01/12

New Year, New Closet – Get Organized!!

Everyone that likes a clean organized space put your hands up, this one is for you!The New Year always makes me itch to get organize. I know I’m not alone. All the Christmas stuff is put away and the house feels open and fresh. You just want to keep that feeling going.

If you haven’t already started your organizing frenzy, Samantha is going to kick you in gear by giving one lucky reader a $50 gift card to The Container Store!!!!

Pretty darn good amiright?!

I love that store. Seriously, I could spend hours in there. And I did just that the other day. To feed my need to get things organized, I finally tackled my daughter’s closet. She has a really nice space with natural light, but it wasn’t being used well at all.

BEFORE
It was a hot. mess. All of her clothes were crammed together on a rack so her Barbie toys could be kept below instead of in the playroom (away from her little brother who likes to put things in his mouth). She could never get dressed on her own because she couldn’t reach her clothes. The biggest pain ever. The other side of the closet was all wasted space.
To make her closet more functional we added in some organization game changers from The Container Store.
AFTER

 

 

I think the biggest help was adding the double hanging closet rod on the wall that use to be all wasted space. Her clothes are more spread out having the second row, and she can easily get to them on her own now. I also gave her a stool to get to the top row. No more, “Mom! I need help!!!”
I also added an additional shelf to that side of the closet. Now she has a display shelf and another for bins that can corral her craft supplies and other “treasures” she can’t bring herself to part with.
Before I forget, those fun gold heart decals are from Urban Walls. You can find them here.
On the left side I brought in a stacking shoe rack which works so much better than the hanging shelves we used to have for shoes. There was enough room to also give her a spot for her jewelry. The difference in having her favorite pieces displayed verses all mashed and tangled up in a jewelry box is night and day! The little bracelet stand makes her feel so special too :)
We still needed to keep her Barbie stuff in the closet, but made it less of an eye sore boy making a little curtain to hang from the rod. When she’s not playing she can close it off.

 

Barbies even have their own spot now in a hanging shoe organizer on the back of her closet door. This is HUGE people! This is one of those things I first saw on Pinterest. Whoever thought of this is a genius!

 

And just because side-by-sides are fun.
If you’re needing to do something similar, here are the workhorses I used in her space.
shoe stacker | children’s hangers | stripe bins | shoe bag | bracelet storage | double hang rod
Now it’s your turn to get organized! For a chance to win $50 to The Cont ainer Store use the Rafflecopter below!
One winner will be announced February 1st. Good luck everyone!!!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Filed Under: Contributor Posts, Giveaway, Home Decor
12/08

5 Ways To Freshen Up Your Bathroom

 

CW collage

The holidays are here and more than likely, people are going to be over at your place a lot more than usual. Whether they’re dropping by for a quick get together, party, or staying the night, your bathroom is going to be a frequent stop for them.

// pretty soap containers //
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Swapping out a your blah soap pump for a stylish one with a great scent is an easy way to make guests feel special.
// new hand towel //
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A fresh new hand towel is probably the easiest way to spruce up your bathroom. I especially love the turkish looking ones.
// fresh flowers //
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Get rid of the fake ones. Real is best here. You don’t have to do it all the time, but it’s a special touch when people are coming over.
// candle + matches //
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We all know what’s going on in there, so let’s make it a little more pleasant on the next person ;)
// toilet paper storage //
This may seem like a no brainer. But, if your TP is stored behind doors or out of sight, your guests aren’t going to want to go on a hunt for it when they run out. Make it easy on them and put some extras in plain sight. Baskets are perfect for this!
Now that you’ve got all the ingredients you need, go freshen that bath up! Your guests will thank you :)
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11/10

Shelley: DIY Wreath / “Swag”

Happy Monday Friends!
I’m so excited to introduce you to Shelley, from Crazy Wonderful, who has joined Playdates + Pearls as our DIY & Design contributor! You probably remember her from last weeks guest post where I spilled the contents of my bag over on her blog. If you want to read more about Shelley and the other P+P contributors you can check them out here. They have so much good stuff in store for you!!
She brought her A-Game today with a super simple, and gorgeous, DIY “swag” which I now NEED. Hope you love her as much as I do!
I’m struggling with how quickly Christmas is approaching this year. With all the Halloween candy still around (actually, I’m shocked we still have any with all that I’ve been eating) I feel like it should still be October. But, ready or not, it’s coming!
This year I wanted to do something other than the traditional wreath for our front door. The windows along the front of our house will each have a wreath so putting another on the front door seemed overkill. I decided to go with a swag instead.
If you want to make your own, here’s how I did it!
I found my swag at Hobby Lobby (50% off!). I believe these are meant to be pulled open and draped over a door/entry, but I just kept the long pieces bent down and later bent the wire even more so the long pieces would be closer together.
I tied a large burlap ribbon and attached it to the top with floral wire. Leave yourself extra length for the ribbon tails for the next step.
I wanted the ribbon tails to be pinned in place so I wrapped floral wire around different sections of the ribbon and then attached the ribbon to the swag with the remaining length of floral wire. Ignore the white ribbon. I ended up switching it out for the striped ribbon later.

 

I then stuck in some glittery floral sprays behind the bow and attached some large plastic ornaments to the front. All using more of that floral wire to keep everything in place.
Hang that bad boy up and enjoy!
Once I get all of our Christmas decorations out I’ll run some lit garland around the door to dress it up more.
Here are some other images of swags I’m loving. Most of which make me want to completely do a redo of my own :D This first one in particular I can’t get enough of. They’re HUGE!!!
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These would be simple to put together using cuttings off the bottom of a fresh cut Christmas tree.
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Definitely check out the entire outdoor decor from this house. She even shows you how she did it. I think I’m going to add a strip of ribbon to hang my swag from after seeing this.
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Absolutely adore the simplicity of the pine cones hanging from simple ribbon.
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And this one won me over with it’s stripe ribbon (can’t. get. enough!).
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So what do ya think. Are you going to get your “swag”ger on this year??? I know, lame attempt at a joke but I couldn’t help myself!

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11/05

Winter Wonderland Room Design

Hello Beautiful People!

I have such a fun E-Design for you today from two of the sweetest ladies you will ever meet. They have been sourcing this gorgeous Winter Wonderland space that will make you want to A.) Have more babies and have this as the nursery, B.) Redecorate your child’s room, and C.) Pull out all your holiday decor and redecorate your entire house. I might have purchased two of the Mongolian Fur Pillows and a 9ft Christmas tree yesterday after spending hours drooling over this room. Do you think my husband would mind if I put all of Harper’s current nursery decor into storage and started over based on this room? Ok, you’re right, divorced and 9 months pregnant doesn’t look good on me… ;-)

P.S…There may or may not be a giveaway (valued at $150 – woot woot) AND a coupon code to SHOP Arrow House at the end of this post, so be sure to keep scrolling for all the details.

SHOP Arrow House :: Lily + Spice

Shop this room:

MONGOLIAN WHITE FUR PILLOW // EVERGREEN TREE PILLOW // “BABY ITS COLD OUTSIDE” PILLOW //LIGHT // WOODEN STUDIO // BED // “YOU ARE SO LOVED” PRINT // ANIMAL TRACKS PRINT // MIRROR // WARDROBE SNAKE // STORAGE MODULE // STORAGE BASKET // HANGING CHAIR // DUVET COVER // SLIPPERS // RUG

My favorite element in this room is, hands down, the By Nord Duvet Cover which adds the perfect touch of modern whimsy and pulls together all the other elements of the space. Check out some of the other By Nord bedding options available – I’m obsessed with the baby deer duvet + pillow set.

Lets meet the amazing ladies behind this beautiful design:

Lily&Space_logo5

AMANDA | Founder & Freelance Stylist | Lily + Spice Interiors

Mommy of two amazing little boys, Amanda has always found herself lost in décor and decorating, from paint colours to wallpaper to show homes for fun on a Sunday afternoon it has been her passion from a very young age. Amanda remembers rearranging her room on a regular just to get that clean and crisp feel, asking her Mom to wash her bedding way more often than it needed to be whilst fluffing her pillows before they had a chance to go flat. Amanda really discovered her love for decorating when she moved into her current home, while waiting patiently to move in she was bustling around measuring, planning and shopping for months on end to find just the right pieces. Her taste and style have come popular within friends and family and she is often found out on the hunt for those in need of a room makeover or the perfect finishing touch. Amanda had a dream of working as an Interior Decorator always, then suddenly stars were aligning and all of the people were right in front of her…..together, at the right time. ‘It was like someone was jumping up and down on a mountain top screaming GO FOR IT’….so she did and hasn’t looked back. Each day brings new and exciting opportunities to L+S and Amanda is looking forward to growing with her business and creating amazing spaces worldwide as her E-design has no boundaries thanks to today’s technology.

*GIVEAWAY item #1* – Amanda is offering $100 credit to Lily + Spice Interiors!! You can work alongside Amanda to create a beautiful space (she specializes in children’s spaces, but can meet the needs of any room in your home) that works within your budget, functional needs, and style. Her E-Design services provide you with:

  • Your Customized Design Board {like the one above}
  • Room Overview & Shopping List
  • Room Layout
  • One Round of Design Board revisions.

You can read more about her services here.

Entry will be done via Instagram - I will post the above E-Design Image with all the entry details at 9:30am PST.

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KELLY SCHMIDT | Principal Designer + Owner | SHOP Arrow House

Kelly is a West-Coast based interior designer and owner of the award winning boutique design firm Arrow House Design Studio. Most recently Kelly has followed her passion for Scandinavian and modern inspired lifestyle and interiors with an exciting new venture. By curating carefully selected items and working with some incredible design houses and vendors from Copenhagen to Paris she has brought her signature style finds to North America with a selection of affordable items now available on line through the recently launched SHOP Arrow House. When Kelly is not immersed in all things design she can be found enjoying all the wonderments of West Coast life alongside her husband Mikel with their two little dudes Dane & Kobyn.

*GIVEAWAY item #2* – Kelly is giving one of you a $50 credit to her incredible online boutique where you can purchase the above featured By Nord bedding, or other item of your choice. I just purchased 2 of the ever-so-popular Stendig Calendars from Kelly (one for home, and one for my husbands office). Entry will be done via Instagram - I will post the above E-Design Image with all the entry details at 9:30am PST.

*COUPON CODE* – Kelly has also very generously offered a 10% coupon code for all of you (Effective now – 11/6 at midnight). Use coupon: WINTERWONDERLAND

A very special THANK YOU to both Amanda & Kelly for creating this beautiful design, and offering such awesome coupons and giveaway items for my P+P peeps!! It’s always such a joy for me to share my little corner of the blogosphere with such talented, hardworking, boss ladies!!

XO – Samantha

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10/16

Laura Dro Designs

Good Morning!

I had so many questions about the floral print I featured on my Instagram a few weeks ago, and I’m so excited to finally be sharing about it, and the gorgeous lady who made it, with all of you! Meet Laura, the artist behind Laura Dro Designs. Laura’s art is very bright, fun, and energetic, and she clearly does not shy away from colors (a girl after my own heart!) All of her art is easily transitioned from room to room, and can be layered with other art to create the perfect gallery wall, or stand alone as the spotlight of that space. Laura also designs an amazing collection of lucite trays that have me swooning big time! You’re gonna wanna add one to your christmas list, trust me.

I met Laura through Lindsay from Hattan Home, and she graciously offered to send me one of her prints, and I immediately jumped at the opportunity to style (literally ANY of) her art! I decided on her 8×10 “Peony In Coral” print because it played well with the colors in Harper’s nursery where I was hoping to use it. It ended up being exactly what the room needed. I had geometric fabrics, “word art”, and quirky animal prints, and the florals really added the touch of feminine to the space that was missing.

Again, you all know how much I love beautiful packages, so when this arrived I was so stinkin’ excited!

Laura Dro

Laura Dro 3 Laura Dro2

You may remember seeing this gorgeous print paired alongside the darling glass piggy from Hattan Home, but this is not its final home. I updated Harper’s nursery board for you to get a sneaky peek at where this print will live, but you’re gonna have to wait until the room is finished before seeing it in its entirety. :-)

Screen Shot 2014-10-15 at 1.14.50 PM

Art always seems to be the hardest thing for people to choose when decorating their homes, so I also designed a chic bedroom board as inspiration. Just because you’re using florals doesn’t mean the entire room has to scream “girly”. Pair the prints with blacks, whites, greys, and golds for a masculine touch, and cheeky pillows are always a fun touch! The best thing about this print is the vast color palette it allows you to design around. The print also comes in 2 sizes, so play with scale and decide which would be most fitting for your space – I would use the larger size over nightstands (you’ll typically have lamps on your nightstand, so consider their height when choosing), but smaller when pairing it with another piece of art, like in the nursery. The best thing about Laura’s prints are their affordability. You don’t have to break the bank to get the wow factor!
Screen Shot 2014-10-15 at 1.45.39 PM Where would you use this beauty?

Thank you again to Laura Dro Designs!!

XO – Samantha

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Filed Under: Home Decor, Product Review Tagged: ,
09/25

Small Shop Love: Hattan Home

I am so excited to introduce you all to a new shop that I’m loving – Hattan Home, an online boutique selling “treats for your home”. Let me let Lindsay, the owner, introduce herself (because I cannot possibly introduce her in a cuter way)!

Lindsay and I met on Instagram (I meet all the coolest people on IG) and she (very kindly!!) offered to send me a gift for my daughters room. Umm…yes, please!!

DSC_1331

DSC_1328

I can’t possibly be the only person who appreciates really beautiful packaging. Getting mail is always exciting, but when a big white box arrives full of crinkled confetti paper, a black & white spotted wrapped box inside, and the cutest cards, a girl gets a little more excited!! I feel like it’s those details and level of customer care that make me purchase from a store over and over again.

When I opened the box I found this darling Piggy Bank in Glass. There was absolutely no question that this piggy would never see pennies; a pig this cute needed a filling much more deserving, like jelly beans. :-) Camryn and I decided that every good little sisters room contained a big sister treat jar. All those diaper changes, lullabies, and tip toeing around while little sister naps should earn a big sister something good, amiright?!

glasspiggybank

glasspiggy2

glasspiggy4

How cute is his little snout plug? You can also see the slot on top for inserting coins…I dunno why you’d ever use him for coins though when he looks this cute filled with candy!!

He was so cute that as I continued moving things around, and re-styled Harpers nursery 100 times, he kept coming along for the ride. He is perfectly whimsical, and airy, and a great layering piece on shelves, coffee tables, or sitting perched atop a stack of books.

piggybank

I think I especially love him in front of this “Love Each Other” print! It’s the perfect reminder to Camryn to be a good big sister, and earn those jelly beans! If you’re eyeballing that gorgeous floral print, there will be more on that very soon!! ;-)

You can purchase your own (hand blown – whaaaat?!) glass piggy bank for just $24 at Hattan Home, along with tons and tons of other amazing home decor.

Thank you Lindsay!

XO – Samantha

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Filed Under: Camryn, Harper, Home Decor, Product Review Tagged: , ,
07/03

Harper’s Nursery Progress

So I finished taping, and sealing, and painting my accent herringbone wall…and it turned out HORRIBLE! I kid you not, when I started pulling the tape, and the paint started peeling, I nearly cried. I’m in touch-up hell. I should have known it wouldn’t be perfect with my textured walls, but I was really hoping it miraculously would be.

herringbone wall

Cringe! Look at all those jagged lines that I have to fix. :-( (The coloring looks slightly more blue in this photo than in person.)

In other news, I think I’m slowly beginning to nail down some of the other room details (fabric, furniture, art, etc.) Here’s a glimpse at what I’m envisioning so far…Oh, and did I mention we named our little lady?! Screen Shot 2014-07-02 at 10.17.08 PM

You’ll have to use a little imagination, but this is the basics. I’ll actually use this art in a thick matted frame, which should help break up some of the herringbone wall. I’m DIY’ing Camryn’s dark wood dresser and updating it with some brass pulls. The fabric for the pillows and custom drapes are from Caitlin Wilson’s Tribeca line, and she is currently running a 15% off coupon with code FREEDOM15.

The gorgeous coral midcentury armchair – SWOON – was a gift from my husband. I’m smitten. :-) We have a big (ugly, but uber comfy) rocking armchair that will be in our master bedroom for late night feedings, so my pink chair is really just for sitting and staring at my beautiful baby when she arrives, and admiring her bedroom that’s prettier than my own. Why is it that our kids always end up with more thoughtfully designed, and nicer looking bedrooms than our own?! W.T.H.

I’ve had questions about how I created the herringbone wall, so for those of you interested (and crazy enough like I was), I will post a tutorial soon.

XO – Samantha

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Filed Under: Harper, Home Decor Tagged: , , , ,
05/02

Shades of Blue

Good Morning

Yesterday during Camryn’s nap, when I should have been doing all my chores and being responsible, I decided to play with nursery ideas. Apparently I’m dreaming of a boy, because this is what I came up with…

Screen Shot 2014-05-01 at 5.08.07 PM This is still a draft, but I took a screenshot to share with you. If you’re interested in any of these items just leave me a comment below and I’ll happily give you the sources.

I had originally planned on creating a nursery upstairs (Camryn has a bedroom, and there are 2 guest rooms upstairs currently), but I’m concerned about being so far from a 6-ish month old. I know I’ll be more comfortable transitioning it from my room into a nursery on the main floor, closer to my bedroom. Our office/theater is the only other “bedroom” downstairs, and I’m seriously considering transitioning it into a nursery. I would leave the sectional because it’s so comfortable and would be great for long nights, or late night feedings, as well as guests. I would focus on art that makes a statement and can be used again in the space after baby moves out. The room has a beautiful set of built-in shelves, as well as a walk in closet, so storage would be a breeze. I want to brighten up the room with a minty/turquoise wall color, and then make the wall opposite the art into a triangle mural using Walls By Mur decals. The triangle wall is where baby’s crib would be positioned as well.

I guess it’s time to plan for a baby girls nursery…just in case my mommy intuition is off. ;-)

XO – Samantha

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Filed Under: Home Decor, Pregnancy
04/14

DIY Curtain Trim

Welcome back!

First off, THANK YOU all for the incredibly kind comments, messages, texts, and calls about our pregnancy news. My heart nearly exploded. I’m so happy to have such a supportive, kind, and kickass group of followers. I say it all the time, but you’ve made my little corner of the internet such a joyful place for me. I’m looking forward to sharing my pregnancy journey with all of you. Right now, I’m bloated, tired, and craving caffeine. I could be used as a floatation device, and my husband and I are becoming more and more afraid of what two children will be like. HA! Get ready for more posts that sounds like that. If you’re a parent on 2+, please leave me regular comments reminding me that I’m not going to be outnumbered, and that two tiny terrorists are not going to deprive me of sleep and ask the words “why?” forever. Those are short term problems, right?

How was your weekend? Mine was pretty good. My husband came home after an entire week away and I was beyond exhausted and thrilled to have him watch Camryn while I napped. :-) It was my sisters birthday on Saturday and we spent some time lounging by her pool and enjoying the “Camryn Show”, aka my toddler running around in her bikini being oh-so-silly. Pictures of that are on my Instagram. Pre-warning: 2 year old in a bikini might be more cuteness than you can handle. You’ve been warned. On sunday I went to get a last minute mani/pedi with my sister and none of our usual places were open, so we tried a new place called Crystal’s (off N. Lamar if you’re in Austin). DO NOT GO THERE!! It was the worst mani/pedi I have EVER had. :-( My nail polish, 8 hours later, is still mushy and peeling off my nails. How is that even possible? I swear they added acetone to the polish too many times or something. I’ve never had to remove my polish and re-paint both hands and feet the same day as having them professionally done. Such a bummer.

In other news, I’ve finished my DIY drapes, and they look fabulous if you ask me.

DIYdrapes.jpg

drapescloseup.jpg Pretty great for a $35 PAIR of 118″ curtains from Ikea, $3 worth of ribbon, and $4 worth of fabric glue. If you want to recreate this look, lay out your drapes and glue your ribbon down 1″ from the edge. All it to dry overnight, and Viola! I used large coffee table books to hold my fabric flat and wrinkle free. Even my husband was impressed with this cheap DIY and what an impact it made. The drapes looks beautiful and expensive and at 118″, they add so much height to our hallway.

If you noticed my fun “Everyday I’m Hustlin’” phone cover, it’s from Mulberry Press Co. I get stopped in the street and asked by strangers about that awesome case.

In addition to finishing my curtains, I also found a drawer pull for my hallway console. Of course it’s from Anthropologie…that place is like crack. The word “no” is non-existent in there.

This knob looks so much better in person. It’s absolutely drawer pull perfection. Once I install it I’ll post a picture for you all.

Until then, have a happy Monday.

XO – Samantha

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Filed Under: DIY, Home Decor Tagged: , , , ,
03/24

Hallway Nook / Foyer

Screen Shot 2014-03-23 at 10.32.46 PM

Good Morning! How was everyone’s weekend?

Last week felt very hectic, and I’m so sorry to have left you all hanging. I feel much less chaotic after a nice relaxing weekend, and I’ve got some good stuff for you this week.

Today I’m bringing you yet another design board. My husband and I have always used our back door (coming in from the garage) as our main entrance. It’s a long hallway that passes the laundry room, bathroom, office, and then finally spits you out into our main living space (kitchen, dining, living room). We don’t have any designated space for setting down keys, mail, etc. so they all end up on the kitchen counters, dining room table and it creates a mess. I despise clutter. I also hate that we have such a bare “entry way” that doesn’t reflect the rest of our home.

In an attempt to create a more organized space, I designed this “nook”. A console table, two x-benches, a place to set our keys and mail, and an area that rises to meet us when we come home. That’s what your home is supposed to do, right? Be functional, and also beautiful.

Our walls are a light cream color, so I wanted whites and vibrant colors to brighten the space. There’s a large window, so curtains are a must. Layered art and books are throughout our home so I had to add some here as well. (In all honesty, I just have an addiction to art, pillows, and coffee table books….) :-)

I purchased the benches from target, which were also featured in this post. The console is from Overstock, but hasn’t arrived yet. I’ll let you know if it’s of good quality and provide links after it arrives.

I’m DIY’ing some art using scraps of Camryn’s new wallpaper, and using art that I already own. You can check my Instagram for pictures! I’m also using trays, bowls, and accessories that I already own. Do all of you “shop your home” for decor? I’m constantly stealing bits and bobs from different rooms of my house and rotating accessories. It keeps things constantly changing, and evolving. (I might also have closets full of decor, because like I said before, I have an addiction)

What do you think of my work-in-progress space? Leave me any ideas or suggestions you have in the comments! I love hearing your opinions and advice!

I’ll continue updating with progress pictures, and links to all the products (if they’re good).

XO – Samantha

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