February 2012
4 posts
i've moved!!!
I am so happy to announce that my new logo, website and blog has gone live! I will no longer be posting on this site so please visit me at my new digs!
See you over there and let me know what you think!
going green
Good morning friends! I hope your weekend didn’t include a sick child like mine did, poor guy. He’s all better now though and we are ready for a busy week!
Today is a quicky on one of my favorite colors, green. Treat green like a neutral because it goes with everything!
Would you put wallpaper on your ceiling?
Large paintings are almost always a good idea.
I absolutely LOVE...
4 tags
before and after: painted knobs
In our bedroom we have this armoire and two nightstands. My parents got them for us as a gift and they work great in the space. I haven’t been real thrilled with the knobs though so I decided to spray paint them, what a difference it made!!! They were’t bad before but I like them better with more contrast.
Before shots…
When I took the knobs off they were in two pieces,...
7 tags
5 ways to make your home more inviting
Make your home look well cared for and the people who enter it will feel well cared for. Breath some life into your house by incorporating these simple changes!
1. Add some plants or flowers
Nearly EVERY picture I like of a dining table, coffee table, bedside table or hall console has flowers in it! Are we on to something here? Of course I love live flowers and plants but if you can’t keep...
January 2012
10 posts
5 tags
michigan winter: skiing and beautiful landscapes
We had a blast this weekend up north in Michigan (the most beautiful state I must add!), skiing, snowboarding and water-parking. I took my very first ski lesson and loved it, so fun!
It snowed a ton while we were there and looked a lot like this beautiful photo from photographer Alicia Bock titled Frost and Fir, www.aliciabock.com.
Here’s my first born, soooo pleased with his new skiing...
4 tags
client kitchen
In the fall I met with a client/friend about a complete remodel of their kitchen. We met again last week to come up with a less intrusive strategy because their plans have changed, fancy that? Plans change, whoa?? They have decided to put the house up for sale in the spring, if it sells they’ll move, if not they are happy to stay where they are. We decided not to gut everything and put...
4 tags
before and after: bedside table lamps redo
As part of my bedside table redo I am re-purposing lamps I already have. They are really old and I’ve been tired of the look for a long time. These puppies are getting a coat of “hammered metallic gold” and a spanking new white drum shade!
First, I wont be reusing the shades, so those went.
This little doo-hicky is called a lamp harp. Comes off super easy and I wont be...
4 tags
thrift store love: my new purse and top
I was really happy last week to get the chance to spend the day with my Mom and no kids. It was a one day staycation! We went out to lunch and spent some serious time at a couple thrift stores in town. We both tried on A LOT of clothes. Here is what I love about thrifting:
it’s a cheap thrill
low commitment
you have to hunt
you never know what you’ll find
Here’s the other...
2 tags
faith and hope
I am a hands-on tangible-results driven kind of gal. I love dreaming big, making plans and anticipating the future. Without a doubt this past year has been the most challenging and in many ways did not turn out the way I had anticipated. Jeff being in school was/is REALLY getting old and now we are down to the last three and a half months! I am excited for him to graduate, but what does the future...
3 tags
my night stands
I struggle with having way too many things on-around-under-inside my bedside table. I love to read in bed, sometimes write, talk on the phone, make grocery lists, watch Portlandia on my computer, look at paint colors, design magazines, wait for my nail polish dry, wait for my curlers to set, pray, plan my next day’s events and talk it up with the hub’s. Soooo, I think it’s time...
4 tags
bridesmaids
I am so excited for my sisters wedding in June (check out this post to see the bling she now CARRIES on her left finger). The planning, decorating, and choosing colors with her is so much fun! April has a great eye, from the beginning she has wanted each bridesmaid to be in a different color. Here is what she landed on, this is the actual pdf she emailed to everyone so we could order correctly and...
my office and website update
A couple months ago I decided to transform our toy/office/storage room into MY office. Just for me. No one else. So. There! This room has always been a mishmash of stuff and was never really decorated. Truth be told we had no window, door, or base trim and it needed new paint badly! I moved everything out, PURGED, organized and found new homes for the left over items. AAAAND, here’s where we’re...
4 tags
2012 color of the year
Get ready to spice things up in 2012! Pantone has declared Tangerine Tango the color of the year! What does that mean? You will be seeing more of this red orange hue in fashion, interior design, cosmetics and graphic design. Pantone combs the globe for trends in culture, entertainment, art, travel and other socio-economic conditions to arrive at the projected most influential color of the year. I...
2 tags
moving forward, looking back
I recently had a few hours alone to reflect on this past year, I really wanted to start thinking and planning my goals for 2012.
2011 was full of many ups and downs. Jeff was (is) working full time and going to school full time.
My boys were wild and busy.
I was trying to get my business going.
Unexpected disappointments came our way.
As I started to plan, I felt God leading me to...
September 2011
7 posts
3 tags
sister time in chicago + Anthropology
Took the train to Chicago a few weeks ago with my sister Sarah to visit my sister April and whoop it up in the windy city!
Me and Sar, chill’n on the train!
We did a lot of eating, walking, talking, coffee drinking, and shopping. One store we do not have in Grand Rapids (yet) is Anthropology, I love their home section! We are getting one of their retail stores here soon though!
I love...
2 tags
colorful trim
I had fun with a client this week coming up with ideas for several rooms in her house, including her first graders bedroom. A self proclaimed artist, my clients daughter is very creative and loves to have her own stamp on things. They had selected pillows with patterns in bright pink, orange, purple, teal and brown. The pillows were a great place to start since they were so colorful!
I decided...
1 tag
Ugliest Room Contest: Katie's Bedroom
Several months ago I ran an Ugliest Room Contest, out of the entries here was our big winner:
This is a bedroom of my neighbor girl, babysitter and one of my best friends’ daughters, Katie. After a few other house projects they had to complete we got together for a brainstorming session.
It is so fun working with younger people and hearing their ideas! I put together a quick sketch of...
1 tag
tv room
Over the past few months I’ve been slowly repainting the inside of our house. YEARS ago I spent hours stenciling our tv and dining room, lucky for me I can just paint over it!
Here is our tv room, the red couch and rug are from Pottery Barn and I sold them on Craigslist. The metal and glass table is still for sale and the gold leaf cabinet which I LOVE love love is still in the room....
4 tags
boys, boats and bye bye summer
One of the last weekends of summer we went to Lake Michigan to soak up what was left of the season. We rode dune buggies, peered out the top of the lighthouse, and swam in the lake… It was a great wrap up to summer!
See the one tiny boat in the distance? So serene…
Love this bright orange…
A client of mine also loves the water and wanted to decorate her son’s...
1 tag
Design Workshop: Christie's House
Last week I taught a fabulously fun Design Workshop for a group of inspiring women! What drives me is helping people love their home. I want homes to reflect the true personality of the people who live there. With my education and experience in interior design I connect art (how arrangement influences the senses) and science (scale, codes, color theory, programming, lighting, space planning,...
3 tags
off to pretty lake
Yes that’s the name of our lake, Pretty Lake! We have a group of six cottages in our family and we are headed today. One last big hurrah before school starts, sigh…
Nanciyaga by Skip Hunt.
August 2011
8 posts
4 tags
shopping, furniture and family
Last week my Mom, sister April and I drove to Saugatuck/Douglas area to go shopping. If you’re not from Michigan this area has a lot of fun antiquing!
April fell in love with these red molded plastic chairs, she has fun style…
We started sorting through to pick the best ones.
These four were the great. Going to be so cute in her new apartment!
Great for sipping coffee...
3 tags
let the sunshine in
I’ve mentioned before that our house has gone through some major renovations. Our upstairs used to be an apartment and where we have a master bedroom used to be a nasty old kitchen. The kitchen was torn out when the roof was replaced and raised. With the architectural mayhem behind us now it’s time to decorate. While I love design and have oodles of ideas for my clients, I’m a...
2 tags
Lake Michigan
Headed up north today. Lake Michigan, can’t wait to sit on your shore…
Dunes of Lake Michigan with Big Sky Painting
Artist: Michelle Calkins
4 tags
Design Board: Aunt Denise's Kitchen
My Aunt Denise (my mother’s sister) lives in a house in the city built in the 1890’s. My house was built in 1896 so I sympathize with the project load that comes with an older home. While the “to do” list is long she has completely re-landscaped and brought in new furniture and window treatments. To say my Aunt is creative is an understatement. Last week she woke up in the...
11 tags
Love that Ikat!
I love this pattern, it’s cheerful and versitile! Ikat, pronounced ee-kat, is one of the oldest patterned textiles in the world. They appear in cultures as diverse as Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Guatemala, Turkey and India. Check out more on the history of this textile, which goes back thousands of years!
Here are some pretty pictures of one of my favorite patterns right now! These ikat...
10 tags
Pull It Together!
I met with a client/friend/running partner/neighbor to talk about pulling together some accessories for her main floor and a total redesign of her daughters’ bedroom. We’ll leave the bedroom for another post and I’ll dish about the main floor! A lot of clients have items in their house that they want to incorporate into a new design.
This client already has:
tan leather sofa
...
7 tags
Funky Surprise
Today I met with a client to help come up with ideas for her living room and kitchen, and I have to admit it was a bit of a surprise! I NEVER know what to expect when I walk into a home for the first time. Most clients tend to be traditional with a personal twist, not this one. Although slightly embarrassing to admit I assumed (and you know what THAT does, ha ha) by our conversation on the phone...
7 tags
Teach Your Children Well
Training your children in the way they should go is a huge responsibility. That’s why when my sister in law Heather gave my son Marek a gift card to Target for his birthday I took it as an opportunity, Target Training 101: A Lesson in Multi-Tasking!
Yes, there are toys at Target, there are also pillows, candles and mirrors. This trip was going to be a win, win. Target has something for...
July 2011
8 posts
4 tags
Paint'n In the Boys Room!
So our house was built in 1896, (she’s a geezer!) and we have spent a lot of blood sweat and tears restoring her to her former glory. This poor abode was beaten and bruised when we got her but she’s work’n on a comeback! In the 1950’s our house was split into two apartments, top and bottom. The attic roof was raised on one side and a kitchen was installed. Jeff and I lived...
3 tags
Gray and Brown Unite!
My sister and brother in law are moving into a beautiful custom home, it’s really their dream house! Beautiful details at every turn, on a river, um… yeah I’m not jealous at all! Really… So before they closed we went though the house, took a few pictures and dimensions and went furniture shopping! Having spotted a sofa that they both really liked, my sister in law brought...
5 tags
Spray Paint a Lamp Shade? (round one)
I’ve read tutorials online about spray painting just about anything. It’s a cheap thrill and gets the job done, most of the time… I thought I would try to spray paint a couple lamp shades (since really big cool ones can be $$$!) and see how it turned out. What would I have to loose except for the cost of the paint?
These lamps were purchased for the night stands in our master...
1 tag
“I believe in doing the thing you feel is right. If it looks right, it is right.”
– Dorothy Draper
3 tags
Ikea Without Children!!!
My husband is getting his MBA from the University of Michigan and has to go to Ann Arbor once a month for two nights. This lucky gal (with the help of two amazing mothers and one awesome aunt) was able to tag along this month! Not only do I get to hang out at a beautiful campus and feel smart and such, but they also have an Ikea here. You see in our lovely home of Grand Rapids we are forced to...
“A house is who you are, not who you ought to be.”
– Jill Robinson
2 tags
Today's Bouquet
At my Grandmothers cottage there are plenty of flowers in bloom to make a new bouquet every week. We watch summer unfold as the flowers in the vase change from week to week and I’ve always admired that! When Jeff and I got married the first thing I did was start the process of ripping out our grass so I could have flowers for cutting! We soon planted two ever blooming hydrangea’s and...
3 tags
Before and After: Putting Life in the Living Room!
At my design workshops one of the top mistakes I talk about is the lack of “spark” in a home. The feeling you get when you walk into a space and your eyes dance with joy! A lot of us get the room painted, furniture in, maybe window treatments up but don’t put a lot of energy into the final details. Artwork, pillows, accessories, throws, etc… Done in a thoughtful and personal way can turn a space...
May 2011
5 posts
2 tags
Rainy Day Antiquing
Today I had a few hours without my little boys. It’s been a rainy cold day so I snuck inside some great Grand Rapids shops! I love never knowing what I’m going to find. I’m also inspired by the way shop owners creatively stage their merchandise, looks like a fun job!
6 tags
Deidre's Deal!
Right now Pier 1 Imports has this very versatile, fun brown and white velvet ric rac pillow on sale! Originally $24.95 it’s now only $12.35, which is a great deal for instant graphic impact! Throw this pillow against any color; a pink nursery, blue chair or neutral bedding and get instant impact. That’s what I love about high contrast, it pops in any setting!
Here’s the pillow...
3 tags
Very Special Arts Festival
Last week was the annual festival day for Very Special Arts Grand Rapids, and a beautiful day it was! The executive director for VSA Grand Rapids Michele Suchovsky described art as a way to see the world through another persons’ prism. When people with special needs create art they express their world to us through a very unique prism and we get the opportunity to understand them at a deeper...
1 tag
Ugliest Room Contest
We have some great entries for the Ugliest Room Contest! To vote on your favorite room go to www.facebook.com/deidreondesign and “like” the room you think should win! Here are our contestants!
Bedroom/Study crazy funky wall
Office/guest basement toy room!
Toy room… Where’s the personality?
Bathroom circa pink tile!
The winner gets a free design consult!...
12 tags
Deal of the Week
Do you like finding a good price on furniture and accessories for your home? If you’re willing to hunt a little you can find amazing deals on items that fit your personality at most second had stores!
I have purchased some pieces over the years from Second Time Around, a retail and furniture consignment shop in Grand Rapids, MI. I stopped by there recently and here are a few items that stuck...
April 2011
5 posts
1 tag
Ugliest Room Contest!
It’s gett’n ugly people! Think you have a room that is a complete design disaster? Then you are in need of a FREE DESIGN CONSULT! Email me a photo of your room that needs some major help and see if it is worthy of the title WORST DESIGN DISASTER! You have until Monday May 9 at 10pm to submit your photos, then let the voting begin! Voting will be held at my facebok page...
7 tags
Put a Bird On It
Unless you’ve hiding under a rock you’ve probably noticed bird motifs have been pretty popular over the last few years! They are beautiful and versatile and speak to our desire to “bring the outside in.” Bird décor can be modern, abstract or very traditional, take your pick!
Light and airy birds!! (by Gatehouse wallcovering)
Love the bird step stool and bedding!
These pillows/bookends are...
Snow, Snow, Go Away...
It’s the middle of April in Michigan and yes, it’s snowing outside! This morning my Facebook was flooded with moans and groans about this sudden weather change, how we mid-westerners quickly forget our fickle seasons! Yesterday I was planting seeds in my garden and today, well, I’m putting boots and hats on the kids. Anywho… I grabbed these light filled rooms to cheer everyone up!
I love how...
Interior Color Trends
The culture and design blog Trendland recently highlighted these still photographs developed by Crown. These images are part of Crown’s 2011 Interior Colour Trend photo shoot. I love the compositions and the color combinations are refreshing! Color forecasting gets me excited about the next project and I love figuring out how different palettes work in a space! I don’t believe in...
4 tags
Quilts, Bling and the Color Green (my favorite!)
We are moving our two sons into a new bedroom, so what color do we paint the walls? Since my four year old Marek has told me several times his favorite color is green, I think we’ll start there. But WHAT shade of green do you ask? Oh, I could get lost in that topic! I decided to pick fabric first, here’s the story…
My sister April has taken up quilting and sewing in the last year and agreed to...
3 tags
Design Your Own...
Fabric! I am always looking for affordable ways to get really cool stuff, especially fabric. Lately I’ve been obsessed with two websites, spoonflower.com and colourlovers.com. These sites have partnered to allow you to design fabric and then have it printed. They will deliver your design (or anyone else’s) in two to three weeks which is amazingly fast for something custom made! You can also...
March 2011
3 posts
2 tags
Spring Inspired
The sun is shining here and we are getting anxious for things to warm up. Marek couldn’t wait for the ice on the sidewalks to melt so we’ve been doing this for the last few weeks…
In the dead of winter when I was super anxious for spring I ran across this fashion photo and fell in love! I immediately started thinking about redoing my house in these lovely colors of, turquoise, navy, white, and...
2 tags
Before and After: My Parent's Kitchen
Embracing the whole cute small house with character idea my parents Mark and Lori, moved from a bland, large newer home into a small cottage style house built in 1933. Since my Mom and Dad are accomplished do-it-yourselfers trading in a finished low maintenance home for an older house that needed to be completely redone wasn’t out of their league. Now that it’s just my youngest sister Gloria (love...
