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Easter and Springtime Decorating Ideas

Springtime blossoms and sunshine are just around the corner. Many will be celebrating the joys of Easter by hunting for eggs and hosting a Sunday brunch with family and friends. Here are some festive decorating ideas to help you welcome Spring and the Easter holiday in style.

This is an easy, inexpensive way to dress up a woven basket with silk flowers and leaves. Just need a hot-glue gun for this project by Martha Stewart.

Fill those darling Easter baskets with decoupage eggs. It is a fun way to create keepsake eggs without having to be an artist. Simply cut small images from magazines, scrapbooking supplies or old greeting cards. You can also download some here.

These vintage Easter images are available on Etsy for only $2.75 and would also be adoable on eggs.

 

These eggs are slip-cast from pure white clay in the same dimensions and smooth texture as a real egg, making it quite the little piece of “trompe-l’œil.” Each is hand stamped in black ink with the word, phrase or text of your choice. Another great option to help fill your Easter baskets. Available at Paloma’s Nest on Etsy.

These darling farm animals from Williams-Sonoma are fudgy brownies in a white chocolate shell. Perfect addition for your Easter baskets.

An Easter tree is a delightful way to decorate a buffet, console or dining table this Spring. The branches of this tree by Martha Stewart features egg and carrot ornaments hanging from loops of silver thread, as well as pipe cleaner baskets filled with Easter goodies. Learn how to make it here.

These DIY sweet blown egg bluebird, bee and dove ornaments would also look darling tied to a small potted tree or bare branch. Here’s how to make these decorative eggs with wings.

Can’t seem to find the time to DIY? Pottery Barn Kids has an adorable Easter tree and sweet egg ornaments featuring classic scenes from Beatrix Potter’s Tale of Peter Rabbit™.

This beautiful cotton/linen tablecloth features an intricate Jacquard pattern of woodland bunnies, leafy vines and blooming flowers. It’s vibrant green would work well with almost any springtime color palette. Available at Williams-Sonoma.

Show off your beautifully decorated Easter eggs in these antiqued tin rabbit egg cups. Perfect to add to a tablescape for Easter Sunday brunch.

These hand-painted ceramic carrot dishes would add a bit of whimsy to your table setting. Perfect to hold jelly beans, condiments or use as place markers for an Easter brunch. Available at Gumps.

The personalized Beatrix Potter™ chair backer by Pottery Barn Kids is a festive way to store Easter surprises, decorate the Easter table and let everyone know where they are sitting.
 

Are you ready for Spring?


*first image courtesy of Country Living
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Read full story By on February 22, 2010 in baby and children, Easter, holiday decor

Baby Boy: Bird Theme Nursery Design & Decorating Ideas

Inspired by posts on baby boy nursery designs and gender neutral nursery designs, this gorgeous nursery was designed by a Simplified Bee reader for her baby boy. The new mother with nesting instincts wanted to incorporate birds into the room’s decor and did so without over doing it.

Here is a peek into the nursery from the door. The room’s calming neutral palette of beige, brown and white is accented with pops of baby boy blue. A cozy roll arm swivel glidder and ottoman by baby&child Restoration Hardware in toast with white pipping is the perfect form and function. The chair’s “b” letter pillow in chocolate and indigo from Serena & Lily is fun way to personalized the room.


The whimsical tree and bird mural was handpainted by the homeowners in an interior latex paint, called flax by Restoration Hardware (over Kelly Moore’s 230 Graystone). As a guide, they used an overhead projector to project a sketch of the image on the wall. And who says little boy rooms can’t have chandeliers? I love the Bronze Ella Chandelier by Pottery Barn Kids that was selected to hang off center. The rich bronze matches the window treatment hardware, also by Pottery Barn Kids. Cotton sailcloth panels {Pottery Barn Kids again} frame the window and pull in more icy blue accent color. And the fabulous black mid-century modern chair with white leather cushion was once in the home of the baby’s great-grandmother.

More modern elements. DwellStudio’s Dot Brown crib bedding reminiscent of pop-art designs and modern geometric motifs of the mid-20th century is a wonderful contrast to the antique white crib.

This vintage dresser was a great flea market find! The new mom had a new coat of fresh paint applied, added clear glass knobs and positioned a changing pad in white to transform the dresser into a highly functional changing table. The bird renderings and branch leaf lamp with blue shade from Pottery Barn Kids adds touches of color.

Another vintage dresser passed down from a proud grandmother is darling painted white with new glass knobs to match the changing table. The round mirror is a nice addition and reflects the light in the room beautifully.



On the dresser sits chatty garden birds, a patient frog prince and a matching Pottery Barn Kids branch leaf lamp. The new mom also incorporated a crystal wreath that echos the round mirror and dresser’s glass knobs.

This room was also photographed beautifully by one of my favorite local photographers, Jennifer Jacobson. Do you remember this post about her?

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Read full story By on February 1, 2010 in baby and children, baby nursery room, interior design

Decorating Ideas for a Little Boy’s Bedroom

Last year I wrote several posts on bedroom designs for little girls. Today, I turn the focus to those Lego building, truck pushing and football throwing little boys. Here’s some inspiration and ideas for decorating a boy’s bedroom.

Southern California’s Elizabeth Dinkel Design Associates created this classic and timeless boys’ room. My favorite elements include the beige textured wallpaper, upholstered chair and ottoman {Quadrille Fabrics – Cap Ferrat – Navy, Blue, Red on White} and striped X benches at the foot of each bed. The custom floor to ceiling window treatments frame the large windows and coordinate beautifully with the bedding. Hits of vibrant red accents are picked up in a delightful chandelier, simple round mirror and hexagon side table.

Canadian House & Home showcased this nautical themed boys’ bedroom. It is easy to go overboard with themes, but this room has the right balance. The colorful sailing ships, matching vintage bedding, wall mounted sconces above each bed are my favorite design elements.

Designer, Ken Fulk creates a colorful boy’s room using neutral white, warm orange and cool blue. Mixing orange and blue, opposites on the color wheel, results in a direct complementary color scheme. The neutral crisp white bedding is Frette’s Hotel Collection and compliments the modern pendant light. Fulk has the ceiling painted a fun shade of blue – Robin’s Egg by Philip’s Perfect Colors. He has the beautiful wainscoting {swoon} covered in Benjamin Moore’s Decorator’s White.

Here’s another well done nautical theme for a boy’s room. The bedding, Serena & Lily’s George Collection mixes and matches seersucker, chambray and mosaic-print to create a traditional look. Stacking books for a bedside table is a fun, inexpensive look, but not recommended for a little boy’s room – sure to be knocked down in seconds. The simple paper boats hang from the ceiling, however is a great idea and very inexpensive. Here’s the how-to.

In this wild west themed bedroom courtesy of Posh Tots, the teepee bed canopy takes center stage. The dark wooden bed and dresser have a masculine feel and provide a wonderful contrast to the red southwestern bedding. The comforter’s warm horizontal pattern is repeated subtly in the wall paint and is beautifully paired with a plaid bed skirt. A fun turquoise accent pillow on the bed pick ups the same hue in the vintage cowboy wall poster.

Portland, Oregon-based designer, Jessica Helgerson created this darling bedroom using a green and white color scheme. The walls are painted in a soft shade of chartreuse – perhaps Benjamin Moore’s Hibiscus? The fun airplane wall mural is painted in kelly and hunter greens.

New York designer, Evelyn Benatar created a wonderful red, white and blue boy’s room using traditional and modern elements. The Greek key headboard in white is delightful and contrasts beautifully with the solid blue bedding. Matching lamps {lucite bases maybe?} and red two-drawer bedside chests flank the bed. Textured blue wallpaper coordinates nicely with the modern geometric carpet.

Now, how do you keep a boy’s room looking this neat? Here are some tips for storing kid’s toys and decluttering.

*images courtesy of NY Interior Design, Jessica Helgerson Interior Design, Posh Tots, Serena & Lily, House Beautiful, Canadian House & Home, Elizabeth Dinkel Design

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Read full story By on January 18, 2010 in baby and children, boy's bedroom, interior design

Storage Tips and Ideas for Your Kid’s Toys

Is your child’s bedroom or playroom overrun by toys? Now that the holidays are behind us, this is the perfect time to take action and organize your child’s play items.

 

Toys collections seem to add up quickly and the visual clutter created may be an issue. In an article on Parenting.com, Katy Koontz explains that, “[Too many toys] can have negative effects on kids’ psyches. For toddlers and preschoolers, an overload of playthings can be overwhelming and distracting.” Simply put, by reducing the number of toys in your home you will not only prevent accidents, but may also improve your child’s health.

The first step in organizing is to get rid of any unused, broken or duplicate toys. One way is to give back and help your community by donating gently used toys to women’s shelters where toys are needed. Another way to purge toys would be to sell them either on eBay, at a yard sale or through a local consignment store. If there are toys you can’t part with and have sentimental value, one option is to ship them to a grandparent’s house to be played with on special visits.

After you have gone through the process of reducing the amount of toys in your home, evaluate how you store toys. If you have limited storage space, I strongly encourage investing in vertical storage units or shelving. Pottery Barn Kids has some great storage wall systems that would be ideal in most playrooms and could be easily scaled down for a bedroom.

If you’d like to conceal your children’s play items, this Under the Big Top Storage Tent from Land of Nod is a darling and affordable {$119} option.

This Jenny Lind Bookcase at Land of Nod caught my eye. Love the intricate woodturnings!

If you do decide on having a shelving unit, one nice way to store smaller toy collection such as dolls or cars is in a bin, box or basket. Land of Nod has some stylish vintage train cases and colorful suitcases perfect for housing small trinkets. If you are looking for personalized storage bins, the Macbeth Collection also has some great options.

Another storage solution is a toy chest or bench. Serena & Lily’s custom upholstered bench would be perfect at the foot of the bed or under a window. This tufted bench flips open to store toys, stuffed animals or spare blankets. It’s available in any fabric from Serena & Lily’s extensive line.

Available at Target, this three-piece stacking storage bin set is a great option for keeping toys, games or sports gear neatly organized. The bottom bin has wheels to easily move from room to room.

Storing children’s items under your child’s bed is another storage option, but can be a dusty one. Posh Tot’s storage chest for Sam Beds is a great alternative to storing items neatly and dust-free.

Once you have found a storage systems that works for you and your home, the next step is to keep organized by setting up a daily schedule to put toys away after use or before bedtime. Ask toddlers and older children to help clean-up and reward them with hugs, kisses and praise – rather than food, TV time or more toys.

Do you have a toy storage system that works in your home?

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Read full story By on January 13, 2010 in baby and children, home organization, organization tips, Playroom, storage