Window Shopping – Patio Decor

Along with the warmer temperatures comes the season for grilli’n and chillin’. Ready for the outdoor season yet? If not here are some great items to add to your shopping list. As usual click on the pic for the link.

i’m liking the new JCPenny. They have these fab outdoor decorative pillows for $18 for a set of 2. Whats more, they come in 9 different patterns and have great reviews.

This 4′ x 6′ Ikat Rio Mat from World Market could be the cheapest outdoor rug around at $19.99. Of course it is made of polypropylene so it would be light weight. You could still use it under a table.

 

Looking to add some zen to your outdoor space? This 12 inch stone Buddha face statue from Overstock could do the trick.

Ceramic garden stools are hot property nowadays both outdoors and indoors (I have my own tale to tell on this but later). Overstock has this great patterned one for $83.99.

Maybe I’ve even inspired you to try your hand at a container water garden? This weather resistant whiskey barrel is a steal at $16.98 at Lowes.

whiskey barrel planter

When all is said and done who wouldn’t want to laze around in this hammock with a nice book? Hurry, this hammock is listed in Overstock for $62.99 with a high sell out risk.

hammock

 Enjoy the great weather folks. Have an awesome weekend!

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100th Post & Some Good News

Technically, this morning’s post was the 100th one. But that fact totally escaped me when I was writing it and I didn’t want to leave it unsaid, plus I’ve great news to share.

As you all know I started blogging on New Year’s day. It has been a fun 5 months and am truly grateful for all the love, support,  and encouragement you guys have shown me. Love you all! Like I said in the earlier post,  I have a very long ‘To Do List‘ for our home. Consider this as a special invite for you to join in all the fun we are about to embark on at WUHS.

Now for the news, (as you might have guessed I’m on cloud nine :) ) my article on decorating kids rooms was published in the latest issue of Prismma, India’s premier online home decor magazine. Here is a link to the “Inspired Room” section of the magazine, where the article is featured on the 50th page under the name Vidya Nair. There is a snap shot in the first few pages.

prismma

 

 

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To Do List

As I was listing out things to do with my thrift shop finds for yesterday’s post I realized that I have so many ideas for the rest of the house….in my mind but nothing on paper/excel. So here is my cheat sheet with a list of projects that Iwe have to tackle sooner or later. No, this is not a list of every little project that we will do but more of an ‘at large’ list of the rooms that we have to get to.

  • The top most priority, the office room which now has only the Craigslist desk. Complete blank slate. I have finalized the paint color and all, will let you in on the details soon.
  • Get the outdoor landscaping in order. This is going to be a big one. So we will be doing it in parts, starting next week.
  • The half done guest bedroom in the basement. Why half done? The walls are painted, the bed, the bedding, side tables, lamps, and curtains are done. It is large room so it is screaming for more furniture. Both the Salvation Army lamp and the Craigslist chair are going to go in there. Here is a sneak peak of where we left of.

beige bedroom

  • Set up an art studio/craft room for me to work on projects. Now I compete for space with the kids homework on our dining table. There is really no spare room, so I would have to section off a part of the hall in the basement.
  • Spruce up the deck.
  • Another half done project, the powder room on the main floor. Was not really satisfied after the paint job, still feel like it needs something extra. Don’t really care for that oval builder grade mirror either. By the way, that is where my ‘Lady in Orange’ resides. I painted the towels to match the design in the painting.

powder room

  • The guest bedroom upstairs, again nothing in there other than a sleigh bed and side tables.Hoping to use those vintage chair prints from Goodwill for this room.
  • Of course the retreat, which I have already blogged about here.
  • The kitchen, where the only things we have done so far is to hang the capiz pendants and add two bar stools. Luckily we had opted for some upgrades in here when we built the home. All it needs is a back-splash and some accessories, right?

kitchen

  • Need to finish off the family room which is done in parts; couchfloating shelves, and the mantle.
  • Paint/decorate the foyer and the staircase landing.
  • The master bedroom needs some serious love.
  • All the bathrooms are still white and blah.
  • The laundry room is totally dysfunctional. Laundry is the only task that I absolutely hate to do. No amount of decorating is gonna change my opinion on that one. Hence the close to the bottom listing. :)
  • Finally the basement hall. It is a mammoth of a room and currently houses our cold leather couch and entertainment center from our previous home. No idea what to do with this big open space. I am hoping that  once I set up the art studio more ideas will fall into place.

Long list,huh? Buckle up, seat belts tight (Universal hangover), and get ready to be a part of our fun journey. I’m targeting 3 yrs for all this and some more. :) Overly optimistic?

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Thrifty Chic

In my post on favorite decorating stores, I had vowed to explore stores out of my comfort zone (aka mainly Home Goods). After which I had found some great goodies at our local Goodwill store. Glad to report that I found even more cool stuff at the Salvation Army store in Leesburg. Last Saturday afternoon I had some time to kill as I was waiting to pick my daughter up from her friend’s birthday, so decided to hop in and came out with these.Salvation Army finds

All for $26! Want more details? From left,

  • The lamp base was $5.99. Want to spray paint it and use it in our basement guest bedroom. But first need to get a lamp kit (under $8 at Home Depot) and a drum shade maybe on clearance at Home Goods for $10. Hoping to keep the whole thing under $25.
  • The oval frame was $3.99. Still have no idea what I’m going to use it for. Bought it because I really liked the shape and the detail. May be insert a cork board in it or just hang an empty frame? Have already spray painted it white. Ya, I have hopped on the spray paint bandwagon in full swing.
  • Bought the flower painting in the back for the frame, again gonna spray paint it black/oil rubbed bronze (I told ya :) ). Couldn’t say no to that frame for $5.99. Remember my art class Renoir painting? Finally that will have a home.
  • The grass cloth frame with the two leaves was $2 after 50% off. Planning to turn that into a jewelry organizer.
  • The big cork board was a steal at $5.99. That baby is going to be covered in fabric soon.
  • The books on the floor are from the 50′s and were $1 each. Got them for the old industrial drawings inside. Maybe I could use them for my industrial prints knock off project?

Since we are on the subject of being thrifty, here is my latest seriously awesome (I get giddy every time I think of it) Craigslist find! Any guesses as to how much this baby cost? Totally ignore the messy garage and that old couch (ya it is still there….long story). Ain’t that called keeping it real, right? ;)

craigslist chair

A whopping $20! Can’t wait to reupholster and paint her. Still debating whether to give it an antique white or a glossy white finish. Again, this is going to go in the basement guest bedroom, which has a beige and white color scheme. I’m thinking of adding duck egg yellow (don’t know what that color is called, it is more of an orangey yellow) as an accent color. The art work in that room has some blue, white, and small pops of that yellow. So for the fabric I’m thinking of one of these;

Or

 

I’m leaning more towards the first one only because my usual first instinct would have been to pick the second pattern. Lately I’ve been trying to push myself a little bit, decor wise. Also I have a nagging feeling that the second one might be a bit too busy. What do you guys think?

B finds it mildly amusing that I get hyper excited about stuff like this! Can’t blame a girl for badly wanting to re-upholster a chair, right? Ain’t that normal?

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Pinspiration – Sunburst Mirrors

Back in the day when no one cared for ‘sunburst’ anything, I bought a sunburst clock from Marshalls. We loved it (still have it) and so did our guests. When sunbursts became the rage, I was more than happy that I had my fair share of sunburst action. But the pattern is so addictive that you long for more soon. And I set out on my quest for sunburst mirrors, this time looking for DIY ideas. Sure enough, Pinterest is full of them. So here are a few outstanding ideas. The good news; all of them are really easy to make though time consuming. Patience is the name of the game, right? :)

Can you believe that this amazing mirror is made out of cardboard rings, sequins, a tin lid, and a dollar store mirror?

Another one, this time with a PVC pipe! Hats off to these creative ladies. Who would have thought?

There is no excuse for not trying this one made out of plastic spoons. More of a chrysanthemum than a sun burst. Still very pretty.

Or you could go green with bamboo.

My favorite and the one that I’m definitely recreating is this one made out of poster board.

I have already bought the mirror and the poster board months ago. Hopefully I’ll get around to doing it soon.

Inspired to create your own yet? Would love to hear your take/versions of the sunburst mirror.

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Face Lift

Hope everyone had a great Mother’s Day! As you guys might have noticed, I’ve made a few changes around here. Mainly, the header image. The picture/logo on the left was my 6 yr old daughter’s mother’s day card. She has been very enthusiastic about the blog from the start and loves that her room has now become famous. So every card/note she makes me has ‘Whats Ur Home Story’ written somewhere on it. :)

I was playing around with her picture in PicMonkey and Pixlr and narrowed it down to two designs, the other one being:

home story

I like this one too, was a close call. What do you guys think? Or should I have kept the old one?

your home story

The other change is to the “How To” tab. As the list of projects have grown I’ve been wanting to add pics to the links for a long time now. Finally got around to it. Hopefully it is a lot easier to find things now.

your home story

The “Our Home” tab now has separate sections for each home.

I’m sure these are not the last changes here. This whole blogging process has been an eye opening experience for me; learning something new everyday. Suggestions on appearance, easy of use etc. are always welcome.

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