The 3 Day Walk

I want to let you guys know that I am walking the 3 Day Walk for breast cancer with my family! My mother lost her mom to breast cancer when she was 18.  Her mom was 47.  My dad lost his mom to breast cancer when he was 30.  His mom was 52.  My Grandma Faye is a breast cancer survivor.  I am thrilled to raise 2,300 to help promote research to end this terrible disease. Each participant is required to raise the full 2,300 in order to participate in the race(They ain't playin about fighting breast cancer!!).  The three Day will consist of walking a total of 65 miles over the course of three consecutive days.  I have a dear family friend who walked this race 2 years ago.  She gave me some great advice.  She committed before the race that she would finish no matter what.  This would be her way of honoring the lives lost, and the people who work hard to fight cancer in the present and the future.  She literally fought through blisters bleeding through two pairs of socks and her shoes to walk every step of the race.  I, too, am dedicated to walking every single step of this race to honor my family members and the people who choose to give their personal time and money to help find a cure for this disease.  

I am surprised by the training (and my lack endurance, shesh!).  I am hoping that the discipline of training will bleed over to other areas of my life and produce some goooood fruit!

There is a button on the side bar of my blog if you would like to donate.  This will be a really exciting, challenging journey for my family.  I will definitely let you know how it goes.

Have a great weekend!

Bedding

I met my friend the other day to help her pick out some bedding.  I have had several friends stumped at what to do when buying bedding with registries a

nd such.  So, here you have it...my ideas on bedding.  Just what you wanted I am sure:)

I generally opt for a neutral duvet or comforter (Just like Stacy and Clinton say on What Not To Wear, neutral does NOT have to mean white.  Neutral can be gray, metallic, khaki...).  My reasoning behind a neutral duvet with patterned sheets is that sheets can be easier and cheaper to change than a duvet or comforter.  You can generally find high quality, cute sheets pretty much anywhere!  I like to fold the duvet down at the foot of the bed and let the fun patterned sheets do their thang!   Don't get me wrong, I love pattern and color and am not afraid of a cute patterned duvet or comforter, BUT this is another option that has served me well.  Also, remember to put the top sheet on your bed "inside out" if you want the pattern to show when you fold the sheet back.

Some fun neutral duvet covers

Some fun patterned sheets

Have fun mixing and matching different styles and textures.  

Happy middle of the week!

Mmmmmmmetallics

I am loving the metallic trend!  

You can find me wearing these

or these

or these.

And wishing I was carrying any one of these.

And painting with these

If you haven't tried these metallic paints you are missing out.  I love Modern Masters Metallic Paints, specifically.  Warm Silver, Anitique Bronze, and Smoke have become instant favorites!  They are SO easy to use.  They brush on to practically any surface.  This is a great way to spruce up 

an unfortunate chandelier 

or some garage sale dining room chairs that fall apart almost every time the hubs sits in them.  

I have used metallic paints in formal spaces, dining areas, and even baby Hudson's nursery.

Don't miss out on the mmmmmmetallics!

And P.S.  remember the demi-john/glass jug crave I was telling you about?  I gave in...or mom helped me give in:)  Gotta love a good thrift store find.  Treasures are worth the hunt, I tell ya. (I am going to put a branch in here soon, just haven't made it that far yet)

Love it

I found a new designer that i LOVE, and want to share her website with you.  

www.jhinteriordesign.com

Make sure to take time to browse her portfolio...you will definitely be inspired!

She features these demi-johns in most of her rooms (demi-johns are the glass jugs on the floor in the back right of the picture below).  I am now on the hunt!  These glass jugs look great on the floor next to a great chair or fireplace, on a dining table, empty, with water, or with water and branches in them.  Enjoy my latest obsession!

Ava

I went home for Memorial Day.  My parents live on the lake and had their second annual Memorial Day Party over the weekend.  They had some of their friends from church out for dinner and to play in the water.  I saw some friends I haven't seen in a while!  One family I saw is the McCowns.  This is where Ava comes into play.  Back when I first started the business the McCown's let me work on their son Corbin's room.  This was really helpful at the time.  It allowed me to get some good photos for my fresh out of college portfolio:)  They later hired me to work on Ava's room.  In the McCown family you get a new room when you turn 5.  They don't worry too much about the rooms before then.  They hit this transitional age, make the room special, and have a great room for the majority of the child's years at home.  Sounds pretty great if you ask me!

They already had her bedding, so we worked from there.  Here are the results.  By the way, my Dad loves the before and after pictures of people who have terrible teeth and then get them fixed.  In his honor, here are some before and after pictures of Ava's room:)

BEFORE

AFTER

Happy Tuesday.

Christopher

Transportation!

I met the Scherer Family a while back.  They have some CUTE kids!  I worked in their son and daughter's bedroom and bathroom.  My sister always complains that there are way more "girl" things than "boy" things as far as clothes and decor so I am starting with Christopher.

Christopher wanted a room with a transportation theme, so that is what we did!

The stripes on the wall mimic the road we travel on!

I refinished all of Christopher's furniture from his baby nursery so that it could transition into his new big boy room.  All of the maps that are on the drawer fronts are from some of the family's favorite travel spots.

Hope everyone has a great week!