Becolorful

The Color Palette For The Master Bedroom

 

                    The walls are finally done and ready to be primed. That means I need to make my final paint choices. I know it seems odd that being the color evangelist that I am that I would opt for such a neutral color palette for this room.  But, much like our living room, I am going for a more sophisticated look here and for me, neutrals are the colors that seem to say grown up, elegant, and timeless.

That doesn't mean the space needs to be boring and bland. Not at all. I have rooms of color all over this house and I love how happy they make me feel. In this room, though, I hope that instead of using color to make a statement, I will make an impact with the metallic and mirrored finishes I have chosen, the formal balance in the room and the dramatically oversized furniture. Too much color here would be visual overload. My hope is that the calmer hues I chosen this time around will give a sense of tranquility and peacefulness to our bedroom.

 

I love Pic Monkey, a free photo editing site, for creating collages. Have you used it? It is such a great way to easily pull colors or furniture images together to get a feel for how they work together. More that once I have looked at my collection of elements and realized that one or more of them really wasn't working with the overall concept. I think I have avoided some costly mistakes by incorporating this simple method of compilation and comparison into my decison making process.  

 

The accent wall that will be  directly ahead when you walk into the room and behind the bed and bachelor chests will be Sherwin William's Pewter Tankard. This is a medium grey with a hint of brown. Even though the room has windows on both the eastern and western exposures, the windows are prairie style, meaning they are high and short, and don't let in a lot of light.  I would have liked to have seen all the walls in that pewter shade but I think the over all look would have been too dark. Painting the other three walls with Sherwin Williams City Loft will, I think, create a better overall look.

For the ceiling I have chosen Benjamin Moore Silver Cloud. I like that it has just a hint of blue. I am imagining it will be a great color to wake up to. We are adding some accent moldings to the ceiling and I think this bit of color will contrast nicely with the trim color which will be Benjamin Moore Paper White.

 

Benjamin Moore paper white is also the color I have chosen to coordinate with the tile in the bathroom. There will be very little wall space after the cabinets, mirrors and radiator are put into place but I think this color will give the room a clean and cohesive look. Dare I say that it is beginning to come together?

:D

xoxo

         p         

 

Last Minute Motivated Monday Halloween Creations

Our home is scary enough these days without adding a single cobweb or pumpkin. Fortunately I was able to get away for a few mental health days this past week and while I was gone they did get the drywall up. Look, I have walls!

It feels so strange to let this Halloween pass unacknowledged here at home but I have been able to get my decorating fix via my walks through Brucemore, this amazing estate in our neighborhood that was gifted to the National Trust for Historical Preservation. It is such a beautiful place to walk through. I like to think of it as Cedar Rapid's Central Park. :D

This month they featured a spectacular Scarecrow Invasion. While walking the grounds recently I took some photos with my iphone of some of my favorites. I thought it would be fun to share them with you, my readers. 

 

I love that the creators of these delightful fall icons had such a fresh approach to an age old tradition. Each scarecrow is a work of art and a thrill to see.

Speaking of art, my favorite didn't win but it was an interpretation of Vincent VanGogh.

 

I loved his canvas and oversized ear.

:D

Enjoy these seasonal delights and then scroll down further for highlights from last week's Motivated Monday event and link up your own motivating post.

 

 

 

 

 

 

If that wasn't enough motivation for you this week then check out these inspiring ideas from last week's Motivated Monday...

You still have time to make a cake like this one via

Say It With Cake

 

or pull together these easy decorated pumpkins using faux pumpkins and ribbon. Washi tape would also work easily here.

 

 

Gluten Free With Judee

 

To cap off your week you will want to try this sassy seasonal adult drink 

from

Big Giant Food Basket

 

 

 

Remodeling Thoughts and Motivated Monday October 21

* This is my venting rant. I really am okay and wrote this hoping you will all be able to laugh with me.

 

 This past week we passed the two month marker on the road to our master bedroom and bath remodel. This was also the week that I was ready to throw up a for sale sign, toss the house keys to a realtor, get in my car and never look back.

 

Ah, the bliss that is remodeling. You have to have a sense of humor about it or you will go crazy. I lost mine for awhile this week and I just needed to check out for a bit.

 

It's at this stage in the remodeling process that it seems like nothing is happening, even though I know it is. Electrical and plumbing rough- ins just aren't all that sexy and even though you know the work is moving forward it just doesn't LOOK very different from one day to the next.  

  Bringing a one hundred year old home into the twenty first century isn't easy. So things are going rather slowly and the weeks are beginning to drag on.

Two weeks. That is the joke we keep bantering around.

We watched this movie last night. I could soooooo relate.

:D

 

 

 

One of the biggest hurdles for us is that neither of us are morning people so being up, dressed, coffee in hand and pretending like we do this all the time is a real stretch for us. Yet, this is what we've been doing for the past sixty four mornings.

I would be okay with that if I saw an end in sight but as you might expect "the end" is a constantly moving target.

We were supposed to be done by Halloween. Then the thought was we would be completed sometime in November. The latest news I heard was the floors won't even go in until the week before Christmas. 

 

This is why I drink.

 

For anybody considering stepping in front of this renovation bus called remodeling, let me share with you a few of the lessons I have learned.

1. The crew NEVER shows up at the same time everyday.

 

Some days they don't show up at all and this will have you seething with frustration. When this happens ( and it has happened more than once) I find myself making lists of all the steps that still need to be completed and adding up how many days I think are reasonable to complete each task. Do not do this. It will only leave you crazed and cranky and lashing out at some innocent soul at the dry cleaners or sliding down that slippery slope of lunches with cocktails and lamenting an extra five pounds by the end of the month.

 

 

2. Do not assume that the workers will not be at your home before 7:30 in the morning.

Usually after a series of days where the crews don't show up until sometime right before lunch you may foolishly assume that you can sleep in five minutes longer. Don't do it.  This will inevitably be the day that you have set the alarm on your phone for 7:20, your husband will be out of town, so you will have also set the burglar alarm. It will be on this day, and only this day, that the freaking drywall guy will decide to show up for work at the God forsaken hour of 7:10. He will be surprised to see the front door still closed so he will enter through the back door using the key in the lock box. You will be JOLTED out of bed by the blaring shrill blasts from the burglar alarm.   Your pants will unfortunately be in the other room and the only thing you will have to throw over your thin nightgown will be a golf shirt your husband left draped over the radiator. This will leave you scantily covered and feeling a bit over exposed. Your bedroom door will be barricaded by the piece of furniture you pushed in front of it as a second layer of defense against all the serial killers running around Eastern Iowa. This barricade will slow you down and allow the dry-waller just enough time to get all the way to the upstairs hallway about the same time you are bolting out of the bedroom toward the keypad to shut off the alarm. Then there will be the final indignity - your hair will look something like this - minus the cute factor.

 

 

The drywall dude will look at you with that deer in headlights expression and the two of you will go to all extremes to avoid making conversation or worse, eye contact, for the rest of the week.

 

3.Somehow you will be able to justify that this is all your husband's fault.

:D

You will be livid at him for having the audacity to leave town at any point during the remodel - even if it is to pay for this ridiculously expensive, out of control, asinine project for an albatross, money pit of a house that you are sure you will never be able to sell because you have soaked too much money into the damn thing to ever be able to recoup your investment.

*Hallelujah. Holy Shit. Where's the Tylenol?

 

 

4. Whatever the estimate was add twenty five percent to the bottom line.

One thing I've learned through this venture is that the proposal you receive in the gloriously optimistic planning days will be pages long and appear to be totally inclusive. It is NOT. You will ASSUME that when you agreed to have the bathroom painted that they would also be painting the trim. So wrong. You fool. Even though it is gouged and streaked with grout and you would think it is obvious that the trim needs to be painted, you need to tell them to paint the trim and of course, there will be a change order for that.

The original tile, carpet, plumbing fixtures, hardware and lighting quotes will all be for some entry level, really doesn't exist bogus product. Think of it as the price leader TV  or new car. It sounds perfect and then you see it in the store or on the lot and you are more than a bit underwhelmed. It would be like hearing the car sales person say, "Oh, you wanted SEATS?"  Yes, every element will be more than the cost per foot or allowance you were given. 

Pretty costs more so be prepared to fork over more than a few extra Benjamin Franklins if you are still committed to the design plan you started out with.  

 

5. Dismiss any thoughts of what you might think is common sense or a logical order for construction to occur.

 

For example, we committed to this project back in July. We knew these windows would be replaced. I can't tell you when or if the order has been placed but

these old windows are still here. I guess they are waiting for it to get colder before we change them out.

 

:D

 

6. Plan an escape, no matter how brief because you are going to need a mental health day or three.

 

At some point the dust and lack of privacy will push you to your limit. When this happens you need to just step away. Trust me, it will all (unfortunately) still be here when you get back.

I hit my breaking point earlier this week. This post is part of my venting therapy.

:D

Mike was away. I'd just exposed myself to the drywall guy and I received another change order for $617 for a damn 24" door. It was either remove myself from the situation or snap. So what's a girl to do? A little retail therapy of course.

I called Mike, told him I was heading out but wasn't even sure where I was going. It just had to be somewhere other than here. 

I had to laugh when I got a text from him a couple hours later asking if I was ever coming back. Yes, defiantly pointing my car down an open road and escaping the noise and dodging the phone calls and emails, may have been classic avoidance behavior but  it was the escape I needed. That and a new pair of boots.

:D

The euphoria may not last long but at least it helped get me though another week.

There is still a lot to do but I know I will eventually look back on all of this and I will have some funny stories to share at parties and hopefully an over budget but beautiful new and improved master suite.

Thanks for listening. I think I can be around sharp objects again.

* Clark Griswold - Christmas Vacation 

 

Motivated Monday October 7th 2013

    It was a busy week for me.

This time last week we had just arrived in Chicago. We ate a quick bite downstairs in our hotel and had an honorary blue drink to psych up for the final episode of 

Breaking Bad.

I

I was able to get in more than a bit of shopping during our stay so I looked at bedding,

I ended up mixing elements from a couple different collections from this same company so I don't have a picture of my final choices but hopefully I will have them on our new bed before the end of the year.

:D

I was ready for a new fragrance so I spent quite a bit of time trying some new scents. 

 

I eventually chose this one and I love love love the body cream.

 

Of course I also had to spend a fair amount of time in the shoe departments.

I'm thrilled to say I didn't come home empty handed.

There is a phrase that says something like,

Behind every successful man is a woman who makes it necessary.

I am one of those women.

:D

 

It was nice to escape the chaos of my life here at home even for just a few days. There was progress here this week even though it doesn't look much different.

So while my projects are being shelved I still enjoy seeing what you have been up to.

 

Did you see this oh-so-easy and healthy snack via

 

Adventures of Our Fami-Ly

?

I am definitely going to give this a try. Hopefully these apple chips will work out better for me than the Kale Chips I tried to make last winter.

Or did you see how

Biljana Shabby

took this vintage piece from interesting to extraordinary?

Here's a sneak peek of her final look.

To see the entire piece stop in and see her 

here.

Master Bath Surfaces

The manic mayhem is in full swing at my house.

 

We are in the throws of a master bath and bedroom update that is about fifteen years over due. I have dreamed about bringing this part of the house back to "respectable" for as long as we have lived here but there were always more pressing needs. Now a decade and a half later we are finally addressing our bedroom and bath. The crazy thing is that you would think that with all that time I would know exactly what I want and have everything picked out. Wrong. Sure I've been pinning things to Pinterest and I have files of images on my computer but when I go back to these I either don't feel the same level of love for them that I once did or else they aren't available any more.

 

Boo.

So it is like starting from square one with someone, the contractor, prompting and pushing me constantly to have decisions made yesterday. Now, I'm grateful to have someone telling me what I need to be deciding and focusing on but still there is a level of stress that comes with making so many expensive choices in such a relatively short space of time.

Like I said in an earlier post, our bathroom in this old house is not huge or architecturally unique like so many of the gorgeous photos I see on the internet. So, to get the wow factor I am going for I am going to have to rely on the materials I choose to get the desired effect.

I would like have this bath feel like a high end hotel, like a luxurious get away retreat. I love the look of marble but I don't want to worry about staining or slick floors. So, instead we are looking at a porcelein tile that is really almost a dead ringer for the real thing.

 

I love to use PicMonkey to create collages that allow me to see some of my choices together and that is what I did here.

 

 

Mike and I went down to Epic Stone this past week and made our decision for the countertops. This place was amazing. The slabs of stone were all lined up so we could easily walk up and down the aisles and see them full on instead of having someone have to pull out each one individually. Each slab was tagged with a name, where it came from, and a price catagory. This was very helpful. We didn't want to fall in love with something in the 10 catagory when our budget was somewhere around 5 or below.

Ultimately, we have chosen the Super White Granite which really isn't white but looks like this.

 

 

 

There is just enough color and movement to this lighter granite to make it fit in perfectly with my vision for this part of our home.

#soexcited #granitelove #pretendritz

 

Stay tuned. More decisons to come.

 

xoxo,

p