Alternative Bedside Ideas

Hi All! Last week our sweet friend, Iris, (Around the Watts House), alerted Cate and me of a fun opportunity to submit some refinished work to HGTV and we couldn't wait to spread the word to you! (Thanks for lookin' out, Iris!!!) The call is for all madeover bedside tables and nightstands - they're asking peeps on Twitter and Instagram to tag their new and improved bedside pieces with #HGTVmakeover for a chance to be shared in one of HGTV's upcoming blog posts! How fun! You have until this Friday, 2/20 to tag your work if you've got something to share!

I think our girl, Cate, has a pretty good chance with these beauties, yes?!

Interesting fact: My home has not a single bedside table! I actually never thought about it until Iris shared this HGTV contest for bedside tables with us! Here's why we've skipped traditional nighstands: The boys need about as little furniture as possible in their room. We've got their beds, a bookshelf and that's it. The rest of the space is spared for wrestling. And by keeping their decor simple, I'm pretty confident we've spared ourselves some emergency room visits. :)

Our girl Shire's bed is snug inside a little nook in her room. It's a cozy spot that fits her twin bed, but with only a few inches on either side there's simply no room for a table. So we placed a shelf above her bed! This acts as both surface space for her water bottle at night, a spot for her beloved knick-knacks, (she's a true bowerbird), and topped with a piece of art, it's also her 'headboard'.

And then there's our master bedroom. A couple weeks ago I shared our bedroom after stenciling the accent wall behind the bed, but I didn't talk about any other details in our room. If you caught that stenciled wall post, you might recall me saying the bed is an antique family heirloom which has been passed through my family over several generations. With my bohemian driven style, I just couldn't see anything holding it's own right next to that headboard. So, I decided to do something minimalistic and just float a pair of shelves! 

We used basic white laminate board shelves from Lowes, but topped them with a piece of stained particle board cut to the exact same size for a customized two-tone look, (which we echoed on our floating wall shelves as well).

These shelves meet our surface needs and we never feel like we need more storage. I love how using something simple at either side lets the bed shine!

I'm not sure if our bedside solutions meets the criteria for the #HGTVmakeover contest, but I thought them worthy of sharing for anyone else who might be stumped on bedside surface space! 

Thank you all for stopping by!

Don't forget to tag your refinished bedside tables and nightstands with #HGTVmakeover on Twitter and Instagram! We'd love to hear if any of our friends get featured, so keep us posted!

Starter Stories: Our First Home ||Before + Now||

Hi Friends! Whew - we made it to the weekend and we're kicking it off with a little trip down memory lane today! I was inspired to share this post by the up and coming NYC based company, Compass, who works to connect NYC apartment hunters with their ideal neighborhood based on personality. They're currently running an awesome campaign called Starter Stories! Starter Stories is an opportunity for bloggers to share how they turned their first place into a home, and Compass will share these stories on Twitter to help inspire new home owners and renters!  How cool is that?!

For my Starter Story I'm sharing our first, (and current), house! Here's an endearing picture of my daughter, Shire, and husband, Matt, on move-in day. On this day in September 2010, our twins were 10 months old and we were 2 months pregnant with our third. In my memory, our move-in day stands out as wonderful, exhausting, beautiful chaos.

I've always been a nester; I recall getting so excited to settle into my first dorm room in college and make it 'home' - all 8 sq feet that were my side of the room. Settling into a full house was overwhelming! We started out with a bunch of mismatched hand-me-downs which we are still so grateful that we had. Our furniture was comfortable and functional, just not very 'us'. Little by little we replaced used, handed down pieces with...more used pieces. I familiarized myself with the ways of Craigslist and all the local thrift stores and turned this house into our unique second-hand home! I'll do my best to include the links to the DIY projects for each room, but if you have any questions about anything you see, don't hesitate to ask!

LIVING ROOM BEFORE 

LIVING ROOM AFTER

The trial: This large, airy space is shared with our dining room and I wanted to keep the entire space as open, and sociable as possible. When we have large family gatherings and the company spills over to this side, I didn't want it to feel like everyone was in two separate spaces.
The triumph: By anchoring the sofa against the wall, that is a solid focal point for the living room. Floating the IKEA hacked armchairs between the two areas blurs the line from one side to the other, enabling guests and ourselves to interact between the two rooms.
DIY Links: IKEA hacked armchairs, Belted wall clock, Painted basket

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DINING ROOM BEFORE

DINING ROOM AFTER

The Trial: As we are not very formal people, it didn't make sense for us to have a formal dining room. However, our family is too large to do without a sufficient dining table. We needed a place to eat meals together that was still comfortable and casual enough to hang out in, play games, and pull out school activities and crafts.
The Triumph: A very mixed dining set consisting of a heavy dark stained table, (World Market), metal cafe chairs, (Restoration Hardware), thrifted and painted corner chairs, a thrifted and re-designed chandelier, and custom built industrial shelves, definitely takes our dining room into the comfortable, laid back territory we desired for this space. While function takes center stage through the large presence of our industrial shelves, (the lower shelf serves as a command center and desk area for the children), I threw in a snap of glam with a gold matted botanical print wall. And no, they are never all completely straight. As it appears here, someone must have run through the room and upset the lower left corner. The beauty of hanging by tacks is they're easy to straighten, (if you notice...). :)
DIY Links: Gallery wall, Industrial Shelves

MASTER BEDROOM BEFORE

MASTER BEDROOM AFTER

The Trial: My biggest challenge with this room was actually that bed! It's an antique family heirloom piece, along with our dressers, and while we are so honored to keep these pieces in our home, they are quite unique in their style and I found them difficult to decorate around.
The Triumph: Who would have thought that adding a patterned accent wall behind such an ornate headboard would do the trick?! I stenciled the entire wall behind our bed as a way of modernizing the old character of the piece. Once that was done I felt free to introduce my bohemian tendencies with the addition of some macrame planters, a flea marketed mexican blanket, a large antique mirror from my husbands side, and the small runners on either side of the bed, (they're actually just 2'x3' rugs but suite the floor space flanking the bed perfectly).
DIY Links: Stenciled wall, Corner chair, Ceiling fan drum shade, (coming soon)

Whatever you call home, whether it's a large house or half of a dorm room, it's your space. Make it unique to you! Everyone deserves to love where they live. One of my favorite quotes is by the infamous tennis pro Arthur Ashe, who once said, "Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can." Your starting point and resources may be different from others you know. Your current situation might not be your ultimate dream. But you, my friend, deserve to love your home! What can you do? Give it some thought and then do it!

If you're not sure where to start or need help with some ideas, Cate and I love this sort of thing and are always available as fresh eyes to help you get rolling. Feel free to email photos of your space to admin@stylemutthome.com and spill your heart out with your hopes and dreams for your space. We'll be happy to share our ideas!

A huge thank you to Compass for inspiring this Starter Stories project! You can find more Starter Stories posted on their Twitter!

We've got a divine Reader Design for you tomorrow on Valentines Day so be sure to drop in at some point!

Thank you so much for stopping by!

DIY Belted Wall Clock

Hi guys! Just stopping by today with a really fun DIY that would fit into just about any decor style! This hanging belted clock got a really fun response on Instagram a couple weeks ago and I've been excited to share the deets here on our blog!

We may be on the brink of Spring, but there's never a time that I turn my nose to a touch of leather. It's one of those materials that charms a space with it's sexy edginess! It doesn't follow rules; it pairs well with hard industrial elements as well as softer bohemian touches. It's never inappropriate at a party. :)

The hanging belted clock is just a subtle way to add a little leather into your home without breaking the bank or making a huge commitment. 

Supplies:
Clock - I used an 8" wall clock from Home Depot, (less than $10)
Belt - Find one with a width less than the clock's frame - if the belt is wider, the clock won't hang flush against the wall. Check your local thrift store for a plethora of cheap belts! (less than $4)
Hot glue gun (around $10)
Metallic paint marker, *optional - I used one from AC Moore to cover my face numbers in gold (less than $2)

Step one: Remove the frame of your clock by unscrewing it from the back. Color over the face numbers in the metallic marker, then replace clock frame.

Step two: Trace hot glue around the bottom two thirds of your clock and pull the belt around. Do this with the clock lying flat on a protected surface so that you can make sure the clock and belt are both flush. 

Step three: Thread the belt through the buckle. Remember, you want the buckle to be seen from the side as it hangs, so take that into account when deciding how much hang room you want between the belt and the top of the clock..

Step four: Find a winning spot and hang this gem up!

Step five (IMPORTANT): Invite some friends over and ask them if they know the time so they're sure to notice your kickin' clock.

See, nothing major! It's just a fun little touch that makes a space that much more unique!

Thank you so much for stopping by today! 

Do you have any fun leather projects to share? We'd love to see! You can either post your handiwork directly to our Facebook page or tag #stylemutthomeprojects to Instagram!