Florida Living and Coastal Decor
All in Interior
If there's one thing I've learned the hard way, it's that all dogs don't go with all decor! I hate to put a damper on things, but wishful thinking just won't make your fluffy white rug last if you've got claws tearing into it daily. Trust me, I've been there. But do not be dismayed! I'm here to share the solution to this problem from my own trial and error over the years.
Our living room walls remained empty for over two years after we moved into our home. Indecisive much? Maybe. But also the "living room", which is actually just a secondary sitting space for us, was not a top priority. Eventually, I decided a large gallery wall would be the best option to fill the extra tall space and become an interesting focal point.
It's Springtime in Florida, which is my favorite time of year for enjoying our patio! So, when I was asked by Patio Lane to try out their Cushion Builder, I knew exactly what I wanted to "build"! From start to finish, the process of designing your own pillows or cushions is really fun and easy! Patio Lane is even offering all of my readers $50 off a purchase of $500 or more when using the coupon code SUMMER until May 30th! There's so much flexibility in what you can create that I took a little time to ponder over the exact shape and fabric I wanted for my new patio pillows. But, you can also create your own bench cushions or boat cushions! There are so many possibilities.
Welcome! I'm always so excited to invite Spring, and YOU, into my home, so come on in! If you're hopping over from one of the other 7 bloggers on this Loveliest Looks of Spring hop, I'm sure you've been loving all of the pretty Spring details as much as I have! I'm happy to be a part of this talented group of bloggers and I hope you enjoy this hop!
Chances are you know the power of throw pillows. You understand their versatility and how swapping them out for different patterns and colors is an easy way to decorate for the seasons. If all of that is true, then chances are, also, that you've been challenged to find new spaces to store your beloved throw pillows when they're not in use.
Give me all the palm trees! To anyone not living in "palm tree land", they're sort of a novelty and highly sought after. Since I live in Florida now, they're in my yard, but I wanted them in my house for that tropical feeling year round. The only problem was that once I bought my first indoor potted palm tree, I had zero clue what to do with it. I'm certainly no gardener and I had only managed to keep my one and only potted ficus tree alive by sheer luck and its natural ability to survive extreme conditions, such as being knocked over in a hurricane, me forgetting to water it, etc. :D So I've learned through trial and error how to keep my Majesty Palms alive and I'll share with you what has worked (and not worked) for me.
Since I've received lots of inquiries regarding my dining chairs, I'm writing this to tell you everything you need to know about IKEA's HENRIKSDAL slipcovered dining chairs. In my opinion, the best thing about IKEA is that they have produced some very affordable products that are incredibly similar to other popular brands on the market but without the much higher price tags.
I'll come right out and say it...I'm not much of a "pink" kind of girl when it comes to home decor. BUT, I'll make an exception for Valentine's Day! Whether you're on trend with blush and pink accents in your home or prefer neutrals and blues like me, I hope these pretty pink accents will get you inspired to create a fun and easy Valentine's Day bar cart or drink station! Besides, don't all the best beach sunsets come in hues of pink? ;)
Recently, I have had the honor of guest-blogging for Kim of Sand & Sisal! If you’re popping over from her blog, you may have seen this post. If so, thank you so much for visiting! You can click here to peruse the rest of my blog posts. Also, I hope you’ll subscribe to my newsletter to receive updates on new posts in the future!
For those of you unfamiliar with Kim, she is one of the first coastal decor bloggers I found via Pinterest years ago. She’s inspired me with many a beachy craft, so I thought it would be perfect to share one of my own! I hope you’ll find some inspiration here, too!
Today I'm sharing with you the one, rather simple, thing I did last year that completely changed how I decorate! It all started with a New Year's resolution...
Last year I took down all of my Christmas decor on New Year's Day, which is pretty typical for me. I had been thinking more and more about how my home needed some life. Finally, I vowed to start using real greenery in my home decor!
Confession: I've never actually decorated for NYE before. There are only 6 days between Christmas and New Year's Eve, which is not much time to prepare if you're planning to host a party or even if you just want to get a little festive before you head out to watch the ball drop! So, this year when I decided to style up my bar cart, I went looking for some cute NYE decor and was shocked to find that none of the stores I checked had any!
With such a busy start to the holiday season, I thought it made more sense to break up my Christmas Home Tour into two parts! Previously, I showed you my Foyer, Dining Room and Living Room when I joined a group of talented bloggers for our Cheerful Christmas Home Tour! If you haven't seen in yet, you can check it out here! Today, I'll be showing you around a few more rooms, so come on in for Part Two!
One thing I absolutely love about the holiday season is changing up the entire ambiance of my home. If you've followed along on Instagram this year, you know I love my tropical, beachy vibes with fresh palms everywhere I can put them. And why not? After all, I live in Florida! But for Christmas, I'm all about abandoning the blue accents you'll find in the summer months and replacing them with all things bling! Silver and gold are my go-to accents and I love things that sparkle with the glow of the Christmas lights and candles!
If you caught my post a few weeks back, you know that I finallyyy found the perfect bar cart to DIY. You can see the transformation from dark and drab to bright and beautiful, here. Although I've already decorated quite a few rooms for Christmas, I decided to keep just a bit of Thanksgiving decor throughout my home since we are hosting dinner this year at our house!
One of my absolute favorite parts of Christmas decorating is putting up the Christmas tree, or trees - plural - now that I've bought more than one! Up until two years ago, I didn't own a single tree that I was proud of. My artificial tree was as basic as it gets and I didn't put a lot of effort into my seasonal decor until my husband and I purchased our first home together.
Aren't we all glad to live in a world where there are Octobers? ;) This quote finally resonates with me, as the days are still warm and the beach is still calling my name. I want to reflect that light and warmth of October in Northeast Florida throughout my home, including my newly DIY'd bar cart! You can see how I completely transformed the look of it here.
Bar cart, bar cart, everyone wants a bar cart! Including me! I've looked for over a year at all kinds of fabulous carts - brass, glass, bamboo, wooden, metal, two-tiered, round, square, you name it! Through all those choices, I had my heart set on a vintage bamboo cart. But have you seen those price tags!? Even the informed sellers of Craigslist knew they had a rare gem that could easily be refurbished, and the price tag was proof of that knowledge.
Never had I dreamed of welcoming fall with such open arms! But here I am, a Florida resident, loving the heck out of my sweet, Southern fall! I believe the key to this phenomenon lies within the "Florida resident" part of that sentence. You see, I am from Michigan, where it could require a snowsuit to go trick-or-treating, and where October seems to have the last of the sunshine you'll see until April. There are certainly plenty of folks up north that love fall, I have just never been one of them! So back to the "Florida resident" part again...
While I didn't want to do a full bathroom remodel, I did want to get rid of the brown wood cabinet stain that seemed to darken our guest bathroom. Since I was feeling lazy, er, efficient, I decided to try out chalk paint on the cabinets in hopes of skipping the whole sanding step that wasn't very appealing to me. I'm happy to report that it worked and I haven't seen a single scratch or chip in the year since it's been painted!
If you follow me on Instagram, you're probably already privy to my need for always getting the best deal ever. So, you may notice this is a recurring theme with each of my blog posts, as well. Since I really enjoy online window shopping (is that a thing?), I'm already aware of what certain items are priced at, from high end stores to bargain shops. Knowing what a "good deal" actually is, is key to getting one. Secondly, patience is most definitely a virtue, especially when it comes to decorating on a budget. I should also mention that this "budget" I keep referencing is usually all in my head.
