Ready for another after?

Yikes.  Crazy times! Both kids are back in school, I am in the process of moving my business and my family is moving back downtown. 

My husband and I (okay, mostly him) restored this house in 2005.  According to tax records, the house was built in 1904 and has over 4200 s.f. of finished living space. We moved out of this house two years ago when the real estate market tanked and we were caught holding 7 properties (all restored with the intention of re-selling). In order to make ends meet, we offered up everything for rent until the market got better, including our own home.  With its downtown location and close proximity to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (literally a few blocks from campus), our house was easily rented to college students.  Five young men have been enjoying a college lifestyle here for the past two years and if these walls could talk I don't think I want to hear it!

The boys move out Friday I am anxious to see what is waiting for us inside.  I know already that the exterior lighting fixture has been shattered and a chunk of the marble has been broken off of the kitchen island.  Obviously this kind of damage is bad news, but nothing we can't handle.  After all, we tore it down to the studs and completely rebuilt it 5 years ago!  

Stay tuned -  I will be sharing the good, the bad and the ugly! And then comes the fun part - another round of before & afters (round 2).

Need some help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Design Trends - Driftwood

Have you discovered the rustic beauty of driftwood?  It's a trend that's popping up everywhere, and I love the rustic, earthy quality it conveys.

Contrast at its best!  The rough texture of the driftwood is enhanced by the slick surface of the mirror, creating just as much tension as your mother-in-law's weekend visit - only prettier.

Source

Pretty sure you won't see this console over at your neighbor's house!

Elle Decor

Modern room + weathered coffee table  = unexpected beauty!

Lots of driftwood lighting options...

The good kind of chunky.

Random driftwood beauty

Coastal Living

Trend or true?

Need some help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Out Shopping - Southeastern Salvage

I popped into Southeastern Salvage on Friday  to see if there might be something blogworthy there.  They never disappoint!  Here's what I found.

Heaps of garden stools.  Lots of colors and shapes to choose from, priced starting at $66!

I am torn between the variegated turquoise (love) and the white (practical).  Help!

These are the same tables as here at about 1/3 of the price.  

Do you like these?  

I think I love them, even on Miles' over-the-top mantel.

How can I make a headboard out of this?

And tons of gold frames. You can create your own Design Star moment!

Get one of these,too.

Special secret tip:   free popcorn Friday, Saturday & Sunday!

It's Monday - let's roll!

Need some help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Would you believe Wal-Mart.com??

   The other day I was surfing around the web in search of a small-scale coffee table for a client's formal living room and I nearly fell out of my chair when this image appeared on my screen!

This is from Wal-Mart.com!

Pretty spectacular, right?  Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would find something so chic and so current from the same place that I buy my dog food, paper towels and about a bizillion other mundane items, but it's true! This brings my Wal-Mart love/hate conflict to a whole new level.


So, I thought if I could find this at Wal-Mart (.com), what else is out there I have been missing?  

Do what you must - I'm not here to judge.

Need help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Bliss in the Bathroom - Pretty Powder Rooms

Powder rooms are the  perfect opportunity to create a little magic in your own home - and you can often make a real statement without spending loads of money. . Since powder rooms are usually small on square footage, they don't require a big investment in materials.  


I am convinced that wallpaper gives you the biggest bank for your buck in a powder room.  I have never tried to do this myself, but I hear it's the hardest space to work in!

Brown Design

Coastal Living

Miles Redd in Elle Decor

Thibaut

Sara Gilbane

Sapid Spaces

via Cote de Texas

How do you make your powder room memorable?

Need some help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be! Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Tree Trends

Over the years my husband and I have built a few new homes from the ground up and the first thing I look at when we consider a possible building site is the trees that are growing on the property.  I love a site that has mature trees to create that beautiful dappled sunlight and to provide some much needed relief from summer's oppressive heat!  I have always been drawn to the sculptural beauty of trees, particularly in the wintertime when their leaves have been shed and they make such a beautiful silhouette against the sky.


I am so happy to see any well-designed space that pays homage to trees!

Source

I recently used this image of Cynthia Rowley's dining room as my entry in Ally's blog to " define my style in one picture!"  So clever (and lovely) how the branches in the vase mirror the trees on the wall.

This past winter we had an ice storm that damaged some of the mature trees in my neighborhood.  I collected some of bigger branches and made my own tree sculpture in my breakfast room.

And some smaller branches in my dining room

I am dying to do a project with this raised plaster stencil from Victoria Larsen.

Victoria Larsen

I would love to create something like this

in my tiny breakfast nook

when I move back downtown this fall.

Hope you get inspired this weekend!

Need help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Inspiration Board - Client Family Room

I had the pleasure of meeting with a new client a few weeks ago who was looking to update her family room.  She and her husband live in a beautiful brick traditional home built in the 1970's.  Her requirements for the space were 1.  It had to be comfortable - it is room where they watch tv  and gather as a family.  2.  They like traditional furnishings and have some amazing antique pieces to incorporate into the space.  3.  They are art collectors and want to showcase their pieces.. 4.  The room had to coordinate with their existing area rug.  They have a house full of gorgeous antique rugs, too!  She also mentioned that even though she wants a traditional space, she doesn't want "old lady"!  (how cute is she?)  


Their family room is a lofty space with 10" ceilings that rise up into a wood-clad cathedral ceiling with dark wooden beams.  There is a wood floor and built-in bookcases that flank a floor to ceiling stacked stone fireplace.


Here is the existing rug

And here is the mood board for the room

I decided to go with a cobalt blue and sunflower yellow color scheme because it was traditional and vibrant,  and the client wanted a "happy" space. The coral pillow and other (yet to be found) orangey-red accents will tie the room's design to the existing rug.   I chose the iron & glass chandelier from Ballard Designs to replace the existing ceiling fan and add some sparkle to the room's rustic elements.  The sunburst mirror from Crate & Barrel is made of driftwood and I love how it plays off of the sparkly chandelier.  


I chose fabrics with modern motifs in classic colors to bridge the gap between old and new, and that adorable elephant side table from Two's Company (through Amazon) for a bit of whimsy.  


Overall, I wanted to achieve a look that is comfortable, fresh and timeless.


Lots of work this week - hope yours is going great!










Need help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

  

First the Good News....

The good news is Calico Corners is having a sale!  All in store and online fabrics are 25% off.

website

All of their clearance fabrics have been given additional markdowns, too.  

Wouldn't  this Key West  fabric be perfect as a shower curtain in a white bathroom? ( in either colorway.)  It would also be great on pillows, seat cushions or a bed skirt.  This could work in so many different applications.  On sale now for just $11.24 a yard!!

This is Ada, from the Ikat Collection.  Love that chartreuse and purple!

Perfect option for your DIY upholstered headboard project.  And it's just $20/yard!

This gorgeous fabric is Blaze and is marked down from $93 to $70.  I love it!

Annie Selke fabrics are part of the sale, too. This is Scramble, and is just $21/yard.  Looks amazing on these dining room chairs in House Beautiful, right?

Check out all of the fabrics here.  And be quick about it - sale ends August 10th

Need some help pulling your style together? The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com.