The old becomes new...

Every month you can find me drooling over the latest small home featured on  The Old Painted Cottage blog.  It gives me inspiration even in my most non-creative phases of Tiny Home Living! 

Today I was glancing through some of the archives and appreciating the homeowners' imaginative uses of furniture and displays for storage and showing off collectibles.  Here are just a few of my favorites.

All Photos Courtesy of The Old Painted Cottage

Old shelving in an entryway holding jars, shoes and dishes of money and car keys.

Vintage cabinets displaying ironware and linens. Metal baskets of rolled towels. 

Ugly plumbing and cleaning supplies hidden by long fabric skirts.

Crates stacked to form a shelving unit holding baskets and collectibles.

Utility shelving artfully displaying kitchen pots and pans, metal strips to hold knives.  Bathroom fixtures with hooks to keep coffee mugs at the ready.

Ladders serving as a pot holder and drying rack.

Old screen doors closing in a beautifully lit linen closet.

Jars with decorative labels to store laundry supplies.

Vintage pharmacy cabinets in a bathroom holding towels, soap and bath salts.

Open kitchen shelving decorated seasonally.

Inspiration at its finest.  Go for a visit on a snowy afternoon.  I promise you won't be disappointed! 

~Amber

Post Title → The old becomes new...

Decorating with Red and Pink

In honor of Valentine's Day let's talk about decorating with red and pink!  Red happens to be my favorite color.  I always carry a red purse and love red accents for a pop of color. In honor of Valentine's Day, Amber has some wonderful suggestions for decorating with red and pink. 

Amber ...

Red and pink are often bashed and trashed as difficult colors for home decor, especially smaller homes.  But if used right, these vibrant shades can work wonders in any living space.

Let's look at pink first.  This lovely soft, classic color can be relaxing while providing an atmosphere of glamour and romance.

All Photos Courtesy of Country Living

  

Decorating with pink need not be overwhelming.  Pinks are soft and pleasing to the eye.  Especially when painted on a large piece of furniture.

White paired with pink is airy and calming.

What says glitz and glamour more than pink paired with mirrored furniture?

Mixing fabric patterns in pink such as ticking, paisley, damask or chintz keeps the pink effect from being fussy and overdone.

One pink focal point, like candlesticks, adds an easy accent color.

This desk and pink chair cushion remind me of cotton candy.  What a delicious place to work!

A fluffy pink throw adds femininity and grace to this room.   No need to paint every surface pink to create the feeling of romance.  Just a dash will do!

When it comes to using red, think beyond Christmas.  This is a strong color, ideal for making a statement and adding life to a room.  

A perfect accent color, red curtains and accessories brighten up standard white and cream decorating schemes.

Touches of red in curtains, collectibles and dishtowels add a splash of color to this pristine kitchen.

A distinctive piece, like this red dresser, adds a touch of drama to this neutral room!

Rather than clashing, the different patterns in this dining room add depth and a playful feel.

I just want to bake a tray full of chocolate chip cookies in this kitchen and sit on one of those fun stools and dunk it in a big glass of white milk.  (Psssst...the glass would have red polka dots on it!)

Easy update!  Paint a few chairs!  What a simple to change the feel of a room.

What could be more fun than walking downstairs on a red path....a whimsical and cute touch to any farmhouse.

This red, striped wall paper is warm and refreshing to the eye when paired with a pristine white chair rail.  Classic and traditional.  

This Valentine's Day consider adding a touch of red or pink to your Jewel Box® Home!  Add romance.  Love.  Snuggle.  Eat chocolate.

~Amber

Post Title → Decorating with Red and Pink

Modern Living Room Design and Decorating

Passed away, happily, is the strict totalitarianism of the three-piece living room set, where the sitting area was limited to a half moon place around the television, no matter how poorly this arrangement happened to fit the vacant space. Modern living rooms can be fitted out with unique pieces of furniture in a mixture of sizes and models, letting you fit your sitting room plan to the contour of the room and create a more individual sense of style. The secret is to try a low-level living room furniture that will make the ceiling feel higher and the room usually more spacious.

Post Title → Modern Living Room Design and Decorating

Break These Decorating Rules!

Photo Courtesy of HGTV

When it comes to decorating small spaces, I'm a 'traditional gal.' White or cream walls, no contrasting patterns and a few simple, elegant knicknacks.  But for all you decor rebels out there, Amber has excellent advice on how to break those decorating rules with style! 

Forget about painting small spaces white. Sacrificing space doesn't mean sacrificing your personal taste.  If you like color, splash it on the walls with abandon!  Consider painting doors and trim in a gloss lacquer for added depth.  To make color really work in a small room, paint both walls and ceiling the same color to trick the eye. 

Photo Courtesy of HGTV

Avoid Patterns

Don't avoid patterns if tone on tone color and texture isn't your thing.  By incorporating big bold prints on the walls or patterns in rugs and upholstery small rooms can reflect your unique personality and become walk in pieces of art.  Your eye won't even sense the small space!

 Photo Courtesy of HGTV

Pile on the knicknacks.  We all have our family pictures, keepsakes and knicknacks that are special.  Displaying them in our homes reflects our lives and personalities.  Why relegate them to a closet or drawer?  Display them.  Group the same color objects together, like the white pieces above, but multi-color groupings work well too.  Try clustering objects in one large area like this table top.

Photo Courtesy of HGTV

Go with big furniture. Large furniture can add to the visual appeal of the room!  The rule of thumb for furnishing a room is to always provide walking space around the furniture.  While the homeowner in the picture above could have provided seating in the form of two separate love seats or chairs, she furnished her home with one large banquette that provides ample seating and visual appeal!

Photo Courtesy of HGTV

Not every small space needs a mirror. Hang mirrors if you like them, but paintings and artwork can be just as appealing and interesting to the eye.  Adding things you love to your rooms is a form of self-expression.  Filling small spaces with objects you love, is a great way to accept and embrace your small home and stamp it with your own unique style.

  

~ Amber 

Post Title → Break These Decorating Rules!

Lighten Up!

 

Photo Courtesy of Country Living

No drapes and simple blinds let the the light shine in!

When we moved into our little Jewel Box® not only were we overwhelmed with the tiny size, but also the tiny rooms.  The small house, only about 1,200 square feet was divided up into little tiny rooms.  The first thing we did was knock down the wall between the living room and kitchen to create one large space.  Then we added light.

Photo Courtesy of Country Living

 

Living in a small space doesn't have to mean feeling cramped!  Sometimes small homes, especially older homes (which have tons of character and I simply love them-ours was built in 1947), have small rooms and even smaller windows.

 Photo Courtesy of Country Living

 

It amazes me how just adding light can open up a small space!  Whether it be through the addition of larger windows or adding glass-paneled doors, or just painting your rooms in a lighter color, the addition of sunlight and a feeling of bringing the outdoors in makes any small space feel larger!

Photo Courtesy of Country Living

 

I know you've heard me talk about the addition of French doors to our bedroom.  The project itself was tedious and messy but it was worth having the added light in our bedroom.  It feels like we gained square footage in addition to a brighter boudoir!

Photo Courtesy of Country Living 

Just enlarging small windows can also have the same effect.  Our living room originally had two separate, small windows.  Another messy project, but again totally worth it!  What was once two small holes is now one large, lovely picture window.

 Photo Courtesy of Country Living

Dressed or naked windows and doors are lovely.  But I encourage you to throw open your drapes, tear down the mini blinds and let the sun shine in today!!

~Amber

Post Title → Lighten Up!

Swedish Design for Small Spaces

Veranda Magazine

Isn't the little entry above beautiful?  It's called Swedish design.  I just love this look for small spaces!  It's meant to bring natural light and airiness into Swedish homes during long winters, but the soft hues, painted furniture and pale flooring are ideal for small spaces.  

And how perfect are these painted cabinets?  This pale lavender is a typical color found in the Swedish decorating palette.

Veranda Magazine

Robin's egg blue accents and light sand color washes are also part of a Swedish look.  Fabulous isn't it?  I just love how the space looks bathed in sunlight and feels so serene.

Veranda Magazine

Veranda Magazine

Veranda Magazine

And the look is carried right through to the nursery.  Just darling!

Now I have to warn you, original Swedish furniture is very expensive.  But you can create this look at a fraction of the price by painting furniture using pale color washes and upholstering pieces in light sand or pale blue fabric.  And of course the white walls can be had for the cost of a few cans of primer and paint.

Until next time!

Genevieve

Post Title → Swedish Design for Small Spaces

Amazing New Take on House Decoration 3D Wall Paintings

When I saw these pictures for the first time I’ve immediately thought at the amazing 3D chalk drawings done by Julian Beever ( see his works here ). What you can see in these pictures is a brilliant new take on house decoration, and I’m sure that that my readers would want to admire these pictures. This guy does an amazing job, but unfortunately the work of this one mystery man has been floating all around the internet for some time now, but does anyone know his name, or something about him. Finally I would like to ask you to post a comment if you know who is the author of these amazing 3 dimensional wall paintings, because he should be getting some commissions.

Post Title → Amazing New Take on House Decoration 3D Wall Paintings