Guess Who Sleeps Here

I'm always curious to see celebrity homes. Well, actually I'm always curious to see anyone's home. I have to feed my addiction somehow! I came across these celebrity bedrooms in Elle Decor. See if you can guess who sleeps where. Here are your choices:

a)Ellen Pompeo b)Cindy Crawford c)Sarah Jessica Parker & Matthew Broderick d)Donatella Versace e)Meg Ryan

number one

number two

number three

number four

number five

one(c): Sarah Jessica Parker & Matthew Broderick

two(e): Meg Ryan

three(a): Ellen Pompeo

four(d): Donatella Versace

five(b): Cindy Crawford

Go Big or Go Home!

I'm telling you, someday, I am getting a very large, very beautiful black and white gallery wrap, and it's going to be gigantic! I am obsessed with the black and white photo from Emily A. Clark. I love it. So, if you don't want a gallery wall and want to make a big impact--go big!

image from Lonny

image from Emily A. Clark

image from Lonny

Gallery Walls: Ditch the Nails

How about ditching the nails altogether? This is definitely the easiest way to create a gallery wall. Use ledge shelving, a fireplace mantle, or even a bench or the floor (depending on the size of your pictures) to display your prints. I don't have a mantle or a child-free floor, so I can't do this in my home, but I love it!

image from Pottery Barn

image from Lonny

image from Five Curtain Calls

Gallery Walls: Mix it Up

Feeling artistic? Mix it up. Hang up pictures that aren't the same, but go together--or, that don't go together but coordinate. This is definitely going to involve more of an eye, but the good news is, there's no wrong way to do it. Just hang stuff up until you're satisfied and pay close attention to your spacing.

If you look closer, most of these aren't as random as you might think. House to Home uses a horizontal, straight line as a guide. There are pictures both above and below the line. The Domino gallery is centered above the couch, and most other galleries, though they're not perfectly straight, are usually rectangular shaped. Start in the center, then work your way out. Add other items like mirrors and typography. Make it personal!

image from House to Home

image from Mark Lund Photography

image from Domino

image from Suburban Renewal

Gallery Walls: Keep it Inside the Lines

Feeling a little more adventurous than same shape, same size? Use different sizes of frames, but keep the perimeter a square or rectangle. The best way to do this, is to lay your frames out on the floor. Put your gallery together--just like a puzzle! Tip: When hanging any picture, I like to cut out paper in the same shape/size as the frame. I then tape that on the wall to see it in its entirety. This is especially helpful when hanging multiple pieces like a gallery wall. It's also helpful when you're not sure if you want to commit to hanging something. Obviously, I have no problem with committing--ask my husband about the tons of holes in our walls! Actually, don't ask him.

image from Pottery Barn

image from West Elm

Gallery Walls: Same Shape, Same Size

The easiest way to create a gallery wall is to use frames of the same shape and size. You really don't need much imagination, just make the perimeter a square or rectangle. The pictures are in straight lines within straight lines, and you get a very clean, stream-lined look. Though this is the easiest, it's not always the cheapest. I personally love this style, a)because I'm OCD and love straight lines, and b)because it makes a big impact when you need a big piece.

image from Life in a Venti Cup

image from Canadian House & Home

[so cheap, so easy]: Art. On a Door.

DIY projects and I have a love hate relationship. Sure, there are those moments when you just happen to have stuff laying around the house, you just happen to not spend anymoney, and you just happen to love the project. Not always the case with me. More like, "Gee, I would have spent less money and time if I would have gone out and bought the thing."

Well, fear not, folks. This project is so cheap and so easy...really. I will admit, I didn't just have a door lying around. I went to Home Depot (which by the way, I oft times feel like a moron, because I'm usually looking for something that I'm not going to use for its intended use, and I usually don't know the name for it--just a side note). Anyway, buy a door. Buy the cheapest door you can find, the kind that is hollow inside with no knob hole. This one was under $30.

Next, you are going to layout your design and paint your base coat. I decided to go with a zig-zag (something that I could easily tape). For you that are more artistic, you could definitely free-hand something. I, unfortunately, had just had a bad experience with a prior DIY project, so I decided to play it safe!

I used a piece of paper to evenly space out my zig-zags. I taped the entire door, then I started to paint my zig-zags. By the way, I had BOTH colors of paint already, which cost zero point zero zero dollars!When the paint was dry, I went over both colors with stain. (If you have glaze, use that. That's another Home Depot adventure all together--thirty minutes of my life I'll never get back.) I wiped the stain on each section, then I rubbed off as much as I could. I use stain every time I paint something. It makes it look not home made, if that makes sense! (I bought the darkest color of the teeny sample can for $5.) Also, when using stain, it's best to use cotton rags to apply and rub off. Old t-shirts work the best.

I then removed the tape, decided I didn't like the way the stain looked on the blue, repainted the blue, then had the Mr. hang the thing up! I've been thinking I want to paint the side rust or another color, but since I haven't decided, I'll just leave it for a while. See, so cheap, so easy!


I'm linking up this project at:
Savvy Southern Style and
Bunny Jean's


Check them out!

Lonny Mag's 5 Trends for 2011

Michelle Adams from Lonny Magazine appeared on the Nate Berkus Show to feature the top five trends for 2011. So, if you're looking to add a little somethin' somethin' to your pad, here are the latest and greatest!

[five]: MIRRORED ACCENTS

image from Elle Decor

image from Decor Pad

image from Design Ties

[four]: TYPOGRAPHY

image from Swiss Miss

image from Design Sponge

[three]: STORAGE ART

image from Martha Stewart

image from Martha Stewart

image from Martha Stewart

[two]: MID-CENTURY LIGHTING

image from Gear Patrol

image from Decor Pad

[one]: RUST

image from Morgan Harrison

image from The Lennox

image from Pottery Barn

This is Where I Wanna Be...

It's not snowing in St. Louis--yet, but it really looks like it might start at any given moment. I know people love snow, and it's so beautiful, and blah, blah, blah, but I don't. I could honestly do without it. When the days are gray like this, I just want to stay in bed and read. I also need to start the book for book club (which is tomorrow, which I am hosting), but that's another issue in and of itself. My point is, I would love to stay in bed all day--in one of these beds. Aren't they to die for?

image from West Elm

image from Laura Ocampo

image from Anthropologie

image from House to Home

My favorite is the bed from Anthropologie, and the bed from West Elm is a close second. Which one is your favorite?

Isabella & Max Giveaway!

Anthropologie Ikat Bowl Giveaway

Check out the awesome giveaway over at Isabella & Max Rooms. Enter to win these to-die-for ikat bowls from Anthropologie.

Rustic Chic from Elle Decor

This cabin, featured in the December 2010/January 2011 edition of Elle Decor, is situated in the Sawtooth Mountains in Ketchum, Idaho. It is absolutely breathtaking. If this is "roughing it" in the wilderness, I could definitely get on board!

Sky High Windows

If we ever build a home, I want lots of windows--especially in the gathering room. I love huge windows on the back of a home. Of course, if I am going to have this, I've got to have a beautiful view behind my house (or at least not a view into someone else's house). Perhaps a view of some mountains...

image from House Beautiful

image from HGTV Dream Home

image from The Decorista