House by Holly: June 2012

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Coffee by the POOL...

Our BACKYARD PARADISE is ready to ROLL!
Let the SUMMER parties begin!!!

Bring on the Sunshine, Sangria, & Smore's...

I brought in some accessories, inexpensive plants and flowers, and made some outdoor pillows to add a little PIZAAZ to our backyard...

These pillows are made from a shower curtain, grocery bags, and bed pillows.

This basket is a great way to corral all the towels...

I like to group in "three's" when accessorizing. Height, texture and color...

Boxwoods and flowers in planters add classic decor to any outside space.

Multiple seating areas are FUN!

Coffee while bird watching anyone?

You may recall seeing that BRONZE FINIAL from a little post I call "The Power of SPRAY PAINT".

This lantern was a steal for $20 at TJ Maxx...

I like to sprinkle SEA SHELLS here and there...

Boxwoods line the steps, of course!

More boxwoods, ferns, coleus, moss and hosta's...

A garden cloche for $3...click here to find some other Tag Sale finds...

Next year, these should be a lot fuller.

An extra chair and some plants to frame the slider...

A bigger table to TAKE IT ALL IN...

More "faux" boxwoods...

I can't wait until my newly planted boxwoods come in fuller and I trim them to look like these...

What Northeast yard wouldn't be complete without a couple of adirondack chairs?

These are a little on the "shabby" side, but I still like them...

Lots of good times happen here...

What do you think? Do you think I love boxwoods?

If you enjoy reading HOUSE by Holly, please click the "like" button at the top of the page for Facebook. Or visit http://www.facebook.com/HouseByHolly and hit "like". I will be sharing extra tips and tricks on that Facebook page I created. And as always, I love to hear from MY READERS! Please leave me comments, post projects you have tried and feel free to ask me questions.

Shower Curtain Pillow Tutorial--

This Shower curtain was $8 at a discount store. Just cut the dimensions for the size of pillows you want. I used the lines of the print for my guide.

Place 2 squares "right" side together, sew three sides and flip right side out...

4 extra bed pillows that were not being used anymore.

fold the pillow in half, bag it in a grocery bag.

Bag it again, this makes the pillow water proof and helps it keep a tight square appearance.

4 little pillows sitting on an island...

Ta Da!

From my HOUSE to your HOUSE, HAPPY HUNTING!

Holly

Linking to
Thrifty Decor Chick
Jennifer Rizzo
A Stroll Thru Life
Savvy Southern Style
The Shabby Nest

Friday, June 8, 2012

The HEART of the Home...

The HEART of the home is, as everyone knows, the KITCHEN. In our house, everyone hangs out in the kitchen. Sometimes it feels like I am in the kitchen all day long.

I have not always loved the way our kitchen looked. In fact, I really don't like the light maple cabinetry so I have had to come up with ways to soften it. It has been a long road and we have slowly changed a few things over the last 8 years.
Now, I really like my kitchen!

Here's a peek at the new and improved heart of our home

But it didn't always look this good.

When hubby and I bought the home 8 years ago it was the "model" home in a new neighborhood. Not a finished model, but 85% done. We still got to pick out the flooring on the second floor and the counter-tops, but that was really all. By the time we put our deposit down the builder had just placed the order for the kitchen cabinets and they could not be changed.

Here's some pics from the beginning

I felt like the bead board and the natural maple cabinetry were two different looks, so we had that removed. Did I mention I am not a fan of natural maple cabinetry either...

And then there was the island. It ended up being some three level monstrosity that I loathed for years...

And in 2004 after we moved in...

This clearly was before my OCD kicked in...

The counter top is Formica in Labrador.

This is almost embarrassing....WHAT THE HECK WAS I THINKING?!

Then I decided to paint the kitchen Dried Thyme by Dutch Boy. I had to chose a color that wouldn't blend in with the cabinets and this seemed like a good choice.

Hubby and I decided a couple of years ago to level the island, bring in granite and add a back splash.

Major improvement!

We chose Uba Tuba granite mostly because it was the largest piece available to fit the entire island. We felt very strongly about not having a seam on the granite.

We chose a tumbled marble with roping detail.

The kitchen still needed some work. The counter chairs and a new light light fixture were next on the list.

Pottery Barn

I love this Pottery Barn wrought iron chandelier with burlap shades. The texture on the burlap is amazing. But for $399 PLUS $100 for the burlap shades...not so amazing.

Royce Lighting RC2161-8BK Coventry 8 Light Chandelier Black

I found this chandelier and with my coupon codes for 15% off and free shipping --I got it for a steal at $78. It was originally $168 before listed on sale. SCORE!

I knew I wanted the burlap shades, but I didn't want to surrender to the price tag, so I decided to make my own. I was skeptical though....would they look okay? I have never recovered shades, just added ribbon detail...

The hook detail really makes this chandelier.

Isn't she GLORIOUS?!

I am now in love with my kitchen!

And surprisingly, I still like the paint color I chose for the walls some 4 years ago...

I love the way my collection of Wedgwood and Ironstone looks.

My little pie cabinet turned SHOW STOPPER with mirrored medallions is one of my favorite pieces in my house. Everyone comments on that piece of furniture.

It was only $45 at a tagsale.

One of a kind!

I have thought a lot about painting the cabinets cream with an antique glaze on top. Those Rustoleum kits from Lowes look pretty appealing. But hubby doesn't agree. The cabinets are fairly new and in great condition--why mess with it? We also got 2 quotes to reface the cabinets at over $16,000.