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In case you missed it, I started a new job last week. I'm loving it so far - great people, interesting and challenging work, shorter commute - but when I accepted the position, my new manager warned me that I would be trading in my office for a cubicle. My company's office is certified LEED Platinum, so luckily I still have a great view and lots of natural light, and I'm oddly excited to add some personality to my desk area - something I never did in six years of having my own office.

I've already purchased a snake plant - did you know they're easy to care for and help improve air quality? - and my aunt gifted me a beautiful piece of pottery (similar to #4) that I use as a pen holder. In addition to the Etsy art, I'm planning to print one or two photos of Hannah, so I can sneak peeks at her sweet face while I work.

So, do you have an office or a cubicle? And, more importantly, have you decorated it?

Thanks to everyone who sent along warm wishes and positive thoughts for my return to work. The transition has gone smoothly so far - I even managed to get out for a run after putting Hannah to bed last night. I can't describe Hannah's excitement when I walk through the door at the end of the day, but I don't think I've ever seen her that happy and it feels pretty awesome to be the cause (Adam tells me she's been great during the day, too). Of course, we're all still figuring out our new schedules and routines (hello, pumping at work), so I really do appreciate your encouragement.

One of the projects I'm hoping to make some more progress on soon is our (future) backyard patio. I was inspired by Tracy's gorgeous backyard makeover in the May issue of Style at Home to put together a mood board. Our next step is to start digging the patio itself, so hopefully this will help inspire us through all that manual labour!

1 - Since the first moment of patio scheming, I've imagined string up lights. Without an outdoor outlet, this may not be possible, but I'm not giving up yet!

2 - I received two handmade navy blue and white striped pillows for Christmas (similar to these outdoor pillows) and I've been trying to figure out the best spot for them. They can't stay out in the rain, but they'll add some much needed style to our patio when the sun is shining.

3 - Thanks to everyone who offered their two cents on my side table makeover. I'm still tempted to go bright, but I'm also drawn to the classic appeal of this West Elm version. I can see it standing the test of time, or at least my ever-changing tastes.

4 - We already own these chairs in dark brown. Someday it would be nice to upgrade to the real thing, but they do the trick for now. Plus, I like that they're lightweight, stackable and easy to clean.

5, 6 & 7 - I know I'm a little late to the party, but I'd love to try making my own DIY concrete containers for the patio. These planters are sold in Australia, but they're great inspiration. I'd love to have separate planters filled with a brightly-coloured flower like angelonia and ornamental grass. We already have lots of ribbon grass on our property, so it should be easy to transplant.

In case you missed it, you can check out my inspiration for the patio itself here.

I've been dragging my feet getting started on our entryway makeover, so I thought I'd put together a mood board for the space. Seeing all the elements of your finished space together is one way to get inspired to get moving that usually works for me, so here goes!

1 - I basically want this exact floor from Carolyn Gavin's entryway. As much as I love the idea of slate, I'm not sure we want to make that kind of investment in a house we only plan to be in for a few more years. I'm drawn to porcelain for its durability and this tile would give me the look of slate for a much lower price (of course I need to see it in person first to be sure).

2 - This is the wall colour we used throughout the downstairs - Sico's 'Clouds of Volcanic Ashes'.

3 - I'd like to add some colour and texture to the entryway with a small area rug. I think this rug would be perfect, even though the size I need is on backorder right now. Our entryway is laid out almost exactly like the one in my inspiration image - except we have a closet opposite the wall hooks - so the rug would be on the future hardwood/currently laminate flooring just past the tile.

4 - I've already done some work to organize the closet, including adding a new shoe rack (I picked up one of those wooden slat versions during Zellers' closing sale for $5). I also organized all our hats, mitts and scarves into separate baskets for each member of the family (plus one for dog toys), but I'd like to switch out the baskets we're currently using for matching ones. I love the texture of these baskets - and they're on sale! 

5 - Our entryway desperately needs seating. I'm getting tired of almost falling over every time I try to put my boots on. I love this bright red bench from Ikea and it would fit perfectly against the wall next to our wall hooks (I'd love to put it under the wall hooks, but it would interfere with the front door).

6 - Our entryway closet had a pair of sliding slab doors when we moved in, which we took down and replaced with curtains. The curtains have held up surprisingly well, but I'm ready for a more "finished" look. I'm planning to paint the existing slab doors black and install a new track (image from here).

7 - I've already added these DIY painted wall hooks to our entryway. They're great for Adam's students and guests, and even we like not having to mess with hangers.

I didn't include it here, but I also have a plan to makeover the light fixture in our entryway on the cheap. More on that later! 

Update: You can check out a "before" shot of our entryway here.

We've done a lot of work in our bedroom, but we're still not done. I love the neutral colour scheme, but I need a bit more colour in my life. Here are a few of the changes I'm thinking about making:

1 - To add some more pops of colour to our neutral bedroom, I sewed throw pillows and hung this vintage map of Iceland (a souvenir from our honeymoon).

2 - Drawing from those two sources, I'm hoping to introduce more orange and grey into the room. I already have a large, slate-coloured honeycomb vase in the room and I painted my dipped chair with CIL's Dramatic Coral (the large swatch in the top left-hand corner).

3 - The $10 yard sale night stands I painted and trimmed out are great, but I've never loved the hardware or colour I chose. I'm thinking about painting them an orange-y red like CIL's Chinatown Orange and switching out the hardware (see #5).

4 - I'd also like to add a slate throw to the end of our bed, like this one from West Elm. I recently spotted one I liked at Winners, but I'm also thinking about dying one I already own. 

5 - I love the DIY ring pulls Sarah made for the sofa table in her living room and I think they'd look great on our night stands, so I'd like to try making my own.

Now that the new floors are in, I can finally start decorating the nursery! I've been collecting a few things here and there, and pinning away of course, but last night I put together my first moodboard for the room (while I love storing inspiration and ideas on Pinterest, moodboards help me visualize the final space and give me something to work from - and stay focused on - as the room comes together).

I was inspired by both of these seriously gorgeous nurseries and I want to create a similarly bright, cheery, simple and fun design for my room.

via

via HGTV.ca

Oh, and since we've decided to be surprised by the gender, the room has to be suitable for a boy or a girl. Here's the plan so far...

1 - I made these curtains a couple years ago (using Sandi Henderson's Spring Petal Party fabric) and I'd love to use them in the nursery. The only problem is that they're a wee bit short if I want to hang them a few inches from the ceiling (I do). I'm thinking about adding solid green panels to the bottom, but I may end up making entirely new curtains from a different green fabric.

2 - It's a small room and I definitely want to incorporate some open shelving for storage. I'd also like to bring in some texture with baskets for hidden storage.

3 - My DIY bunting flag art will definitely be incorporated into the room. Right now I'm thinking about hanging them over the crib.

4 - We purchased a crib and mattress a while ago and now I'm researching a safe way to paint the crib a bright aqua or tiffany blue.

5 - I also already purchased this Serena & Lily crib sheet when it was on sale a while back. I love the reddish-orange colour and pattern, and I think it will look great against the aqua crib.

6 - This is the RENS Sheepskin from Ikea, but I'd like to get the real thing from the Lismore Sheep Farm here in Nova Scotia (as vegetarians, Adam and I are still struggling with whether this is a purchase we feel comfortable making or not, so a trip to the farm is probably in order before we make our decision).

7 - I wish I could say I'll be getting the real thing, but there's absolutely no way I could convince Adam to drop that kind of money on a chair. I'm keeping my eyes peeled for an afforable reproduction that ships to Canada.

8 - I know I'm behind the trend on the stick-on wall art, but I've always wanted to try it and a nursery seemed like the perfect place. I bought the Animals Alphabet a few weeks ago and I like that it's cute and colourful without being too over-the-top.

9 - I also bought this Giraffes print on etsy. The colours are perfect for the room and I've been weirdly obsessed with giraffes lately...

10 - I couldn't find a picture of Chapters' yellow Giraffe bookend (which I already bought), so I included the lion. Consider this a public declaration that I won't purchase any other giraffe-related items for the room :)

11 - A hand-me-down dresser from Adam's parents that I painted pistachio green and definitely want to use in the room. It's too high to double as a changing table, so I'm still trying to decide whether to buy a changing table, try building one into the closet or forgo one altogether. Any advice?

Now that the floors are installed, we can finally start putting our plans for the guest room into action. I've been pinning ideas for awhile, but I still hadn't put a room board together - until now.

1 - This room (does anyone know the source?) is my inspiration. I love the neutral colour palette and those gorgeous plank walls. Our guest room has a weird textured effect on two walls, so the plan is to cover it with planks. I'm loving the black window and door in this room, so I may have to convince Adam to let me paint the window black. We'll see.

2 - The current light fixture in this room is oddly positioned (and insanely ugly). Short of moving it, the only option that makes sense is to replace it with a pendant light, which I'm planning to hang over the bedside table. We purchased this light fixture at Ikea back in March. I like how it adds a modern element to the room, but isn't too large or attention-seeking. I plan to convert it to a hardwired fixture and add a dimmer switch so that it can do double-duty as a reading lamp.

3 - I think this is the perfect bedside table for a small guest room. It offers enough room for a few bedtime essentials, but it's also light and open - perfect for a small space. We have a slightly smaller version - a hand-me-down from Adam's parents - in a darker finish that needs a little TLC. While I love the whitewashed finish of this piece, I don't want the room to be too white. I also think the lines of our piece are a better fit with the light fixture.

4 & 5 - Speaking of white, I think I've pretty much settled on Sico's Cotton Rag Paper for the walls and trim. I like that it's a warmer, not-too-bright white and it will look great next to our new floors (it helps that we already have a couple cans on hand - it's the trim colour we've used throughout the house).

6 - We bought this black oval mirror a couple years ago for the guest room in our old apartment and I'm thinking about hanging it behind the bed. I have a couple black & white art pieces that I'd like to add to the room too.

7 - I wish I had snapped a better pic, but this duvet cover - a wedding gift from Guatemala - was actually the jumping off point for the entire room. By keeping the rest of the room neutral, the design and colours in this beautiful duvet cover will really stand out.

There are a few other things I have planned for the room that I haven't captured here. The room is basically a blank slate, so I plan to start with a few basic ideas and build on them as I go. Aside from a new bed, there isn't a lot we have to buy for the room (thank goodness - beds are expensive!), so we can try some stuff out, see what's missing and gradually pull things together - I can't wait!

When I heard about the AyA "Blogpodium Bound" Contest, I couldn't wait to start working on my dream kitchen design! The timing couldn't be better - we recently started planning and saving for a major kitchen reno. So, here's what I'm dreaming about while I save my pennies:

My dream kitchen is one part modern, one part classic. I’ve chosen modern elements like Aya's Manhattan Urban Moda painted cabinets and their brushed nickel handles, along with classics like white subway tile and a gorgeous farmhouse faucet. The blue-grey wall colour compliments the nickel hardware and stainless steel appliances, while walnut butcherblock countertops (yum!) and dark wood floors add some warmth. The handkerchief-style curtain keeps things casual and lets in plenty of light. Oh, and a few touches of green are a must. I’m not going to lie, I’d jump into this picture in a heartbeat.

Earlier this week, a friend asked me for my thoughts on her living room. She had it all planned out in her head, but her husband literally couldn't see her vision and was worried about having too much going on in the room. So I offered to put together a mood board for her. Even if you don't know the first thing about design (see: me), starting with a mood board allows you to visualize a space in a way that you just can't inside your head (at least for 99% of us). And there's nothing worse than making a bunch of purchases based on what looked amazing inside your head, only to realize in person that it doesn't work (assuming most of us don't like wasting our hard-earned cash). Plus, mood boards are really fun to make (this from the girl who used to cut rooms and models out of Sears' catalogues to play paper dolls with, and preferred them to her actual Barbies).

Here's the mood board I put together for her, based on the items she already had and wanted to add to the room:

1. Her colour scheme for the room - I love the combination of charcoal, cream, blue and yellow
2. This Crate and Barrel chair is sadly no longer available, but it's similar to the matching velvet slipper chairs from Backyard and Veranda she scored on Kijiji with the tags still on - how lucky is that?!
3. She's thinking about adding this pillow to each of the slipper chairs
4. And she already has these graphic and floral pillows on the couch
5. Her sofa is a mid-century find from Kijiji, so this Pottery Barn sofa is just a stand-in
6. I love this sunny Draper stripe citrine rug she wants to add
7. She's also thinking about adding charcoal and cream trellis curtains
8. This teak coffee table is very similar to one she just purchased, which looks a bit more orange in the photo than it does in real life
9. And this artwork by Dan Steeves- a wedding gift from her parents - sits over the mantle

I think seeing it all together gave her more confidence about her choices, but what design advice would you offer?

On Wednesday, Adam and I moved out of the guestroom and back into our bedroom. We've got a pretty crazy set-up going on right now (picture a bed and dresser pushed together in the middle of the room, surrounded by a ladder, painting supplies and a dog bed), but I have a seriously sore shoulder (do you think it has something to do with the constant sanding, patching, priming, and sleeping on a futon for the past few weeks?) and needed to sleep in a real bed.

Anyway, while Adam and I were laying in bed catching up on episodes of Parks and Recreation (Treat Yo Self), I started looking at the walls and thinking about our neutral colour scheme...and it just didn't feel right. So I subtracted a few elements and added a few others and came up with this:

1. I revamped the colour scheme to include some colour (go figure). I love this light grey colour for the walls (Benjamin Moore's Alaskan Husky), which acts as a soothing backdrop for champagne, charcoal and green accents.
2. Since I already DIY'ed one, the black and white lamp stays.
3. I'd like to add a neutral accent chair to the room (this one is from West Elm) and a cozy throw will bring in some darker colour.
4. These night stands from Ikea are very similar to the ones I recently refurbished, but I still need to find some eye-catching pulls.
5. Accessories like this Crate and Barrel vase are a great way to add pops of colour to the room without breaking the bank.
6. I found this black and white striped pillow on Etsy, but I'd love to sew something similar for our dog Maddie to sleep on (of course it needs to be removable so I can throw it in the wash).
7. This is our current dresser with a little photoshop colour treatment. If only it were that easy in real life! Painting our dresser a similar shade of green is now on my to-do list.
8. I'm keeping the white bedding, which we already have, but I'm going to DIY an upholstered headboard in a charcoal grey.
9. I'm NOT sewing another set of 9-ft. curtain panels, so our silky champagne set stays (these curtains are from West Elm, but the ones I made are very similar). They add a little glamour to the room and help disguise the off-centre window behind our bed.

So that's the new plan. I'm head-over-heels in love, but what do you think?

Welcome to new visitors and a big thanks to everyone who's left a comment recently - they are so appreciated and please keep them coming!

As I shared on First Time Fancy yesterday, I recently started work on our master bedroom. Before I can get to any of the fun stuff - painting, decorating, etc. - I have to sand down two textured walls (the loud sigh of unhappiness goes here). I've finished the first round of sanding (and I now have a pretty good idea of what I'll look like when my hair goes gray), but it will probably take another round or two before the walls are nice and smooth and ready for paint. Once that's done, this is the plan for our neutral-themed room:

1. This is the wall colour - Benjamin Moore's linen white. It's one the of their Pottery Barn Fall/Winter Colours and I think it's the perfect backdrop for this room.
2. I've actually already sewn these floor-to-ceiling curtain panels (we have 9-ft. ceilings in our bedroom, so it's a whole lotta fabric). The fabric is made to look like rough silk and the colour is actually champagne, although it looks darker in this picture. They'll cover the entire wall behind our bed to help disguise an off-center window (the window itself will get a white, 2-inch wood blind).
3. I love this curtain rod by Umbra - it's one of the darker elements that will help ground the room.
4. Matching table lamps will provide another touch of black. I'm planning to spraypaint our current lamps a glossy white and keep their black linen shades.
5. These Ikea night stands are very similar to the ones I bought at a yard sale for $10 each. I'm adding glass knobs and I'm thinking about adding trim around the bottom to dress them up a bit.
6. This step likely won't happen until the spring, but I love Pergo's chocolate walnut laminate flooring. We're still going back and forth between laminate and hardwood, so for those of you who've made the choice, please share your advice!
7. I definitely want to add some texture to the room with natural elements like this jute area rug.
8. I LOVE this bed. We already have white linens, but the fabric headboard is a future DIY project that will also help disguise the off-center window. 

Of course there will be lots of other elements in the room - art, a blue dresser that needs to be painted a yet-to-be-determined neutral colour, a floor-length mirror with a chunky black frame (that I'm thinking about spraypainting oil-rubbed bronze) and plenty of accessories. I'd also love a rustic wood bench like this one for the foot of the bed.

But first, more sanding...after Adam and I get back from our mini-honeymoon in Iceland (we leave tonight)! Sure we'll miss out on pumpkin pie, but I think soaking in the Blue Lagoon, touring the Golden Circle, hiking a glacier and eating lots of delicious seafood will make up for it :)

An early Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian readers!

This is the mood board I put together for our bathroom, what feels like ages ago. Of course a few things have changed since then. I purchased this super cute - but still functional - Dash & Albert rug:

I cleaned-up, painted and organized the large built-in shelves behind the bathroom door:

I also painted the oak vanity and replaced the hardware. I chose Sico melamine cabinet paint in pale grey, which actually has a green-grey hue.

   

As you can see in my mood board, I was planning to use oil-rubbed bronze knobs - until I realized what a big job it would be to fill in the holes left by the old cabinet pulls and drill new ones for knobs. Luckily I stumbled across these oil-rubbed bronze pulls at Home Depot and immediately fell in love.

Unforunately I'm not in love with how they look against the sink faucet I picked out, so I'll be returning it for a blackened/bronze version. We're still waiting for our new vanity top to arrive - which we scored for an incredible deal because of a small, barely visible chip on the inside edge of the drain hole - and I can't wait to install it (and by "I", I mean Adam and his father haha).

In the meantime, I also painted the small built-in shelves next to the vanity in the same green-grey colour (obviously I'm still working on populating it with our things):

I love these cute little jars I found at Value Village for just 70 cents each.

As you can see, there's still lots to do, but we're getting there, bit by bit. I'm still trying to figure out a colour for the walls, so don't hestiate to leave your suggestions in the comments!