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All Things Home

All Things Home

mini landscape “place cards” & a giveaway

While the boys were at the climbing lessons, I mingled around the nearby , looking for inspiration and pieces to use in an upcoming post about a summer table setting.  I found beautiful as a great launching point, but I wanted to add a whimsical element to the table beyond fruit, flowers, and a pretty cake for the pedestal.  This particular Walmart has a pretty robust art supply section and, of course, I meandered through there to see if any new art supplies caught my eye.  I found some mini stretched canvases and cute wooden stands and the wheels started turning.  What about painting mini landscape “place cards” as a little takeaway for guests? I put them in the cart and couldn’t wait to get started on them the next day. are the mini canvases I purchased for the landscape place cards  They are about 2 x 2″. I wanted

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All Things Home

Master Bathroom Ideas

It’s looking like we’ll start working on our master bathroom in late fall.  We’re just in the early stages of getting quotes and figuring out what we’ll do ourselves and what we’ll hire out.  Similar to the master bathroom makeover in our previous house, it will be a hybrid of DIY to keep costs down and hiring professionals for the parts of the project that are beyond our skills. Before I talk about some of my ideas, let me say that this is the best bathroom we’ve ever owned.  In 20 years of marriage, it’s the first time we have a bathroom with two sinks and a tub and a shower.  There is also a linen closet, tons of storage, it’s roomy, and it’s bright when the shutters are open.  Like the rest of this house, the bones and layout are excellent.  The things that I want to change are

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All Things Home

Bathroom Shutters

I’ll warn you upfront…  This is not a post filled with pretty pictures of a finished space.  This is a post about making a small change that improved the looks and function of the window coverings in our bathroom. Here is how it looked when we first moved in… We have this awesome soaking tub, which I use almost every day.  I love baths and this one is big and deep and has jets, so it’s a winner in my book.  The only source of natural light is from the large window over the tub.  Aesthetically, it looks nice, but it’s a bit of a challenge when it comes to practicality and function. Obviously, privacy is the number one issue and this window faces the street.  Second, because the tub is so wide, you have to actually climb in it to be able to pull the cord on the blinds

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All Things Home

parsons chair slipcovers

The time has come to make some slipcovers for the parsons’ chairs at either end of our kitchen table.  Well, technically, they are sort of hybrid mini-wing/parsons’ chairs.  I lucked out when I bought them in that they were listed as a pair even though the price was just for one.  So, I got two for the price of one!  ( is the chair, but it’s out of stock and the price on the listing is double what I paid for two, but it might help you find something similar.) Anyway, I knew when I bought them that the light, linen-ish upholstery would be toast.  There was just no way with two pre-teen boys that they were going to stay pristine.  They are their favorite chairs, so they have taken a beating with drips and spills.  To make matters worse, my youngest son likes to have his insulin pods changed

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All Things Home

cow/calf pair

A couple of weeks ago, I painted a cow-calf pair.  If you follow me on Instagram, you would’ve seen some of the process as well as the final painting shared on the grid.  For those who don’t follow me there, here is the underpainting… …and then the finished work… I didn’t have plans to keep it when I first started this one.  I’m pretty good at selling my works.  It’s partly a hobby, but painting was absorbed as a part of my business pretty early on, so I try not to get too attached.  I paint with the intention of selling.  But I was in love with this one as soon as I rolled my chair back and viewed the painting in its entirety.  I was so excited that I had an antique gilded frame that fit it, so I tried it on before the painting was even dry.  It

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All Things Home

how to decide when/if to paint a piece

One of the questions I am asked frequently is how to decide when and if to paint a piece of furniture.  This is a question that comes up again and again, especially when I show a makeover of an old, wooden dresser that involves paint. Before we get into how I make a decision about what to paint, let me say that I love natural wood pieces just as much as I love painted pieces.  There is a place for both in a home and, surprisingly enough, my unpainted pieces outweigh my painted pieces.  I paint a lot of furniture because, for years, it’s been a key part of my business.  Painted furniture was a large part of my decorative painting business in the early days and it ended up being my favorite part, so it became “my thing”.  As my business evolved and I launched my own paint line,

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All Things Home

real simple interview & craigslist tips

A few months ago, I was interviewed for an article for Real Simple about buying furniture secondhand on a variety of online marketplaces.  That issue is now available on newsstands (July 2019) if you’d like to grab a copy. While we’re on the topic, I thought I would share my tips and tricks when it comes to shopping for furniture secondhand, specifically off of craigslist.  I’ve been shopping off of craigslist for over 10 years, so it’s my go-to place, even though other online marketplaces have cropped up and are just as good.  It’s just what I’m used to and I’ve found some amazing things just by search regularly. These tips are primarily from a post I wrote a few years ago, but I’ve made some updates and additional comments. HOW I SEARCH CRAIGSLIST I search all “for sale” categories.  You can often find furniture, antiques and cool pieces with

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a slice of life

two years ago today…

Two years ago today, we moved from Biglerville, PA to our current home in Rochester, MN.  Can you believe it’s been two years?!  In some ways, it feels like we’ve been here longer than that and, in other ways, it seems like we just got here. There are certainly things I miss about PA.  I miss living close to my parents and an easy 6-7 hours away from Jeff’s family.  There are, of course, people that I miss.  And, I miss my favorite antique stores.  I had some pretty sweet honey holes and some great business connections who consistently helped me find good stuff.  (If you’re in the PA/MD/VA area, you can check out my list of favorite places HERE and HERE.) Even with those things that I miss, I’m so glad we moved.  This is the right place for us in this season of life. Jeff loves his job

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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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