Making it Lovely

Tag: MIY

  • MiY 6d: Texture and Pattern in the Dining Room

    MiY 6d: Texture and Pattern in the Dining Room

    We haven’t checked in on our fictional sisters Ann and Lia lately. A little refresher may be in order, yes? We’re following the Napa Dining Table as it is passed down from Ann to Lia as part of my Making it Yours (MiY) series, and seeing how it fares through several style changes.

    First Ann had it in her modern country dining room, and then her tastes ran toward the more traditional. Later, she passed the table down to her little sister Lia, who didn’t have much money but made the table work for her quirky and colorful style. Now Lia has been moving up the ranks at work, and she wanted to change up her dining room a bit. Let’s see what she’s come up with…

    The wall color has stayed the same aqua blue, and she has kept her glasses and bowls plus some new light blue plates. The dresser (being used as a credenza) that she painted to look like the latitude grellow dresser has stayed as well. Lia toned down the crazy mishmash of colors though and is instead focusing more on adding interest through texture and pattern. The cool glass link chandelier and smooth white lamp contrast nicely with her new woven chairs. The iron ring starburst mirror plays off of the circles in the rug, and the yellow patterned vase relates back to the dresser. There’s a ton of texture and pattern here, but the overall look works really well without going too over the top.

    We’ll see one more look from Lia as we finish this edition of Making it Yours. What direction should she go in next?

  • MiY 6c: Cheap, Quirky, & Colorful Dining Room

    MiY 6c: Cheap, Quirky, & Colorful Dining Room

    Well, we’ve swung over to the other side of the pendulum.

    The Napa dining table looked right at home in Anne’s modern country dining room, and it still looked great when her taste went more traditional. Now Anne has passed it on to her little sister Lia, who doesn’t have much money but isn’t short on colorful quirk.

    The dresser is fantastic, no? To be honest though, Lia is on a super tight budget (she’s just out of college), so she found a similarly clean-lined dresser on Craigslist and painted it herself. She also painted the chairs from her sister, and put a bright aqua blue on the walls. Luckily the floors in her apartment are wood and in good shape, because she doesn’t have the money for a big rug right now. A paper lantern above the table has a ton of impact for just a few bucks, and a party banner and stick-on wall flowers fill the wall space inexpensively. Crazy patterned curtains add a whole lot of fun to the room, and colorful glasses and dinnerware play supporting roles.

    We’ll check in on Lia again soon, and see how her dining room is progressing. She’s about to land a decent job, so she’ll have a little bit of money to add some new goodies to her apartment.

  • MiY 6b: A More Traditional Dining Room

    MiY 6b: A More Traditional Dining Room

    We first saw the Napa Dining Table in Anne’s Modern Country Dining Room. Her taste has changed a little since then though, and she’s now leaning toward a traditional look.

    The rug, curtains, and linen table runner have remained, though the wall color is richer. She has also kept the two matching pendants above the table, and classic upholstered chairs elevate the room and make it a little more formal. She likes to set a monochromatic table in shades of cream and ivory with her new dinnerware and monogrammed napkins, and assorted glass candlesticks add some sparkle without being as formal as crystal. And Anne’s taste may have grown more sophisticated, but that doesn’t mean she can’t add a little fun with the oversized fork and spoon art.

    What did you think of her dining room? It’s not my taste (you know me, I like lots of color and pattern), but I still think it’s very pretty. We’ll see the table go next to Anne’s sister Lia, who has always had a quirkier sense of style.

  • MiY 6a: Modern Country Dining Room

    MiY 6a: Modern Country Dining Room

    As I mentioned, in this edition of Making it Yours (MIY), we’re starting out in Anne’s dining room before she hands the Napa dining table down to her sister Lia. Anne loves neutrals, she loves classic design elements, and her she loves modern country style.

    The creamy walls and curtains form a soft backdrop that contrasts with the rustic elements like the stoneware and the Tuscan urns. The table has a lovely but understated linen table runner to add a little texture, and two matching pendants hang above. The patterned rug is a modern take on a classic Persian style, and the chairs are a sort of a cool café style. The giclee print adds another modern note, but doesn’t draw too much attention to itself or seem out of place.

    We’ll see one more look from Anne as her style heads toward a more classically traditional look, and then her sister Lia will take it in a totally different direction.

  • Making it Yours 6: Napa Dining Table

    Making it Yours 6: Napa Dining Table

    The sixth edition of Making it Yours (MIY) will feature the Napa Dining Table from Cost Plus. It’s an affordable solid-wood table that looks much more expensive than it is.

    We’ll first see the table in Anne’s home. Anne like neutrals and her taste leans toward country and traditional; very different from her quirky, bohemian sister Lia who will be inheriting the table next. I’ve enjoyed designing five looks around these two ladies, all centering on the same piece of furniture! I’ll be sharing the first look with you shortly: Anne’s Modern Country Dining Room.

  • MiY 5e: Little Boy’s Room

    MiY 5e: Little Boy’s Room

    A few years have passed since we last checked in on James and Eugenia, the fictional couple in this edition of Making it Yours. James’ mid-century rocker chair has served him well through many phases of his life. We first saw it in the living room of his bachelor apartment, and then again after Eugenia moved in. The couple had the chair in their bedroom for a while, then created a reading nook in their new place after they moved to Chicago. Now the couple has become a happy family of three, and they’ve moved the chair into their little boy’s room.

    Orange (James’ favorite color) is back, though it’s a brighter happier shade now for a kid’s room. It shows up in the bedding, bedside table, and the floor bin that they fill with toys. Blue is a perfect complement to orange, and it’s on the walls, in the striped rug, and even in accessories like the lamp and clock. The simple bed is low to the ground and small in scale, so it’s the perfect size for a child’s room. Their little boy is a big fan of robots, and James and Eugenia are happy to indulge him. He has robot sheets on the bed, and a little robot coin bank on his nightstand. The Space Invaders style wall graphics are a playful addition to the room, even if the game was a wee bit before the boy’s time (he just likes the way the aliens look).

    Making it Yours, Fifth Edition

    MiY 5: Mid-Century Rocker Chair Summary

    We’ve seen the mid-century rocker chair in five different rooms now, completing this edition of Making it Yours. Remember, these looks are meant to work with any vintage or reproduction Danish Modern chair, whether it’s a rocker or not. Did you have a favorite room from this time around? I’d love to hear what you thought!