ORC Week Two: Bela's Room Re-Do

It's spring break! We don't usually go anywhere because I also have a big work event in April, but this time around we decided to head here for a few days.

Which means I didn't get too much accomplished for the One Room Challenge... You can read about my plans and inspiration in week one here.



What progress have I made?

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I moved this chair to my daughter's room. The pillow from it was part of the original plan, shown below. It may be too dark, but since I'm using a range of blues, we'll give it a whirl. It does add some extra comfort and pulls the room together in a way.

I also worked on the gallery wall that I have planned.

West Elm

And by worked on, I mean that I framed some posters and read this article about how to hang art--my takeaways? Create columns, lay everything out on the floor, and take a picture. Besides the great tips in the article, I like seeing how everything looks on a dark background. I haven't decided yet if it will be too busy to put the gallery wall on the wallpaper or if I will paint the wall. If I paint, will I go dark to match the base of the wallpaper or do another, lighter color???

I also didn't buy a single thing yet. I used some IKEA frames that I had in storage because, keeping it completely honest, I didn't have a good coupon for Michaels' frames. I was also feeling aggravated because the price on the Parson's desk I've had my eye on forever went up by $20--I don't think there is anything I can do about that. I also missed out on a coupon for buying the wallpaper online (but found another one for Sherwin Williams!)

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There's a lot to do to catch up this week. Including possibly crafting with neon and feathers...

For more of my inspiration, check out the Pinterest board I developed here.

And be sure to check out all the other amazing rooms here and here. I'm so excited to be meeting so many new bloggers! Thank you for following along! :)

Where We Work

Now that I am not commuting--and since I don't have wee little ones at home--when I go to work, I actually go to an office and I love it!

By day, I work for a legal history nonprofit. I have a large wonderful board of directors, but I am the only employee. One of our most interesting tasks is maintaining a portrait collection. I am not an attorney, but my background is in nonprofits, specifically law-related communications.

This is how my office looks on an ordinary day. Is a messy desk the sign of a busy person? We do have several projects going currently.

One of the things I like best about my office is how it reflects not only my own personality but our mission. It is decorated with books, flowers, and art that have been part of our work. Rather than keep those things hidden away in boxes (of which we have a few anyway), I put them out on display.

To create additional storage, I even brought this antique stereo cabinet (below) from home. I think it gives the space a bit more personality than something you'd find from a big box store.

 

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But, my dream is to open an office dedicated to interior decorating. Maybe my husband (who is the business-side) will be my partner or maybe my daughter in about 15 years. Or just maybe one or more of the many creatives that are already working in my community will want to work together???

My ENFJ personality pretty much requires that I be surrounded by people. And so I also imagine our clients and others popping by the office to see what we are working on, having a chat and a cup of coffee. Dance parties when we score a new client. Yoga in our conference room. Maybe a podcast like this one. Doesn't it all sound so lovely???

Even though it is lightyears away from happening, I've found the perfect building and ogle it every morning on my drive to the office. It's biking distance from my house, and right at the edge of Michigan State University's beautiful campus. The walls are no longer this awesome shade of radiant orchid, but that fantastic chandelier is still there.

If I was in one of many fabulous cities like NYC, Boston, Austin, Washington, D.C., Seattle, San Francisco, L.A., Chicago, or Miami, we wouldn't have to wait for someday. There's a brilliant group called WeWork, a coworking company, that offers memberships to business people who need an office, a conference room, a sense of community. Besides those nine cities, they are international with locations in London, Israel, and Amsterdam.

There are 14 WeWork locations in New York City alone, with a 15th coming soon, and another in Brooklyn. Check out a few of my favorites from the Big Apple below:

West Broadway

West Broadway

West Empire State

West Empire State
 

42nd Street



Park South


Check out the website here for additional images of their locations and to learn more about their innovative services.

High Five Spring Break Friday

It's the Friday before spring break here and I'm busy trying to get everything done to go out of town for a few days with my family. A happy Friday, for sure.

Here are a few more of the things that I loved this week, otherwise known as the Friday High Five!



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1. Sinatra Loves Elvis
I read this morning that the house Frank Sinatra lived in during much of the 1950s and 60s is for sale. Ol' blue eyes was mentioned a few times this week but my favorite was this clip of him and Elvis together.

2. One Room Challenge
The happiest time of year has started: One Room Challenge. I'm linking up with 140 others on Thursdays. Go check them all out!

Coco + Kelley

3. Easter Table
This Dodie Thayer inspired table-setting inspired me to set our Easter table. I love love love all the neon!

Little Green Notebook

4. Chairish the Love
Chairish has teamed up with Jenny Komenda of Little Green Notebook for a $150 giveaway. Go here to enter.

Barnes & Noble

5. Love the Home You Have
Melissa Michaels' inspiring new book was released on Tuesday. (I'm still waiting for mine to arrive in the mail; I think today is the day!) She writes about it on her blog here.

Happy Easter/Happy Passover!

Xoxo~Carrie

One Room Challenge!

Can you just feel the excitement?! It's One Room Challenge time! For those of you who are not familiar with the phenomenon that is the ORC, it is a semi-annual design lovefest, featuring 20 talented interior designers/bloggers/DIY enthusiasts on Wednesdays, owned and operated by Linda of Calling It Home, who sweetly/smartly invited link-up participants in Fall 2013. Think of us Thursday participants as the "farm team"--some of my favorites from last year are in the official program this year.

So I had hinted at what I was going to be doing here and here. That's not a hint? That's straight up telling you my plan, you say? Well, whatever. :) Today, let's talk about my inspiration for my daughter's bedroom.

Before we begin, let me tell you a bit about her. Bela Simone is 8.5 years old. She loves My Little Pony, plans to be a teacher when she grows up, and has the best laugh of anyone I know. Before she was born my son (who was three at the time) wanted to name her "Bunny Milkshake." The two of them spend nearly half their lives at their dad's house and the other half (my favorite) with my husband and me. Our houses are basically across the street from each other, in two different but similar neighborhoods. His house is a mid-century modern ranch and ours is a mid-century modern split-level, which we moved into a little over a year ago to be closer to school.  

I want Bela's bedroom to feel pretty; to be a space that when she is an adult she thinks back on with fondness and pride; and for her to always always feels like this was a labor of love.

We are starting with this duvet cover.  If you are on the fence about splurging on higher-quality bedding for a child, I urge you to just do it. This is such nice bedding; the old design rule about the closer to your skin, the better the quality of textiles is true. However, the colors and pattern have limited where our design can go...

My very unsatisfying plan for a long time was to just paint the walls a color that coordinated with what is in the duvet cover. Until I saw this room. 


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Agent Carter. She was the girlfriend of Captain America and is now on her own in NYC after World War II. I adore the girly floral wallpaper, the built-in shelves, and the daybed with sconces.

I have also always wanted to create a canopy like the one in this room by Albert Hadley.

Autumn Clemons

Or, this one by ORC participant Autumn Clemons.

And with lots of special touches like this closet by Julia Ryan.

Julia Ryan

So, as much for you all as it is to keep my thoughts organized, here's the plan:

1. Buy wallpaper (fingers crossed my local store has it since it's sold out online) and pre-cut moldings from Home Depot. Figure out how to get the wallpaper on the wall. Add moldings. Answer whether I will need paint.
2. Buy enough pompom trim for drapes, bedskirt, and bulletin board.
3. Find best price on Parsons desk and get it ordered.
4. Probably order some neon feathers. Make a little arts & crafts project with my sweet Boo-Boo.
5. Pick up a few more poster frames and ribbon.
6. Source drapes and valance in acceptable colorway.
7. Design layout for gallery wall.
8. Decide if we want sheers or will try to patch roller shade.
9. New light fixture?? Sconces??
10. Is there room for the blue & pink chair from last spring's ORC?
11. Pick up some other little items and style like crazy!

It's really not that much to do. The basics are in place, and with the exception of the desk, all of the furniture has already been purchased. But there is some DIY involved and that's not particularly my jam. 

We also only have six now five weeks--reveal coming May 7! I hope you will follow along. :) Instagram / Facebook / Pinterest / Bloglovin