Dining Room Drama

My dining room update is moving along, slowly but surely. I found the perfect curtains. Well, almost perfect. They're a bit short, so I need to either move the rod down or add some trim to bottom of the panels—probably the ladder.

So with that in mind, here are some of my favorite dramatic dining spaces.

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Decisions Made

You probably know by now that it takes me awhile to make a decision. Not always, but I can take my time. But after struggling with some decor choices, I think I've finally made up my mind.

First in the dining room, I think I've found curtain fabric I like. Well, two fabrics, either of which will work:

Pretty, aren't they? They have the colors I'm looking for (a white background with red, blue and yellow—well, they're more gold, but close enough), and the patterns are fun and not too traditional. Jo-Ann's didn't have enough of either pattern when I was there, but I'm sure I'll be able to find what I need.

I also want to make a matching panel for the sliding glass door in the kitchen. I've been struggling with what to do about that since we moved in. It has vertical blinds (shudder!). I leave them open most of the time since we don't have privacy or light control issues there, but I like to close them when the gardeners are here, because that calms my dogs (OK, only a bit, but I'll take what I can get). The panel can go over the blinds and hide them for the majority of the time they're not in use.

I also think I'm going to use a stencil rather than wallpaper on the back wall of the dining room. My reasoning is that if I decide I don't like the stencil, I can always paper over it. Plus, I want to use the stencil in other rooms, so it won't go to waste. I haven't decided exactly which stencil yet, but probably this one.

As for the living room, I think I'll take Charmaine's advice and paint it the console coral. It's a very bold choice for me, but I need to push myself a bit. Thanks, Charmaine!

I've also decide to stick with the curtains that are there but maybe add some trim to the ends in the same fabric I use in the dining room.The colors will work, and it will all tie in together.

So now that I've made my decisions, it's time to get to work!

Are you stuck on any home projects? How did you finally get past it?

Inspired by: Bar Carts

While looking around for inspiration for my dining room redo, I keep coming across beautiful bar carts. They're so versatile, beautiful and retro-mod, and metallic finishes add a bit of sparkle. With the holiday season in full swing, they're perfect for entertaining.

Here are some of my favorites:

Society Social

Apartment Therapy

Bo Bedre

Society Social

Ivy & Piper via Northern Light

Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles via Aesthetic Oiseau

Clayton Gray Home

Design*Sponge

And here's an insanely adorable mini one from Nicole for the I'm a Giant dollhouse challenge:

Making It Lovely

But it doesn't have to be a cart. A tray can make a pretty presentation:

Off the Wall

I've mentioned before that I want to make some changes in my dining room. Never one to jump into anything too fast, I still haven't chosen fabric for curtains. But the ideas are always flowing, and I have something in mind for the back wall:

We're considering adding clerestory windows along the top of that wall to bring in more light (we don't want anything too big as there's just a view of the fence on that side of the house).

But I want to give it some punch, some wow. I considered wallpaper. Some really beautiful papers are available these days:

Hygge & West

Wilderness

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Paeonia

But I'm not keen on putting up something permanent, in case I change my mind or we ever sell the house. So I considered removable wallpaper:

Curtain Call

There's nothing like a trip to Jo-Ann's to get my creative juices flowing. I'm not much of a DIYer—I generally prefer to buy things already made. The pros can do it better than I can, and I know my ideas are more ambitious than my follow-through.

But sometimes I get something very specific in my head and just can't find it in a store. Or I have something that just needs a little somethin'-somethin' to spruce it up. That's when I head to Jo-Ann's for inspiration. And my latest trip gave me all sorts of great ideas.

I'm looking for curtains for the living room and dining room. Last year we got new living room furniture, and the old curtains—really more of a window scarf—just don't work any longer. The old furniture was green, but now the sofa is a cocoa color and the chairs are pale blue. I'm leaning toward something bold, with blues and greens, a striking contrast to the soft green damask I have now.

For the dining room, which is primarily yellow/gold and red, I want to add some blue. That would tie it into the living room a bit, since the spaces are adjacent, with what is essentially a half wall separating them.

I've been eyeing these curtains (without the valance—really, they're cuter in person), but there's a problem. I made the curtains that are there, and they're longer than your standard store-bought panels. So I figure I have three choices: rehang the rod lower, add trim to the bottom of a premade curtain, or make them from scratch.