Artsy Smartsy

I LOVE taking pictures.  In fact, I think I'm even some of my friends and family members' unofficial official family photographer. Thanks to the digital camera revolution I can just snap away all the time without any additional cost.  I don't get paid, but I don't mind.  Because the photographic storybook that I have is irreplaceable.  {That's why I have it backed up in 2 separate places!}

But that's not the topic of this post.  When you take as many pictures as I do, it really is a waste unless you have some way to see them and use them.  Photo albums are great --- LOVE MyPublisher for that -- but unless you have lots of coffee tables, you won't be pulling them off the shelves often.  Framed photos are wonderful too, but they can get a little boring and predictable.  

Artsy Couture has a fabulous alternative to the average framed photographs -- Gallery Blocks!  Gallery Blocks are "professional photographic prints adhered to solid wood with perfect 90° corners." They come in both single sizes and multiple floating images {like the one in the picture above}.  The floating blocks are my favorite because it's so hard to choose just one!

Cover Your Alcove

I admit, sometimes it is difficult for me to make a decision.  Especially about things that either cannot be changed or would be costly/time-consuming to change.  I think about what-ifs.  What if I hate it later.  What if it goes out of style.  What if I find something better!

It took me forever to decide on my wedding dress.  I went back and forth between two dresses until I just went with my gut.  It turned out wonderfully.  I was happy and until this day I have no regrets.  In fact, I think I would have regretted going with the other dress.  But I digress...

When you're redecorating or decorating your home, there's always this tension between decorating based on what's popular at the moment --- like wood paneling of the 60s or the black and white & abstract art style of the 80s -- and decorating and painting with a future sale {or your future taste} in mind.  Considering I've bought and sold more houses in my young life than I care to think about, I'm always thinking about "what happens when we sell?" as I am designing. 

But who wants non-offending various shades of beige walls throughout their house?  {Been there don't want to do that again}  That's why I love LOVE my latest find Casart^tm Coverings. 

Casart^tm Coverings are removable hand-painted murals and decorative finishes. The murals are printed on canvas-like vinyl with a repositionable, adhesive backing.   Essentially "Magnet-like slipcovers for your walls"!  You can change your wall covering seasonally or whenever you want a new look!  But without the usual paste and mess of traditional wallpaper.  I'm soooo getting some of these.

modern bedroom design by dc metro showroom Casart Coverings

Houzz It Look?

Houzz- Kitchen Design, Bathroom Design and More»

I love love LOVE this site!  We are in the process of moving and will hopefully be building a house and this site is the perfect place for me to look for and collect design ideas.  I still enjoy leafing through magazines, but if you're going to do multiple spaces {or a whole house!} the cutting and collecting can be a bit overwhelming and cumbersome.

Houzz has some great design ideas AND you can add your own. Just install the browser plug-in.  So if your browsing the web and come across a picture of a space that looks great, you can add it to the Houzz Community {and your ideabook}. 

The feature I like best is the ability to search by geographical area. I assume what that does is to show you designs for houses in your area of the country.  For instance, while I would love a full outdoor kitchen and an open sunroom off my living room, I don't think that will work in the northeast {do those palm trees come with the stone patio?!?}.  You can also search by style -- traditional, contemporary, eclectic, farm, etc. -- and by the room in your home -- kitchen, bath, bedroom, etc.

Here's a link to my Ideabook...it's a work in progress :)

Decorating Ideas and Photos:

Kitchen Remodeling · Bathroom Remodeling · Living Room Remodeling · Bedroom Remodeling · Dining Room Remodeling · Patio Remodeling · Landscaping Remodeling ·

The next addition to our walls...

Name Your Design

Modern Personalized Art

I love almost anything personalized; like monogrammed pillowcases, towels, place-mats, soap, measuring cups...okay really anything.  So when I stumbled across this company, I fell in love with everything.  They have the cutest silhouette prints of your little one.  And if you're newlyweds {or just don't have little ones} they have great personalized wall art just for families of 2!