Pepper Design Blog

Office Makeover: New DIY Curtains

On Wednesday I shared how the guestroom portion of the office is looking right about now. You might have noticed that I moved the curtains that used to be between the kitchen and office (covering the french doors) to the big window near the bed. But they might not stay.

I’ve been using Spoonflower to play with a few handmade designs for a new pair of curtains for this area and here’s where I’m at now:

Here’s a better look at what’s going on on the bed, or the ‘test swatch’ area:

The original inspiration came from this beautiful upholstery weight suzani print from Calico Corners, but the heavy woven fabric did not lend itself well to a soft, breezy curtain that would allow light in (the walls are brown so light, even with curtains, is a must).

Have you heard of Spoonflower? You can create your own design and they’ll print it up on a variety of different types of fabric. I love it! I’ve used it for curtains in the past and went to work to create a suzani print of my very own.

The first time I ordered I used their original color guide to pick my fabric shades, and you can see from the ‘really bad color swatches’ above that I was waaaaay off. Spoonflower was great though, they sent out their latest and greatest color guide (so you know exactly what colors to send your design in for printing), and even reimbursed me one round of bad swatches.

Soon I was left with the two swatches (on two different types of fabric) that were very close color-wise to my inspiration print:

Here they are up against the natural light of the window. The fabric on the left is a sheer fabric and the one on the right is a cotton. The jury is out on which looks better at the moment… I’m nervous the sheer is too sheer and the cotton might be too prone to wrinkles. But I’m hoping to have picked one by the end of today!

My over all experience with Spoonflower has been positive. There were a few frustrating moments (aka ordering swatch upon swatch – plus waiting for shipping – and then finding horrible coloring) but their customer service is awesome and they ship for $1, so you can order all day and it won’t really cost you much. Another bonus is that there are thousands of free designs that others have uploaded – so if you’re searching for the perfect print and you just can’t find it online or at your craft store, a Spoonflower artist might just have what you’re looking for.

Decisions, decisions. Hmmm… those original curtains do work pretty well, too!

For more Office Makeover posts, check out: new shell pendant, organizing the bookshelves, wall collage part 1, part 2, fabric bulletin board inspiration, (new) inspiration board, new lamps, wallpapering open shelves, finding the perfect credenza, new trim, dining table-to-desk, a new desk & bookshelves, installing remnant carpeting, grasscloth wallpaper, painting the office nook, finding carpet for the office, chocolate brown wall ideas, plastering progress,  inspiration for a diy desk, back in action!, desking hunting for under $300, bookcases under $300,inspirational rooms, room layout options, demo part 1 & demo part 2.

Office Makeover: Wall Collage Part 2

I’ve slowly collected items for the new wall collage in the office (read more about the inspiration here) and while it’s not finished, here’s a quick update on the progress.

Here’s the before where I took my favorite layout from this post and hung paper cut outs on the wall to get a better visual. Then up went the frames with their original artwork:

Some of the frames were cool garage sale finds, like this vintage guy that just needed a new photo. Actually the Chinese ship was very neat, but it didn’t work here. The bummer was that this frame had a paper backing and was oh-so-old, but I carefully removed the paper with an X-ACTO knife (the company sent me several to play with and I keep them in my pen container on my desk I use it so much), replaced the aged matting and added an illustration of birds – another garage sale find.

The wall didn’t look quite right – it needed more uniformity. I decided that while the frames matched in an un-matching sort of way, the mattes needed to be more in line. In terms of matting photos, I don’t stray from white or linen (the textural, grasscloth sort – not just the color) and so I shopped my usual matte locales: eBay, Etsy, Aaron Brother’s, Michael’s and even a few local mom & pop shops. Ebay and Etsy didn’t carry linen – and Aaron Brother’s and my local mom & pop stores (which I love supporting) quoted between $25-50/matte. Craziness. Michael’s came through with a low $10ish for a custom matte (which is awesome!) and I placed my order.

A few custom mattes with brighter, cheerier images has left me here:

The large watercolor was painted by Kevin’s Grandma, the floral arrangement is a favorite artist of mine (more on that soon…), the lower left landscape was a souvenir from our travels, and the beautiful blue butterfly was a recent find in Charleston, SC. I’ve searched high and wide for ethically conserved butterflies (aka not killing them to frame them)  and I found a great source – this artist collects butterflies that have already died on his butterfly farm.

I haven’t yet found the perfect piece for that oval frame up top but I’m thinking of showcasing an object on matte board rather than a photo (sort of like the butterfly). The more and more I look at the collage the more I’m thinking that I might have to replace the large frame’s matte for a white one – and that maybe the painting needs a new home and a ‘brighter’ family photo or illustration should take its place. The walls are so dark and the images play a huge role in brightening or darkening that corner.

There you have it! That’s the latest update.

For more Office Makeover posts, check out: organizing the bookshelves, wall collage part 1, fabric bulletin board inspiration, (new) inspiration board, new lamps, wallpapering open shelves, finding the perfect credenza, new trim, dining table-to-desk, a new desk & bookshelves, installing remnant carpeting, grasscloth wallpaper, painting the office nook, finding carpet for the office, chocolate brown wall ideas, plastering progress,  inspiration for a diy desk, back in action!, desking hunting for under $300, bookcases under $300,inspirational rooms, room layout options, demo part 1 & demo part 2.

Halloween’s ‘Best Of’ Round-Up

I was reminded today that Halloween is 7 days away! For some reason it feels like I still have a good month to prepare (we’re hosting a party and I’m in charge of the family costume), time to get a movin’.

In honor of the approaching holiday, here’s a round-up of some of the most inspiring Halloween decorating ideas I’ve found out there in the blogosphere.

Are you ready? Let’s roll.

Best glam party: This vintage glam dinner party by Suzanna at Mon Tresor is fantastic – I love the colors and I love the details. Thanks, HWTM for posting.

Best harvest porch: This one’s a tie between Kate’s (over at Centsational Girl) harvest spin and a Pottery Barn porch (it captures the ‘spooky’ category) that’s been spinning around the internet. And since I’m not as much of a goblins and ghosts kind of girl, I fully appreciate the harvest color palette.

Best 5 minute craft: These vase mummies by Hi Sugarplum are super clever, super cute and look super easy.

Best simple statement: This tablescape is low key and looks fairly low budget, but it’s perfect for this time of the year and it still looks stunning. I like that it’s reflected again on the mantel:

Best outdoor display: Simple Country Living created an awesome faux fireplace with all the spooky fixings.

Best inside decor: This one goes to Sherry’s white snakes over at Young House Love. Who would have guessed that creepy crawly decorations like these were as easy as wooden toys and some spray paint?

Most creative: Both of these ideas are so unique and creative that I had to include them. Neither of the images were sourced when I found them floatin’ round the web, if you know of the author, let me know. Maybe Martha?

Best mantel: So many inspiring ones to choose from but I really love Kim’s Halloween mantel (of TomKat Studio), and I love that printable banner:

There are so many fun and fantastically executed ideas out there, but I hope this little round-up gives you some inspiration for any last-minute preparations!

**************************************************************************

PS Come visit me at Simply Modern Mom where Tiffany has asked me to share an over-used recipe – which for our family is Kevin’s delicious homemade chicken stock! Go homemade and you’ll never go back. It’s the base for so many delicious meals in our house . And a big congrats to Tiffany on her new baby girl!