DIY White Woodland Christmas

Last Christmas, our living room walls were dark paneled wood. I tried my best to decorate for the holiday and lighten up the mood in the room, but I just couldn't get over how dark and cavernous the dark wood panels made everything feel. It was right after the holiday that we decided to paint the paneling white. And this year, I couldn't wait to decorate our space. Everything came together quite nicely and I went with a white woodland theme. Some of my favorite details include our tiny gingerbread woodland animals on the mantel, cinnamon scented pinecones in the tablescape, and the amazing DIY customizable wall plate from adorne by Legrand on our wall.

To create our tablescape, I used live garland from Trader Joes (cut down to about 5-6 feet), cinnamon scented pinecones from our local grocery store, clementines for color, and a mixture of candlesticks and ivory candles.

 

To create the mantel display, I used more of the live garland as a swag and made a gingerbread woodland forest with IKEA DRÖMMAR and Vinter cookie cutters. 

This is the custom wall plate from adorne by Legrand that I decorated using metallic cardstock, boxwood twine, a tiny plastic deer head, and thin red ribbon. It's the perfect addition to our decorations and provides a lot of visual interest to an otherwise empty wall. The coolest thing about it was how easy it was to decorate. Almost all the DIYs I tackle end up taking more time than I anticipate, but designing this wall plate took about a half hour start to finish. Decorating the plate (not the electrical set-up, clearly) would be a great project to do with kids. 

Click through to see the full DIY and more details! 

6 Modern Eclectic Ways To Think Outside The Frame

I'm always on the hunt for new ways to incorporate natural elements into our home and onto our walls. I love framed art, but too much of one thing takes away from the beauty and intentionality of that item. Varying the types of items you hang allows each piece to stand out and hold court on its own. Here are the six modern eclectic wall decor items I'm digging lately.

Above: Kilim rugs combine beautiful rich colors with geometric patterns and always add eclectic character to a space. Since they're low pile, they look lovely on walls. 

Above: This space is so artful, unique and functional with its display of straw hats. Using a bleached piece of driftwood, as seen in the styling above, created a beautiful bending shape and I love the driftwood peeking through the hats. 

I love washi tape for many reasons, and uses, but wall decor is one of my favorite. The options for creativity are endless and temporary, making it the perfect option for apartments or dorms. This example of black crosses is modern yet playful and a fun idea for a child's playroom. 

See the rest of the list after the jump!

Design Outdoors: Backyard + Patio

This is the first summer living in our house and we are eating it up. It's like we've been bracing ourselves, clenching our teeth and tensing our muscles, for the duration of that long harsh winter and are finally, slowly, loosening our grip and relaxing into the soft pillow that is summer.

The private patio on the back of our house does a nice job cradling us into relax mode.

I am a big fan of the Ikea Brommo (as seen above) patio chair. I had my eye on the X36 folding chair from Fab, but couldn't stomach the idea of spending $90 on chairs that would need additional work and seasoning, so these are a great substitute/dupe for ~$60 that are both comfortable and seemingly well designed.

Now all this patio needs is to be filled with friends, laughter and music. Party anyone?

Scavenged treasures: a local antique mall hunt

I've been a thrifter for awhile now. I go in and out of stages of obsession- sometimes going months without stepping foot inside a thrift or antique shop, and sometimes daydreaming daily about what my local Salvation Army has on its shelves. It's safe to say that I'm in an obsession phase right now. And I just cannot get enough of the hunt for scavenged treasures. Miller's Antique Mall in Verona, PA is giving me my FIX. 

Now, for the disclaimer...if you hate clutter and the TV show Hoarders is your worst nightmare, do NOT click ahead. And definitely don't go into Miller's. Oh man, just please don't. As for my thick-skinned, take-no-prisoners, thrifting friends, read on...

Design Crush: White, Walnut, and Kilim

from left to right: Threshold Walnut Frame, TOLSBY Ikea frame, Mid-century Modern furniture feet, Herman Miller Eames chair, HRUSKAA hanging planter, pillowme Kilim pillows

Classic white with walnut accents and pops of colorful Kilim patterns make me swoon. Add a touch of greenery in the form of succulents cradled in a gorgeous handmade hanging planter and I am SOLD. I'll take all of it. No thanks, I don't need a bag, I'll carry it to my car. 

DIY Reclaimed Wood Dining Table

I really dig the reclaimed wood table look. I browsed a bit at Crate & Barrel and Restoration Hardware, but couldn't stomach the idea of dishing out upwards of $1,500 for a table. So Rich and I decided we would make our own this past weekend. With the right tools, this is easily a one day project. And for those of you that are drowning in long term home renovations, it's a breath of fresh air to start and finish a project in one day. The best part? It cost under $60 to make.

Looming Large

It was 11AM when our trusty Lincoln Towncar pulled in to the Family Heirloom Textile Factory in Red Lion, PA. The factory is housed right besides the old farm and creek where Granny (Rich's grandmother), used to hunt muskrats with her cousins who were well-versed in the art of trapping.

As with many of life's great things, it was not much of a sight from the outside. But as we stepped inside, owner David Kline, sitting at an antique desk with his fingers clasped, started to talk and offered to give us a tour through his looming factory. And the rest was, is, and will continue to be amazing history.

Starting to Deck the Halls

Each year around the holidays, my mom transforms our home in Pittsburgh into a warm, rustic, ribbon-and-raffia-flowing wonderland. It feels warm and all-encompassing in the most welcoming and festive way.

eye candy: interior design genius

Anyone that has ever stepped foot in an Anthropologie store has seen the intricate and inspired decorating genius of the store's interior designers.

DIY bamboo chopstick bowl

This lovely little DIY project appeared in the April/May issue of ReadyMade magazine. It's a fruit bowl made entirely of bamboo chopsticks, thin malleable wire, and small beads.

DIY chandelier

One of my favorite things in the whole world is thrifting. Our North Chicago neighborhood is filled to the brim with second-hand stores full of abandoned treasures just waiting to be adopted.

Yesterday was rainy and curl-up-inside-with-a-project cold, so I decided to embark on a journey to make a DIY chandelier for our lighting-deprived kitchen. Rich and I hit the local Sal-val to find materials and went to work. The end result was pretty rad....