Our Daughter's Nursery

Where did the last month go? Hopefully you were spared the late winter cold that ravaged our house and prevented me from doing almost anything except laundry and the occasional spring project planning--that is when my hands weren't cuddling a sick little baby!

Speaking of baby, the time has come to finally reveal Astrid's nursery. It's a room that makes me happy and I hope that, when she's able to articulate it, it does the same for our daughter.

When we discovered we were expecting, I got to work brainstorming a nursery that combined new purchases and existing furniture for our little one. I've long been a fan of purchasing pieces that could serve several purposes, moving from room to room and proving to be worthy investments. This room was no exception to that principle: the antique pine dresser, a bamboo etagere, a delicate footstool and a mid-century modern Saarinen tulip side table all found their way into Astrid's room from other spaces elsewhere in our home.

(don't worry: all stuffed animals are taken out of the crib when our girl is sleeping!)

Astrid's room itself has a naturally cozy feel thanks to its dormer window and slanted walls. I wanted the walls to envelop her during sleep and play, so I opted for Benjamin Moore's "Levingston Green" (Adam loved this choice as well). It played off my choice fabric for the window shades, Parlor Textiles' "Confetti Floral Stripe" in red. After splurging a bit on the fabric, I saved money by sewing the roman shades with my mom during an early-fall visit. The red and spring green color combo felt fresh and clean.

A simple crib skirt, made from Robert Allen's "Plaid Ikat," paired nicely with the Parlor Textiles print as well as a beautiful handmade gingham-print knit blanket that my mom made for the baby (pattern from this book, if you want to make one yourself!).

Books have always been an important part of my life as well as my husband's life, so we were sure to carve out a corner of the room for reading as well as nursing.

Children's books are so vibrant and interesting like little pieces of artwork and, because of this, I didn't want to hide them in a bookcase. Instead, I transformed a vintage carved wooden pelmet (originally used for a window) into a book ledge that prominently displays each.

Opposite the book ledge is a matte green metal leaf mobile from a talented artist on Etsy, Comometalworks. Astrid's just started noticing the mobile and I love how it captures her ever-fleeting attention.

Finally, in the dormer window niche, Adam precisely and carefully hung 26 vintage-inspired animal alphabet cards from Martha Stewart's craft line with easy-to-find bulldog clips. Funny story about these cards: I bought these way back in 2008 while Mom and I were awaiting the news that my niece had been born. I squirreled them away ever since!

(all photos via Meet Me in Philadelphia)

I'd love to hear your thoughts! Astrid's room is a blend of new and old, pattern and solids, present and future.

If you're curious, some sources for items in Astrid's nursery are:
Wall color: "Levington Green" by Benjamin Moore
Trim color: "White Dove" by Benjamin Moore
Rug: Jute Natural Area Rug from Wayfair
Shade fabric: "Confetti Floral Stripe" in red from Parlor Textiles
Crib skirt fabric:
Crib: Union 3-to-1 convertible crib in white
Antique pine dresser: Craigslist
Linen slipcovered glider: Crescent glider in linen from Overstock
Metal floral mobile: Jungalow mobile in green from Comometalworks on Etsy
White Saarinen tulip side table: Design within Reach
Tote bags (used to hold blankets and as a diaper bag): Boat and Tote bag from LL Bean
Coat rack: vintage French hat rack from Etsy
Wall plaque (above crib): Bestmade Co.
Bunny lamp (on pine dresser): Heico rabbit lamp from Fawn Shoppe

Our Dining Room Revealed

Today is one I've looked forward to: showing off our dining room! In the midst of nesting, this room received a tremendous amount of attention, energy and effort, and I couldn't be happier with it.

Our Living Room, Revisited

The last post before my blogging hiatus focused exclusively on our living room and, in the ten months since that write-up, the primary pieces remained while I've continued to refine the room with a few final additions. Let me show you around.

Evolution

Wow, it's been a long time, hasn't it?

Since I last posted, life has changed substantially around here and, amazingly, all for the best. I've learned a lot about myself through the crucible of significant life experiences that happened last year, namely career upheaval and--most importantly--pregnancy and the arrival of our new baby girl.

I felt like I lived an entire lifetime last year. Just as our circumstances changed, so did our home.

Our Living Room...Mostly Complete

Hello! It has been so long since I last opened blogger to start a post. I contemplated packing it up and riding quietly into the blogging sunset; but just like a magnet, something about blogging has pulled me back in and won't let me go, at least not yet.

Frankly, I missed our interactions! I really, truly did. If I could invite each and everyone of you over to my house, we'd probably sit in the living room and spend the day gabbing away about our favorite fabrics, what auctions we've been to lately and our best thrifting discovery of all time. The best rooms are the ones that spark these kinds of engrossing conversations, and that's just what I set out to do in our living room

In the past year (yes, year...we've been working on it for the past 12 months), I've tried to cultivate a warm, cozy, curated room that welcomes to any visitor and demonstrates a little bit about Adam and I. I'm happy to report that we're 99% of the way towards that goal, save for finalized curtains in the room's large bay window.

This space has undergone lots of changes--both big and small. Carpentry, painting, upholstery, new furniture...you get the idea. I love this room. I always feel a little uneasy sharing such personal rooms but I hope it's the kind of room that seems inviting to you, even across the computer screen.

Without further ado...here's our "mostly complete" living room!

(all images via Meet Me in Philadelphia)

In case you wanted to walk down memory lane, here are some of the projects that brought this living room to life:

Living Room Carpentry

The Tufted Sofa Before

Reupholstered Chairs and Sofa

Coffee Table Before and After

Thank you all for sticking with me during my frequent blogging breaks (and following me on Instagram in the interim)--I hope we can pick up where we've left off. I've saved up so many projects to share here on the blog, and I'm looking forward to catching up with each of you!

J.Crew Indigo Top becomes Footstool Upholstery

Maybe it was the sudden early-fall chill in the air this weekend, but it was the perfect few days to take on a few projects around our house. Aside from today's project, we got busy tackling bathroom tile demolition that I'll share more about soon!

Today, I wanted to share my first DIY in a very long time--an antique footstool brought back to life with, of all things, a J.Crew cotton top.

Replacing Ugly Outlets {For Highly Particular Homeowners}

I'm a really particular person. If I was a parent, I'd be one of the "choosy moms" that those peanut butter commercials love to talk about. One of the things I'm super particular about are the electrical outlets in our house.

I especially hate the old round, bisque-colored ones that are throughout each room. But just this week, I made it my mission to improve the appearance of the outlets on one floor of our house (the finished basement).

Towels Customized with Vintage Ribbon {An Easy DIY}

In my jadeite bathroom reveal yesterday (thank you so much, by the way! you all know how to make a girl feel goooooood!), I alluded to a quick, sewing project that adds a one-of-a-kind touch to affordable Target hand towels.

Even if you're a novice sewer, you can make your own customized ribboned hand towels in 3 easy steps!

Our Vintage Jadeite Bathroom {The Reveal}

This reveal is about three months in the making but, today, I'm proud (and relieved!) to show off the results of our vintage jadeite bathroom redo.

I first posted the plans in November, and at that time it was our goal to have the space completed for Christmas houseguests. Well, our visitors came and went while the bathroom languished. We struggled with uncooperative plumbing, speciality parts (the complexity that comes with working with original 55 year-old fixtures) and post-holiday exhaustion. But, today, here we are!

Changes to the Guest Bedroom {A Preview}

Hello, friends. Have you missed me? I can't believe it's been nearly two whole weeks since we've chatted. I've certainly missed each and every one of you!

I've been a busy little bee lately and have made the most of frigid temperatures and 14+ inches of snow by working on various spaces around the house. If you follow me on Instagram (which you should, btw), you'll know that I spent a snowy morning last week repainting our guest bedroom and reworking the room with pieces I [mostly] had on hand.

Though the space is about 95% there, I wanted to share a couple of sneak peeks of the room, now swathed in a relaxing minty-blue ("Palladian Blue" by Benjamin Moore). The wall color echoes the tones in the accent pillow resting on the bed (Parlor Textiles' "Winter Floral" pattern).

(all via Meet Me in Philadelphia)

Adding a healthy contrast to the soft wall color are the rich oxbood lamp and walnut furniture, most of which I had before I started this little redo. There are just a few more details left to put into place--namely, pictures to be hung and a little styling--before I show you the rest. I can't wait!

Happy Monday, friends! I've missed you.
How have you been keeping yourself busy this crazy-cold month?

P.S. Be sure to come back tomorrow--I want to chat all about a book I received for Christmas and devoured in a few days--it's all about blogs, homemaking, and the DIY lifestyle. 

Anna Spiro-Inspired Tasseled Curtain Panels {A DIY Project}

The holidays are over and done with, resulting in a fresh wave of excitement for new DIY projects around the house. In the next few days, I'll share the progress we've made in our finished basement. I'm looking forward to continuing progress we started in 2013 and sharing the details here throughout the coming year!

Today: it's all about a tasseled curtain panel project inspired by that tremendously talented Aussie Anna Spiro.

Prepping the Jadeite Bathroom for Holiday Guests

Call me crazy for taking on a room redo this time of year, but Adam and I are tackling our charming vintage green bathroom just in time for Christmas!

We will be hosting my parents, brother, sister-in-law and niece for the big holiday for the first time. As a result, I want to get the cutest bathroom in our house functional (it's the only bathroom in our house that isn't!). The bones of the space are really special.

While the 'befores' leave plenty of room for improvement, let's talk about my plans for the 'after'.

Fall Comes to Our Front Door (Thanks to Terrain)

Let me preface this post by stating that I never win any contest, giveaway or raffle I enter. Ever.

But about two weeks ago I got lucky...no, not like that. I'm talking about winning something.
I got an email from the über-popular Joanna Goddard of A Cup of Jo announcing that I had won her recent $200 Terrain gift card giveaway! What the what?!?

Needless to say, I was thrilled. Awestruck. Dumbfounded. Excited! My winnings went a long way to bringing fall to our front doorstep and, today, I'll tell you all about it.

A Tale of Two Chairs

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. 

And working to revamp this pair of decrepit $5 chairs embodies the worst of times.

This post is dedicated to all of those blog readers who wonder, "How does so-and-so make her blog projects look so easy?" I'm lifting the veil today and revealing that DIY projects don't always go as planned...at least not for me.

This is the tale of two bamboo chairs.

All The Den Details

Hello, friends! Before I begin I wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the tremendously positive comments on my den, which I revealed yesterday. Your feedback overwhelmed me, honestly. I constantly remind myself that I'm not an interior design professional. I just follow my eye and my heart...sometimes, it actually works out!

Since a number of you wanted to hear about specific items, I'll break down all of the details of the space today.

My Den: The Big Reveal

This post has been a long time coming; but instead of expounding too much about it, I'll let the finished space speak for itself. Our den is finally "complete"--whatever that means. Elements in the room will definitely change over time but, for this moment in time, it feels very 'us'.

Take the full tour and be sure to share your thoughts! I'd really love to hear them.

Revealing My Den on Monday!

After months and months and months and months, I'm so happy to announce that I'll be revealing my completed (and very dark blue) den on Monday!

I've wanted to wait until everything was just right, and I think it's finally ready to share. I feel like this room is a really accurate reflection of my style--eclectic, antique, cozy.

Come back Monday morning to see the full reveal! Happy weekend, friends.

When Vintage Illustrations and Watercolors Meet...

I'm by no means an artist; but when I saw the opportunity to enhance illustrations from a secondhand book with a wash of watercolors, I dusted off my artistic skills and put them to work creating another piece of art for the living room.

Wrapping Paper Wall Organizer

If you're anything like me, you find yourself collecting hoarding wrapping paper (especially when it's from Target and a super great price, right?) It's tough to say 'no' to a cute holiday pattern, but the stuff can be annoying to store. So, when putting my craft room together, I was inspired to concoct a simple, inexpensive way to keep my many rolls of wrapping paper neat, tidy and accessible when I want to use them.

My Craft Room Revealed

The phrase "craft room" is a 4-letter word for many high style bloggers, but I hope you show you all today that a craft room can be stylish and useful as I reveal mine!