Turquoise Playroom

Today it's time to reveal the boys' turquoise playroom.  This isn't it.  This is the inspiration image I took from a magazine. I have seen it published twice and I can't source it for the life of me!  I think it was originally in Veranda. If anyone knows please tell me so I can credit the designer.  Architecturally, my room is similar.  It's very small and also a pass through, as this room appears to be.

I call this room the Children's library, but that has never really stuck.  Everyone else calls it the Lego room, but I hate Legos* and refuse to give them that honor.  I hope my design is a good example of how to use an inspiration room.  It should be just that... INSPIRATION!  I can't stand it when a person on HGTV says, "We are going to show you exactly how to copy this room". Why would you want to live in someone else's room?  If a client shows me her perfect room, I get the vibe and start with that.  I don't try to source the exact sofa and fabric.  And now... for more amateur photography.

You go up the (leopard carpeted) stairs, and on the right you have the Children's Library.  You can see the little boys' bedroom through the silly little door.  People think I'm crazy for having a white sofa, but it's slip covered and I only have to wash it every other month or so.  The blanket protects it from dirty boys and dogs who brush up against it walking past.  I'm the only one who ever sits there.  The boys usually kneel on the carpet to build their Lego creations.

 The sofa is from Pottery Barn. The coffee table is from Wisteria.  The pillows, blanket and "Exlore" art are all from World Market.

I bought this antique Mexican paper mache horse on e-bay years ago, and it's one of my favorite possessions.  The tail is really horse hair and the ears are leather.  It reminds me of my dad's childhood in rural Mexico.  My husband uses this sweet little sculpture as a metaphor for wasting money, as in, "Well hey, at least it's not a paper mache horse".  I have no idea what he's trying to say.

I keep several cozy throws in the basket, and the little drawers in the back wall have sheets for the sofa.  We have visitors at least once a month. 

This was my attempt at a panorama image of both shelves.  My father in law built them for me. For your viewing pleasure, admire the missing trim on the bottom left.  So quaint. Oh! But while you're in the neighborhood... the top suitcase was carried by Dan's great grandma from Italy. It traveled through Ellis Island, all the way to Winnemucca Nevada when his Grandma was just two years old. It's another favorite thing in this room.  I have a lot of favorite things.  Curtains from Serena and Lily.

 I want living plants in every room, but this room is just too dark to keep anything alive.  I usually cut something from the yard or bring home flowers from the grocery store for in here.

I painted that little bird in Puerta Vallarta when I was nine!  I can't believe it's survived for twenty years. (ha ha) There is also a little pewter plate that my brother gave me for Christmas when we were in college.  I found this bookcase on Craigslist.  The seller thought it was from the early sixties, it belonged to her mother.  I just love it.  Seriously, Reno Craigslist is THE BEST. I had to take a break from the KonMari Method when it came to books.  They don't all "Spark Joy", but it's important for children to be exposed to ideas and culture in the home.  Since I have almost nothing in common with my kids (where did they come from?) I can't predict what will interest them in the future, so I can't edit my library.  Do I sound defensive?

The French doors leading to the balcony over the back yard.  Our house is on the East slope of Mt. Rose, so the sun sets over the back of the house very early.  It's nice in the summer when we want to eat outside after a hot day and it is already cool by the early evening.

I have two darling teenage nieces.  When one of them is visiting, they come up to this room and set up camp... for as long as a month at a time!  They make a huge mess and I love every second of it.  It always surprises me that they like sleeping here on the couch because there really isn't privacy, but they both just love this room.  It makes me so happy to be able to open my home for people who appreciate my efforts and can tell I love them.

Speaking of vintage shopping in Reno... this velvet tufted, caned settee was SIXTEEN dollars at GoodWill.  Turquoise and olive are one of my favorite color combos.  This little print was in Paolo's nursery.  I had no intention of using it in this house, but I really like it here.  I broke my own "only original art" rule for this piece.

 *Legos.  A necessary evil.  I keep them for all the right reasons (creative play, fine motor development), but I really keep them because it's the only non-screen related activity that keeps my sweet young men calm in the house.  If you don't have little boys, I'll explain the true horror of my situation. They build primarily weapons and means of transportation.  You can say, "LEGOS STAY IN THE CHILDREN'S LIBRARY!  OK, the Lego room, you know what I mean."  But they will build a space ship... and be totally absorbed in that world, and start running around the house flying it... but then there is a crash! and the spaceship explodes! Literally.  Legos everywhere.

Every three months or so I confiscate the Legos for a detox.  This Lego cleanse lasts until Legos cease to materialize in my home.  I can hide "all" the Legos, but within a few days, the boys have found enough under rugs, in the sofa cushions and in the air ducts to return to their constructive/destructive ways.  I continue to confiscate their creations until we have a couple of Lego-free days and I am confident all the Legos have been picked up.  Then, under threats like, "I will throw away every Lego that leaves this room!" and promises of "We will keep them on the table", the cycle continues. And that is why I hate Legos. 

P.S.  The little golden beaked doorstop from Anthropologie.

Chinoiserie Chic Dining Room Reveal

I'm posting my Chinoiserie Chic dining room reveal, even though things are far from perfect. This is the view of the dining room from the breakfast nook.  It is one step down, so we have this amazing railing. The hardwood is laid over concrete that slopes towards the far wall... this room was the first garage addition.  When we bought the property it was being used as a media room.  There was track lighting, lots and lots of furniture and the carpet was maroon with a large scale tropical motif.  I think it was a remnant from a casino (we're just South of Reno, NV... reno-vate...).  Another thing that couldn't be moved... that front and center intake vent.

This is the dining room looking back from the french doors.  I'm sorry about the weird color!  I want to get professional photographs. This is actually the second time I have decorated the room.  At first, I had the hutch in front of the window.  Natural light shined through an opening in the hutch but it was very hard to open and close the window. The room is very long and narrow and I thought the previous arrangement would make it a more comfortable shape, but it didn't work. The curtains were hanging on the french doors, but they were always in the way.  The wide woven-wood shade works perfectly. I also thought I wanted a dimmer more moody and romantic dining room. At that time the room was painted a dark caramel color, but it just wasn't me. I love me some white and bright decor!  The plantation chairs are slipcovered and I bought them from One Kings Lane years ago.  The kid booster chairs are from Ikea. If you have kids in your life, get some!  Their little feet can sit on the rail so they are more comfortable for them than sitting in a booster in an adult chair. The Chippendale style chairs were from Ballard Design's garden collection last year.  If you don't remember seeing them, I bought the brown ones and painted them white.  Good outdoor furniture is indestructible.  My boys can tip them back and the legs won't come loose and when they get dirty I can wash the cushion covers. We eat outside all summer long so it's nice to be able to go in and get extra seating without worrying about it getting damaged.

The entire room was inspired by these vintage Scalamandre curtains.  The colors in them are so luscious.  Coral.  Teal.  Olive green.  Lilac.  Sage green.  Ballet slipper pink!  I had to take advantage of the colors, which is why I painted the ceiling green.  If I had these panels made today, it would cost about $6000.  A couple of years ago I was searching "Scalamandre" on eBay, maybe thinking I could score a La Tigre remnant or something else fun.  These draperies were left over from an estate sale with a reserve of $70!  I couldn't believe my luck when they actually arrived on my doorstep for the reserve price.  The ticket from the Estate auction was still pinned to them, with an auction reserve of $1700.  I'm telling you, half of my home furnishings are from Ebay and Craigslist.

I love the pacing of this room.  It unfolds in little vignettes.  First, "Oh, there's the dining room".  Then you see the pretty focal point of the window wall, then you notice the hutch.  Of course, my beverages were totally depleted when I went to take this picture.  This room is the pass-through to my husbands office, and he likes to sneak a bottle of Martinelli's now and then.  The picture is hanging on the wall, there is no back to the hutch.  That's where the window was before.  

My father in law's mother bought this crystal punch bowl at an antique store in Virginia City, Nevada in the early 1960's.  The family had lived all over the world, but had just moved to Reno.  My mother in law inherited it, and it moved around with them until she passed it down to me when I was living in Oregon.  We love that it's come home, just down the road from where my husband's grandma bought it almost 60 years ago.  It is 2 pieces, the pedestal and the bowl.  The bowl is so heavy, I can hardly carry it.  I love that it is safely in that little niche, tucked away from my rowdy boys, refracting the sunshine by day and twinkling in the chandelier lights by night.

I host at least Sunday dinner every week.  My table seats 12, and if more people join us, there's always the kitchen.  Last night my sister and her family joined us along with my mother and father in law.  Most weeks we have our college-student cousins over.  Their gratitude towards being in my home encourages me to keep on with this tedious renovation for another week.  Don't wait to share your home until it is perfect, because it never will be.  

Gracie wallpaper would have been so perfect in here, but it didn't quite fit in the budget.  Instead, I grouped the landscapes and still lives from around the house.  It gave the artistic watercolor affect I wanted.  I just wish I had twice as much art!  I only want real things in my home, and that includes original art as opposed to reproductions, so the collecting process is slow.  The two little "love" pieces are from TJ Maxx.  They were hung as Valentine's decorations and never came down.  They're just place holders, but they're cute and only set me back $11.  Once the art was hung, I made sure everything was level and put a bit of sticky tac on the bottom corners of each piece.  If you have a gallery wall, do this or it will drive you nuts trying to keep everything strait!  I remembered this tip because now I'm noticing the "Love" art is crooked.  The door goes to the man cave, which was garage addition #2.  That garage had been converted into an office before we bought the home. We do not currently have a garage.

I still need to replace that door... and get the new door matching hardware. Details, details.  The hutch is supposed to be installed as a built in, but that still hasn't happened.  The room isn't trimmed, baseboards are missing, and the French door either needs some serious TLC or it just needs to be replaced.  Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed the little tour.
Oh, and speaking of things being real, every room needs a living, breathing plant.  The dining room has a fern on a nifty brass plant stand.  The fern has such long fronds and you can barely see the pot.  It reminds me of Cousin It and it always makes me smile.