A Porch Earns its Stripes

Recently, the weather in NY has been beautiful.  With warmer temperatures approaching a few weeks ago, we were itching to set up our porch.  The problem was that it didn't look so nice.

 Before                      

We had a mix of hand-me-down pieces, yard sale finds, and two new chairs.  Nothing seemed to go together.  The solution - give everything a fresh coat of paint!  It's an inexpensive an easy way to unify miss matched furniture.  We went with a really glossy black for the sofa.  Because it was rattan and had many small crevices, painting it was a labor of love!  The table was much easier because of it's smooth surfaces.  If you're going to try this yourself, we recommend putting a few coats of poly on any porch furniture that's not technically made for the outdoors.  Applying this after you paint it will help protect the paint job in harsher climates.  Moving it inside during the winter is not a bad idea either.

After

We also had new covers made for the cushions on the sofa and chairs.  We were inspired by the stripes on these porches below.  We love the elegant but bold black and white stripe and the fact that it's easy to mix with other colors and patterns.  We started with an indoor/outdoor pillow and a bright green candlestick.  I'm sure we'll find some more outdoor accessories soon!

Welcome to our new home!

So we finally have a new blog post for you. Sorry we've been away for a while, but I think (hope) you'll be happy with the reason why - we've been working on several projects. As we promised, here is an update on some of the work we've done at home. 

We had this atrocious entry hall (sorry whoever was here before us). An entry hall should welcome your guests and give them a hint of what to expect within your home. Our entry hall had this linoleum floor that felt . . . well, cheap. It wasn't welcoming and I HOPE it didn't give anyone a hint of what to expect inside the rest of our home. 

We couldn't take up the linoleum so we had to figure out a way to cover it up.  A simple throw rug wouldn't do it for us, because we didn't want to see even the slightest hint of linoleum peeping out from under it.  Also, see if YOU could find a throw rug that would make this floor look good!  We decided to look at Flor carpet tiles.  It is a high traffic area and we knew if a tile got dirty we could either lift it up to clean it or replace it if it was beyond hope.  We ended up selecting the "Fedora" style in flannel and charcoal. At $8 a square it wasn't bad.  We signed up for their emails and also got free shipping, which saved us a ton of money.

Our original idea was to alternate tiles to create stripes.  However, when the tiles arrived we realized that each square was so big that we would end up with a total of just three stripes across the entry way.  That wasn't going to have the impact we wanted, so we decided to cut the tiles in half.  This was a labor of love!  Matthew found instructions on cutting carpet tile on Apartment Therapy.  You can read the step-by-step instructions here.  We also invested a carpet knife and a t-square, and we highly recommend these tools.  The results were great.  While not overly difficult it wasn't easy either.  It took a lot of measuring and careful cutting to get the tiles to line up correctly.  Matthew's lack of patience the carpet knife also caused a minor injury, so we recommend being very careful with this tool!

Notice those stripes on the wall?  We actually color matched them and aligned them to the strips on the carpet tiles, but we'll tell you all about that in another post.  Now we have an entry that is inviting and accurately reflects our style.

No-Sew Sink Skirt Revisited

About a year ago we wrote a post about a DIY no-sew sink skirt.  You can read about it here.  It was a big success: it added some much needed color and pattern to a bland bathroom that we didn't want to paint and it held up over time.  Since then we have moved into a new house, and we gained a new bathroom to tackle.

below: sink from last year

There were a few issues here, and we're tackling them one by one.  The deep red color of the bathroom seemed oppressive in such a small space.  We started by lightening it up with a coat of light grey paint.  The previous tenants left us this little side table, which was made to fit in the space.  We painted that too, and it adds some storage but not enough.  Having the toilet brush and bowl cleaner just hanging out in plain sight under the sink did not work for me.

Before

So, I got inspired by last year's project. Unfortunately, the sink in our last bathroom was a completely different size, so I couldn't reuse the skirt with the beautiful Roberta Roller Rabbit print.  I took it as an opportunity to try something new.  I followed the same steps as last time.  You can read those here on Little Green Notebook.  I did everything the same, except I decided to add ribbon on the bottom of the skirt.

I didn't do a print this time because we have another plan for that room that involves a geo pattern.  More to come on that later!  (You might see a hint of what's to come in the reflection in the mirror.)  I also repainted the faux bamboo mirror that I found at a yard sale for $20.  I used Citron paint in gloss from Benjamin Moore after adding two coats of Kilz oil based spray primer.  Not bad for an inexpensive project!

                 Before                                                       After                       

Tacky Light Tour

Well the holiday season came to an end a while ago, but as you all know, it's been kind of crazy around here at next summer. I'm finally making some time to fill you in on one of the coolest things we did while down in Richmond, Virginia for Christmas. For years now I've been hearing about Richmond's Tacky Light Tour. I've even seen it several times on TV. This year would be my first Christmas in Richmond with Lindsay's family. We were damned sure going on that Tacky Light Tour. 

This is a tour around the city and its suburbs to see all the INCREDIBLE tacky light displays. Let me just tell you this, they do it RIGHT down there. 

Lindsay and I took a break from the tour to get our photo taken in front of one of our "favorite" houses. 

I'm sure the Electric companies LOVE this tour!

Not a square inch is left unlit!

This house is just to the left of the house in the previous photograph. It's hard to tell in this picture, but the signs say, "What's the point?" and "Ditto". The arrow points to the house up above. 

At the end of the tour we stopped to see Santa's Car. Love it!

The Butler's gotta drink too

Lindsay and I have been doing a lot of work on our home. We've promised to show you as we updated and . . .well, the updates have been few and far between. It's not that we haven't done anything. On the contrary, we've done a lot, but until recently, we hadn't completed much. We've finally completed our "Butler's Pantry" - well, at least that's what Lindsay's mom, a Southern Belle through and through, calls it. 

Here's the Before picture. 

I really like this one, mostly because Izzy is in it, so I couldn't resist. As you can tell, it's less of a "before" picture and more of a "during" picture, but you get the idea.

I've included this picture to show you just how bad the floor was. The unfortunate thing is that neither photograph shows just how bad the wall color was. 

So here are the "after" photographs. The project broke down into four phases, 1) doors; 2) painting; 3) counter; and 4) carpet. This picture below is a "panoramic" shot that I took to show the overall view. No, our walls are not bowed in real life. 

The first thing we did was remove those doors to open the cabinets up. Then we painted the walls a light grey color which made the white trim stand out more. After that we painted the interior of the cabinets a hot pink that was a perfect background to our bar accessories.

 We then had to get rid of that horrible countertop. Putting in soapstone, slate, or quartz counters was not in our budget for this little space, so Lindsay came up with an ingenious solution. She decided to get a mirror cut to the exact dimensions of our countertop. We just fit that in over the old linoleum counters and it instantly transformed the space. To finish the counter's front we bought an inexpensive piece of molding, gave it a high quality glossy finish, and glued it to the front of the counter. 

Finally, we covered that terrible floor with Flor carpet tiles to match the back of the cabinets. This gives the overall space a more modern and sophisticated lounge feel. We love it. Hope you do too!

How Do You Hide?

As for cowhides, my family has gone the natural route.

Brett, my younger brother, has a light brindle grey in his urban condo overlooking Boston Harbor.

My parents have a dark tri color in their country home.

And, my black and white transitioned beautifully from a super modern living space that featured concrete floors and floor-to-ceiling glass windows to my current studio apartment in a hayloft. (Yes, as in a barn. I live in a barn. Don't judge.)

The black and white cowhide rug in the hayloft space.

Moral of the story: cowhides are incredibly versatile.

And durable.

And chic.

And you no longer to have to book a trip to Argentina to hand select the one you want. You simply have to stop in and visit next summer on Broadway in Saratoga.

We just received a shipment of traditional cowhide rugs and one speciality piece that will knock your decorating socks off:

The wild pink on white at next summer in Saratoga.

It's pretty fabulous, right?

We can't wait to see who scoops this gem up...

Visit next summer's Saratoga store to check out our entire selection and to see your custom order options.

DISCOVERED: Pipe & Holly

Truth be told, we first noticed them because they were wearing wellies.

"They" being Josie and Nicole.

Better known to you at next summer as Pipe & Holly.

After the boot envy subsided, their product took center stage. Hanging from a clothing line and piled high on tables were a wide range of playful, unique images that had been hand-carved and printed on children's clothing and linen napkins. We ended up being particularly fond of the locally-inspired images: sail boats, jockey silks and thoroughbred race horses.

As for Josie and Nicole, a creative business together has always been in the works.

The two attended undergraduate school together at Sage College of Albany as ceramic sculpture students and then continued on in the graduate art education program. Upon graduation, both became art education teachers. (Josie teaches high school art at Corinth Central Schools and Nicole is a middle school art teacher at Ballston Spa Middle School.)

This summer they took the big leap and launched Pipe & Holly, a block print company.

Their goal?

To take a step back into the world of hand crafted goods with a touch of modern flare.

That's a concept we at next summer can get behind.

With the school year in full-swing, both Josie and Nicole are back in the classroom; luckily, their products are still available at next summer in Saratoga and Bolton Landing.

Where's your TV?

The Television is an item that the whole family seems to really love, at least in theory. Those responsible for the decorating around the house often find themselves at odds with the person who actually bought the television. You see, the decorator often wants to hide the television, while the buyer often wants to accentuate the television - or at least, they want everyone to see just how "awesome" their new TV is.

In today's home you'll find the same situation with refrigerators and dishwashers. Lindsay and I have been lucky enough to avoid that argument, but we think it comes down to a sensible philosophy. TV's, refrigerators, and dishwashers are necessary elements of a twenty-first century lifestyle. They should not be viewed as items that need to be hidden away or denied. They are items that we can celebrate. They are opportunities to demonstrate our individual style. Just as a fireplace in a traditional home wouldn't be hidden from view or disguised as something it isn't, today's appliances shouldn't be either. 

Where are the two places that a modern family gathers the most? Around the TV and in the kitchen (around the refrigerator and dishwasher). These items need to be celebrated as communal destinations, as symbols of the closeness of a family. By announcing their presence boldly we welcome those who come in our homes and say, "here is where we gather with those we care about, and respect. We want to include you."

I write this as the proud new owner of a TV that didn't seem as enormous at the store, as it does in our home.

next summer loves: Mamatoga Jenny

Recently Jenny at Mamatoga featured some of our custom Saratoga Springs pieces.  If you don't already follow her, you must start!  On her website and online magazine Jenny shares her experiences raising three kids under five while giving great resources for health and wellness, parenting, style, and cooking.  Even if you don't live in Saratoga Springs, you will find inspiration and helpful resources on her site.


Here are a few of the custom pieces from our store that she featured . . .

our Saratoga map pendant (we also sell earrings)

Saratoga needlepoint belt

Saratoga needlepoint coasters

We're so glad we opened a second location in Saratoga Springs.  It's an open and welcoming community with a lot of style.  Jenny is the epitome of that.  To see her full post click here.

So much to say . . .

Recently these pillows have been flying out of our store.  Their graphic text makes them an unexpected element in any room and they're also excellent conversation starters.  They look great on their own . . .

and also make nice accent pillows if you mix them with graphic prints, stripes or even animal prints.

We're about to place another order, so tell us which ones you'd like to see in our store!

Geo/Metric Pillows

Have you been admiring our Geo/Metric Thomas Paul pillows but not sure how they would work in your house?  Apartment Therapy just posted a Dream Living Room using these pillows. Mixing this bold print with warm, organic elements gives the room a modern feeling.

You can read more about the post here.  (Note: You can compare our $74 price tag to the $80 one on Apartment Therapy.  We like that!)

Painted Furniture

We haven't posted in a while because we've been busy getting both stores ready for the summer season.

We converted the back of our store into a work space where we have been painting furniture.  One of our projects included painting an old piano and a beautiful little table.  We posted a few weeks ago about our plans to paint them florescent pink and kelly green, and we now have pictures of the finished products!

We love the contrast of the bright, crisp colors with our floors in the Bolton Landing store.

Putting a fresh coat of paint on an old piece of furniture is one of the easiest ways to update your space.  Here are some of our favorite paint jobs that we've done around the stores:

With our new work space there will be more to come!  Stayed tuned . . .