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All Things Home

a sled, ski poles & French wing chairs

The snow is melting and spring is in sight. That is spurring me on to make lists, attack my “to-do” stash at the studio and get things done. Between freelance articles, things to do for the Milk Paint line, getting ready for Lucketts and an upcoming magazine shoot, I have plenty to work on! After an intense day of planning and making lists, I needed to get out, so yesterday, Kriste and I set out to do some shopping for supplies. We also hoped to find some things to add to the Lucketts pile. It was one of those days where it felt like people who like the same things I do picked over the space before I got there. I found some things, but not the haul I was hoping for. We’re going to scout out some new places in the hopes of finding some great things. Lucketts is two

March 12, 2015 14 Comments

All Things Home

french twins reveal

This reveal is a little anticlimactic, since you’ve already seen what one finished chair looks like and they are twins, so the other one looks pretty much the same. As with all identical twins, though, there are some subtle differences, so I thought it was worth giving them both a proper introduction. I’m going to totally brag on my student Kriste and say that she did 99% of the upholstery work on one of these. Can you tell which one? She did an amazing job and you can’t tell which one was done by the experienced upholsterer and which one was done by the rookie. She did the one of the left, if you’re curious. We have a lot of chairs in the hopper to work on for Lucketts, so I’m glad to have her on my team! Here is how the chairs started. They weren’t bad at all,

March 11, 2015 29 Comments

All Things Home

boy’s room | monogram pillows & accessories

I shared a few days ago that one of my goals is to start taking on design clients. That’s a pretty scary step for me, though, and I still have to think through how I’m going to work in that capacity. I’m not scared of designing a space, that’s the appealing part. I’m also not scared about working with people, different tastes, personalities and budgets. It makes me nervous, because I’m used to just letting a room develop over time. I’m used to trial and error, rotating things in and out until I hit that sweet spot. That’s what I’ve been doing in my whole house and, most recently, in boys’ room. A few months ago, I painted the walls in Hale Navy. I’ve been painting so many walls white and soft blue and pale gray that I was ready for some bold color and the boys’ room is a

March 9, 2015 16 Comments

All Things Home

how to custom mat a photo | video tutorial

I’ve shared before that I grew up an Army brat. Some kids really hate the instability of moving around, but I thrived on change and, despite crying when they were ripping up flower beds to work on WWII era pipes, I loved living on a military base. We could walk everywhere and had so much freedom as kids. There were also tons of programs to get involved in. I did theatre, baton twirling, tap dancing, basketball, soccer, baseball, ballet, tin-punching, rafting, hiking, ice skating and was a part of a ski club…it was a really cool way to grow up. My mom also got involved in the classes they offered for military wives. One of those classes was learning how to frame and custom mat a photo. I remember my mom taking family pictures to the frame shop to work on and, eventually, we had a beautiful gallery wall. So,

March 8, 2015 23 Comments

All Things Home

design ramblings | claw foot & garden tubs

In this week’s design ramblings, Kriste and I talk about the bathrooms of two of our viewers who sent in pictures. The first space, belonging to Brooke, is lovely! Both Kriste and I gasped over the claw foot tub. It’s a beautiful space, but the tub, that should be the feature, gets a little lost against the white walls. The second space, Katy’s, is a pretty typical builder-grade bathroom with a garden tub and separate shower. Katy really wants to take the tub and shower out, install a shower/tub combo and add some built-ins to make the space more efficient for how they use it. And now, we ramble. I had some serious giggles before we started shooting this one, but I managed to pull it together. In case you want a closer look at them, here are the inspiration pictures I shared. These two are from my master bathroom…

March 7, 2015 7 Comments

All Things Home

ironstone cake pedestal

If you’re an ironstone collector, then you know that cake pedestals are like the Holy Grail of ironstone. Well, maybe not the Holy Grail, but they are rare and expensive when they do surface. I snagged one with my pooled birthday money last year and I’m so glad I did. It really is one of my favorite things. So, my jaw dropped and I got all giddy when I spotted another one in an antique mall a couple of weeks ago. It’s obviously not as high and it’s has a blue & white transferware pattern, but it is heavy and old and still an ironstone cake pedestal. And it was a steal…$25, which is crazy, given that these sell for $300 or so on eBay. This piece has a pretty sizable chip on it, but that doesn’t bother me at all. The hallmark is one of the loveliest I’ve ever seen…

March 5, 2015 21 Comments

All Things Home

gallery wall in a stairwell

A couple of weeks ago, I started turning a stash of family photos, mat board and old frames into something I could actually hang on a wall. The wall in the stairwell, to be exact. And, last week, my mom came over and we “put the puzzle together.” We were dealing with a really odd space and a lot of mismatched frames, so we didn’t try to approach it with a goal of perfection and symmetry. We wanted to create something that was pleasing to the eye, but looked collected over time. We didn’t check the spacing with a ruler, but just put things where they looked good. We started with the long, narrow frames, then added in the larger ones, then filled the arrangement in with the smaller frames. And I love how it turned out. I smile every time I walk up and down the steps. I’ve even made

March 2, 2015 29 Comments

All Things Home

reupholstering a French chair | part 6 | applying the trim

We are finally at our final installment of this video tutorial series on reupholstering a French style chair. It’s time to frame out those upholstered panels and cover the staples with some gimp trim. In case you missed the first five parts, or need to reference them, here are the links… Part 1 – stripping the chair Part 2 – painting the frames Part 3 – distressing & waxing the frames Part 4 – selecting & cutting the fabric Part 5 – reupholstering the chair I often get asked what the “trick” is to applying trim. Honestly, there is no trick. It’s just hot-glued on! Really. At first I thought I might be taking a short cut, but I’ve taken apart dozens and dozens of chairs and settees and almost all of them have been glued. One or two of them were just tacked into place, but I’ve seen enough

March 1, 2015 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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All Things Home

a sled, ski poles & French wing chairs

french twins reveal

boy’s room | monogram pillows & accessories

how to custom mat a photo | video tutorial

design ramblings | claw foot & garden tubs

ironstone cake pedestal

gallery wall in a stairwell

reupholstering a French chair | part 6 | applying the trim

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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