The room was originally going to be used as a home office, but when we saw how big it was once it was framed, Josh and I decided to use it as the master bedroom. It is the only room in the house that has an adjoining bathroom, so it does make sense to use it this way.

The floors are pre-finished wood floors from Lumber Liquidators. The stain was dark enough to blend well with the original wood floors in the rest of the house, and just rustic enough to withstand some abuse from our pup Hannah and my constant furniture rearranging. :o)

I painted the walls Sea Pearl which was a bit of an off white. And the trim and moldings are still painted using Swiss Coffee, so although it’s hard to see in these images there is still a bit of difference in color between the two.

The wonderful dresser was a vintage find at County Roads Antiques in the Orange Circle near our home. I fell in love with it upon first site, and had to convince Josh why I had to have it, but I ended up getting to bring it home. The little enamel labels were already on it, and I didn’t have to do much to it, but I did cut up some linen-like canvas paint drop cloths to line the drawers inside, which I attached with velcro, to give the drawers the look that they are lined in linen. (They were covered in super ugly and super sticky shelf paper which I had a hard time removing, so this did the trick!)

The large cabinet was actually a piece we bought for our old home which had vaulted ceilings and went in our bedroom to hide the tv. It’s really tall, so it doesn’t fit just anywhere. (In fact we had to scrape the ceilings in our family room to use it in there when we first moved in, but when we re-did that room, we moved it into the bedroom, and I like it so much better in here). It came from a shop called Casa de Campo, which has since gone out of business or moved.

The slip covered rocker I purchased from Blessings, which is also in Old Towne Orange. I bought it eight or nine years ago, so it’s moved from room to room many times over. The chandelier was a vintage find, as was the neat old chair against the wall. The quilt rack on the wall was a Pottery Barn purchase several years ago. They actually had grain sacks hanging from it in the catalog, and I knew I had to use it for the very same purpose in my bedroom.

For one reason or another I am always buying pillows, so I have them tucked in baskets all over the place so I can swap them out from time to time. I like to go back and forth between red and blue in this room, so I have a mix of both in all the fabrics I choose (vintage and new).

We recently threw out our wood head board and bed frame which Hannah chewed up pretty badly as a pup, so I replaced it with this dark wood platform bed frame from West Elm. I haven’t found the perfect piece for above our bed yet, and I’ve tried several, so for now I leave it blank.

The floral print used to be above the fireplace in our front room a few years ago, and it found a new home in here. It was from Z Gallerie.

The little black dresser on my side of the bed is an antique from the 1800′s. I loved it so much I had to find a place for it.

The antique shoe rack was something Josh and I found together just before we moved it together (and before we we married). It was our first “joint” purchase and our only vintage piece, so it is super special to me. I actually saw one in a magazine, and loved the way they had it holding shoes by the front door, and other objects, including a sleeping kitty, who was curled up on one of the racks. Josh and I were shopping at the Barn in San Juan Capistrano, and when I saw it, I was so excited. We ran home so I could show Josh the magazine picture and then went back a day or two later and snatched it up.

It holds just a bunch of random objects I like to display.

The brush display was something I recreated from a magazine as well. I saw a few hanging in a kitchen that was styled and photographed by Elizabeth Maxon, whom I often find inspiration from, and I decided to try something similar in my room above the rack. A few I purchased from the Barn House boys when I attended the Farm Chicks show several years ago, and I loved their tags so I kept them on and added vintage French vocabulary cards to those that didn’t have tags.

My two kitties Mason and Annabelle are on the bed. The curtains are from Patina Green Market. I added the jute upholstery webbing as tie backs. I can’t sew at all, so I used little paper brads to create the loop. The curtains were a touch to short, so you can see my window trim peeking out the top there, which drives me crazy, but I don’t think anyone really notices. (Of course now that I pointed it out, you all do). :o)

This view shows you the closed door to the bathroom, which we also added on, the door back out to the family room, and Josh’s closet.

The opposite end of the room has a set of French doors, which also have the two layers of curtains on them. I have to remove the curtains, and open the doors to get enough light in this room to take pictures, so I didn’t snap any images of them this time, but you can see them in one of my prior posts on this room during construction, here.

Thanks again for coming along! I will post about my home office next. Happy Monday.

Earlier this year, I was asked to become a contributor to Heather Bullard‘s Souvenir Magazine. I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am about this. I feel like it’s another one of my dreams come true. I have long admired Heather’s blog. Her photography and styling are a constant source of inspiration for me and her creativity just has me in awe. I have quite literally dreamed about an opportunity like this one, and I am so thrilled to be a part of it. I feel so fortunate to be among the talented folks working on this gorgeous publication. (Just wait until you see the line up of contributors, I seriously pinch myself at the thought of my name being included among them!)

If you haven’t already, please visit the site (by clicking on the image below) and subscribe to Souvenir. You can also like the page on Facebook to learn more about this lifestyle magazine, and get sneak peaks and updates before anyone else. The site and Facebook page officially launch today, so stay tuned for even more updates.

The magazine is published quarterly, and this years first issue with be out March 20th, 2012.

So far 2012 is shaping up to be an amazing year, I can’t even imagine how it could get any better.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

When we moved in this room was olive green with the same textured walls and faux finish from our kitchen and dining room. The sliding glass door had a plaid valance and drapes, and woven sea grass blinds. The flooring was also the same Spanish pavers that continued on from the kitchen and dining room, and since the room has two steps that you have to step down, the stairs had colorful Spanish ceramic tiles along the font. The wall behind the sofa was a giant built in with curved openings and knotty pine doors to hide electronics and a large opening for the television. (You can see some old before an after pictures from my previous post here).

The room was dark and not at all my style, and I didn’t think that it went with the rest of the house.

Thankfully my Dad had done drywall work for most of his life, and we were able to enlist him to smooth out the drywall on both the walls and ceiling in this room. The ceiling is “Swiss Coffee”, which is also the white paint we used for all our trim, moldings and doors. The walls in this room are “Latte” by Restoration Hardware. The sea grass carpeting was continued into this room from the kitchen and dining room, and my father-in-law helped me to redo the steps in fresh white trim.

The rug is from Pottery Barn, as are the sheer linen drapes, and the heavier cotton canvas drapes on either side. I was lucky enough to find them on sale years ago, and I have moved them from room to room. The other pair of the same cotton canvas drapes are in our nursery. The colored botanical prints are from Ballard Design (I bought them the same year as the other print in my front room).

The black and white prints I bought from Crate and Barrel, and the coffee table from Wisteria. (In case you were wondering, I took some of these early in the day with natural light, and the others with the lights on, since I had to shoot the video for the show with lights on. I normally never take pictures with the lights on, as natural light is sooo much prettier!)

The little rattan cubes are from Ikea, and hide some of Finn’s toys, since we spend most of our day in this room, it’s nice to have a quick place to tuck them away. Our sofa is from Restoration Hardware. I actually hate it. It’s always so frumpy looking and it’s really not all that comfortable. I thought I was buying “the best” when I opted for the more expensive all down cushions, but I have quickly learned that you want the polyester wrapped down cushions so that they will actually keep some sort of shape. Lesson learned I supposed – more expensive is not always better.

That’s my sweet Annabelle napping on the sofa. You may have also noticed her on my bed on the Nate Berkus show. I was so happy she and Hannah made the video. The only one who didn’t was our kitty, Mason, who is in the still photos on his site.

The door in the corner leads to my bedroom, which was an addition that we built on. It was one of the only places we could find to add a door, so it’s a bit narrow to work with our space.

The other side of the room has our t.v., the door to the laundry room, and a little corner I set up for Finn.

I saved these green vintage chalkboards to hang in a play space once we finally had a baby, so I was really happy to get to use them here. The little chair, and barn are from Pottery Barn Kids, and were Christmas gifts for Finn.

And there you have it, our family room. If you ever wonder where I am when I’m not on the computer, it’s right there on the sofa in my sweat pants watching Nick Jr with Finn.

Hope you’ll going me again tomorrow. Next stop, our master bedroom.

Oh! One quick thing – I wanted to mention – the table runner in my dining room in yesterday’s post, is one on the vintage grain sack runner’s we sell in the shop. You can find them here: Linens

And I should have mentioned that Josh’s Aunt Lynn, (the one who made me the chalkboard/mirror) in my kitchen has an Etsy shop, and you can find her here: Zig Zag Way Antiques

One of the first things I’ll point out is the fun harlequin “Paris” sign I bought just before we moved into our home at a local florist and gift shop. It inspired the color pallet for both the kitchen and dining room. I had our painter copy the colors exactly when she recreated the harlequin pattern on the walls.

The texture on the walls is a bit easier to notice in here, and the aged effect from the glaze over the paint color highlights that texture. The cabinets and counters were done by the previous owners, although we did switch out all the hardware. I actually don’t like our granite at all, but until I can afford a replacement (and/or talk Josh into another renovation project), we live with it. I just don’t care for the busy look most granite has. I prefer more of a solid color. Someday I’d love to redo the entire kitchen, but I’ll get into that some other time.

This is probably the least cluttered my kitchen counters have ever looked, and that is just for the photos, so don’t think for a moment that we actually live this way. Ha!

The sign above I bought at a flea market years ago. Josh does most of the cooking around here, and I thought it was pretty funny. (Josh didn’t really think so). The numbered canisters were from Stonewall Kitchen, and the area rug from Horchow. (In case you haven’t caught on, I do most of my decor shopping online unless I’m buying vintage pieces.) The paper towel holder was also from Ballard Design.

The chalkboard was something Josh’s aunt made for me one Christmas. It’s an old dresser mirror, she turned around the mirror and put chalkboard paint on the back, so that we could use either side (mirror or chalkboard). I change things around a bit on that wall, but I do love the chalkboard there. The basket beneath it holds our dish towels. It was an estate sale find, and it’s one of my favorites.

I actually made that utensil holder in pottery class in high school many years ago. My mom kept it and gave it to me. I think it fits right in. The pure butter platter was a reproduction I found years ago.

The pantry sign came from Sturbridge Yankee, if I remember right. It was also purchased when we first moved in.

And there you have it. Although our kitchen doesn’t have any windows because of the addition of the family room, it does get great light from the two skylights on either side of the pot rack.

Thanks for going me again today. I hope you’ll come back tomorrow as I continue the home tour into the family room.

It’s actually pretty small really, but it’s nice and open, which makes it feel larger. I think we’ve done the least work to this room, as the prior owners did a lot of stuff to it that I loved and left alone. The built in bench, the tin ceiling, and the cabinet and crown molding were all there prior to us moving in. It’s part of what sold me on the house when we looked at it.

Even the harlequin pattern was in place when we moved in, however it was in mustard and olive, and the whole room was the mustard color with a brown faux finish over it. Josh and I hired a painter and had her redo the dining room and kitchen (which were both in those mustard and olive colors) in a cream and black. The base of the walls in called “Lancaster White”, and she then used a watered down paint glaze to dab the walls to give them an aged effect. They were already textured and the glazed effect really helped make sense of that texture. (My only other option was smoothing out the walls, which was a much larger project).

In addition to repainting, we also changed out the flooring, which were red Spanish pavers when we moved in. I wanted to find wood floors that matched the original wood floors in the rest of the house, but wasn’t able to find something that matched. (They are really thin planked boards, and I couldn’t seem to find anything similar at the local shops we checked). My next choice was finding a jute sea grass carpeting. I had seen it done in a magazine, and thought the natural look complimented the style of our home, and didn’t clash with the wood floor where they meet. I found it at a local carpet and flooring supply store, De Mar Flooring. It’s held up surprisingly well. We’ve even had a GIANT magnum bottle of red wine break and spill all over the living room carpet (not even four days after it was installed), and it came completely out with table salt. (The salt soaks up the wine, and you vacuum it up when it dries).

Now that I’ve lived with it for a few years though, I can say I’m ready for a change. It has it’s disadvantages too. If you spend the day in our house without shoes, your feet ache at the end of the day. It’s also gotten moldy in a spot or two where is was exposed to moisture too often (under the dog bowl, near the dishwasher, and by the sliding glass door). It goes away once dry, but it bothers me. I’m also worried about how it will feel on Finn’s little knees when he starts to crawl. The good thing is that we treat it almost like a wood floor, and put area rugs right on top of it, so he does have plenty of room to crawl on soft rugs.

The door there on the right leads to the garage and on the left there are two steps down into our family room, which was an addition added on by a prior owner.  This makes it challenging to use the extra leaves to expand our table, as the garage door gets a lot of use, and it’s just not practical to block it, even for one evening. With the bench comfortably seating two, we do fit six people at the table at any given time, which is more than enough for most nights even with guests.

My table and shelves hold more of my vintage treasures. I change out what I display here from time to time.

One of the more significant changes we made here was the built in for the wine fridge and the cubbies beside it. The prior owners had used this space to create a built in cabinet for their aquarium. It had knotty pine cabinet doors and an opening for the tank. My father in law ripped all of that out and created a space for the large wine fridge they purchased for us one Christmas. Josh is a big wine buff, and loves to collect (and drink) wine. There was a bit of extra space left, so we used it for large cubbies which could hold the larger magnum bottles we own, among other things.

That’s all for today. We move into the kitchen next, check back in a day or so to continue on the tour with me.

Let’s start in the front room, as though you’ve just come in our front door…. take a few steps inside, won’t you?

The first thing you see is the old buffet piece I picked up at the Long Beach Antique Fair a few years back. I fell in love with it’s curved legs and claw feet, and with crystal knobs and that gorgeous patina already in place, I was smitten. It has generously sized drawers that I use to hold my table linens and a few random decor pieces that I tuck away throughout the changing seasons.

I change what I display on top quite often. But for now the little milk jars that Maria from Dreamy Whites sent to me, a vintage scale, and a small urn and some photographs sit there. The large botanical print above I bought from Ballard Designs in 2006. I can’t tell you how many people over the years have asked me about it, and each time I think I like it a bit more and more.

Off to to left is the hallway that leads off to three bedrooms and our guest bath. The white cabinet in the hallway holds the overflow from our tiny bathroom which is lacking a bit in storage.

If you turn to your right, here is what you see:

Our front room and fireplace. And behind you, just next to the front door is another old hutch I found at a flea market several years ago. I was told it is Romanian. I love the colorful old bakelite pulls and the amber colored textured glass panels. It holds Josh’s bar glasses up top, and a few larger serving pieces below.

The front room probably gets most of my decorating attention for many reasons. I LOVE the light it gets. I take just about all of my product photos in this room, the early morning light is just beautiful that filters through the sheer cotton curtains, which are from Pottery Barn. It’s also the room we host parties in, and of course the room that gets seen the most being right inside the front door.

I get asked about the stripes on the walls often, but I can’t take credit for them, as the prior owner painted them there, and I haven’t touched them. I don’t even know the colors or paint brand she used, so I am careful not to ding them up too much when moving things around.

One of the things we did change in this room was the windows and doors. I’ve always wanted a dutch door, and just love how they look on old homes, so that was something we installed right away. It’s painted white inside, and black on the outside. It lets in a ton of light, so I love that about it. It also lets in flies and bees during the summer, and I hate that about it. :o)

All of the interior doors in the house we replaced with two panel, solid core doors. They are heavy weight and a bit more sound proof than hollow core doors. I picked out the crystal knobs with the antique bronze oval door plates to compliment the style of the house. I love them, but they do pop off occasionally, which has been a big headache. The door you see there is our coat closet.

The expanse of windows in the front we added too. It used to be two sliding widows that opened side to side, but I opted for four double hung windows which fit better with the vintage charm I was after.

The vintage piano was a gift from my older sisters mother in law. At first I wanted to paint it, but I decided it added some much needed warmth to the otherwise pale room. As does the rug, which we purchased from Restoration Hardware.

I change the display on my piano for the holidays, but mostly it just displays my favorite vintage finds. The large clock was also from Ballard Design. I bought it around the same time as the botanical print, in 2006.

The little white sofa in this room I bought at a local shop, which has since gone out of business or moved. I had only shopped there a handful of times and unfortunatly can’t even recall the name of it. The couch is slip covered, and I am able to wash the cover, which helps because Hannah likes to sneak up there from time to time. (Little stinker).

The shelves above my newest piece of furniture were also added by the prior owner. I use them to display more vintage finds. I had to rip out the bottom one to fit the curved back of the buffet, but I think it was worth it. It looks like it was made for the space. (If you peek closely you can see the imperfect drywall where I need to patch and paint).

I added the vintage pendant lamp a few years ago. It was purchased from the Barn House Boys. (love them!)

The fireplace is a bit of a challenge for me. I have hated having the recessed area above the mantel. It’s challenging when I like to change my decor frequently to try and find something to fit that large space. Just before I was asked to be on the show, I had given away the artwork that used to hang there. I figured it would motivate me to find something quicker if I had a blank wall to stare at.

I had to think real hard about what to put there when I only had a few days to get the footage shot, and no time or money to find a replacement. The mirror you see there now was on the floor in my bedroom, and much to my surprise, it almost fit perfectly. It wasn’t my first choice as I think it is lacking a bit of color that I need to make the fireplace not so plain. (And I can’t say I like the recessed lighting you see in the reflection.) But it worked, and I think it looked fine.

That’s the end of the tour today… check back in a day or two as we head into the dining room.

We weren’t sure quite what to think of the bumpy grass and quilt to sit on…

We explored a little and watched Hannah chase her ball.

We read books…

And Hannah listened too…

We had lunch under the trees.

We goofed off a bit…

And giggled some too…

And we played in the grass…

And Dad raised me up as high as the trees…

I love to watch the leaves blow in the wind…

Such a fun day….

I absolutely LOVE Nate. I have since I first watched him on Oprah several years ago, so this is beyond thrilling for me, as I’m sure you can imagine. And it makes it even more exciting that I adore Katherine Heigl too, who is his featured guest today.

The show airs here in California at 3pm, so I’m having a “viewing” party with a few friends in just a bit, but I hear it has already aired on the East Coast. (If you missed it, the segment is also available for viewing on his website).

I’ll hope you’ll tune in!

If you missed it, head to his site, and watch the video, or check out the photos.

Josh turned the big 4-0 this month. His parents hosted a big party for him, and I think he thoroughly enjoyed himself, so that was fun. Finn turned six months on Josh’s birthday. We celebrated with a trip to the doctors office for vaccinations. So not what Finn had in mind. Poor baby. He remembers that doctors office each time now, and he does NOT like it.

Little Finn is growing like a weed. He is starting to sit on his own now too. Today he lasted about seven or eight minutes and I was so impressed I ran to get my camera, and just as I was ready to snap the photo, he tumbled over. Ha! I think he planned it that way. :)

I did capture this sweet (but brief) moment while he sat unassisted a few days ago.

He’s sitting in his new playroom I am working on. :o) I decided since we’ve lived here for six years and the guest room has never been more than a room for our cats, that Finn needed more room for his toys. It’s still a work in progress, but I promise to show pictures when I’m ready.

Here he is in my office the other day sitting in his very own chair. :o)

In other news, something pretty exciting happened this month. I was contacted by the Nate Berkus show and asked if I wanted to be a part of their “House Proud” segment for an upcoming show. I, of course, shrieked yes! The next day I was overnighted a video camera and asked to get the footage shot and returned within a day or two. I just about died. Does anyone have their home “camera ready” on that short of notice? lol… I hope I’m not the only one. I begged them to give me the weekend, and they agreed.

Josh and I cleaned frantically and I tried to hide all the clutter so I could meet the deadline and not pass up the opportunity. But man, I was so stressed trying to fit it into my already hectic January that I caught a terrible cold. My voice was so strained on camera, and I think I managed to fumble my lines just about every take.

I was told it will air this Friday, February 3rd. Talk about quick turn time! I am so excited and nervous! I looked it up online and it’s the episode with Katherine Heigl talking about “motherhood and Hollywood”. I just adore her! Grey’s Anatomy is one of my top five favorite shows.

Here’s a picture of my clean living room all gussied up for Nate Berkus!

I took a TON of pictures that day, so I’ll share them in a week or so after the show airs. You’ll have to tune in and let me know what you all think. His show is on at 3pm weekdays on NBC. Eeek!

Make sure you watch for Finn waving goodbye to Nate in the end. He’s so excited to be on t.v. too…lol… Josh decided he didn’t want to be on camera, so he never did make an appearance. :o)