Tag: stripes

The Start of the Next Room Remodel. The Foyer.

Written by Jenna on September 13, 2013. Posted in DIY. 7 Comments on The Start of the Next Room Remodel. The Foyer.

Now that the kids are back in school and home life is somewhat back on a regular routine, I’m psyched to start tackling my next big room remodel. This past Spring it was the powder room that got an overhaul, and now I’m ready for something else. The space coming up is adjacent to the powder room. Can you guess what it is??? Twist. Twist. Ok, I’ll tell you. It’s the foyer. It’s had many lives over the past 4 years, but it’s ready for another. And it all revolves around this…

This piece of gorgeousness (that I was reluctant to buy but many of you on instagram encouraged me to take the plunge) is the inspiration for my foyer and the starting element that everything will be designed around.

Want a better look?

There it is.

It’s dynamic. It’s unusual. It’s a showstopper. And it’s all mine to design around…

And look I couldn’t stop myself from already styling it…

One of the major needs in the foyer (because it duals as our mudroom) is storage. Out of convenience, the kids keep most of their everyday shoes in the foyer, so a new piece with storage was a major must! And this gold bombshell actually has more storage than the last cabinet.

Here is the space before…

And before that 2-1/2 years ago (prior to the stair makeover & the new flooring)…

What a difference, right? Also going is the tone-on-tone stencil. And in it’s place…

Stripes!

With a Major Cabinet, there needs to be Major Stripes.

But I’m going bolder. I wanted to do black and white (I love Emily Clark’s foyer), but I decided on a greige (a mix of gray & beige) with a dark charcoal brown. The black would have been too deep for our overall space.

The contrast is major, but I do wish the darker color was even darker. hmmm… {wheels are turning – did I choose the wrong color?} We shall see how it looks once the stripes go up. So many colors, so many decisions.

So the chosen colors are Benjamin Moore Gallery Buff and Benjamin Moore Coachman’s Cape. I actually had them color matched at Lowe’s and am using Valspar Ultra Paint + Primer.

And after doing some math this afternoon, I came up with two options for the width of the stripes – I think I’m leaning towards 5 dark stripes at 10-3/8″ high.

The entire foyer will get a fresh coat of the lighter color, while the stripes will only be on one wall behind the gold console. Because of the space, it’s most fitting. Aside from the paint, I want to freshen up the artwork and decor as well. On the main striped wall I envision 4 or 6 white square frames with large white matting.

Specific pictures or artwork TBD. There are a few more walls in the space and I’ve got some thinking to do for them. And of course the powder room is one of the spaces right off of the foyer.

The built-in coat rack that is behind the front door will remain because it’s our everything! The 30″ wall is so functional – I don’t know what I would do without. And I think the back of the front door is going to get a splash of color too.

Well I’ve got my work cut out for me, but that’s the plan. You know know where you’ll find me this weekend. What are your weekend plans?

DIY: How To Paint Stripes and Product Review of U-Stripe It

Written by Jenna on February 21, 2012. Posted in Color, DIY, Paint, Paint Techniques, Paint Tools. 31 Comments on DIY: How To Paint Stripes and Product Review of U-Stripe It

Not too long ago I wrote an article for Build Direct on adding stripes into your decor. Ever since, I’ve had the longing urge to add stripes SOMEPLACE in my home. I recently made some new pillows for my family room and chose a fabric with stripes, but that wasn’t enough. I truly envisioned making a bold statement, but just wasn’t sure where. Until…

…I decided to makeover my son’s room which was a home goal of mine for 2012. It was the perfect spot to make dramatic focal wall with STRIPES!

We started off by taking apart his bunkbeds (which you can see in this post), so he now has two twin beds in his room. We removed the train table, which he was getting a little too old for (his words, not mine) and in the midst of furniture rearranging to create my new office space, I gave him one of the desks that I was no longer using. ‘This desk’ has been desperately waiting patiently for a makeover for a LONG TIME and now that it finally has a home, it’s time. {sigh}

Thankfully to my generous friends at U-Stripe It, they made my life alot easier to tackle my idea for adding stripes to the wall. Because the wall was already painted (Benjamin Moore – Puritan Gray), I was able to jump right in and start painting the stripes. For fun stripes, I used denim blue, rustic deep red, and crisp wintry white. There was no rhyme or reason to my stripe layout, but before I started, I sketched this quick drawing as a vision for what I wanted to create.

From U-Stripe It, I received everything I needed to create my stripes, including their handy-dandy Paint Tool, a roll of 3M Painters tape, two levels, and 3M Command Mounting Strips.

Once I was ready to start my stripes, I added the mounting strip to the back of the U-Stripe It Paint Tool, positioned it horizontally on the wall, and locked it in place.

I then added the painters tape along the edges of the tool and continued it across the wall.

In about 30 minutes, I had completed making my stripes on the wall…

…And I was ready to paint. {WARNING: these pictures aren’t so pretty since I was painting fairly late in the evening once the kiddos were asleep. And NO, I was NOT painting over my son’s head – he was fast asleep in another room}

Once the painting was complete, it was time to do the unveiling!

What a difference the room looks. A simply added touch, truly makes for a huge impact.

Over the two beds will be black and white pictures of my little boy (which I still have to do). I moved the vintage airplanes (which I purchased from Home Goods years ago) over the dresser instead of over his head (not a good place if one ended up snapping off the fishing line and falling on his head during the night). I also handmade a sign with his name and traits – this was probably the most difficult project I’ve ever created, but I kept with it and in the end, am really happy with the result. Lastly, the dresser he’s had for a few years and was purchased from Ikea.

There is still some work to be done on this room and I wouldn’t dare show you a picture of the current state that it’s in, but it’s coming along!

Stripes are such a fun and easy way to add some personality to a space. Have you painted stripes in your interiors?

Disclosure: I have a material connection because I received an item of nominal value from a company affiliated with a brand, topic and/or product that is mentioned herein, but all the content and opinions in this post are 100% mine!