Do you remember when I was going to design this space for my kids to enjoy? LOL. Elliot did say at one point “Wait, why do we (as in four kids) have to hang out here in the small room this summer while you get the whole house? Why don’t we switch?”. I laughed it off, but it did make me think that should this maybe just be my summer and after-school office? I love working in the sunroom but I try to not take calls after 3 pm because the kids can be so disruptive. That’s all to say that the more I design this space the more I want it for myself which I think is a VERY good sign.

Three Months Ago…

A few months ago it looked like this – pretty rustic, cold, and dirty (with many spiders). We cleaned it out, cladded the walls in basic pine, and came up with a super fast, dirty, and relatively affordable plan to make it usable by summer.

We would have two pendants, some outlets and it already had one cadet heater. The only major framing change was reframing the window to make it bigger (and we bought a readymade vinyl window since you can’t see it from the house so it’s ok that it doesn’t match). I sourced the dining chairs, dining table, storage cart, and benches from AllModern, Wayfair, and Lumens (some pieces I bought, some were traded for PR). The dining chairs might be too tall and I didn’t end up ordering those lights, but it’s coming along and the more I design it the more I’m absolutely in love.

Ok so I ordered the benches before the paneling was up but I knew that it wasn’t going to be a perfect fit and that we’d have to troubleshoot the gap, but it’s pretty darn close. I bought two sets of benches in hopes that they would look built-in but cost way less (they were on sale when I bought them for $425 each which isn’t nothing, but it was fast and far more affordable than custom). I intentionally wanted them to be pine so that they “go away” visually because I knew that I had an idea for the cushions that would be the star. I love that they have storage (costumes, art supplies, and a sewing machine/supplies will go inside). But yes, we have to figure out how to make them look more perfectly built-in (it’s working!).

I also bought these two pendants off Amazon for $100 for both so we had light while I figured out exactly what I wanted, but then a week later I found two farmhouse white pendants from Aurora Mills that I think I might buy. I also might DIY some banged-up IKEA ones that were original in here (stripes? high gloss color?) so stay tuned on that. I like these Amazon ones, they just could be bigger and more interesting since this space can be a real creative studio.

Vintage Quilts FTW!!!

I’ve really stopped hoarding most things EXCEPT vintage fabrics, (boro, quilts, lace, tea towels, plaids, swiss dots, florals) and all good art (when you see a piece of art you love that you can afford YOU BUY IT). Those things make a space go from boring and basic to next level, without spending a ton. Were these quilts cheap? NOPE. But I love them so much and that kind of craftsmanship shouldn’t be cheap. I’ve been buying vintage quilts and quilt toppers for a couple of years now and it’s finally making sense why.

I reached out to Anne Williams of ADF upholstery who I commissioned my quilted mushroom stool from last year to see if she could bring her talents to this project (shout out to Annie from Shop Wilma who found me that awesome quilt). I specifically hired Anne because she has a real artful eye and could help me figure out which quilts go where to make them perfectly balanced and yet random. I wanted another creative’s eye (and taste) on this since I knew it would end up being quite the investment. And I don’t know who loves quilts more, me or her 🙂

Quilt Show-And-Tell… (Peak Quilt Nerd)

This is a real Ariel “look at this stuff isn’t it neat” moment, where I show you all my pretty things and you ooh and ahh and tell me what a good hoarder I am. I sourced these all over Portland (shout out to Aurora for the best quilts in town) and some were pricier ($200 for the red Irish chain) but some were really affordable ($20 for some of the quilt tops that weren’t made into quilts yet).

I love the balance of the more formal quilt like the Irish chain and the salvaged fabric of the postage stamp quilt. All have incredible energy, tell a story, and will breathe so much life into this room.

Fun fact, I grew up quilting for 4-H and still have mine from when I was 10 (…that I wish I loved more, but it was the 80s so let’s just say calico fabrics were very in). It’s not dissimilar to the one on the left, but I love those stripes and plaids so much more than what my 10-year-old taste chose (not quilt-shaming myself, just my current opinion).

I have a type, kinda. For this, I love mostly primary colors (i.e. nothing too muted) and they all needed to work in here as well as work with each other (but in a random way). This method of design can be hard and doesn’t always work – sometimes you have to sacrifice something that you love for something that “works better” but in here it’s meant to look super collected, and random, yet I want each one to make me smile. The only one that I purposefully bought that I might not have otherwise was the green star (from Etsy) and that’s because we are putting this green sectional in here and I wanted to make sure that some of the quilts had green in them. (I tried to find a vintage loveseat for months and have given up which I think is fine since the quilts are so vibrant and quirky).

I bought that flower petal one because I thought it would be cute to put on the top of the mushrooms but we actually have other ideas for it. And the one on the right is my least favorite (and was super cheap from a thrift store) but I liked how it worked with everything else.

If you are curious about what we are doing with the floor – I have an idea that I’m excited by, but I want to execute the quilts first as they are the star of the show. I’m DRIPPING with excitement for this space. I haven’t been this free and loose, creatively, in so long. I put so much pressure on myself to make everything perfectly timeless, functional, practical, etc. in our home, and at times it limits my off-the-cuff creativity for fear of expensive regrets or playing too hard into trends. Am I so glad that our house is extremely livable and works so well for our family? YES. I love it so much. Do I think I’m going to ever get sick of most hard design elements in our house? NO. I truly don’t. But designing a space that is less used and doesn’t need to work as hard for our everyday life, a space meant to be enjoyed just for creativity has been so fun and energizing. No deadlines. No product priorities to feature. Just a fun space for me to do some good old vintage sourcing and styling. Stay tuned…