Still In Love With The White Christmas Tree

Wait for it...

Wait for it...

Here it is! I'm still happy to have the little white Christmas tree in the living room!

Now that the little Christmas tree is out of its box once again and the felines are busy killing it, let's go back to the Holiday preparations! My newest acquisition are the two metal Christmas stars hanging on the gallery wall. Made in Germany :) I usually stay away from brown, but I love the way these brown stars echo the trim of the granny lamp.  

There's lots of pink going on here, topped with one of the Sleepy pumpkins I've made for Halloween. Many of you suggested it would be perfect for a Christmas decor, so here it is! I've added a vintage bell - a bronze buddy for the stars on the wall. Plus, I've split the white-washed wooden bird houses on both pink coffee tables (one of which serves as a side table, actually, it's more functional this way).

My cat Junior is not impressed with the way the sun rays play with the branches of the white tree. Oh well, what does he know about the trials and tribulations of a decorating addict!

Looking at these pics, I'm so far from a Christmas-y decor, but I really like it this way. Now I need to figure out what ornaments to put in the tree, so that the cats won't eat them :))

The Perfect Yellow Mum

Yellow! How you're doin'? I hope you all had a great weekend :)

Today's post is nothing more than a weather-dependent blogger's attempt to fight the cold November rain and drizzle. So here are a few pics of a sunny chrysanthemum to brighten up your day. And your entire week - since it's only Monday and we've got so much to do...

The yellow mum looks like total Fall to me. In spite of Christmas coming upon us with a vengeance in the supermarkets and just about every where else in Blogoland, my mood is far from Christmas-y. So let's enjoy a perfectly spherical yellow mum on a perfectly round Tam Tam stool in orange. Oh, and the gourd which would not stand up (click here to read more about how I've finally styled it).

How To Decorate With A Super Gourd

Difficulty: easy peasy;

Time to complete: 10 minutes;

Budget: 1 euro for the gourd;

What I love the most: the contemporary look (which is exactly what I was going for).

Autumn is the perfect time to decorate with elements of nature. There are so many round pumpkins, fiery colored leaves, delicate wild berries, perfect pine cones and crazy looking gourds, that it's practically impossible to resist them. You just have to bring the nature indoors! 

Speaking of crazy shapes, I got this plus-size gourd on a September trip to the South of Romania. It looks like a cross-bread between a bowling pin and a wine decanter, don't you think? I decided to make it the living room attraction, but decorating with a huge gourd is no easy challenge. In case you need to decorate with a single gourd, follow a few design rules:

So let's see what can be done to create a vignette for this outstanding gourd:

1. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION!

Find the perfect spot for your display. Choose a common room if you want more visibility. Make sure that your vignette gets plenty of light and that it's not overshadowed by other decorations in the room. 

The first question was "Where to put the gourd?". My first option would have been the home office, but there already was another gourd arrangement on my desk. So I decided to put it in the living room, where all my friends could see it from the moment they entered the room.

2. CHOOSE YOUR STYLE. 

Should you make a traditional Fall-ish shrine to nature? Should you go streamlined and minimal? The simplest way is to assess your room decor style and to create an assorted vignette.

Even if the classical approach is to make a fall arrangement with many gourds and leaves, I wanted to use the giant gourd as a stand-alone attraction. It also works best with the eclectic style of my home.

3. CHOOSE COLOR, SHAPE AND TEXTURE.

Start with the color of your gourd and work your color scheme around it. You can use a monochromatic, a contrasting or a complementary color scheme, depending whether you want your vignette to look natural & soothing, striking or interesting, respectively.

You don't need to buy new stuff! Go through your cabinets and find items to fit your color scheme.

I decided to use a complementary color scheme, with maximized contrast, for a guaranteed WOW effect. The gourd is green and green's opposite color is red. Green and red would be my color scheme. From this point on, we were down to business. Once I had the plan, I chose the DIY pink/red side table as my base. In the cupboards I found a red pitcher and a red candle holder. They were both round in shape and made of glass, similar in shape to the gourd's "belly" and contrasting with the heavy texture of the gourd.

For an eye-pleasing effect, I added a few items in neutral colors (the lamb and the baby-breath flowers) and  some cute tiny accents (the washi tape and the felt balls).

4. THE TRIANGLE LAYOUT. 

As you may already know, when in doubt use an asymmetric "A" shape layout. This way you make sure that the eyes of the beholder travel throughout the entire vignette. Layer the elements, placing the taller ones in the back row and the smaller ones in the foreground.

The gourd has been a successful conversation-starter, namely because I've made it the focal point of the room. Also, my boyfriend is amused by its shape and size and calls it "his arch-enemy", so the super-gourd is a great addition to our home :)

The Granny Lamp

Hello, my darling granny lamp! You are the joy of my life! I've been obsessed with you for quite some time... I used to see you in the pages of beautiful home magazines, in eclectic interiors, in vintage revival coffee shops and in contemporary boho abodes... I traveled my home city back and fourth looking for you! I never missed an update from the local vintage shop and I made sure to hit all the antique fairs in the past year and a half. And from the first time I laid my eyes on you in my favorite shop, I knew we were meant to be together!

I will always cherish the fact that you cost only a fraction of the [outrageous] prices of the other granny lamps I've met along the way. You are the perfect size for my living room! You could use a little more color, but that's just one DIY project away. And my friends say you're too drab for my style, but only I know how long I've been dreaming about you! Come join me for a warm cup of rooibos tea and be my charming friend in the long nights ahead of us :)

Spring Challenge: Airy But Colorful Living Room

Hello, lovely ladies, how are doing today? Is it raining, yeah? In my home town it's raining, too. But that never stopped me from getting ready for the joys of Spring. I put together a colorful living room, following a few simple steps:

1. Keep it airy. Gather as many light surfaces as you can. Put a white cover on the couch! Switch your art with pastel paintings or photos! Fortunate enough to work with white walls and creme leather seating, I just made sure that my gallery wall features some items in light colors.

2. Ground it. Choose a little contrast for the floors. This way, the all-white-furniture in the room won't look like it is floating on a space base. I used my beautiful traditional rug with a powerful geometric pattern.

3. Add colorful accents. There are no rules here, the light background allows you to throw in anything small and colorful that you already have at home. I just dragged in some colorful pillows, the gay lamp and the hyacinth bulbs in ceramic cups :)

Good news, everyone! My colorful living room has been featured at Becolorful, Simply Designing, Him And Her, Sugar And Dots, Craftionary, One Project Closer, What-About Co, Five Days... Five Ways, The Gingerbread Blog, Dreamsicle Sisters, That DIY Show Off and Tidy Mom. Thank you so much for the support, lovely ladies!

Random Happy Home

There is not much going on at home, for the moment. I feel like I'm waiting for something - I think it's spring I'm waiting for. Lots of small stuff are piling up on the cabinets. Meanwhile, the rooms have totally lost their holiday decorations and are back to normal. This is quite interesting, because in the past few years you could see Christmas stuff even in the first days of March :)) The plants and flowers are looking good and starting to get new life.

Speaking of flowers, I totally forgot to plant my bulbs for the winter. I should have done it ages ago - and I clearly remember buying this hyacinth bulb on the 14th of October. It should have been in full bloom by now, silly me. But I always say, better late than never - so I shall plant tulips and hyacinths tomorrow.

Everything stands still in the living room. Having friends over last weekend means lots of poufs and pillows for extra seating on the floor. And far in the back, there is a box full of yarn balls. I feel like crocheting something for early spring, perhaps in mint shades.

And here is the proof, dear ladies: I finally took down the decorations from the white Christmas tree, put them in the Christmas box and stored the box up on a shelf in the balcony, until next time. That feels liberating!

Sneak peek of the orchid getting ready to burst out with an elegant crown of amazing sensual flowers. Don't worry, I'll keep you informed once they have bloomed :)

And a bonus pic: there is still plenty of snow outside. Looking at my outfit, I wonder why I was dressed just like the Christmas elf?!

Goodbye, Halloween Gallery!

We are one week into December and my Halloween gallery is still up on the wall. I don't really mind, because it gives a good sexy vibe to the room. Besides, in my family nobody puts up the Christmas decorations until the 22nd of December (if you're diligent an you celebrate St. Steven) or until the 24th (because the tradition here is to put the tree up on Christmas Eve, not  a day earlier). I mean, my father would be utterly confused if he knew that I planned for everything to be ready this very weekend (Christmas tree included)...

On the coffee table, a white washed wooden bird house makes a first step towards a winter mood. It goes well with the neon pumpkin, as they are both snow white. All i need is more candles :) I am also happy to report that I ditched the black shag rug and put the ethnic beauty in its place. The black rug just isn't "me" anymore. Anyway, with the black and white art, the traditional rug and the light blue touches, everything is cheery again!

Turquoise And Purple On The Coffee Table

Turquoise is still ranking high among my color preferences, so I had a little idea for a late Fall arrangement. The result? This turquoise and purple vignette on my coffee table. The inspiration came from two little serving bowls in these colors, that I first used for Autumn fruit here on the kitchen counter. Now the grapes are long gone and I've filled them up with pretty pine cones, hand picked in the forest by yours truly.  A small thrifted purple vase and my out-of-shape, larger than life blood-leaf (iresine is the official name of the plant) complete the vignette.

I really like the way that the black-and-white art gallery acts as a backdrop for the "front row" vignette on the coffee table. Instead of turquoise and purple, I can imagine infinite chromatic possibilities. Too bad that I need to change the art again, when I am ready with the Christmas preparations. But until then, I might as well enjoy this arrangement and pray that the cats don't knock anything down.

I think I also need to make a drastic gesture and trim the beautiful blood-leaf plant. The more you trim it, the more it grows sideways, developing a beautiful bushy structure. I just can't bring myself to cut those tall strains, at all. Well, perhaps I shall do it tomorrow and in spring the blood-leaf will look a lot different from this skinny one :) And on the bright side, I can put the cuts in water, hoping that they will grow new roots, thus enriching my plant collection on the little balcony.

This purple and turquoise vignette was featured at Homework. A million thanks, Carolyn!

Autumn Flower Pot: Mums!

Happy Happy Joy Joy! The purple mums are here and they make my heart sing :) You probably know by now my weakness for plants and flowers. Any plant, any flowers. I call them my silent pets and I love to watch them grow and get happy or moody. And I cry when they die (and I can't help but think that it's me who's killing them with too much water or something). But mums? Oh, I love them even more! They are so joyful and friendly and not fussy at all. And the colors they come in make Fall the best looking season of them all!

You may recognize the giant black pear from my Halloween gallery wall. But the living room looks so much nicer now, with the purple mums in their white pot and a little Uzbek wooden friend on the side. The color scheme makes me wish I had more rooms to decorate. Wouldn't it be pretty to dress-up a space in jewel tones of ruby and amethyst and top it with a little amber touch? Well, maybe in the future I could whip up something along these lines in the bedroom...

The thing that you can't see in these pictures in the smell. The wonderful aroma of chrysanthemums, a little sweet and a little bitter, bringing the damp November rain feeling in the house. I associate their perfume with crisp weather and a sense of family belonging. Maybe because we had lots of Fall celebrations when I was a little girl. And the funny thing is that many people here in Romania hate the smell of mums and call it rotten. But I like it so much!

Halloween Gallery Wall

Friends, this is the reason why I took all the art down this week. I was in the mood for a dramatic change: a gallery wall with a Halloween theme. Now it is finally done and I get the feeling that I live in a completely different house. Every time I walk into the living room, the bold art strikes me in the face. It's like living on a film set (and what's to complain about that?)

To tell you the truth, I just wanted to have a black pear on my wall. You know me, why pay for something when you can do it (almost) for free? So I payed a visit to my favorite supply store, where I found a sturdy black cardboard that stole my heart with its matte finish and soft texture. I came home and I traced the outline of the pear, cut it with the Exacto and framed it the next morning. So far so good, only that my beautiful pear didn't go with any of the thin-lined art from the Fall transition living room.

"Well, I'll just have to change the rest of the art" was the first thought that came to my mind. As the spooky Halloween approaches, the theme came to my mind naturally. Good thing that the pear was already black: it's quite appropriate for Halloween! I just went out and bought some more of the same textured black cardboard, just enough to replace all the other pictures in the room. This way, I only payed like 4 bucks :)