• About GH&P
  • Contact Us

Garden, Home & Party

~ My love of gardening, making home comfortable and entertaining friends and family.

Garden, Home & Party

Category Archives: Renovating

{Garden} Backyard birding and decor decisions

23 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, House and Home, Paint Color, Renovating

≈ 28 Comments

Tags

Master Bedroom

Backyard birding, renovating our bedroom

{via}

I’ve wanted to paint our master bedroom since the first of the year. Selecting a wall color is always a challenge for me and I lean on my friends for votes when it comes to the finalists once the samples are in place on the wall.  I’m really skilled when it comes to second guessing my own decisions.  So after discussing dark paint vs. light with nearly everyone, I decided to go with a darker paint and that resulted in narrowing it down to 3 colors that I really liked, but which one would win the beauty contest?  After discussion and a visual assessment, my friend Carla voted for the color I thought I liked best.  Confirmation with Mr. B and we now have Benjamin Moore’s Alexandria Beige on our walls, and most importantly, we love it.

Before…the room was painted a Martha Stewart/Green Tea color…you can see the botanic pics above the headboard.  They were a little tired and faded.

before picture, master bedroom

Inspiration…

master bedroom inspiration

{Atlanta Home [left] ~ House Beautiful [right]}

After deciding on a paint color for the walls I felt it was important to think about replacing the botanic prints that had been hanging above the bed for the past 20 years.

Sidebar:  I bought Mr. B a bird feeder for Father’s Day.  I know that sounds like it might be an odd choice but we love watching their antics, they’ve been very entertaining.  Since birds have become such a delightful pastime for us, I decided to search for some antique bird prints for the existing frames.  Not like we spend hours watching them but it is fun to go to the kitchen sink for a glass of water and see them carrying on.

backyard birding-Garden, Home and Party

backyard birding, Garden, Home and Party

backyard birding, Garden, Home and Party

…and Squirrel Nutkin visits regularly…

backyard birding, squirrel

Back to replacing the botanic prints above the bed {focus, Karen}…I lucked out, an online store I had purchased my guest bathroom botanic plates from sent me an email indicating they were having a sale and I was able to buy 4 Dresser, hand colored plates of beautiful birds of Europe.  Trillium Antique Prints offers a wide variety of antique plates from historic books.  In the case of my birds, when I received the bird prints, they had included the description pages from the book that they were taken from.

painting depicting woman with bird cage

{tumblr – Persephone’s Box}

Here’s the room with the new paint color and the bird-plates.  I’m still working on finding pillow shams and a quilt to use at the base of the bed.  The blue and white came from storage.  We had purchased the Pottery Barn shams and quilt when he was working in Northern California.  The jury is out on whether this is the best look for the room.

Garden, Home and Party: Birding and a new bedroom redo

Garden, Home and Party: New paint color and bird plates, MB

I apologize for the darkness of the photograph.  It’s not the brightest of rooms in the house and my new white shades seem to throw a bit of glare in the picture.  You get the jest of it though, right?

Garden, Home and Party: Birding and a New color for the bedroom

Garden, Home and Party: Master Bedroom, paint color

The bergere chair is covered in a bee fabric, I hope to find a pillow for that chair.

Garden, Home and Party: Birding and a new bedroom color

The lamp shades for our swing arm lamps are from Target.  They are part of the Threshold line and very affordable.  The shade is a white linen-look and I really like them.

Thanks for stopping by.  The room is a work in progress, but then isn’t that the way with a home?  

We leave for Austin tomorrow morning to babysit Olivia!  I’ll be back in time for a post next week.  Enjoy the rest of your week and have a wonderful fall weekend. ♥ Karen

{Garden} Made with love – link party at Victoria’s

14 Tuesday May 2013

Posted by Karen B. in Family, Flowers, Gardening, Gardens, House and Home, Renovating

≈ 22 Comments

Tags

Gardening

Victoria, over at Restoring our 1890 Victorian, really stumped with her Linky party theme, “Made with Love”.  This isn’t because I haven’t put love into nearly everything I do, especially where family and friends are concerned, it’s that I wasn’t sure I had photographs that I could use to document this project  “made with love”.

So at the risk of seeming to be in a landscape/garden rut, the most recent project that seemed viable to the topic, one that I knew I gave a lot of thought, energy and love to, was planning and planting the front yard of our youngest son, Kevin and his wife, Sarah.

I apologize for not taking “before” pictures of the jumble of ivy and juniper…the landscape was so grim it never occurred to me.  This is the yard prior to the final removal of the odd shaped bushes and a struggling ornamental plum (the tree in this picture).

Garden, Home and PartyGarden, Home and Party(above & below) the left side of the steps are a garden I planted late last  year, we mirrored the style for the larger portion of the front yard.  The Iceberg roses and Santa Barbara Daisies have doubled in size

Garden, Home and PartyThe newlyweds recently purchased an older home.  This older home had been owned by an elderly gentleman, whose wife had passed away some time before.  When he passed, his children put the house on the market.  The yard had been “maintained” by a mow, blow and go kind of guy.  Salvageable shrubs had been hedged into misshapen boxes and other odd shapes not natural to the plant world.  Many of the plants were overgrown beyond trimming to any effect.

Garden, Home and Party(above) The plants with the white flowers are the Iceberg roses…they will put on a couple of feet of height over the summer.  There will not be very much ground exposed once the grasses and other plants fill in.

Garden, Home and Party(above) the green on the front of the house is the espaliered apple…it should be very happy in its new home.

The majority of the  front yard is a slope that meets the sidewalk.  It was covered in runaway ivy and low growing juniper and because the slope was neglected the two varieties married and intermingled into a mess, complete with spider webs and weeds.

Garden, Home and Party(above) Sarah and her mom bought some slate stepping stones and we planted Thyme ground cover.  Once that fills in she can cut thyme for cooking and enjoy a lush, green lawn of an herb that has a small purple flower, when in bloom.

Just before the wedding in December, Sarah’s mom paid her gardener to rip out the entire mess.  I began planning for the new yard in February and with the help of Jose (my gardener extraordinaire) we installed the finished plant list in April.

Garden, Home and PartyGarden, Home and PartyPlanning took some time since Sarah and Kevin wanted a California/Santa Barbara look.  Translation:  Olive trees, grasses, lavender, white Iceberg shrub roses, Penstemon and other perennials.  The space at the front of the house was begging for something showy and structured.  We selected an espaliered apple.   We asked Jose to make sure the sprinklers were in good working order, since we didn’t want the hundreds of dollars in plant material to shrivel up in the upcoming warm weather.  That ended up involving hours of work!  He amended the soil and planted.

Garden, Home and PartyNext will be some work in the back yard, although we have worked on some areas already…Sarah recently re-planted the herb/vegetable garden we installed last year and the space under the trees has been an inviting respite from hot sun since they first moved in.

Garden, Home and PartyGarden, Home and PartyAny and all involvement has been made with love. ♥  Check out the linky party at Restoring our 1890 Victorian

I can guarantee, you will be entertained!

~and~ because this garden makes me happy I’m joining Ricki Jill at Art @ Home for her linky party ~and~ Fishtail Cottage for her Garden Party

{Home} What is it about men and wood?

14 Tuesday Aug 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, House and Home, Paint Color, Renovating

≈ 11 Comments

Tags

painting

Sometime earlier this month I unveiled our newly painted family room.  We I decided I was tired of the rich, red walls and ready for a change to a slightly more neutral setting.

I asked my loyal readers, all 6 of them, 🙂 what their thoughts were on painting the ceiling white, like the fireplace, French doors and entertainment center, and each person was wholeheartedly in favor of the idea.

I casually mentioned this fact to Hubby and he acted as though I had asked him to run naked down the freeway.  This got me to thinking of the various blog sites that had shared similar stories where they were longing to paint their paneled, orangey pine walls white, and husbands far and wide responded anywhere from mild protestation to downright forbidding such appalling violation of the natural beauty and appeal of wood sans paint.

{source}

What is it about men and wood?!

{source}

I can appreciate natural wood as much as the next guy, or girl, but there are times when a room needs the lift of a little paint.  Besides, the ceiling in our family room is very inexpensive wood, tongue and grove so it’s not as if I’m asking Hubby to paint over burl wood or mahogany.

{source}

I do love natural wood in a cabin setting in the woods, like the beauty above.  In a horse stable (below), sign me up.  There is nothing like it.

Great, old wood floors are amazing.  I’ve seen some attractive painted wood floors but I don’t believe I would ever paint my hardwood floors.  See, I can be reasonable about wood.

If our ceiling was made from wood such as the two rooms below, I’d want it to be left natural, honest.

{Belgian Pearls}

{haus design}

This is more like it…see how clean and nice this ceiling looks, that’s the look I’m going for.

{Design Chic}

{Design Chic)

And finally…this room probably gives men everywhere the best of both worlds.  The ceiling is white but also has wonderful natural wood beams to off set the paint.  The fireplace over mantle appears to be recycled wood.

{Things That Inspire}

What do you think, there’s no right or wrong answer.  It’s what you love and feel comfortable with, right?

{Home} Red to Taupe (gray)?

12 Thursday Jul 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, DIY (do it yourself), House and Home, Paint Color, Renovating

≈ 19 Comments

Tags

Family room redo

Well, I’ve done it.  I made the switch.  After nearly 15 years of living with red, really burgundy, walls in our family room and kitchen I called our painter and had the walls painted.  I’m not sure what triggered the need for change, is anyone ever really aware of these motivations, but it was time.

Painting the family room

I can speculate that we were charging into summer when, once again, the room would feel a little warm, even though we rarely use our air conditioning due to the pleasure of mother nature’s natural air conditioning…a wonderful fog bank that creeps over the hills most evenings and cools us down, thank you Newport Beach, the red color gave off a psychological warmth (if there is such a thing).  Great in the cooler months, not so much in summer.

I had written a post about my leaning towards a more neutral color palate for that space and I must say, even though it’s taken a few days to pull the room together, I’m happy with the change.  And, maybe more importantly, Hubby likes it.  He rarely has input in these matters, and is just as happy to go along with my incessant pondering of new design ideas for our home, but he likes the less cluttered look I’m striving for so all is well.

One of my motivations for the change can probably be attributed to these porcelain jars…Tina over at The Enchanted Home opened a store and sells some wonderful items.  I found these (image below) and fell in blue and white porcelain love.

Somewhere down the line I will most probably reupholster the sofa in more of a neutral, non-patterned fabric but that will have to wait for now.

As with all home decor changes a proverbial can of worms is opened.  We knew the over mantle needed a fresh coat of paint.  So, we painted it.  Now the brick surround needs paint but that is adjacent to the French door, which is painted the same color as the brick and the same color as the entertainment center, which was a bigger project than we were ready to tackle this weekend.  So, painting those items will be on the list for later.  I also have questions about the ceiling, which is tongue in grove wood, stained lightly with white.  It looks like a limed pine but we’re now wondering if somewhere down the line we need to paint it white.

Any ideas?  Would the white paint we’ve used on the over mantle be too much white?

Meanwhile, I am content with the changes.  I can be patient for the final paint work that will need to take place, {hopefully}.

Happy Tuesday, my friends, hope your week is a happy one.

{GHP} Research for a path to our front door

05 Thursday Jul 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Outdoor living, Renovating

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

path, walkway

Since its summer, any and all outdoor projects suddenly butt their way to the front of the “do me” line.  A few years back we added stack stone to the front of our house.  The homes in our area were built in 1968, part of a large tract of Eichler- influenced designed houses.  Joseph Eichler homes are known for their flat roof lines, sliding doors and atriums.  We had 5 aluminum sliding doors in our 3-bedroom home when we purchased.  I confess, while I’ve thought of the architectural style with dismay [I’m truly more of a cape cod cottage gal] I will say, the open floor plan and atrium are two of my favorite features about our home.

It’s hard to tell from this image but the grass starts just in front of the walkway and extends to the sidewalk in front of our house.  People that park curbside have to walk through the grass or go around to the driveway and catch up with the walkway there.

But I digress…so when we added the stack stone it was with the thought that at some point down the line we’d add a path, through the front lawn, to the front door.  I began doing some research on possible pathway ideas and styles and thought I’d share some of the images I’ve saved for your viewing pleasure.  The ball was started rolling due in part to a brilliant post by Debra over at 5th and State.  If you’ve never visited her site you should, I believe you will find lots to love.  Her post, “Down the Garden Path” inspired me to think seriously about what I want in a walkway that brings visitors to our door.

The following 6 images are from 5th and State:

I like the detailing on the stone just before the step in this image.  I also love the door surround…so pretty.

I like the natural beauty of stone set in sand with moss growing around each stone.

I believe these brick shaped stones are set in sand with pea gravel around them…don’t you love the army of iron rabbits standing at attention for all who pass?

Is it the manor house or the stone pathway that attracts in this image, or maybe the lone peacock? 

This looks like a back yard but still, isn’t it pretty.  I love the pea gravel idea, probably not practical with grass just beyond.

The blocks of concrete in grass holds some appeal, I wonder if it’s difficult to mow around the stones?

I gained some additional inspiration and  ideas Better Homes and Gardens.com  If you want some pretty sound ideas and ‘how to’ information, BHG.com is there to deliver.  I really enjoyed viewing the various paths they offer.

The following 9 images are via Better Homes and Gardens:

This is a similar concept to the idea above.  The concrete pieces are larger but I like the blending of the grass and the concrete.

I really like the mixture of concrete squares with interspersed polished pebbles.

This looks like a combination of brick and cobblestones…very pretty, especially when it’s set in sand.

Pea gravel and stones may not be practical for the front yard at my house.

This particular path appears to be a wide assortment of different stones and concrete.  I kind of like it, what  do you think?

This is pretty too, the stones look like they’ve been here for a long time, adorned with moss as they are.

again, another backyard, but the stone in gravel is sure pretty and reflects a casual, comfortable lifestyle.

Do you have a path to your front door?  What kinds of stones/pebbles do you like best?

I’m over at Fishtail Cottage for her Garden Party

and over at No Minimalist Here for an Open House

{Home} Making room for Olivia…daybeds

03 Tuesday Jul 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, Family, House and Home, Misc, Renovating

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

and baby makes three

We have a 3-bedroom home.  When our boys were young they each had their own room.  Once they were grown and gone we converted the smaller of the bedrooms into a study/office.  There is a comfortable leather reading chair and side table.  We converted the clothes closet into a desk area and there is a second desk in our built in. This has been great for our empty nest and for Hubby and my computer work.

Karen’s desk area (above)…when can we expect wireless everything?

Hubby’s desk area (below)…since Hubby works from home he has more of everything.

The guest room is comfortably equipped with a queen sized bed and ample closet space for visiting guests [read :: son #1 and DIL, with our granddaughter].  Olivia is still small and has been quite happy to sleep in the pack and play we were given but we know the day will come when Olivia (and her mommy and daddy) will want her to have a bed to sleep in, preferably in a separate room.

Below is the wall we could fit a daybed…the chair would be moved but the wall is relatively furniture free.

So…I’ve been looking at day beds.  And since I love you guys and your valuable input, I’m sharing some of what I’ve seen and hope you will offer some opinion on this topic.

The bed below looks like it could be an antique.  This holds great appeal for me.  I could see passing an antique down to someone later for future generations.  I tend to romanticize the spin on just about everything.

la Brocanteuse

The blue bed is sweet and looks like it would make a little person feel safe with the side detail.  It also looks like it might be a little shorter than most twin beds, which would be a bonus in our room with its limited space.

unknown

I like the looks of an iron bed, I’ve seen a few varieties that seem sweet and might take up less visual space since the iron is less bulky in feel than a wood bed.

The Paper MullberryThe Paper Mullberry

This bed is lovely but I believe it wouldn’t fit in the space.

Ivy Clad

Ivy Clad

Charles Faudree has the best ideas (below)!  If space permitted I’d go for book cases, one either end of the day bed.

Simple but efficient.

The bed below almost looks like a closet…very nice.

Ivy Clad

This would be the ideal “grandma and grandpa” guest arrangement for visiting children…

Inspiring Interiors

It would be nice if the daybed did double duty and provided sofa seating when needed.

Photo by William Waldron

Or maybe we could screen the patio and let the wee ones sleep outside!  Just kidding, but isn’t this a great set up (below)

the adventures of tartanscot

What do you think?  Do any of you have daybeds in your home, any recommendations?  I love hearing your ideas.  xo, Karen

{Garden} The gift of a bench

28 Thursday Jun 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Antiques, Collections & Accessories, Gardening, House and Home, Outdoor living, Renovating

≈ 12 Comments

Tags

garden bench

Most of my friends, at least the ones that are passionate about their homes and gardens, occasionally need change.  It doesn’t always mean the furniture, paint, landscape or whatever is damaged or broken, it boils down to simply wanting something different.

That may be the case in the tale I’m about to share about how I was gifted a beautiful concrete garden bench.  The story goes like this, my friend Carla [I’ve featured her amazing garden and home HERE and HERE] has a “secret garden”. The round of boxwood encircling her armillary had gotten a little large for the space.  Casually mentioning this to her husband Tom, a brick layer was hired and a beautiful Lutyens teak bench was purchased for the space within a short time.  {We should all be so lucky to have husbands that WANT to re-do something the moment it’s mentioned}.  The downside of this was the beautiful concrete bench that had been there for years; always a focal point to the garden, no longer had a home.  There wasn’t room for it.

There is always a silver lining to my stories…Carla, knowing my love of concrete garden items, offered the bench to me.  I was delirious with joy.  But I tempered my joy knowing Carla had some misgivings about the change.

garden benchThe bench is happy in my garden, but I think the lions look a little sad, they miss Carla’s pretty space. 🙂

As a result of the concrete bench, I was able to move the teak bench that had been in this spot over to my secret garden…

I visited Carla’s new secret garden and took some pictures, it looks amazing and I believe she is content so I can share the lovely concrete bench with you as it stands in my garden…all is good in the garden.

…as it looked before the switch…{Carla, avert your eyes}

Pippi, their Welsh Corgi, approves of the new garden space.

…and as a bonus, I’ve thrown in some additional images of some beautiful benches in gardens.

fresh as a daisy, tumblr{via}

 

{via}

Hope you have time to relax in the garden this summer.

xo,

Karen

I’m over Fishtail Cottage for her Garden Party and

Sherry over at No Minimalist Here for her Open House

{Home} Neutral ground

12 Tuesday Jun 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, Paint Color, Renovating, Trends

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

neutral color palate, paint color

I’ve always enjoyed color.  I admit, when we moved into our smallish home 30 years ago {I was but a child :-)} a designer friend of mine gave me some very good advice.  She recommended that I choose a color palate and use it as a guide with each room.  A small house, she explained, will feel more spacious if there’s some uniformity within the overall décor.  {Thank you, Gretchen} I would say it has worked well for us.  I’ve always kept the baseboards, door casings, raise paneled doors, paned windows and French doors painted the same white throughout the house (Antique White to begin with, Porcelain now).

Karen B. Family Room1

Karen B. red check sofaMaybe the sofa IS looking a little tired, it’s not that old but it does see a lot of wear.

Karen B. French doors, Royal Dalton plates

Overall I had a cohesive color scheme that originated with hunter green as the bold color for carpet and even the walls of the family room.  Later, as we added oak wood flooring throughout, the carpet was changed to a neutral and kept only in the bedrooms.  Years passed and I needed a change.  I switched the color combination to red, khaki and black, and boldly painted our family room and kitchen Benjamin Moore, Classic Burgundy.  That was probably over 15 years ago.  I bet you can see where this is heading.

Karen B. Family room2

I’ve recently been attracted to neutral rooms.  I don’t want to go overboard with a neutral palate, and with budget constraints and upholstered furniture that isn’t overly worn or in need of re-upholstery work, will remain as it is right now.  But somewhere down the line I think I’d like the family room and kitchen walls painted a taupe/gray.  I would also love to introduce a bit more blue and white.  As you can tell from the photographs, I’ve got a few items but I could see blue and white ginger jars on the mantle, maybe a neutral sofa at some far-off date, with some blue and white tapestry or other fabric pillows.

Tina’s shop at The Enchanted Home had these lovelies:

…and the most recent online issue of Lonny Magazine featured Christy Ford’s home, the author of …and George blog…isn’t this lovely…

Lonny Magazine

There’s been no end to the inspiring neutral rooms and as I said, I believe I’ll always want color but I would like a change, and with it, maybe some calm in my surroundings.  Early inspiration came from fellow blogger Joan, for the love of a house.  I found the room’s of her restored farm house to be what my mind’s eye had envisioned…

for the love of a house

for the love of a house

John Saladino creates an understated beauty with his simple and neutral rooms.

This next room (I believe I found the image on Cote de Texas) features burlap curtains, but it’s the casual comfort and neutral color palate  the room displays that draws my attention.

I fell in love with Michael Bastian’s apartment when adventures in tartanscot shared some of the space with his readers.

This room from a post at The Enchanted Home has neutral and blue and white touches {sigh}

The Enchanted Home

I would love beams in our home, I have one that was created when we remodeled but check this dining room found at Ivy Clad…so pretty AND neutral.

Ivy Clad

Any Pam Pierce room is beautiful, this one is especially remarkable.

Mary Ann at Classic Casual Home lives in California, as do I, and I’ve noticed she shares some beautiful rooms, many of them have this neutral look I’m talking about, like…

And this final image I can’t recall where it’s from, but it sure is pretty.

{via Maison Decor}

I will always lean towards some amount of color within the room’s decor, but I might be ready for a more neutral palate.

All input and opinions are welcome.  Share your thoughts with me, I love our chats!

xo, Karen

I’ve attached the link to the image above, {thanks to my blog friend, Kifus, at Inspiring Interiors)

I’m visiting Savvy Southern Style at her Wow us Wednesday, join the fun.

{Home} Library, chapter 2

15 Thursday Mar 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, Renovating

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

library, upholstery

You may recall that nearly a year ago I painted our library.  You can read about it HERE.  I knew I needed to recover the sofa in that room due to fading but had to find the right fabric and save the necessary dollars.

As you can see in the “before” pictures, the wall paper and sofa fabric had faded from the direct south facing sunlight.  We believe we’ve remedied the issue by extending an overhang outside the bay window and by tinting.  Crossed fingers that this will be a permanent fix.  We’ve had to have the finish on the ladder back chair repaired due to sun damage.  These renovations sure can get expensive!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BEFORE (ABOVE)

Last month, call it an anniversary present, we had the window seat cushion, sofa and pillows made and I thought I’d share the final images with you.

I choose a cotton velvet in a taupe color for the sofa.  I had my upholsterer add the nail head detailing and replace the  straight wooden feet with bun feet.  What do you think?  I was happy with the way it turned out.

I was able to buy a soft throw on Josh & Main to add a splash of black.  Since the sofa is love seat size I wanted to avoid throw pillows but felt something more was needed.

I apologize for the lighting in the picture below, this table sits to the right of the love seat.  {Note: I’m currently taking photography classes in an attempt to learn how to use my DSLR camera.  Hopefully, there will be vast improvement in my photography once I know how to set all of the buttons and settings}

This vignette is on a tray on top of the wicker hamper I use as a coffee table.  I used to have a butler’s tray table (actually still do, it’s in our attic) but I liked the gray wicker hamper and have found the added storage to be a bonus.

The window seat and cushion for the windsor chair is this quilted taupe fabric with a small black leaf pattern; the pillow looks to be embroidered but its machine embroidery.

Madison has given me her full approval of the changes.  This is one of her favorite places to nap.

I was able to keep the toile on the ladder back chair…I really like toile and fortunately I was able to find coordinating fabrics that worked in the room.

Are you beginning to sense that I like dogs?!

The print over the sofa is a sentimental favorite because my grandma bought it for me and I think of her whenever I sit in this room.

So, that’s it.  I hope you see some improvement and will leave me a comment.  I always enjoy our chats!

Catch up with some really great ideas over at No Minimalist Here open house party.

{Home} Upholstery and change

17 Tuesday Jan 2012

Posted by Karen B. in Collections & Accessories, Decorating, Renovating

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

upholstery

I am finally reupholstering our loveseat that sits in the reading room/library.  The fabric has faded beyond the “worn, but welcome” look, which is kind of sad because I really liked the fabric when it first went on.

 Such a sad state this little love seat is in.  It was originally a crisp, casual linen-like plaid.

Once it became clear that I was going to be able to do this project I started looking at blogs and magazines with a discerning eye towards styles.

via

I gave some thought to button tuck for the back, but decided that it seemed a little formal for the room.

 I’m fortunate enough to have an outstanding upholstery team.  Home Creations in Aliso Viejo, California does amazing work and are so customer friendly.  They can redesign almost anything and with the help of my friend, Carla, we came up with a re-do that should be a welcome change for the room.

source unknown

I did decide on a tight back sofa, instead of the 2 cushion loose-back the sofa is now.  I also decided that since the loveseat didn’t have a skirt I’d add wooden legs, similar to the ones shown above.

via

Joan and Dan at for the love of a house always wow me with their design sensibility, so I visited their site for some ideas.  Their living room sofa has arms and legs similar to what I’m going to have changed on my loveseat, thank you Joan.

Country Living

source unknown

I believe I’m going to change the back to a very subtle camel back.  I like the look of this one (above).  The skirt and lack of arms on this little sofa made me think it was a bed when I first looked at it.  I do think it would be charming in a bedroom even though its a bit too fussy for my house.

 you can’t see our window seat cushion that well, but it has rotted from sun damage and will also receive new upholstery.

via

I also want to use nail heads on the sofa arms, similar to this (above).

As you can see by the first image in this post, the sofa was a traditional, rolled-arm; loose back and seat cushion loveseat.  Clearly, the loveseat had seen better days.  Our reading room receives an inordinate amount of sunshine; we believe we’ve helped cut some of the sun by extending the overhang just outside the bay window, which shades the room a little more {fingers crossed}.

 Pottery Barn

I’m not sure about the arm on this sofa in the Landon Collection…I like the width but the slopping angle might not be right  for my reading room.

source unknown

I mostly posted this image because I like the British art above…how fun is that?

source unknown

I really like the higher back of this sofa but I don’t think I can afford this much change to the loveseat.

This phase of the project will include reupholstering the sofa and the window seat.  I hope to add a seat cushion to the Windsor chair and pillows for the window seat in the third and final phase of ‘rennovation library’.

I’ll be sure to post the pictures once the sofa and window seat cushions are returned.  Do you have a favorite style sofa? 

I’m visiting over at Tablescaper, visit this site for some great ideas!

← Older posts

Recent Posts: Garden, Home & Party

Homes that welcome the season

A little this and that

The color of autumn

Wall Art Inspiration for our bungalow

Project Design: Outdoor Living Spaces

Enter your email address to subscribe to GH&P and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Instagram




Follow gardenhomeparty on Twitter

Follow on Tumblr

Google Plus

Recent Posts

  • Homes that welcome the season
  • A little this and that
  • The color of autumn
  • Wall Art Inspiration for our bungalow
  • Project Design: Outdoor Living Spaces

Categories

  • Accessories; details
  • Annual WP Report Card
  • Antiques
  • Architects & Builders
  • Architectural elements
  • Autumn
  • Bastille Day
  • Bathroom
  • Bedrooms
  • Christmas
  • Collections & Accessories
  • Cottages
  • Decorating
  • Designer
  • Dessert
  • Dining Room
  • DIY (do it yourself)
  • Drink
  • Easter
  • Entertaining
  • Fall Entertaining and Decorations
  • Family
  • Flowers
  • Food
  • Gardening
  • Gardens
  • Halloween
  • Holiday/Seasonal cooking
  • Holidays
  • House and Home
  • Independence Day
  • Kitchen
  • Maintenance
  • Misc
  • Outdoor living
  • Paint Color
  • Party Planning
  • Personal Information
  • Recipes
  • Renovating
  • Seasons
  • Simple Meals for the Avid Cook
  • Spring
  • St. Patrick's Day
  • Storage/Closets/Pantry
  • Study/Office
  • Summer
  • Thanksgiving
  • Traditions
  • Travel
  • Trends
  • Uncategorized
  • Valentine's Day

Recommended

  • Bastion & Lark
  • Content in a Cottage
  • Cote de Texas
  • French Essence
  • French Kissed
  • Garden, Home and Party
  • Greige Design
  • Heirloom Philosophy
  • Henhurst Interiors
  • In the Fields
  • Jennings & Gates
  • Making Magique
  • Miss Mustard Seed
  • paper{whites}
  • Polished Pebble
  • Providence Ltd Design
  • Restoring our 1890 Victorian
  • Slim Paley
  • Splendid Willow
  • Talk of the House
  • TG Interiors
  • The Adventures of Tartanscot
  • The Enchanted Home
  • The House of Edward
  • The Lady's Life
  • The Pioneer Woman
  • The Polohouse
  • Tone on Tone
  • Trouvais
  • Velvet & Linen

Archives

  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • October 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • October 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007

Top Posts & Pages

  • {Home} Cozy and other adjectives that describe home
  • Living with what you love; age and decorating
  • {Home} Adieu Pierre Deux
  • {Garden} A porch, atrium, courtyard, or outdoor room---a delight
  • The color of autumn
  • {Home} Mirror, mirror on the wall...
  • Knock, knock, who's there?
  • {Home}Another cottage to love by Bill Ingram Architect
  • {Home and Party} Trays, a versatile obsession
  • {Home} Be careful what you wish for...refinishing wood floors

Subscribe via RSS

  • RSS - Posts
  • RSS - Comments

Topics

4th of July accessories antiques Architects & Builders Austin Autumn Barefoot Contessa bathroom bedrooms birthdays blog favorites Blogging blue & white decor books centerpieces chairs Christmas collections cooking cottage cupboards decorating for fall decorating styles designer details of a home do-it-yourself Dogs dream house Easter easy recipe easy recipes Engagement Party English gardens Entertaining fall Family Father's Day Flowers foyer furniture Garden Gardening Halloween hardwood floors holiday home home accessorizing House Beautiful magazine how-to Independence Day interiors Irish Stew kitchens Kooboo chairs library mirrors Mother's Day neutral color palate New Years Eve Organizing Outdoor living paint color Pets in the home plaid recipe recipes Rogers Gardens Spring summer living Table Settings television Texas Thanksgiving Valentine's Day weddings

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • Garden, Home & Party
    • Join 749 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Garden, Home & Party
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...