Old World Charm to Ring in the New Year

Even though I tend to lean towards a French or farmhouse look with most of my work, I occasionally work with clients who have more traditional taste. Its fun and challenging for me to step outside my box so to speak.

Here are a few pieces I’m doing for a client’s formal living room.

These beautiful barley twist chairs were in a light wood finish before. After refinishing them in black, I had rubbed a metallic glaze over the carved areas to make them stand out.

 

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday! We had a relaxing Christmas weekend and Santa did not disappoint the dinosaur lover in our family!

 

Happy New Year!!!

Housewife Kyle Richard’s New House….To Die!

So, yes, I admit it….my guilty pleasure comes in the form of watching Real Housewives. I usually don’t miss an episode of this mindless t.v. treat. Lately though I find myself pausing my TIVO to analyze Beverly Hills Housewife, Kyle Richard’s new Belle Air home. I have to say…I absolutely LOVE the renovation her and husband, Mauricio Umansky did with the help of interior designer, Faye Resnick.

Here’s a tour of her house, courtesy of Bravo.

Kyle’s new French Country home

I am totally obsessed with the large credenza in the entryway with geometric glass diamonds inserted into the door fronts. I’m thinking this will be next project for my formal sitting room when I find a piece with the same lines to it.

This isn’t her credenza, but its pretty darn close. You can see it as she walks past it in the first few minutes of the video clip.

Layla Grayce…$2450

My other obsession is her huge round dining table with the oval back chairs in a natural linen.

I’m sure she paid an arm and a leg for these pieces…but if you want the same look…contact me for a quote on some original Urban Farmhouse pieces for a fraction of the Beverly Hills price tag!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!!

This Week’s Projects in the Freezing Cold!

Wow….this weather' has been brutal in Dallas this week! I must say, its been a challenge to keep up with orders when you have two heaters going in the garage and they keep blowing a fuse, shorting out my lights and power!!!
Nonetheless…here’s what’s new!
I have a fun client who was looking for somewhat of a statement piece to go in her formal living room. She likes the Old World look with a bit of a French feel. I found this amazing armoire (the top sits on that base) that we converted the inside into a storage space for entertaining guests. She really wanted to do the entire piece in black, but I suggested the two toned look to keep some of the pretty wood grain. I really like how the black breaks up all that wood but doesn’t overpower it.

 
The other piece I did for her was a media console to sit under her wall-mounted flat screen. I had my eye on this narrow little accent piece for quite awhile so I was thrilled it was still available when I went back for it weeks later.


Lastly, I’m sad to let her go, but I am selling my formal dining table. I found a new one for my early Christmas present to myself this year :-)
This one is amazing though….it’s a French trestle antique solid wood table that I got at an estate sale two years ago. I refinished it in a dark espresso and had vintage dining chairs upholstered to match. The chairs are not for sale at this time but I can find you some and do them exactly like this if you like them!

The table measures 101”L  (with the two leafs inserted as shown below) x 44”W x 30”H. The leafs are 18”W each. I am asking $400 for this gorgeous piece. Email me if you are interested!
 

Did You Know?

The majority of my work is for clients searching for the perfect piece of furniture. If you are looking for a dresser, media console, dining set, or whatever it may be…contact me with the following:

1. Pictures of styles you like or pics of your style in general

2. Your budget for the piece or pieces

3. A good contact number where I can send text pictures when I find it!

95% of the time, I find clients perfect pieces! Let me do the legwork and custom paint an original piece that will be like no other for you!

Make Me Pretty Chests…

After a week in the kitchen, cooking for the extended family, I’m beginning to feel like a stuffed turkey! So its out of the kitchen and back in the garage to make some uglies, well, pretty!


I’m in the middle of a some very cool projects at the moment, but in the meantime, I wanted to post a few pictures of pieces that I’ve done but forgotten to blog about! Sometimes there are just too many to keep track of and some unfortunately get lost in the picture files!


Here they are for a little makeover inspiration!


This little antique chest was all scratched up when I got her, but nonetheless, she cleaned up nicely in a new coat of Robin’s Egg Blue. She sold quickly but I can definitely mimic this finish on another dresser with your name on it!




This little chest was a sentimental piece that used to be in my client’s room when she was a little girl. She wanted to give it a new look for her new daughter’s nursery in shades of pink and gray.


Before


After


This little beauty was another find for a client’s nursery. After a new coat of paint and some glass knobs, she is a functional, well-built piece that will last for years!

Christmas Cheer Using What’s On Hand…

It seems I start decorating for Christmas earlier and earlier these days. I always have a house full of relatives for Thanksgiving, and I like having it out of the way before it gets busy around here. Its also cozy having our turkey dinner by the tree.

I try to use what’s on hand, so I don’t go out and blow money on decorations for two months out of the year. I’ve accumulated quite a lot of holiday stuff over the years though. A lot of it I made or repurposed.

My artificial tree in the living room was one that I bought for my Urban Farmhouse suite last year. I got it for $40 while out thrifting! Its full, classic and stands over 10 feet tall.

 

I wanted to do something really relaxed and whimsical for the mantel this year. I had a large vintage frame that I used as a chalkboard at Urban Farmhouse over the years. I originally planned to use the chalkboard and write a cute saying on it in white chalk, but then I kept thinking about the subway art that’s so in right now.

I found this great Free Printable Christmas Subway Art that I thought would be perfect for the frame. You can get it here.

Some of the other things I had on hand were vintage decorations that I just used in a new way this year.

  

For the formal living and sitting room, I wanted to keep it a little more sophisticated…again, just adding touches with things I had on hand.

 

The tree in our front room was another great find on Craigslist. It was still sealed in the box and was originally purchased for a model home that sold before the holidays. I think I’ll try one of those no-sew ruffle tree skirts I keep seeing on Pinterest….the one in the picture is too dinky for this tree.

 

I always like extending the décor into other rooms in the house in small doses as well, including the bedroom.

Wishing you and your loved ones a Happy Thanksgiving Holiday!!!

Time for Christmas Cards!

Its that time again…and for those of you with young kids, you know that Christmas cards aren’t the same without pictures!

I used to pay for photography sessions, but after investing in a good camera for Urban Farmhouse, I decided to try my luck at my own mini photo sessions with my favorite subject, Nikolas.

Yesterday morning I took Nikolas to a really cool area over by our local library to see if we could get a good shot or two for our card this year.

Drum roll please….I think we found a winner!

Aside from the one above, I got some other really great shots, just letting him discover the area and get silly with me.

  

Before I knew it, I had dozens of great shots that I can now use for grandparent gifts! (Busy moms gotta love multi-tasking!)

 

  

(The G.Q. Pose!!!)

 

 

Here’s My Amateur Photography Pointers:

1. When photographing kids, let them lead you and take cues…if they wanna get silly, let them get silly…personality is the key to great pictures!

2. For outside shots, overcast weather is best (no squinty eyes and shadows!).

3. I don’t have an expensive lense, but I do rely on an editing program to get cool effects. (I use Picasa and Picnik….it’s free and super easy to use!!!)

4. Don’t overload on props…keep it simple for timeless photos.

5. Snap Away! I took 500 pictures in 35 minutes, but got the shots I wanted and then some.

Most importantly…have fun!

We laughed so hard we had tears streaming down our faces by the end of the shoot. Then we went to have milk shakes and hamburgers together. It was a great date with my boy. In twenty years from now when I look back at these pictures, I know I’ll feel the happiness of our day.

 

Good Luck! Now, go out and make some memories with your kiddos!

Salvaged Driftwood Dresser

I had a client come to me in search of a masculine dresser for her son’s room that I could redo with a driftwood flair. I knew I needed to search for a piece with clean, modern lines.

It seems I walk past pieces like this on a daily basis when I’m out junkin’ and never give them a second glance.

BEFORE

She showed me a picture to work off of for inspiration and I immediately had a vision, that eventually turned into this….

I am so in love with how this dresser transformation turned out that I think my Nikolas now needs one in his room too!

I can’t wait to see it in his new room! Thanks for a super fun project this week, Heather!