Tuesday Tip

Embellish. Verb. Google definition:

1.) Make a (statement or story) more interesting or entertaining by adding extra details, especially ones that are not true.

2.) Make (something) more attractive by the addition of decorative details or features such as blue silk embellished with golden embroidery.

Well our homes do tell a story about us, our lifestyles and our interests. We'd be crazy not to the tell the best one we possibly can! I had silk curtains made back in the early spring and I just love them. The silk tells a different story throughout the day. Sometimes it says I'm aqua, other times pale green and even gray. It has an iridescent quality that is mysterious and just a bit romantic. Could this story be made more interesting if a detail was added?


This trim was a little splurge I'd contemplated for months. The curtains
were reinstalled yesterday. I think the loops are both classic and a little fun. 


1.) The new trim added to the curtains was equivalent to a peacock struting around the living room spreading it's feathers.

2.) The new trim added to the curtains made them even more captivating and interesting.

I never go crazy with embellishments and prefer to keep such details simple.
 I  love a leading edge detail on curtains and this particular one was a huge
 departure from the trims I normally choose. It's peacock blue. I had to have it!

Look around your house and see if there may be a pillow or two, some linens or curtains that are already attractive, but could use a little embellishing to keep the story interesting!

Peacock Blue: Take Two

How about a little porn just in time for the weekend? The design kind of course! Actually it's a double feature. Not only do each of these rooms have exquisite peacock blue walls, they also each have gold convex mirrors! I have 3 convex mirrors in my own home. Love those too. This is all good....so good.  I've been going through some tear sheets and don't why I haven't shared these images with you before...so very sorry. Enjoy them and your holiday weekend!


Southern Accents Jan-Feb 2008 designer, Markham Roberts



Traditional Home Holiday 2008 designers Courtney Coleman and Bill Brockschimdt



Southern Accents March-April 2008 Richard Keith Langham
The walls are fabric and much richer in the photo.



Designer Miles Redd. Photograph by Thomas Loof.
A scan does not do this justice! The walls are lacquered
 in Farrow & Ball's Hague Blue.

Peacock Blue, I Love You!

If you read my blog with any sort of regularity, it's no secret that I love aqua. But did you know that I've had a long standing love affair with peacock blue? I especially like adding it during the fall and winter. Toss in brown, green and cream and that rounds out the color palette for the main floor of my house.



Tissue box cover


Much like aqua, it pairs well with so many other colors such as red, purple, gold and orange. Today I found this trash can and tissue box cover.



Trash can

The detail on the back!

 I thought they were really attractive and fun. It may need to find a place in our library, to keep my favorite peacock blue velvet pillow company...

I am so behind on reading my magazine subscriptions, but last night I tossed and turned over this:



January 2011-Canadian House & Home living room
of designer Colette Van Den Thillart, Photographs
 by Chris Tubbs.

 Her library/office/dining room! I once had a chair with the same
 tray shaped back, sadly it became too wobbly to be of any use.
Maybe I need to find a new one!

 And, today while sourcing fabric, I became obsessed over a cream,  green and peacock blue houndstooth. There must be something/someone that needs it. And, I wonder if Mr. A&A would be interested in a new wall color for his beloved brown library? Yes peacock blue, I am still so in love with you!

Have A Great Weekend!

Storage And Organization Solutions For Your Holiday Decorations!

Maybe you have already put your holiday decorations away this season and maybe you are just sick of the mere mention of the holidays, but making changes to the way you organize your decorations now will change your life.  Okay, it's possible that I'm over exaggerating the outcome. But I can promise, if Christmas music isn't keeping you merry & bright while you're lugging box after box from the basement or attic, having a better storage system will definitely help! Especially when it comes time to everything down and pack it away, because there is no after Christmas music to keep you cheerful...someone still needs to invent that! 


Beautiful & practical holiday storage boxes.

 
 I have always felt I had to mentally gear up for a 2 day commitment of lugging, looking, unpacking, and searching through mounds of tissue paper in various containers all in the effort to make Christmas happen.  The middle part aka holiday decorating, I love and thoroughly enjoy! But after the successful execution of that event, when things are winding down, was the nagging knowledge of another 2 day ordeal of making Christmas disappear!

I already had a basic system in place with large red and green plastic bins purchased years ago. Gathering it all in one place is the first step. It doesn't matter what color storage boxes you choose, but stick to one that will be for holiday storage only and easy to identify.


From our basement storage room makeover last fall. 

   The next step is to give each bin or box a label.  Being able to identify at a glance, without removing a single lid, what each bin contains will feel like a gift from Santa! The labels need to be specific. This is so important if you truly want the "pack-up" to go quickly and painlessly...meaning everything fits back into the exact same place it came from.  Added bonus: labeled boxes are the best solution when you come across that one thing that got left behind and used to get shoved in some random place!


Specific labels are key to easy decorating. What a pretty box
with it's Acanthus Leaf motif!

A small tree in my daughter's room decorated
with her collection of dog ornaments.

My son's tree with all his childhood ornaments.

Each year I put the box in the hallway between their two rooms
 for them to carry out their tradition of decorating their own little
 trees and pack them away after Christmas!

 
Eventually, I realized I that my bin labeled "glass balls" was not working as well as I had hoped. It just wasn't large enough. I have a set of large peacock blue glass balls and a few others that are over sized that did not come in packages. I was storing them loose in tissue and I was always concerned they would break. I needed storage for them and that got me thinking about why was so hung up about keeping everything in it's original package? The solution??? Sort and store the glass balls by color. So I last year I figured out what additional storage was needed and ordered it.  While I waited for it to arrive, it gave me time to sort through several bins and figure out what could be donated. I remember It wasn't until the first week of February before everything was put away. Totally worth it!!!


Sort by color!

  

These gorgeous peacock blue glass balls are my favorites.

Finally, a place for these too.

I like using index cards for labels because they are cheap and easy to write on and read. For the plastic bins I just tape the label to the end facing out.  For the cardboard/fabric covered boxes I put it on top of the contents inside the box. If you really want to go all out, take a photo of the contents of each bin and that way no matter who packs it up, there is no question about what goes where. This will also help you identify what type of storage containers you are lacking so you will be able to make a list of what needs to be purchased.

These storage solutions for my holiday decorations came from Target, Container Store and Ultimate Christmas Storage .  One last thing. I absolutely think it's worth purchasing acid free tissue and shredded filler. It will keep your decorations safe from breakage and the possibility of corrosion. Do it once, do it right and you will be one happy Elf next year!

Branch Out With Your Holiday Decorating!

Pinecones, branches and fresh greens are always a part of any holiday decorating scheme at the A&A house. I don't think I'd know where to start without these basics. I use them regardless of whether I am going with a rustic or more polished holiday look. It's what I add to these elements that change the design direction for me.

This year, two photos provided some inspiration for a space that is a hallway that separates two rooms in our house. The first was from the November/December issue of Veranda and this gorgeous aqua Chinoisere wallpaper in a bedroom done by Miles Redd.

The other came this past week from a foyer table from the December issue of Country Living. I loved the hand printed green toile wallpaper! It was a beautiful backdrop to the gold painted walnuts and chandelier prisms the homeowners used to decorate their tree branches. It must have taken a lot of patience to get those walnuts drilled or hot glued to hang up...maybe a project for my glittered nuts to try next year!

We've had several very windy days and fallen tree branches are all over the yard and deck...gotta love nature for doing the work for you!  I used 2 Beech Tree branches, tied them together at the base and put them in a French style galvanized planter. I've used urns and a champagne bucket before for branches and they are great alternatives if you want to give this a try.

I  hooked several mini Christmas balls using the colors in both wallpapers as a guide, teeny-tiny glass drops along with 3 pale green birds with teal and brown feathered tails. The best part of this project is that it requires no special skills or tools and it only took about 30 minutes to assemble!

A few other branch trees to inspire you!