AFTER
My guest room is finally finished. I've been so busy over the past few months with clients that I've waited on my house for last. Here are a few pictures of the finished room. Of course, I say "finished" but at my house NOTHING is ever finished. I love to change things around, move things into other rooms, etc. that's the fun part of design. My clients like to say that once I leave, they are done with that room but when you are a decorator, you are never done decorating your own home....it's a joy to change it up all the time.
and loved its form. I had bits and pieces of fabric and had the chair recovered to work in the room. It has an ottoman too.
This floral tapestry was done by my husbands grandmother. My daughter Kaarin is named after her. The black matted photography is from a calendar I bought when I was in England visiting my family. My grandparents lived in a beautiful place called Cornwall where the cottages and ocean are stunning. They had a house right on the sea just like the picture. Growing up, I lived in a thatched house just like the top picture.
I love the cheer and brightness of this room. Now all I need are some guests! Hmm...maybe not.... I think I'll check into the room myself, lock the door and curl up with the down comforter and read a few magazines. Who needs a hotel when you can do it at your own house.
Since my logo is a key "The KEY to your decorating needs" I've decided to start collecting old keys. I usually rebel against any kind of collection. Don't know why but maybe it's because most things that are a collection gather dust and look cluttered. However, I figured if I collect big keys they will make a statement. I'm sure I'll find more at thrift stores, garage sales, etc. I especially love the old antique keys but would love to find some really modern ones too. 
Jim Bishop starting building the Bishop Castle in 1969. What was going to be a stone cottage turned into a castle when friends told Bishop that that's what his cottage looked like. Now, almost 40 years later, the Bishop Castle stands 160 feet tall, has a fire-breathing dragon chimney, a Great Hall where different events and fund-raisers can be held, and the beginnings of the castle wall which is currently under construction.
d all the textured elements. While my family was busy climbing the castle, exploring all the nooks and crannies, I was enamored with the beauty of each stone and metal piece that was layed by hand by this incredibly talented man. I figured I would one day use it for a client or myself. I've decided to frame some of the below pictures. I'll crop some of them and others I'll leave as is. I'm going to matte them with a white matte and use a black frame. It should be stunning. A great way to get artwork with personality. Especially if it's a place you have visited and have a memory of.
My daughter is turning 12 in March and we have purchased her a sewing machine. I found this really cute sewing table (it folds out on both sides) and know she will love to have a place to lay out all her sewing stuff. Right now it has a "Grannie's attic" look so I am going to paint it to look much more "trendy" for her. The following are some of the paint techniques I am thinking of. Let me know which one you like.
Last weekend I hosted a pajama party at my house just to celebrate my friends!
Events like these are such an easy way to sit and take a moment with those you love. It took some planning on my part but everyone brought their favorite munchie and we ordered pizza. We stayed up late catching up with each other
and some even spent the night.
Thought you'd enjoy seeing this cross that I made for a ladies retreat. The form of the cross was created with big pieces of foam cut to the shape of the cross. I then sprayed insulation foam on it to give it the textured look. I let it dry overnight and then cut it down to the shape I wanted it to be. I then 
painted it to look old. On the last day of the retreat the ladies turned the cross around and on the on the back side I had painted it white and put tons of glitter on it to make it shine. It really was the focal point of the stage and was enjoyed by all.
and hung crystal ornaments from it. It was a hit and smelled incredible. 
This room was our inspiration and we are going to try and replicate it. She also had the above poster in her room which she loves so we are going to frame it and incorporate it into the space. She would like to add an urban feel to this room so we are going to paint the ceiling grey and replace the bed in this picture with a couch/bed. She has some fun t-shirts with some of her favorite slogans so we are going to make them into pillows. 
I found these cute boxes and I'm going to put them on a metallic shelf in her room so she can store all her jewelry, hair accessories, cd's, etc. 
Today the girls and I served at Grace here in Grapevine. When I told the girls this morning what we were going to be doing, they were very hesitant. I often visit the Graceful Buys Store and they know all about that because we have found some great treasures there.
goes on and on. I had heard that they needed floral arrangements made and I thought the girls and I could have fun doing this. We actually did! We made about 20 arrangements all "using what they had". They had about 10 bins of greenery and floral stems. Now this could be overwhelming to some but because I LOVE to make something out of nothing we had a blast. The best part was we got to price everything and they got to add up how much each arrangement would sell for. They began to understand how it all worked and how their effort was going to contribute to a needy family. 
We had a great day serving together doing what we do best! Knowing someone else will enjoy them made us leave happy! The girls got in the car and said "can we do that every Saturday, that was fun?"
There are so many things you can do with antlers. These I found a while back and decided to put them in this floral arrangement. The arrangement is a little formal in it's design and adding the antlers adds an eclectic twist. The urn its in also makes it feel more casual because of it's "gardeny" feel. This room has a cow hide rug on the floor so the 
antlers are one more thing that pulls the room together. I realize that antlers aren't for everyone but thought you would enjoy some fun "eclectic ideas". These are a few I found. In the right home and place, these would be stunning focal points.
When you are "thrift " shopping try to find natural treasures. Adding a little rustic element to any style really changes it up and makes it noticed instead of typical.Get inspired, happy treasure hunting! Think outside the box!
