Turn This Outfit Into a Room: H&M Edition~

Utah finally has an H&M store!!  I was so excited when they finally opened one here just before Thanksgiving.  It was one of my favorite places to shop when we lived in Massachusetts.   Great stuff...great prices...especially for the kiddos.

It's been a while since I've done one of my "Turn this Outfit into a Room" posts, so today, I thought I'd do one inspired by this cutie-patootie outfit from H&M...

Love the sophisticated color palette of gray and black...with just enough pink to appeal to a little princess.  So here's what I came up with...

Not your traditional little girls room.  I specifically tried to steer away from girlie-girlie furniture (okay, I did use a canopy bed, but I refrained from adding drapes to it).  I definitely brought in the girl-factor with the leopard print pink rug, the bling-y chandelier, those darling pillows, and adorable silhouettes though.  The room is fun, but the pieces are timeless and can grow with the room's occupant...that's my kind of room!

Sources:
Rug - PoshTots
Bed, Dresser, Art, Duvet - Restoration Hardware Kids
Pillows - Chloe and Olive
Chandelier - Pottery Barn Kids

Frugal Friday goes live tonight at 8 pm MST as usual!  Hope to see you all there!

xoxo
Wendy

53 Days

Hello and Happy Halloween! Hope you had a wonderful day and evening! :) We had a great time chasing a very excited pirate around the neighborhood. And I ate a LOT of food. I mean. Lots.

Well, it’s about that time folks. It’s now November…uhhh, well it will be when most of you read this…so I’m allowed to say the “Christmas” word. I’ve actually been talking and thinking about it for a good month now, but November 1st gives me the go ahead to hide it no longer!

I’m freeeee!!

I’m a Christmas fareeek, so bear with me. And yes, I know a little holiday called Thanksgiving comes first, but I’m thankful every day, so I don’t get as excited about that one. :)

This time of year I’m always thinking about the countdown -- I love checking out all of the advent ideas out there. Because many of us love to DIY, I thought I’d share a few of my favorites (old and new) now so you’ll have plenty of time to get crafty. (OR pull out the bank card and order one – I feel ya.)

Click the pics to see more about each one!

Pottery Barn never fails with the countdowns – this snowman advent is too cute!:

The price is not…but there’s gotta be some way to DIY this! I just can’t think of one right this second. My mind is a mush of Halloween candy. :)

This one is adorable and could be knocked off for sure:

Felt cut into stockings and glued on – love it!

This is an oldie but goodie, and SO doable. I searched for mini buckets last year to do this one and couldn’t find what I wanted (for cheap). I even asked the folks at Logan’s Roadhouse and they wouldn’t sell me some – boo!:

Anyone seen mini buckets at a good price?

I love this advent pillow at Ballard Designs:

And I know some of you crafty chicks could pull this one off! I on the other hand, am still working on the sewing a straight line thing.

I found this one at Meijer the other day:

It’s just a round metal sheet and there’s a magnetic glass piece that goes over the numbers and magnifies them. I think it was $10? Super cute!

I’m always blown away with the handmade ideas I see every year. I used cardboard boxes, paper and stickers from the craft store to make these years ago:

They have held up great! I used to fill each one with small toys or treats, but we need more itty bitty toys in this house like we need a poke in the eye.

So I loved these simple activity cards with holiday themes instead:

Sooo doing this! Along with a few treats and toys…just a few. ;)

I’ve found a few more ideas on Pinterest over the past few weeks – love these little felt envelopes!:

Oh, they are too precious!

These Christmas trees are something different, and would be SO easy (and cheap!):

Wouldn’t they be fun across a mantel, in all different sizes? They’d have to be up high in this house – little hands wouldn’t be able to resist peeking underneath. :)

This one is simple and lovely:

Just clothes pins glued to a board, decorated with a bit of ribbon. Clip the little treats up each day – too sweet! I may have to try this one.

But my favorite yet is this idea:

OH my…the cuteness!! This one WILL happen at our house. Just adorable. And it doesn’t involve treats or presents…just one-on-one crafting time with the kiddos for a few minutes a day. LOVE.

Do you have a favorite advent or Christmas countdown tradition? I’d love to hear! If you’ve blogged about about one, feel free to leave a link in your comment. And I promise not to mention the C-word again for at least 24 hours.

:)

Living Room Progress~

Funny thing, this.  My living room wasn't one of my first decorating priorities when we moved into this house.  It probably should have been because it is the first thing you see upon entering.  But since I thought it was going to be the most expensive room to put together, it went on the back burner. 

But then after finally figuring out the right furniture arrangement for the space, and having a few other serendipitous things happen to give us some FREE supplies, the Living Room is actually coming together.  Last week, the Hubby painted one wall this FABULOUS deep gray, Magnetite by Martha Stewart.

Bless his heart, that Hubby.  The walls on the main floor are close to 10 feet in height.  So much easier for my big, hunk-o-man to paint than for me.  The wall is absolutely beautiful.  So sophisticated.  It's going to make the perfect backdrop for a gallery wall.  (We even had our family portraits done this weekend for just that purpose.  I'm so excited! I'll give you a little sneaky peek later this week.)
 

And since I have gallery walls on the brain, today I thought I'd share with you a few pieces of gallery wall eye candy that I've been collecting on Pinterest.  Oh yes!  Love that Pinterest!!

Source: younghouselove.com via Wendy on Pinterest

Source: hollymathisinteriors.com via Wendy on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Wendy on Pinterest

Source: primed4design.blogspot.com via Wendy on Pinterest

Source: foundbydomesticbliss.blogspot.com via Wendy on Pinterest

Source: mydesigndump.blogspot.com via Wendy on Pinterest

I'm leaning towards doing a wall with all white frames.  I think they'll really POP against that beautiful gray.  Hopefully, I'll have the whole living room finished in the next couple of weeks.  I can't wait to share it with you all!

Have a lovely Monday~

If This Outfit Were a Room: A Tailored Living Room~

I love this outfit from Ann Taylor.  My favorite part is that pair of sassy leopard-print booties.  Classic and tailored with a little kick.  When I saw this outfit I thought it would translate beautifully into a classic, tailored living room.

Here's what I came up with...

I love the monochromatic palette.  It's sophisticated and the mix of patterns and textures keeps it from being predictable or boring.  Love.


Sources:

Rug, mirror, horse print: Ballard Designs
Chair: Grandin Road
Coffee Table: World Market
Side Table, lamp: Pottery Barn
Pillows: Etsy

Comfort Foods

Can someone check my temperature? For real – I have been a cooking fool over the past week. Like, using my crock pot more than I have in the past year.

In a week.

And this, the week we have no kitchen. Well, we have one, but it’s kinda half of one – I have to walk across the house to get to the fridge in the garage. Which makes cooking way more exercise than usual.

Maybe I’m burning off the calories of this good stuff?? Maybe not.

And really, is crock pot cooking really cooking? When I do next to nothing and it does it all, I feel like I’m cheating when I say I’ve been cooking.

All I know is I’ve been making yummy meals and I’m loving it. Imagine how much I’ll love it when I have my island and garbage can and refrigerator back? It’s going to get spectacular!! ;)

I’m sharing some of our favorites from the past week or so and some changes, if any, that I made to them. (I’m just sharing the original poster’s pics and I’ll recap each recipes here.)

First up – a truly scrumptious recipe I found on Pinterest from Bubble Crumb:

Crock Pot Chick and Dumplings

It is SOOOOO good! Whooeee, I’m so thrilled to find this. I am a chicken and dumplings NUT. Have you had them at Cracker Barrel? (I almost wrote Crate and Barrel. You can how much I think about cooking – never.)

Anyway – yummo! This does not disappoint.

Here’s the deets:

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons butter
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken broth
1 onion diced (I used half of one)
1 tablespoon dried parsley
4 grands flaky refrigerator biscuits (I used five)

Put the chicken, butter, cream of chicken, chicken broth, parsley and onions in the crock pot and cook on high for four to six hours. Mine only needed five, and probably didn’t even need that much.

As the chicken cooks and gets tender, break it up with a spoon or fork, whatever.

Get your biscuits and cut them into nine pieces. I kind of rolled them into balls to ensure they stayed whole but it’s not necessary. Stir into chicken mixture and cook for another hour.

(The recipe says to cook for 30 minutes and my biscuits were not done at that point. One hour did the trick.)

I noticed as it cooked that it was a tiny bit thick, and the recipe said to add chicken broth if necessary. I was out of that, so I used chicken soup and it worked great. ;) I just put a bit in to make it a little creamier.

It was AWESOME. (!!!)

Next up, one of the many great recipes from Tracie’s place that I shared last weekend. This one is crock pot mac and cheese:

Crock Pot Easy Mac and Cheese

The goodies:

1/2 pound elbow macaroni
4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Dash of Worcestershire sauce

Very important before you do anything – spray the crock pot well with cooking spray. This cheesy goodness will stick otherwise. I sprayed but not well enough. :)

Mix the egg, fresh milk, evaporated milk, and Worcestershire together in a large bowl. Mix in the uncooked macaroni and three cups of shredded cheese. Pour into the crock pot and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Cook on low for five to six hours. Do not stir or remove lid while cooking.

That whole not stirring thing was so hard for me. Not sure why. I always feel the need to stir.

I cooked ours on high for five hours and it only needed four, if that. It was a bit overdone. I also used a bit too much cheese (I know, is there such a thing?) – I used thicker shredded cheese, and I think the finely shredded would have worked better. It was just major CHEESE and combined with being cooked a bit too long, it wasn’t as good as I know it could be.

But, it was still GOOD. :) I know it would be GREAT with those little changes. I plan on giving it another go this weekend. ;)

And I saved the best for last…hold on peeps. This is fan-freaking-tastic. I also found this on on Pinterest and it’s from Chef Mommy:

Crock Pot Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Ohhh…I’m drooling just thinking about it. SO. GOOD.

This one takes a teeny bit more work, but it’s so worth it.

4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 package of Rice-a-Roni long grain and wild rice
1/2 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups half and half
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup diced celery (we’re not bit celery people so I used one small can of mushrooms – SO GOOD)

Mix the broth, water, carrots, mushrooms, chicken and rice (and the seasoning packet) in the slow cooker.

Cook on low for six to eight hours or on high for four hours. I did the high version and it turned out great.

Once chicken gets tender (couple hours in), break it up into pieces while cooking.

At the end of the cooking time, get a small bowl and mix the salt, pepper and flour. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in flour mixture by tablespoon to form a roux.

I had no idea what a roux was, but found out it’s a mixture used as thickener for stews, soups and gravy:

 
(source)

Then, while still on the heat (I’m guessing here – that’s what I did), whisk in the half and half, a little at a time, into the roux until mixed completely and smooth.

Stir this yummy mixture into the soup in the crock pot then let it cook on low for 15 more minutes.

Then die and go to heaven cause it tastes that good.

Oh my goodness. I think I need to go eat some leftovers.

Mine was a bit thick – almost like gravy, not soupy like the photo. But that’s how we like it. :) You could add a bit more broth if you like it thinner. (Wait to see how it cooks up first.)

So there you go – my very favorite comfort foods from the past week! I really don’t know what is wrong with me – we’ve had cool weather the past couple of days, but the chicken and dumplings I made on a 95 degree day.

I guess I’m just craving comfort. ;) If you are too, you can’t go wrong with any of these!

Any yummy, easy fall recipes you make all season? I’d love to hear about them -- I need to plan out the dinners for the rest of the week. Stop laughing, I’m FOR REAL.

Yes, taking my temperature. And then reheating some leftovers. Hollllla…

Pottery Barn pillows (on the cheap!)

Well hello! Hope you are having a great week! There has been awesome progress on our outdoor project this week, and I’ll show you that very soon! It is SO exciting to watch an ongoing project that I don’t have to complete myself. It’s an odd feeling to not be doing the work…but pretty a cool one. :)

Anyhoo…so I may have mentioned a few times that I’m nutty for the Pottery Barn catalog. I’m pretty much counting the days till the fall version arrives. (There will be some gleeful squeals. Get ready.)

It’s totally free inspiration, as is a trip through the store. ;) The store version is more dangerous though…cause you may or may not find a couple $3 mercury votive holders you MUST. HAVE.

Or something.

Last week I took a trip though to see if they had fall stuff out check out the inspiration, and I ended up at the table linens area. I noticed a few things – first, they were on sale. SCORE. Secondly, they had so many fantastic napkins, in some fabulous colors and combos.

I put a few together to show how they could work together:

 

Why would you want to combine napkins in different colors in designs you ask?

To make them into pillows of course! I noticed a trend while there – many of their napkins are also versions of their pillows:

So my brain got to thinkin’. And you know that’s dangerous…for Pottery Barn anyway. ;)

I wanted some late summerish, (almost) fallish pillows in our living room, and wanted to break away from the standard reds and browns I’ve always used. I’ve been pulling in blues over the past year and was determined to make the blues work for fall(ish. It’s not fall yet. I know. Ish.).

I have a love/hate relationship with our sofa in that room – it’s OH so comfy, and actually a great, sturdy couch. It’s just the fabric…oh my dear, it drives me NUTS. And the color, it’s as gold as gold can be. I want to recover it but that’s an entirely different post. Altogether. A long one.

Anyhoo again. I decided to just work with the gold instead of fighting it, and PB had some beautiful yellow and blue combos that I loved! There was an awesome ikat pillow in the store that day:

(It was the one on the left but I love both!)

I’ve never been a big ikat girl, and I know it’s trendy, and I’m probably coming in at the end of the trend, and all the sudden I like it. Of course. I’m OK with that. I like what I like, when I like it. Don’t try to make sense of it, your head will hurt. ;)

So I grabbed a couple of napkins and made myself a pillow:

Boom.

Their (embroidered) pillow cover, $59. Mine, I think $8?

I had some fabric for another (upcoming) project, and thought it worked great with the blues in the PB linens. So I made another pillow. LOVE. (I got that blue fabric at Joann’s a couple months ago.)

I found a blue and yellow placemat at PB that day as well, and I knew just what to do with it. I opened the side seam and stuffed it:

Like I’ve shown you here. And a how-to here.

Two Pottery Barn pillows for less than $20 – gotta love it! And I could have made three if I used the ikat napkin on one side and a basic white fabric on the back.

Because I saved so much on those, I splurged on the big blue medallion pillow in the back. I have purchased PB pillow covers before and they hold up GREAT.

But like always, I used a pillow we had to fill it – but it was still a bit wimpy. I hate wimpy pillows. So I stuffed a bed pillow in there:

I do what it takes. :) It worked great!

And like always…my versions are not for the faint of heart up close. A little rough. So let’s stay far away:

:)

I’ve been trying to be more adventurous with mixing patterns and colors – the colors in the pillows are in the drapes and I love how they all tie together!

And I love that ikat so darn much I think I’m going to make another one to put on another chair in the room. :)

I have to show you another find for this room! I have wanted to replace our chunky Goodwill coffee table that has been in and out of there:

(Old pic from the red and black days.)

While on a trip to Garden Ridge last week, I found pretty much EXACTLY what I’ve been looking for:

It opens up the space SO much! I LOVE it.

It was $60, but I figure if I sell a couple Craigslist coffee tables (on Craigslist), I’ll make up for that easy. (I've got a couple.)  ;)

I have a few more changes planned for this room, but for now, I’m so happy with how it’s changed over the past year:

The pillows and coffee table have transformed it yet again…for $80. And yet again…I have ensured that Pottery Barn will never advertise on TDC. ;)

You can make pillows out of just about anything – linens, shower curtains, sheets, whatever! The possibilities are endless! Have you made any unconventional pillows? Link to them in the comments if so!

Fashion Inspiration: If This Outfit Were a Room~

While spending time on Pinterest the other day, I found this fabulous outfit.

Source: ishandchi.blogspot.com via Wendy on Pinterest

And I thought to myself, "self, that FABULOUS outfit would make a FABULOUS room!"  Yes, I do, in fact, think things like that. 

So here is what I came up with.

I'm in love with the rough textures mixed in with a touch of femininity in the pillows and art.  A nice yin and yang going on in this room.  Besides, I've been in love with that Chesterfield Sofa from Restoration Hardware for a long time, and have been wanting to try it in a room design.  Liking this!!

Sources:

Rug: Rosenberry Rooms
Sofa and Coffee Table: Restoration Hardware
Pillows: Etsy (Seamstome23 and Misoul)
Pendant Light: West Elm
Art: Pottery Barn
Mirror: Ballard Designs

Have a great day~

Fashion Inspiration for the Home: If This Outfit Were a Room~

My roots are in fashion.  It's what I studied in college.  I had a hard time deciding between Fashion and Interior Design, and even though Fashion won out in college, Interior Design won out in the end.  That said, the basic inspiration for each is really very similar...so today I thought I'd have a little fun. 

I was looking through the Ruche Summer Look  Book (aaaaaah, bliss) and thought it might be fun to see if I could use a couple of their outfits as inpiration to create some pretty rooms.  This was a fun exercise.  Check it out.

First up, this peppy little number.  Sunny and casual, I love the poppy-colored stripes and the tiny touch of yellow in the bangle on her wrist.

Here's what I came up with:

Sources:
Bedding - Dwell Home
Rug, Headboard and Bedside Table - West Elm
Pillows - Etsy
Table Lamp - PBTeen
Pendants - Frederic Vasseur
Campaign Desk - World Market

I definitely played up the yellow here...but I love the poppy/yellow combo!  This room would be so much fun to lounge in!

Next up, this chic little short-all with hot pink sandles (not to mention the pretty aqua-colored cruiser).

And my interpretation:

Sources:
Sofa, Chairs and Ottoman - Serena and Lily
Rug - PBTeen
Lamps - ebay
Pillows - Etsy
Artwork - My Own
Table via Olioboard

Now this is a room that really feels like "me".  Lovin' all the gray with the touches of pink and aqua.  So pretty and restful.

So tell me, my dear reader, does your closet inspire your decor (or vice versa)?

Simple and Pretty Floral Arrangement~

Happy Monday Everybody!

It was a crazy busy weekend around these parts!  With lots of celebrating all surrounding the number 50...on Friday we celebrated my parents' 50th Wedding Anniversary with a lovely dinner party, and on Saturday we attended a surprise 50th birthday party for my cute sister-in-law! 

My two sweet sisters and I planned the  50th Celebration for my parents.  It was lovely.  I was in charge of the main table centerpiece.  We had chosen cream table linens, and I had originally planned on going with yellow flowers to bring in the "gold" for the golden anniversary.  But, in all honesty, once I was looking at flowers, everything that was available was too sunshine-y yellow, and they just didn't seem elegant enough for the occasion.  So I chose white. 

And the arrangements I created (photographed at my house rather than the venue - hence no table linens) were simple but elegant. 

To add interest to the smaller of the two arrangements, I simply cut up a few limes and filled the vase with them before adding the flowers - they also work well as sort of natural floral "frog" to hold the flowers in place.  The green of the limes echoed the greenery in the flowers and the entire arrangement was simply elegant.

The same idea works great with more casual floral arrangements.  Picture lemons and daffodils or daisies in a mason jar.  So next time you need a unique floral arrangement think citrus!

Have a great day~

A Plan for the Boys' Room~

Found myself at Ikea yesterday, and gained some great inspiration for my boys' bedroom.  So I came home and pulled together an inspiration board with a few of the items I saw there (and others I've been saving in my files).

Thought you all might want to take a peek.

I have had my eye on the duvet set at Ikea for quite a while...and it's very reasonable...just $29.99 for a twin duvet and pillow case.  Lovin' the blue and white stripes.  Then I saw the pretty cable knit blanket and thought it added another nice nautical touch to the bedding ensemble at $39.99.   The other Ikea find?  That great nautical ceiling pendant.  Perfect at $29.99.

The rest of the inspiration photos pictured?  You'll just have to stay tuned to find out!

Other Sources:
Bunkbeds via Coastal Living
Driftwood Sailboat via Lettered Cottage
Alphabet Wall via Houzz
Windmill via ? (in my files for ages)

Frugal Friday goes live tonight at  8:00 MST as usual.  Have a great day~

Stuff (and the Pick Your Plum Winner)~

Happy Monday folks!

This is it...the week of the big move.  We move on Saturday and we're down to the last bit of packing.  I was a good girl all weekend and got the bulk of everything finished...although I still have some of the kitchen and the last minute stuff to do.  I don't know about you, but moving has to be one of my least favorite things on the planet.  Ah well, I keep reminding myself that a new place to live means new rooms to decorate (and new projects to blog!)

I may be a bit scarce this week as I try to get all the last minute stuff done (not to mention the fact that my sweet in-laws and dear sister are both coming in town this week as well).  But never fear!  Frugal Friday will be up this week as usual!

In the meantime, I have still been pondering the dilemma of three boys in one room...I have decided that we will definitely be using the bunkbed with a trundle.  And I think we've decided to go custom.  To either have it built or build it ourselves.  The hubby could totally tackle this project, but time constraints might lead us to having it done for us.  So I've been gathering more bunkbed inspiration...here's my latest favorite via Coastal Living.

I love the idea of a nautical feel without being in-your-face, and I think this room does a FABULOUS job of that.  Lovin' the houndstooth bedding as well.  That's a look I've been wanting in the boys' room for.ev.ah.  Also, I've really wanted to go with white beds, but I didn't want the room to feel "girly".  I think this room feels totally "boy" while still using white!  Love that!

Finally, the winner of the Pick Your Plum winner is Sandee Spencer!  Congrats Sandee...drop me an email and we'll get you set up with your prize!

Have a great day~

Traditional Living Room Inspiration Board~

Today I thought I'd share an inspiration board I made recently for some clients of mine who just redid their kitchen and decided that their living room was now in need of an update as well.

The color scheme for this design is inspired by some new pale blue rugs they purchased for the space, as well as their current wall color.

Although they already have a soft gold color on their walls, I suggested that they bump it up a notch to an even warmer gold similar to that in the living room photo pictured.  In this case, I suggested Fresh Butter by Benjamin Moore.

That living room photo is there for another reason as well...my clients currently have a fireplace with a dark wood surround and painted brown brick.  I suggested they lighten it up to match their new white kitchen by painting the woodwork out in white, adding a lovely crown moulding similar to that pictured, and flanking it on either side with white built-in bookcases. (hence, the pictured bookcases.)

They currently have a set of matching loveseats in a rich floral.  I suggested that they slipcover them in a soft cream, and add two ottomans (similar to that pictured) in front of the fireplace for extra seating.

Blue curtains, pretty beach-inspired pillows, and round end tables covered in complimentary cloths (not the white one pictured) complete the coastal feel.

I hope to be able to share the befores and after with you soon!

Have a great day~