As I mentioned on Monday, a key element of my entryway update involves taking the plunge…into the scary world of gallery walls.
Really, there are so many scary things about gallery walls. Will I space things too close or too far apart? Will I choose the wrong frames? Will the end result meet my way-too-high expectations? Will my husband ask, “What is a gallery wall?” once I’ve gotten too far in to stop?
The answer to all of those questions is probably yes, but I went for it anyway. Why? Because all of my inspiration photos just couldn’t be wrong. Right?
So, instead of stressing about pulling together all the right pieces, I just went frame crazy. I dug unused frames out of our closet, then raided Goodwill (I think I spent less than $25 for about 15 frames!). I ignored what was currently in the frames and got busy laying out just one wall (there are four small sections of wall space above our new entryway coat racks that will eventually be covered!).
That clock that is featured front and center is my inspiration for the whole gallery wall. It is actually a tide clock with a map of the island in Maine where we live. It was a wedding gift from my sister and brother-in-law. I love it and I’ve been trying to find the perfect spot for it in our home for years, but the clock has two things that are rarely found in our house…a natural wood colored frame and a coastal theme! Seriously, every other frame in our house is black or silver, and I’ve tried to keep our house from screaming Maine…but not anymore. The entryway is going to represent warm wood tones and a coastal Maine feel on behalf of the rest of the house. I’m excited to mix it up a bit.
Anyway, once I laid my one wall of frames on a piece of brown paper the same size as the wall space, and measured and marked where each nail would go, I taped the paper to the wall, hammered away, and then pulled the paper off. Thankfully I had snapped a picture first because I was having a hard time remembering what went where!
I am going to pick something to go in the empty upper left corner, but it’s okay for now.
I was feeling so energized by my progress that I attempted wall 2 after Ike went to bed. I used the same measuring and placing method, and ended up with this:
Remember, the artwork is not final…it will all be replaced! And ignore the 9 p.m. lighting…it doesn’t do anything for the hideous Goodwill artwork. This whole hot mess will look SO different once the frames are filled with the right things. I promise.
Can I make a confession? I put these pictures in Polaroid format with captions just in case someone pins them on Pinterest. I don’t want anyone to think this is my final result (gasp!). Isn’t it funny how Pinterst has changed how bloggers think!?
So, this is where my gallery wall stands. Chris is totally skeptical and I am still scared. But I am encouraged. Hopefully next weekend I can finish the other two walls, and then I can focus on pulling together all the various art to go in the frames. But let’s be real…they may stay empty for a few months!
If you’re interested in my inspiration photos, just check out my entryway board on Pinterest.
And feel free to add in your two cents on this whole thing. Please. I need gallery wall therapy.
I’m really supposed to be focusing on a living room makeover, but I got distracted this weekend by “the room” in our house that get just as much use: our entryway. And when I say entryway, I mean our side entryway. While we do have a formal front door, I am pretty sure only one person has come in that way. Ever.
Because the side door is the way in and is also the home to our laundry area, I’ve been trying to make this space function as a formal entry, a mudroom and a laundry room. And while spending a few years trying to get my husband to put his jacket and shoes in the closet was fun, I’ve decided to embrace the entryway for what it is…a place to hang little snowsuits and monster hats.
(My sister made that hat for our little monster. It’s very fitting.)
It’s taken me a while to get to this point and I’ve often blogged about ideas that I had for the space (like shoe storage, which I mentioned last year). But a little inspiration from my entryway board on Pinterest was enough to finally get me moving.
The corner pictured above was formerly the home of a black table where I regularly set up seasonal decor. I photographed that space two weeks ago (while the table was featuring some nondescript, in-between-seasons garb) and for about a dozen other posts:
But the table never had a functional purpose, so it went to a new location and I installed some built in coat hooks in its place.
And some on the other side of the room, too. Right now those hooks are sporting my work tote and The Daycare Bag.
It was a pretty inexpensive project. I had the 1×4 primed boards on hand already, as well as the paint. I just picked up the decorative end pieces (so that I didn’t have to worry about straight cuts!) and the coat hooks. I have to admit, this project started bringing me flashbacks of my hallway faux-paneling last year, but was much easier in the end.
First I applied the end pieces with Liquid Nails, and then cut the boards to fit in between, nailing them to the studs as I went.
To make the nail holes invisible, I sunk them with a nail set tool and then used wood filler. I also hid my bad cuts with a bit of paintable caulking. It all dried quickly and, after a little sanding, I was painting in no time. Although clearly it got dark in the hours between…
In the morning I added the coat hooks and we were in business!
As if that wasn’t productive enough, I also found time to swing by TJ Maxx for a new rug and Goodwill for a whole slew of frames that are destined for a gallery wall above the coat hooks. At least I have something to keep me busy for the rest of the winter….you know, other than a living room makeover!
Stay tuned for more to come.
Did you have your power tools running this weekend? And is your entry way formal or have you embraced the look of everyday coats, scarves and hats?
In case I came across as a little too paper perfect in Wednesday’s post, I’m here to keep it real. Just guess how many phone books I cleaned out of our phone table last night…
I’m pretty sure that having six old phone books that date back four years is a little excessive. Thank goodness for a random Thursday night organizing itch!
Can anyone match my phone book hoarding? How many do you have in your house right now?!
Happy weekend, and happy dialing!
Sometimes Chris and I joke about how funny it would be to teach our son the wrong name or pronunciation for things. And then we laugh about what it would be like to hear him say it wrong in a real life conversation. We would never do it, of course. At least not intentionally.
This next part is going to make me sound really weird, so bear with me. Before we even had Ike, we had a high-pitched baby voice that we used when we wanted to pretend our dog, Frankie, was talking. And, well, Frankie isn’t so bright, so in his language he pronounced the word “pillow” like “pee-low.” Now, out of bad habit, we keep calling pillows by the bad baby talk name.
We’re working on fixing that. But where am I going with this? Oh, right. Pillows.
I made some for our living room makeover. And guess what. They are a big improvement from the previous mishmash, pictured below (I had to label the photo for fear that someone would pin it on Pinterest and think I was crazy).
Now back to Ike and his “pee-lows.” As it turns out, he is downright obsessed with these bird-print throw pillows that I made to go on our old red sofas. He thinks the print is amazing and points at it to no end.
So, they are not going away, just going to a different location. I tried them on our new sectional, but look, the print is just too wimpy to break up the beige:
But you know what isn’t too wimpy? The Kasbah print in midnight from Amy Butler. I whipped up two rectangle pillow covers (using this method) to go over some down-filled inserts and they rock. Get it? Rock the Kasbah? Oh, right. I already used that joke. I also made two coordinating navy blue pillow covers, and the white cover from a sweater I found at Goodwill (more on that later.)
I’m pretty sure that this combination is just what the doctor ordered to cut through some beige. Wouldn’t you agree?
So, tell me. What do you think of the print I chose? Too out there for you? One reader (hi, Angela!) previously described the Kasbah print as looking part Middle Eastern and part Southwestern, which is really kind of true. Even if you don’t like the print, you have to agree that it offers me a fun new color palette to work with!
Oh, and please tell me there are other people out there who talk for their pets or daydream about teaching their children the wrong words for everyday items!
A little less than a year ago I declared war on paper. Not because I wanted to save the environment or even save money, but because it was driving. me. crazy.
You can read the whole story here, but to make the long story short, I was done fooling myself into thinking that I would actually organize and file important paperwork in our house. No matter what filing system I created, or where I put said filing system, I could not actually trick myself into filing paper. Instead, that pesky, out-of-control pile always remained on the corner of our kitchen counter until I hid it away in a random closet again and again, leaving a disaster at the end of the year. So I declared war. And it worked.
(Here’s where the bragging begins.) This stack represents all of the paper that I have collected in one year’s time:
For real. No pile in the closet. No pile on our counter.
This is how I did it:
- I stopped receiving and sending paper. I told everyone and their mother to stop sending paper bills my way. I created online access to every possible account, and I paid every single thing I could through our online banking system.
- I shredded the paper I received. Not everyone would comply with my no paper request, so I shredded
themtheir mail. Electric bill? I popped it into my bill paying notebook until it was paid, then I shredded. Medical bill? Also into my bill paying notebook, and saved just long enough to make sure that I didn’t need to prove its existence to the FSA gods. Ike’s social security card? Okay, okay, I saved that one. - I tracked online. I know that you’re all probably chuckling at me thinking I am definitely going to need one of those shredded pieces of papers when we have our taxes filed this year. But I don’t think I will. I used our online banking system to categorize every single expense (every debit card purchase, check, and even a payment to our credit card was categorized to represent an area, or multiple areas, of spending). So now, I can pull a report of all medical expenses, and I can even pull that based on whether or not it was a prescription or doctor’s visit. I can tell you when we paid the excise tax on our cars, and how much rental income was deposited into our account from the house we still own in Vermont. And I can do all of that without a single piece of paper. In case this sounds obsessive, I assure you that it took less than 10 minutes of my time each week to scroll through and categorize expenses online.)
- I kept only the absolute most necessary things. If I had to have a piece of paper, but didn’t feel like filing properly, I just tossed it into our kitchen closet/pantry in the designated tray pictured above. It’s such a manageable pile compared to years past that I could almost cry.
I will admit, there has been a time here or there when I wish I had saved a certain piece of paper. But, saving it would have only meant that I would be digging through a year-old pile of paper trying to locate one thing. And if that isn’t maddening then I don’t know what is! In most every single case, I’ve been able to track down information through an online account or by looking in my bill pay history to answer a question. And really, in the super off chance that we get audited by the IRS, I bet I can get paper copies of every thing I need, even if it is at some small cost. Thankfully, nothing in our life is that complicated at the moment—the IRS could probably figure us out in one fell swoop.
Did you try to limit the paper pile up in your house this year? How did you do it? Or are you wishing you had?
If the Black Eyed Peas were here, they would sing, “Let’s get it started in here!” And they would be talking about our living room.
March 31 of this year will mark five years in our home. Five whole years, people. On one hand I can’t believe how much we’ve accomplished in that period of time (you know, finishing a whole second floor to create three more bedrooms and a bathroom, painting three decks, making over a bathroom and a hallway and a kitchen and a nursery and a guest bedroom.) It’s amazing to think there are many walls and stretches of trim that remain only primed, but it’s true.
And then there’s the living room. The room you see first when you walk in our house and the room where we spend the most time. It is a blank, beige slate (yawn), and it’s time for The Makeover.
We do have throw pillows but they aren't staying, so I took them off for full "before" effect.
Don’t you just love the matching lamps!? (I kid, I kid.)
So in full disclosure, this living room makeover actually started back in September when we said sayonara to the red couch from my post-college apartment and Chris’ hand-me-down, 30-year-old-heavier-than-life sofa that was slipcovered in a not-so-matching red, and traded them both in for this super big and comfy sectional. And we did trade in my beat-up orange-oak coffee table for a smaller round one that worked with the new sectional. I also took down some beige curtains and popped in some white roman shades.
And things have been at a standstill ever since.
Here is the thing about this impending (in progress?) living room makeover. The result is not going to be magazine perfect. Not even close. Yes, we could have purchased a nice, clean-lined sofa and a few chairs and threw the TV out the back door, but what we really wanted was a big, cozy sectional where our whole family (dog included) could cuddle and watch a movie. We don’t have a finished basement or any other room suited for a den-type feel, so this is it and we’re going with it.
Cool?
So, before I show you what I have planned, let me share a few other points of view on our rarely-shown-on-the-blog super beige room.
Even the "artwork" is tone-on-tone beige. Seriously.
The TV gets a whole corner to itself.
And really, that artwork is white paper with designs cut into it. It really is more than what it looks like, but not really all at the same time.
Okay, so now I can show you what I have in mind. It’s not much, but it’s something to go on. I think.
Let me break it down for you:
- White walls (because I want it to be versatile and lighter and bring color in elsewhere)
- Fun pillows in blue, white, and bright prints (remember how I talked about that here)
- Some sort of arc lighting seeing how this room has no overhead light fixture. Seriously.
- I will have to put some sort of curtains up, but I have no idea what yet.
- I am thinking some sort of tall storage will replace the toy corner that is seen in view 2 of the living room above.
- I need a cute side table or two.
- And I should really consider covering Frankie’s bed to match, but he is usually on the couch.
Now can you see how/why I put this makeover off for so long? Too bad for me. It’s happening, and it’s happening now. Stay tuned.
Have you saved your most-lived-in room for last like me, or did you tackle that right away? Any living room makeovers to share with me? I need all the inspiration I can get!
On Sunday my husband declared that it just seemed like a chocolate chip cookie kind of day. Chocolate oatmeal cookies with chocolate chips to be exact. And some with peanut butter chips added on top, just for me.
(I cannot explain the many deficiencies of my husband, namely his indifference to the combination of chocolate and peanut butter, but I love him anyway.)
So, let me tell you something. I am really tired right now. If I keep typing, I am going to make more typos than I probably already have made, and that would be embarrassing. So, I am going to wrap this post up real quick by sharing these few things:
- The recipe is right here (courtesy of Cate’s World Kitchen blog).
- This is my second time making the recipe, so it comes well recommended.
- I’ve added chocolate and peanut butter chips to the recipes both times. Do the same and you won’t be disappointed.
- You might consider adding one less cup of oatmeal (it calls for 4 cups!) just to make the cookies a bit more chewy
- You also might consider making the cookies huge like I did. Just for fun.
And this just might be my shortest recipe post ever. Enjoy it while it lasts.
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To you this might look like just a hamper, but to me it looks like the solution to a small problem that has been driving me batty for more than a year. (Hallelujah!)
Have I ever talked about our laundry situation? I don’t think I have. So, let me start there.
You’ve seen this view of our side entryway about a gazillion-and-one times:
I'm still working on my post-Christmas table vignette; can you tell?
Well, around the corner are two closets. The one on the right is our coat closet and the one on the left houses our washer and dryer.
The color of the walls in this picture is way more true to life than in the picutre above!
The proximity of our washer and dryer to the kitchen and main living area makes it convenient to toss random pieces of laundry in the washing machine at random times. Hand towel that is past its prime? Into the washer. Baby clothes that remain after bath time? Into the washer. Bibs that are so wet and gross you wonder if they’re worth saving? Into the washer.
Now this sounds all well and good until you decide you want to do a load of just whites. Or a load of cloth diapers (which I do every other day). Then you have to dig into the dirty remnants hanging out in the washer and…throw them on the floor.
That’s right, we didn’t have a good place to put the laundry, so it ended up on the floor in a prime viewing location for anyone walking into our house or even coming to our door (hello, UPS lady, here is our dirty laundry).
Not to mention that the pile was inevitably in front of the coat closet door, which meant the pile might get relocated a couple of times over the course of one evening or weekend.
I was totally over it. So, I came up with a simple solution: a hamper to sit right outside of the washer/dryer closet, poised to collect random bits of dirty laundry.
Is it ideal to have a hamper in our entryway? No. Is it better than a pile of dirty laundry? Yes.
Amen for simple solutions. Especially when they are less than $20 at TJMaxx.
Have you come up with any simple solutions in your home this year? Anyone else have semi-convenient/semi-annoying washer and dryer placement?
As if I didn’t mention Pinterest enough in my last post, here I am with some additional inspiration found by way of that addictive site. I mean, what would the new year be without visions of becoming ridiculously organized?
Truly, you should see me eyeing corners of our house these days thinking of all the organizing I can do. Since I don’t have the time to get really organized, I thought I would share some of my favorite ideas that I’ve seen around the interwebs.
If I ever have this many rolls of ribbon, I’m in serious trouble. But it would be worth it just so I could hang them like this!
Source: Uploaded by user via Erin @ DomesticAdventure on Pinterest
I have bobby pins scattered all over the house. I could honestly buy a new package every couple of months and still not know where to find any. Obviously I need this:
Source: sprwmn.blogspot.com via Erin @ DomesticAdventure on Pinterest
Someone on Pinterest commented that this must be at least a hundred dollars worth of cleaning supplies. But they sure look good, right!?
Source: beforeispendit.blogspot.com via Erin @ DomesticAdventure on Pinterest
When I first added our docking station, it looked really good. These days it’s a disaster. Maybe I need to try something like this? If only they would make all devices plug in at the bottom. My BlackBerry plugs in on the side, so it doesn’t line up nicely…
Source: bhg.com via Erin @ DomesticAdventure on Pinterest
Shoe storage is an ongoing issue in our entry way (I even wrote about it last year). I like how this looks. Do you think the owners actually put their shoes in it?
Source: flickr.com via Erin @ DomesticAdventure on Pinterest
Oh, and I have one more to include. How cute is this little soap station on a cake stand?
Source: lehiwrights.blogspot.com via Erin @ DomesticAdventure on Pinterest
If I could accomplish one of these things this year, I would be happy. What about you?
My poor mom. She always ends up with at least one homemade Christmas present, and this year was no different. While in the past I’ve made things that I think she will like (like candle holders and a framed print), this year I made something I knew she would like. You know how I managed that? By stalking her on Pinterest.
Think about it. Those of us who are on Pinterest (find me here) are constantly pinning things we want to make. Will we ever make them all? Probably not. Would we all like a little help in making something on our Pinterest list? Absolutely.
Enter my DIY clothespin and cork memo board (pretend this is hung on the wall not resting on a shelf)…
…which was inspired by this photo that my mom pinned (originally from the one and only Martha)…
Source: marthastewart.com via Erin @ DomesticAdventure on Pinterest
When I saw that my mom had pinned this project, I knew I could tackle it and even improve it. I sound pretty confident, don’t I?
But if you want the honest version, I was too lazy to figure out how to spray paint (as Martha did in the inspiration piece) in the freezing cold weather, so I decided to “upholster” my memo board and then had the bright idea to slide some cork tiles in there. Pretty much genius, if I do say so myself.
And my find of some wood-toned push pins further fueled my spray painting laziness. I mean, with a find like those, I should probably just go with an au naturale wood look, right?
Here are my supplies:
- 1 2×4 ish board that I found in our basement (it is about 3 feet long)
- Cork tiles
- Fabric
- Clothespins (I chose regular size and mini clothespins that I found next to the pushpins)
- Push pins
- Hot glue gun
- Staple gun
- Hanging doohickeys (you know, the things that you can nail to the back of a frame to hang it.)
And here’s how I did it:
- First I cut my cork tiles down to size and hot glued them to the board
- Then I wrapped the fabric around the whole thing and stapled it tightly in the back.
- Learn from my mistake and apply your hanging doohickeys next. Otherwise you’ll be trying to nail in the dohickeys on the back of the board with clothespins on it. True story.
- Then glue your clothespins in place and you’ll be in business.
And you, too, can hang cute pictures of my nephew, Evan, over your desk…
I can’t wait to see what this project looks like when it’s in use at my mom’s house. And now I am considering making my own…I have plenty of cork tile left over!
What do you think? Does this look like something you would do? Would you use bolder fabric or just let the pictures and pieces speak for themselves. Or, is it warm enough to use spray paint at your house this time of year?
Oh, and for a “keep it real” moment. I realized that I needed to photograph this already-wrapped project just moments before packing it in the car for our road trip to Vermont. So, I sent my husband upstairs to change Ike so he wouldn’t see the madness, then swiftly unwrapped it, cleared off a shelf in my hallway, snapped some pictures, placed the items back on the shelf, and wrapped the memo board back up. If that’s not your definition of weird and slightly obsessive, then I don’t know what is.
(By the way, if you’ve not yet joined the Pinterest revolution and would like to, leave a comment and I will send you an invite)
