Things I Like

I have a new "Things I like" section that I added (you can access it anytime via the "THINGS I LIKE" link at the top of the blog). A few other bloggers that I follow have this feature and I love it. You can click on any of the photos and it will take you to the product. There are affiliate links included.

Pillowfort by Target

So is anyone as obsessed with the Pillowfort collection by Target as I am? So many things. I seriously want to buy them all. All the things. And no, this isn't in any way sponsored. I mean, that gold pineapple lamp??? Those chairs??? Yes. So much yes.

Personal faves:

table lamp . mint chair . pineapple lamp . scoop chair . cloud pillow . cactus plush . beanbag chair wire basket . play table/bench . house shelf . gold heart bed canopy . love wall art . dinosaur string art

9 Tried & True Paint Colors

Over the last ten years, we've made a lot of great color choices when it comes to paint, but we've also made a lot of terrible ones. There was a lot of trial and error involved before we figured out how to choose a good paint color. When we bought our first house, we couldn't agree on paint colors, so we decided that I could choose the living room color and Kev could choose the family room color. We ended up with cranberry red and lime green. Like, glowing-nearly-fluorescent lime. I think we painted and repainted nearly every room in our first house. And even when you buy paint testers, although it helps, there's really nothing that can show you how a color is going to change the look and feel of a space until you get most of the space painted. So to hopefully save you a little bit of our pain and frustration, here are a few tried and true colors that we feel like, YES, we got it really right.

1. Behr Dolphin Fin

This color is such a great neutral. It goes with just about everything, and it contrasts well with bright white trim. Even though it's a nice light gray, I prefer it in spaces that get a lot of natural light. In darker spaces, I go a shade lighter with Behr Silver Drop, which you can see a little further down in the post. I think Behr may have taken this color out of their collection of paint chips, but they can still mix it for you.

You can see more of our former family room here.


2. Martha Stewart Magnetite

This color was actually a happy accident. I meant to get a more medium gray and somehow asked for this one by mistake. I didn't realize it until I started painting it on the wall, but I ended up absolutely loving it. It looks amazing in a space that has a lot of white to balance it out. It also looks great with wood tones, greenery, and pastels.


3. Behr Juniper Breeze

For this space we wanted a light neutral, but I didn't want to go with a traditional gray. We found this light blue-green-gray. I love that the color changes depending on the light and that it's still really neutral. It looks great with white and warm wood tones.


4. Behr Venus Teal

This is probably the most colorful that we've gone in a long time, but I love this color. It's rich without being too heavy and dark. It's colorful without being too saturated. It's just a really lovely, balanced color.


5. Behr Ultra Pure White

We use this color for all of our trim, but I love it on the walls as well. It's bright without being to cold. It looks great with pretty much everything.

You can see more photos of our new house here.


6. Behr Silver Drop

A slightly lighter version of Behr Dolphin Fin, which I mentioned earlier, this is a the perfect light gray. It looks great with everything, but especially coppers and warm wood tones.

You can see more photos of our kitchen reno here.

7. Behr Country Dairy

If you're looking for a great off-white/cream color, this is it. Light and airy, and a great neutral that pairs well with most anything.

You can see more photos of Violet's room here.


8. Behr Prelude

I was worried that this color might be too dark for this small space, so we added the beadboard to help balance things out. It ended up being such a cozy space. I love this color paired with whites, warm linens, and warm colors - yellow-golds, oranges, and reds.

You can see photos of Violet's nursery here.

9. Behr Smokey Slate

This color was the winner after we tested many, many colors for our lower cabinets. It would also look great on a piece of furniture like a bookcase, or even as a wall color. I love this color with jewel tones, whites, and warm wood tones.

So what about you? Have you found any paint colors that you love? I'd love to hear about them! We've still got a lot of rooms to paint! xo, Lauren

You can see more photos of our first house here, and our new house here.

(Just as an FYI, we tend to use a lot of Behr paint because we think it's a great product - this post is not sponsored by them in any way.)

(Paintbrush photo by my talented friend, Elizabeth.)

A Happy Glam Nursery

I love the happy feeling of bright pinks and cheerful yellows, but blues and golds have stolen my heart lately as well. Luckily, they all play quite nicely together! xo, Lauren

Sources
Gold Bunting
Cloud Mobile
Brass Faceted Knob
Sequined Pillow
Heart Pillow
Striped Crib Sheet
Balloon Ride Print
Cloud Shelf
Classic Bead Toy
Pink Velvet Pillow
Sparkle Print
Deer Nightlight
Dot Decals
Crib
Mirabelle the Bunny
Textile Art
Gold Lamp
Pink Lampshade
Teething Rings
Canvas Storage Bins
Wooden Camera Toy
Neon Pink Moccasins
Tally Rug
Campaign Dresser

Handmade Love: Love Mae Designs

I came across this lovely shop when I was working on a project the other day and fell in love with the playful/whimsical crib sheets! You can see more from Love Mae Designs here.

P.S. 16 of My Favorite Sources for Crib Sheets + 6 Tips for Decorating a Nursery on a Budget

P.P.S. Don't forget to enter the Hanna Andersson and Stuck on You giveaways - a $100 prize for each!

Handmade Love

Loving these beautiful felt flower pieces from The Felt Flower Shop on Etsy. What a pretty way to brighten up your home this winter, and bonus - you don't have to water it! (Or replace them every month for that matter).  xo, Lauren

16 of My Favorite Sources for Crib Sheets

I haven't talked much about Lucy's nursery on here, mostly because I'm about 75% there, but have gotten a) super busy with two kids (note to self: finish nurseries BEFORE the baby is born!) and b) I'm kinda stuck. I've been trying to decide for months whether or not to paint the upper half of the nursery white.

I love, love, love white nurseries. Pretty much 80% of my Pinterest boards on home decor are of white spaces. The problem is, I also am very attached to the tree that I painted on the wall before I had Violet. If I paint the space white, the tree will either have to go, or I'll have to figure out some really creative solution to keep in in another color. If the tree goes, I feel like I'll have a blank wall on that side of the room screaming for something. Unfortunately the wall is sloped (so I can't hang anything) and there is no real ceiling - it just curves straight into to the opposite wall, so no wallpaper unless you cover the entire room, which is why I painted the tree in the first place. So anyway, I figured I'll ask you for advice and in the meantime share a little bit of my favorite nursery items on here.

When I started updating the nursery for Lucy, one thing I really searched for were the perfect crib sheets. I wanted them to either be patterned or linen and relatively inexpensive. Here are 16 favorite sources for crib sheets that I came across along the way:

1. Candy Kirby Designs
2. Olive & Andrew on Etsy
3. Serena & Lily
4. Unison Home
5. Mayasri

6. Aunt Bucky on Etsy
7. Land of Nod
8. Little Auggie
9. Iviebaby on Etsy
10. Babiease on Etsy

11. Aden + Anais
12. Dwell Studio
13. RH Baby & Child
14. ModFox on Etsy
15. Target
16. Carousel Designs

Do you have any favorite sources that aren't on the list? I'd love to hear about them and/or hear what you think about the paint/tree situation! I've seriously been going back and forth in my head for months, and at this point I just feel ridiculous lol! xo, Lauren

P.S. Violet's nursery and a couple of peeks into the updated space so far.

Natural Wonder

THIS POST IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY UNCOMMON GOODS

Patchwood Headboard, Bubble Wall Clock, Animal Alphabet Print, Cardboard Moose Bust, Alphabet Factory Blocks, Hee Haw Pull Toy, Sleeping Fox Pillow, Wud Double Side Table, Sweet Dreams Pillow Cases, Invisible Shelf, Salt Desk Lamp, Moss Terrarium, Cubebot Puzzle, USA World Map Poster, Lake Louise Photographic Print

I was honestly totally into the idea of a third kid after I had Lucy - overall she's been so much easier than Violet was as a baby, but at nine months she's still not sleeping through the night, so I'm starting to rethink the whole idea! The bags under my eyes are about the size of Jupiter at this point, and I'm starting to resemble a character from the Walking Dead more and more each day (and I don't mean the living ones). You never know though - if I've learned one thing about motherhood it's that you forget the difficult things pretty quickly - my poor sister asked me sooo many questions after she had my nephew and I felt like such a loser because I couldn't answer half of them! I think it must be Mother Nature's way of keeping the species from going extinct :)

On the other hand, one of my favorite things to do is to create idea boards for teeny people - so much so that it almost makes me want to have like twenty kids so that I can create pretty bedrooms for all of them (okay, okay, so maybe I don't love it that much, but you get my drift!) But after a while using traditional sources for children's decor can start to feel a little like you're rehashing the same things over and over again. Something I love to do to keep things fresh is to explore my favorite sites that aren't necessarily branded as children's decor stores. I've always loved shopping at Uncommon Goods, and I've found a lot of favorite kids' toys, artwork, and even furniture there, so I teamed up with them to create this idea board. I love all of the natural elements and wood tones paired with the crisp modern blacks and whites. I would totally bring this room to life if I had a little boy! IF. xo, Lauren

This post was sponsored by Uncommon Goods. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Little Adventurer

I created this ideabook for Houzz.com back in December, but never got around to sharing it with the holiday rush and demise of my laptop. So here it is a little bit late! xo, Lauren

P.S. If We Were Having a Boy, a Modern Safari Nursery, and a different kind of Little Adventurer's Room.

Nursery Finds to Energize and Inspire

When the new year rolls around, I always find myself craving fresh, bright, invigorating colors. I came across a striking rug on Etsy that combined traditional kilim patterns with a fun color palette and thought it would be perfect for a brilliantly colorful nursery design! I pulled colors from the rug and threw in some glitzy metallic accents and came up with this fun idea board. You can find sources over at my ideabook for Houzz.com right here. xo, Lauren

P.S. A Euro-Inspired Kids' Room and a Happy Nursery Design

Gallery Wall - Do or Don't + a Review for Lamps.com

One thing that I find sad about living in a small house is that there isn't much wall space for art. It's probably for the best, as I would have spent a lot more money on pieces that I love if I only had the space for them. One corner where I always wanted to put more artwork is this little corner between the sofa and the French doors in the family room. The problem is that we need a lamp on the end table for light, but I always felt that it would be silly to put artwork there because the lamp would cover up most of it. So when Lamps.com asked me to review their clear Dimond table lamp, I was excited. It has a clear base, and I thought that the glass would provide a better opportunity to hang some artwork in the space.

At first I wasn't sure how I felt about the cork shade - while I love the warm texture I didn't know how much light it would really give off. Luckily while it's not as bright as a lamp with a traditional shade it does give off a decent amount of light, so I'm very happy with it.

Next I decided to do a mock up of a collage/gallery wall to see if I liked it. All of this artwork was pilfered from elsewhere in the house with the exception of the canvas photos of the girls, and none of it is actually nailed to the wall. It's either leaning against the wall, stacked on top of one another, taped, or sticky tacked, but now that I have it all "up" I kind of love it and don't want to return everything to its proper place. So what do you think? Are you a fan of the gallery wall look, or is it too much? For reference, here's what the space looked like before. Thanks for any input! xo, Lauren

P.S. Isn't Violet just too precious in these photos? She saw me taking pictures, clambered up on the arm rest of the couch and flashed me the cutest smiles, how could I resist? Love my little ham.

Holiday Giveaway No. 5

I've got another couple of giveaways for you this week! This one is a great collection of gifts for the little ones in your life:

1. How to Train a Train, Journey, Maps, Forever (2 copies of each!) + shipping from Candlewick Press
2. Two paper puppets (rabbit and penguin) + a set of Christmas cards + shipping from With Her Animal Poetry
3. Christmas Village + shipping from Pukaca
4. Mountain Pillow + shipping from Juniper Wilde
5. Mr. Lion Heart 79 + shipping from JipiJipi
6. Super Ted from Kathryn Davey

This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. You can enter via the Rafflecopter here:  
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Holiday Giveaway No. 2: Decorate

For our second giveaway I'm thrilled to offer some lovely items to feather your little one's nest:

1. Starry Sky Print + Shipping (or $25 credit) from Amy Brearly
2. $25 Credit to Bella Luna Toys
3. Pouf + Shipping from Zid Zid Kids
4. Medium iKhaya Birdhouse Hook + Shipping from Looodus

This giveaway is open internationally (woohoo!) You can enter via the Rafflecopter here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Handmade Love

Seriously in love with these handmade heart pillows from Sukan - I want one of each! xo, Lauren

A Euro-Inspired Kid's Room

I love European children's spaces - the way they seamlessly combine both modern and vintage pieces, pair playfulness with sophistication, and warm up clean white spaces with colorful accents and warm wood tones. Check out twenty of my favorite pieces to get the look in your own little one's room over at my ideabook on Houzz.com.

P.S. A woosdy camp-inspired nursery and a colorful, happy kids' room.

Creating a Cozy Space for Fall

Have I mentioned that Fall is one of my favorite seasons? It all just makes me want to curl up by a cozy fire and read a good book (perhaps whilst sipping hot apple cider?) While that's probably not going to happen with Violet and Lucy keeping me busy, but nonetheless I've been dreaming up a space that would be just right for my Fall fantasy (no, nothing to do with football!). Wouldn't this just make the perfect cozy space by a crackling fire? You can find sources for all of these items and more over at my ideabook on Houzz.com. xo, Lauren

P.S. Don't forget to enter to win $100 to National Builder Supply!

P.P.S. My dream laundry room and a circus-inspired nursery.

Kitchen Update (Let there be light!)

You may remember the hideousness of our plastic light fixture from the before photos of our kitchen. It was meant to look like a capiz shell pendant, but it was definitely plastic and definitely not our style.

The other light in our kitchen was a very dated ceiling fan. They always drove me crazy, not only because of how they looked, but also because they weren't centered with the windows. So I was thrilled when National Builder Supply contacted us to review pendant lights for the kitchen!

National Builder Supply is an an online wholesaler of kitchen, bath, and lighting fixtures, and they have a huge selection to choose from. We had a really difficult time deciding, because they had a ton of amazing options, but in the end we decided to go for classic schoolhouse pendants. Since our tiny casa is from the 1930's, we've often gone the more classic route with choices for our decor (like the hexagon and subway tiles in our bathroom for instance). I love the copper/bronze finish - it really adds character and helps to warm up the space. I think it's also going to look amazing once we get the knobs and pulls on the cabinets and drawers. We're thinking of going with an oil-rubbed bronze, kind of like this:

Kev was super busy with helping me get the cabinets ready for the big reveal, so he didn't have much time to dedicate to the lighting situation. Luckily my grandfather was an electrician, so my dad is really handy with that kind of thing and helped us out. (Thanks Daddy!) It's amazing how much more light they shed - it's so much easier to see when we're preparing food! I think Lucy will miss the ceiling fan - she would probably stare at it forever, but I am SO happy it is gone.

Thank you so much to National Builder Supply for helping us out with the kitchen update, we couldn't be happier with the results! Next on my to-do list for the kitchen is cabinet and drawer hardware - we've been living without knobs and pulls since August, so I'm ready to get going on that project.

Stay tuned for a giveaway to National Builder Supply later today! xo, Lauren

Let's Go Camping!

Working on another fun Pin Party with Fisher Price and Project Nursery tonight at 6pm PST/9pm EST! This time I was inspired to create a woodsy/camping themed space - you can check out all of these items and more by following me over on Pinterest. xo, Lauren

Dreaming of a Laundry Room

Right now my washer and dryer are in the dungeon that we call a basement, but someday I hope to have a real laundry room. For now I'll just have to dream one up in my head. Enter my latest ideabook for Houzz.com - a lovely wallpaper accent wall, front-loading washer and dryer, and a pretty striped hamper? Yes please! You can find more info and all of the sources here.

Happy Friday! xo, Lauren

P.S. Recipe for a rustic farmhouse kitchen and if I had a vanity

Nature-Inspired Nursery

I'm participating in a pin party tonight with Serena & Lily and Project Nursery at 6 PM PST/9 PM EST with some other amazing bloggers - 100 Layer Cakelet, Green Wedding Shoes, La Petite Peach, and Mini Magazine! I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with. You can find all of the sources for my nature-inspired nursery idea board and a ton more inspiring nursery ideas tonight - hope to see you there!