Chairs...and Foo Dogs!

I just picked up my new cream leather chairs today and I can't wait to get our TV room all set up!! I didn't realize how low they sat, so I'm still hoping that the new coffee table we bought still works with them (I'm sure it will!).  Along with the chairs, I also bought a GIANT silver striped vase (for my entrance?? Literally, it's like 42 inches tall!), a glass base lamp, 4 little wall art mirrors, a (fake) orchid plant (I'm not normally a fan of fake plants, but this looks SO nice), and a pair of foo dogs (that will be a DIY project of mine to paint them white) like below...I thought they were VERY cheesy when I first saw them while I was helping sort our Interior Designer's storage units at work. But then I saw an ugly dragon figurine turned into a timeless, more expensive looking figurine on The Nate Show with Nate Berkus.

Here's a picture of what my Foo Dogs (also known as Chinese Dogs) look like (except mine are an olive green). Won't they look so much better white?? I'm thinking of putting one of these guys on the shelves that will go behind our new chairs.

 "Foo Dogs are typically used in Asian art & sculptures.  They are protective, strong, and courageous."

Here is a picture of the dragon I saw on an episode of The Nate Show (click here for the DIY from Nate's show)



The dragon before (not the prettiest, huh?)



And the dragon after (an audience member thought it cost about $250 from a store)  Nate proved a simple DIY project could turn the ugly foo dogs I saw -- which  I thought were gargoyles!! -- into something amazing, so I grabbed them!!



I don't know about you, but I think I'm addicted to DIY projects now...I've only done one (my jewelry picture frames), but now I look at so many things and think, "that could be a DIY project!!"

'Til next time!

New to the world of Blogging....

I am new to the world of blogging. I never even read blogs 'til about a year ago, when my younger brother started dating someone new. She had a blog. So I followed her on it (other than that, I had only viewed my wedding photographer's blog, and mainly because I wanted to get a sneak peak of our wedding photos before they were actually all done!!). Since blog-stalking my (new) sister-in-law, I've branched out! (haha) I started out just reading because I was curious who this new girl was. But have since stopped blog-stalking her and started reading other blogs (see, I branched out!!), from a variety of photographers (due to a new found interest in photography and being a new photography student) to a range of decorating blogs, and (just putting this out there) even my other sister-in-law's blog (she's a BRILLIANT illustrator -- check Crystal Driedger out here) .  With my background in designing houses, it's only a natural transition for me to have an interest in what goes in the house, instead of just where all the walls go!  And with our recent house renovations, all I can think about is what can I buy and where can I put it...although most of my ideas usually get put to the back burner or squashed altogether due to finances, but it's still a desire.  I want a beautiful home, so why not get ideas from those out there?

Maybe it's the "designer" in me, but I want a beautiful blog too! Not knowing anything about blogging, I haven't the first clue on how to even replace my title with a logo (or even a picture banner of my pics like this blog).  With a graphic designer for a brother, you'd think he'd help me out a bit...but when he won't even design me a logo for (future??) custom home design company (that I'd like to start so I can work part-time from home and raise the kids when we have them...), I doubt he'll do it for a blog! I know there are free logo design softwares out there, I just don't know where to start in importing it to my blog...any suggestions?? I know there are no followers yet, but just putting it out there to the world....  I'm still not satisfied with the blog name, I just couldn't think of anything else, and wanted to get going!!

On a side note, here's a few pics of a recent DIY project I took on:



From Style at Home Magazine - my inspiration



The mess my jewelry was before...

My jewelry after (picture frames without the glass, scrapbooking paper for the background, finishing nails to hang the necklaces, and ribbon and hot glue for the earrings -- I also tossed a bunch of necklaces that I hadn't worn in about 8 years!!)

I love it. It's my own little homemade girly piece of art. Goes very well in my office/makeup room!

'Til next time!