Where I blog, plus a $3 stool makeover

Well, I guess it's time to fess up. I don't really do most of my blogging in my home office. Not exactly earth-shattering news, I know, but I wanted to come clean since I've shown photos of my home office so often. Though I do spend time in my home office, I do most of my writing on a desk in the kitchen.

There is really nothing special about this kitchen desk. It just makes more sense for me to squeeze in a little bit of blog writing and reading right in the middle of all our family's swirl of activity. Yes, I know it's a little indulgent to have two desks but I feel it's justified since I've always made a living as a writer.

Having spent so many years in newsrooms, I was used to having an ergonomically correct working space. Or rather, my body was. Soon after I began blogging, my elbows and hands ached without the proper equipment on my humble kitchen desk. So hubby obliged and installed a custom keyboard tray. A couple weeks ago, I added to the ergonomics by updating a vintage stool I found at a thrift store for $3. Now, I have a super comfy footstool that also brightens my writing area.

This is what the stool looked like before, complete with a $25 price tag still attached. My guess is that someone tried to sell it at an antique store. But honestly, I would have never bought it for that price. Three dollars was just right. Take a look:

Eeek! Not a pretty sight. I mean, just take a look at that awful little rag rug covering it and all those staples, which took me forever to remove before I sanded down the legs.

Then came time to choose a new cover. These fabrics, pictured below, were the initial contenders: a flowered scrap of fabric, a tea towel from Anthropologie and a burlap-like fabric I thought I would embellish with some sort of drawing in black ink.

But none of those looked right once I decided on bright yellow for the stool legs, so I began hunting around my home for something else. Yes, even a needlepoint horse was a contender at one point.

And a Mexican tapestry placemat that my mom bought in Oaxaca. As lovely as it might have looked, I couldn't bear to cut it up.

Finally, a winner emerged. I chose a lovely mushroom needlepoint that I found at a thrift store for five dollars.

I initially wasn't so sure the olive needlepoint matched the bright yellow legs, but now I think the pairing was meant to be. I just love the bright pop of color it adds to my workspace, where red and dark brown dominate.

I now feel like my workspace is complete. I love sitting down to write, surrounded by so many favorite items: a tiny matryoshka pillow made by a lovely woman from El Salvador living in Australia with whom I swapped magazines and other small gifts last year ( a reminder of just how much the blog world brings like-minded people together); two framed postcards that I bought on my first trip to Paris; a simple but lovely tissue flower given to me by my four-year-old son for Mother's Day this year; and now, my newly remade footstool.

By the way, I don't think I mentioned why I even need a footstool. Well, I'm fairly short and my legs usually dangle in the air whenever I sit in most chairs.



I hope you've enjoyed a peek into my workspace.

Taking a cue from beachy blue

Summer seems like the perfect time to add a dose of turquoise, wouldn't you say?

I'm typically drawn to warmer colors, but I found myself lured in by the bright turquoise of this hall tree featured in a magazine house tour of a restored beach cottage.

Better Homes and Gardens

It is a rather large fixture for such bright color but it works perfectly inside the beach home of author Mary Kay Andrews. The author's colorful beach cottage in the June issue of Better Homes and Gardens had me coveting a beach bungalow of my own.

Better Homes and Gardens

The cottage became a repository for all the accessories the author had been buying for years, just waiting for the day when her beach house dream would come true. After 30 years of delay caused by life circumstances, the author finally found a fixer-upper that she lovingly infused with warmth and personality. The vintage shelf, pictured above, houses an eclectic mix of items to create a display with character.

Better Homes and Gardens

This bright workspace is adorned by framed covers of the author's past books, a perfect touch for a writer's desk. Check out the full house tour in Better Homes and Gardens here, or buy the magazine for the detailed story. The author also has a blog, with her very own blogroll of favorite home decor blogs.

Thank yous are in order

There is a soft spot in my heart right now for a couple of Canadians.

First, I must offer a heartfelt thank you to the talented Chania, who authors the Razmataz Vintage blog. Chania is an interior decorator and shop owner who was born in Nairobi and lives in Ontario, Canada. She recently hosted a magazine giveaway on her blog and I was one of the lucky recipients of Canadian House & Home.

This particular issue, May 2010, featured the colorful home of Anna Spiro, whose Absolutely Beautiful Things blog and style I've been enjoying for more than two years.

To have Chania pass along this magazine was especially meaningful for me because Chania's blog is now one of my favorites. Chania has a wonderfully humorous way of writing, making even a typical jaunt to her local thrift store sound like an adventure to remember. Chania is quite a decorator, with a natural affinity for using vintage finds to create evocative rooms and vignettes. I highly recommend checking out her blog if you like cozy, vintage or beachy casual. I guarantee you will find something to like, whether it's her latest decorating project for one of her clients or her own beach cottage, or her latest finds for her store.

Thank you, Chania. I'll be enjoying this issue of Canadian House & Home for a long time. I promise this is one magazine I won't cut up into a million tear sheets!

I also owe a big thank you to Li of the Creamy White blog in Alberta, Canada, for recently passing on The Versatile Blogger Award to me. Li writes about "living a simple and laid back life in the city." She has three kids but somehow finds the time to refinish furniture and is on her way to becoming a professional with a recent first sale of a desk-and-chair set she refinished.

Li's posts are full of warmth and I always feel like I've visited the home of one of the nicest people around after I've visited Creamy White. Not to mention that I always get a great dose of inspiration from seeing all her finished projects. If you haven't been there before, I recommend clicking over to Creamy White, especially if you love white.

Thank you, Li. I'm truly honored to receive this award. Meeting friends like you is what makes blogging so fulfilling and fun.

A simple "family" painting project

It feels so good to be back blogging after a few days of ill health. Yes, my friends, I will never take good health for granted again after having emergency gall bladder surgery over the weekend. I will spare you the details but as, cliché as it may sound, I just want to say how thankful I am for all the simple pleasures of life.

After three days in the hospital, I came home to my happy kids, my wonderful husband and my ever-helpful and loving mom standing right next to these French doors:



Of course, walking in the door and seeing my family made me immeasurably happy, but it was also thrilling to be back at the home I've so lovingly decorated. See that "family" sign above the French doors? It's a simple project I finished recently and was just getting ready to blog about it when I had a gall bladder attack last week. Due to a misdiagnosis, I spent five days writhing in pain on my couch despite heavy pain medication before going to the hospital and discovering the real source of my troubles.

Anyway, the simple painting project took on a new meaning when I returned home from the hospital two days ago.



Without further ado, here's the simple project. Really, it doesn't get any simpler than this. I started out with some old letters I found at the thrift store for $2. I knew right away I would be painting them but waited a while before deciding what color.

Yes, I bought the letters so long ago that my kids were still wearing parkas outdoors!

Here are all the letters, after being lightly sanded, primed and painted. In a moment of inspiration, I decided to do a rainbow effect using my favorite colors: yellow, orange and red.

In the photo above, you can see how I used a blend of two colors to create a new in-between color. For the last letter, I used the white primer since I had no white spray paint.

I really enjoy walking into my home through the front door and seeing those rainbow letters. They somehow make me happy.

Again, here's what the letters looked like before I painted them.

Here's what they look like now, above the French doors.

I have a tendency to make things more complicated than they need to be, but in this case, I kept it simple and I think it worked.

Do you use letters or signs to decorate in your home?

Etsy finds: stylish oilcloth accessories

Sure, I know oilcloth is not the first fabric that many of you think of when you're buying home accessories, but I think the laminated fabric adds such a distinctive touch that's hard to resist.

My latest search for oilcloth was spurred by the adorable bike pannier I blogged about last week. I just couldn't get it off my mind and I wondered what other cute oilcloth items people were creating. Of course, I did most of my searching on Etsy because I like to support independent artists and crafters. What I came up with shows just how sophisticated oilcloth has become:

Modern June

Banners are all the rage these days, but this party banner definitely tops the list for me as an attractive and durable option for all those summer parties. Forget using paper streamers that end up in the trash. This banner, which can become a fun yard or patio accessory for the summer, is made by Etsy seller Modern June, a homeschooling mom of two who was formerly a costumer for film and theatre.

Chalkydoodles

This oilcloth pillow from Etsy seller Chalkydoodles really took my breath away. It looks just like regular fabric but with the added feature of being more resistant to the elements. Plus, it adds such a distinctive touch to outdoor decor. Don't you think?

Chalkydoodles

Chalkydoodles also had these adorable oilcloth and chalkboard label tags in stock. These are great for adding pretty touches to your organizing projects or to give as reusable gift tags.

Sewing Momma

Sewing Momma

Sewing Momma has outdone herself with these stylish oilcloth bins that are perfect for so many things. Organizing in playrooms, dens or family rooms, kitchens, bathrooms. I first wrote about Sewing Momma's Sarah Latimer of Denver last year in a post about earth-friendly gifts for kids shortly after she launched her Etsy shop featuring eco-friendly bins, some made with Amy Butler fabrics. The mother of four has since grown her business tremendously, offering pretty bins in a variety of styles and sizes.

Stitches from the South

Somehow, I'm drawn to kids' ottomans or pillow cushions that double as seating for kids. I've seen them at so many online and discount stores but never in oilcloth, obviously a great fabric for kids. This oilcloth floor cushion is made by Etsy seller Stitches from the South, a grandmother of seven.

partyfavorsparties

Yes, I'm still pining for that bike pannier but this oilcloth bike pouch from Etsy seller partyfavorsparties is a great alternative for those short bike rides when you only need to take your keys or other small items.

rbt Bags

I'll take one of these lovely oilcloth three-ring binders in every color, please! I've got a few organizing binders around the house for various projects and am always on the lookout for pretty covers. These stylish binder covers are removable in case the binder itself wears out, you can just pop it right over another binder.

Rachel Bode Tucker, the creative force behind rbt Bags, is a mom of five boys who says in her Etsy profile that she discovered oilcloth while searching for inexpensive, stylish and practical products for her family. Working on a borrowed sewing machine, this creative mom began whipping out everything from key fobs to checkbook covers to tote bags.

Her store description aptly describes the virtues of oilcloth: "We try to use our resourcefulness to create products that add whimsy to people’s lives without sacrificing practicality or sophistication."

White walls showcase colorful Danish style

I never thought I would say this, but crisp white walls are definitely becoming more alluring to me. Check out this vignette that I stumbled on last night:

Rie Elise Larsen

The beautiful range of colors and patterns stand out so well against the white background. I tried to picture this vignette with a different wall color, but, each time, I kept going back to the white walls. I think I have finally learned to appreciate white walls.

Though most of the walls in my home are white, it was initially because we moved in when I was pregnant and I didn't want to be exposed to any paint fumes. I used to harbor fantasies of one day painting every room in the house, preferably a warm color. No more.

Certainly not after seeing these great images from the website belonging to Danish designer Rie Elise Larsen.

Rie Elise Larsen

The photo above is definitely going into my permanent inspiration files. I don't remember if I've ever told you about my fondness for cubbies of all kinds, including printer's trays.

Rie Elise Larsen

The sweet mobile shown in the photo above is inspiring all sorts of craftiness on our end here.

Rie Elise Larsen

Just look at all the white in the photo above. It would be such a design crime to have it any other way.

If you like the images above, you may be interested in taking a virtual tour of Rie Elise Larsen's home, found on Bo Bedre here. Here are a couple images from that tour.

Bo Bedre

Can you imagine the delicious conversations that take place at that tiny white table? And, of course, I had to post this delightful kid's room.

What colors do you find yourself drawn to these days? Have you ever shied away from a certain color only to realize later that you like it?

Tinkering, always tinkering with color

The kids and I have been re-arranging a few things and working on another craft project. Of course, both involve color. Lots of it. Thankfully, both my kids adore color the way I do.

I hope to have photos to show you soon the fruits of our efforts.

Have a great week!