Decorating Archives | Page 25 of 136

Decorating

thrift store ribbon holder

In between the unpacking, painting, and projects, Jeff and I have taken a morning or afternoon here and there to hit a few local second-hand shops. One afternoon, we made the rounds to a few of the thrift stores just a couple of miles from our house. At one of those thrift stores, I spotted a wooden rack. At first, I wasn’t sure what it was…a towel bar, maybe? Whatever it was, I liked it and thought it was interesting. It could have dozens of different uses and it was only $10, so I decided to pick it up. When I got it home and interacted with it more, I decided it was a paper towel holder. I could’ve used it as that, but I decided to have a bit more fun with it and make it a ribbon holder in my studio. I have some gorgeous ribbons that I’ve

November 1, 2022 35 Comments

All Things Home

tour of my new art studio

It’s the room tour that many of you have been asking for – the art studio! Of course, it’s not finished yet, as is the case with our entire house, but it’s getting there. It’s settled enough and looks enough like an art studio to welcome you into the space and give you a little tour. As we were looking at homes, this was a big question that needed to be answered. Where would my art studio be? In some houses, there was an outbuilding that would’ve worked for a studio and/or workshop and in others, I’d have to appropriate a room originally intended for another purpose. In some houses, there really wasn’t an option and those were crossed off the list. It was a must. I could be flexible with the size, location, and other details, but I had to have a space to work and create. When we

October 31, 2022 67 Comments

All Things Home

decorating process

Of course, there are a million practical things to do. Unpack, strip wallpaper, paint walls, clean, and organize, but I have to give myself the gift of unstructured time to just play. So, I bounce between things that need to be done and things that are completely unnecessary but are creatively fulfilling. It gives me the energy to push through the things that are a bit more mundane and not exciting. So, yesterday I gave myself some time to work on some decorating things. One of the things that are both practical and decorative are curtains and I’m looking forward to getting them made and hung for the living room. Right now, we don’t have window coverings for this room and there is quite a glare on the TV. This gave me a change to play with fabrics, which is great creative fun for me. I have picked a blue

October 26, 2022 60 Comments

1970 home renovation

James Farmer Inspired Corner

There are times when a design I see in a book or online sticks with me. I keep coming back to it again and again and I find myself imagining it in my own home. Most of the time, it just remains an object of admiration. I just don’t have the space or things to pull it off. But, this design by James Farmer has stuck with me and it was something I could emulate. I just needed the right place to do it. James shared this picture in a 2019 Facebook post and this is what he said about it, “When I graduated from Auburn, I started helping some of my grandmother’s friends rearrange furniture, recover a chair and of course, hang a plate or two or three… or twenty. I guess some things never change! In an entry for a client’s hunting farm, the combo of brown transferware,

October 20, 2022 88 Comments

Decorating

getting new hardwood floors

I’ve decided that moving into a house is a lot easier when you don’t have big projects planned right off the bat! But, it is also easier to get those projects out of the way before you get settled, so then you can get settled knowing that big project is done. I guess disruptive renovations are disruptive whenever you do them, but I am glad we’re knocking out some of these projects right away. One of those projects we knew we would do before we even bought the house – swap out the wall-to-wall carpet for hardwood floors. Even though we’ve installed and refinished wood floors before, we are hiring out this project to have it done quicker. We’re fortunate that most of the house has hardwood floors, but the family room, primary bedroom, and living room are all carpeted. With a 1970s house that is mostly hardwood, I figured

September 27, 2022 26 Comments

All Things Home

outdoor fall entertaining with Walmart

Disclosure; This post is sponsored by . As always, all words and opinions expressed are honest and my own. I have partnered with many times over the years and I am excited to be working with them in our new home. An advantage to moving into a home in late September is that we are entering one of the most beautiful, outdoor-entertaining-friendly weather of the year. It’s usually pleasant outside, not too buggy, not too muggy, and nature starts to put on a colorful display. It’s a nice time to be outside, which is perfect when you want to escape from boxes that need to be unpacked and things that need to be put away. Since we sold all of our outdoor furniture when we moved here (including favorite BHG chairs from ), we decided to buy one really beautiful, well-made patio set to provide a place to sit, work,

September 23, 2022 22 Comments

a slice of life

settling into a new home

Crying seems to be inevitable in the early days of a move. You’re tired. You’re emotional. You’re feeling raw. You’re relieved to be settled yet you feel entirely unsettled, upended. The familiarity of your things clashes with the unfamiliarity of a new place. It’s the biggest purchase of your life and you have only spent a few hours walking through empty rooms. This house that you filled a truckload of paperwork for and dreamed about is now an overwhelming reality. It’s your home, but it doesn’t feel like home. It will, but not yet. We’ve been doing all of the usual moving-in things. Having a washer & dryer delivered, opening boxes, putting things away, and then moving them a second and third time until it feels like they might be in the right place. A steady stream of tradesmen has been coming through to give us estimates on new windows,

September 19, 2022 90 Comments

Decorating

house hunting with the Parsons

Thank you so much for all of your wonderful and encouraging comments on yesterday’s post. We are very excited! So, I have been waiting for weeks to spill the beans about our new house, but as with the purchasing process of our MN house, I didn’t want to share all of the details in real-time. Job searches and house hunts are some very stressful life events full of twists, turns, steps of faith, and sometimes disappointments. It’s just too much to bring blog and social media followers along. We even kept things pretty general with our friends and family for a while to keep the riders in the rollercoaster to a minimum. But, behind the scenes, we were looking at houses with a realtor, making an offer, and then going through several different inspections since we were buying an “as-is” home. I’ve also been working on all of the paperwork

September 13, 2022 464 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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Decorating

thrift store ribbon holder

tour of my new art studio

decorating process

James Farmer Inspired Corner

getting new hardwood floors

outdoor fall entertaining with Walmart

settling into a new home

house hunting with the Parsons

next art sale

May 20th, 2026 at 1pm EST

Now Available for Preorder

Move Slow & Make Things

From the Studio

Artful pieces for your home and everyday life.

From the Studio and Home

Shop the Feed

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