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All Things Home
a slice of life

four chairs, a pin cushion & poutine

I totally missed announcing that I was listing some new things in my online shop tonight, but they are there!  I listed a few larger pieces as well, including the hand-painted nightstands that were in our master bedroom for a few years. I’m going to head out tomorrow to do some more shopping, so hopefully I’ll have some more awesome finds to list next week.  And, speaking of awesome finds, I picked up a couple of things on my trip to New York last week.  I found these chairs for the bargain price of $45 for all four! I love how they have both a Swedish and farmhouse feel to them. The rushing isn’t in perfect condition, but the seats are still sit-able and the chairs themselves are sturdy.  A seat cushion will solve the cosmetic issues, so I’ll either order or make some soon.  I’m leaning towards making them, just

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September 30, 2016 37 Comments
All Things Home

farmhouse holiday series | fall porch

It’s time for our last fall post in the Farmhouse Holiday Series – the fall porch, but we’ll be back again as the Christmas season gets underway!  I have to say that I really worked at gardening and our outdoor spaces last year.  I found it rewarding and we enjoyed sitting on our deck for the first time in the almost 10 years we’ve lived here. This year?  Totally different story.  It was hot and dry and I was really busy and our outdoor space was neglected.  I would get about a D+ if I was being graded.  And the + is only because I had some beautiful crabgrass that thrived on just the right combination of drought and neglect. Anyway, cooler temperatures sweeping into our county have coaxed me back outdoors to spruce up the space, so we could enjoy some al fresco meals and observe soccer practice in the

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September 29, 2016 20 Comments
All Things Home

Pillows for the Family Room

I shared a couple of days ago that I was going to make some custom pillow covers for the family room sectional.  It came with pillows, but they weren’t my style/colors.  Making pillow covers in fabrics that tie my style and colors with the sectional is a great way to make something feel a little more custom and cohesive. I already had the checked blue pillows, so I kept those and made some more out of antique linen tea towels with blue embroidery and Waverly’s Country House Linen Cameo Toile. (I was going to add the gray linen in there as well, but decided against it.) Kriste made the piping, cut out the fabric, and pinned the pillows and then I sewed them together (more tag-teaming on this project!)  We worked together to get them all hand-stitched closed.  I know I should put zippers on my pillows, but I just don’t

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September 27, 2016 24 Comments
Decorating

Pillows for the Family Room

I shared a couple of days ago that I was going to make some custom pillow covers for the family room sectional.  It came with pillows, but they weren’t my style/colors.  Making pillow covers in fabrics that tie my style and colors with the sectional is a great way to make something feel a little more custom and cohesive. I already had the checked blue pillows, so I kept those and made some more out of antique linen tea towels with blue embroidery and Waverly’s Country House Linen Cameo Toile. (I was going to add the gray linen in there as well, but decided against it.) Kriste made the piping, cut out the fabric, and pinned the pillows and then I sewed them together (more tag-teaming on this project!)  We worked together to get them all hand-stitched closed.  I know I should put zippers on my pillows, but I just don’t

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September 26, 2016 26 Comments
All Things Home

DIY window valance

Good evening from New York!  I spent the better part of the day driving through the rolling hills and small towns of PA and NY and even got to stop in at an antique store and eat dinner at an amazing restaurant, so I can’t complain. Anyway, earlier this week I worked on a valance for the dormer window in Calvin’s room and I thought I would share how to make this simple window treatment… (I’m still figuring out the cord situation in this desk area, so don’t judge!) I started out by cutting a board the width I wanted the valance.  In my case, it was the width from one wall to the other, since it’s a dormer window.  I just used a scrap board, but a 1 x 2 would be perfect. I then cut a piece of fabric about 3″ longer than the height of the window

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September 24, 2016 31 Comments
All Things Home

Furniture for the Family Room & Calvin’s Room

A few days ago, I shared the new arrangement in our family room as well as the progress on Calvin’s room.  I said I would give all of the details on the new pieces of furniture and this post is making good on that promise! Now, I admit, furniture stores have never been my thing.  Give me a flea market, antique store, thrift shop or yard sale!  That’s where most of my pieces have been found and I’m pretty proud of my resourcefulness and ability to make-do.  But there are some pieces that can be difficult to find second-hand and it’s also nice to mix in the new with the old to make a home a little more comfortable, functional, or hard-wearing. A few months ago, I rearranged the furniture in my family room to a two-sofa setup in an “L” shape.  One sofa was leather and another wore a white

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September 23, 2016 117 Comments
All Things Home

dog beds are decor

Before I get into the post today, I wanted to let my readers in the north east know that I’ll be in Palmyra, New York this Saturday (September 24, 2016) for The Purple Painted Lady 6th Annual Festival.  (Click the link for details.)  I’ll be teaching milk paint demos and answering Q&A’s at 11:00 am and 2:00 pm.  I hope to see some of you there! I remember reading a post years ago, written by The Nester.  In it, she pointed out that all of the things in our home, in some way, are decor.  The stack of library books by the door, the mail on the kitchen counter…all of the stuff of life that we often look over, all contribute to or detract from the overall look of a room. That post made me think about all of the “stuff” in our house in a new way. The answer isn’t

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September 22, 2016 53 Comments
All Things Home

farmhouse holiday series | fall dining room

It’s time for another installment of the Farmhouse Holiday Series with some of my blog buddies.  And this week, we partnered with All Modern to show you our dining rooms decorated for fall. I remember when I felt like “holiday” colors were locked in.  Christmas had to be green and red and fall had to be yellows, oranges, and browns.  That is it. And then I vividly remember seeing an article in a magazine, featuring a home decked out for Christmas in pale pink.  That article gave me the push I needed to drop traditional colors and decorate for seasons in colors that I love. So, my fall table is my favorite blue and white palette with some greens and a little bit of yellow mixed in.  It may not look like fall to some people, but it looks like fall to me!I started with a piece of checked fabric as

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September 20, 2016 35 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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