Wood and |French| Linen Dresser

Well, we are in our 4th week of school here and only time will tell if I ever settle down and get used to the quiet of the house and the slower pace without my little ones around. Until then, I'll have a steady stream of things to share here! Turns out I'm finding comfort in creativity, just as I did years ago when my babies were new and I had that deer in the headlights look. Cate and I have had beautiful conversations about how we feel so connected with our Creator when we're creating. The joy we feel when creating something is just one way we've been made in His image, and this is where I've turned yet again during a difficult transition in life.

So today I'm sharing the third piece I've refinished since the kids have started school! You can catch up on the details of the first and second pieces if you'd like, but I'd say there is absolutely no trend from one piece to the next. I've been all over the place and have enjoyed myself immensely with each piece.

Today's piece leans a lot more rustic than the first two! I stripped the dark peeling stain from the beautifully angled drawer fronts and left that gorgeous wood alone!

Over the weekend my girl Shire and I took a tiny trip out to historic downtown Leesburg, VA to The Cottage, where we snagged a can of French Linen chalk paint by Annie Sloan. I love this warm greige color - it reminds me of putty! It's one of those neutrals that's a striking contrast to black, navy, brown, charcoal - it's just gorgeous. And because of it's warmth I tend to use it every Fall when the air turns crisp.

I styled this piece with a striking print from my friend Jessica over at Vol.25! The quality of her prints is really unparalleled. The designs are unique, the colors sharp, and she even sells them already attached to these wooden brackets. We actually just used a couple of her prints in a design project we're wrapping up this Fall! I'm sure you'll have no trouble spotting them when we reveal the space!

This piece is now available for sale!
48"H x 38.25"W x 18"D
$465
Please contact chelsea@stylemutthome.com if interested!

Thank you for stopping by!

Intended Flip-Turned-Keeper

Hi friends! Popping by today to share a quick flip from last week - my second piece since the kids started school a few weeks ago, and after the first one sold so fast I was feeling a premature adrenaline rush from finishing another and getting it in the shop. I definitely didn't expect a change of heart!

It wasn't even when I was finished painting this piece, (in Rustoleum Protective Enamel in flat white), that I decided to hold onto it. It was the process of styling it for photos!

Matt and I have been planning a little re-design on our main floor which will leave a prominent wall empty. Given the dimensions of this rather petite piece, (it's only 66.5" tall and 37" wide), I wouldn't have thought it proportionately appropriate for a wall that is nearly 12 feet high.

But while styling this piece for photos to get it ready for sale, I started to fall in love with the empty space around it. I added a distressed piece of leather that I stole from a chair, (that I promised my husband I'd put back together), above the piece, as well as a snake plant standing tall by it's side. All of a sudden this piece took on a larger presence than it's modest dimensions.

And the detailing on the drawer and cabinets? Well that was love at first sight anyways!

Cate and I have always remained true to our own unique styles when we refinish furniture. I can honestly say that every piece I've ever done is how I would refinish it for my own home. And sure, my style has changed over the years so what I was doing 5 years ago isn't necessarily what I'd do now, but it's all been true to my style at the time. For this reason it's often hard to see pieces go, but every once in a blue moon I am my own customer.

I can't wait to share the redesign of our main floor but it will be a few months, though, as our Fall schedule has left little room for such work; like a current E-Design job that we're wrapping up in the middle of October! It's coming along beautifully - here's a recent progress shot that our client sent over!

We'll be sharing the full tour in about a month - it'll be full of a few surprises we can't wait to reveal!

Thank you all for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

Color of the Year: Did Pantone Get It RIght?

Hi friends! Over the better part of the last decade I have found a tremendous amount of enjoyment from home decorating and styling. I desire to further my knowledge and soak in as much as I can both from a creative standpoint as well as the business. A large part of this business is understanding the ebb and flow of trends. Trends have always fascinated me even well before I stepped into the interior decorating world. How does an idea take off and become trendy? Who gets the ball rolling? Is it every day people or the rich and famous?

Then you have trend predictions which further add to my curiosity. One of the first trend predictions I started following a number of years ago was the Pantone color of the year. Didn't know there was such a thing? Here, take a look at some of their recent selections:

How do they pick the color year after year? I understand it from a marketing standpoint. With every declaration of which color will be leading the way that year you see the ripple effect right down to the most accessible and popular shopping destinations, such as Target, HomeGoods, Pottery Barn, etc. And then the celebrity designers partnering with those stores, (think Emily Henderson and Target), start styling their projects with the newest goodies available, showing everyone just how to incorporate the declared color of the year in a tasteful, manageable way.

This year the color turned out to be a twofer! They picked not just one, but two colors for 2016: Rose Quartz and Serenity. Here, they created this image of a faceless woman wearing a flowing cape to make the announcement:

Since this is an honest place I'll admit, I wasn't terribly excited by this combo. It brought me back to the days of when we had new boy-girl twins under our roof and everything was baby pink and baby blue. And really, other than a blush crocheted throw pillow at target I've barely noticed these colors make any strong statement this year.

Then something strange happened. I started noticing a different color breaking through the color-of-the-year combo - dark green!

If you're a big Fixer Upper fan you may recognize the photo above and the one below. They're just two examples from Joanna Gaines' strong use of dark green in their latest season which finished earlier this year. I noticed this color in just about every episode and I absolutely adored it.

And with the Fixer Upper cult following, I wondered if anyone else noticed as well. So I picked up a can of dark green, (Behr's 'Secluded Woods'), to refinish a mid-century dresser last Spring and it got scooped up within days. I had so many inquiries on that piece that once it sold, I had an immediate request for a nearly identical custom piece, (below on left).

I took the Summer mostly off from refinishing to focus on my family and some design jobs, but as soon as the kids went back to school last week I painted this beauty below in Ralph Lauren's 'Scholar Green', and it was taken within two days.

 
 

Is there a new color trending? Will it carry over to 2017? I sure hope so as we've got a little surprise to show you in a design job we're working on right now! But until we're ready to reveal, here are some more stunning examples of this moody color casually staking its claim:

Thank you all for stopping by!