Kate Schintzius

I saw this house tour on Design Sponge a few weeks ago and was amazed!  This apartment belongs to Kate Schintzius, a designer for M. Design Interiors.  I just love her use of color!  So bold and bright!  I don't know that I could quite pull off this bold, but I'm using it as great inspiration.

I've really been loving this coral color lately in clothing and design.  And I can't get over it with the blue!

Check out more here.

Bedroom Arrangement

I've been struggling to figure out how to rearrange our bedroom.  We only have one long wall (the other walls have a closet, windows, and sliding doors).  I had been toying with the idea of centering our bed and using our long dresser as a nightstand.  I wasn't sure how I'd feel about it until I saw a few pictures on Little Green Notebook.  I think it might work!

And here's the image that really helped convince me it could work...

{images via LGN}

I have to do some measuring because I have a few other furniture arrangement ideas in mind, but I really thinking I'm leaning towards something like the above pictures.

I'm also looking for a duvet cover to use during the winter months.  I love our Pottery Barn duvet but I like the idea of bringing it out in the spring since it's so bright and cheery.  I found this West Elm duvet on clearance and I think I'm going to order it.  At $49.99, it's a steal!  It's just plain white but I think some textured pillows and a nice throw could really winterize the bedding.

Busy weekend ahead but lots of fun mixed in!  Happy Friday!

Ikea Styling

Melanie (whose website just launched) reminded me of a Decor8 post featuring designer Lo Bjurulf's take on Ikea products.  The styling is just beautiful and I love how it displays Ikea products in a whole new way.

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Kitchen Countertops

We're getting so close to redoing our kitchen.  My Dad sent over the final drawings of how our kitchen will look!  Once I take some before pictures for reference, I'll share what he came up with.  Adam and I have been looking at countertops and we have been leaning towards black or gray.  We'll have white cabinets and will keep the yellow paint color for now.  Here are some kitchens with white cabinets and black/gray countertops.

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I'll post our Halloween pictures as soon as I can.  We forgot to take some of our own, but luckily Nicole snapped some of us!

Coffee Filter Pendant Light

This light makes such an incredible statement in the room.  I can't believe it was made out of coffee filters.  What a beautiful, yet cost effective DIY project!

{found via Made By Girl, images by Nichole}

I am soooo ready to have a clean and organized house.  Between moving back from Chicago and going on vacation for a week and a half, my house has been a mess! And it makes me feel crazy.  But we are just about all put back together.  A couple more loads of laundry and then I need to clear my desk so I can start working on our Halloween costumes.  Oh and I need to hurry and get our Halloween decorations up before Halloween is over!!  The holidays have come up so quickly.  I've already starting thinking about Christmas presents.  Yikes!

Good Design: Kids in Mind

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Have you been following the series "Good Design: Kids in Mind" over on 6th Street Design School? I've really loved reading the opinions of many talented design bloggers on tips and tricks for decorating with kids around.  This has especially been on my mind as Rilo is starting to crawl and pull herself up on things.  We have a lot of babyproofing to do around here!

Be sure to check all of the posts here.

Studio/Office

Caroline Armelle has been working on her studio/office and it is turning out absolutely gorgeous.  The aqua floors and the butterfly wallpaper are just perfect.  I'm not normally a fan of butterfly things, but this wallpaper is lovely.  Can't wait to see the finished product!

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Country Living: Halloween

I love these ideas from Country Living magazine. It makes me wish I was throwing a Halloween party. The white sheets over the chairs are perfect. It makes the room look eerie but not cheesy.

 See more ideas here.

Coralie Classics

Another designer has taken classic novels and redesigned their covers.  I blogged about the first set here.  This set, by Coralie Bickford-Smith, is so glamorous looking.  The metallics and great geometric patterns would look so nice out on display.

{imagesm found via Creature Comforts}

Rilo and I are headed home!  Can't wait to get back to our house!

Little Green Notebook

Am I the only one who thinks everything Jenny from Little Green Notebook does is perfection?  I love how she makes a room look designer but still lived in.  Her rooms are never overstyled.  And I love how she puts so many colors together that I would never think, but it just works.  Here are some pictures from her recent work at Joanna Goddard's house. 

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Check out more on Jenny's blog and even more on Joanna's blog (you must look at the nursery they collaborated on).

We're headed to downtown Chicago for a few hours this morning.  Today is my last day here!  Can't wait to be back in my house!  Happy Monday!

Herringbone

Adam and I have an affinity for herringbone patterns.  Clothes, fabrics, furniture...you name it, we like it.  Our couch even has a herringbone pattern.  I had never contemplated herringbone painted on a wall though.  I saw this on Design Sponge and loved it!  I think this would only work in nice neutral colors, like the ones used here.

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And though it's not a "need", I've always wished our house had an entry way.  Our front door just opens into the living room so I can't have a little side table, accented wall and a place to store my rain boots.  Maybe in our next house...

Garden Dinner Party

Early this summer I dreamed up the idea of a birthday dinner party in my backyard.  I had come up with several ideas but we decided to stay out in Chicago for a few more weeks, so we'll celebrate my birthday out here.  Here is what I was imagining:

 {Martha Stewart Weddings}

{The Cotorie}

I am considering doing it when we get back in October, but we have a lot of plans that I want to get done when we get back (like redoing our kitchen!).  I don't want to give up on the ideas I had though.  I'm thinking maybe I'll wait until Spring!

Summer Rental Redesign: Final Reveal

Well, seeing as it's September now, it's probably time to share the results of my $200 Rental Redesign Challenge.  We're actually about to list everything on Craigslist, so before everything starts to disappear, I took some pictures of the living room.

It went from this boringness:

To this, more homey living room:

Here is a breakdown of where the money went:

Coffee/End Tables: $30
Two Mid-century Modern Chairs: $7
Lamps: $20 + $7 decorative supplies
Fabric: $20
Frames: $10
TV Stand: $25
Bird Cage: $5
Accessories: $10
Supplies: $10

Total: $144

Time to put the whole project together and see how I did.  Here's a reminder of what our bedroom looks like now:

And one last view of the living room, with a little baby head in the corner:

Living Room: $144
Bedroom: $63.85
Total Overall Cost: $ 207.85

Pretty close to $200...though $5 of that went to the birdcage that Adam actually bought.  So, really I was pretty much on target!  It really has made this place feel a lot like a home.  I think we've used the apartment way more than any summer in the past.

Now the real test will be if we can get our money back re-selling most of what we bought.  I'm pretty confident that we will make the money back easily!   I'll update when we've sold it all.

Edit:  I also wanted to note, that surprisingly the headboard made of foam board has held up really well.  It's still in excellent condition even though we've been using it for several months!  And to see all of the before/afters from this project, see here.

Merchandise Mart

For about a month,  I've been trying to get to downtown Chicago to the Merchandise Mart.  It's a huge building with tons of showrooms, chock full of design goodness.  Tiles, bathtubs, kitchens, and on and on.  A few of us packed up and headed downtown last Friday.  Unfortunately, we got stuck in some major traffic and the Merchandise Mart closed an hour earlier than we had thought.

All was not lost though...All of the showrooms have glass windows and doors so you can peer in and check things out.  We are still planning on going back some day soon so we can really get to look at all there is to see.

I think what I liked the most was seeing the many different tile options.  I have never seen so many unique and interesting tiles in my life.  Here are some of the pictures I was able to get:

Aren't all of these fantastic?  I had no idea there was such a selection of modern and interesting designs.  I guess I've only seen the typical styles.

LOVE the color of the vanity!

Can't wait to go back and really admire the awesome designs!

Today is the last day to vote for my nursery.  Click here to vote! Thanks!