Gray Leads The Way

Most of the time people think of gray as blah and one dimensional. Its not, take a trip to the paint aisle of your favorite store and you will see. There are more variations of gray than any other color. Why? Its a chameleon- a neutral. It goes with everything and allows for more versatillity with furniture and accessories.

We are currently redoing our kitchen area (pictured above in HD Elephant Skin). Notice the warmth and coziness? We kept the pallete simple and punched up the color with the oriental rug.  

DIY Tip of the week: Buy the sample of your favoite color and put it on the wall to see how it looks in different natural light. 

Spring Time Is The Time For You

For most us, March signals the beginning of Spring. Spring cleaning, Spring forward (clocks) and Spring parties. Don't be afriad to punch up the color at your sorie. Table settings are great places to brighten up with place settings and centerpieces. You dont have to spend a lot of money either. Here are just a few ideas  (the picture above is a mix new and thrift store finds)

Use fabric remnants for table runners  (local designer fabric outlets)

Go Bohemian- buy mis-matched chairs and paint them all the same color

Use unexpected items for your table decor - I once went to a party that have a giant golden rat as the centerpiece (Mardi Gras).

Use the good silver- Quit waiting for that formal dinner that you never have, and instead use your nice                               silverware at your next garden party or cocktail event 

 

Antiques All Around You

 This is a wood carving from an 18th century ship that my wife found antiquing in Maryland last week.I realize that this kind of find isn't everyday. However, with a little research you can find antiques all around you. We have had a lot of success at estate and garage sales. Know your neighborhoods because all zipcodes are not created equal. Salvage yards are good for finding replacement items for your period home, or items to repurpose.

If you are more into shopping than scavanging, you can always go to your respected local dealers. Tell the dealer what you are looking for and they can alert you when that must have item comes in.

Of course, you can always google an item to find results. I dont recommend craigslist or ebay for this there have a lot of cases of fraud and assault linked to these sights.