Lucketts find No. 3

Several weeks ago I ventured out to the Lucketts Spring Market and came home with a car full! I posted finds No. 1 and No. 2 as I got them fixed up and brought inside. It's been a few weeks, but find No. 3 had to wait for a complete room transformation before I could bring it in. :)

Find No. 3 is the double blue shelf set that I bought specifically for our boys' room.

And here is the room that just got a complete makeover. 

This is almost 4 years ago when our twins were not even 1yr.

 

It's been without cribs for a while now, but Mason was sleeping on a crib mattress on the floor and the whole Dr. Seuss theme just didn't feel as fitting anymore. It was super fun when our babies were babies. But it's been time for something a little closer to my sons' interests. 

I wanted to keep it very simple but boyish. Bedding in a similar color palette but different prints, a soft neutral color on the walls, and paper airplanes. Lots of them.

(I totally used online tutorials to make these airplanes...not my forte. Matt thinks some of them look like Star Wars aircraft, so that's cool...I guess)

I tried a few layouts but this one seemed to work the best, which meant separating the blue shelves I had found at Lucketts. No biggie, I like them at the ends of each bed.

I saw this verse in a downloadable pdf on Etsy and immediately wanted to replicate something similar for our boys. It's 1 Corinthians 16:13. 

Mason's bed in a grey and white plaid

Colin's bed in a grey and white stripe. Both beds have the red pearl knit blanket - all bedding is from Target.

A few fun gifts: a Marine Aviation poster my Dad, (Pops), got for the kids about a year ago, and airplane knobs on the closet that a friend passed along from her sons' old room.

The road rug was a gift from my sister - found at Ikea!

These bunk beds were my husbands and sister-in-law's when they were young. Love passed down pieces like these, and especially love watching the boys climb up the ladders into their beds every night, (they're 3.5 and 2 so we're not ready to bunk em' yet)

The curtain was another fun project that took all of 10 minutes. I just used the blackout curtain liners, laid them flat on the floor, measured and blue-taped off my lines, and painted the stripes in Country Grey by Annie Sloan chalk paint, (more of a nice deep khaki than a grey)

Simple, boyish and an easy room to transition around, (decoratively),  as they get older. By far the most minimalist room in our home, and now one of my favorites! The paper airplanes give just the right snap of color to keep the room youthful and interesting. Love it. And the little guys have been sleeping in the past three days since this room was finished! Success!

Item list:

*Wall color - Marilyn's Dress by Benjamin Moore, (not a very masculine name, but it IS one of my favorite wall colors; grey with a very subtle blue. It's in our bedroom too!)

*All bedding - Target

*Curtains - Heyneedle.com, (painted the stripes myself using Country Grey by Annie Sloan chalk paint)

*Road rug - Ikea

*Blue shelves - Lucketts

*White stool under windows - Target

*Verse on canvas - done myself but inspired by an Etsy piece

*Paper airplanes - done myself with plain ol' construction paper, fishing line, and nail heads.

~All Chelsea's Garage pieces available for sale can be found here~

~Chelsea

Early Stages of Decorating: Part 2 - You got style, baby!

~All pieces available for sale can be found here~

Last week I began our Early Stages of Decorating series, (following loosely along with my beloved Domino: The Book of Decorating). We discussed the importance of collecting inspiration, (see post here), and I left you with the task of connecting themes between the things that inspire you so that you can begin to identify your unique decorating style.

The thought of defining my style used to intimidate me because I felt like it was too much commitment. If I say my style is bohemian, then I feel there is an expectation to have my home dripping in layers of fabric and colors and collections. If I say it's rustic then I feel the pressure to include obvious rustic elements in every room. If I call it elegant does that mean I can't include anything too whimsical or off beat? I'm none of these completely and a little bit of each.

Who says your style has to be under one umbrella? One of the most refreshing, (and relieving), things I learned from reading Domino was that it's perfectly fine and normal to be a little of this and a little of that. I think of my style as a pie chart; I'm a few parts this, a few parts that, a small part over there, and it's the unique mix of those which make my style 100% me. Like a style mutt!

The reason it's a good exercise to identify your style is so you can start to critique your inspiration collection. You may have tagged/pinned/recorded that super cool, (and trendy), Eames rocker, but is it really you? I, for one, love this chair...but I think I would get tired of it because deep down, I just prefer the soft, cozy feel, (and look), of a fabric covered cushion under my bum. Just being honest. Honest is good.

Ultimately, defining your style may help you save money from impulse buys, (as with this Eames rocker which I am sure my husband would not have minded me dropping over $500 for...). If you are critical about what you bring into your home, you will likely spend only on what is most important and appealing to you. There is nothing worse than making a purchase on something you're unsure about and then overworking, (and overwhelming), yourself trying to like it. I know because I've been there. It confuses things. But, we're not on purchases yet, (and we will get there).

For now, the next step toward decorating your home is simply placing style words to each item in your inspiration collection and seeing what kind of pie chart you come up with.

Any fellow style mutts out there? :)

And a very happy anniversary to my love of 7 years and all my years left. It sure has been an exciting ride so far and I couldn't imagine it with anyone else. God is so good.

~Chelsea

Life Happening: Our week in pictures

~All pieces available for sale can be found here~

True story: This past week I asked a friend how her recent getaway was with her husband. She looked confused. I explained that she had told me she and her husband were going to Europe together and I had looked forward to hearing about it. She very sweetly told me that trip was last September. 

I'm a horrible person!

That aside, this last year has flown by. There is nothing I can do about slowing time down, but I can slow myself down. I'd love to use Friday's to just recap our week here, more for my sake than anything! It's been fun the last couple weeks to sort through some of my favorite captured moments and document them here. Aren't we spoiled in this era of uber easy/convenient technology?! But hey, who am I to turn down a little easy and convenient these days :)

This week...

Nap with my baby

Summer ready toes

Watching Daddy play baseball over a pb&j picnic...

...then playin it off behind the bleachers

Home and garden

Pigtail messybuns

Watching Shire's hanging butterflies dance under the ceiling, (by pointing a fan on them...magic to a 3yr old!)

And believe it or not my Love agreed to marry me the day after my birthday - this weekend we will celebrate both! Looking forward to some "Chillin' and BBQ Grillin'" - say the awesome napkins I got from Target :)

Have a great weekend!

~Chelsea

Wardrobe given a fresh start!

A few days ago I mentioned a wardrobe that caught my eye - ironic since I've seen so many beautifully refinished wardrobes yet haven't had the slightest interest in giving one a try myself. I really can't tell you why this piece stood out to me. I just liked it. It's clearly seen lots of love over the years but I could tell it's got some life in it yet.

It's a miracle; I took a before picture.

After

I painted this piece in a thick coat of Paris Grey by Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. Then I used dark wax to bring out its age. Painting antiques seems to be a point of controversy, (trust me, I have grandparents. It's controversial). But paint doesn't necessarily mean disguising or devaluing an antique. It can bring one back to life so it can continue to be loved and functional. Better to give those old pieces a fresh look so you can actually enjoy them rather than....not. With true antique pieces I prefer a timeless look - neutral colors and lots of distressing. 

When I bought this piece there was a keyhole and lock - but no key. Sad! So, I removed the lock and used this key lookin' knob, (that I saved from a previously refinished piece), in it's place! I really wanted to maintain the integrity and history of this piece so it seemed like a good fit.:)

Love the panels on the sides and door!

Surprise! Super functional and adorable inside; what could be better? 

I had a fantastic plan to paint the inside white, but after I finished cleaning the piece, I just loved the inside as is. Not only is the grain of the wood beautiful, but it tells a story. There are markings and carvings all over and I just didn't want to erase all that history.

{This piece is available for sale at $275. Contact me at chelseasgarage@gmail.com if interested! 

Other pieces available for sale can be found here!}

Thank you for stopping by!

~Chelsea

My kind of white and some tables for sale!

White paint. We have a love-hate relationship. Before we moved into our home I had admired dozens of pictures of bleached white interiors with crisp white linens, bright white walls, and white painted pieces. These photos all looked fresh, crisp, clean, and peaceful. A big bonus in my mind since at the time we had 11mo old twins and one on the way; I was all about creating as tranquil a home as possible!

First, we painted our walls Ultra Bright White by Behr. - loved. Then, we brought in the white slip-covered furniture - loved. Then we acquired some pieces which I began to paint in the same white paint as our walls - oh no! Wrong, wrong, wrong! Too fresh, too crisp, too clean. Instead of looking tranquil I thought it looked sterile, cold and boring!

I lost my style in trying to replicate the same all white rooms I had admired from pictures. I didn't realize it wasn't me until we were living in it and it just felt all wrong! Since that time several years ago I have learned how I like to do white.

White + distressed + grainy natural woods = my kind of white.

Here are a couple tables I recently refinished following my ingeniously mathematical formula... ;)(photographs from our living room, all tables done in Old White by Annie Sloan Chalk Paint)

Harp table with stained wood top

Weathered indoor/outdoor table

Drop-leaf table

{All three tables are available for sale. Please see this page with all pieces available for sale}

Thank you for reading! This week I am working on refinishing my very first wardrobe. Never really been interested in doing wardrobes, but this piece pulled me in the moment I saw it. Pictures at the end of the week, (I hope)!

~Chelsea

Early Stages of Decorating: Part 1. What inspires you?

~All pieces available for sale can be found here~

As I mentioned last week, I am doing a basic home decorating series over the month of June! My plan is to post for this series every Monday throughout this month. Being that I found Domino: The Book of Decorating so very helpful in my endeavors to decorate our own home, I am loosely following their Getting Started section of the book. 

Today we'll talk about finding inspiration. There is inspiration for decorating everywhere; nature, movies, literature - there's no wrong place to look and it's nearly impossible to avoid. You are wired so uniquely and intricately that very particular things will catch your eye that may not stand out to anyone else.

You are who you are. What turns your head?

Collect these inspirations in one format or another and keep them all together in one place. Pinterest is a wonderful tool as so much is offered online now. I  prefer a more tangible style and have a small red notebook where I've kept clippings and descriptions of things that have grabbed my attention. When something catches my eye I record as much information as I can, (where I saw it, why it attracted me, etc). Whatever your format for collecting, make sure it's one that will be easy, convenient and helpful for you.

You will never stop being inspired so there is really no defined beginning and end to this exercise. But, a great starting point for decorating your own home is taking some time to intentionally notice what inspires you and record it. After taking some time to record start looking for commonalities throughout your collection. Are there particular color schemes, patterns, fabrics, lines? Is there an era that your inspirations seem to derive from? Maybe a specific geographical area, like the Mediterranean or Sweden? Or perhaps a general area, as in coastal or country. Finding these themes throughout your inspirations is a helpful step in beginning to identify and define your style.

Identifying your style will be a useful, (and potentially time and money saving), tool in helping you stay on track while decorating your home. Next week I'll go over the process of tracking down your style. I can't wait!

Part 1 task: Identify, record, and connect what inspires you. Have fun!

~Chelsea