Just A Few Good Ideas!!

I love a good idea don’t you?!! Ever once-in-awhile I will run upon something and I  will say to my self, “That is a good idea!!”

Since it is the weekend, and hopefully you are able to relax a bit I thought it would be a good time to share a few of the ideas with you all…..

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I don’t know about you all, but I think this is brilliant, and a great way to store ribbons. Can’t you just see yourself using this at Christmas time to wrap your gifts!! I am definitely going to do this one!!!

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What a darling idea for your bathroom. You could use a pretty clear vase, or any clear container that you like. Using a votive holder as the stopper to hold cotton swabs is adorable. One container serving two purposes!!

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I don’t know about you, but I always have something to go to the cleaners, a special gift that I buy ahead of time, and items to be donated. It would be great to have a designated station for all the items that I have shoved into my closet in various spots. Another idea I would like to do right away. I would put it right outside my family room door going out to the garage.

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This is just too clever for words!! I am not a big fan of  metal hangers, but this would be a great way to hang your flip-flops for easy storage. 

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This looks like a great idea to me. I am not sure it will work for me, but I am sure going to put some thought into it. It looks so organized, and pretty handy to grab and take to the counter.

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I think a chair like this on your porch with your address numbers would be a nice touch for your porch.
These are just a few of the ideas that I have found. I love blog land, there are so many resources of wonderful ideas to make our homes look better and run more smoothly!!

Have a wonderful, restful Sunday,

“Enjoy the Process” Of:

Finding new ideas to make your life a little more enjoyable!

Kathysue

Adding Architectural Details To Add Character To Your Home!!

We all know that in good design it is all about the details. I look at the main architecture of a space as the base, but when it comes to embellishing our homes with architectural elements it is like adding the jewelry to an outfit. 

I am an advocate for making the inside of your home look and feel like you want. We can not always afford the perfect beach home, or a Victorian, or a modern masterpiece, to name a few, but we can make our environment speak to those looks.

I will have to admit I am one very lucky lady that I have a talented husband who can add elements to our home that I love. Over the last thirty-some-odd years we have added many personal touches to our 1970’s Californian suburban ranch home. 

We all know that this style of home basically came as a box with no embellishments at all. If it was going to have character, we had to add our own.

I thought today I would share some of what we have done to our home to make it our own personal style.

All of the treatments are doable and affordable. Any of the moldings can be purchased at any molding supply or even big box stores like Lowe's or Home depot. We are only limited by our imagination and creativity.

First let’s start at the front door…………

You will notice I have a full French door. Notice the molding and the bulls-eye corner blocks at each corner?  You will also notice a frame molding is on the ceiling. Another simple treatment is the shadow frame wainscoting. This adds a bit of formality to my entry and also gives a nod to the Traditional style that I like.

To the left of the entry is my living room. We have added crown molding and a framed treatment with a medallion on the ceiling.

This is the entrance into the living room where we added corbels to each side of the opening. Can you tell I would love to live in an older home?

The simple frame molding on the ceiling adds so much character for so little money. When doing this make sure you stand back and look at it from a distance to determine how far from the edge of the wall you want to go. I did this by using blue painters tape and moving it until it looked right to me. 

In this image you can  see we used the same dentil molding that is around the room as a cornice board to hide the top of the roller shades.

Next we will go into the kitchen. I still have the original birch cabinets that my father-in-law built over 30 years ago, but we have embellished them a bit. A easy face-lift to do.

This use to be a fluorescent light box, remember those. We took down the fluorescent lights and added different moldings to the box. I purchased a mini vintage chandelier and added a medallion. Now I have a pretty ceiling to look at instead of that horrid fluorescent light box.

We also added a cornice board on top of the kitchen window to hide a privacy shade that blocks the afternoon sun.

My cupboards in the kitchen had no molding what so ever. Before we had them painted we added a small crown and a skirt molding to the bottom of the cupboard to give it some character.

We also added legs that are actually $2 shelf brackets. See the tiny molding at the bottom of the cupboard, that little inexpensive piece of molding just finished off the look perfectly. A shadow box frame was added to the end of the cabinet. 

This shows the skirt molding at the bottom of the cupboards.

I love adding architecture to a home, it seems to give it so much more character. I know many of you on the east coast have lovely older home that already have built in character. Living in suburban California does not always give us the character built in that we would like.

Have any of you added some character to your home with moldings? Can you believe what an amazing affect it gives to your home?

I hope you have enjoyed this little tour of how we added some moldings to make our home look and feel like the home we have always wanted! If you would like to see more of my kitchen you can go to the side bar and click on the picture of my kitchen and it will take you to a post that shows the different ways I change my kitchen for the seasons!

“Enjoy the Process” Of:

Adding character to your home with molding!!

Kathysue

A Pet Peeve of Mine!!

How Welcoming Is Your HOME?

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How do you greet your guests at the door? I am sure most of us have a welcoming greeting to those who visit our homes.


Remember how we use to see a “Welcome” sign at the  front door?

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You would enter knowing you were welcomed. Sometimes in the entry hall there would be another reminder, another sign of welcome…..

 

Don’t misunderstand me, I don’t think you have to have an actual sign to make your guest feel welcomed. I truly believe it is the host or hostess that will  make their guest feel comfortable and welcomed.

Having said that, I think there is a sign that can make a guest feel unwelcome!

Really!? You want me to take off my shoes before I enter your home?

I remember the very first time a client asked me to take off my shoes because she just had new carpet installed. I was a guest in her home and she asked me to take off my shoes!!! I was so tempted to say, “ I would, but I have this horrible foot fungus so I probably should not take my shoes off!!” I know I am being a bit dramatic about this situation, but this is a real pet peeve of mine. I find it offensive and not welcoming in the least. Too me, it says my home's cleanliness is more important than your comfort.

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I realize that in some countries it is a sign  of respect  and we show honor by removing our shoes, but in our country, when it's a matter of a clean floor, it's lacking in hospitality.

I am a practical girl so I can see where it would be very beneficial for the family that lives there to take their shoes off when they come home. I am sure it would make the carpets last a lot longer than mine have lasted.  So I do see the practicality of this way of thinking. I think this sign below would be darling in a back door mud room for the family members, but not at the front door to greet guest.

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I have actually had some guests come to my home and they want to take there shoes off because they don’t want to get my floors dirty. I practically have a fit right then and there. My guest comfort is much more important to me than my floors remaining clean.

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After my guests leave I can clean until my heart is content. While my guests are in my home, I want nothing more than for them to feel like they belong here. If they want to put up their feet and relax, I  consider that to be one of  the nicest compliments to me that they feel very at home here.

So know this…….. If you come to my house you do not have to take off your shoes!!!

 How do you all feel about this way of thinking that has become in vogue in our society?
Please let me know your feelings on this subject in a comment. I am really interested in how others feel about my pet peeve.

Kathysue Is Enjoying the Process Of:

Visiting with her guest with their shoes still on!!