TayRose Design interior design custom Archives - TayRose Design interior design

Owl Inspired Theme Toddler Bedroom

12 Feb 2018

Craft Project, DIY, Interior Design Room, Kids Room, Theme Room

#floating shelves, #painted tree mural, #placemat, #vintage linen, custom, decorator, designer, DIY, Home Decor, Home Design, owl, pillow, TayRose Design, theme room

B4 and after owl theme room

Evolving from a nursery to a toddler bedroom is always fun especially when there is a theme involved. Keeping the budget in mind, the client wanted owls to be the theme. With purchased artwork as inspiration, owl pillows; shelf sitters; a tree mural and floating shelves were added to the design.

Inspired owl artwork

A new trundle bed replaced the crib on the back wall. White furniture and ruffled curtains coordinated with the bed and trim. That left a huge blank focal wall behind the bed, just prime for a hand-painted tree mural. What better place for an owl to sit than in a tree!

The wall tree had limbs that reached towards the corner of the wall with added white floating shelves and green painted mini birdhouses for a bit of whimsy. A metal owl wall art piece was painted white to match the tree. Painting the tree, hanging the wall shelves plus accessorizing was complete in a day.

Painted tree mural

Starting Owl Pillows

For one of the owl pillows, I found a pair of woven green rectangular placemats that I purchased for under $2 each. Walmart had some nice inexpensive assorted cottons that are sold in packages just right for small projects. I chose colors that would coordinate with the pink, gray and white color scheme going on in the room. Vintage linens and cut up discarded clothing were used as fabric as well.

owl placemat pillow layout

The placemats were sewn on the vertical for the pillow with a couple of small feet at the bottom. Felt eyelashes, a suede beak from an old jacket, and cut out fabric circles made up the eyes and feet. All the pieces were sewn to the front side first before sewing the seams. Due to the fringed edges, I sewed the seams just as they lay with right side up. At the top ear corners, with a needle and thread, I tacked a couple of small stitches so they would “pinch” together like little ears. The suede beak was hand embroidered showing the hand stitches for that ” handmade” look.

owl placemat pillow ear

I cut the border edge of my vintage linen into strips to sew together as the “tummy”.

owl placemat pillow tummy

For the feet, I made a quick pattern, cut out fabric , pinked the edges, stuffed with fiberfill and sewn to bottom seam. Sew around all the edges with about a 5/8″ seam leaving about a 5″ opening to add stuffing. After filling with desired amount of stuffing sew the opening close and voila, pillow done!

owl placemat pillow finished

Shelf Sitters

As for the owl shelf sitters….making the patterns for the first time was challenging and then filling them with rice found more rice on floor than in the owl!

making pattern for owl shelf sitters

A pink and white feather boa from the Dollar Store was cut and sewn as little tufts to the ears for some texture and fun. These little owls definitely like to “sit” and not be played with by little hands, so they were set up high in the branches on shelves.

Owl shelf sitters finished

In Conclusion:

All in all, this was a very fun project, lots of room for additional accessories as the little one grows older without having to change too much, which is great for the budget.

“Who” would like to try and take on a theme room and watch it grow? Ahhh…..very wise…..

Owl theme toddler room finished

Painted trunk blends with Decor

Taylor

06 Feb 2018

Custom Design, DIY, Interior Design Room

custom, DIY, hand painted, Home Decor, Interior Design, storage, TayRose Design, trunk, wall paint

before and after painted trunk blending with wall color

painted trunk blends in with wall color

After having some of our interior room walls repainted due to sheet rock issues, I had to remove all the artwork from the walls and then rehang it back up after walls had cured. With the paint cans sitting in the mudroom to be stored back down in the basement, my eyes went to the trunk that holds some of my excess dishes, and seating in our photo studio, and I thought it just needed an fresh updated look.

The details on the trunk are really lovely, and I appreciate the worn areas that validate the age and adventures it must have been through- the wooden slats and nail trimmed leather strips framing the edges and all the metal hardware that were a bit lost against the dark background color. I didn’t realize that most of the trunk was actually a canvas fabric, so, could I paint it with the same paint as our accent wall? Why not?

My first thought was to paint the whole thing, but fortunately, I started one row up on the side and after painstakingly using a fine artist brush to paint around all the little spaces of the hardware, I thought….”I think I’ll paint every other row then the top.” I actually was glad I decided to leave some of the original color on the trunk for the new paint color was much lighter and really enhanced the details on the trunk much better than before.

Painted trunk details

Such an easy update, it dried very quickly and I wiped on some leather cleaner and wood conditioner and it now has quite the face lift!

The trunk blends in much better with the wall color and the items set upon it.

painted trunk blends with decor

Funny how inspiration will hit you….from repainted walls to paint cans waiting to be stored away….a beloved piece gets a fresh look and blends in all the better now!

Create a “trunk” inspired look for a Nightstand

finished nightstand trunk inspired

I was commissioned to transform my client’s little girl’s room to a jungle theme room. They had originally seen and fell in love with the bedroom I had designed for the Parade of Homes recently.

It’s a Jungle in here! Parade of Homes Pigliavento Builder, TayRose Designs

My client had asked for a nightstand next to the bed rather than the lidded crate I had used in my previous showhome. I wanted to choose something that still had a feeling of traveling the ocean seas towards jungle paradise. I started shopping both online and in local shops but didn’t quite find what I had envisioned in my mind. So, I checked out my furniture stash of odds and ends pieces I’ve collected for future transformations on projects that come my way, and I found the perfect size night stand that had a drawer which my client had requested and room on top for a lamp and maybe even a book.

However, in its current color it would not work with the design. I kept thinking about travel and how I might be able to simulate the look of a trunk or suitcase for this furniture piece. I knew the orangey colored stain color was not going to work, so by using a palm sander and sand paper by hand, I sanded down to practically the raw color on the sides and front frame work so I could stain it a darker brown. I wanted to bring in some jungle green color and I thought that chalk paint would be great choice for it covers just about anything with little prep. I chose Spanish Moss chalk color from JoAnn Fabrics Folk Art series and I also picked up their clear wax as well to go over the paint to seal and protect the color. http://www.joann.com/folkart-home-decor-chalk-8-oz/13830781.html

http://www.joann.com/folkart-home-decor-wax—8-oz./zprd_13358940a.html#q=FOLK%2BART%2BCLEAR%2BWAX&start=1

Folk Art Chalk paint and wax

I also wanted to add details to my “trunk” so my inspiration came from age old steamer trunks that had wonderful leather straps and metal hardware. I haunted the local thrift stores for leather belts and picked out a few that I could cut up and apply with upholstery nails into the wood.

thrift store find belts

For metal accents, I found at Hobby Lobby perfect corner pieces that came with their own tiny nails to tap into the corners of the top and drawers. https://www.hobbylobby.com/Crafts-Hobbies/Wood-Crafting/Hardware-Tools/Antique-Bronze-Plated-Corners/p/80783525 and https://www.hobbylobby.com/Crafts-Hobbies/Wood-Crafting/Hardware-Tools/Antique-Bronze-Plated-Corners/p/80783621 For the front, I found at Lowes some brass cabinet latches that I could use that simulate trunk latches. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Gatehouse-2-Pack-Polished-Brass-Cabinet-Catch/3355522

hardware for trunk nightstand

The latches were a little too bright brass in color, so I sprayed on some brown paint and dabbed off with a rag to give more of an antiqued look. Now I was ready to start the staining and painting…….

I removed the drawers and sanded the fronts lightly for they were to be painted, then sanded the sides of the stand, the edges and inside the opening, then wiped down with a tacky cloth to remove sand dust. I had some leftover dark walnut stain from another project that I brushed on to the sides, edges and inside of the opening shelf then wiped off with a cloth to the desired color.

staining nightstand darker

I think I applied the stain twice after letting the first coat dry per can instructions.

I decided to paint the inside of the drawers in the Spanish Moss green chalk paint and since the little girl loved purple and polka dots, I thought having a surprise when the drawer opened would be a fun addition.

Inside drawer surprise dots

The top of the stand and the drawer fronts all got painted with the Spanish Moss and I applied 2 coats and only needed 1 jar, so the paint really goes a long way. After paint had dried I applied the clear wax over the painted surfaces according to jar instructions which was really easy and let dry. Over the stained areas I wiped on a poly with a cloth and let it dry as well.

I measured and cut the leather belts to fit down the top in 2 rows and down the front of the drawers as if the leather strap was one continuous strap. I used gorilla glue as well as upholstery nails to adhere cut straps to surfaces. For the latches, I placed the latch where I wanted to screw it down, then marked holes with a pen and started the hole with a small drill bit and screwed latch in place. I nailed the corner pieces to the top and drawer edges with the tiny nails included in the packages and then came the handles.

adding leather belts as straps

The original drawers had a wood knob right in the center and I wanted to have a handle. So, I needed to deal somehow with the hole in the center of the drawer. I could have tried to plug it with putty, but the drawer front was quite thick and it would take a lot of putty and challenging to get load it up into the smallish hole. I could have found a wood dowel to glue into hole then cut off, sand and then paint over too, but I just decided to use the hole rather than hide the hole. I found at Lowes the perfect length brass bolt with a rounded head that fit through the drawer and had a brass small nut on the other side…done. I lined up the handles and screwed them on the front.

I loved the way this little night stand turned out. Plenty of space for her to store her books, a reading lamp on top and her secret treasures tucked inside the dotted drawers. It feels great to transform a simple piece of furniture that may have been set aside for awhile, to a new usable piece with a new look that now fits in again!

jungle nightstand in room

How to Inspire Design with Pinterest Photos

Taylor

16 Jan 2018

DIY, Interior Design Room

custom, designer, DIY, Home Decor, Home Design, Home Interior Designs, TayRose Design

I had received a call from a client who had sold their house and most all of their decor and were embarking in building a new home with all new furnishings and needed help with shopping and pulling a design together. A busy working couple with 2 small children under 2 years, there just wasn’t enough hours in the day to shop for sofas and beds and dressers and pillows let alone appliances!
This was a challenge, for I had nothing to base my feel for what styles they liked and felt comfortable with. The clients were living in a furnished apartment while their house was being built. Pictures are worth a thousand words as they say, so I asked if they were familiar with Pinterest and if they would browse through and send me photos of design styles they liked so I would have a better direction when it came to decor purchases.
About 2 hours later, my email box was filling up with lots of Pinterest photos with comments of what they liked and didn’t like. This was perfect. I was able to make folders in my computer under their name by room and started sorting the photos to review. Next, I scoured each picture and took a few notes, building my shopping list.

One of the pictures I received was of anaccent table with wall mirror and hanging lanterns.

Inspired photo online to recreate for client

They had the perfect little niche in the wall between the living room and kitchen that I thought would be a perfect place to recreate this vignette. The hardest part was to find the table itself. Finding one in the budget, in the right size and right color proved to be the most challenging. The lanterns I found at Hobby Lobby, but they only had one and I needed 2, so I put in a rain check to order (of course, I waited until the week they were 50% off :-)) The wall hooks, glass vase and bird also came from Hobby Lobby and I stained it a bit darker to deepen the color a bit, but I loved the natural textural feel to the bird. For the chunky candlesticks, I found some on clearance at Michael’s craft store, then made one from taking a thrift store lamp apart-just the right size for a pillar candle. In another Pinterest photo, there were lots of decorative balls in different textures used in several places, so I used a few in the glass vase along with some moss rocks to help support the branch twig I found in the yard. Instead of throws in baskets underneath, I placed the matching candlestick, and a stack of baskets found on clearance at a furniture store, and a ceramic pitcher, ready to serve.
To achieve this Pinterest inspiration, it took many trips to different stores and even the yard to gather the components to come as close as possible to the desired look.

After photo of recreated niche table from inspiration picture

It was so gratifying to see how the client responded to the recreation, keeping their budget in mind and finding the perfect “niche” for the project.
Many times, a component will be elusive and challenging to find, but that is all part of the evolving process of decorating. With the internet, or books, magazines abounding from all directions, there is plenty of visual aids to be inspired by trying your hand at recreating by reusing, repurposing what you already have plus adding a few new purchases.
It is also inspiring to go in a totally different direction- like using sconces instead of lanterns, or hanging a whole wall of varying sizes of mirrors, or setting up a bar on the table top….so many routes a design may lead and it’s all part of the journey…your journey.

Fireplace brick surround makeover-Brighten Up Space

This particular makeover didn’t start out as expected. You see, my client wanted to change the feel of her formal living room to more of a casual feel so they didn’t have to go downstairs to their family room all the time. My client was looking for new curtains, some updated wall art and accessories in colors that would bring some “pop” to the room.

Upon entering the room, what caught my eye first was the oversized sofa and loveseat which were newly purchased, so they had to stay. Secondly, the fireplace of multi-colored dark bricks didn’t give off the light and bright feeling she was looking for in the room. In the back of my mind, I remembered a fireplace makeover I had done just a few months prior and how well it turned out. So tentatively, not knowing whether she absolutely loved her fireplace or not, and, not wanting to offend her, but just to suggest, I asked her if she had ever thought of changing the brick color. Well, she almost jumped off the sofa with glee saying she always wanted to paint it but wasn’t sure- if I had any photos of the one I did prior, how much it would lighten the room, how soon it could be painted, and, oh, did I mention how excited she was!

Fireplace before paint treatment

I took lots of before pictures so I could show my friend Amy who helped me with the last fireplace makeover to see the size and colors. This fireplace is a smaller surface, only up to the mantle. My concern was how deep the colors were and how many coats of watered down paint we would need to brush on in order to cover the especially deep red colored bricks.

close up of bricks before paint treatment

Amy gathered up her glazes, rags and drop cloths, and I picked up a sample quart of the new color paint that the client was going to paint her walls…Accessible Beige from Sherwin Williams. One of my “go to” colors, it looks great anywhere with most any color. A perfect neutral.

We arrived and started our prep, taping with painters tape all around the edges and covering the fireplace doors and carpet with plastic, plus laying down drop cloths. It seems like the taping and prep takes longer than the painting, but very necessary! Not taking any chances of splattering paint on walls or carpet. We had a small bucket that we added some water and started to add the wall color paint, mixing it until it was lightly tinted. Better to start with a lighter mix than too opaque with the paint. With a brush in one hand and a rag in the other, we started to paint the first coat over the dark bricks. The bricks were soaking up the paint fast and barely changing the color. I thought, wow, this is going to take a lot of coats. After painting the whole area with the lightest coat, we waited a few minutes then added a little more paint to the water mixture and started the whole process over again, painting on and dabbing off with the rag. We found that we painted more over the red bricks then dabbed off some on the more darker color bricks giving a more varied look with the colors, plus, dabbing also gives texture- a stippled look.

Fireplace started painting after taping off

The client was working upstairs, but often came down to peek at the progress and loved seeing the transformation. I was surprised that we only had to go over the surface twice reaching the color saturation that the client approved with a little dabbing of extra paint here and there over the deeper red bricks. The surface dried very quickly, we waited about 20-30 minutes or so before removing the tape and plastic. The pictures show the fireplace before the walls were painted, they were a soft yellow color. The new wall color was painted about 3 days later in the same color as fireplace but a bit deeper, for the paint would be at full strength and not watered down. Thank you Amy, for the “after” photo, you can see how we let the different shades of colored brick come through for added dimension and color, but the reddish tints are now warmer neutrals.

Fireplace painted makeover after

As for the rest of the room, the client decided to wait a bit and decide what she really wants. I made some suggestions and she may call to have more work done.

Fireplace before and after

All in all, another fireplace makeover success. A side note…I love brick fireplaces and I rarely suggest painting them, but there are a few, that just need a little help, and we’re glad to oblige!

(If you have a fireplace that needs a little lift and you would like a quote and live locally, take a picture and measurements and email them to me and we can give you an approximate quote for the job.)

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