You’re in luck!

They’re huge, and believe me, I know that not all of you like them. But I do. And I think I still prefer them in the living room, but we need some art above the sofa to balance their size. So maybe they’ll live in the dining room for a while? It will be great for when I totally lose my marbles. Instant dinner party guests!

© 2011, published by Making it Lovely as Hipster Chia Pets in the Dining Room | 45 comments

The kids and the cats have both been doing a number on our beautiful vintage table, but it does still clean up nicely. My mother-in-law gave me a Tibet Almond Stick for the surface scratches in the wood that the cats are so fond of creating. It’s basically an oily bunch of cloth in a tube, but it does help.

© 2011, published by Making it Lovely as Tibet Almond Stick | 26 comments

I’ve always liked the Strut Table from Blu Dot. I’ve found one for half-off, and I’m strongly considering it for the dining room. What do you think?

© 2011, published by Making it Lovely as Strut X-Large Table | 58 comments

1. PB White Soup Bowl, Pottery Barn
2. Scalloped Bowl, Target
3. Wood-Slices Organic Dinner Plate, David Stark for west elm
4. Wood-Slices Organic Bowl, David Stark for west elm
5. Silver Charger, Pier 1
6. PB White Salad Plate, Pottery Barn
7. Wood-Slices Organic Salad Plate, David Stark for west elm
8. Lotus Bowl, Cost Plus World Market
9. Dazzle Dinner Plate, Crate & Barrel
10. PB White Dinner Plate, Pottery Barn

Here are just a few of the possible combinations (and no, I don’t mind mixing silver and gold).

The Marimekko Lumimarja tablecloth was a gift from my mom last year, but it is available this year in gold. I also mixed in bird napkin rings and plain white napkins, along with our everyday flatware.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Setting a Holiday Table | 39 comments

Here’s why I decided to paint the wood trim, and here’s what the room looked like before. Still to do:

• Paint the wall above the picture rail and the ceiling. Probably the same color as the background of the wallpaper.
• Paint the doors.
• Paint the trim in my office and in the living room.
• Find new window treatments. Maybe simple white shades?
• Either get new chairs or reupholster the ones we have. The fabric isn’t very practical for our expanding family.
• Remember to flip the handles on the buffet back the right way before taking pictures next time. Eleanor likes to flip them all up, and I hadn’t noticed until I was editing the photos!

Before and after shots:

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as The Dining Room with Painted White Trim | 128 comments

Obviously I have such a hodgepodge of items that a symmetrical layout isn’t an option for me (though I do love symmetry). I work around that by making sure that the overall layout is visually balanced. For example, see that open lattice-work square in the bottom left? That gets balanced out by the votive holders on the right middle shelf and the scallops of the vintage cake stand on the top left.

I add all the little bits and bobbins that I love at the end. Admittedly they can make the arrangement a little cluttered, so I do edit them down some. Not all of my pieces made it back in, but I tend to rearrange things often so they’ll be back next time.

I love having the built-in hutch to display everything. I wasn’t so sure about it when we moved in, but I’ve since embraced it. I’m still undecided about the beadboard (paint it or leave it natural?), but I’m going to live with it for a while before I choose. It ties in the wood floors and our wood dining set, and the contrast is nice with all of the white. I’ve pinned fabric to the back many times before, so that’s always an option as well. Besides, closing the doors gives the whole thing a bit more polish. Doesn’t everything always look better behind glass?

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Arranging a Collection | 43 comments

I left the beadboard backing untouched because I thought it might be a nice contrast to the white (and nice to maintain just a touch of the original wood). I like it, and I think I’ll leave it, but what about the shelves? Do you think they should go white or stay natural? I can’t quite decide, and I would love to finish painting soon.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Painting the Built-in Hutch | 164 comments

Isn’t it gorgeous? And see, I told you those Eames chairs with dowel legs get me every time.

Thank you, Kate, for telling me about that room!

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Let’s Hope | 38 comments

Now I’m off to continue painting. How did you spend your weekend?

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as …and Continuing with the Trim | 67 comments

The natural wood trim is so fantastic and really adds to the value of the house. Painted wood trim, no matter how much you agonize over the color and paint it perfectly, is just never as special as the original wood. It’s really interesting to me that Nicole feels that the dining room set is too beautiful as natural wood to be painted, but doesn’t feel the same way about the delicious natural wood trim in the room.

Or Sara, who said “I would kill to have your hutch in that condition.” I know, Sara, but let me show you the truth. Is this the condition you thought it was in?

I understand why people don’t like to paint wood. Let’s contrast the wood grain of the trim with that of my table, which I’ve said I’m not willing to paint or alter in any way. This is beautiful, quality wood.

See the difference? The wood trim in my house is (in Clueless’ parlance) a total Monet.

And that is why I’m OK with painting it. We painted all of the trim upstairs when we first moved in because the second floor trim was not special, and not original to the house. I thought that I didn’t want to be the one to paint the natural woodwork on the main floor because it has survived in that state since our home was built in 1910. But you know what? We’ve been here for three and a half years. This is where my family actually lives, not a historical time capsule. I’ve decorated around the wood and the more I look at it, the more I can’t get over the crazy grain and the stain that has seen better days. Painting the trim white will make me so much happier with the look of my home, and what good is preserving a home’s features if those features don’t actually make you happy?

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Why I’m Painting the Wood Trim in My Home | 256 comments