~winner winner!~{& a happy Halloween}

The writer of the blog Burlap Luxe is the lucky winner of the Volume Twenty Five giveaway!

She said she would love this Be Kind t-shirt.

I hope you enjoy your new top!

I also wanted to wish everyone a very happy and safe Halloween.

If you would like to see my costume I made 

{totally last minute yesterday}

follow me on instagram right here.

I will be sharing later today.

Thanks again to Jessica at Volume Twenty Five for hosting this great giveaway.

I have another fun one planned for Monday, so be sure to check back!

xoxo

~thrifty thursday~{diy lit star}

I recently found this pink wood star at a thrift store for $1.99.

It had cute little peg hooks and was probably darling in someones nursery at one point.

But, I had other plans for it.

 I took the pegs out and drilled 16 holes all over it.

In the same shopping trip I picked up some cute little white 

globe lights in the holiday section.

They were $3.99.

After I drilled the holes I painted the whole thing off white and added the lights 

to the back, securing them with a staple gun.

I am not a professional photographer, but I think it turned out pretty cute and I think it will be really cute during the holidays.

But for now, it's in Savannah's room, because she is obsessed with stars.

I will be back tomorrow with the winner of the volume twenty five giveaway!

xoxo

~my favorite source for online pillow shopping~

2 words.

Spark Modern.

I honestly won't buy pillows anywhere else online.

Why?

Well, because they have the best selection with a fast turnaround.

All their fabrics are whats currently trending as well as other timeless fabrics.

Their customer service is impeccable, and they will work with you quickly on custom orders.

They are offering free shipping to my sweet savannah readers!

Just enter the code

FREESHIPPING 

at checkout!

{100% my opinion, I was not paid to say this}

Here are some pillows in our home that I have purchased through Spark Modern.

This betwixt lumbar pillow can be found here.

It looks great in the fall and winter months because it is dark and bold.

But as you can see in the picture below, it also works in the summer with bright flowers and lighter pillows mixed in.

I'm literally obsessed with these new Euro pillows I just got for Savannah's room. 

I want to steal them off her bed.

These are 26"x26" and they have a hidden zipper.

Did I mention I love them?

You can find them here.

These betwixt pillows have found many different homes in my house.

They go everywhere, with everything.

Yesterday I showed you where they currently are, in our hallway nook.

You can find all the betwixt here.

I don't currently see this color way.

Bad quality photos below, but these large pillows are another favorite. 

Currently they are on our master bed.

I love how versatile all these pillows are!

This Volpi Navy is currently out of stock, but check back in soon.

This little blue pillow below can be found here.

It's a great soft pillow to throw in the mix.

Want to see more of my favorites from their shop?

I am loving these and hope to add them to my "collection" soon.

Thibaut

Kelly Wearstler

Ziggurat

And, I'd love to get this pillow to match our wallpaper!

The Schumacher Chenonceau.

Please use coupon code

FREESHIPPING

when checking out at Spark Modern.

Now, if they only made drapes……..

Happy shopping!

xoxo

~eeny, meeny, miny, moe~

I recently shared with you our hallway update.

If you didn't see it, you can go here to view and see sources.

What I didn't share is how long it took me to come up with

 the perfect pillow combination for that little nook!

Here is the end result:

I tried orange with my Ballard Designs monogram lumbar pillow….

Just lots of orange for fall……

{I love orange and charcoal grey}

I tried my betwixt pillows with a grain sack pillow……

I even tried moving my pillows off the couch over to this area….

In the end, the betwixt won.

The grain sack pillow {2 photos above} was a little too small so I added this king sized grain sack in a matching mustard yellow color and a small charcoal grey pillow from Restoration Hardware.

I also swapped out the wood bins for more grey baskets.

They were perfect, but…….

 They were too small!

Boo hoo!!!

You can see how I rigged them below for the picture.

Now I am on a search to find these same Ikea baskets but in a perfect size for the cubbies here.

The tupperware containers cannot stay!

xoxo

~vol 25 giveaway~{new apparel shop!}

My friend Jessica, the one that creates these amazing science posters that I have in my home, has just launched a apparel line which I think you are going to love!

Volume Twenty Five is giving away a t-shirt to one of my lucky readers!

Head on over to their shop, browse their selection, then come back here and comment on which one you would pick if you are the winner.

Please leave your email address so I can contact you if you are the winner.

I will announce on Friday.

Good luck!

xoxo

~country living house~{a before & after}

A couple years ago now I had the opportunity to help with a magazine shoot for Country Living.

You can read the article here.

It was so fun to see the way they styled it, and I always think it's interesting to see if the homeowners keep everything the way it was styled.

Well, the homeowner just so happens to be a friend of mine, and I went back recently and took some photos to share with you.

The photos on the left are from the Country Living shoot, the photos on the right are the way it looks today.

In the dining room the homeowner has changed out her table and chairs and added back this sign {that I made!} It was taken out for the photo shoot because this picture was actually on the cover of the magazine and they needed it to be blank for the text.

Things here stayed pretty much the same.

 Country Living added some curtains that are no longer up.

The large clock that the homeowners made is still up and the same chair is there.

Just a few accessories were changed out.

This cool chalk lettering was actually up for the photo shoot but was photoshopped out.

I love it!

I love the way they styled the fireplace mantel in the master bedroom.

Again, Country Living shot on the left, my shot on the right.

And just because I thought you might want to see a bit more of this gorgeous house,

 here is their movie room.

I think it is my favorite room in the whole house.

Love how the bar cart in the dining room is styled.

This leopard stair runner was recently added, love, love, love.

The kitchen was not featured in the magazine.

Here is just a glimpse.

The patina on these lockers is amazing.

And I love how the homeowner clips branches from the yard for a fall display.

Looking into the kitchen.

Gas fireplace for those chilly Seattle seasons.

And in the kids loft, this cabinet she had built just for this space.

Isn't it fabulous?

She really has a eye for design.

Happy Friday friends!

xoxo

~thrifty thursday~{diy wood arrow}

This is the simplest arrow to make and you can make

 it very inexpensively using one piece of MDF.

It will run you around $20.00.

Here are the tools and pieces you will need.

I used a chop saw and a jigsaw, liquid nails, paint, dark wax, and of course the mdf.

A~ 6 pieces that measure 10" and both ends cut on a 45 degree angle.

B~ 2 triangle pieces 10" {on the longest side}

C~ 1 skinny piece with the end notched out, it measures 2" x 24" 

D~ 1 fat piece, it measures 6" x 36" notched out at one end

You should have 10 pieces total.

You can pre paint the pieces at this point, or paint it when it is all assembled.

Start with D and attach C to the middle.

(use liquid nails for these steps}

Add one B piece, then the other, slightly higher, on the end that is not notched out.

At the end that is notched out, add the A pieces.

Let it dry and distress using dark wax or whatever method you prefer.

That's all!

On mine, I used Annie Sloan Old White paint with a combo of light and dark wax.

Have a great day!

xoxo

~diy no smudge chalkboard~

Savannah's 16th birthday is coming up so I am busy making things for it.

One of the things we will be having is a sweets bar, so I wanted to create a chalkboard sign for it that won't smudge.

I started with a plain frame, no glass.

I cut a piece of mdf to fit in the inside and secured it with screws.

Then I painted 2 coats of chalkboard paint on it and let it dry.

Next, you want to season your chalkboard. Do this by rubbing chalk 

over the entire surface, no rhyme or reason.

Once you erase it, your chalkboard will be seasoned and ready for wording.

Print out the appropriate size words in a word document and tape them to your chalkboard.

First you will want to scribble pencil over the backside of the words.

When your words are taped on, use a ballpoint pen to trace around each letter.

The pencil will transfer off onto the chalkboard like below.

Then simply fill in your letters with chalk!

To make sure it doesn't smear, simply spray a coat of this on when you are done.

Make sure it's a matte finish so it's not shiny.

I added a few hand drawn flowers as well.

That's it.

Please keep in mind that this is a permanent chalkboard now and you won't be able to erase it.

If you ever want it to say something else you just simply need to add another coat of chalkboard paint over the top and start again!

xoxo