Mix and Chic New Dining Room Inspiration via Chairish

Since we have made the decision to downsize to a smaller home, I have realized that I am going to have to let go of my large dining room furnishings. I have a huge china hutch that is over 10 feet long and a dining table that seats up to 12. This is not going to work in the new house, so I've been window shopping over at Chairish.com. Have you discovered this little gem, yet?

Chairish is online shopping heaven, in my opinion. Their tagline is "Where Design Lovers Buy and Sell" if you are downsizing, like me or love design, this is the place to shop and sell. I love this page on Shabby Chic Style.

I will be going with my same mix of modern and Shabby Chic furnishings for our new home. I will need a much smaller dining room table. I have these 3 in mind:

 

The color and scale of this Lilly Pulitzer dining set makes my heart happy.

 

I like the idea of this simple farm table with bench seating. I could squeeze more people around this table and the bench wouldn't take up as much space visually. I'd probably paint the legs white.

 

This classic design with neutral colors is probably more like what we will go with. If the table had a leaf that extended it, this would be the one.

I will also need a replacement hutch. I found this lovely Vintage Ming Style Lacquered Buffet for only $1450. The scale is much better.

 

But I really am a Shabby Chic, Vintage loving girl at heart, so I think I will go with something more like this rustic gray piece.

 

Isn't it dreamy? Oh, and you must check out the accessories, the lighting and the rugs! I want these:

 

 

Is my design style "all over the place"? Probably. But I love mixing and matching Shabby Chic, rustic, new and modern pieces to create my own unique "Mix and Chic" style.

Downsizing has been a hard decision, but with most of our children grown, it is time to spend less time on our house and more time on vacation, don't you think? I will be excited to fill the new smaller home with lovely smaller furnishings and will be probably be listing my larger furniture pieces to sell on Chairish.com.

Now on to house hunting! Wish me luck. I'll be blogging our journey.

How to change your header image in Blogger

If you are looking for a quick and easy way to give your Blog an update, try changing the Header Image.  The header image replaces the Title and Description of your blog. You can also add a header image that floats under your Title and Description. I'll explain how to do both.

To Add A Header Image that replaces Title and Description:

My new header image was created in Adobe Illustrator. It is 1000px x 230px. Blogger automatically shrunk it to fit the Image Header space (Just click the "Shrink To Fit" option). You can draw these in Picasa or Photo Shop, just about any program that lets you save the image as a .jpg or .png file.

Here is my new one, created on a white rectangular background to get it to fit the space.

To update your Header Image in Blogger Follow these simple steps:

1. Go to Layout section of your Blogger Dashboard

Click Layout Tab in Orange Above.

2. Click on Edit under the Header Tab

Edit Header

3. Configure Header:

Click on Upload File

1.  Upload Image
2. Click "Shrink to fit" Tab before image loads (hurry, this option disappears quick)
3. Click the Instead of Title and Description Button
4. When your image appears hit "Save"
5. Preview the changes and make sure your image looks right
6. You may need to edit your image in your drawing program to get it to fit just right.

To Update Your Header Image to Float under Title and Description:

Follow directions as above but do not click "Instead of Title and Description" Button, instead click the "Behind Title and Description" Button. This will make your header appear something like the following:

I used a simple chalkboard background image that I made in Illustrator. I also changed the font Dancing Script, 80 point and white in the Template Tab on your Dashboard. It would not allow me to change the description font, just the color. You could probably adjust that in CSS but that is much more complicated.{I wrote a post on how to change fonts in Blogger HERE.}

Here is a free downloadable copy of the chalkboard header I used above. Just click the image to enlarge it and "save as".
 

If you are looking for a new header image or need help with creating one, let me know. I can help you with that. I just launched my new Blog Design Website, go check it out Nana Moon Designs. Eventually these 2 blogs will become one.

Happy Blogging! 

Web and Blog Design

I am working on a new design for my blog, so you might see a few changes over the next week. I have been meaning to do it for some time now but have been concentrating on my other job as a web designer.

In 2009, I started designing websites as a freelancer. I have 9 active websites that I currently manage for clients. They range from standard Blogger Blogs, WordPress based websites to full HTML/Java designed sites. They are all challenging, some needing much more attention than others. Lately, I have been concentrating on WordPress based websites that most of my clients are savvy enough to edit themselves. Here are a few examples of my latest WordPress sites. To see my entire portfolio, go to my website Opportunity Designs.

This WordPress based website features an interactive calendar and online appointment scheduling options. Explore this website HERE.

This WordPress based Real Estate Website works with Realtor's IDX system and allows multiple home search options. Explore this website HERE.

This WordPress based website for the Wedding Chapel that my sister and I own works for both blogging and as a sales tool. Explore this website HERE.

If you are thinking about a new blog or website send me an email. I would love to explore the opportunities with you!

Turning 1970s office into a wedding chapel and so much more

In June, my sister Heather and I signed the lease for a 2000+ square foot building that we intended to turn into a Wedding Chapel. We worked along with our husbands, parents and children to turn this:

In to this:

And this:

In to this:

We took the ceiling down and replaced it with bead board and lots of trim. Heather and I learned to use a table saw and many power tools without fear. We learned to measure once and cut 2 or 3 times is very, very frustrating.  We learned the difference between "Tree Housing It" and the right way. But we still prefer to "Tree House It" whenever possible.

We found beauty in small things, like this mound of saw dust that signified 12 hours of hard work.

We found strength to climb ladders and hold our hands above our head until they were shaking. Yes, that's me on the green ladder, along with James (Heather's fiance) , Kaleb (my son) and Joe (my husband).

 

Heather prying off years of old plaster that was attached to our cinder block exterior wall.

 

In the midst of it all....

Heather and James got married...in our almost finished Chapel. I officiated it. (This was at the end of the night still working in wedding dress and tuxedo.)

 

Our Dad seen here on top of cabinet had a heart attack. Not here, at home a few weeks after this photo.

Me, my 3 sisters, my brother and parents were brought so much closer. And Dad is doing great. He even let us do a huge family selfie at the hospital.

My daughter, Samantha got married. James officiated, our Chapel and family did all of the work for a "Pop Up" Wedding at my In-Law's river property. It was a magical night.

It has been quite a summer. We opened Something Blue Wedding Chapel and Boutique on October 10th. I hope you will check out the rest of our chapel over on our website: www.SomethingBlueChapel.com I built the website using WordPress in my spare time. :)

How was your summer?