Office Makeover and Springtime Delights

Saturday was the perfect day to have a lazy morning and productive afternoon. After enjoying our weekly eggs, bacon and waffle breakfast (with coffee, of course), we set out to baby proof the office and in the process I was inspired to make my workspace more inviting and cheerful. First task on the list was to do something about our nasty, faded office chair. I really do loathe your run of the mill type office furniture. All function and no form! What's up with that?  There are some lovely Eames inspired chairs out there, but not in our price range, so my husband suggested we re-cover our current chair as a free alternative!

I had this sample upholstery square in my fabric box and it was the perfect size! I'm not sure what you would call the pattern... It's sort of Southwestern/Ikat looking and the color is a pinky peach, honeysuckle tone. If you have insights into the name of the fabric pattern, I'd much appreciate it. Needless to say, I'm in love. I'm so glad we didn't spend money on a new chair! 

All you need is someone to help you stretch the fabric taut and a staple gun. Voila! Easy, peasy project!

That prompted me to swap blank walls with post-it notes for some workspace pzaz. Virtually everything you see in these pictures was collected over the years from Goodwill runs, freely acquired or purchased very cheaply. The lamp was something I made-over a few years back and you can read about that here. I think the bulletin board was leaning on the side of a dumpster and the fabric covering the board is from Ikea. The desk was a piece we found on the side of the road when we lived in Midtown, the vintage metal TV tray is from Goodwill, the vintage faux bois clipboard is from Goodwill, the picture frame was on sale at Antrho, the wire basket that is serving as my desktop organizer used to house three herb garden pots, the gold frame is another Goodwill find and inside of it is a remnant of a vintage wallpaper roll that I found at-- you guessed it-- Goodwill! So, my cheerful workplace environment probably cost around $30 total.

After all that hard work, we decided to head over to our neighborhood park for a much needed stroll!

Along the way, we spotted this tree. Any ideas on its name? It's gorgeous for sure! That's about it. I love Saturdays with my little fam. Happy Monday y'all!

Itching for Spring- Peach and Aqua

Anyone else out there just desperately wishing, hoping, waiting for Springtime to come? I'm thankful that the warm makes its way to us much sooner now that we live in the South, but that doesn't stop me from anxiously desiring it now!

I recently came across I post from last April with pictures of our little farmhouse in full Springtime bloom and it gave me hope!

Here's what I'm loving for the Spring:

Peach and Aqua!

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Wanderlust Fringe Necklace- Dawn by Etsy seller ayofemijewelry, $58

Peach Brulee Buscheta! Here's the yummy recipe.

Lotus Dinnerware from Anthropologie

Summer Breeze Cotton Dress by Etsy seller aftershowershop, $40.50

From Cookie Cutter to Like Butter- Room Makeovers on the Cheap {1}

Welcome to the start of a new series of posts called "From Cookie Cutter to Like Butter." These posts are designed for folks who have identified their space as needing help, but don't quite now where to start and fear taking risks. 


Each week, I will use a photo of a vanilla room and give it a virtual makeover, of sorts, by suggesting changes that would take the room from bland to grand?


Now, there have to be rules because the goal is for people who identify their space as being blah and are on a budget, to be able to take these ideas and run with them, if they so choose.


Rule #1. No makeover will amount to more than $1,000 (before tax and shipping)


Rule#2. All suggested changes will be easy to find online or in a local store


Rule#3. Is more of a request. In order for this series to grow, I need you, dear readers, to send me photos of rooms in need to help. You can send them to: mostazaseeddesign@gmail.com. Thanks!


So, we'll kick things off today with a room in need of a little help:

(source)

Walls:

The color of the walls is a bit blah, let's kick it up a notch by painting it this color:

Persian Mellon (117) by Benjamin Moore, $33.99 a gallon.

Measure your square footage before heading to the hardware store to buy paint and pick up primer if you don't already have some in the garage. For the sake of this example, we are going to use two gallons of the interior paint, bringing our total, so far, to $67.98.

Floor:

Seeing as how the floor is tile, rugs are key in warming up the room and defining a space in an open-floor concept home. The rug we have now is nice, but it could be bolder.

3x5 Festival Rug from Anthropologie, $268

A little splurge goes a long way in bringing life and comfort into a once dull room.

Total spent so far: $335.98

Furniture:

I love the Chesterfield sofa and the rocker, nearest to us, is decent. Let's swap out the easy chair and ottoman, whose floral pattern is a bit dated, with this:

Ikea Solsta Olarp Chair, $69 

What a steal!

Metal Accordion Side Table, $49 from Urban Outfitters

Adorable Danish Modern Coffee Table from Etsy seller andrew908, $100

The modern lines of this chair and coffee table balance out the curves of the Chesterfield sofa.

Total spent so far: $553.98

Accessories and Art:

Now the fun part begins! Our goal is to give this room a lived in feel and to choose pieces that look as if they have been collected over time, not in one shopping trip. I'm partial to vintage, but a few vintage inspired pieces in the mix will do the trick as well.

Pom Pom Cord Drapes, $69 each from PB Teen

Since we already have so much going on with the wall color and rug, I wanted to stay light with the curtains and keep the room airy and bright. The pom pom fringe is delightful!

Birdcage Hanging Lamp from Urban Outfitters, $98

The sidetable is small and we want to leave space for a drink or a knick knack, so a hanging light is a great way to light up the room without taking up table space.

Now, on to the walls!

Above the sofa:

Vintage Pulldown Map of the USA from Etsy seller atouchofvintage, $125

Off to the right side of the room:

Industrial Salvage Building Letter from Etsy seller monikersincorporated, $9.75

Scour flea markets of Etsy for large letters. Spell something out or just use one! This "O" would be great for the Osbourne family.

Illustrations from Vintage Magazines from Etsy seller TotallyOldAdds, $4.95

Hit up Etsy or a local antique shop for vintage books and magazines. Frame the pages

for a super cheap and super cute piece of art for the walls.

And let's not forget pillows for the sofa!

Round Pintuck Pillow from Urban Outfitters, $32

Take your current pillows and give them new life with cushion covers:

Volumes in Rose Pillow Cover from Etsy seller MintDesign, $18

Love the Anna Maria Horner Fabric on this one!

Square Tiles Glacier Blue Modern Pillow Cover from Etsy seller ModDiva, $12.95

Grand total: $992.63

So, for about $1000 you can take a room from cookie cutter to like butter!

If you would like your room to be featured and made over in the next "From Cookie Cutter to Like Butter," please email me photos at sbradac@mostazaseed.com

Have a great weekend!

Love,

Steph

Pantone's 2011 Color of the Year

Welcome 2011 and with it a fresh serving of delightfulness in Pantone's 2011 color of the year....


Drumroll please... It's Honeysuckle!


"It’s a color for every day – with nothing “everyday” about it" (Pantone.com).
In honor of this vibrant and bold color, I have assembled a spread of my favorite Etsy selections of late!

Throw Pillow from wickedmint, $24

Vintage Salmon Blendo Set from myworldlyposessions, $12

 Upcycled Magnetic Spice Rack from saltcityspice, $45

Voile Flag Bunting a Sustainable Decoration by anabelfuz, $36

Vintage Coral Ceramic Lamp from kizzyrayan123, $48

Teatime Print 5x7 by hillarybird, $15

Perpetual Wooden Block Calendar from QueenvannaCreations, $19

Pretty in Peach Handfelted Pom Pom Flowers by berryisland, $15

Coral Tree Placemat Set from KainKain, $34