Hey Chicago and Oak Park area readers… Do you have a room in your home that you’d like me to help you decorate? If so, I’d love to hear from you! Continue Reading…
Archive - Elsewhere RSS Feed
Social Space Makeover Contest Finalists
I’m working with American Express to give away 150,000 Membership Rewards points and a custom Making it Lovely design plan. We’re looking to help people make over their social spaces; the spaces where they spend time with family and friends. Nearly three hundred people entered (here was the original call for entries), and it was no easy task for me to narrow them down to just ten finalists. There were poems and haikus, letters from non-persons, clever videos, photos with funny captions… it was a pleasure to receive so many wonderful entries (thank you)!
Below are the finalists’ entries. I tried to even the playing field by giving everyone the same photo/video space (500×750 pixels), and approximately the same description length (this symbol […] means that I edited the comment for length). Many of the finalists have additional photos and information, so I’ve included a link to them (and also to the original comment) with each.
Now it’s your turn to vote! The winner will receive 150,000 Membership Rewards points and a custom Making it Lovely design plan to help guide them in redoing their space. The second place winner will also receive a prize: a $100 gift card to The Home Depot. So here we go! The finalists, in no particular order…
Continue Reading…
Ideas for an Organized Garage
It is totally unnecessary, but sometimes I think about making the inside of our garage cute. I would add pegboard painted in a fun, cheery color (à la Martha Stewart), and inexpensive shelving painted to match. This is pretty much what I have in mind…
Wouldn’t it be nice to come home to a lovely, colorful, organized garage? Do any of you have enviable spaces like that?
The Great Green Outdoors
I’ve been thinking about how I’d like to change the front porch, and lately I’m finding myself drawn to all things green. Ideally, I’d like the whole house to be green! That may be a bit out of reach right now, but I can at least use the color in other ways.
Here’s a little roundup of things that have caught my eye…
- Lantern
- MYNTA Hanging Planter
- Ceramic Owl Planter
- Modern Wire Chair
- Olive Egg Planter
- Beachcomber Outdoor Pillow
- Poolside Green Pillow
- MYNTA Plant Pot
- PB Classic Stripe Outdoor Pillow
- Placid Lakeside Planter
- Retro Bullet Planter
- Astro Balls
- LAVARÖ Rug
- Vessel Architectural Pottery S-3 Planter and WS-3 Walnut Stand
- High-Wire Act Chair
Francesca’s Room: Now & Later
My mom is working on my baby sister Francesca’s room, and she’d like to finish it up inexpensively for now. She already has a painted table and chair set (from when I was a kid!), a toddler bed that she just bought for $13.50, a pink toy bin, and a glass lamp with a pink shade. She also has a purple shag rug, and multicolored curtains. All the room needs now is bedding, a dresser and a bookshelf.
I’d go with an IKEA dresser and add pink glass knobs to customize it a bit. IKEA’s expedit is ubiquitous these days, but with good reason: it’s an extremely useful piece of furniture that doesn’t cost very much. Add in some pink bedding, and the room will last Francesca for a couple of years.
When the time comes to trade up to a bigger bed, my mom would like to get a nice twin sized bed with a trundle. I think she’d like something like this daybed from Pottery Barn Kids. The lavender walls and rug will remain, as would the dresser, lamp, toy bin, and bookshelf. To make the room feel more pulled together and more grown up (because Francesca will be oh so sophisticated), I’d go with an ornate mirror, silk curtains, and bedding that can take her into her teenage years. OK, and then I had to add the pink kid’s chair because it is just too cute.
Advertisers
