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Decorating
All Things Home

new sixpenny living room sofa

When I shared the slipcovered recliner yesterday, several of you noted the preview of the new Sixpenny sofa.  Today, I’m going to share the entire sofa as well as a review of the style and fabric I selected.  (For the sake of full disclosure, this sofa was gifted to me as a part of a partnership with Sixpenny.) If you remember, I shared the Sixpenny sofa styles and fabric samples I was considering in THIS POST.  I ended up choosing the Elias 84″ sofa in Warm Oatmeal, which is a medium-weight linen fabric, for the slipcover.  One thing I loved about shopping for a Sixpenny sofa online is their website is so thorough.  Each piece of furniture has every measurement you could want as well as details about how the piece is made, materials used, care, and more.  I felt like I was able to make a very informed decision

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September 6, 2023 21 Comments
All Things Home

making a slipcover for a recliner

Shortly after we moved in, I bought a manual wingchair recliner off of Facebook Marketplace for $40.  I had a feeling it would be a “placeholder” for a nicer recliner in the future, but it seemed like a good tester piece.  We could see how much we used it, see how it fit in the room (while fully open), and help us make a more informed decision in the future.  I intended to make a slipcover for this recliner, but after using it for a few weeks, it became clear that it wasn’t worth the effort or the cost.  The chair wasn’t comfortable and piece by piece, the mechanism was falling apart and got to the point where it would just randomly pop open. So, for almost a year, I looked around at recliners.  I looked at new and used and was very wishy-washy and undecided.  I didn’t mind saving

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September 5, 2023 29 Comments
Antiques

antique pine cabinet in the foyer

I picked up a charming antique pine cabinet at the Lucketts Spring Market and, because the house was in upheaval from the kitchen renovation still, it went straight into the garage.  It occurred to me today that I haven’t properly shared where it ended up here on the blog, so that’s what I’m doing today. I was looking for a wardrobe or cabinet that could replace some of the storage we were losing during the renovation and there were a lot of antique pine pieces that caught my eye at the market.  I would ooooo over them and decide to walk away and think about each piece.  I’ve learned that walking away helps me make better buying choices, especially when it comes to larger pieces.  I am eager and ready to fall in love with pretty much all beautiful antique pieces, but that doesn’t mean the piece is going to

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August 30, 2023 28 Comments
Decorating

a little shelf tweaking

We finally started school in our neck of the woods, which is both cause for celebration and mourning.  I am excited for the rhythm that comes with the routine school days force us into.  I find I am more focused and productive within that framework.  I also enjoy having the house to myself so I can flit around, play my music as loud as I want, and work wherever it suits me on that particular day.  With all of the good that comes from it, I know I will miss the slower mornings and loose schedule.  But, I am starting to feel the energy and excitement that comes from the change of season and I’m buzzing with ideas for sewing and painting projects.  There’s lots to do and lots to share, but between shopping for school supplies, having people over to enjoy the pool, squeezing in appointments, and shipping out

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August 29, 2023 22 Comments
Decorating

shopping for a living room sofa

We’re going to talk about a room other than the kitchen today!  Now, it’s onto the hallway, dining room, and the room I’m sharing today, the living room/family room.  When we looked at this home with our realtor, we knew that the formal dining room would be reserved for my studio and that meant the den off the kitchen would be our only living/family room.  In our previous two homes, we’ve had a more formal/pretty living room and a separate family room for watching TV.  When we first bought the house, we considered the possibility of making a TV/family room in the basement.  That may still happen years down the road, but the truth is after living here for a year, we don’t really feel like we need it. But, making this room a combination of our semi-formal living room and our casual TV/hangout room is a bit of a

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August 17, 2023 21 Comments
1970 home renovation

vintage brass “turtle” grater & a button fern

As I’ve been visiting second-hand stores in the area with my mom I’ve, of course, been looking for some fun pieces for my kitchen.  Admittedly, I didn’t really “need” anything, but it’s been fun to hunt for things that are special.  I did get a little overenthusiastic, but I have tempered myself now.  I did find the sweetest piece for my pot rail, though.  I spotted it at an antique store and was immediately drawn to it.  Can you spot it on the pot rail? It’s this vintage brass “turtle” shaped grater.  I paid about $40, which was one of my bigger purchases of that shopping trip, but I kept coming back to it and finally decided to buy it.  I looked it up when I got home and it turns out I got a pretty nice deal on it.  They seem to run in the $70+ range on Etsy

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August 9, 2023 25 Comments
1970 home renovation

stainless steel trim for the range hood & range

I kept showing the range and range hood with a little asterisk.  *It’s not quite finished, yet!  We will be adding some stainless steel trim to the back of the range and around the underside of the hood.   Well, that was finally installed last week and it was just the perfect finishing touch.  For you to fully appreciate these finishing touches, you have to see where we started. Our contractor built the frame and installed the range hood, but the way he built the frame, some of the lumber would be exposed when we added the panels and trim.  Of course, painting it would be an option, but he suggested having a stainless steel frame made that he would install and seal with silicone for a cleaner look and one that would protect the wood better against moisture.  It would also be easier to clean. You can read about how

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August 8, 2023 11 Comments
All Things Home

a bouquet of dish brushes

When I shared this picture of the light from the new kitchen window falling on my bouquet of dish brushes by the sink, I received a comment that made me smile.  I’m paraphrasing, but it said something like, “Why do you use dish brushes?  And why do you have so many?” The answer to the second part of that question is simply because we’re talking about me and we’re talking about brushes.  That’s really why I have so many, but we do use most of them.  I like having a variety of shapes and textures in my brush bouquet for visual impact, but we do use different brushes for different purchases.  For example, the dark brush on the left has very soft bristles and it’s nice for washing glasses and other delicate things.  I use the bottle brushes for water bottles and such. Most of the brushes, though, are standard

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August 2, 2023 34 Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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