Room Reveal: From Baby to "Big Girl" -- A Feminine and Vintage-Inspired Toddler Bedroom

Tax season just ended and adulting is hard. I know you are all nodding your heads and thinking, "Preach."

As I'm currently writing this blog post, I'm watching my two year old throw a really spectacular tantrum on the floor because I wouldn't let her color ... with a sharpie ... in her belly button. 

Man I wish my biggest problem of the day was my mommy not letting me draw in my belly button with a sharpie. Talk about life goals. 

Kids are fun. Way more fun than adults. This is why I love designing child bedrooms and nurseries so much. The designs can be weird, creative, imaginative, colorful, bold, simple -- the sky is the limit.

I recently completed a bedroom for Madilyn, the adorable daughter of one of my clients, and it brought out the pink-loving little girl in me that I've suppressed since childhood. (I was the girl that had a MEGA barbie house taking up half my room, and at one point, over 100 barbies.)

Madilyn made the big transition from a crib to a toddler bed and now needed a "big girl' room to match. Her mom wanted a room that was feminine with an antique and vintage theme, but also a room that could transcend and grow with her daughter's age: nothing overly juvenile or childish.

Pink had to be a big part of the room. Duh. But not barbie pink or unicorn vomit pink. Blush pink. Light, fluffy, pretty blush pink. Like many of the bedrooms I design, this one started to come together as soon as I found the curtain fabric. It set the color scheme - mint, blush, cream, and grey - and overall feel.

Isn't she pretty?

Feminine, but not girly. Right? No neon, or primary colors, no Fisher Price toddler crap. No glitter, sparkles, or tiaras.

The focal point of the room is the wall. Those boards are antique reclaimed wood. I saw a few pink boards at Old Texas Wood and begged them to find as many more as possible. As always, they came through. The pink boards are mixed in with some natural, wide plank boards, some weathered grey boards, and distressed white boards. I absolutely love the end result.

I know how much my toddler loves seeing her name written down, so I wanted to make sure to incorporate Madilyn's name in the room design. The customized tall wood "I AM HIS" sign was created just for her by the Etsy store, Pretty in Polka Dots. I loved it so much I've already ordered a different piece from this store for another client.

The vintage mirror above the bed came from another Etsy store, Flicker and Sway. Talk about good packaging! I almost needed a chainsaw to get through all that bubble wrap.

I didn't want to take away from the beauty of the boards, but the walls were a plain light grey, almost cream color so we painted them Sherwin Williams "Sky High". It's a little bit bluish, a little bit minty and so so pretty.

Where is that ridiculously cute beaded chandelier from? Well I'm glad you asked. You can find that little guy at Pottery Barn Kids. I also bought the soft sheer canopy from there. Madilyn already had a pretty awesome play room, so her mom wanted to keep most of the toys out of her bedroom. In place of a toy chest or desk area, we opted for a cozy little corner where she could cuddle up and read a book or play with her stuffed animals.

I scored this pink little rocker and distressed mint tool box (now a floral display) from the Canton flea market. $25 for both. Um, yes.

The sheets and white quilt are from Target and the pink coverlet and bed frame are from Wayfair. That really, really awesome rug? Lulu and Georgia. I had the pillows and drapes custom-made to create a cohesive and well-rounded pattern and color scheme with various textures and shapes.

I searched and searched and searched for a nightstand that would be perfect. It couldn't be too fussy next to that wall, but it needed to have some charm and character. I finally found this little french provincial nightstand (and that black step stool) at a local antique furniture store. The original hardware was, well, ugly. So, I did something many of my colleagues may scoff at: I replaced antique hardware with Hobby Lobby hardware. Whaaaaaaaat?!

The vintage pink Mary Kay telephone is from eBay and the little vase and flowers are from the great Ikea. The lamp and base are from Lamps Plus.  They don't have that exact shade anymore, but I linked one that is pretty darn close.

There you go. Hands down, one of my all-time favorite rooms to-date.

The Top Nine: Where I Shop as an Interior Designer

"What stores do you shop at as an interior designer?" This is the numero uno question I get from clients and friends. Unfortunately, the simple answer is: Everywhere.

End of blog post.

...

Just kidding. The more complicated answer is that several of my regular stores are not open to public and are "to the trade"/certified professionals only. This basically means I get pieces straight from wholesale and then resell them to my clients at a discounted price from their MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price) -- resulting in a win-win for everyone.

Yada yada yada, right? That doesn't help you know where to get a rockin' new area rug. So, now that we got all that boring detail out of the way, I'll share my go-to retail stores. These are regular ole retail that have either great prices, awesome quality, and/or unique pieces (and some even have all three of those! #winning).

Here are some of my favorite retail stores in nine primary home decor categories.

FURNITURE:

Joybird - Mid century modern, affordable, GORGEOUS, and well-made. I.LOVE.THEM.

Wayfair - They have pretty much anything your heart desires at a huge range of prices. I work with them a lot and their customer service is one of the best.

The bed, side tables, and side chair in my Urban Rustic Retreat project all came from Wayfair.

Bassett - A little pricey, but you can customize each piece with so many fabric choices and they have a really killer selection of pieces. 

LIGHTING:

Shades of Light - Oh man. I use them all the time. They have A TON of options in all styles, ship so fast, and have fairly decent pricing.

Hanging side lamp in this Romantic Master Bedroom project is from Hangout Lighting.

Hangout Lighting (Etsy) - They have some really interesting, modern, and industrial handmade lighting options. Price points are really good.

BUILDING MATERIALS:

Floor & Decor - I used them for all my home renovation materials. They carry most of their inventory in stock which means you can pick it out and take it home the same day. Prices are competitive and they have a thousand percent better and more options that Home Depot or Lowes.

Old Texas Wood - This is a newly discovered favorite in southeast Dallas. They have a huge warehouse of reclaimed antique wood floors and barn wood from all over the U.S. and can do the install for you as well. AND their turnaround time is, quite frankly, unmatched. Like within a week. WHAAAAAT??

Here's a little teaser for my "coming soon" feminine toddler room reveal. The wood wall is from Old Texas Wood. They scoured the warehouse and lumbar yard for me when I asked for pink boards :)

FABRIC:

Spoonflower - They have so many fun (and by so many, I mean THOUSANDS) patterns in nearly every color combination. I could browse for hours. Want dancing unicorns? Got it. Llamas wearing beanies? No problem.

Spoonflower fabrics from my Cedar Hill nursery project

PRE-MADE CURTAINS:

West Elm - They have both classic and modern patterns and ship quickly. Fair prices.

Urban Outfitters - More whimsical and bohemian style.

DECOR:

Hobby Lobby - Yep. Good ole Hob Lob. There hasn't been one single install that I wasn't at Hobby Lobby the day before, stocking up on all their random crap goodness. Their decor accessories are so stinking affordable.

Homegoods - While the messiness of these stores look like my child's bedroom and frustrate the hell outta me, they have insanely cheap prices and I rarely walk out of there empty-handed.

At Home - Throw pillows. Rows and rows of fluffy goodness.

WALLPAPER/DECALS/WALLCOVERINGS: 

The black and white forest mural in my Urban Rustic Retreat project is from Murals Your Way.

Walls Need Love - Not a huge selection and a bit pricey, but modern and colorful. All their options are for removable wallpaper (which is REALLY easy to install by yourself).

Spoonflower - Everything I said above about their fabric options? Yep, they all come in wallpaper too. Removable or glue backed.

Murals Your Way - GREAT prices. Removable or glue backed, and you can use your own photos to make a mural.

Anewall - Their wall coverings and murals make me drool. Like water dripping from the mouth drool.

RUGS:

ECarpetGallery.com - I get asked A LOT where I get my persian rugs from. This is the answer. They sell on ebay too which is how I get their lower or sale prices.

RugsUSA - Great prices, large selection of styles.

Lulu & Georgia - They have a really unique inventory of rugs. Every heard of modern southwest? Whimsical southwest? Or tribal patterns with colors like blush and mint? Yea. They have it. (Good prices too)

ART:

Minted: I love using Minted because it directly supports the artists, but has a large selection of paintings, drawings, charcoals, photography, etc. Really beautiful stuff and good prices. They offer frames for their pieces too, but I don't recommend them. A bit cheap looking.

Zgallerie - This is my go-to for inexpensive but expensive looking artwork. Large inventory and the stores carry most of their inventory in stock. Their frames are a little dingy too, so you you often have to find one that's not dented, but the selection of art and cheap prices make up for it.

Bought this little blue abstract gem straight from ZGallerie the day before the install on this Frisco living room project.

 That's it. All my favs wrapped up into one little (actually ridiculously long) blog post. Hope that was helpful in all your shopping endeavors!

...By the way, none of these are sponsored or anything. I really do just like these stores.

3 Week Room Makeover: Chimney Peak Living Room Reve

I've never had a problem with lighting a fire under my butt when necessary. Give me a deadline and I'll give you a finished project. Bottom line, I can get crap done. 

I will say though, that this rush request definitely forced me to be on my A-game. I had just finished two projects and was in the planning staging for my next when I received an inquiry in mid-January about designing a room for a young couple that had just moved to Frisco. She wanted it to feel like home asap -- by asap, she meant as close to the end of January as possible which would be a two and a half week turnaround.

Ok. Challenge accepted. 

Her custom home had beautiful architecture and moldings, and was already painted a neutral and creamy ivory -- the perfect foundation to build on. Since this project was purely decorative and styling in nature (meaning no structural or permanent changes needed to be made) the hurried timeline wasn't as much of an issue since contractors and installers didn't need to be involved.

The living room opens up to a large kitchen and these two spaces made up the home's core. She wanted the living room to be fun, interesting and adult, with lots of layered textures and patterns. And if possible, a slight nod to the beach since her and the hubs both grew up near an ocean. Oh, and she wanted color, lots of color. When I asked what stores and styles she was drawn to, she quickly responded ZGallerie and then went on to be very specific that the Pottery Barn style hurt her soul a little bit.

Now that's funny. And right up my alley.

For those of you who want the deets on each piece...

I used a variety of textures and materials in this design: navy leather ottoman with acrylic legs (which I am straight up jealous of!); a faux cowhide rug on top of a woven diamond rug; a bold print navy armchair with bright smaller printed throw pillows; leather nail head side table with a glass apothecary style lamp; gold metal leg end table with a black high gloss glass top. Vintage coral botanical prints line the two opposite walls with a framed ocean-like water photo on the fireplace mantle and some nautical accessories to tie in their nod to the ocean.

Good DIY vs. Bad DIY: Where We Should Have Spent Money and Where We're Glad We Didn't

This past month was one of those that seemed like it lasted forever, but once it was over, seemed like it went by nutty fast. Every have one of those? Um...think first year of motherhood.

As a designer and business owner, it was an incredible month. I finished and started a myriad of projects, won the "Best of Houzz 2017" award in the service category, and had my work published in Homify Magazine twice. I did a happy dance. TMI: my happy dance of choice has always been Thriller and I'm pretty sure I rock it.

I'd like to say that I haven't blogged in a while because of how busy I've been, but I'd be lying and lying is bad. The honest reason is, quite frankly, I don't like blogging. But I'm an adult and that means putting on your big girl panties and doing stuff you don't want to do but need to do. It also means you get to drink margaritas, and that part I like so I'm not all complaints here.

It's been quite some time since I updated you on our home renovations. The nutshell version is that there's not a single room that is completely finished. I'm about 75% complete with the downstairs and all that's left down here are smaller projects. Aside from some kitchen, flooring, and painting renovations that we had done professionally, everything has been DIY. Some projects were ABSOLUTELY worth doing ourselves, and a few were eye-gouging nauseatingly tedious and I would never ever DIY again.

Here's my short list of Good DIY vs. Bad DIY: where we should have spent money and where we're glad we didn't.

Kitchen Chandelier

1. GOOD D.I.Y.: Installing new lighting. We changed out 5 flush mounts, installed 3 ceiling fans, 3 bathroom vanity lights, and two large chandeliers. This would have cost us at least $1,000 to have a professional do. My husband did all of ours and he made it look very simple which is why I'm adding this to the good list.

2. BAD D.I.Y.: Staining the railing on the banister. You guys, there are exactly 164 hellish spindles on our banister and all the actual railing going up the stairs and on our catwalk. That means singularly taping every.single.spindle. plus three coats of the gel-stain (gel stain means you don't have to sand, thank god), and then a final coat of poly to seal it and keep it from scratching. It's a thousand percent better looking that the original 90's oak color but good god almighty I would sell my right kidney before I ever DIY this again. Have mercy on yourself and just freaking hire a painter.  (I also realized I just made it sound like I'm finished with my banister. I'm not. Definitely not. Mostly because I've grown fond of the sanity I have left.)

Stair banister: Still needs poly and finish removing blue tape.

Catwalk: Still need second coat and paint the rails.

3. GOOD D.I.Y.: Painting bathroom cabinets. I must admit, this was shockingly simple. I had prepared myself for a headache marathon with painting the upstairs guest bath cabinets and our master bath cabinets, but it was so easy. Each set of cabinets took a very light and quick sanding, 2 coats of paint, and only 2 hours of actual labor. I wouldn't suggest it for a large kitchen (and am glad I had mine professionally done), but for something smaller, this will be a no-brainer for the future. Absolutely worth doing it yourself and saved us hundreds of dollars.

Kid bathroom upstairs

She Wanted a White Christmas

It snowed here yesterday. IT SNOWED HERE YESTERDAY. In Dallas. Like legit, stayed on the ground, could build a (very very tiny) snowman, lots of flakes, SNOW. Which was kind of ironic since I started writing this blog post yesterday and initially began this paragraph about how my sister told me how her husband promised to get her a "white Christmas" here in Dallas as a Christmas present and I thought she was cuh-razy.

However, the "white Christmas" that Destin lovingly promised her was actually a kitchen update, complete with oak cabinets all getting painted white.

Not gonna lie, I thought that was pretty clever. Kudos to Destin.

The sister in me was super excited for her because I knew how much she's wanted to update her kitchen since they moved in four-ish years ago. And the designer in me was excited because they have really fun taste and don't like boring. I brought over several back splash samples, picked a white paint for their cabinets, and selected new hardware. They chose an oversized gorgeous teal glass tile for the back splash - laid in a classic subway pattern, graphite hardware that you can't tell if its silvery or black (perfect with their black appliances and silver faucet, and dark bronze chandelier), and a bright pure white for the cabinets (SW Oxford White). It's nuts what a little paint can do; it made the already large kitchen look straight up massive.

So in four days, their kitchen went from this sea of blah of beige and tan:

To this! My sis has good taste if I do say so myself. It's like she has a designer for a sister! ;)