Decorating Ideas

Decorating Ideas To Decorate My Bedroom

I have found several decorating ideas and want to share them!  I am excited to redecorate our bedroom.   I have known the headboard I have wanted to put up since last year when I found it on a blog.   My husband actually has started this portion of the project already.

This is the picture that the gal above found her inspiration for her headboard.  The one thing I love on both headboards is the white creamy color. It has such great contrast with the walls.

Here is another picture, I think it is actually the inspiration that the woman above found to do her daughter’s bedroom headboard.  This one is so beautiful, but the wall is not acting like the headboard in this case.  My wall will be my headboard, since we don’t have one.  We also have two windows positioned on either side of our bed, just like these two pictures do.  I guess that must be a popular configuration for a bedroom? lol

Dave has the wood slats up, not painting is the next question.  I really didn’t know what color to go with. So I searched pinterest for color inspiration and this is what I came up with.  I love the deep dark brown against the white.  I’m going to go with it.

I bought a couple of the little sample paints at Home Depot for Behr paint to test colors.   We still need to buy the paint and get the paining done.  I really need to also refinish the dressers.  Time is the main factor here.  Don’t look for the finished product in the next week, not sure when it will be completed.  But as soon as I get it finished, I’ll certainly share it with you all.

Decorating Dining Room

My Dining Room Reveal!

The decorating of my dining room took a little longer than I planned, but it is finished. (Well… ok, almost finished. I still have to finish the chairs. They will be black)  It also inspired my new blog design … you’ll see!

Let’s go over the “before” pictures.  By the way… your input really helped me.

Before

I was told to move the corner china cabinet either out of the room (not an option) or into the corner in front to the left (that is where it went, so you won’t see it in the after pictures, but it is there)

I was told to move the pie safe out.  I did that.
I was told to move the old lady flower swag out from over my window.. I threw it away. (It was falling apart when I took it down)
I was told to refinish the dining room table. I did that.

I’m going to show you a few things first (I love to tease)

I painted.  Periwinkle.  Actually it is from Glidden (although I had them match it with Behr paint) called Fresh Hyacinth (it is in the blue palette)

I did an extreme chandelier makeover

I redid the dining room table

I refinished the Ikea Hemnes sofa Table

Refinished the  mirror and added some curtains.

 

I added a little fun

Some plates

And some more fun…

So are you ready?  Can you picture it yet?

Ok.. again..

Before

 

After

Don’t forget.. the chairs will be all black soon.

Here are a couple other shots

And the other side

So let me take you on a little tour around the room.

The little white lamp is a for a candle. I found it at Old Time Pottery. The black one is the one from our farm that I painted black. The shade was already black. But we tried two different bulbs in it and it blew them both, so we won’t be plugging it in.  I found the table runner at Hobby Lobby.

This plate server came from Hobby Lobby and the two plates came from Old Time Pottery. It has already come in handy for my son’s graduation party.

This wire bowl I found at the Salvation Army store for .99. I figured I would find something to put in it.  When I was at Michael’s I saw this lemon display that looked so real. I thought it would work great. They tend to look at little orange in the picture, but in real life they look really real.

Remember those four little mirrors that I got from Ikea? I painted the two of the white and then I thought they needed a little bling. So I found the stickers at Hobby Lobby to put on them.

I haven’t put anything in the baskets yet. I’d like to figure out a liner for them first.  But I did find a couple other things that worked well for the little slots above the baskets.

I found this at Hobby Lobby and it worked so well with the runner that I had to get it.

I got this wire basket at Old Time Pottery . I was looking for something to put napkins in.

Here is my other fun fine for only .90 at Old Time Pottery. It matched the look of the one I got at Hobby Lobby. I don’t don’t think we will put our silverware in it. I might get an extra set for it, or put the serving utensils. But it even had the same white stitching on the outside of it.

On the wall above it we have the mirror that I refinished.

Thankfully someone told me that the wall sconces went the direction I have them. Remember this? That is how I thought it went. Funny thing is when I was ready to hang them, my husband kept telling me that I was putting them upside down.  LOL (yes, I did admit to him that I had first thought they went that way too.)

I found this cute “We” decoration at Hobby Lobby.

I also found the cute candle holder with the bling at Hobby Lobby.  I showed you the “laugh” mirror above, that is what is right behind this candle holder.

Here are the other two mirrors.

I found these stickers at Hobby Lobby.

I love our letter “J”.  It was gold, but I painted it the Dover white also.

Here is my plate wall.  I found all the plates at Old Time Pottery. If I had more time (once I decided I was going to do a plate wall) I would have hit some garage sales etc.  But I didn’t pay more than $2 for any of the plates.

I was pleased how it looked.  The kids and my husband didn’t get it. “Are you going to write something on them?” “What else are you doing with them?”  and of course, “Why are you hanging plain plates on the wall?”  But they all admitted after the room was completed that they thought they looked good.

Here is my china cabinet hiding in the other corner. My sister said she would have painted it too.. but I just couldn’t bring myself to do that. I was so excited when I found this china cabinet (many years ago now). I looked all over for one and finally found it in an Amish store. I don’t mind that it is still brown, you don’t really see it when you first walk in anyway.

I took a dry erase board and used chalkboard paint on it, to create this.  I then saw the saying (which I changed up quite a bit). My artistic ability isn’t the greatest. My son thought it looked like hair coming out of the coffee cup. I said… “No, it is whip cream and I added some brown to make it look like chocolate.”  After I took this picture I added a lot more white and it does look a bit better now.  I used the chalkboard markers to write on this.

I saw this plate at Hobby Lobby and passed it by on several trips. But when it was 50% off and only $5, I couldn’t resist it any longer.

I’m down to one wall to go! lol

I found my curtains at JC Penney’s

I purchased the black curtain rod and pull backs also. I didn’t have any curtains up before. I just had mini blinds (which I am going to replace as soon as I get some nicer wood ones – white of course).  The curtains are nice, they are lined and I love the look of the fabric with the room.

The last thing is my “black wall”.

I told you in my sanding post I had that little chest of drawers that my mother loved.  I painted it black and used chalkboard paint on the front of the drawers. I used my chalkboard markers to write the numbers on the drawers.

I found the trivets at Old Time Pottery. I had planned on using them actually, but I decided they looked much better on this wall.

Thanks for visiting my new dining room!  What do you think?

Don’t forget you can link your decorating, organizing, DIY blog posts to my Organizing Mission Link party!

I’m linking this up to these lovely blogs!

Creating a House of Grace – Twice Owned Tuesdays
Tip Junkie – Tip Me Tuesday
A Bowl Full of Lemons – One Project at a Time
Thrifty Decor Chick – Before and After Party
Ask Anna – Weekend Warrior Link Party
Handy Man, Crafty Woman – Wicked Awesome Wednesday
Organize & Decorate Everything – Home Decor & Organizing Party
Blue Cricket Design – Show & Tell
I’m an Organizing Junkie – 52 Weeks

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Old Time Pottery Review

Do You Have an Old Time Pottery Store Near You?

Hopefully you do! If you’ve not been there before, then you need to go! You will find a massively big store that has just about anything you could need for your home.

Be sure to give yourself plenty of time! This is not a store that you zip in and back out of quickly. I don’t know if I have ever spent less than an hour in here.  Oh wait… yes I have. I had to run in to get some extra baskets one time and spent only about 15 minutes in it. (But that was an exception)

One thing about Old Time Pottery stores is that merchandise varies in each store.  They buy huge quantities of merchandise (hence the good prices for some high end products) and they get new shipments in each week. This is one of those stores that it really pays to shop frequently! And if you see something you really like, don’t hesitate to buy it, because there will be others who like it as well…. and it might not be there next time you go to the store!

Ok, so you know many stores like that right? But do they also have discounted prices on everything? That is why it is so fun to go to Old Time Pottery.
I have made many trips there recently. I used plastic baskets from there for my pantry, refrigerator and freezer reorganization.  These are the ones I used on my pantry, I got red ones for my ref. and freezer.

I also got some wire organizers that I used under my sink, and pantry and also plastics cupboard.

It isn’t your fancy-smancy store.  It is very basic. Grab your cart and start your adventure.

There is a little bit of everything.  I love all the baskets they have there.

But I have recently been there for items to decorate in my dining room.  (You’ll see those in a later post when I show you my finished dining room….but if you watch the video close you’ll see what I got on the check out counter) Here are a few other fun things you’ll find at Old Time Pottery (that you haven’t already seen in my video)

They also have a contest going on. You can see rules for the VIP Old Time Pottery card contest below (hint…. it can earn you five extra entries into this contest! Double whammy goodness!)

 

 

 

To Enter to Win 1 of four $25 gift card to Old Time Pottery!!!

Tell me: If you have an Old Time Pottery Around You. Which store (or state if you don’t want to be specific)  If you don’t know go to Old Time Pottery and plug in your zip code to find out. (sorry, no online sales – in store only) **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Go to the Old Time Pottery Web site and sign up to be a VIP OTP (Old Time Pottery) shopper. No purchase necessary. You will register and then you can print out a coupon to take to your OTP store to enter. You are entering to win a $50 gift certificate! (They are picking weekly winners) This promotion is good until June 17th. (5 extra entries – add 5 comments)

2) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 1 chance to win!

3) Follow me on Twitter @OrganizerSandy (Leave me your twitter name) 1 chance

4) Stumble one of my posts for 5 extra chances to win. (tell me which post. Post 5 comment entries)

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. You can use the tweet button at the top to make it easy. ( Pls leave your url link) 1 chance for each tweet.

Please keep in mind I approve my comments. So you won’t see them right away. Never fear!

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Wednesday , May 25, 2011  *THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. Must be 18+ to win.  One person per mailing address only. Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

I was given a $50 gift card for Old Time Pottery, but this in no way swayed my opinions.  I was talking about going to Old Time Pottery on my past posts, before they contacted me.  The pictures and videos and opinions are my own.

 

Dining Room Paint

The Periwinkle Adventure Begins

I am going to give you a sneak peak into the beginning of my dining room decorating.  I started off with the paint.

Here’s the deal.  I would have loved a dark taupe.  My husband does not want any shade of what he calls “masking tape”.  Our entire house is that blah light tan neutral color now. Thinking we were going to sell it, we didn’t want to venture into “colors”.

When I thought of a fun color, I remember back about 15 years ago to a friend who had a periwinkle kitchen. It was gorgeous!  I knew the problem would be getting the color right.

I don’t like blues, I love purple, but didn’t want it to be “purple” either.  I wanted periwinkle.

Here is what happened.  I painted it and was really upset… because this is what it looked like.

Purple! ugh! I kept thinking when I was painting it that it would darken up. It did a little.

Looks Purple

My husband was saying, “Well hun, it is appropriate for Easter, should we decorate with chicks and bunnies?”  Of course he was teasing, but I wasn’t in the mood for teasing.

I went and got the paint color chart I used to see if Behr paint messed up when the color matched the Gliddon paint sample.

It is the 2nd one in from the left…. top.  It looks like it matches. But look.. this is the blue page of paints, not purple!

Periwinkle – No light

But then…..

I turned off the dining room light…. and it was periwinkle.  I couldn’t believe the difference just from the light!

Periwinkle – No Light

Look again….  Light on.. (scroll back and forth between these two).  See the difference?

Light on – Purple

So now I am happy. I know I just have to find the right light bulb to take away the “rose” color in the light so that it will take that purple look out.

Does anyone know what kind of light bulb I need to buy so that the light will be more natural and not bring in that rose color?

I am going to be bringing you a couple reviews and giveaways real soon on items I used to help paint this room… so be watching!!

Hint…. Green Toad Pivoting Paint Brush and the Home Right EZ Twist Paint Stick

Reorganizing my Office

This is the “before” picture of my office. We have a very small office and have desk for my husband and I, file cabinets and a bookshelf. But I still needed some more space.
Think “up” is always what I tell my clients. Shelves right? But I wanted to do it on my own without having to have my husband help me and I love cubbies. I would have loved to have gone to Ikea and gotten one of their cubby units, but they are over an hour and half away. So I went to Target and got 2 of their 8 cubby units. They were on sale for $39.99 each and they worked great.
I turned my 4 drawer (2 side by side) file drawer perpendicular to the wall and moved the desk against the wall. I now have the wall to use for a large calendar and message board.
I also had a 3 drawer unit on the left of my desk. Since I moved the desk over to the wall, I put that on the right of my desk and brought the printer down so it is actually more accessible than it was up on the 5 drawer file cabinet. I know in these pictures it is hard to see the detail of what I did with the other furniture, but it did make it better and more accessible to wear I sit.
Here is the finished picture.

Office Organizing

Colors are important to most of us. They can affect how you feel, how you think. You want your office to be fun to go into. Make you feel productive and happy. What colors make you feel good? What ones do you love?
If you notice in my office I have bright colors…but I didn’t paint the walls, I didn’t add expensive curtains or carpet. I got cubbies in the colors I liked and made my own “Ikea” tower with the cubby units from Target. (Love cubbies!!)
I also added pails that I found at a garage sale and the little ones from Target. I have a hot pink magnetic board on my desk (an upcoming review and giveaway by the way).
If I go into another color mode..I can change it up real easy.
But when I walk into my office it just makes me feel happy!

Laundry Room Decor

Spice Up your Laundry Room with Fun Colors!

Laundry rooms do not have to be dull boring places that we dread having to go in and crawl through the piles of dirty clothes!
We may always have to climb through piles of clothes (but I hope there is some organization there)..but it doesn’t have to be dull and boring!
Painting or wall papering is one option. But that can be hard to do because you have to move out your washer and dryer and its hard to do without that room for even a day. Another option is just using fun colorful baskets. You can get all kinds of colors now for baskets. I found these at Target.
I have a very small laundry room and when I first moved into this house my now husband (we were dating then) came in and put these shelves up for me. I at first just had some boring white baskets on them…but spotted these and had to have them!
It just gives enough color to make me feel a little better about going into that place of never ending dirty clothes!