Design by The Decorologist

The idea was to convert the former den into a bedroom for the two oldest daughters so the baby and toddler could each have their own rooms (very necessary for successful naptimes!).  They already had twin beds and wanted to make a list for the upcoming trip to the modern decor mecca, IKEA, in Atlanta.  We took measurements and worked up a solid furniture arrangement, determining what the girls needed and what would fit into the new space perfectly.

IKEA Malma twin bed in birch

The kicker was determining the perfect color for the room.   In the end, the color scheme was  a compromise that met the desires of both daughters and momma.

 Before – Room as Den

You see, momma is NOT a pink kind of girl.  Of course, that’s the paint color the daughters were begging for!  Initially, everything was pretty much beige on beige – beige carpet, beige walls, beige sofas.  Here’s the “before” of the area where the beds would ultimately be placed:

These cutie-pies obviously favor pink!

The answer to the color conundrum was obvious – a warm, neutral wall color plus the perfect pink on the ceiling.  Below is the same area of the room “after.”  The darker brown makes the pink more sophisticated and keeps it from being tooo bubble gum sweet.  Although, it’s still pretty sweet for two sweet little girls!

 Pinkalicious!

One trip to IKEA for everything on the list, and we were ready to set up the room!  All the furniture in this design is straight from IKEA – the bedding and curtains are from the Dwell line at Target.  The butterflies that flutter around the room are the Umbra Papillon set from Target.

 Dwell Studio Polka Dot Bedding & Curtains

The walls were painted Benjamin Moore’s Alexandria Beige HC-77.

Benjamin Moore’s Alexandria Beige

This is the ideal space for homework!

 IKEA Desks and Chairs

The ceiling color is Benjamin Moore’s Rose Blush 037.

 Polka Dots & Butterflies!

Starting with careful measurements and a good plan, everything fits in the room perfectly.  I’m happy to say, mother and daughters all love the new room!  Let’s just hope we don’t have to convert the dining room into a bedroom next . . .

 Valentine’s Tree

My decorations include some glittery hearts, small pink and white Christmas balls, and some vintage Valentine’s cards tucked into the branches.

This year I added a few new decorations, including these precious little golden owls that my friend, Lezlie, gave me for Christmas!

 Glitter Owl

I found this cool old painting at an estate sale and tucked it in the background – I love the winter scene and the pinkish hues in the sky and tree buds.

 Vintage Winter Landscape

In the mirror behind, I tucked in a vintage wedding photo I found years ago – as well as one of the paint chip Valentine’s cards I made last year.

 Paint Chip Valentine

Sometimes it’s nice to devote a small space to decorating for the minor holidays.

Do you decorate (even just a little) for Valentine’s Day?

Wouldn’t it be fun to decorate it out all retro-dreamy, like a giant dollhouse?

My girls could use it as a playhouse in the backyard.

Or I could use it as an office in the warmer months.

It’d be a perfect place to read . . . or just think really deep thoughts.

We could even go on a trip in it!  Maybe to the beach – I’d feel like Gidget.

If you need inspiration for your pipe dreams, you should really be on Pinterest.   You can check out my Airstream Dreams board to see more cool trailer interiors.  Or get ideas for exterior house paint colors from my Exterior Paint Colors board.  Maybe you want to hang some art but don’t know where to start – just browse through my Wall Art Groupings board.  Join me there and indulge in your own pipe dreams!

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In working with real clients in real homes, I don’t get bogged down in what design trend is hot or not.  However, I am going to tell my clients if they have something going on in their home that makes it look “dated” and is holding them back from having a beautiful space.  So here’s my top 5:

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1.  Tray and coffered ceilings with the banding painted in an accent color.   When tray ceilings first became popular for dining rooms and bedrooms, multiple colors and contrasting banding were used to make people take notice of the trayed effect.  That looks so dated now.  It’s like,  ”Look at me!  I’m a tray ceiling!!!”  No duh.

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2.  Accent or contrasting color under the chair rail.   There are other options below the chair rail that I will expand on in a future post, but just know that if the wall above it is yellow you shouldn’t paint the wall below it red.

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3.  And that last picture reminds me:  Windows wearing ballgowns.  Festoons, jabots, valances, and all other fancy/puffy window treatments do nothing but block your light and make a scene.  Elegant, simple panels highlight the view and your architecture, as window treatments should do.

I Really Hate Even Putting This on My Blog

4.  Matching sets of furniture.  That goes for the living room combo:  sofa/loveseat/chair with matching side tables + coffee table, all in the same style and wood finish.  And that goes for the complete dining room or bedroom set.  It’s just a lazy and uninspired look.

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5.  Unused or under-utilized spaces.  No one needs three living areas or a dining room that is never used.  Transform your unused space into a library or office – anything but leaving it utterly wasteful.

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You didn’t hear me mention the owl trend, the horse trend, the antler trend, the words-as-decor trend.   Because I will not be the one to walk into your home and say, “Oh, you must get rid of that horse art – it’s sooo Spring 2011″! 

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Those fun little trends aren’t what date your house and drag it down.  Year-by-year, you don’t have to be on the cutting edge of design.    But there are some important things you can do to stay in the current decade. 

Now, do you agree or disagree with MY list?

Upon entering we do have a rather large and traditional tree in our front window, filled with family and vintage ornaments.

Yay, me!   I’ve even gotten a fair amount of presents already wrapped and under the tree! 

This is my living room and fireplace mantel:

I love this pink floral arrangement I found a TJ Maxx  a few years back.

I’ve been collecting vintage deer for years and love to display some of them on my mantel.

They also seem to find their way to other vignettes about the house. 

I even have a large reindeer that my mom bought from a store display when a hardware store closed in the 1980′s.  Do things from the 80′s count as vintage now???

I really love pastels paired with vintage gold.

I love to use large vintage mirrors to reflect other pretty parts of a room.

Here’s my pink tree, of course!  I’ve only had this one a couple of years – found it at Big Lots.

I found about 10 of these pink bird ornaments while antiqueing with a friend last week!

This is my dining room this Christmas.  In the past, I have set the table with the Christmas Lenox my uncle has given to me over the years.  This year, my table has a simple forest vignette and the Lenox Christmas plates are stacked there informally.

This is small vintage tree I’ve had for some time.  I found the vintage gift boxes for a song at an estate sale years back.

Here’s the back corner of the room with a winter vignette in turquoise, green, and gold.

I love using mica snowflakes to create a wintery scene like this one!

And of course, I have to include a stack or two of vintage books!

I have several old winter landscapes I prop here and there at this time of year.

I hope you enjoyed the tour!  I have one other special Christmas “decoration” that I created, but I am saving that to show you later this week.  Stay tuned!

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 If you love the sea and all things beachy, this Christmas tree just might float your boat.

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Tick-tock, Father Time, and all that.  This tree of clocks boasts an unconventional color scheme of purple and metallic gold.

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Old-fashioned yet fresh and new – a candy theme is a fun and kid-friendly way to go with decorating the Christmas tree. 

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My mother-in-law collects angels.  She should totally do a heavenly tree like this one – all stars and angels!

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If you really want to give them something to talk about around the watercooler,  decorate your office Christmas tree with colorful office supplies!

For the literary lover:  a tree decked out in all kinds of letters and fonts.

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I’ve certainly never seen an Asian-themed Christmas tree, I must say I love it!  A bonsai tree, even!

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Why not have a Christmas tree in the kitchen?  Better yet, have a kitchen-themed Christmas tree in the kitchen.  Trim it with miniature kitchen utensils, fruit, nuts, and food-related items.  My friend Tisha has just such a tree in her kitchen every year.

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I love the natural look of this Christmas tree.  Adorned with nametags and old photographs, it kinda reminds me of that famous Horton Christmas Tree on “Days of our Lives” that has all the ball ornaments with family members’ names painted on each one.  Please tell me somebody knows what I’m talking about. 

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If you love retro or just love the color pink, this tree would probably suit you perfectly.  I know it would suit me!

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What do you want to bet that the lady of the house is a gardener?  Creating a themed Christmas tree is a fun way to display your collections or showcase your passion.

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So, are you pro-theme or anti-theme?  I’ll be giving you a tour of my house all decked out for Christmas as soon as I get a sunny day to take some decent photos.  Can you guess the overall theme of my Christmas decorating?  No fair if you’ve seen it before!

But my kids kept begging, and I felt guilty for not making the house look haunted and creepy. 

So I decided to keep it minimal and confine the decor to just the entry and dining room (less work, too).   Now I’m glad I caved to the pressure. 

My Halloween tablescape consists of some white pumpkins, a few black crows, some random bones and skulls . . .

Cheesecloth makes easy spiderwebs to drape over light fixtures and furnishings.

Mystery books with creepy bookjackets, glitter skulls, and a severed hand poke out from beneath a turkey feather wreath on my entry table.  FYI:  placing a wreath of any kind on a cake pedestal enables you to decorate around and underneath the wreath as well. 

The black crows and spider webs will go back into storage next week, but my owls will hang out with me throughout the winter season.  Can you find the three owls in this post?  There may be a prize . . .

Our tin knight exchanged his vintage jewelry for a spooky chain.  But he’s still wearing that fur stole . . .

So I’m back on the “good mom” list with my kids, although my 7-year-old said it’s just not scary enough. 

This, from the child who won’t go upstairs alone because she’s too scared!!!

Maybe next year I’ll again embrace the whole haunted house look, like I’ve done in the past.   Here’s one last shot I took later in the day – every October, the light does this creepy thing on the walls in the front rooms in the afternoons.  Super-spooky and just in time for Halloween!

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A snip-snip here and a little rip there transforms this seemingly-harmless material into something spook-tacular!

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What a cool way to tablescape for a Halloween party!

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I like to drape cheesecloth over sconces and light fixtures, like this one in the entry of my home.  It creates a spooky glow among the black crows, spiders, and glitter skulls under glass.

What simple materials do you use to make your home spooky at Halloween?

Hemnes Dresser from IKEA

The gray-brown finish is available only on selected IKEA furniture, and they can barely keep them in stock right now.  I found gray options in the Hemnes, Isala, and Lack series. 

 IKEA Hemnes Bookcase in Gray-Brown

Yes, our humble little hard-working Lack table now comes in gray high-gloss!

Lack Side Table in Gray Gloss

IKEA Isala Coffee Table in Gray

And I do love this fabulous gray rug!

IKEA Gislev Rug in Gray

All the same wood finishes in a room is worn and passe, so feel free to mix a few gray pieces in with your black finishes.  Or gray-brown pieces in with your dark brown or black pieces.  Thanks for evolving, IKEA!

“New” Living Room

This was the room when it was set up as the dining room – as it had been for the last 10 years.

Former Dining Room

Of course, now the dining room is in the former living room like I showed you in this post.  The sunroom is just beyond this room, where we spend a lot of time hanging out.

“New” Dining Room

So, when you come in the front entry of the house and pass through the first arch, the new dining room is directly in front of you, and the new living room is to the right of the above shot, through this archway:

Living Room

So far, we have been using this room mainly for reading and talking after school is out in the afternoon.  My oldest daughter likes to practice guitar on the couch here, as well.  It’ll probably stay this way until it gets a bit cooler, and I feel the need to huddle around the fireplace again.  Of course, there’s all those books to remove from the fireplace . . .