ATTACK OF THE BLACK

Black is continuing to be a huge trend in home decor and it is really making me want to take the plunge. Have you? Now, I just have to figure out where amongst all of Melrose's stark, white walls it could live. I posted a while back about my love for it on the walls, and then a huge trend hit of painting your doors black (which is just as amazing and dramatic), and now it seems that it has taken over window trims. Every room I have seen with black window frames is so intriguing and I am drawn immediately to the bold color. With curtains, or without, the black adds the perfect amount of BAM to the room. What do you think? If you aren't ready to dive in head first, trimming your windows with black could help you test the waters. I think you would be pleased!

simple room ... white walls, minimal furniture and decor, sheer curtains ... the black trim adds so much interest to this beautiful space

 one of my favorite dining spaces ... the bronze pendants aren't bad either

 via lonny mag

 via high street market

 so open and airy ... the black trim draws your attention in

 I would love, love, love to bath in this gorgeous bathroom. Really, I would just like to own this bathroom and stare at it everyday. 

via

via lonny mag

 Jenna Lyon's office via Oh Happy Day

 Joanna Goddard's bedroom decorated by Little Green Notebook

via lonny mag

What do you think? Where do you prefer to apply your coat of black? 

Check out more on my pinterest board

B&A, 1/2 WAY: KB's guest room

I finally have my desk area setup in one of the guest bedrooms and I wanted to share the progress. Remember my desk inspiration post? Well, it finally all came together and "the good stuff" is up and going! In the future, this room will house my grandmother's beautiful bedroom suit (that I currently use and have since college) and I will update you on those additions. But until then, this is the guest bedroom before:

As you can probably guess, this room previously belonged to a little girl - check out the hot pink fan too! And, if I am not mistaken this is just about the same exact color my room was when I was little - pepto bismol pink! Yikes! That color was quickly gone and replaced with Benjamin Moore's portland gray. It is a soft mauve with just enough gray for it not to look purple. I love it! I have to admit, after the first coat of tinted primer I was a little nervous, but I am completely happy now!

I wanted to choose a color from this landscape painting that I did that was not too powerful or strong. It will hang above the bed so I think the subtle mauve will accent it nicely. I hope to also bring in lots of white and golden yellows. 

And here is the room after:

A simple white fan can do a ton to a room! Now, here is where all "the good stuff" takes place:

[click on all images to enlarge]

I waited to share the final setup because it took me forever to find a simple white upholstered chair! I finally found one at Pier 1 and it is their Parson's slipcover chair bare. Such a good price too! A sweet friend, Sarah Robins, picked up the Ikea filing cabinet for me - gotta stay organized - and I purchased other desk accessories at Wal-Mart and Anthropologie. 

I am still deciding if I should do a shelf of framed pictures and prints like in my inspiration post. I believe I would shorten my inspiration board and mount the shelf about the height of the boards now. What do you think? I will probably do a mock up first and share for you to examine...

B&A: DEN

I am finally ready (or really, finally found time) to share some pictures of the den. Here are some before pictures.

[standing at the back of the room, close to the front door - straight ahead is the dining room)

[reverse location - bay windows open to the front yard]

Our first step was to paint. As you can tell, I love white and neutral palettes so that was definitely the direction for the den. I chose Benjamin Moore's white dove for the walls and decorator's white (oil semi-gloss)for the trim. I think Brandon was a little nervous about going all white (he still says the white walls give him headaches), but he trusted me, and it turned out great. White is so clean and fresh and allows you to use accents of any color of the rainbow.

Do you remember the industrial rolling cart project? And the framed print inspiration? Or the bargain shopping bookshelves? Well, here they all are in Melrose:

So, this is the basic overview of the room. I still need some "filler" items on the back shelves, but for the most part I think we have her under control. If you can tell, there is a hint of a nautical theme. Which just so happens to be the theme at Pottery Barn right now - great minds think alike! ;)

I purchased the sea life coral prints from One Kings Lane and framed them myself. After checking at Hobby Lobby and several places online, I found that I could buy the black frames individually, get the glass and backing cut, and assemble them for much cheaper. We actually had an "assembly party" one day at work during lunch over pizza. Thanks girls!

Brandon helped pick out the natural bound rug at Pottery Barn and many of the other items were found at antique shops. 

Since Brandon loves to deep sea fish and we have a nautical theme going, I thought a coastal map of the Gulf would be perfect. He helped me find the perfect one and voila! Paired with an old clock, ratty books with ship cast iron bookends, and a few blue mason jars - and you have yourself a decorated mantel! 

Remember the fireplace inspiration? Done! I was kindly given a trunk load of awesome firewood to strategically place in the fireplace and I love it.

Last, my favorite area: the painting corner. I actually purchased this gorgeous drafting easel at Scott's Antique Mall last Fall - before I even knew Melrose, but she fits perfectly in the bay window. I am on the search for an industrial stool, but so far they are all too expensive. 

I have my paints, brushes, fresh canvases, and old paintings all ready to go! I am also looking for metal locker baskets for the open shelves, but I am having a problem finding ones small enough. Also pictured, decorating books on the coffee table - Domino's Book of Decorating & New Farmhouse Style by Terry Woods. I have probably looked and sticky noted both of those books a million times! 

I will keep ya'll posted on more finds and future progress. Thanks for reading!

NO LONGER THE PARNAM'S

The weekend my parents were in town (Mother's Day) we accomplished a lot - worked in the yard, assembled my great grandmother's buffet, started on curtains for dining room, and replaced the old knocker. The old knocker was gold and engraved with the previous owner's last name: Parnam. Well, the owner has changed and so has the knocker. We replaced it with a rustic, ornate cast iron knocker. 

Notice the old, gold knocker above Brandon on the left and the new, iron knocker on the right. Dad was kind enough to replace the knocker, fill in the previous nail holes, replace the kick plate, and touch up the door with more red paint. Thanks Dad, it looks fantastic!

HELPFUL BOOK

I was reminded of this book while thumbing through a new "daily read" blog and thought I would share my love for it as well. You can read her post about it here.

I am big into researching anything before I buy or commit. So, when the time came to pick out paint colors for Melrose I knew I needed some help. I stumbled upon this wonderful little book at Barnes & Noble (but decided to order it off of Amazon) and fell in love immediately. I probably read it cover to cover 20 times and marked all my favorites and its prospective use with tabs. I eventually had to narrow the choices down.

I love reading the designer's favorites and how the paint truly looks in person because you can never really tell until the paint dries. I love a good review! This little ball of joy helped me pick several of Melrose's colors and I am happy with all of them. I definitely recommend this book if you are getting ready to paint a room. For $10 you can't beat a little custom interior design help!

[all pictures via made by girl]