Tuesday, August 24, 2010

come on in....


our home was built in the 80's
 when i purchased it in the late 90's
it looked like it was still the 80's in here!

chintz & florals
wallpaper
loads of wallpaper
in navy, hunter green and burgundy
draperies, heavy drapery

i was a single mom
who took complete advantage of nap time
& during those precious hours
i proceeded to room by room
rip down wallpaper
& paint

well
that was years ago
& my decor and color preferences have changed

i'll never forget the day i walked into my home
looked around at each room
each in its individual color
& little things everywhere
clutter
it was cute
but there was clutter
&  it had to go

all the clutter
and all the color
just made me nervous
it was not a calm environment
my eye nor my soul had no place to rest

so
i began all over again
with zero budget
by the way


i took things off the wall
put away much of the clutter
painted the entire downstairs floor
creamy white
symmetry
much better

a few months ago i finally finished
this long process
& i really love the final outcome

with our 80's home
we have the typical smaller rooms
vs the current desired open floor plan look
you know...the dining room that is seldom used
etc

i felt that if all the rooms had balance with color
they would flow much nicer
(ok...all you decorators out there, please forgive my lack of current decor lingo)

i didn't save many digi before images
but here's a quick downstairs peek anyway






even a couple of the dining room chairs
got a fresh coat of paint
the slipcovers were from pottery barn several years ago


i  painted over the brass light fixtures
ditched the little shades
& added some crystals



i think i've shared about my primitive dough bowl
given to me by my relatives
its huge
takes up most of the seldom used dining table

shells remain most of the year
but they'll soon trade out with white pumpkins
then silvered pine cones in the winter


as mentioned
our 80's home has a family room and a living room
when i first moved in i had visions of slip covering what was then
blue & white striped sofas
did you have some of those circa 93?
anyway my girlfriend talked me out of the 'messy look ' of the slips
reupholster was the way to go
big mistake
i am a slip cover lover
darn peer pressure

i wouldn't go with these colors again
but for now i have chosen to drown them in neutral pillows









the pillow situation changes frequently
&
i'm currently conflicted
should i add two ginormous ones into the mix?
we'll see...


because the rooms feel sorta small
& boxey to me
i intentionally have left my windows untreated
its probably a total decor suicide
but i love it
makes our home very open & light

 here is another little peek from the kitchen to the family room



this is the room that was so dark
when i moved in
navyarama
ugh
i've painted it twice
oil based on all the molding
or whatever that's called
major project
glad that ones done




when i purchased this home
i needed to be in a great community

between that & the fact that my parents
bought a home just down the street
with a pool
was a big sell for me and my little three

but the ah ha moment for me
was when i saw this back porch

we have loved this back porch
when its not 106 degrees
we try to eat many meals out here





thanks for dropping by!
oh & ps
the dreadful flooring shown below
the thorninmysideflooring
its hopefully
the next project on the list!

51 comments:

  1. You have a very pretty house you done a great job...

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  2. absolutely beautiful home...love the dough bowl...we have two huge ones and they are two of my favorite things!

    love all your white mixed with color...and that back porch...todiefor.

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  3. Such a beautiful and charming home!!
    I love your beachy decor (bowl).

    I also love the colour white in all kinda shades :-).

    Super job!

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  4. Oh my word, I LOVE that porch!! And the bowl of shells and starfish were so great! :)

    I'm in that same mood these days -- I love color but I'm itching to "tone it down" a bit here at home color-wise and clutter-wise, too.

    What a welcoming, comfy home you have... it's obvious that love lives among those walls!! :)

    Ruth

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  5. You have a fabulous house and I especially love the back porch!

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  6. Great House! The porch is so dreamy I would sleep out there! LOL ! You've done a great job, it's very lovely!
    Have a blessed day! Tammy :-)

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  7. Your back porch is to die for....
    love everything especially the pared down white look. I am trying to get that look too...in my 80s house!

    annie

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  8. I would live on that back porch all year long!
    I love your house... it's "bh&g" gorgeous!!!
    Love all the little details my friend;-)
    k-

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  9. Thank you for sharing your lovely home........ what a serene and calming place I wish I could visit :-)
    Could you please tell me where you purchased your white, chippy frames that you have family photos in?
    Blessings...........

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  10. your home is just gorgeous....I love it! ~ so peaceful! And that porch oh my! I would spend forever out there too
    xo

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  11. Lovely! Very pretty and serene. And I love the pop of that red sofa...but then, I have to have a little red in every room.

    Alison

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  12. Paige,
    you had me
    at "my parents
    were down the
    street" as
    I'm currently
    having major
    Mom and Dad
    withdrawal.
    How lovely your
    home is and
    the best part
    is that it
    feels like you.
    Home.
    Big hugs, today!
    xx Suzanne

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  13. Oh my -- I think it's beautiful! Good job! Love that back porch and your doggie is so darn cute too!

    Janet

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  14. Those pics are beautiful Paige. I wonder if I'll ever switch over to white and no clutter like you and Lissa. I doubt it...I'm a color girl! It is so pretty though. Instantly soothing and peaceful. I adore your porch area. The epitome of a southern home. That's where I would spend all my time.

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  15. Your house seems calm and peaceful. I LOVE the back porch.

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  16. I think I've said this before but, I would love to take a nap in your family room!

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  17. What an absolutely beautiful home!

    I love the big back pourch - and family meals out there sound delightful!!!!

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  18. Paige, I'm racking my brain trying to figure out how you keep it all so clean and white. Don't get me wrong, I love the white with splashes of color, but I don't get it. I realize you have girls and some are older, but it amazes me.
    I seriously want to line my walls, tables, floors and couch with rolls of butcher paper sometimes. When it gets dirty enough, I'll just go along and rip off the old and lay down a new sheet.
    We have rarely bought anything brand new because we are fully aware that we have 5 children and I love them to death, but they are little pigs and cannot keep anything nice or clean.
    I admire your talent my friend.

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  19. Beautiful Home, love the white couches!!! Hoping soon to bring mine home. Definitely wishing I had a back porch like yours, what a great place for family meals! Thanks for sharing your home with us :)

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  20. ahhh... just looking at pics makes me all serene inside. it must be almost heaven there, paige! what a great job you have done... beautiful!

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  21. OH my goodness, it is gorgeous!!

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  22. This was my favorite post because I just felt like you were leading me around showing me your home... which would be so much fun IN PERSON. :)

    Blessings,
    Sasha

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  23. well i'm sure that no one is looking down at your flooring because they're to busy admiring the decorating.

    you are the reason i searched out a dough bowl. 2 years ago you posted yours filled with fall pumpkins and i had to have one. I'm kinda excited to put big grey pumpkins in mine this year.

    have you seen the new pillows for fall at RH? (not that you need anther pillow~ hee hee) but they're pretty cute! I might have to get one.

    everything looks amazing paige. we have such similar taste!

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  24. Hi Paige:

    I just love seeing pictures of your home...I LOVE all the white! And the dough bowl with the shells? BEAUTIFUL!!

    I think I have mentioned it before, but I have the same mirror that you have above the sofa in your living room. (Great minds think alike.)

    xoxo
    Wendy

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  25. Love it. Your house is so pretty and peaceful. Love the color and love that back porch.

    Can I ask where you got the sign in your kitchen?

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  26. Your home is beautiful and very peaceful looking. I really like the dark rose couch. Love that you have framed some of those beautiful photos.

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  27. Paige! its beautiful!!! oh my gosh...how do you not have anything on the walls? you and Dreamy Maria?? I just can't seem to do that (except in my bedroom I guess - and bathroom)....everything looked SUPER clean and bright and beautiful...I loved how you said "decorating suicide" that's hilarious - and no - it's not - but I did a post once on how your curtains reflect your clothing style - never thought about 'no drapes'....and fashion

    I love it all Paige - that must have been a lot of work taking pictures of every room like that.

    enough ramble.
    xo+blessings,
    Anne Marie

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  28. What a beautiful home! You really inspire me with your use of items you love, and your gorgous photos in gorgeous frames! oh and your porch . . . lovely! Thanks for sharing!

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  29. Simply beautiful! I want a dough bowl...maybe I will find one when I come there :)

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  30. bravo, your home is so peaceful. i just adore your porch and the painted blue ceiling... love, love, love!

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  31. Paige , I love your whites and creams ... it is so peaceful and beautiful ! I had parquet floors when I bought the house I grew up iin from the 60's . believe it or not I kept them , what didn't get damaged from flood waters ! Just strip them a light color and put a shine on them , or paint them a pale color and you will love them !

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  32. I love all the white. I sometimes feel like doing that to my whole house too! And your porch is to die for!! Thanks for sharing. :)

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  33. i love your house and your style!! i am needing some punches of color right now, our house is very monotone. i was so overwhelmed when we moved i had chris paint it mostly shades of brown and tan...

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  34. all that white! gorgeous can i come live with you and the girls? my boys prefer mounted fish and deer heads where you have chandeliers but i sneak in pink and brick red and chenille everywhere i can!

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  35. Loved the tour. Very calming. Every home needs that.

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  36. L-o-v-e, love, love it! Oh and those cool chunky chippy picture frames next to your fireplace.....where'd ya get those???
    ~michelle~

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  37. It was a delight to have a peek at your house...it is very pretty. Enjoy it!!!!

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  38. i love what you did with the brass fixtures. it looks great. awesome house with great bones!

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  39. It is all so lovely! I can just SEE a large grouping of plain white plates on a wall above the floral sofa though. You need to start collecting them!!!:-)

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  40. Same anon with the plate idea again.

    You have a wonderful sense of style and your room with the floral sofa has captured my imagination, I not only see white plates on the wall but an old dark wood (for contrast) dining table with the legs cut down to use as a coffee table. A dining table would be wonderful as it would be very large, much larger than your typical coffee table. Also, maybe you could try pulling the sofa and end tables away from the wall a little, more into the room.

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  41. You've done a beautiful job! Love it! I have some pending "projects" on my to do list also. Thanks for the inspiration.

    Megan

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  42. And by the way - I know I am in catch-up mode - but seeing these pics of your house made me wanna declutter! Big time. I so agree - a clean palette is essential for happiness. Gorgeous house. Such a family feeling but with such elegance and style. I would have said it was a period property so was surprised to read it was a newish-build... Our house is old old, like 16th Century, but was renovated in the 80's; don't get me started! Lou x

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  43. I am booking the plain tonight and I am coming for a visit tomorrow...Is that ok :) It looks so, so gorgeous....My house would fit into your living room lol!!! So, so cold here tonight, nearly sleeting...Love you heaps sweetness xx

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  44. Lovely! Every last corner of it! It's inspiring to see what you've done with it. My house is not at all my style right now and it's a hard to live with. I adore your porch! I could live out there. Maybe not in the Atlanta heat but for sure in the Indiana heat!

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  45. Absolutely serene and beautiful and homey!! I love it!! I also ditched dark colors and have white slip covers with 3 girls, one who is seven and a mess, but they have remained clean and so easy peasey to wash and go!!

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  46. paige, your home is so beautiful in a comfy, come on in and have a seat way. very inviting. that porch would have sold me too. you know my love for porches. thanks for sharing. are all those shells from your trips? gorgeous!!

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  47. Ok, so I wish all to know that this does not even begin to show how yummy it is in there in person!!!! I always think warm cream brulée when leaving there. It is warm, crisp, fluffy, just yummy...then you add the calmness and the gentle smiles of each person in that house.

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  48. It's all so very lovely! We want to paint our porch ceiling that blue color. It's on the list! I especially love those kitchen slips from Anthro... what a find!! Gorgeous.

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  49. Your home is beautiful and the fact that you did it on a budget is even better. I would have bought that house for the back porch, here in California we do not have back porches like that, we have patio's or decks and have to work to make them look as cozy and wonderful as yours, I love your blog and your daughters are beautiful, they are so blessed to have you as their mom.
    Blessings to you and yours
    Curtis & Sherrie

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  50. You have a very lovely home! It looks very peaceful!

    -Hannah

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  51. House looks simply beautiful!

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