What is Transitional Design & Decor?

Transitional Design & Decor is kind of new concept in design.  It basically combines elements of old and new to create a classic, yet contemporary feel.  Some people are drawn to this design without even realizing they are doing it.  Lines are often clean, paint colors are usually a little more subdued, but pops of color are not unusual.  Often you'll see wood elements combined with metals and glass.  There's always a nice mixture of soft and hard, with nice textures, and above all the look stays classy while being comfortable.

Here are some good examples of transitional rooms:

It's okay to buy yourself flowers!

I remember growing up I had this sort of fantasy idea of people buying flowers.  Like it was this really romantic thing.  And I'm not saying it isn't - but sometimes we get stuck in these weird constructs that if we really analyze it, make no sense at all.

While it's true that it's very nice when someone buys or brings you flowers, it can be just as nice to strip flowers of that particular social/romantic/ meaning and just realize, they are flowers.  They are a part of nature, they are beautiful, and they can be enjoyed rather inexpensively, almost any time we choose, and we don't have to wait until they are a gift from someone else.

In fact, they are probably one of the least expensive things we can do just to be nice to ourselves and our homes.  A little gift, just for you.  Put them in your bedroom or on your desk - somewhere that you'll enjoy them the most.

Consider learning a little more about floral arrangements so you can make them look great.  Here are some super simple designs of flowers purchased easily in the grocery store.  Right now a bunch of french tulips at Fresh and Easy are only $5.

If you're allergic, considering buying a bowl of beautiful fruit and putting it somewhere prominent.  Unusual pears or apples in gorgeous colors!

I have little white roses outside in my year nearly year round and I like to put just a few in a small jar or teacup.  You can also trim limbs from trees (especially when the orange and citrus are in blossom!), cut herbs from your garden, or use trimmings from bushes and plants like Lantana or Rosemary plants.

It's like a little sacrifice nature makes to make your world more beautiful.  Enjoy!

The Cure (not the band though)

Although I love the band The Cure, that's not what I'm talking about today.  ;)

 A few women at church are doing the "home cure" and I'm kind of leading the effort.  Some of them have already started and some of them are starting soon.

Organized, calm, and clean, these are the characteristic traits of a happy household and a productive workspace.  Our houses and apartments are far more than just a container for our things. Rather, our approach to home has everything to do with our approach to life.  In some ways, curing our home, is also a means of curing our lives in significant ways.  


I thought I would share a few links to some great videos done by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan, the author of the Apt. Therapy Home Cure.  He does a great job of giving you an overview of what a 20 min surface clean in a room should look like.  (I think he's kind of adorable i this kind of hip indie sorta way)

 

Our 20 day home cure looks like this:

Day 1   Floor and Surface Clean one room Entirely

Day 2   Buy Flowers

Day 3   Sit for 10 minutes in a chair or in a spot you never sit in (or rarely do)

Day 4   Remove 1 item from your home and donate it

Day 5   Buy or replace a cleaner with an eco cleaner

Day 6   Floor and Surface Clean a different room than Day 1

Day 7   Buy or cut free Flowers

Day 8   Find a new recipe

Day 9   Cook your new recipe and have dinner at home

Day 10 Find inspiring images of homes and design ideas you love

Day 11  Floor and Surface Clean another room

Day 12  Buy or Cut free flowers

Day 13  Declutter your medicine cabinet 

Day 14  Make a list of 6 needs for your home or goals

Day 15  Declutter your books and media - donate or take to re-sell

Day 16  Floor and Surface Clean one room

Day 17  Buy or cut flowers

Day 18  Go on a complete media fast (except in case of work)

Day 19  Consider your artwork - look for images of new work you’d like to own

Day 20  Take a long bath

IF you're interested in doing the home cure with me and want some of the materials I used in the class we had last week - send me a message and let me know and I'll be happy to get the packet of information to you.

This 20 day cure is a pre-cursor to a much longer 8 week project we're going to tackle later on.

Click here for the video link 

Mad Men Interior Style

So a long time ago I got started on watching Mad Men and then somehow - I got lost.  And then because I never got caught up on it I didn't want to start DVR'ing and watching the more current episodes because I had missed too much earlier.  But, my fabulous son gave me Apple TV for Christmas and since then I've been catching up on my missed seasons.  And one thing that I love almost as much as I love the show itself is the design aspect of that show.  The design is just absolutely impeccable.  The interiors are so fabulous and the clothing is just to die for too.  There are some impressive people working behind the scenes on that show.

One thing I think I've come to realize is that American Women's Obsession with Tufted Headboards probably comes from the bedroom of Don & Betty.

Go ahead and use these people as inspiration if you love mid century modern, you can't go wrong:

Feel free to go ahead and skip all the smoking though...isn't it crazy how much smoke there used to be in the world?  I hardly remember it anymore but when I think back on being a little kid in the 60s and 70s I remember there sure was a lot of smoke out in public!

Now that's a POP of color!

I'm kind of recently obsessed with pops of color.

Okay - admittedly, I'm always kind of big on color in general.  But I love all the ways I see color being used in fashion and in decor lately.

But then I saw this new hotel in the Phoenix area and I it made me feel that if I could live there, I would assume I had died and gone to heaven.  (In my heaven, there's loads of color).

And so, I present some gorgeous photos of this lovely new hotel in Scottsdale:

Maybe I can't live there, but I wouldn't mind visiting for a while.

You can check out their website here:  THE SAGUARO

and while you there, their parent company has LOADS of other dreamy locations to check out with equally excellent offerings here:  Joie De Vivre

a girl can always dream.

Pink - Not Just for Princess'

So just because I'm trying to escape from the stress swirling around in my head today I decided to tackle some inspiration for a project that my daughter Jordan would really like to see me start.  Her bedroom REALLY needs some attention.  I've remodeled and re-done almost everything else in the house except her poor room, which is really just a hodge podge of things that really don't go together.

The poor child still has a platform bed from her early childhood (with a completely worn out mattress), a bright red desk, broken and broke down Ikea dresser which we tried to repair but can't actually be fixed because the brokenness is so extensive, old junky artwork that no longer works in the room, bad curtains which need to be replaced, a broken office chair that I meant to throw away but she retrieved from the curb, busted door mirror, my old cedar chest which is nice but matches nothing in the room, HORRIBLE AWFUL forest green carpet which has been there since we bought the house (the only room in the house to have original carpet actually), and a lot of mis-matchy stuff that does not work and way too much crap that we just need to donate or chuck (like I don't know, about a million stuffed animals she's not crazy about parting with).  It just really doesn't work for her anymore and I would like her to have a nicer room for the rest of the few years she'll still be at home.  And she's been very patient about waiting her turn to get a remodel.

So.  She's decided she wants a SOPHISTICATED pink room.  Here are some inspiration photos I found today.

I'll take some "before" photos soon and keep you posted.  The project itself will probably take a while, as I'm trying to do it as inexpensively as possible.