BACK TO COLLEGE: DESK ESSENTIALS FOR STUDENTS

This post is sponsored by Walmart. Well, it's hard to believe but our Summer break has come to an end and everyone is all moved back to college around here!  My daughter's first day of classes was yesterday, we moved her back to school a little over a week ago.  For her sophomore year she is living in a different place than last year, which means a different arrangement and different needs! I'm so excited to share some of the spaces in her new apartment with you over the next week or so.  Even if you don't have a college student you might need ideas for, I hope that you pick up some inspiration you might be able to use in your own home.  Her bedroom has a corner outfitted with built in shelves and a built in desk which is pretty great, but we wanted to make the most of the space and make it functional and cute.  We found some great pieces for her college apartment at Walmart to make this little work and study corner work well for her, all at budget friendly pri......

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SPRING REFRESH PHOTO GALLERY WALL

Today I'm joining a small group of fellow home bloggers hosted by Annie of Most Lovely Things to share a little Spring Refresh project with you.  My project isn't specifically related to "Spring", but Spring is always when I get the biggest itch to change things around in the house and my "to-do" project list gets even longer.  So, I thought this would be a good opportunity to knock out a project that's been on that list for months!  If you're looking for Spring specific ideas, check out my Spring Home Tour from my last post. ...

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HOW TO MAKE A SIMPLE ENVELOPE CLOSURE PILLOW

This post is sponsored by Walmart, affiliate links may be used. Did you know that September is National Sewing Month?  It began in 1982 with a proclamation from President Ronald Reagan in which he declared a month long celebration "In recognition of the importance of home sewing to our Nation."  After learning how to sew in my Jr. High Home Ec. class and continuing to learn further skills from my Mom over the years, sewing is still an often used skill in my life and something about those words just warm my heart!  With multiple local fabric stores closing their doors in my area over the past few years, I'm so glad that Walmart has a Fabric Department where I can pick up all of the sewing basics that I need.  I'll share some of those with you today and thought I'd also share a tutorial for how to make the easiest pillow ever, a simple envelope closure pillow.  Half of the work on this pillow is getting it cut out and some ironing, and then all you need to do is......

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OKC DESIGNER SHOWHOUSE TOUR- PART 2

Well, you all sure had some strong opinions about Part 1 of the Designer Showhouse Tour that I shared last week.  And, for the most part I agreed with you.  I debated whether to even show you the rest of the house.  However, even though it's not an over the top fabulous show house and some of the design is pretty out there, I think there are still ideas to be gleaned and lessons to be learned.  I think Audrey's comment from Part 1 of the tour sums up my intent best: "As a whole I join the consensus, but I'm always distilling the parts so I can integrate them into my own spaces. There were pieces like the monopoly game that my engineer/builder son will HAVE to make! I loved the possibilities of the black and white study! Many light fixtures were to die for!" So, here's (most of-I still edited out some of it) the rest of the house! This upstairs office was one of my favorite spaces, the graphic wallpaper and velvet chairs were the highlights for me. ......

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SIMPLE OFFICE REFRESH WITH NEW ACCESSORIES

It happens every year, just like I mentioned in this post.  When Christmas is over and the decorations are packed away, it's nice to look around with fresh eyes and consider changes that can be made here and there.  You might not have the desire, time, or budget for an entire room makeover, but something as small as adding in a few new accessories can make such a difference in your space.  I decided that our Office/Media Room/Craft Room/Music Room (whatever you want to call it...it has lots of uses!) needed a little refresh.  Although I have a complete makeover planned in my head for this room someday , it's low on our list of priorities right now.  With some cleaning out, rearranging, and adding in a few new pieces from At Home Stores , our room got a fresh new look! ...

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THINKING ABOUT... DARK BOOKSHELVES

This project would be so far off, I don't even know why I'm mentioning it, but I had a thought about the shelves in our office the other day. When I updated this room a few years ago, I left most of the stained wood as-is.  It's nice, but it's just the right color to make the room still look a bit dated.  I've never wanted to paint it white, but the thought did occur to me that I might get quite a dramatic look if I painted it dark.  Although I LOVE to paint things black, I'm thinking just a click or two lighter though, like a peppercorn or really dark charcoal. The big hold-up would be the amount of area I would have to cover.  The shelves.  The desk. The wainscoting.  The plantation shutters and window trim.  The crown moulding. The closet doors.  Whew! I'm pretty sure I would need to cover the floor and white walls and just spray the entire room!  :)  I'd also have to think about what I would need to do with the ceiling. This ......

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SAVVY SOUTHERN STYLE {GUEST POST}

Hello Friends!  We just returned from our vacation late last night, so Friday Favorites is on hold until next week.  I didn't spend a lot of time on the computer this week, so I'll have lots to share with you next Friday.   However, I won't leave you completely empty-handed.  I am SO thrilled to be over at Savvy Southern Style guest posting today.  Kim was so gracious to invite me to share my favorite room with her readers today.   Can you guess which one I chose?   If you're not familiar with Savvy Southern Style, you've been missing out!  Kim has a gorgeous home and property and is right at home with a paintbrush in her hand.  You never know what color her furniture will be the next time you see it!  :)   If I remember correctly, Kim's beautiful dining room hutch filled with gorgeous ironstone is one of the first pieces that drew me to her blog a couple of years ago.  She's recently given some things in her din......

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SKIRTED BOOK SHELVES

Hello friends, and Happy President's Day!  The kids are out of school today and are enjoying some time with their grandparents, while I'm taking care of some errands and hoping to hit a thrift store or two. This is one of those posts that I meant to do months ago, and I'm just now getting around to it.  When I re-did our office/tv room, I knew that I wanted to conceal some shelving in the bookcases.  There are tons of shelves in this room and we wanted to fit some of them with electronics (stereo, dvd player, wii, etc.) that I didn't necessarily want to be seen.  Also, although grateful for the storage, I wanted a few less shelves to style!  For a while I considered having cabinet doors made to add to the lower open shelves, but the stereo and dvd player stuck out a bit too far for a cabinet door to close.  I've always loved the look of a skirted console, like this one or this one , but haven't had a console that would work to try that treatmen......

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