::Black Dining Room::

I did it! I finally painted the dining room black. We're still a harvest table away from being able to really make it the room we envisioned, but it's on it's way. The top half is all chalkboard. Mama's chalkboard. I expect smudging and the occasional doodle to appear at about kid-height, but it's meant to be my own personal transformable wallpaper.

::Dining Room Dreams::

Haven't posted about decor daydreams in a very long time. But Aidan and I have started to plan out the harvest table he will be building for our dining room. This prompted me to swing by the magazine shelf at the library... and now my eyes have that far off look.

::Red & Green & Sparkly::

::Bright Bobble & Fairy Flakes::

et the decorating begin!

When it comes to Christmas decor, I am very picky. I am more about colour and texture than snowmen and Santas. I have a passion for spherical objects, so Christmas balls are to be found absolutely everywhere in my house this time of year. And no matter how much I try to wander from the same warm colour profile, I always come home to orange & fuchsia. I am simply awash with orange and fuchsia balls!

A first this year: I attempted a handmade wreathe. We had to trim our tree significantly this year, and I just couldn't waste them! I have no idea how one is supposed to make a wreathe. I just stuck branches here and there and twisted wire in the places I felt they were needed. Then I popped a few more lovely balls onto it and stuck it on the door with some Lee Valley magnets. {I love those things!}

Also new-- we suspended some old windows above our half-walls! I have wanted to this for awhile now and finally convinced Aidan to do it. He thinks it's ridiculous. Now that they are up, I have no regrets. I love it. It means we can do festive things like sticking hand-cut snowflakes all over them!

::Trim!::

rim! Well, one window anyways. To most of you this is a non-event. Trim? Oh, but you take it for granted! Living without is for three years has given me a true appreciation for the details that go into building a home. And I would have been denied the pleasure of trim for months, maybe years longer had my brother in-law not taken matters into his own hands. While Aidan and I were off to a wedding, Dave boxed and trimmed our biggest and most-visible window. I am so pleased!

In celebration of the completed window, I bought some Pier 1 curtains I had been eying. Yeah!

::My pink, orange, polka-dotty package!::

very now and then we ladies find a treasure that brightens our home. Often, the big items sap us of time & money and leave us with a sense of guilt. But the small things that we happen upon in the clearance bin feel like a gift. I just found one...

I love orange. I love pink. I love polka dots. All of these glorious things were folded into a beautiful Pier 1 package just for me!

::Free::

sed. But FREE! I can't extol the merits of UsedOttawa.com enough. Aidan and I have been looking for a sofa bed for awhile, but didn't want to buy new. So we began to search online. One day, these couches popped up. The ad said "FREE to the first person who gets in touch." That was me!
Fabulous quality, ridiculously comfy and entirely my style.
We have been finishing our home piece by piece using other people's things. I highly recommend it.

::Getting organized::

Next room on the list: Mudroom.
It's a new year, and after the clutter of many hosted parties--hundreds of soggy boots & mounds of moist coats-- and the promise of many more to come, I would love to get a bit more organized. Our mudroom is the first room you see when you walk into our home so I want it to be, both functional, and nice to look at. We have planned and measured everything out. This week Aidan will go and pick up materials.

Yay!


As always, I will post more pictures once there is something built.

::Green Whirlwind::

hange of plans. As always. . . I posted HERE that the basement would be white and orange, but kept coming back to my curiosity about black walls. I couldn't help but wonder what that would look like. I figured it would make things more cozy down there, and be far less likely to need scrubbing. So, we made a complete switch to black. The ceiling is black, with plans for black and silver tin panels to cover the plumbing pipes. The floor is black--painted right onto the concrete. The walls are black for the first four feet, and will be given a wainscoting shortly. Lots of dark paint. That being said, I accented with a lemongrass green that breaks up the black and makes for an amazing contrast.

Before taking the plunge, I played with my photo program to come with the most sloppy attempt at a black and green "pub" look:

For more inspiration:

Then we went for it:

More of a lemongrass colour, than green. We are happy with it. I will post more pictures as the room progresses. What excites me most is that the TV, and all the toys, are now off the main floor. That means there is now a room available upstairs for all of my craft supplies. . . but that is a project for another day.

::Pretty Pumpkins::

::Orange Whirlwind::

ur basement is undergoing a whirlwind renovation for reasons I will share in due time.
It is a very big space, but is only lit by one square window. So, knowing that the effect had to be light, but also cozy, I have opted to do white wainscoting topped with burnt orange. I can accent orange with green or eggplant purple or fuchsia. I am well acquainted with the colour, since my old kitchen was tangerine.

If you remember THIS post, you'll know the style we are leaning towards. I am looking forward to finding scraps by the side of the road or on UsedOttawa to make the space look just right.