Let There Be Light

Living Room Lamps

Hi Guys,

On a rainy, dark day like we're having in New England today, the subject of lighting comes to mind.

When we remodeled our kitchen way back in 1999, we made sure that we had every light we could possibly need. We installed recessed lights in the ceiling, florescent lights under the cabinets for task lighting, and additional florescent lights above the cabinets to add mood lighting. I'm extremely pleased with our lighting system. It works well and is attractive. There is one thing I would change, however. I would hang pendant lights over the dining table. One day that will happen.

Above Cabinet Lights

Under Cabinet Lights

Recessed Lights

We went "green" and installed energy saving bulbs in our recessed lights and in all the lamps throughout the house.

Chandelier in Dining Room

We hung a pewter chandelier in the dining room above the table. It is on a dimmer so we can turn it down during dinner parties. I am a big advocate of dimmer switches. I would have them in every room if I could.

I also bought a china cabinet with lights to show off my mother's hand painted Spode China and crystal.

Candlestick Lamps

We have candlestick lamps as well as table lamps and a floor lamp in the living room. The candlestick lamps are on the sofa table and show off the photographs I have on the table. The floor lamp sits by a chair for reading and also lights up the chest where we keep our CD's and CD player.

Floor Lamp and Table Lamp in Living Room

I needed more than just a room light in my work/craft room, so I have two desk lamps for doing tasks.

Task Lighting in Work Room

Track Lighting

In the basement we installed florescent lights in the main area. My son's former bedroom has track lighting with moveable halogen bulbs. We have since turned the room into our music room and we can point the lights directly at the music we are playing.

Bathroom Sconces

When you are remodeling a room, think about what activities will be taking place in that room. If you will be doing reading in that room, you will need a reading lamp; watching TV, you will need ambient light on a dimmer; a kitchen will need room lighting, plus task lighting; a bathroom will also need room lighting and task lighting for shaving or applying makeup as well as a tub or shower light; a bed room you will need bedside table lamps for reading plus lamps to illuminate the room; a child's room will need light for playing, reading, task lighting for doing homework and maybe a night light for younger children.

Front Hall Light

Don't forget the hallway. Sconces are beautiful and give off just enough light to light the way. You can also add a light above a painting to highlight it.

Whatever your lighting needs, there are lights out there to satisfy them.

That's my tip for today.

b

Hand-Me-Downs

Mother's Bedroom Dresser

Hi Guys,

I happen to love hand-me-downs. My mother's and grandmother's furniture carry a lot of sentimental value to me.  I can remember my grandmother sitting and talking on the telephone which sat on the sewing table that is now an end table in my guest room. I can remember my mother buying her beautiful marble topped bedroom set in the 60's which is also in our guest room. Every one of my hand-me-downs has special meaning to me.

China Cabinet

Grandma's Telephone Table

You may also love to visit yard sales, estate sales, flea markets, or antique stores to find items for your home. In our neighborhood, when we no longer need or want an item, we just put it out on the curb. Someone else in the neighborhood can usually use it, and takes it home. When we bought new outdoor furniture for our deck, we put our old chairs and chaise lounge on the curb. Well, one neighbor ended up with the chairs to use around her pool and another neighbor has the chaise lounge on her patio. I guess we have kind of an exchange going.

Living Room Lamp

When my husband and I moved out to Massachusetts from Iowa, my husband's grandmother had just passed away. We ended up driving out east with a trailer filled with Grandma's entire living room and kitchen furniture. We kept the kitchen table and chairs until they literally fell apart because my husband could remember sitting at that table as a child eating dinner or snacks.

Master Bedroom Lamp

My mother passed away in 1994 and left me some very beautiful pieces. In addition to the pieces in the guest room, I have her lamps in the master bedroom and in the living room. I also put her china cabinet, filled with my grandma's cut glass, in the living room. I have small end tables all over the house--end tables that I can remember from my childhood home in Iowa. My son has the bedroom set that I grew up with and his grandma's dining table and chairs.

Antique Sewing Machine Used in Basement Bedroom

If you have a hand-me-down piece of furniture that you love but no longer looks good, you can have it refinished, reupholstered, or painted. A friend of mine needed a chest for her grandchild, so she took an old chest and painted it and added cute stencils. You can add new lamp shades to old lamps to make them look new or add modern knobs to chests or tables with drawers to make them look more modern and tie in to your decor.

End Table Used in the Front Entry

My tip for today is to cherish your hand-me-downs--they may need a little tweaking, but they will still have the same sentimental meaning.

b

Fall Blooms

Marguerite Daisies

Hi Guys,

It is fall planting season and your local nurseries as well as places like Home Depot or Lowes will have great prices on all their plants and bulbs. If you want to start a garden, this would be a good time to do it.

The dogs and I took a walk around our neighborhood to see just what was in bloom at this time of year. I was amazed to see late blooming rose bushes, and even a white Rhododendron in bloom. There are Dahlias, Sedum, Yarrow, and beautiful tall grasses that adorn the landscape. Our Honeysuckle and New Guinea Impatience are still going strong as well as the Begonias and, surprisingly, our Geraniums in our window boxes.

Please enjoy the pictures and think about adding some blooming plants to your landscape.

That's my tip for today.

b

Yellow Marguerite Daisies

Rhododendron

Purple Marguerite Daisies

Yarrow

Grass

Icelandic Poppies

Pink Wild Flowers

Elderado Feather Reed Grass

Marigolds

Dahlias

White Marguerite Daisies

Sedum

Hydrangea

Rose Bush

Avoiding Clutter

Hi Guys,

Now that fall is officially here, it is time to think about putting away your summer clothes and getting out your fall and winter wardrobe. My tip for you today is to take a little time to carefully sort through your summer clothes before storing them away. Make a pile of the clothes that you did not wear at all during the summer, clothes that no longer fit, and clothes that are worn out. Put the clothes that you did not wear and those that no longer fit in a plastic bag for donation to the Red Cross; United Way; Big Brother, Big Sister; or another charity of your choice. The clothes that are totally worn out and can no longer be worn, can be cut into rags for cleaning the car, polishing silver, etc. If you spend just 30 minutes doing this, you will find that you will have a lot more storage room and next summer you can look forward to adding new clothes to your wardrobe.

When it comes to your fall/winter wardrobe, instead of just hanging up everything not knowing what still fits or looks good, do the same thing as you did with your summer clothes. Try on your clothes to make sure they still fit and look good. There may be some sweaters that "grew" during the summer and need to be taken to the cleaners for cleaning and blocking. Donate the things that you know you are not going to wear this season, and make rags out of the things that are too worn to donate.

Do the same with your shoes. Donate any sandals, flip flops, or dress shoes that you did not wear this summer or that no longer fit. Throw out the ones that are too worn to donate. Try on your fall/winter shoes and boots to make sure they are still in good condition. Donate those that no longer fit or that you know you are not going to wear. Throw away any shoes that are torn or broken and can not be donated. This way you'll know exactly what you have and what you need to buy. It will also give you a good excuse to go shoe shopping--my favorite thing. If you want a great deal on shoes, go to Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Designer Shoe Warehouse, or Burlington Coat Factory. They have thousands of shoes at discount prices.

These are easy, common sense ideas to cut down on clutter in your closet and in your drawers. We have a rule in our house, which my husband doesn't always abide by, but, like everyone else, we have limited closet space, so when something new is purchased, something old has to be donated or turned into a rag. This has really helped us keep our closets and drawers organized.

That's my tip for today.

b

Fall Decorating

Hi Guys,

Summer Mantle

Since Fall officially begins this evening, I want to continue giving you tips on how to decorate for the season.

I have two examples of my fireplace mantle. The first one is my summer look and the second is my fall. Just by adding some decorative hurricane candles and votives, I have changed the look from summer cool to autumn warm. The picture and the orchids are the same.

Fall Mantle

When we had friends visiting from Iowa, my girlfriend asked me for a piece of my cherry cheesecake.
I was a little puzzled because there was no cheesecake in the house. She laughed and pointed to the faux cake I had on a cake stand under the buffet in the dining room. I took it out and showed it to her and it was her idea to do a blog about how to make it. Carolyn, this is for you.

Go to your local craft store, like Michael's, and buy a styrofoam wreath the size of your cake stand or plate. You will also need to buy some faux cherries, or any other small fruit you want to put on top of the cake.

Next, go to the hardware store and buy a small can of white spackle--the same kind you use to fill holes in the walls.

Plain Cherry Cheesecake

Using a cake frosting knife, frost the wreath with the spackle just as if you were frosting a cake with icing. The spackle won't set up immediately, so you can make the frosting as fancy as you want to.

Green Apple Center

When you have finished frosting your cake, let the spackle dry before adding the fruit. Be sure to wash your frosting knife immediately to keep the spackle from drying onto it.

Cover the top of the cake with at least two layers of fruit. I used a hot glue gun to add the cherries to the top of the cake. You can use any kind of fast acting glue if you don't have a hot glue gun. Let the glue dry and place your cake on a decorative cake stand.

Red Apples & Pomegranates

Fill in the center hole of the wreath. I used fall apples (both green and decorative red with various pomegranates). I also filled in the middle with grapes and other berries. You can use whatever you want in the middle.

Grapes and Berries

I'm now using it as the centerpiece on my dining room table. I have an oatmeal cookie scented candle burning on the same table to give the effect of a freshly baked cake.

Try it. It's a fun, easy fall project, and you just might fool your friends.

That's my tip for today.

b

Rugs, Rugs, Rugs

Hi Guys,

When it comes to carpet and rugs, I have a love/hate relationship. I grew up in a beautiful old home in Iowa that had polished hard wood floors. I can remember my grandma running the polisher around the rooms to make the floors shine. My mom purchased inexpensive throw rugs and scattered them around the house. By the time I was in high school, wall to wall carpeting was all the rage, so my parents carpeted the whole down stairs. The carpeting was wool and very expensive and lasted for years and years, but for some reason, it just never did anything for me. I preferred the shiny hard wood with the scatter rugs.

Hall Rug

When my husband and I moved out to Massachusetts, we lived in our share of apartments, some carpeted, some not. By the time we could afford to buy our own home, I knew that I wanted hard wood floors and beautiful area rugs. We purchased beautiful Oriental rugs for the living room, dining room, and front hall. They were wonderful.

In 1995 we moved into this house. It was built and decorated in 1968. There was wall to wall avocado green shag carpet in the living room, gold shag carpet in the bedrooms, and orange shag carpet in the family room. To our delight, under the dreadful carpeting were beautiful hard wood floors. I was beyond thrilled. We put down our oriental rugs which lasted several years.

Living Room Rug

When we decided to add two sweet puppies to the family, I had to rethink my use of expensive area rugs. Our dogs seemed to think that rugs were for wee wee, vomit, and every other disgusting bodily function you can think of. Yes, they had been trained to go to the door when they had to go potty, but sometimes accidents happened. We decided to see what the rooms were like without rugs, so we took them up and I  loved the look. The rooms seemed much more open and airy. I don't have to worry about accidents, and they are so easy to keep clean. It actually took me back to my childhood with bare floors and just some scatter rugs.

Front Hall Rug

Now, I'm not suggesting that you get rid of your rugs. Rugs add warmth and beauty to a room. They can also anchor a room. I still have a few rugs. I needed some color in the living room, so I added a rug under the coffee table in front of the sofa. I also put down rugs in front of the doors so people can wipe their feet. I put a round rug in the square space at the end of the hall because it just looked empty without anything there. The rug fit the bill. I painted a floor cloth and put it in front of the sink in the kitchen.

Kitchen Rug

It's up to you to decide what kind of rugs you like. There are no right or wrong choices. If your room looks like it needs more warmth, then try adding a medium to dark rug. You may want to carpet your bedroom if you like walking around in your bare feet. If you need more color or need to add a color to unify a room, try adding a rug in a coordinating color.

One more thing, Oriental rugs can bridge the gap between contemporary and traditional.

That's my tip (or story) for today.

b

Matchy, Matchy

Hi Guys,

My last blog talked about eclectic decorating, but I know that there are many of you who love it when everything matches. If you walk into a furniture showroom and you see a sofa with matching chairs that "speak" to you, then go for it. Purchase the whole set. There is nothing wrong with matching pieces of furniture. In fact, there are no hard and fast decorating rules that say you can or can't have matching furniture. You should purchase what you like and what makes you feel comfortable.

I have matching pieces of furniture in my home as well. My dining room set is one of them. Our dining room is small and by matching everything, it helps make the room seem larger. The only thing we changed were the dining room chairs. We chose big, comfortable chairs instead of the small, uncomfortable chairs that were shown with the table in the furniture showroom. The china cabinet, buffet, table, and chairs are all done in medium cherry. I've chosen not to use a rug under the table which adds to the lightness of the room.

The bedroom is another place where we have matching furniture. The armoire, dresser, and bedside tables are all the same pine. I did add a wrought iron headboard, oak desk, and painted chest to the room, but the major pieces are all the same. I've done some painting on the armoire, dresser, and bedside tables to add a touch of whimsy and color.

We found our living room set on sale and loved the sofa and club chairs--another example of matching furniture. Since everything is so white, I chose to paint the walls blue and chose a vibrant area rug to put under the coffee table. The rug is casual, geometric, brings in all the colors in the house, and is just plain fun.

My mother's swivel rockers have been relegated to the basement. They are still in great condition, so I created a small vignette placing them in front of the bar for lounging and visiting.

Whatever style you choose for yourself and your home, as long as it makes you happy and feel comfortable, is the correct style for you.  Don't be swayed by rules because there are no rules. Go with what feels right to you.

That's my tip for today.

b