Style Evolution

My style has really evolved over the years. I feel like I didn't really know what my style was when I got married.

I wanted to decorate with peach and sage. Those were my wedding colors. But our first home was all over the place, decoratively speaking. I had purple things in the bathroom. Blue was in our bedroom. I don't even remember what we had going on in the living room. I think it was peach and sage. We had WHITE furniture. That didn't go over well.
Here's a glimpse. Sorry, they are poor quality because I took a photo of the picture.
I put up that floral border and had a comforter to match!

Here is a couple of shots of my living room, sage curtains and all.

The basketball hoop was an added touch!

By this time I had been collecting magazines and ripping out decorating schemes that I really liked. I decided I wanted to redo the kitchen and dining room. I put up bead board paneling and painted the wall above it dark red. I also painted all the cabinets white.

 (Nice chin, Ang!)

I had every color of the rainbow, almost.

When we moved in 2006, I started to narrow it down a bit more. I found a Martha Stewart paint chip sample card I liked and ran away with it. We did a lot of renovations. Here we are putting down new flooring. Oh, Macy.

I completely changed directions when we moved to our present house.

And I've discovered a few things about myself.

- I like very light and bright spaces. White is a good reflector of light. Hence the reason I painted all trim and walls white.
- I try to like pops of bright color, but it doesn't work for me. Which is why I had to sell this little number.

- I still love chippy, aged things. Rustic and reclaimed pieces are my favorite.
- I love to mix in wood tones. With wood floors, I can't get away from it, not that I'd want to.
- I'm picky about how furniture looks but it also has to be comfortable.
- I love antique brass hardware. As luck would have it, that is what our house had. I'm so glad I kept them!
- I mainly stick with blue and green accents. I've also mixed in gray, black and brown.
- I prefer re-worked or handmade art to mass produced things.
- I love high contrast.
- And I still love bead board anything.

I am still learning new things about my style all the time. I also think that style evolves, with the changing trends. I've learned you don't have to be locked into one thing for a long period of time. That is why I try to stay neutral with more expensive items and spend very little on accents. I like a little more serious style than some. The colorful, cute stuff is nice, but I'm not attracted to it.

Here are some things that inspire me.

For me, it is all about finding pieces you love. Things you are attracted to. That is what I have been doing lately. And maybe that is only a good idea if you have a handle on what your style is about. I believe I am closer than I have ever been to that. If I had to name it I wouldn't even know what to call it. What do you think it should be called?

Thrift Store- Living Room Finds

I haven't just been finding clothes at second-hand stores.

I've been on the lookout for things for our house too.

I have actually found a lot of things. But those things are for other rooms in our house. And right now I am concentrating on the living room.

Here is what I found-

This chair for $3

I bought it to replace the rolling office chair that used to sit there.

 I loved this chair (except the color) but it spun very easily and was constantly being bumped against the newly installed wood on the desktop. This was damaging the chair and the desktop.

The new chair fits in perfectly with my color scheme and is comfortable enough to sit in. My oldest was not happy because he like to fidget and move while doing his homework.

 

I don't think it is authentically old, but it is still pretty to me.

I also picked up this light for $5-

I fell in love with it and knew right where I would put it. I was satisfied with the current light but it didn't really fit my style. The white globe part was very opalescent and fancier than I liked.

 

I will be switching it out very soon.

Another reason I loved the light so much was because it would match a light I bought for another room in the house a while ago.

Here is a sneak peek.

 

I am pretty excited about it.

I've also been working on the cabinet doors and currently they are sitting in my garage, already sanded and ready for primer.

I de-pilled my rug. My wrists and fingers are still sore. I really need to find a better way to remove all those fuzzies.

 

I also bought one of these to put under my rug to prevent it from sliding around.

It didn't help much. It still moves. Maybe I need a couple more to cover the entire bottom of the rug.

I'm hoping to finish up the cabinet doors this week. But my house is under attack by a nasty little cold bug. I have finally succumbed to the virus also. My whole body hurts but especially my head and sinus cavities. I can't breathe out of my right nostril. It is so much harder when your kids are sick, though. I wish I could make it go away.

Hopefully we fight it off quickly. Thanks for looking!

Great Weekend

We went up North for the weekend. 

My nephews had a birthday party. 

We spent the first night at my dad's house. Here is JJ patiently waiting for me to wake in the morning because he was excited to go downstairs. 

Scott and Ethan were coming later so me and the younger three got to ride with my dad up to the party on Saturday. 

Evidently they were very tired!

I didn't take any pictures at the party but we had a great time. After, we checked into our room at the Little River Casino & Hotel. 

Scott and E met up with us there. We had time to kill before dinner so we made a quick (kind of) trip to Goodwill. I always find good stuff at this location. And Saturday was no exception. 

Nike sweatshirt

Bullhead (?) jeans and H&M sweater

Gap T-shirt

And these Balance yoga pants. 

The purple shirt I got at Salvation Army earlier in the week. 

This sweater vest from the Loft and striped shirt from the Loft I got from Paradise Bound in Zeeland before I left on Friday. Love them both!

Tomorrow I'll share with you what else I got at Paradise Bound and what I got at Holland's Goodwill.  It's for the living room!

After shopping we returned to the hotel and met up with everyone at the buffet restaurant located in the hotel. They have the absolute best food. 

My three oldest boys' plates looked like this. 

They love crab!

Then we went swimming with very full bellies. 

It is definitely one of our favorite weekends every year!

TGIF

I've had a sickie at home with me the last two days.
He's got a cold and it's a bad one.

I've been brewing up all sorts of concoctions to help him get over it. 

Today the drainage got to be too much for his tummy. 

His poor nose can't take anymore. 

Needless to say, I didn't get as much done today as I hoped. 

I did get the holes filled on the new cabinet doors. 

And I brought up some furniture from the basement to tide us over for now. I think they will become my new projects. 

We are up North for the weekend and so very excited about it. The boys have been counting down the days. 

Have a great weekend!