TIME TO REFRESH, RESET & RENEW FOR THE SPRING SEASON

 

Welcome Spring! A time to refresh and renew our routines, our home, even our career - overall give ourselves a reset for a season of new growth. The winter season, for some can have been a hibernation period, and for others, the winter season can be a time of deep reflection. That's what this past season has been for me: reflection. 

Rather than fight the dislike of seeing many grey days out  my window and loathing the bitter cold, sunless days - that have been triggering extreme yearly bouts of winter depression (aka SAD - seasonal affective disorder) since moving here to North Carolina, combined with health issues and grief - this year,  I made a shift. I embraced this time to change my mindset and revise some pitfall routines I had gotten myself into. This period of reflection helped me to REFOCUS my time, my energy, my habits: an overall renewed awareness on my health & wellness... Something I'm sure many of us have been doing since COVID has come into our lives. 

With this upcoming seasonal change and personal reset, is my renewed interest in writing again. My topics, however, will be evolving from the focus on DIY projects I've written about in the past to a deeper dive into my experiences with the design industry - including market events, showroom sets & tours, small local business support, along with "how to" content for home organizing, plant care, interior styling, and a renewed focus on curating collections here in Carolina.

 

 

 

For this shift in direction - similar, but still a new path - I'll be moving... moving Focal Point Styling from blogspot/blogger over to my new .com website I've been building on Squarespace, which I will be launching shortly.

Just like the image above, I feel like this space has become a tired old barn I've neglected. Part of resetting habits and living in a joyful mindset is to create a change in your environment. We refresh, renew, reset our home whenever a season changes - so why not do a rest our digital footprint as well?

 

In the meantime, please take a look around (a good place to start are tabs like: About, Contributor, Press, Projects, Roomboards) as I continue to polish up and fine tune Focal Point Styling (.com) -- not to perfection but to get her up and running... I probably will make another post or two here (to get the SEO engines working again) so please just bear with me.😉

 

Here are a few archived, but continued helpful & popular posts I've written:

Home Decor Trends from High Point Furniture Market

How To Use a Moodboard for Virtual Online Home Staging

Organizing Ideas for Spring Gardening (my contributor post)

Rental Restyle: Small Bathroom Makeover

Storage Solutions: Small Pantry Update

Painting: How To Paint Interior Doors Black

Thank you for your patience during this 

reconstruction and restoration period. I'm grateful for you.

 

Stay connected with me via Instagram, Pinterest & Twitter

@fpsinteriors

Hope to see you soon,

 

 

 

 

 

INDOOR WINTER PAINT PROJECTS

With the colder winter days now in full swing, including our first snowfall of the season Sunday morning -- it's time to focus on indoor projects. Before diving into several projects running through your mind, it's good to start a project list, especially room by room, and tackle each space / project over time. Along with giving the kitchen & bathrooms a deep after holiday cleaning, plus reorganizing closets that became disarray during the holidays, I started some small painting projects - one of which is a simple mirror makeover...

Since paint is the easiest, least expensive and most effective means of getting the biggest bang for your buck, reusing leftover paint you may already have is a sure way to create a transformation using zero dollars. Another means of stretching your paint makeover dollars is purchasing sample jars of paints - especially when they are on sale. One of the colors I had when I lived in AZ and used to whitewash walls and makeover accessories was Clark & Kensington's Vanilla. Since I couldn't pack and ship liquids when we moved, I've been slowly building back up go-to my paint assortment - again including C&K's vanilla, here I used to transform the look of a basic round mirror I have in the dining room...

Here is what I used:

• Wide frame round mirror (clearance find at Garden Ridge 2013)
• 1 drop cloth (folded on table for extra protection)
• 1 Chip brush
• 1 small sponge stick
• 1 small detail painters brush
• Clark & Kensington Vanilla (sample jar from Ace)
• Ralph Lauren antique gold (had from last year - qt. from Home Depot)
• Ebony stain (picked up a qt. for $2 last year at a local builder supply store)

Here's what I did:

• Covered the well-lit kitchen dining table with the drop cloth.
• Wiped down the mirror with a damp cloth (to remove dust).
• No tape needed - I just gave two coats of vanilla to the center wide band.
• Sponge wiped the edge + inner rim with the RL gold paint.
• Detailed inner rim with the ebony stain, which allowed some of the existing burnished gold to still come through.

That's it!

 

old basic round mirror

 

rough brushed wide rim with vanilla

 after 2 coats of vanilla, painted edge + inner rim with sponge in gold...

Yes - I love my black, but for Spring & Summer, I love to lighten up!

Besides renewing the mirror with white & gold, I'm also refreshing the dining room with a major dose of green, white and gold. If you've followed me over the years, you know I also love are shades of green  and my beloved palm fronds - which even though we're back east, have been hard to come by - especially during the winter months. What to do when you you want to surround yourself with a atmosphere you love? Create it yourself...

Here's a sneak peek of another paint project I'm working on inside, to not only refresh the dining room, but also update a console I scored from thrift & refinished back in FL in 2006... again re-using existing pieces collected over time, injecting color with paint sample jars, and layering in a new palm print pattern with existing textiles...

 

Color inspiration from Carolina thrift finds - vintage creamer, gravy boat & books...

 

Sample jars - on sale for $5 at Sherwin Williams - perfect for small projects such as painted furniture makeovers...

Collected inspiration from a design book (surprise! NOT Pinterest!), framed photograph wall art (I created back in FL in 2008), fabric samples old (lattice) and new (palm print - banana leaf) 

Since the room foundation is already neutral (grey walls called Porpoise from Behr paint) with white trim & dark wood floors, it makes creating seasonal changes super easy - and without the cost of a major renovation. Ideally, I'd like to cover the top portion of the walls in grass-cloth and add moldings below the dado (chair rail), but those changes can't quite fit in the budget at this time - and that's just fine.

Here are a few projects from the past where I've also used palms, greens and whites...

 DECORATING WITH FAUX & FRESH PALM FRONDS

DIY WHITE WASHED WALLS 

 GATHERING UP THE GREENS FOR A RESTYLE

 DIY - A FRAMED FABRIC FOCAL POINT

A TALE OF oops! PAINT

What projects are you up to this winter?

Thanks for stopping by!

Weekend Thrifting - Natural Additions for Spring + Summer

Saturday here felt like a winter day: Overcast, super windy, and temps dropped back down to the 50's! But Sunday, was like the rubber-band snapped back to Spring, so I headed out to take in the sunshine and do a little thrifting. Since I did a major purge for this years spring cleaning (taking so many items to consignment and others to donate) I wanted to pick up a few new additions to refresh what I already have. One of the items I started collecting through thrift here in AZ are sifting baskets for wall decor. I'm not necessarily committing to doing a gallery wall of a collection (yet!) but adding these sifting baskets is a great way to incorporate southwest living into the story of our home. When I lived in Florida, I loved walking our neighborhood and cutting fresh palm fronds, and when we'd travel, I'd collect some sort of seaside treasure. Here in AZ, most of the palm trees are WAY out of my reach to cut - but Sunday while I was thrifting, I lucked out with both: thrift scores AND palm fronds - perfect natural additions to refresh for Spring and Summer...

 

Beautiful woven pattern!

 

Unbeatable price for wall decor...

 NYCLQ scores!

 

One of my first thrifting basket finds here in AZ, from back on 2012...

 

I had used mixed with B&W photos (I shot in Italy) in our bathroom here in AZ...

 

I found this tall woven basket, great for a Majesty Palm, also back in 2012. It was lighter - You can see how i made it darker in my previous post: How to Stain a Wicker Basket. It's super easy and gives a richer look plus highlights the natural texture of the weave...

 

Also back in 2012, I lucked out and scored these palm fronds from the local landscaper...

 

But since then, I've only seen palms too tall, or on peoples private property...

 

This mother-load was at the entrance of the plaza where the thrift store was located...

 

Not the elephant ear palms I'd use in FL - but still beautiful and will add drama... For Free!

 Since I found another tall basket container, I'll probably stain this one too...

 

I already used the other one in the corner of the living room. The blue & white vase is a thrift find I scored a few weeks ago at a 50% off sale at Goodwill. I liked this one because if its size, and it also had a little green mixed in...

As for the palms I scored Sunday -

 

 

I washed them off in the back yard before bringing them inside...

 

Great for another previous find, at Target - Love these modern urns...

 

The framed fabric wall art I made a few years back still works great - Here's the post if you'd like to read - How Make a Framed Fabric Focal Point

I have a bag of sand in the garage, I'll use in the glass cylinders with the white candles...

 

The mirror was a clearance find from JCP quite a few years back. It's been black, last summer I painted it blue (see Relaxed Summer ReStyle), and for holiday I painted it gold (see A Non-Mantel Mantel Display), and still works great in the living room...

 

 

While I was doing my Spring Cleaning, I gathered all the sifting baskets I've collected, and gave them another bath outside - let them dry good in the sun and gave them a coat of clear sealer, which is what I'll do with the new sifting basket finds, before I bring them inside to put up. By the way: See that patch of lighter green on the 'turf'? That's what the Arizona sun has done, reflecting off the bare glass window - The only shade we get is when we open the umbrella, but it can't stay open all the time because of the summer dust storms. This place is CRAZY HOT during the summer - Spring & Fall are the best times to enjoy outdoors (especially any painting) here in AZ...

 

 

Not yesterday, but last week I found these unique woven thrift finds...

 

I had found three, but I only got the two because I was looking for that "something" to layer into my Spring / Summer bedroom makeover, and these worked great! here's a peek...

 

The pops of blue + white + wovens have really helped restyle the bedroom with a refreshed look for Spring / Summer - especially since we're renting and I can't just run out, buy paint, and repaint the room again...

 

Here I used an oval sifting basket as a tray - I think it too was only $2 from thrift... and it works with the burlap covered lamp shade I scored when I found the lamp, thrifting a few weekends ago - Be sure to check out my Thrift Lattice Lamp ReVamp and Spring Vignette post too...

 

There's a LOT you can do for very little when shopping thrift to restyle your house into a home... Gotta love the thrill of thrift - truly a way to personalize your home's story...

What have you thrifted lately?

Thanks for stopping by,

 

 

Decorating With Faux & Fresh Palm Fronds

Looking for a simple way to add a tropical feel to a home for summer? Try adding in some faux or fresh cut palm fronds. Oversized banana palms can add drama to a console table. Fronds that are more finger like, can add a feathery texture to a side tablescape or dining area. An added bonus: Palm leaf decor lasts much longer than flowers. A fresh cut palm placed in a water filler container can last 2 to 4 weeks. Here's a few clippings and ideas of how and where to use palm fronds when decorating for summer...

LOVE India Hicks Island Style for summer.

Great for a seating area...

Palms can give a little life to a dining area...

Welcome guests with a tropical entry vignette...

Or even added to a bedroom suite for sweet summer dreams.

PALM INFO:

Palms, for identification purposes, can be divided into two major groups: those that have palmate or fan-shaped leaves; and those that have pinnate, or feather-shaped leaves. The palmate-leaved species are characterized by a leaf structure in which all leaf segments arise from a single point, similar to the structure of a human hand. Pinnate leaves are characterized by leaves along each side of a central axis, similar in design to that of a feather. Learn more fun facts about palms at SunPalmTrees.com

Here's a few pics of how I've used palms when
Decorating For Summer...

Palmate Palms from a bird of paradise...

Paired with bleached curly willow, white vases, and a conch in a cylinder.

As an alternative to sand, try coffee beans as a glass filler.

 

Console table: thrift. Lamps on console: Ikea. White vases & large glass cylinder: HomeGoods. Ottomans online. Bench Target. Frames: mixed home-stores. Other accessories - client had.

Faux, fresh or photographed - palms can add life to a space...

Bamboo fronds are just as feathery...

Faux or fresh palms remix well with books...

Yes... palm fronds even made their way to

the ColorSplash Studio after its makeover ;-)

Julie - the producer of ColorSplash watching her

screen to see what you'll see before you see it ;-)

Sneak Peek at my refreshed summer dining space...

I washed over the apple green walls, brought the ferns out to the patio, and added palms to turquoise glass bottles.

Tablestyling with palm fronds...

Minimal accessorizing with a single palm in 2007...

(silver urn from HomeGoods)

Collective accessorizing with a palm in 2011.

 The best part about decorating with fresh cut palms, especially if you live in a tropical state like Florida (or even California) is you can enjoy this dramatic decor for free. Just take a walk around your yard , neighborhood, or keep scissors handy in your car to pull over for some fresh cut fronds. To help palms last long (about 2 to 4 weeks), at least once a week: give it a fresh cut and fresh water (change if turning or just add to it if its still clear).

I love NYC, but in the summer, the Cubanita in me definitely turns to

India Hicks for Island Girl Style and decorating with palm fronds.

Happy Summer Decorating!

LINKING POST TO:

Very Merry Vintage Style - Link Love Wednesday

Between Naps On The Porch - Tablescape Thursday

Somewhat Simple - Strut Your Stuff Thursday

Chic On A Shoestring - Flaunt It Friday!

Just A Girl - Show & Share Day