"Big" Problems

Having a big house can present some "big" problems.  While, of course, that term is all relative... decorating big spaces can present challenges.  Take Rebekah's foyer for example.  Picture extremely high ceilings, a beautiful staircase, and views into the dining, sitting, and main living areas.  You want your entry to showcase what is about to come when people enter the house.  You want it to be beautiful and appropriate. It also has to tie into all of its adjacent spaces.  Here's a good example!

via Pintrest
This picture is straight out of my dreams!

Rebekah recently scored this beautiful antique dresser at her favorite hang out in Lynchburg, Estate Specialist.  The mirror is from there as well (which they did an amazing job refurbishing by the way).  These two vintage pieces along with some perfect staging are truly a great beginning to turning this foyer from good to great!  I know she, along with me, is coveting grass cloth for this area... one step at a time!!!

Headed the right direction

Recently, I pulled the rug out of my dining room into my living room.  While I liked that rug just fine where it was, once it was in the living room it was just perfect.  So… I was left with this…

It’s naked!!  Not only is this room missing curtains, its blue grass cloth, its wainscoting, and beautiful built-ins, but now also its rug!!  Rebekah took me to an amazing rug store in Farmville, VA where I of course fell in love with many many beautiful and amazing rugs.  Too bad they were all about $5,000+ out of my budget (I’m still dreaming of a couple of them)!  So, a couple days ago I just happened to be perusing the rugs on Overstock when there she was…  perfection… and only with a $200 price tag.  And $2.95 next day delivery! 

It makes my room.  Brings in light, brings in texture, is the perfect color, and
“no child labour was used in its production.”

Too bad I can’t say the same for my house…

Now I really feel headed in the right direction.  On to look for curtain fabric, get the husband on the wainscoting, pick the right grass cloth, oh... and those built-ins.....

via Pintrest

Here is a picture of the grass cloth I'm coveting... for now, the built-ins are only a picture in my head!



Kandi

Lighten Up!

This is the sole before shot of this room.  You can see the chairs were dark and just a little outdated.

The room had great bones and the existing sofa was the always appropriate, never to go out of style, not to mention super comfy, Pottery Barn slip covered sectional in cream.  With good quality neutral pieces it is so simple to update your look with minimal effort!

The windows you see in the background were bare.  The addition of this light reflecting silk plaid not only frames out the windows, but brings in color, warmth, and light. 

Look at the chairs now... amazing!

New drapery, newly recovered chairs, a few pillows and some simple accessories completely changed the look of this room! From consulting on fabric choices or bringing you samples from which to choose, Woven Home can help you update your room!  We will also custom create your pillows, window treatments, and sofa slipcovers.  Shoot us an email if we can help at wovenhome@hotmail.com.  

Updates on the Outside

We love our house!  Well, let me restate that... we love the potential our house has!!  One project at a time, inside and out, as money permits!  When we purchased this house about a year ago we knew the cedar hadn't been touched in 10 years or more and was going to need stained.  

BEFORE

DURING

AFTER

Rather than restaining dark we decided to lighten this baby up!!  We only went thru 20 or so paint samples before deciding on this custom mixed gray.  The people at Sherwin Williams literally laugh at us when we walk it!  But, they are great, and we finally ended up with exactly what we wanted!  Its amazing what 20 gallons of paint can do! 

To us, the roof lines on this house are so beautiful but we felt they were lost in a sea of dark brown (sounds similar to some problems we are having on the inside as well...those to be addressed on this blog very soon!).  We settled on a lighter gray to highlight the roof lines and taking the window trim from 70's yellow/beige to white was the icing on the cake!  A new front door with lots of glass didn't hurt either!.  We LOVE our updated house... although we are in a quandary about what "style" it is.  Cottage, bungalow, mid-century modern??  Also, to paint the new front door or not?  They need some touch up work anyway (LONG story) so we are back and forth on just giving them a color.  Opinions please!! 

FRONT DOOR BEFORE

FRONT DOOR AFTER

Keeping the old and bringing in the new

I love items with a history, your grandmothers hutch, or your first big purchase for your postgraduate home. These treasures should be kept and highlighted as you redecorate, or move into a new dwelling. They are unique to you, and make your home yours. I recently helped a client get a new look in her family room while using two vintage tapestry pillows inherited from her mother.

The coordinating pillows are made from new fabrics, but look how great they look with the antique tapestry. If you need help blending your look, send us an email at wovenhome@hotmail.com, we would love to help you.
Rebekah

A beautiful mess

See this mess...

It is a good mess!  Great mess, actually!
Those are all pillows to be sewn up and sent out and we couldn't be more excited that this Vintage Loom line of pillows is truly taking off!

We have so many grand ideas and no idea what will actually pan out but for right now we are feeling blessed to be working together and excited for the future of Vintage Loom linens and the Woven Home!  We are also excited to reveal some of these ideas here on the blog soon and bring them to fruition (and to your couch!).  More on that to come in the near future!!  Be excited.......  because we sure are!

NEVER give up... it WILL turn up!!

Recently I was in Farmville at Greenfront Furniture, one of my favorite places for furniture, with my client.  We were shopping for her master bedroom and a chair was on our list of wants.   We were using a beautiful fabric called "Garden Gazebo"  as our inspiration (it is the piece hanging on the chair arm in the picture and also what the printed pillows below are made in).  We had already determined that we would use this as our jumping off point to pull our color.

This client has a fun side, and she loves color, so when we spotted this chair, we knew it was perfect.  Unfortunately it did not have a loose pillow that I could buy of the same fabric.   I love to have two hits of a fabric in a space. To me it makes the room feel more pulled together.  We bought the chair, made the coordinating pillows, and are continuing to work on the room. 

All of the coordinating pillows for the room created by Woven Home

In a super exciting twist I was at The Cotton Gin here in Lynchburg looking thru all their flat folds when guess what I saw...her chair fabric.  So I snatched it up and made her a pillow! It will look perfect in the sitting room that opens to her master. 

The pillow... which is actually green... not yellow!

I know there are people out there who know my excitement!  Not sure who was more thrilled, me or the client!  So, the moral...never give up.  That final piece to pull a room together will turn up! 

Rebekah

On a side note... please ignore the quality of my pictures... they are from my phone! 

Actual pictures and this room reveal will be up very soon!

Something old...

Yesterday, I posted here about the amazing Antique Tobacco Barn in Asheville, NC.  I told you about the old grain scoop and sugar molds we purchased.  I thought I would share a couple pictures of how they look in our spaces.   Like I said, I love to have a "something old" wherever I can!

The grain scoop made it no further than the entry where it now holds mail.  I originally bought it to hang beside my new chalkboard in the kitchen to hold eraser and chalk... it was too big for the spot.  I also thought I could find a nice little rectangular glass vessel and use it to hold flowers. 

The color is amazing... wish I could recreate!

The sugar mold is now on my dining room table but has also been on my mantle and a shelf in the bathroom.
Rebekah also has hers on her dining room table at the moment, with beautiful flowers from her garden!

I found this little snip-it on Our American Heritage  about old sugar molds and how they were used:

The Story

Used in the American Southwest and in Mexico to measure brown sugar. Know as pilloncillo. It was packed into the molds to form a cone shape, then wrapped in paper and sold in the general stores or market places. Pieces of the cone were then chipped away as need for cooking . This was because many small shops and stalls did not have scales to weight product. The dark color comes from the molasses that was contained in the sugar.

Filled with orange, blue and white flowers for my sisters baby shower

In Kandi's house all lit up for an evening dinner party

At Rebekah's over flowing with Ziniia's for Sunday Dinner.

The runner on my table and all linens and pillows from Rebekah's table were created by Woven Home.  Contact us at wovenhome@hotmail.com for custom work or to purchase anything you see!

Linked up at:

Transformation Tuesday: French Inspired Chair

Everyone loves a good before and after, right?!

This chair was sitting all lonely in a corner of my moms house.  It wasn't disgusting but it had potential to be great!  I loved the lines and most of all it was good and sturdy.  I gave it a light sanding, a good spray of Kilz primer and another light sanding.  Next came two coats of this great rich cream called Jogging Path by Sherwin Williams.  Another light sanding.  Next I took the sandpaper and started distressing the edges and where is would naturally occur.  Lastly I rubbed on a walnut stain and wiped it off to antique and richen the color. 

This amazing French fabric (I'm a little obsessed with all things French at the moment) came from Farmville, VA.  Have you been?  You should!  The seat was a breeze to cover and I'm in love!  I am working on an storage ottoman to compliment this guy.  Pictures to come.

This is actually one of my first furniture makeovers and I have been beyond inspired by Shaunna over at Perfectly Imperfect.  She is absolutely amazing!  Check her out because there is no way you won't be completely inspired yourself!

If you are daunted by the thought of going to Farmville yourself (or any other design mecca!), the Woven Home offers personal shopping!  Contact us at wovenhome@hotmail.com for details!

Linking up here:

The Tobacco Barn

"Featuring over 77,000 square feet of shopping."

via Antique Tobacco Barn

Seriously?!?  How could you not want to go!
Add in the fact that it has over 75 dealers and has been voted the "Best Place to Buy Antiquest in Western North Carolina" year after year.

via Antique Tobacco Barn

As Rebecca said here this place can get a little over whelming.  I'm talking the "bring your own water supply and some snacks in your pocket book" kind of overhwleming.  You are gonna be there a while, your head will be literally spinning with ideas, and there are treasures everywhere!!

via Antique Tobacco Barn

I love to add a little old in every room I do.  Pieces that will make people say "where did that come from!"  It always makes me feel super proud of myself to say "it's an antique" or "I found it at a thift store for an insane price", or even better... "it came from the Tobacco Barn!".  Many times that spins into a whole new conversation on where in the world is that and ends with an, "I'll meet you there tomorrow morning!".

via Antique Tobacco Barn

My last trip ended with an amazing 7 hole sugar mold and an old grain scoop.  Rebekah also left with a sugar mold and right now hers in holding flowers from her garden while mine is holding votive candles.  My grain scoop is displayed on the entry table to hold mail!  I'm in love!

Let us know where your favorite place to treasure hunt is!

Kandi

Sunday Night Dinner

Sunday Night dinner at our home is a family affair.  We share our home with my grandmother, and live across the street from my Aunt and Uncle and their two girls.  My hubby has been begging me to make my "Gumbo" he knows I will only make it in the summer when I can buy all of the ingredients fresh from the market.  I purchase my meat from our local butcher, Bedford Meat Shop.  Amazing!  Say hi to Justin if you are here in Lynchburg!

So before I could start cooking I had to set the table, and to set the table I had to....

I made this table cloth today and lined and inner lined it so that it would protect my grandmothers table.

 

I just had it refinished.  It is approx. 50 years old, not that old as far as tables go, but the polyurethane  had broken down so every time I put anything hot on the table it left a white mark.  I tried all kinds of fixes before I gave up and sent it to my wood worker's to be refinished.   The pillows are from the same ticking, but cut on a diagonal and then sewn together to make squares.  A tutorial on these beauties is soon to come!  I did not make them today. The floral container is a candle mold, that both Kandi and I  purchased on a shopping trip when we were in Asheville a fabulous store.... the Tobacco Barn. I will let Kandi tell you about that, she is the expert, and she will tell you I completely shut down, too much stuff!  But before the crash, we spotted these sugar molds and instantly knew how we wanted to use them.  They are great for an informal dinner because they are low, and arranging flowers in them is a piece of cake. 

Hope you enjoyed these pictures, please share your favorite Sunday night dinner ideas with us!

Menu:

Gumbo

Green Salad

Asian Asparagus

Homemade Peach Pie with Ice cream

Notice the picture of the kids plate in the bottom left corner... lets face it... 2 and 5 year olds do not eat Gumbo!!  I promise this is the only time they had chicken nuggets this week (wink).

Rebekah

The table cloth, pillows, cushions, and curtains you see here were all designed and created by Woven Home.  Contact us at wovenhome@hotmail.com for your free design consult!