Creating Interest in a Not-So-Interesting Place.

What to do with Hallways and Landings?--Feather Your Nest Transformation

I always say, "Paint is your friend". And, really it is.  If you don't like that end-table anymore, paint it. If you are tried of that terricotta pot, paint it. How do you update or lighten-up a space? Yes, you got it--Paint it!

Meet the drab:

This picture is looking up the staircase, duh, from the first floor to the the second floor landing.  There was a broken stair tread so that had to be replaced.

This is the original plaster wall on the staircase....where the "other" home-owner covered up the need for repair work with wallpaper--then painted over said paper...so this was a lot of fun to remove and see what was underneath....nothing a little plaster-paris couldn't fix.

This brown paint started at the stairway landing and turned the corner all the way to the 2nd floor landing.  It was a cool color but made it all look so dark and gloomy.

Another look at the 2nd Fl landing. This landing truly is the gateway to all of the rooms on the 2nd floor...three bedrooms, and office you see here with blue walls and a bathroom that you can see here in major need of work.  Notice, this is also the first sanding of the hard-wood floor.

Again 2nd floor landing...with tiny, non-descript light fixture.

From the 2nd fl landing down the steps to the first floor.....this is a shot of the wall-paper that is hiding repair work needed underneath. Doesn't look so bad, except the floor....but the paper is quite hideous.

From the stairway looking up to the landing and into the nasty blue bed-room beyond.

Now, the FAB

Funny how creating an interesting wall of paint and some "punch you in the face with color" curtains, instantly changes this space.......well, minus the step-repair seen here that still needed stained.....

This is looking from the 2nd Fl landing down the steps. The stripes were carried from the left side of the wall at the foot of the steps, up the stairway, around the small landing and up the wall to the 2nd Floor landing.

Here is a look at the 2nd floor landing...so much brighter and lighter. The wall is painted medium grey from the same paint as in the stripes. The light fixture is from Shades of Light in Richmond, VA...A big whopping $99.00 for such a statement.  The rug is from Target and holds all the colors of the pallet from everyone that extends from this landing....notice the orange and blue room there in the distance.

A look at the stairway from the 2nd floor landing......

A close up of that crazy light again.

How do you do it?

Here is the "before" picture again.......Any surface you need painted, needs repaired and primed. 

Choose a color idea and get paint cards with 3-6 colors on them. Choose 3 or all if you want that much contrast. Paint the wall the lightest of the colors.  Then measure off and tape areas. I chose 18 inches for the stripe width.  I painted the next color and so on.  It is a bit time consuming....But, I did this stairway from beginning to end in a weekend.

AFTER:

Just find a color you like and choose three shades from the same card.  I skipped a color in between to give some contrast.  So, really with some time, elbow grease and $70.00 in paint.........a transformation.

Show us a project with paint or comment below to share your ideas.  

ENJOY

Feather Your Nest--Seventh Street Transformation Week 2

Expect the Unexpected

As we all know, things don't always go as planned.  Well, that is what has happened during our Seventh Street Feather Your Nest Transformation house.  We have been at a stand still for over a month.  That is ions in house remodeling years.  And as they say,(whom ever "they" are)" time is money".  Another mortgage, more utilities, over-budget and over-time....it all costs.

So what is all the fuss about?  It is underfoot.  The floors.  This is something to leave to the professionals...we learned this the hard way....even thought "they" said they had experience etc.  Do yourself a favor....save time and money and hire a professional floor re-finisher.

Office Floor "before"

Bedroom Floor 'before"

Its not that the floors were horrible or anything.  But, they were different colors from floor to floor and even room to room as you can see above.

Guest bedroom Floor "before"

Yes, that is purple and green walls, lovely right?

Same Green bedroom floor "during" after the second sanding. (Notice the primer on the wall)

Different angle of bedroom floor after sanding

Office floor, "during"

Picking out a floor color isn't rocket science, but you need to definitely be patient.  Just like paint colors, it is important to take a few samples of stain back and try a few on the floor to see what looks best.

You can get stain at Lowes, HomeDepot or most any paint or hardware stores.

Minwax is a good brand that has stain and sealant mixed in.  We tried a few colors of stain.

And, settled on Provincial colored stain from Home Depot. It is the next to the end on the right side. Click here to see more.

Hardwood floor is a huge feature to help sell your home. If they are in good condition and uniform in color, it creates flow throughout your home from room to room.  If you do not have have hard-wood, there are many options currently for not much money.  Again, look to Home Depot or Lowes as well as your local carpet store. Click here for ideas.

Vinyl tile has also come a long way from the black and white tiles in your grandma's kitchen.  There are many vinyl options out there that look like hardwood.  I wouldn't hesitate you use something like this below.

To check out this tile click here

Cherry looking vinyl tile above even has the texture of hard-wood.  Check it out here

Bedroom After

Office after

Although the floors look different above, just blame it on my amature photoshop skills.  Trust me, they are the same.  You will have to come and see for yourself when we have our "Grand reveal" open house.  If you are interested in coming to see our Feather Your Nest Transformation House, please comment on this post and we will add you to our mailing list so you will receive an invite.

So what did we do with our four weeks when we couldn't get inside the house to work while the floors were being dealt with?  We sourced products and picked the color scheme for the rest of the house.

Here are a few sneak peeks for future blog posts and transformational home decor.

So all-in-all just know things can and will go wrong...not necessarily wrong, but perhaps not according to plan. You have to be flexible and stay positive and it all will work out in the end.

Stay tuned for more blog posts about our transformation. And, watch this beautiful 1950's buffet (that I found at the flea-market for $65.00) change into a hip, fun and modern piece.

"I got $20 dollars in my pocket"

let us know if you have scored a cool piece of furniture that only needed a coat of paint to breath new life into it.

ENJOY!

WSAZ Home and Garden Show

We had a great turn-out to our booth at the WSAZ Home and Garden Show.  If you didn't already register for our giveaway, do so here.  We are giving away a "la-petite" consult to up-date your space.  To learn more about that service, click here.

Check out our booth pictures below: And make sure to check back often for our Feather Your Nest Transformation series on our 7th Street whole home re-do.

Feather Your Nest--Seventh Street Transformation

Welcome to How to Get Started:

Are you having a streak of Spring Fever? Has spring showers gotten you confused on where to put your umbrella?  Writers block, or in this case, creativity block, can happen to the best of us.  But, it doesn't have to be hard--it should be fun to update your space.

We all are inspired almost daily.  Whether its a stroll on the beach, a winter landscape or a colorful oil painting; images. as well as music and aromas, evoke our senses and touches on our emotions.  If you would like to update your space around you, turn to the things that comfort you and/or inspire you and make you happy.

As we embark on this huge Feather Your Nest project of transforming an entire home--inside & out, top to bottom--at 1028 Seventh Street, Huntington, WV:  How do we even start such an endeavor? 

Quick peep at the property

How do we make make the spaces cohesive and flow from room to room--with such a huge undertaking?  And, most importantly, how do we stay motivated:

We simply take our own advice and start with something that inspires us and keeps us on track:

Our design team at Feather Your Nest, fell in love with this beautiful oil painting.We felt this reminded us of a spring day that took orange and blue to a new level. With hints of green, grey and taupe: there we have our color pallet for the 7th street home transformation-all from one single painting (& a few opinions, of course)

Next, choose a color from that inspiration (for us the painting) to paint the wall & to create the dominate tones of the room:  

Its much easier to choose a few of the paint colors and buy samples sizes for approx $3 and try them on the room next to a window for light and also to see how it looks next to the woodwork.  It is best to let the color then sit for a few days and look at it periodically at different times of the day to see the best options.

Nest, choose a few other colors from the same inspiration:  either complementary tones: or complete opposites--these will serve as your "accent" colors.  We chose, blue, grey and taupe.

There are area  few rules to follow to give you guidance as you update a room or space within your home:

Rule 1).  Typically your floor cover should be a bit darker than your walls to anchor your space

This rug is vibrant and bright and has the main tones of the inspiration in it.  It would be a great piece to anchor any room.

Rule 2).  Add elements of texture

This is important to add depth to a space and makes room feel comfortable and inviting.  Examples would be:  

A driftwood sconce

A cable knit throw

A collection of rope baskets for holding magazines or blankets

A reclaimed barn-wood wood table

Rule 3) You need something neutral that will fill in the gaps of the room to make it more cohesive

This linen chair would be perfect 

A shabby amiore would do the trick

Rule 4).  Add in something shinny:  to bring contrast & interest

A beautiful mirror such as this one would do the trick

A glazed lamp would also bring in a shinny element:

Rule 5).  Lastly, something green is always good; 

A fresh vase of flowers

Or add in plants:  if you are not a green thumb, like be then a "faux" topiary like these above will do the trick. Flowers & Plants help soften a space and help to take the "just decorated" edge off.

We will be following these rules during our entire Feather Your Nest "Drab to Fab" Seventh Street transformation:  

We invite you to follow along during this 6 week process until the Grand Reveal. Pick up How to's and gain some ideas for your own next as we transform this house into a fun, modern family home.

Enjoy!