A Peek at the Kitchen in Our New Place

Hooray, the kitchen is unpacked.

Not quite shabby chic, not quite urban farmhouse, not quite french bistro--so we're going with Chateau Chic. And I don't really think that's an actual design term, but it seems to work for this space. We work with what we have {and often what has been given to us}, so that usually means you will find a combination of styles and themes within my decor. 

Next room to finish up...the craft room/office.

Stay tuned, as we go room by room.

Shelf Design

Living Room Shelf Makeover {re-design}

This has been on my "to do list" for months now.

When winter ended I knew my shelves needed a punch of springtime color--but the addition of a high maintenance rugrat in our home put those plans on hold.

Last night, I was reading one of my favorite blogs--the Pleated Poppy.  And she lives in my dream home--all the custom finishes, furniture selection, paint color and wall decor--I am IN LOVE with all of her choices!

After reading the Lindsey's post about redesigning her shelves, I was inspired--and since I am living the self-titled "Summer of Organization" this year, I decided to bite the bullet and re-design the shelves while the hubby made ME dinner {yep, you read that right}. He's actually not half bad in the kitchen {so long as he's only making the three meals he knows how to cook}.

So here's how my night of redesigning went.

These are the BEFORE shelves: 

As much as I love the layout of these shelves, the dark brown colors really aren't my style.  I am more of a light and bright type of girl and I was ready for my living room to reflect that.

So I began with a clean slate:

The blue background was already there when we moved in--and it has kinda grown on me.  If I ever gain the energy to paint them {I despise painting}, I want to go with a chocolate brown background like I saw at the Pleated Poppy blog.

Once upon a time, there lived an adorable wedding picture in a beautiful frame with two lovely pillar candles in between these shelves.  Then, after much arm twisting and back rubs, the hubby got his way and installed this mondo TV with its hideous cords.  I promise it was much cuter before {but to be honest, it's pretty nice to be able to watch Glee on a TV bigger than a bread box}.

The first step I take when re-doing any decor, is to lay out all the items that inspire me. 

This doesn't mean I'll end up using every piece, just nice to have them available for switching things out. 

You can see I am leaning towards a 'brighter' look and feel.

Teal, Yellow, Orange and White.

This vintage type writer makes me smile.

Then, after two ours of mixing and matching and setting up and taking down, I finally settled on a design.  While I know I like this color pallet more than my previous darker design, the verdict is still out on whether I prefer this design--only time will tell.

 Ta-Dah! 

Tutorial for this chalk-board-label-basket on the way!

  This adorable picture star was made for Baby W by the lovely and talented Brittany over at Love Stitched.  On the right are bunches of  knobs in a vase {I am a knob-collecting freak}.

On the top shelf is the quote that inspired this post with this challenge. 

  

I picked up this clock at Home Goods for $12.99 {it's the only new item}

And there you have it.

Check that project off my list.

I will be linking up to these glorious blog parties--go check them out for fab ideas and inspiration.

Let's Get Organized, Shall We

PART I

{the embarrassing part}

You know when you've been out of town for a while, and then you get back and you feel like your life {and home} have turned into complete chaos during your absence?

Well that's exactly how I felt after getting home from:

Where our family welcomed back my hubby's parents from their 3 year LDS church mission in Leeds, England.

We had such an incredible time with our family.

Baby W had a blast with his older cousins.

He spent the entire trip admiring how his big boy cousins got from place to place using their feet instead of their hands and knees.

So sure enough, as soon as we got home, Baby W decided he was ready to give walking a try for himself.

And just as soon as he took those first steps, he entered a new phase of "curiousness"--and it seemed nothing in our home was off limits to his curiosity.

The second I sprinted into the family room to find him crying with both of his fingers shut in the drawer, I knew it was time to take action.

Time to get organized.

Time to get baby-proofed.

And when I told Baby W about the plan, these were his thoughts:

"But Momma, I like opening and closing every drawer and cupboard in the house--even if my fingers get in the way sometimes--and especially when the cupboard has sharp and dangerous objects inside"

And because I have no shame with y'all,

I have decided to provide you with a handful of my before pictures demonstrating the desperate need my house has for some MAJOR organization.

Exhibit A:

My pantry.

Disgraceful, I know.

But at least the jumbo peanut butter and chocolate milk are readily available.

Exhibit B:

My closet.

I don't even have an excuse for this madness.

Time to execute the golden rule of clothes hoarding:

"If you haven't worn it in a year--trash it".

Exhibit C:

Under my guest bathroom sink.

I just keep my fingers crossed that my guests never open the cupboard.

Exhibit D:

The hubbies cramped closet.

Due to my clothes hoarding illness, the hubby's clothes have gotten the shaft and currently reside in our much too small spare bedroom closet.

Are you embarrassed for me yet?

If so, then you'll be proud of my next step.

First I headed over to my buddy blogger, Leanne, over at

"Organize and Decorate Everything"

for some inspiration.

She has this awesome link party for all organizing posts and I am determined to link up my results by her next party!

So I headed over to Bead, Bath and Beyond--the mecca of organizing goodness--and I picked up a few necessities for the pantry {baby steps}.

No more stale pasta and cereal in this house.

I also picked up all my baby-proofing paraphernalia.

And so it begins.

The organizing extravaganza.

I WILL get organized, if its the last thing I do this summer--you mark my words!

Are you in?

{after pictures will be posted upon completion--so stay tuned}