HOUSE TOUR: Front Door

I'd intended to do an "Around the House" feature post every Wednesday, partly to organize my blogging habits.  Well, no sense dwelling on the past when you can start here and now, so here goes!

I thought the perfect place to start a house tour would be the front door!  When we moved in it looked like this...

Rusty brown is not a good color on anyone, front doors included.  I thought about many, many colors, but I just couldn't see a bold punch serving our curb appeal well in this neighborhood of European-style architecture.  So when I had painters here for another room, I had them hit the front door with a fresh coat of glossy black.

And THEN, I did something I've wanted to do for the longest time.  Before Pinterest was even a glimmer in it's founder's eye, I'd curated a ton of decor ideas (hadn't we all?).  One of them was this beauty from Shelley and Cason at House of Smiths...

I'd always intended to do the same on our front door on our house in Pembroke, thinking I'd cut the vinyl myself with my trusty Cricut.  But Cricut is a fickle beast and I could never find the right font cartridge  to do what I wanted.  So months turned into years, and during those years everyone and their brother pinned Shelley's vinyl decal, so I was kind of thinking I shouldn't bother because it had lost its uniqueness (which is why I liked it so much, besides the fact that it looks sharp!).  

One day I had a 'moment' - you know those moments when you say to yourself "Hey, ding-dong!  You've been longing for this decal for how many years?  And why are you not making that happen again?  Because for $20 or so you can make that dream come true.  I think it's time to put up or shut up."

So I put up!  The vinyl that is!

I just LOVE, LOVE, big puffy heart LOVE it!!!   

And once I spiffed the door up, we needed a comfy spot to sit and enjoy it (and monitor the kids' after-school antics).  Our red adirondack chairs were showing their age, so some new black ones found their way into my cart at Target.  Just $18 each!  Now of course they aren't all that sturdy, so every time there's a thunderstorm someone (me) has to run outside and bring them into the garage for fear they'll blow away.  But so far, it's working for me.

They weren't all that comfy on your back though, so I scored two outdoor pillows at Garden Ridge. 

I spruced them up with some ribbon from my stash and a clip-on flower from Michaels, so they'd match the forsythia wreath on the door.  Which I should probably take down now that forsythia season is over, but I love it so much I think I'll wait until June when I can switch to my Fourth of July wreath.  I'll probably swap the pillows out then too.

Because I was nervous about having to chase the pillows down the street in a storm, I used some more ribbon from my stash to sew ties to them.

So far, so good!  Haven't lost a pillow yet!

I also filled the sad and lonely urns up with some faux greenery and florals.  There's no sense in using real flowers because they burn out so quickly and I can never keep them watered properly (learned that lesson on Edgewater Drive!)   When you get up close, you can tell it's all fake, but from the street it looks fine.  And I can switch the forsythia and friends out for red geraniums come summer.  At least that's the plan.

I love a good before and after, so here it is again!

BEFORE 

AFTER!

I have visions of adding some black shutters and window boxes, and when I win the lotto, of pulling all the flowers (they're lovely, but the bees make it kind of hard to get to the door!) in favor of a paver patio and half wall where I can put a bistro set to enjoy my after-school cuppa Joe while I watch the kids zoom past on their bikes.

But for now, I really like what we've got going here.  So glad I kicked myself in the pants and ordered that vinyl!

Getting Crafty: No Sew Bed Canopy

Canopy, crown, corona...whatever you want to call it, my sister has been dreaming of one for a loooong time.  But she's a Libra, with a capital "L", which means she couldn't possibly move forward on this project when there are so many choices to make.  

First of all, she had to pick fabric.  And that proved to be nearly impossible.  I mean what if ten years from now she decided to change her curtains?  Or her rug?  Or her bedding?  What if she fell in love with something SOMEDAY that she couldn't buy because it wouldn't match her canopy-that-doesn't-exist yet?

I understand her dilemma.  Because I'm a libra too, but with a lowercase "l".  I feel ALL those same Libra feelings, but I have learned to put my need for finality before my need for perfection...most of the time, anyway.

So this year, for her Christmas present, I lent Patrice my decisiveness by telling her that we were doing it, whether she wanted to or not (luckily she did!), and then dragging her to every fabric store within twenty miles (which isn't saying much, haha!) and doing the work before I left Massachusetts.

Did I mention I can't sew?

Regardless, something needed to be done.  

Here's what we started with...

A beautiful cornice that my parents had built as a gift while my sister was away, to speed up the project.   

That was three years ago.  She's got great, luxurious bedding in neutrals with a hint of sage green, so we bought fabric to coordinate with that, but it was still neutral enough that it would allow her latitude to change the room colors if she ever decided to (yeah, like that is ever going to happen!!)

Armed with two coordinating fabrics, some trim, a glue gun with fabric glue sticks and a staple gun, I went to work.  Did you catch that?  That was all we needed for our project

FABRIC

TRIM

GLUE GUN

FABRIC GLUE STICKS

STAPLE GUN

AN IRON

Step one was to fold the fabric for the sides of the canopy in half, lengthwise.  We'd bought home decor fabric measured to hang from the cornice to the floor.  It was 54" wide, and we folded it in half because it was going to be seen from both sides and we needed the pretty side facing both ways.  I had Patrice iron the seam so it would be crisp, and then I attached some gorgeous tassel trim with hot fabric glue to the side with the seam.  The side with the unhemmed edges needed to be facing the wall.

  And seriously, the fabric glue??  

That stuff is like liquid GOLD - I am beside myself that I've never used it before.  Just a dab or two and POOF! the trim was attached.  For a girl who can't sew, this is nothing short of miraculous.  A whole world of possibilities has opened in front of me!!!

But enough about the world of crafts and back to this one...

doesn't it look LOVELY?

Our second step was to staple the fabric to the cornice.  I wish I had pictures, but I was busy stapling, so you'll just have to take my word for it!  The side of the canopy measured 18" front to back,  but our fabric was purposely wider to accommodate all the pleats we wanted.  

I started by stapling the front corner of the fabric to the front corner of the cornice.  

Then I stapled the back corner to the back corner, 

and the middle to (you guessed it!) the middle.

Like this...

|                            |                                |

Then I stapled the fabric in the middle of those staples so I had five staples, like this...

|              |             |               |                |

Then I stapled in the middle of those...

and the middle of those....

and the middle of those....

Until I had no middles left and all the fabric was stapled onto the cornice.

It looked like CRUD, with staples and raw fabric everywhere.  

(But I expected that!)

Step Three: 

Repeat on the other side.  

See how the stapling creates the pleats?

Step Four:

Repeat on the back

(we used coordinating fabric here, but you don't have to)

Because Patrice's bed is queen sized and has no headboard, we needed two widths of fabric across the back.  But if you have a headboard and only need the fabric to hang down 3-4 feet, you can turn your fabric sideways.  This saves a ton of money, especially if you like expensive fabric.

The final trick was to cover up all our nasty staples with some more pretty trim.  I'd intended to use the fabric glue for this, but our trim proved to be so camouflaging that I stapled it on and you couldn't even see the staples.

Sorry for the lack of a before shot.

I was in the zone and didn't stop until it was DONE.

Which amazingly, took less than an hour.

Maybe even less than a half hour.

And VOILA!!

For the detail oriented among you who noticed the trim hanging down in the corner there...I cut it off, I promise ;-)

Patrice loved it, 

I loved it, 

and I have to say,

it kind of ROCKED!  

I'm a big fan of things that give you a good bang for your buck.  

I'm a BIGGER fan of things that give you a good bang for your TIME.  

My favorite projects are ones that don't cost a ton, 

are done with minimal effort, and look like they belong in a magazine.

I've had a lot of crafts flop in my life, but this one was not one of them!

In the end, it's a total hack job, and you can tell if you look closely.

See?  The trim was so expensive we skimped and didn't take it down to the floor.

And look at those raw edges on the bottom! 

There are raw edges hiding everywhere!

I'm sure a professional decorator would get nauseous looking at it.

But it's not for a professional, it's for real life!

And it's D-O-N-E, so my sister finally has something to have sweet dreams under

after dreaming about it for so long.

Yay!

It's The Great Mudroom Reveal, Charlie Brown!

It really is AMAZING how one simple, little thing can change the flow of your days and the stress in your life. Having a mudroom that works means the ability to get in and out of the house expeditiously and safely, and it has singlehandedly made my life so much easier!

I almost forgot to take "before" pictures, so focused was I on the changes ahead. So halfway through emptying the closet, I grabbed my camera. Here is what our mudroom looked like before we pulled ourselves up by our DIY bootstraps...

 

You can see the beginnings of something taking shape - the fabulous wall quote that was a gift from  my friend Sandy, who was my BFF before BFFs were cool (in fact, I'm pretty sure we started the idea back in 1984, but we'll let all the TXTers think they were the geniuses). 

But the rest?  The rest was just a Hot Mess.

                    

And this is AFTER I removed the twentyeleven coats hanging from the rod and the giant baskets of stuff that had fallen over and created this mess. 

The double closet with the sliding doors was killing us.  It took up half the tiny mudroom, leaving us not enough space to get our gear on without knocking each other over.  My mind first went toward demolition - I needed a sledgehammer to take that closet DOWN!  But reason prevailed - I don't have the time, or the resources (mental or financial) to go remodeling this place.  I just needed to find a way to make the space work for us - which is where the idea to take off the closet doors was born.

And it WORKED!!  I merged ideas from all of my inspiration photos (thank you Google!) and the end result has been nothing short of  a miracle.  And the best part is that all it required was one saw cut, a few nails, and some paint. 

Here she is, the NEW and IMPROVED Mallett Mudroom!!!

 

Aaaah!  Just looking at it makes my stress melt away.  The tray table is destined for another spot in the house, but it's a good placeholder for a thrifted dresser I have yet to find and paint blue.  It will hold all our overflow gear, like mittens and hats in winter, and floaties and beach towels in summer.  All of which are in a bucket in the laundry room currently...baby steps! 

The lamp is a $29.99 find from Homegoods, as is the glass jar filled with Springtimey things that remind me that spring is only FORTY DAYS AWAY!!!  The faux paperwhites were $8 on clearance from Pottery Barn.  Have I mentioned that it ROCKS to have a PB store nearby - the seasonal clearance items make me swoon!  Thank goodness I can only go when I'm alone, which isn't often. 

Molly's infamous ruby slippers (well, infamous among the twelve people who saw our realtor photos from Edgewater Drive, har har) hanging on the blue doorknob hook.  This was one thing I KNEW would be incorporated into the mudroom.  It's one of the few truly original ideas I've ever had, but even more than that, it's my favorite way to decorate - around items that highlight our family's journey in an artful way that makes sense within the house.  Sure, I could stick a picture of Molly in her red shoes on a shelf, but to me, this is a way that takes one memory as a seed that blossoms into many new memories. 

All of our comings and goings are past those shoes, and maybe my kids one day will put their own little girls in ruby slippers and remember the shoes that watched over their shoulders as they came and went all these years.

Sigh. So anywho...

functional + neutral backdrop + seaglass hues + pops of red + familynostaligia + far too much vinyl lettering. 

That's pretty much the theme here.  And the closet?  What closet?

I don't even remember the old closet, so functional and fabulous is this new niche.  Each person gets their own double hook for their coat and bag, plus a spot for their boots in the boot tray.  They are LABELED because 'some people' (and by that I mean Marc) have been known to commandeer more hooks than their fair share, creating an ugly domino effect. 

When I couldn't find the cottagey white bench of my dreams within a price point I liked, I'd initially wanted to paint this $89.99 BJURSTA bench from IKEA white and make a cushion for it.  Once I got it home though,  I remembered that I have three children and zero free time and that a black bench with a few pillows on top would do just FINE thankyouverymuch. 

The surname photo-art above the hooks was a Christmas gift from my parents. My mom and I clearly share a brain, because this is the same art that was hanging in one of my inspiration photos - but she ordered it BEFORE I posted my inspiration photo.  (insert mysterious music here...)

Initially I had some nice, cheap, chrome hooks to put up, but when I went with the black bench, I knew I had to get the dark hooks to match, even though they were three times the price at $6.50 apiece.

The pillows were a Homegoods clearance find for $18.00!  And they have a coordinating but contrasting fabric on the back, which matches a shower curtain I bought for $8.00.  I'm going to use the fabric from the shower curtain in other projects around the house to tie in the color scheme.

The boot trays were $24.99 Target versions of the $49.99 ones from Ballard Designs  that I've coveted for many moons.  One is 3 years old and one is brand new and the only reason I know which is which is that I tried to scrub the sticker off the first one.  With the second one I knew not to bother because it wasn't coming off without a blowtorch!

The three clocks is an idea I have had in my idea bank for years from an HGTV mudroom redo on a show called Decorating Cents.  The idea didn't make sense when we lived in MA (I mean, what other time did I need to know but Pembroke Standard?)  But now it totally does!  Sadly, I am "time zone" challenged, consistenly adding or subtracting in the wrong direction to figure out what time it is in MA.  And I'm pitiful when Marc travels to London (which is often these days).  I ask questions like "is it still the same day there?" because my brain just. does. not. compute!  These clocks are my little secret weapon to my brain's shortcomings.  And they're cute.  And cheap!  I got them at Target for $2.99 apiece.  $2.99!!!  And they were yet another reason to get out my Cricut and cut some vinyl letters.

This laundry room door was a late LATE night design decision that looked AWFUL...until I put the vinyl on it!  Nothing like some black vinyl letters to add just the right amount of pizzazz!  I found the magazine holder last weekend at Homegoods for $19.99 and it is exactly what I need to corral the kids' papers after school each day.  But the blasted thing has two keyhole openings on the back and even though I've measured and marked the wall, it's going to take two screw anchors, two flathead screws of juuuust the right dimensions, a drill for a p

ilot hole, a screwdriver for the screw and a whole lotta prayers to get it up on the wall.  Goodness I do hate keyhole mounts!

So it LOOKS pretty, but how does it FUNCTION???  Take a look!

The key is to keep only the absolute, daily necessities here.  One jacket, one pair of shoes or boots, hat, mittens, and bag.  Overflow has to go elsewhere because it clutters up the works and the whole system goes to pot.  So for right now, we're keeping off season jackets, raincoats, and dress coats in everyone's bedroom closets.  

And now with the benefit of experience, I can see where the system needs to be tweaked to achieve optimum performance.  That will include pulling the bench forward to the front of the alcove, and adding a lower tier of hooks for each person.  Then the longer snowpants and coats can hang down behind the bench, and Molly and Ben will have hooks they can reach by themselves without having to stand on the bench.  I'd also LOVE  better overhead light and an electrical outlet or two, so that my lamp doesn't need an extension cord into the laundry room.

But all in all, this has been one awesome home improvement because not only has it added functionality to our lives, it has made our home more "ours".  I love going through the mudroom now - sometimes I'll just stand in there and soak it all in.  

Coming and going is SO much easier and better now.  And every time we pass through our doorway, we walk by another special treat from my mom - it sums up so much of how we feel about our home and our lives here....



Why am I painting ceilings at midnight?

I'm sure if you asked Marc, he did not *intend* for me to be painting the closet ceiling at midnight.  He simply thought that he'd get the ball rolling on our mudroom redo - maybe take the closet doors off and get some hooks on the wall and it would be a step in the right direction.  Clearly he had no IDEA what he was getting into.  Because a mudroom renovation for ME is akin to construction of a personal poker lounge for him.  I imagine that when he has four seconds to daydream (and with his current schedule, it probably isn't often) he visualizes cherry paneling on the walls, the perfect comfy chairs, the most incredible poker table(s) and maybe even a little side door with a small window through which he can ask guests the password for the night before letting them in.  He sees how this poker lounge would change his life in a multitude of happy ways.  He can practically feel himself basking in the glow of it.  Maybe he even Googles poker lounge images once in a while to make sure he has the best ideas on board if and when the time comes that he gets to make his dream a reality.

This is precisely how I feel about my mudroom.  The mudroom I have yearned for, dreamed of, even built once in our old house.  The mudroom that was on my priority list for our new house.  My top THREE priorities in fact.   The mudroom that sadly, was passed over in favor of other wonderful features in our new house.

Coming up with the idea to take the closet doors off of our mudroom closet and instead turn it into lockers was the lightning bolt that reignited my hopes and dreams.  That one day, my three children and I could make it into our jackets and boots and out the door without knocking each other over or dumping out  bags of rogue mittens to find the pair that went missing. 

This was NOT something to be taken lightly or jumped into without the proper planning.  I have been googling images for months and sketching images for weeks and scouting supplies whenever I could.

See?

There was the one that got it all started,

The one with the floor of my dreams, reminiscent of our Beacon Hill apartment
(and can I just say THANK YOU to Better Homes and Gardens for watermarking it's images so I can give proper credit?  Also, can I say SORRY! for the images that no one bothered to watermark, that I shamefully can not give proper credit?)

There was the Martha Stewart one with crisp green walls and awesome metal buckets and perfect simple bench,

the one that reminded me of the Martha one but with a little more organizational bling,

the one with the killer print on the cushion,

the stripey walled one that makes me giddy with it's chic style and matching baskets,

the other one that was crafted from an existing closet that makes great use of the space just like the original,

and the one with the custom white cabinetry and glowing tangerine walls that makes my heart go pitty pat!

This is why I was slightly taken aback when, on Monday morning, Marc announced with conviction "We're gonna get the mudroom started today."  I attempted to explain why this was not a feasible plan of action, but was confused into agreement with comparisons of mudrooms to software and big words like "iteration".  We needed ITERATIONS you see, because if we waited for perfection then we'd be missing the opportunity to have an imperfect but more functional  mudroom TODAY.  This ITERATION would just be the first PHASE of a number of phases which would eventually lead us mudroom nirvana.

Like I said, I'm sure he figured we'd just take the doors off, throw up some hooks and call it done.

Anyone who knows me (well, anyone besides Marc, who didn't quite catch on) knew that I couldn't let that happen.  Which is why I've spent the last two nights awake into the wee hours, painting and spackling and painting some more...and the days searching online and in stores for the cast of characters I need - a bench, coat hooks, molding, buckets, bins and the like.  I don't have time to find perfection because my mudroom is torn apart and my life is crumbling around it - so I just need to find what will work.  Right now that is a Bjursta bench from IKEA which I'll assemble and paint tomorrow (and make a cushion for next weekend - nevermind that I have no idea how to do such a thing) and hooks and molding from Lowe's.  I'm hoping to hit Target tomorrow for bins and accessories.

I will post befores and afters when I have afters to show...but right now, I just need to decide whether or not I should spread the love by painting my laundry room door before I close the lid on the can of paint....

It's 1:12AM...

...and I have totally lost it.  I can't seem to stop this vicious cycle of poring through Google images and blogs and home decor web sites trying to find the answer to all my burning questions.  My eyes are bulging out of my head and yet still here I am trying to solve these mysteries.

What color armchairs should I buy for the living room?
What type of entertainment center will work on the TV wall?
What colors should I pick? 
Why do I want to take an ice pick to the almond painted trim all over this house ?
(What was so wrong with WHITE that you had to go and paint it DIRTY white?")
How many Pottery Barn Logan bookshelves is too many?
Where can I find cheerful rugs that are not made of scratchy wool and don't cost a fortune?
Where can I find a 33" demilune occasional table or bombe chest for my entryway?
What color should I paint my entryway?
What color should I paint...well, everything?

And tonight's most pressing need: What size pictures should I order for my "picture wall"?  Should I even have a picture wall?  Should I put them on ledges?  On the fireplace mantel?  Should I get canvas or not?  Black and white or color?  Big, bigger or so big it makes people gasp?

Oy.

I did at least find some pretty inspirations to work from, Google is always good for that.

 Tara Whitney.  Swoon!

 I have no idea where this one came from.  Bad copyright infringer, BAD!

 Pottery Barn.  I love this because it's so soothing, even while it's quite busy.   And this one would be totally do-able for me because I have many similar components lying around looking for homes right now.


My Sweet Savannah.  I have stalked, er, idolized Melaine since long ago on HGTV's Rate My Space.  She painted each and every letter on that wall by hand.  It goes without saying that if I choose this route, my Cricut will be doing the work for me!

Exposures.  The day I found one of their catalogs thrown in the recycling bin under the mail cubbies in our Beacon Hill apartment was a lucky day indeed.  I adore them! 

And lastly, MARTHA.  Need I say more?

Now I am going to go drag my sorry self to bed, where I will appropriately spend the last thirty seconds of consciousness chastising myself for not going to bed sooner, and for wasting YET MORE TIME on my current home decor obsession.  Really, it has to stop.  Just as soon as I have these pictures on the wall.  And the entertainment center installed.  And the rugs down.

And does anyone know a good Chicagoland electrician?

UPDATE!  I just checked out my friend Emily's blog, you know, to see if she had any good picture wall ideas?  And lo and behold OUR LITTLE FAMILY is on her little BLOG!  Hot diggity dog!  If she wasn't such a darn good photographer, I wouldn't be agonizing over which pictures to order and how enormous to get them!