The Language of Decorating

Did you know that there is a specific language for decorating? It's true, and I'm ready to wager that you don't know the difference it can make in your "perception" of the room. Take this lovely office that I have in my inspiration folder.

In regular language, if I were to describe this room to you, I would say:

"A small room with a relatively large window. The walls are painted light blue, and the trim is white. The floors are hardwood with a zebra rug. There are wall mounted shelves, a white desk and desk chair, white curtains and a capiz ceiling light fixture. There are pictures on the wall and frames and magazine holders on the shelves. "

This description gives you a complete list of the items in the room and the colors, and most of the decorating choices.  It does not, however, give you a clear picture of the feeling in the room, or any sense of "I want that!" Now, read this description, using the language of decorating:

"This cozy home office feels much larger thanks to the soft periwinkle shade on the walls and the crisp white trim that unifies the baseboards and the window casing. The space is filled with light thanks to a beautiful window framed with fresh white panels that have been mounted close to the ceiling to visually lift the ceiling.  A white parsons desk with sleek lines adds simplicity and functionality without sacrificing an inch of style. The desk is grounded in the room by a plush zebra print rug that protects shining hardwoods beneath.  A stylish white and chrome desk chair on wheels makes it easy to slide over to the wall mounted shelves where office supplies and papers are artfully arranged in coordinating containers. Framed photographs on the shelves and delightful art on the walls makes the space personal, while the crowning glory of this room is the stunning capiz chandelier."

Quite the difference, no? The next time you start to feel frustrated by the lack of style in your rooms, try describing your room with the "language of decorating" Here are some tips:

• Use euphemisms and broad, all encompassing words.  Say "cozy" instead of "small." Say "space" instead of "room." Say "art" instead of "picture." 
• Use descriptive words for color. Instead of using brown, black or off-white,  say espresso, ebony and cream.  It sounds more custom, more unique, and definitely more chic. 
• Use descriptive adjectives, and plenty of them. In the paragraph above, I used cozy, soft, crisp, fresh, sleek, plush, shining, stylish, artfully, delightful and stunning. Almost every element has a corresponding descriptive adjective that provides a more complete picture of the "space" :-)
• Replace the generic term wood, specifying the type of wood, and the finish used. A wooden coffee table becomes an "oak coffee table in a light golden finish."  A wooden bookcase becomes a "mahogany bookcase in a deep espresso finish."  Can't you just picture the luxury?
• Create a verbal picture of how the items in the room relate to one another. If there are coordinating items in a room, say so. Notice how I described how the desk sits on the rug that covers the floor, and also how the chair can move to the shelves, where I now describe what is on the shelves. 

Try this exercise yourself, either with a room from your own home or a favorite room that inspires you. And then come back and tell me all about it! 

The Best Cleaning Product. Ever.

Are you tired of spending money on countless cleaning products that still don't seem to get the job done? Are you feeling nauseated by all of the fumes from the chemicals that you are spreading around your home? Do you want to simplify your cleaning routine and organize your under-the-sink cabinet while you are at it?

Well, my friend, let me introduce you to my BFF in cleaning...

Are you ready?

Are you sure? 

'Cuz it's seriously gonna change your life...

You're ready?

Okay... here it is

I know, you're like, seriously? Vinegar? Yup, vinegar. I use it for:

• Washing my hardwood floors Fill bucket with hot water, add a generous splash of white vinegar, and mop away. Leaves floors squeaky clean and shiny.
• Washing my tile and vinyl floors. Same instructions as above, same results.
  
• Washing anything that's dirty. :-) A combo of hot water and vinegar removed years of gross food and who-knows-what buildup from my refrigerator.
• Removing the smell of paint from a freshly painted room.  When you have finished painting, set out a bowl full of undiluted vinegar. Leave it overnight and in the morning you will wake up to a paint fume free room. 

So basically, you eliminate multiple, pricey floor cleaners, clean in more green, health conscious way and it actually relives the wallet. A gallon of vinegar costs me less than $2.00,  lasts me at least a month, and my house is so clean! If you don't believe me, here's the proof. The Rainbow vacuum cleaner guy came to my house and did a demonstration, and couldn't.find.dirt.   :-D

P.S. Stay tuned for a rave review of Vinegar's first cousin, Baking Soda, and how to use it. 

P.P.S I don't know if vinegar and baking soda are actually related in any kind of scientific way. They just work so well together, I assumed... :-)

Friday Favs: My Husband

My absolute favorite person in the whole wide world is this handsome guy. 

Isn't he cute? Too bad, he is taken. :-) We've been friends for over twenty years, together as a couple, officially, for almost five years, and married for almost three of those five years. It's been a wonderful journey. 

Here are some of the things I love about my husband:

• He does a wonderful job providing for us. We have a beautiful home, cars that run and everything we need, as well as many of our wants.
• He thinks I am the greatest, which I think is pretty cool. 
• He always sleeps closest to the door, no matter where we are, to protect me from monsters and bad guys.
• He remembers all of the important days; my birthday, our anniversary, and our special "17" days.
• He's the best prince this princess could ask for, and he even got me a castle! 

I love you baby!

Savin' the Stairway

Do you know what I love about our stairway? How wide it is, the lovely wood stairs, the way it sets the tone for our house (wood and cool and wow!)

Do you know what I don't love about the stairway? The ugly risers. Now, obviously, we will refinish the stairs treads at some point. Although they are in great shape structurally, they are pretty stained in the middle (the part people walk on) But you don't see that just looking at the stairs when you walk in the door.

What you do see are the risers. Are they as pretty as the stair treads? No sir, they are not. You'd be safe to assume that they are finished, as are the treads. No, wrong again. They were just plain wood, with exposed screws. Ew.

I got my inspiration from this picture here, with the decorated risers.

I thought about trying to find some pretty tiles to recreate this idea, but I was worried about how permanent it would be if I changed my mind, not to mention the expense of the tile and other necessary materials.  (Money is always a big factor in my many creative ideas.)

So, I went off  to the store to wait for inspiration to strike. I came home a little later with four rolls of wallpaper and a bottle of adhesive. Then I waited for a quiet day with not much else to do.

As far as execution, it was a relatively simple project. The wallpaper border had to be trimmed down a little to fit the risers, and cut to the correct length. Then I used a cheap throwaway brush to spread the adhesive onto the back of the paper, and went about sticking it to the risers. The adhesive was easy to manipulate so I was able to move the piece around to get the best fit. Lastly, smooth out the bubbles, and voila! Easy peasy.

Here's a few before and afters. I really like the effect, and I feel like the view is that much more calming and impressive as you walk in the front door. Yay for easy projects!

Friday Favs: Decorating

I love to decorate, and dream up beautiful spaces, especially if the "before's" were particularly cringe-inducing. Here are some of my favorite websites for inspiration:

This Young House

Chock full of DIY, project ideas, moodboards and inspiring before and afters.

Better Homes and Gardens

Great project ideas, and a wonderful gallery of beautiful rooms to peruse.

Life In The Fun Lane

This lovely blogger has a fabulous home, mostly done up in white. She has great tips and tons of inspiration!

Rate My Space 

Although this site can become slow and difficult to navigate, it is an endless source of inspiration.

Hope you enjoy these sites as much as I do!

Summer Goals

Being homeowners means that your house to-do list is miles long, and your want-to-do list is even longer. That said, there are a few things that we want to try to accomplish this summer:

1. Turn up our curb appeal

Our house is the only one like it on our street, and dare I say, the only one of its kind in the neighborhood. The outside, much like the inside, has been sadly neglected and abused, so we'll be ramping up the TLC so that the outside starts to match the beautifully renovated inside! Stay tuned for our outside to-do list of summer projects and gardening.

2. Refinish this dresser

I'm thinking a deep dark stain, and pretty glass knobs. It will either stay in the living room, or move up to office. Or the attic, or the basement... ah the possibilities! ;-)

3. Refinish the floors in the living room and dining room

Nuff said. We're gonna try to DIY, so we'll let you know how that works out.

4. Paint the kitchen walls, and possibly the cabinets.

The plan is to paint the walls, and then evaluate whether the cabinets should be painted as well. We'll keep you posted.

5. Finish guest room, living room and master bedroom.

Our to-do list for the guest room is as follows, you can read about what's still to do in the other rooms here and here.

• Cut, install, and paint baseboards in guest room.
• Finish outlining and painting damask design on wall.
• Buy rug for guest room.
• Cover or paint chair for desk
• Make cushion for window seat
• Paint doorways

6. Begin next four big projects; the front and back entryways, the office and the basement.

Stay tuned for posts about these spaces in the next few weeks. UPDATE: Front entryway is done!

I know that this list is ambitious to say the least, but at least we are shooting for the stars, right? ;-)

March 2009 Recap

• Increase emergency savings by $500 We're up to 68% of this goal!
• Increase car fund by $1K Like I said last month, we had done this, but Luke's car cost us this amount to pass inspection :-(
• Do more sewing this year I've made a cardigan, and a tunic so far. I also made a curtain for the laundry room, so I think I'm doing well on this goal so far.
• Plant a vegetable garden We've bought the seeds and the greenhouse to start them in. I've researched the planting schedule for our zone, and am now researching soil/compost, etc. We'll be starting the seeds at the end of April.
• Take a summer vacation in WI Luke took the time off of work, now we just have to plan the vacation!
• Get together with family more often We've been seeing the immediate family a lot lately, and I even had lunch with my grandparents this month. Now that Luke's Grandma is back from FL, we can see her too.
• Study other religions I checked out a book called the Illustrated Guide to World Religions. I've only read through Judaism so far, but it was very interesting.
• Get shoulders in shape (Luke) His shoulders have been improving little by little, he hasn't dislocated one in months (a record!) He was also able to swing a bat this month, which is huge progress.

Overall, I think we're doing really well with our goals this year. If you notice different goals from last month, that is because I only post the goals that we made progress with each month. Let's see how April goes!