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Decorating

All Things Home

two cents on tidying up

I’m going to say right off the bat that I have never read Marie Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. I read some reviews on it and a summary of it a few years ago and felt like I got the gist. The concept of keeping only what you love (or what “sparks joy”) isn’t a new one, so I didn’t purchase the book. I have, though, started watching the new series on Netflix, Tidying Up and decided to throw in my two cents on it. First of all, Marie is so endearing. She is kind and never shows a judgemental face when she’s nose-to-nose with mountains of stuff. She is gracious to her clients and that’s heart-warming to watch, especially in an age where nasty judges and show hosts have a high entertainment value. I also like how the guests on the show are very realistic and

January 11, 2019 73 Comments

All Things Home

evolving workspaces

I find that my workspaces are the trickiest when it comes to arranging and decorating, simply because they have to evolve as my work evolves. I’ve been using my studio and home office for a year and a half now and I’m learning what works and what doesn’t. I’ve made a few changes and additions that have really helped, but there are still some needs that haven’t been addressed. In my office, I need more storage, a larger work surface, and proper file drawers. In my studio, I need more storage, a flat work surface, and a place to store wet paintings while they are drying. In both rooms, I have some nice storage pieces, but neither space has a closet, so bulkier items that should be in those rooms are stored elsewhere in the house. As someone who likes to keep things in the room where they belong, I find

January 9, 2019 50 Comments

All Things Home

customizing floor grates

Well, I’m starting off my first full work week of the new year sick in bed! I am itching to organize and get to work on some of the plans I drew up over the holidays, but those will all have to wait…hopefully for just a day or two. Until I’m back on my feet and working on projects again, I am sharing a project I worked on before Christmas. When the slate floors were installed and finished, the white floor vents stood out much more than they did on the beige tile… I originally looked into replacing them with ones that were more decorative, but I had difficulty finding the size I needed and the ones I liked were pretty expensive. I decided to go the thriftier option and used spray paint to transform the existing vents. I was hoping to find a spray paint that was the same

January 8, 2019 27 Comments

All Things Home

HGTV Dream Home Tour

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by the As always all opinions are honest and my own (and I would’ve written this post with or without the sponsorship!) From a young age, I would dream about houses. I would style my dollhouse and rearrange the furniture more than I played with the dolls. I would draw houses in church and floorplans on graph paper at the desk in my bedroom. And as a teenager, I loved going with my parents and grandparents to look at model homes and show houses. I can’t even remember why we did that other than to occupy a Saturday, but I soaked in all of the clever decorating ideas, thoughtful choices in the floorplans, and the combinations of furnishings and fabrics. Having the opportunity to tour the 2019 HGTV Dream Home this year in Whitefish, Montana, brought me right back to that place. I was invited by

December 21, 2018 38 Comments

a slice of life

nuts & bolts

I was putting together my list for Christmas brunch (flank steak, cheese for the cheese grits, fruit and gelatin for Rosa’s Fruit Salad, etc.) and I realized that I hadn’t even thought about making nuts and bolts this year! It’s one of my favorite Christmas-time snacks and the season almost passed without me making a batch! Nuts and bolts started in our family with my Oma (also named Marian). I have memories of her sitting in front of the stove, stirring the snack mix in a large roasting pan. The smell of butter, season-all, and Worcestershire sauce would waft out of the oven and creep through the house before the door was closed again. I could hardly wait for it to be finished and cool enough to eat. I often wouldn’t wait and would snag a few pieces from the roasting pan while the mix was being stirred. She would

December 20, 2018 33 Comments

All Things Home

foyer & half bath updates

I think foyer makeovers are underrated. It’s a space that’s often neglected or at the bottom of the to-do list because it’s just a passthrough. You simply walk through it to get to a room where you actually spend your time. The thing about a foyer, though, is it’s the first thing you see when you walk in your front door. It’s the first thing guests see. In our house, since it connects the dining room, home office, half bath, living room, upstairs, and basement, we walk through it multiple times each day. Before this makeover started, there wasn’t anything offensive or bad or dated or ugly about the space, but it didn’t flow with all of the other changes we have made in the adjoining rooms. In that way, it felt disjointed and overlooked. The soft blue/gray on the wall, bright white trim, painted doors, and that beautiful slate

December 16, 2018 72 Comments

All Things Home

Christmas Porch 2018

After a 3:00 am wake-up call and 9 hours of hopping onto three different planes, I arrived safely home from my excursion to Montana. It was a great trip and I’ll be sharing all about it and the HGTV Dream Home soon. But today, I’m going to share the Christmas decorations I added to my porch this year. It’s very similar to last year since I loved how it looked so much. I added a live garland and some white lights around the door. You can find a tutorial on how I attached it HERE. On either side of the door, I filled the concrete urns with some fresh greens, twigs, lights, and sugar pine cones. Last year I bought small evergreen trees, but I ended up neglecting them and pitching them in early spring, so that seemed like a waste of money. This was more economical and the greens will still last

December 9, 2018 27 Comments

All Things Home

Christmas Butler’s Pantry

I gave the butler’s pantry a makeover this summer, so this is the first time I get to decorate it for Christmas! It’s a small thing, but I was excited about it none-the-less. With that rich, green color, it’s just begging to be decorated for Christmas. And, I kept the Christmas decor very simple. I just added some cinnamon sticks, nuts, pinecones, candles, and some faux greenery. The swag is hung from a 3m hook, so it can be removed after the holidays without leaving a mark. Now that the beadboard is contracting a bit from the change in humidity and temperature, I need to get in there and do a little touch up with the paint. I’ll do that once the Christmas decorations come down. Well, tomorrow I am waking up at the crack of dawn to fly to Montana to tour the 2019 HGTV Dream Home! I don’t

December 5, 2018 22 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

two cents on tidying up

evolving workspaces

customizing floor grates

HGTV Dream Home Tour

nuts & bolts

foyer & half bath updates

Christmas Porch 2018

Christmas Butler’s Pantry

next art sale

August 13th, 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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