A Knight's Tale

My mom recently decided to redecorate my brother's room and called me in to assist. I was happy to help...Hizzy Tizzy loves a good design challenge! I don't have any before pictures ULGH...but let's just say it was a hot mess. The bedspread was my old bedspread from middle school...I am 25 now. It was not good.

The Project: Trace's room

The Budget: $100

Trace is 11, and he loves 3 things: reading, knights, and horses. Those were the design inspirations. Several things couldn't change: the bed, the dresser, and the books! That kid had books on his bed, under his bed, on the dresser, and overflowing the 2 small bookcases he had in the room before.

The first item of buisness was to change out the 80's purple bedspread with a more up to date look. One trip to Ikea, and we were set. This bedspread/skirt combo is perfect for a young boy and is neutral enough to let the knight accesories, like the art and accessories, pop out and make the room. The red velvet pillow was just enough to set the bedspread apart from being plain, to being part of the theme. And yet, remove the pillow and it is plain enough to be versatile for later years where a "theme room" may be too young for him.

Things to note: we took out the 2 smaller bookcases against the back wall and replaced it with one larger bookcase. The bookcase was a budget cheat because I had it in my house, but ran out of space for it and donated it to the cause. However, it helped tremendously!

The gazillions of books all had a home at last.

The other thing Trace had at LEAST gazillion of was little knicky knacks. Turns out, he is a severe pack rat at the ripe old age of 11 and has saved anything anyone has ever given him. In addition to these saver habits, he has been known to ransack Goodwill bags and take items out to place in his little bedroom rescue habitat. He might end up on Oprah for those hoarding shows they talk about where people live in millions of piles of crap and make tiny piles through it all. The bookcase helped to display some of his favorite knacks, and the solution for the rest was 2 seagrass baskets stacked up beside the bookcase. They are easy to navigate and provide excellent storage for all his little treasures.

Trace and mom take all the credit for the big picture above the bed. Trace picked out the print, and mom took it to have it framed and matted. It turned out wonderfully and was a perfect addition to the "knight room".

Another neat idea we had for inexpensive art was to hang toys on the wall! The two swords were toys Trace had outgrown, so we threw them up on the wall as art. They look great, they were cheap, and it reduced the clutter on the floor. Win- win for everyone.

Another budget cheat. Trace had a birthday right around the time of his room design, so big sis Hizzy Tizzy made this super duper bean bag chair for relaxing and reading. I used red velvet, grey flannel and a houndstooth print to work with the Knight theme but be cozy and soft for lots of hours spent reclining and reading.

This piece of art is another Hizzy Tizzy original. I made this using an old window frame. I painted it black to match the theme and attached a fleur de lis hanger on the bottom for storage and display. I alternated cork and patterned paper within the frames for displaying pictures and other special items. It fits so well in the little corner it lives in.

Designer's Challenge Complete!! A Knight themed room for a a great little dude.

Guest Bedroom

Today I want to show you one of my favorite things about my house...my guest room!

I love to hang out in here...and since we only have 2 bedrooms, I hang out in here a lot! We live in an old home built in the 1950's when apparently people only had 3 outfits and they all fit in a one tiny closet. Since my hubby and I have a few more ensembles, we have to get creative in terms of using our closet space. Solution: Graydon's our clothes got farmed out reorganized to the guest room. Since Graydon we spend some time in there getting dressed and putting away laundry and what not, I wanted it to feel relaxing and peaceful. Also in case we have guests, I guess.

This was our very first bedspread when we got married. Got it on sale at the Pot (Aka Pottery Barn, also known hereforth {henceforth? herethro? good thing this isn't a blog about spelling and correct grammer} as pot because it is so crazy good and addictive but badddddd).

I also got lucky in the awesome family department, because that beautiful, thick, fat, fluffy bedskirt was handed down to me from my aunt, as was the lovely white pickstitch quilt at the foot of the bed. It's actually got a lovely floral design on the other side, but since we already had this duvet set, I wanted to make it work with what we were workin'. Work it! Ok back to the room. I broke down and bought the crazy expensive Euro shams from the Pot, but made the rest of the pillow set. I love a good pillow set.

That trunk was $20 at a yard sale. I saw it, grabbed it, threw my money at the peeps, and ran off before they could change their mind and charge more or decide to keep it or otherwise prevent me from having it. As I lugged it to the car where my husband was waiting, he looked at me like I had lost my mind and called it ugly and smelly. UGLY! Can you believe that? MEN.

*It was kind of smelly though. Just keepin it real.

The lovely reading corner, as I call it. No one ever actually reads there, but doesn't it look like it would be cozy and relaxing if you did? I knowwww. It really does.

That sweet little blue table was $5 at a yard sale. I didn't really need it, but I mean really. Who ever doesn't need furniture for $5? And the accessories all came from Goodwill- a New Orelans print, a Charleston print, and a cool white pinapple thingybobber that looks cool. I snapped those up for about $6 for the whole bunch.

Close up on my reading nook accessories. This is my favorite grouping of things in my whole house. I love it all- the tray, the frames, the books, the stuff in the frames, and the table. LOOOVE. it all.

The table is one of those *primative* (for lack of a better term) round tables made out of sandpaper or cardboard or something gross and ugly and scratchy. I made this lovely, pleated burlap cover for it and I looooooove how it turned out. I was befaffled trying to figure out how to 1) do a circle 2) do the pleats and 3) try to keep it from looking like my dog did it.

I also love these frames!!! The one in the wayyyyy back is kind of not in this picture on purpose- it's a work in progress. Hub's Grammy gave me a photo of his aunt and mother when they were little girls. It's adorable, but not the right size for the frame I'd like to put it in. So I need to scan that baby up and print it out right sized before it gets included in any photo shoots.

The middle frame is my mom and her dad when she was little. I've always really liked that picture. And the front...well. That's my cute as a button little hubster and his bunny rabbit as a baby. Awwwwwwwwwwww. I made the frame that picture is in. It was super easy, and super cheap. I've seen frames like that all over for $40 and up, and excuse me, but I don't pay $40 for frames. Even from the Pot. Especially not from the Pot.


So I made it. Doesn't it look cuuuute? One day I'll make another and do a tutorial on it.

The pile of books under the piano man are my favorite books of all time. You know, I'm keeping them handy in case I ever sit down in the reading nook to read. Just in case. If you know my family, you know why the piano man is special. We have some lovely piano talents and I cherish the reminder of them all. One day, we are going to have a piano in our house so my hubby can fill up our home with beautiful music.


And who wouldn't want this guy in their reading nook? Doesn't he look like a mad scientist? Or like he just had a crazy day and is telling a funny story about it all?

I bet you almost didn't even notice this little guy. Don't you want to put your feet on that? Or maybe you don't because it's so cute. It was a Goodwill steal for $3. I bought some foam, covered it (badly I might add) and voila. I have an ottoman. Hate me.

There's my guest room in a nutshell. Maybe actually a coconut shell, since nuts are small and that post was long. Stay tuned for a room makeover post later this week!

It's All in the Deets (that's details for those you of that aren't straight gangsta)

I love the deets. To me, the small details are what make decorating so fun!!! Part of the reason I think my living room works so well for us is that I love all the little small parts that a visitor might not even notice. I made all the pillows and curtains because I knew what I wanted in my head, but couldn't fingure out where to find it. When I can see something in my head, I don't want to compromise and settle for whatever Targ-ay is offering up at the moment, so I make it. So far, making my own things has worked out very well- I get exactly what I want, and I can usually make things for a lot less than I can buy them.

Did you see my cute monkey lamps on the mantle? My husband likes monkeys, so these are not only adorable, but they also fit into OUR home, because of who we are. The details are where your personality gets to shine through. The lamps also work well with the zebra print chairs across the living room. Because they are just a small touch, the "jungle amazon" theme doesn't overpower the room- just some fun spicy touches here and there.

How about these precious paintings on either side of the sofa? I love all things vintage. Big, chunky, gold frames feel so vintage to me. These are original art that my husband's family gave me for my birthday. I spied them at a market with his aunt- they were done by a local artist that lived in her neighborhood. I love things that have stories behind them. Now when I look at the paintings, I think about the fun weekend I spent in Raleigh putzing around antique shops.

More handmade pillows. I usually just re-use old pillows I had purchased a long time ago that don't work with my decor anymore, and recover them. I suppose if I ever ran out of them, I could just run to the local fabric shop and buy some inserts. That would work just as well. That white pillow used to be brown and blue, which didn't work when I put up the new blue floral curtains. The trim still matched, but the pattern on the pillows was overwhelming up next to the curtains. So, I recovered them, leaving the trim exposed.

In the past, I have just sewed up 3 sides, and used hot glue to finish off the last side. Now that I am venturing into sewing, I'll probably start trying to do real pillow covers with zippers. Ulgh. Just typing that made me feel tired. Oh well, it was a nice thought. Long live my hot glue gun.

I love this sweet pillow (hiding under my hubs in the pic) with the fuzzy trim. The fluer de lis pattern is a more traditional touch while the trim adds some whimsy to the room.

A crips, classic white monogram pillow offsets the zebra print chair.

What are some of YOUR favorite living room details??

Hi, I love you.

As an aspiring designer, I look for inspiration in projects others have done. Many times, I will look at something and immediately think of 4 or 5 things I would have done differently to improve the space. Not so with my latest obsession...Sarah Richardson. I. Love. Her. Let's just say me finding something I could improve on in her designs would be similar to me being in the same room as some banana pudding and not eating it. It's not going to happen.

I actually kind of want to marry her and be her bestfriend and follow her around soaking up whatever it is she uses to create such a. maaaaazing rooms.

Sarah's Entryway

Where do I even begin? The whitewash bench is so old and quirky and lovely....especially with all the vibrant reds surronding it.

Sarah's Dining Room

Ok can we just stop the world for a minute please? If only I could die and come back as one of those chairs or curtains or the rug so that I could just spend all my time in this room.

Sarah's Guest Room Number 1

Who says quilts are Granny chic? The brass quilt rack and the handmade quilt on the wall is a stroke of genius. Yes, I'll be copying that, thanks. I love the big brass headboard as well-- usually brass looks so 80's- but she freshened it up in this room with that funky flower print bedspead and the contrasting pillows.

Sarah's Guest Bedroom Number 2

I am now on a quest to find. those. pillows. Enough said. Notice again with the brass.

Sarah's Master Bedroom

If this was my bedroom, you could kiss goodbye the thought that I would ever come out. Well, unless it was to look admiringly at the rest of the rooms in this home. I LOVE the contemporary (the quilt, the sheepskin throw, the orange lamps) mixed with traditional (the rug, the 4 poster bed, the settee).

Wow. SO inspiring! For more of Sarah's work, visit her page at http://www.sarahrichardsondesigns.com/

I'm Baaaack!

Has it really been almost 3 weeks since I last posted? Well, now maybe you are seeing the picture of the fate of my first blog! Summer has been slipping away from me....I have been very busy over here in my corner of the world working furiously on some Hizzy Tizzy original designs!!

These cute, custom, ruffled table runners were born of an idea I had one day while searching online for a burlap runner for my own table. The only runners I could find where VERY expensive (I'm talking $40 and up for a basic runner with a SMALL ruffle on the end). Shooooot you know there's no way Mr. T was going to fork over $40 for burlap. Even if it did have ruffles on it! So, I decided to try my hand at making some. The first attempt turned out so well, I have made a bunch more!

I am going to open up an Etsy shop where they will be available for purchase...or custom order...Here's a sneak peak!

Before and After: Living Room Edition

BEFORE

AFTER

The first project I want to feature is our living room. I am so proud of how this room turned out- We didn't do a ton of work to the room, but it still feels like we made the most of a really awkwardly layed out room size. The room is loooooong and narrow, and has doorways and passthroughs and windows in some weird spots. Since my husband didn't love my sweetly put suggestion that I needed unlimited money to buy whateva I wanted for my long skinny room, I had to improvise. And by improvise, I mean use the junk I already had. He's so annoyingly right. Sigh.

All that to say, furniature placement was a bit of a challenge. Even though this room is "done", I still obsess think about ways to make the furnituare arrangement flow better.

Mooooving along. When we moved in, we lucked out-- we LOVED the color the room was painted, so we didn't have to change the paint. The paint color is "Toffee Crunch" by Behr...I never would have picked something so dark, but I am really glad we decided to stick with it, because it's very warm and cozy feeling.

The only other major changes we made in this room were the lighting, the floors and the fireplace. We had the floors professionally refinished and they turned out beautifully. The fireplace project I will save for another post- but we just did some small tweaks to brigthen it up and freshen up the 1970's motif it was sporting before.

Aw, look. Boaz kept following me around messing up my pictures My picture taking helper.

BEFORE

AFTER

My favorite things about this room are the contrasting patterns. I love the floral curtains with the crazy animal stripe on the chair, and the plush plaid feel of the rug.... The husband in the chair entranced by his favorite toy is also a nice feature. :)

BEFORE

AFTER

Another HUGE difference was the lighting.

For a long time, we had only the 2 side lamps and the 2 small lamps on the mantle. Needless to say, peeps, it was a dark, dark time for us. Literally. It was really dark in there. We had 4 can lights installed, and it had transformed the living room. We had them installed professionally, because while I ridiculously overestimate my abilities at do it yourself projects like to be optimistic about my home improvement skillz, I'm not crazy. Where electricity/possible electrocution and cutting/possile falling through the ceiling is concerned, I call in the pros.

Seriously, the dog found his way into every. single. picture. What a diva.