Pink & Marble Bathroom

 

If you're ever our guest this precious pink bathroom will be yours.  You'll be sharing it with our precious Vivian but she's little and quite the helper when it comes to beautifying in the mornings.

This bathroom was actually complete nearly a year ago except for painting the vanity cabinets white.  I've been avoiding it because, well, it's the worst! And wasn't a big enough project to hire out.

When school started I bit the bullet and along with some good music took these cabinets from dark to light and I can honestly say it was worth it!

Our upstairs guest bathroom was simply dated and just needed a refresh. It is actually quite large and has a very unique vanity. The floor, porcelain tub, and toilet were original to our home's 1963 construction.  There was a update to the fixtures and vanity around it's midlife but even it was in dire need of retirement.

 I wanted this bathroom to be light, bright and classic.  I chose large porcelain tiles to complement the higher square footage, a matching quartz countertop and shiny chrome fixtures since I was keeping some that were existing. Also, Ryan won't let me cover the entire house in shiny brass, sigh. 

Note: While marble is beautiful it's expensive and super fragile. This bathroom 'looks' like marble but is far more practical.

BEFORE

AFTER

I found these vintage hand towels & holder at an antique shop

I absolutely LOVE the large window!

But I do know that the kids that were raised here prior escaped out of it

We kept the bead-board ceiling - I would have never done it but I think it's pretty.

I swapped out the light globes for clear modern ones.

Countertops | Flooring | Faucets | Vanity Light Globes | Shower Curtain | Pink Ribbon Paint 50% |

Cabinet Paint | Cabinet Lacquer |

Dress Your Bathroom Bright & Beautifully 

XOXO Sarah-Louise

Grand Entryway

 Welcome! Come on in! 

Our entryway is one of my most favorite spaces in our home. It's the first thing not only your guests see when they enter but you as well. So make it good! 

Our home is a midcentury Georgian Colonial design so it has traditional defined spaces with lots of beautiful character, like the custom dental molding throughout the interior and surrounding our exterior. This allows for me to add distinct decor and design choices, like wallpaper! 

I want our home to reflect us, the people that live here. Soft colors and prints in classic patterns does just that. Carolina blue is Ryan's favorite color so it's a must.

When we first purchased this home the walls were tan with a faux marble texture.  We were not a fan but knew that it just needed my magic touch. 

SO. MUCH. BROWN!

First we painted and added furniture. I wanted a cool white on all the walls throughout and chose Benjamin Moore Classic Gray. I only wish it had a different name because it's not gray at all.

Note: I HATE, with a passion, the color gray - even the word itself makes me sad. Its gloomy and gives me prison vibes. Sorry gals, I know it's all the rage when it comes to neutrals but I've never been one to follow the crowd.

We added a foyer table that displays decor, functions as a landing place and holds party pieces when we host. Vivian used to play on the bottom shelf with her toys and sometimes I find a collection of dinosaurs on display and it always make me smile :)

This grand mirror reflects light making the space appear larger.  It's also serves as a quick check of your makeup, hair and outfit before heading out the door. I purchased it at an estate sale with a dear friend who's no longer with us so it's extra special to me!

Light Fixture - lighting is the jewelry of the home. While they illuminate, they also add style.  They're not something you change often so I'm simple and classic in my choices, especially in the common areas.

I also hung our first family portrait from when Vivian was a mere 9 days old.

It represents the purpose of our home, to love one another during our time here.

While this certainly freshened up our entryway it was still rather plain.

This beautiful wallpaper by Schumacher 'Hydrangea drape' in blue was just what it needed. Choosing wallpaper can be overwhelming, but not for me.  I had already established our color palette of soft blues and pinks based upon the heirloom rug in our formal living room. The vertical pattern creates height making our standard ceilings feel a bit more grand.  The hydrangeas are special, as they are my youngest sister's favorite.  She plays such an important role in our lives. It's heartwarming to have something that represents her incorporated in our daily lives.

Fun Fact: This paper was up the staircase in the movie Gone with the Wind

I spy a sneak peek at our dining room wallpaper - post to come soon!

By just hanging the paper on the walls surrounding our front door and foyer it doesn't overwhelm but rather adds life and the right amount of pizazz! 

Dress Your Entryway Beautifully

XOXO Sarah-Louise

5 Things to Give Your Home a Great First Impression

First impressions are very impactful and important. It says a lot about what's on the inside!

Vivian's pink swing adds the perfect happy touch!

Our traditional Georgian Colonial home is me to a T! I have a very traditional style and prefer older homes (they just don't make them like they used to). She's a custom brick house built in 1963 by a well renowned builder in Charlotte, NC. We are only the 3rd owner and the 1st was a Methodist church that used the home to house its ministers (It makes me feel like our home was meant to be used for God's glory from the start!) 

When decorating your home it's easy to focus on the interior: paint colors, light fixtures, flooring and my favorite, wallpaper! BUT the exterior is actually most important. Not only is it the first impression of your home but from a practical standpoint making sure your home is in solid, safe and in sound condition (you know all those things on the inspection report) is vital. We've spent the first 2 years of ownership in this house focusing on lots of repairs and at the end of last year we finally made some cosmetic renovations that include 5 rooms I'm eager to share with you this Summer!

But lets start at the beginning!

Here are 5 important things I believe are key to making a great first impression for your home ... 

1. Mailbox

It is the VERY FIRST thing you come to on your property, therefore it's very important that it be stylish, sturdy, and spic & span. This copper mailbox was a Christmas gift a few months after we bought our home. I'm not sold on a flower bed at the base (it's more work than I'm up for) but I do go out and scrub the post every so often. I mean think about it this way, your neighbors walk by it and your mailman or woman visits it every day! I highly consider leave treats in there for them :)

2. Hardware

Hardware makes such a statement. It reflects style in a functional way. It's the tool to open your door in welcoming others into your home. The 'key' if you will to hospitality. My personal favorites are by Baldwin (particularly fond of shiny brass), it's what we have and plan to keep.  Invest in your door handle, a knocker and house numbers.

3. Light Fixture

Think of lighting as the jewelry of your home. Ryan's dying to have gas lanterns at our front door but that's an expense that's low on the list. For now, I've decided to keep our front fixture because it's original and I love the character. 

4. Planters

I think these Chippendale Planters are great.

I've become such a plant lady.  I have small vintage square planters that sit on our rounded steps with a small pink geranium in each for the Spring & Summer. I do not decorate our entry seasonally or for holidays because I don't like clutter and like to keep our exterior simple and classic. It allows for the front door and moldings to shine. We do proudly hang the American flag!!!

5. Power washing

It is amazing what a little soap and high pressured water can do for a home. It blasts off any grime and mold that collects over time. It really makes your brick, trim and windows sparkle. One of the prettiest features is our dental molding around our exterior and on the inside! That craftsmanship just isn't something you can find in today's time. 

It is my dream to add this rounded portico to our front one day!

Dress Your Home Beautifully for a Great First Impression

XOXO Sarah-Louise

Transformation Tuesday: Home Office

A must have with our home was a room for Ryan to call his own.  He dedicates a portion of his free time to studying medicine (love that he's an over achiever and wants to be the best he can be) and needs a space to do that. And as tacky and annoying as it is, he has 'stuff'.  It's comprised of mostly mementoes from his love of his undergrad alma mater Chapel Hill, medical schooling, golf and his time serving in the US Navy. I'm embarrassed to share that he would have taped posters and knick knacks everywhere if I didn't intervene. He huffs and puffs at my involvement in his room but I refuse for it to look like a college dorm! 

Disclaimer:  I did not get free rain to style this room but we did compromise slightly. 

Prior to making his mark we had to put some 'lipstick on this pig' and by lipstick I mean paint.

We were not fans of these built-ins however we had to do something to spruce them up until we decided on a design plan for this front room.
We had painters overhaul practically every surface in our entire home prior to moving in (best decision ever!!!) and that included a bright white over all this brown stain.

Note: I fully respect DIY but it truly isn't for me. The professionals knocked this out in no time. 

We also had crown molding added. I've shared before, moldings are everything to me in a home.  It's one of the MOST important details, in my opinion.  Unique moldings are huge appeal in our decision to purchase older homes. With all the custom moldings throughout this home it is beyond my understanding why the prior owners removed the moldings in this room when installing these built-ins.

A very brown before

While the fresh coat of paint really packed a powerful punch it was very one dimensional so I decided to roll up my sleeves and add some contrast by painting the back wall of the shelves.  Thank goodness the selves are adjustable so I could take them all out.

I wanted this room to have a very masculine style because I knew the rest of our home was going to have a lot of feminine colors and prints.  He deserves to have one space that feels like him.

I chose a dark charcoal color. I almost went with a super dark navy/ink color but I wanted it cooler and more neutral.
Painting with a dark color isn't easy so there are some edges that aren't perfect but we aren't keeping these very long and no one should be looking too closely.

Paint Colors

Built Ins & Trim: Chantilly Lace

Shelving Back Walls: Wrought Iron

Walls: Classic Gray

This room and our den house leftover mismatched furniture that serves as filler pieces to get us by until we implement a more permeant design.  While I'm often insecure about these rooms, our home is not a magazine spread but a place where memories are made and laughter shared.

In the future we will remove theses built-ins and replace the lighting.  Adding a desk will have a smaller foot print allowing this room to also serve as a second guest room with a sleeper sofa or maybe we'll go modern with a Murphy bed! In our home we believe the more the merrier!

Dress Your Home Beautifully with a Fresh Coat of Paint

XOXO Sarah-Louise

Friday Favorites: Colonial Home

TGIF gals!  This has been a week of the lowest of lows and joyful highs.  But I feel like that's how life is. A mix of good and not so good.  It can often appear that my world is nothing but happiness when you look at this blog and the sweet pictures on my Instagram but I promise my life isn't perfect.  It is however overflowing with blessings and remembering that and giving gratitude is how I overcome the lows.

I've sobbed a lot this week over the loss of a dear friend and will be celebrating her life tomorrow morning. I'm not prepared to share more than that but I will be most grateful for your prayers for the many broken hearts that miss her and love her.

On a more exciting note Mr's parents are visiting this week loving on us and Vivian Louise.  Family time is the BEST!

We've also had 4 different crews of contractors in and out of our house banging and shining up our colonial home! We've lived here for 6 months now and are working towards beautifying her in our own style.  Some of the work done no one will ever see, like the structural modifications underneath.  But we're slowly making changes. I say slowly because it's crazy expensive (and we didn't find a money tree growing in the back yard).

What our home looked like when we bought it.

The first phase was quick and more like lipstick on a pig or should I say cow ... there was literally cow printed adhesive lining in ALL the kitchen cabinets UGH! I removed it the day we closed. The counters and backsplash were replaced right before our offer was submitted so we didn't get to pick them out but since we are going to completely gut and remodel the kitchen they will get us by for the short term. And honestly they aren't bad, just not what I would have picked but again they're short term.  Day 2 after closing we had upper cabinets removed above the kitchen peninsula to open the space up to the breakfast room. HUGE impact.  We also had the entire interior of the house painted. HUGE impact! Our den had tan walls, ceilings and brown molding. That had to go! And the powder room looked like a murder scene with it's blood red walls. I promise I'm not exaggerating.

Next week it's all about the land.  We've being working nonstop on clearing out our landscaping.  I'm constantly referring to us living in a jungle because the overgrowth and ivy is so bad that it's exactly what it feels like.  We've cut down nearly 40 tress and removed almost and acre of ivy. Shivers! I HATE ivy.  It's the homeland for snakes and just plain messy and gross.
Tractors are moving in and we're praying to have pretty green grass for abby girl to play in in the upcoming weeks. IT's funny how those things become important.

With all this work I've rekindled my relationship with Pinterest so that I can be confident of our choices. Nothing is worse than being in a hurry and wishes you had selected different finishes.  Since I have a classic traditional style I'm keeping the character in the dental moldings, banister, flooring and other odds and ends that they just don't make anymore.

Side note: one thing I will NEVER EVER have in our home is the color gray. I HATE it! Even the word is sad. I try and remove it from my world in all aspects. Although our master bath has gray tile ugh It's new so I must live with it. I feel all alone in this hatred but I'm happy with having a style not like the rest.

Here's some of my inspiration ....

I've decided I want to add a rounded portico! 

I've forever dreamed of having a home with white columns and this is just the way to do it.

It won't take away from the original colonial style but it will look grand and add function with coverage from rain to our guests (and packages haha)

This is my formal dining room dream! Minus the chairs and chandeliers. 

I have a Gatsby crystal chandelier I brought from our first home, the formal table, antique buffet and gold mirror. 

All I need is the chinoiserie wall paper and drapes and ta-da! 

I've decided on a white kitchen - I know it's so basic but it's also bright and classic.

However I will not be doing a white subway tile backsplash.

I'm adding shiny pop with a copper vent hood over the stove! 

I LOVE wallpaper and Mr vetos it constantly.  I'm overruling!

I'm thinking light florals for our powder room.

For our Florida room I've picked diagonal white and black tile flooring.

It probably won't be marble since it's fragile and for a high traffic area that would not be practical.

I find it so much fun decorating our home and making it just right for us.  Your home should reflect who you are as well as making your life comfortable and beautiful!

Dress Your Home Beautifully

XOXO Sarah Louise