Project in Progress - Lake House Update IV

OK, I'm sure you are more than ready to see the finished product here.  But, you have to remember, renovations take time.  I think we get way too comfortable with the "HGTV see it all in one episode" method and forget that renovations require patience.  They can be inconvenient, time consuming, and frustrating.  But, in the end, totally worth the effort!   For more background on this lake house project check out these posts - Update I,  Update II and Update III .

The structure of the screened porch is complete.

Here is a view from the side of the house.  These steps were already there, so they incorporated them into the new porch. 

So, what will we be doing in the way of furnishings you ask?!  Here's the plan. 

In the picture above, the lake is to your left.  Also, there is a large TV to be hung on the wall to your right.  So, we really needed a furniture layout that would work with dual focal points.  Here is the design board for the space.  We really wanted the space to feel like a room, and I think we've accomplished that with this plan. 

Just a few things to mention, for the ceiling in the screened porch area, we decided on a white wash treatment to keep the space light and airy.  This will also provide the contrast we need with the new chandelier and ceiling fans.  

The fans will flank the corners next to the house and the chandelier will float in the center of the space.  As most of you know, I am not a fan of your basic ceiling fan in the center of a room.  However, with a screened porch, you must have fans for air circulation.  So, when we started thinking about fans, this image popped into my brain! 

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After doing some research, we learned that these particular fans were not in the budget. :(  These were a whopping $585.82 each - and very irritating to me!

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  But I refused to be deterred!  So, I did some sourcing and found these look-a-likes in our price range. They are only $129.00 each! And still have that vintage feel to them.

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If you are willing to do the work, you can almost always find a similar look for less.  You just have to do the work!! 

OK, back to the design plan . . . 

Here are a few other things I wanted to mention about this plan.   Our goal was to have the look of an indoor room, but with the durability of an outdoor space.  These days, there are many wonderful furnishings that are made of materials that will withstand and outdoor setting, you just have to look for them.  For example, the side tables are concrete, the coffee table and dining chairs are metal, the rug is indoor/outdoor, the ottomans are slipcovered in Sunbrella fabric.  Also, the sofas and wicker chairs are all outdoor furniture.  The dining table is not an outdoor piece, but we have placed it near the house for maximum protection from the weather.  It will age beautifully in the space.

Mind you, all these pieces were sourced on a budget.  So, you can have a beautiful space without breaking the bank!  Just to know, the install for this space is complete and I will be showing you the finished product next week.   I hope you have a wonderful day!  

PS: If you would like some help creating your our outdoor oasis, I am happy to help you!  Just click over to my interior design page and drop me a note! (click here - Mandi Smith T Interiors)

Happy Valentine's Day

My wish for you today . . . 

You wake up to a sweet Valentine's card on your bedside table . . . 

You have a super delicious breakfast (calorie free)

You put on your favorite shoes (you know the ones that make you smile when you look down)

You're able to accomplish more today than you're normally able to get done in a week.

Thus allowing you to indulge in a long lunch with your besties (who are also in a fabulous mood) . . . 

After lunch, you are greeted with the prettiest flowers you've ever seen! 

And you spend your evening with someone who makes you feel special.  

That's my wish for you on this Valentine's Day.  Just remember, should things not go your way, you've always got the option of a hot bath and a glass of bubbly.  Enjoy your day!  M. 

all images via Pinterest 

Valentine's Day

It's still one of my favorite days of the year!  And in a selfish effort to celebrate this single day for an entire week, I working on convincing my daughter to make her Valentines this year.  There are tons of cute ones on Pinterest these days.  In a single search I found a few favorites . . . 

Just look at the cute sand shovel!!!

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And for the older kids who are too cool for Valentines . . . 

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Or this cute idea . . . 

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And for those who are simply tired of giving out more candy. 

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or how about this one . . .  (I would love for my kids to get this, as we are constantly looking for chapstick around here).

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How sweet would it be to have your pre-school age children make this one for their grandparents!?

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Thought I might share these with you, in case you need a little something fun to work on this weekend. TGIF. M.

What Inspires You?

I've been super busy with design plans for clients.  So, for you faithful readers, I'm sorry the blog has suffered. As they say, "Life Just Happens."  Just know, I am not tired of posting nor am I out of ideas.  It takes time to draft an interesting post and time is what I have very little of these days.  So, I hope you will continue to stick with me.  Like all lines of work, things ebb and flow - so I know I will be able to get back to it more regularly in a few months.

Today, I wanted to talk about what inspires you to do the things you do -  cook, work, dress, choose your friends, or decorate your home?  I include all these things because not only can inspiration come from very unlikely sources, it can also inspire you in very unlikely ways.  The answer to this question can be extremely interesting and enlightening for others.  Hopefully, it can help all of us find inspiration in different places. 

Here are just a few random examples of inspiration for me as of late. . .  

While I'm working on design plans for clients, I wade through lots and lots of unrelated items.  For example, the last couple of weeks, I've been working on living spaces.   So, when sourcing pillow options for clients, I bump into things that inspire me.  Hello, gorgeous. 

Although it doesn't work for the living rooms I'm working on, it would be the perfect jumping off point for a "Room To Grow Into" for a little girl.  I love working on projects with an eye to allowing the space to evolve over time.  This can be tricky.  For a little girl's room, you must find special fabrics with a whimsical vibe, but also a tween factor so they can grow with the child.  This fabric would be totally perfect!  So, I have filed it away for when that special project comes along.  

Same here for a girl who does not love a ton of pink (like my daughter). . . 

I'm also inspired by the way an image makes me feel.  Notice the lighting in this picture.  It makes me think of either morning or late afternoon (two of my favorite times of day).  I looks like the perfect temperature - not too hot or too cold, but perfect (maybe late Spring, early Summer).  Very relaxing and anticipatory - I can just imagine sitting here with friends or family and enjoying each other's company.    

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This ring inspires me -  It makes me think of a chic space with lots of brass.  Also, at first glance it may not seem super important, but upon closer look, you realize what you are seeing - these are raw diamonds.  I love it when you can accomplish this in a space.  Lastly,  I adore things that are different from everybody else's.  This is one reason, I like to start a design by using items the client already has - I feel triumphant when I can make a client fall back in love with an item they already own! 

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I'm also inspired by words . . . 

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Just because someone makes it look effortless, does not mean it's so!  I remember the first time I saw a friend do a backhand spring in junior high.  I thought, "If she can do, I can do it."  Well, not so!!! Now that I'm an adult, the same holds true for lots of things - like entertaining, cooking and even looking great.  Just remember this when you try something new and fail, great things take practice.  

I also think the human connection can be very inspiring.   Whether it's a couples chemistry . . . 

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Or even the connection between a Mother and her child . . . 

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This same human connection is present when I'm hired to work on a family's home.  There is something that happens when someone is brave enough to allow you to help them with their space - it can be very special and vulnerable at the same time.  This always inspires me to come up with the best possible design plan I can for their space.  I want it to be special and "Wow" them.  I want for them what they want out of the design consult.  

I'm also inspired by quirky, I dare say, odd things . . . 

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Quirky things make me smile. period.  I think they can be very disarming and lure you in all at the same time.  As for interior design, I think quirky things make a space feel more interesting and unique.  I love including items in a design plan that you can't just go out and purchase anywhere.  I find there is usually at least one quirky accessory already in the space I can highlight in a fun way.  

So, now it's your turn.  What inspires you?  M.

Little Secret

I'm going to let you in on a little secret - Feburary is my planning/daydreaming month for summer activities.  Now, I realize some of you have already stopped reading this post.  I know it is a bit intense to begin this early, but there are several benefits to planning your summer in February.  It gives you plenty of time to ponder, dream, etc. without feeling desperate or rushed.  If you wait until April, things have picked back up and you are in "just get it on the calendar" mode.    It also helps me get through the dreariness of the cold, wet, short days of winter.  Thinking about something fun to do in the summer tends to distract me.  Lastly, the skies the limit when planning this time of year since you don't have to worry about availability.  So, rather than being bored, plan a summer outing.

Just to get you started, here are a few ideas I'm pondering for our summer 2013.  As an aside, last year, my children decided to go to summer camp for a month!  They had a marvelous time.

They attend Camp Mac which is a lovely family owned camp in the Munford, Alabama.  What my children loved about this camp is all the water related activities available that you normally don't get from summer camps in the Northeast, which are focused primarily on a mountain experience.

Camp Mac has two very impressive lakes and any type of water activity imaginable (not to mention the non-water activities available, the list is simply too exhaustive to go into here). My children adored the entire experience.  For more info, click here.   

But this year, we are thinking outside the box and have decided to do some family travel in an effort to expose our children to the history of our state as well as the United States in general.  With a few budget friending trips in mind, I'm thinking about several quick day trips to see things we've not experienced locally.

Here are just a few on my radar . . .

Noccalula Falls

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Helen Keller's home 

Did you know it was in Alabama?

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Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

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The USS Alabama Battleship

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Mobile Carnival Museum

Did you know Mobile, AL (not New Orleans) was the birthplace of Mardi Gras?

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Cathedral Caverns

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Ave Maria Grotto

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Obviously, we can't do them all, but it's fun to see what is available.  Then we may take a larger trip near the end of the summer.  What are your plans this summer?  You may need to do a little brainstorming too. M.

Trend Spotting and Master Bedroom Before/Afters

So happy to back in the world of WIFI - we have never had a complete outage that lasted more than a couple of hours.  So, when day two rolled around and still no Internet, I was having a hard time remaining calm.  Whew!  To show how thrilled I am to be back online, I  wanted to show you some before and after pictures of my master bedroom.  But first some trend spotting is in order.

As I mentioned in a recent post,  I was thrilled Birmingham Home and Garden featured me as one of their 2013 Tastemakers.  In the article, we were asked to weigh in on the hottest design trends for 2013.

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One of the trends I mentioned in the article were Agates.

This is a spinoff of the gemstone trend from last year.  As mentioned in the article,  I've been so smitten with agates, I decided to have a set framed for my master bedroom.  I picked them up last week, and I have to say, they have added a very chic modern punch to an otherwise traditional space.   So, with the transformation is complete, here's the after . . .

Where did this bedroom begin?  This should give you an idea . . . 

We replaced the carpet with hardwoods when we moved in and the previous owner left the draperies.   Even though the fabric on the draperies was not my style, they were expensive linen fabric and were lined with blackout fabric.  Like most, this room was way down on the list.  So, it remained like this for several years. 

Then when this painting landed in the room (from a rearrange in another part of the house), I had the color direction I needed.  I pulled in more blues to balance the draperies and made the entire room feel more current.   

First, I needed to break up all the dark wood in the space - too much.  So, I selected an upholstered bed with nailhead detailing. 

Then, I pulled in several different fabrics to play on the blue/greens in the painting and draperies.  I made sure to include different textures of fabrics from cottons,

to velvet

 and even two woven jacquards.  This one in a modern chevron pattern . . .

As well as this one in a moorish pattern with tones of blue and green 

Then I selected on patterned fabric to pull all the colors together.  I used this fabric in a client's bedroom last year and thought it was the perfect color scheme to unify my space.

I also brought in the upholstered settee.  This was "a trade" I made with a sweet friend/client.

The settee did not work in her space and she was going to sell it.  So, we traded for it.  I gave her some design time and, in turn, I got the settee.  I think the scale is perfect.  

I also reupholstered a Bergere chair in a camel mohair and used it to fill in this corner on the opposite side of the room.  

Then, the final piece of the puzzle - the agates.

Last summer, I began to see framed agates on some of my favorite high end websites.  My husband and I took a trip to Highlands, and I noticed a gem shop near our hotel.  The rest is history!

As you know, a space is never really finished.  It's always evolving and changing.  That's what makes the process fun.  But for now, I'm done in this room.  The biggest surprise in this space for me?  I'm shocked by how much I like the draperies now.

And it all started with a painting.

Happy Monday! M.