Mrs R's Great Room and Kitchen design

I've taken a break from blogging for a little while. It seemed that a fun filled jam packed summer turned into a busy fall too. Although the posts have been few and far between, I have been busy with lots of fun projects.

Mrs R's Great Room and Kitchen design was started at the beginning of summer and finished in late July. I just recently got all the pictures of the finished space photographed, and ready for a fantastic reveal.  I want to start with some of the before shots to show you just how far we've come.

I was approached by Mrs R about her desire for a brighter lighter Great Room, Kitchen space. I was excited to see the possibilities inside her darling home.

This home has fantastic bones!!! Beautiful details inside her home include, to die for hardwood floors, custom molding and doors, a gourmet kitchen with gorgeous granite counter tops, beadboard island and custom cabinetry. Her dining nook is the perfect space for great family dinners filled with windows overlooking the back yard. The windows flow along the back wall of the Great Room into a spacious Family Room. This room has a large corner stone fireplace, that's a amazing focal point in the space. What a gold mine to work with!!!

When she suggested that she wanted more of a light and a brighter look for the space, I thought that maybe there wasn't adequate lighting or enough windows, however once I took a look, I realized that the colors and textures all tended to be on the darker brown side of the color wheel.

After the initial consultation, we discussed a plan and a budget. One of her main desires for the space was to have plantation shutters installed on the entire main floor of her home. I loved the idea and dream about shutters in my own house. We talked about going with white shutters throughout to brighten the space, but her husband had a dark wood tone that matched the kitchen cabinets in mind. After much debate they decided to go with a dark wood tone plantation shutter throughout. You might think it would be hard to brighten the space while bringing in a dark element like plantation shutters, but they actually add a architectural accent to all of the lovely windows her house offers. Here are some great examples of a light and bright room with dark plantation shutters.

The next step was to change the paint on the walls, ceiling, trim and doors. When the house was built a 6-7 years ago they used a darker two tone tan color on the walls and ceiling, and a dark brown/green color on the doors and trim. Now a few years later styles have changed to a more white/brighter look. After looking at some color schemes, Mrs R decided to go with a creamy yellow for the walls, a bright white for the ceiling, trim and doors. She also wanted to accent the nook in the dining area with a light Robin Egg blue color. Here are some of the color schemes that helped her decide.

One of my favorite go to's to help a client decide on a color or color scheme for their space is Pinterest. Pinterest has lots of pins that show color schemes and colors, and is a great visual reference for clients. Be aware however, that the actual colors might vary quite a bit from the picture you see on Pinterest. It's always a good idea to have the actual paint chip in hand and a test sample of the color to be sure.

Mrs R loved the creamy white and light blue from the top picture with pops of red and yellow from the bottom picture. Off to Sherwin Williams I went to get a sample. The colors listed in the picture from Pinterest did vary quite a bit. I did my best to match the colors and tried a few samples of their creamy white until we found the perfect shade, "Eggwhite". The blue she picked for the nook was "Copen Blue", and the ceiling, trim and doors were painted "Snowbound".

Wall Color

Dining Nook

Ceiling, Doors and Trim

With the plantation shutters taking up the bulk of Mrs R's budget, she and her husband painted the entire space (walls, ceiling, trim and doors) themselves. YAY way to go!!! This was not an easy task, but saved them a pretty penny in labor costs.

The immediate change was very dramatic. The space seems so much brighter and happier with the lighter ceiling, trim, door and wall color. It also made the custom darker features of her home...kitchen cabinets, fireplace stone, etc stand out more. I love it!! 

Come back tomorrow to see how we continue to brighten this space and bring fun color to make it POP.

Ammo Box "WINNER"

Thanks again for all the support and love for West Creek Design. Our Ammo Box "WINNER" is Angela Jacob!!!!! Congrats Angela, I'll have your box ready on Tues for you to pick up.  For everyone else who entered this drawing, if you are still interested in purchasing a Ammo Box, they are posted at $45. Because of a recent accident involving my darling friend Brenda Zaugg. I'm now offering the Fresh Flower box or Fresh Herb box for $35.00, with $10 of every purchase going to the #BrendaStrong fund to help with her medical costs. You can message me on FB or instagram or email me @ westcreekdesign@gmail.com to purchase either boxes while quantities last.

Studio 5 "Ammo Box Table" segment

http://studio5.ksl.com/index.php?nid=61&sid=31392833

Seen on Studio 5 today "Fresh Flowers" & "Fresh Herb" Table Centerpiece Boxes for sale

I have a few more of these darling "Fresh Flowers" table centerpieces or "Fresh Herbs" window sill boxes available.

If you are interested in purchasing one please contact me @ westcreekdesign@gmail.com 

 

The cost is $45.00, they can be finished in either the Annie Sloan "Old White" (Fresh Herb Box shown) or "French Linen"( Fresh Flowers shown). The boxes measure 19"Wx21"Lx7 1/2"H . Local pick up is available or shipping for additional charge of $20.00

Featured today on Studio 5 today! Not your average "Ammo Box"

A few weeks ago I was wondering around a military surplus store here in northern Utah and came across a gem of a find. A wooden ammo box. I knew with the darling rope handles and rusty hinges whatever I did with this box would be to die for.

 

After some thought I decided to turn it into a console table for my family room. To do this I came home and blasted the box with my garden hose. After I was sure there were no living things inside I took a sander to it, making sure to lightly sand in order to leave intact the original character of the wood.

 

Next I took off the top lid of the box by removing a hinge. Then I made the legs by using 2 2x4's for each leg. I measured the height I needed it to fit in, and cut the 2x4's with my miter saw.

Next I used my nail gun to attach the 2x4's to the upside down ammo box. For the feet I used 2 2x4's again, but cut these at a 30 degree angle for a decorative look.

 

For the painted finish I used Annie Sloan chalk paint in "Old White" for the top, and the same brand of chalk paint in "French Linen" for the base. I used my rub technique process. This is where I take one of my husbands old socks and dip it into the paint and then rub it onto the wood. This painting technique allows you to give the wood a uniform look but still allows the character of the wood to come through. Afterwards, I sealed the paint with Annie Sloan's clear wax.

 

Tada....my finished console table. I love it and the fact that it's a one of a kind:)

 

Here are some other fun projects I was able to pull off using the Ammo Box...

A Table Tray

 

A Porch Flower Box w/ caster wheels

 

 

A Darling Table Centerpiece

 

A Herb Garden Box

Pallet Wall Art

 

Coffee table rehab...

I've been working on redoing my family room. Nothing big, just changing the color scheme and a few pieces of furniture. One important component for me was to find the perfect coffee table. I wanted a classic look (very Pottery Barnish), but not a Pottery Barnish price. It also needed to have storage, and caster wheels.(I love caster wheels) 

Low and behold while I was grocery shopping at Sam's Club I came across a table that could work.

(With a few modifications of course) This beauty had the perfect shape and size. Half of the table top lifts up like a TV tray, great for working on my laptop or eating a snack while watching TV. Underneath the table top that lifts up is storage for blankets, magazines etc. The other side of the table has a drawer for remotes and DVD's.

Best of all it was priced under $300. So I made the jump and purchased it. 

Now what I failed to mention is that the wood tone is not my favorite, and it did not have any caster wheels:( However, with my handy hubby I knew we could add the caster wheels. I found a great wheel at Lowe's that had a gold/coppery color with a black wheel.

Loved it!!! These wheels are press fit. My husband first had to drill a graduated hole in the legs of the table. Then he added a dab of glue to the hole and then hammered the wheel in place. 

As for the color of the table, I used Annie Sloan's Old White chalk paint. I decided to leave the top wood and just paint the sides and legs.

Because of the awesome wood grain, the chalk paint grabbed onto some of the grain really well and not so well in other spots. This gave the table a weathered look that I'm in love with.

After everything was dry, I did a light coat of clear wax. Next the metal pulls were ok, but I wanted more of a rubbed gold look. To do this, I sprayed a white tube sox with gold spray paint and rubbed it on to the metal pulls. This kept with the weathered look, and gave the metal pulls a vintage look.

The paint and caster wheels changed this from an average coffee table to a coffee table that is special and unique. I love it!!! Here's some more pictures.

Stay tuned next week for pics of my family room redo.