Preorder Move Slow & Make Things, and enjoy a collection of thoughtful bonus content created just for you!

All Things Home

All Things Home

farmhouse style sofas

In response to my post about Sally’s living room, I received this comment from my friend, Breida… “I have a hard time figuring out what kind of couch fits into the “farmhouse” style… I can’t wait to see what you find!” Good question!  I’m not sure if I’ll be able to answer it perfectly, but I’ll throw out my thoughts and you can, in turn, throw out yours and we’ll see where we end up. First of all, “Farmhouse” is definitely the trendy buzzword when it comes to home decor and I’m sure that comes as no surprise.  When a style becomes trendy, like country, primitive, shabby chic, French provincial and now farmhouse, the waters get really muddy.  Suddenly, everything is “farmhouse”, even stuff that really isn’t. To make the waters even muddier, there are many styles under the large umbrella of “farmhouse”.  There’s European farmhouse, prairie-style, shaker, New England, etc.

Read More
All Things Home

tufting a sofa | fabric covered buttons

I totally understand that tufting is intimidating.  It’s tedious and it can look really bad if it’s not done well.  And, if you’re tufting from scratch, it involves math. Geometry at that. So, if you’ve shied away from tufting, that’s okay.  You are in the company of many, many other good people who would just rather buy a piece of furniture than deal with tufting. I generally don’t buy tufted pieces for this reason, but this one sort of fell in my lap.  It was a leftover from Lucketts last year and the dealer, my friend Edie, gave it to me for free. Who can say no to a free Belgian sofa, tufting or no? After eye-balling it for a few months, I finally mustered the gumption to tear the sofa apart and start putting it back together. I’m not a tufting rookie, which is probably why I’m not eager to tackle

Read More
All Things Home

the little things | wooden spoons

I think it’s easy to be intentional when making choices about the big things you bring into your home.  The big commitment items like sofas and china hutches and statement pieces.  I don’t think it’s quite as easy to be intentional about the little things.  Things that are utilitarian and inexpensive. But, if you’re going to buy something, anything, even something little, relatively cheap, and utilitarian, why not buy something you love?  Imagine your home filled just with things you love. Well, that’s the goal, anyway. I’ll be the first to say that I don’t love all of my kitchen utensils, but I’m working towards it.  I feel very neutral about my can opener and pizza cutter, but I love my wooden spoons. I look for ones of different shapes, sizes and tone of wood, so they each have their own personality and I can justify having way more than necessary.  (There is an

Read More
All Things Home

farmhouse white ticket & reviving old metal

If you haven’t noticed, I am just a little excited about our new MMS Milk Paint color, Farmhouse White.  I’ve been into white lately, anyway, but I’m just so in love with the tone and coverage of this paint.  It’s a winner. Launching the color in the usual way just didn’t seem like enough.  I got this idea that it would be fun to offer a “golden ticket” style giveaway as we launch this color.  I mean, who doesn’t enjoy a scavenger hunt?  A hidden surprise tucked into a product?  The suspense of opening each bag, thinking it might be the one! So, somewhere out in the US, there are two $250 USD Farmhouse White Tickets hidden in two bags of Farmhouse White milk paint!  The ticket will work like a gift card that you can spend on any MMSMP products, colors, finishes, brushes, etc. that you want. AND, we don’t want

Read More
All Things Home

Sally’s farmhouse living room | the before

I mentioned taking on a second makeover as I’m finishing up the one for my mom, but I haven’t had the chance to sit down, give it some focused thought (and edit the pictures I took back before Thanksgiving!)  As I said, my services are free, but slow. While I haven’t sat down with a blank piece of paper to draw out some sketches, I have a pretty clear vision for this room. Here’s how it looks now… Let me back up, literally.  Because you really have to take a few steps back to appreciate how cool this house is. Yeah, I know.  That wall!  I want to take it home with me.  Sally wants a fresh farmhouse style in her living room, which is fitting and perfect, since she lives in an 1800’s farmhouse.  It has a Green Gables-esque quality about it, doesn’t it? Anyway, they’ve done a lot

Read More
All Things Home

tufted sofa progress

I have a lot of “business-y” things on my to-do list for the month, so it’s important that I balance it out with creative work…projects that are fun for me to work on, take pictures of, and share here on the blog.  I’m trying to resist the urge to buy new things and, instead, work on pieces that have been hanging out in the studio for a while, waiting for a makeover. So, Kriste, Katie (I’ll tell you about her in a minute) and I have been picking away at the sofa for a couple of days, stripping off the circa 1980’s blue and mauve fabric that is reminiscent of fabric you’d find on dentist office chairs. It looked okay at a quick glance, but it was stained and the cushion fabric is worn in several places.  It’s a fantastic Belgian-made sofa with a sturdy frame and good guts, so

Read More
All Things Home

milk paint 101 | first coat & the ugly stage

Sorry that it’s been over a month since I last posted in the milk paint 101 series!  I like blog series, because they help me focus my writing efforts, but I am still Marian and I still get distracted. So, let’s continue. But first, here are links to the first three parts of this series, in case you missed them… part 1 | what is milk paint? part 2 | how to mix milk paint part 3 | surface prep And now you’ve brushed on your first coat of milk paint and you’re pretty certain you’ve destroyed your piece of furniture.  Because it looks something like this… I’ve talked about the ugly stage before. It’s just a thing with makeovers.  It’s the part of the makeover when you have foil all over your head or when the entire contents of your closet are on your floor. It gets worse before it gets better. The key

Read More
All Things Home

decorating dilemma | Susan’s awkward fireplace

Before I get into today’s post, I wanted to apologize to those who still want to buy hemp sheets, but they are sold out.  I was floored with how quickly my largest order ever was exhausted!  We do have some more from that shipment to list, but the weight is a bit different.  I will give everyone a head’s up before I list them (most likely early next week.) Also, I will place another order for hemp sheets when my source has them back in stock, so if you would like to be on a “waiting list”, just send an e-mail to marian@missmustardseed.com and let me know how many you would like and you can have first dibs.  They are $110/each. Now, to today’s decorating dilemma!  I think there are times when someone designs or remodels a space and they have an idea and implement it without really thinking through how it’s going

Read More

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.

next art sale

May 20th, 2026 at 1pm EST

Now Available for Preorder

Move Slow & Make Things

A book about creativity, intention, and making things with care. Sign up to receive updates, preorder details, and exclusive bonus content.

From the Studio

Artful pieces for your home and everyday life.

From original paintings and art prints to Pup Club releases and curated goods, each piece is created or chosen to bring warmth, creativity, and character into your home.

From the Studio and Home

Shop the Feed

A handpicked collection of items styled and shared throughout posts, projects, and social feeds. Every product is thoughtfully chosen to reflect a timeless, collected aesthetic.

Recent Video

Spring Posts

Explore the Shop

Explore the Blog

Categories
error: Content is protected.

Pin It on Pinterest