Mish Mash

Once I get a little bit out of routine, it seems like I get a whole lot outta routine. Take blogging. It's been a week since my last post and I have so much to say that there is no clear theme right now; I'm just spilling it all out...

I went away on vacation at the beginning of this month, for the Fourth of July, to my hometown. While I was there, I helped my mom with some decorating challenges to make her house feel new using the things she already has.
 

Clockwise from top left: Here's a shot of the runner and buffalo check skirt that we mixed for the first One Room Challenge(TM) linkup. By using the same shade of blue, I felt comfortable mixing these very different patterns. I think it creates a fresh look. Adding a skirt to the old cabinet injects some color and softness to the room, too.

The beautiful banister was a project my dad just completed. One of the things my mom wanted help with was choosing new lampshades. We picked out a drum (straight sides) shade to replace this white one, original to the lamp. New lamps can be expensive and typically have an eternal shape so just changing out a lampshade can often be a good way to save some money.

There was no rug under the dining room table and this blue and white rug was in storage. Win-win! By adding it under the table and chairs, it softens all the wood in the room and adds another color (blue, my mom's favorite).

This wingback chair is part of a pair that we moved to either side of the TV to create a sense of symmetry in the room. We also moved the paintings that are now above the chair from the middle of the room and added chandelier shades to the candlestick lamp. I brought the shell-motif pillow cover from my old house.

Because my husband had to come back for work after the holiday weekend, my mom drove the kids and me home at the end of the week. This meant she and I got to go shopping in my area! We found five lampshades for her project for less than $50 altogether by shopping at Tuesday Morning, HomeGoods, and World Market.

In the top right photo you can see one of the places we tried the wingback chairs before adding them to either side of the TV. Sometimes you just have to experiment a little bit until you get it right. We also moved that antique piecrust table to the dining room.

The bottom right photo is of my parents' family room. Originally it was a garage that they converted into an apartment for my grandma with a fireplace, bathroom, and kitchenette. It's right off the breezeway laundry room from the One Room Challenge(TM). We placed an unused coffee table under this set of windows to create a window seat. The pillow is also from my house but coordinates really well with the colors in this room and fits the Colonial Coastal Farmhouse look that we're creating.

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I'm currently loving this song.

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I turned 40 this weekend! Here's what one of my friends from my college days had to say about life in the fourth decade.

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I'm going to have some big news -- HUGE -- that will mean I'm blogging even less but actually doing more of what I love. Stay tuned!

What's new where you are? How's your summer going? Fill me in!! :)