch TV and don't have a nice big cabinet to hide it in, it becomes part of the decor. I hung a big antique mirror directly behind the TV to reflect light from the opposite window, and help take the focus off of the big black screen, and draw your eye to the rest of the wall. The chunky antique wood TV table also offers an unexpected place to display one of my many vintage collections - metal flower frogs. I know it's not a room, but my white ironstone collection deserves it's own stop on the tour! I started with one small chipped platter that I found at an antique mall for $1.50, and I've been collecting ever since. I love the simple lines and the warm, rustic patina that old ironstone gets. I love pieces with lots of crazing and discoloration... the darker and more beat up the better (and usually cheaper). Most pieces I've found have been under $10. My favorite pitcher... just 50 cents at a flea market. Needless to say, the collection is constantly growing! Old mirrors are another of my favorite things to decorate with. I don't usually like a lot of artwork or framed photos on my walls, but I love mirrors. This shabby white full-length mirror in my entryway is one of my favorites. Without a designated room to use as a home office, I tucked a chippy white desk behind the couch in the livingroom, and used a stack of rustic wooden boxes to hide mail, cords, computer accessories, and other clutter. Instant home office! The office is conveniently right next to the library. Ok, ok, we don't actually have a library, either :) But with sooooo many books, there will always be at least a library wall in our home. The dining nook also shares space with the main living space, and is just off of the kitchen. We switched out a dated light fixture for a small, sparkly chandelier from Ikea when we moved in. It was a quick and inexpensive change that made SUCH a difference - and we get to take it with us when we leave! I'm a sucker for pretty dishes! The small galley-style kitchen is certainly not high tech, but it's full of character and reminds me of an old farmhouse kitchen. I love the simple painted cabinets. While there's nothing all that special about them, I like that they are rustic and primitive - nothing too fancy or modern. The landlord let me repaint them when we moved in, so I used a rich greenish golden paint from Olde Century Colors called "Thistle", which is a great complement to my collection of antique yellowware. A small antique drop leaf table and a tall free-standing cupboard provide extra prep space and pantry storage, and make the kitchen feel lived in and comfortable. Yellowware is another collection where I love to find imperfect pieces. Most of my bowls have chips and cracks, which means they were all affordable - so I can have a whole mass of them, rather than one perfect, valuable example. A huge antique lidded wicker basket neatly hides the kitchen trash can, while keeping it right out where I need it. A fancy antique mirror above the sink adds a touch of elegance to the rustic room... and makes me feel like I have a window to look out of while I'm doing dishes. The bedroom is the only room with hardwood floors, which I absolutely love. They are so pretty that it makes resisting the urge to wildly rip up the carpet in the living and dining room nearly impossible. But I've been good so far :) The rustic wood bedside table was a $10 flea market find. I love the curvy shape of the top and the dark primitive touch that it brings to the soft and bright bedroom. Just like the livingroom, the bedroom gets almost all of its color from fabrics. A few pillows and a graphic red and white antique quilt at the foot of the bed is the perfect amount of red for me. Remember what I said earlier about having a lot of books? The same goes for magazines! I love picking up past issues of decorating magazines at antique malls, garage sales, and thrift shops. A collection of baskets, including this antique basket from Maine that I bought on our honeymoon, sits on top of the short primitive antique magazine rack. The chippy white dresser in the corner also serves as my make-up vanity. The bathroom is tucked in the hallway between the living area and the bedroom. There are a total of 4 doors in this itty-bitty space, so painting the doors and trim all a soft buttermilk color (instead of the original strawberry-blond stain) makes the busy hallway look pretty and peaceful. That's it! The house is small, but it's just perfect for the two of us. I work from home, running my handmade soap business and online antique shop, so I have my workspace set up in the basement where I can make as much of a "creative mess" as I need to, and then close the door on it at the end of the day. My work space is still a work in progress... I'll share pictures of it in the future! Thanks so much for visiting! It's been a pleasure to share my home with you. The next stop on the "Parade of Homes" is Organizing Made Fun. Enjoy! The Parade of Homes continues throughout the week, so keep following the links at the end of each blog post to lead you to the next house. Want to start at the beginning? Click the button below to head to A Bowl Full of Lemons and start the tour from House #1.
We're sharing inspiration from the latest paint trend... contrast trim and millwork! If you're on the fence, this post is a must-read.
Ditch the sea of white and add a darker color to your baseboards, trim and millwork with one of these beautiful contrast trim ideas.
I’m finally sharing a tour of the downstairs bathroom with you all! This might be the quirkiest room in our 1875 Barnhouse.… Read More
Material and images that are posted here are found freely on my rambles through the intertubes and from myself
Interior trim doesn’t always have to be pure white! These interior contrast trim color ideas are sure to inspire you.
My husband never asks for anything for himself. He does everything for his girls, me and our two daughters. We also have a girl dog and a girl bunny. He is surrounded by estrogen and has no place to call his own in our home. Day after day he diligently goes off to work to support and provide for his girls. He never buys anything frivolous. The only money he ever spends on himself are the times when he needs new running shoes. He is selfless and happily does everything for his family. He never complains. When we do have some extra money he tells me to get something nice for the girls and me. We have a cozy, "smallish," three bedroom home and there is no corner carved out just for him. Even the garage is filled with all my "crapola." I wanted to change that, so I'm making him a "Man Cave." Not this kind of cave. source Hopefully it will be more like this kind of Man Cave. source He really doesn't want to watch Vampire Diaries, Survivor, Switched At Birth, Nate Berkus, Selling New York, and all the other shows his girls watch. He needs his own TV to watch sports, documentaries, and the History Channel. He has never asked for a no girls allowed space, but he listened intently when I told him my plan. It took him a few days, but now he is totally on board. It's fun seeing him get excited about having a space of his own. The dilemma, where do you find space for a more testosterone friendly room when you only have three bedrooms and they are all occupied? You get creative and you make due with what you have. No time to lament about what we don't have. Here is the room I'm converting into a place my husband can call his own. It's a challenge because this is our living room/office and it incorporates the front door and the hall to the girl's bedrooms. There aren't any walls to separate it from the rest of the house. It's also an awkward shape. It's the first room guests see when they walk in the house. I need to come up with a plan that will make my husband feel welcome, but still not look we live in a themed sports bar. I painted this space blue/green after seeing the cover of the 2007 Jan./Feb. issue of Veranda. I did layers of joint compound and paint glaze to achieve the effect. Time for change, it's been like this since the cover came out. It's had a few different looks in the past, but the wall color hasn't changed. We use it for Thanksgiving dinners because we don't have a formal dining room. Thanksgiving 2010 Thanksgiving 2011 I ripped out the carpet a few years back and painted the concrete floors. I've done several floors like this in my house. Those are staying, but I'm re-painting the border. The scroll detail is too feminine for a Man Cave. I put up our Thanksgiving Tree right after Halloween in here. Thanksgiving Tree 2011 Here's the room getting ready for a new coat of paint. Here is the direction I'm going. A new sleek flat screen TV and industrial furniture. source I think I'll have to design some more industrial shelves for this room like I did in our great room. Gray walls with warm wood. source Maybe a map or two of his home state New York. source Darker gray ceiling with beefy crown molding. source Maybe something like this?. source Cozy stremlined furniture with an industrial masculine feel. source The walls and ceiling have been painted, but I'm not going to finish this room in lightening speed. My oldest daughter had surgery this last week and I was gone all weekend at a volleyball tournament. I painted the walls Benjamin Moore Stonington Gray HC 170 and the ceiling Benjamin Moore Chelsea Gray HC 168. I'm adding crown molding so you won't see the unpainted seam where the walls and ceiling meet. I'll show you the progress in the next post. Do you have any room renovations in the works? Does your man have his own Man Cave? Do you have any style tips that I can use to make this masculine room blend with the rest of our home? I would love to hear your ideas. Thanks for checking it out.
Looking for some colour inspiration for your doors, windows, and trim work? Today I’m sharing some of the best colours to paint contrast trim. It’s been a few weeks now since I painted out all of the doors and trim in our mudroom with this gorgeous warm grey colour (Briarwood from Benjamin Moore if you’re…
home is where memories are made, creative ideas come to being, meals are enjoyed, love is shared, and God is worshiped through all of it. my hope is that this blog will inspire you and encourage you to enjoy the precious gift of home.
