Reader Design: Jessica's Vibrant Space

Well folks, somehow we're now in 2018. I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday break because 2018 is here with a vengeance. 

Take New England for instance, the home of today's reader design tour. It's currently piled with two feet of snow! Thankfully, Jessica has her vibrant and eclectic home to keep her warm! 

A little about Jessica:

“I live in a 1934 Craftsman Bungalow home with my dashing husband, Christopher, our dopey mutt, Murphy, and silly dog-like cats, Marla and Sylvester. We’ve been here for just over four years, the last year being the most significant design-wise inside. Since then, I’ve taught myself how to hang french doors, rebuild floor molding, and board and batten. I believe you can build anything with a nail gun. My design eye was heavily influenced by my Mom’s desire to create cozy interiors throughout my life. Apparently we had a knack for feng shui and didn’t even know it. I keep at a design until I get it balanced and just right.

My home has rapidly evolved more in tune with my personality over the past year. For years, I had well-loved hand me downs, but I’ve begun to embrace (and trust my gut about) a wilder, more vibrant feel. I’ve always been an eclectic collector and a lover of color. I’m an avid fan of the glammy ‘20-30s, mid century, and the boho vibes of my grandmother-in-law’s Southern California home. I love idea of challenging myself to combine my BBB (big, bold & beautiful) antiques/thrifted goods with my husband’s California roots. My home has since grown into a modern-eclectic-glam abode that’s super cozy to all who enter.”

In the dining room, Jessica paired a Spanish revival sideboard she found at a tag sale with a custom 7' poplar table by Mason Dixon Handmade and vintage brass bar cart. Jessica's husband lovingly jokes that the home is "a modern Italian dream based in 1970s Miami," and no room says it better!

This place is just chalk-full of meaningful finds, 'more is more' design, and elements that satisfy all five senses - specifically "incense, good tunes, the velvet blue Article sofa, pretty pattens, and all the home cooking." There are also fun collections that Jessica has accumulated over time, almost by accident, of globes, decanters, and candlesticks. So much to please the eye, and the heart!

If there was a perfect place to wait out this storm, this would have to be it. Thank you for inviting us in, Jessica! Follow Jessica along on Instagram @imjessicabrigham for more.

See you next week,

Mark Your Calendar!

Hi Friends! Jumping on to share a really quick announcement with you today - on January 10 I will be over on Roomhints sharing tips, tricks and fixes, for any and all pesky home decor questions you may have! Whether you're trying to find the right layout for a particular space, which paint color to use, or what size sofa to purchase, I'll be available with decisive advice to help you move forward! I sought this opportunity as a way to offer help for those who don't necessarily need a full design package but have questions that are beyond the expertise of their Joanna-Gaines-obsessed coworkers. Sometimes we just need a few experienced pointers to be well on our way, right? The process is three simple steps:

1. Register with me, Chelsea Bieber, for $49, (a fraction of a full design package)
2. Upload photos of your space to the Roomhints app, (you'll be directed how to do this, it's very easy)
3. Ask away! Let me know what's nagging you about that space and I'll respond with 5 practical tips, pieces, ideas, etc!

When the holiday buzz has quieted and you've swept up the last of the dried Christmas tree bristles, it's a perfect time to re-think your space and hit the reset button. I would love to talk it out with you and lend my help so you can love your home that much more in 2018!

Reader Design: Heather's Blended Digs

We're edging closer and closer to 2018, and the start of a new year always brings with it both excitement for the future and reflection on the past. How appropriate that today we're headed to a home that expertly blends old and new, keeping with the trends of today while paying homage to timeless design and craftsmanship. 

Let's head off to Heather's home near Minneapolis, Minnesota!

From Heather:

“I would describe my style as transitional with a heavy mid-century modern bent and a bit of boho thrown in. I truly am a style mutt in that I love old mixed with new, colors mixed with neutrals, and fall somewhere in the middle of the minimalist/maximalist spectrum.

I long for my home to be a safe place for all who enter. I want it to be warm and welcoming. My main goal in decorating is making our home a place where people feel comfortable to be themselves, which sometimes means I sacrifice form for function. It’s one thing for your home to look beautiful in photos, but it’s a whole other thing for it to feel beautiful to people. For a space to feel like it’s cozy and for it to function well is equally, if not more, important than how it looks.”

“My husband and I spent a couple weekends removing the cabinets on this wall, hanging removable wallpaper, and installing the shelves. To-date, I think it’s my favorite home update we’ve done. It took our kitchen from outdated, dark, and closed off, to open, airy, and modern.

I believe in updating, renovating, and decorating within your means. If you don’t have the time or money to do a project, then don’t stress about it! Do what you can with what you have where you’re at. That means that you may need to do smaller, short-term fixes until you have the budget for a larger renovation (like we did in our kitchen). Or it may mean that you embrace a part of your home that doesn’t feel perfect, but is good enough. It doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful!”

Heather and her husband took their time with this space and made it perfectly their own. It's the ideal spot to cozy up in the Minnesota weather to come. Heather also did this design consciously which can be so hard to do - financially and aesthetically. 

“I tend to be pretty thrifty when purchasing home decor, but one thing that I am willing to splurge on more than others is original art. Pieces that aren’t mass-produced are so special, and getting to support the artists who create them is a gift. But if you don’t have it in your budget to splurge on original artwork, thrift and antique shops can be a great resource for you! I recently found this seascape at our local thrift shop for $4, and I love the character it adds to our bedroom!”

Thanks for the tour today, Heather! 

Follow Heather along on Instagram @mysahomestyling for more! All photos shot by Lana Douglas of 1987 Photography. Check out Lana's photography on Instagram at @1987photography.