Designology Interiors

A store is born

2015-10-28T08:37:00.003-07:00

We have been searching for the perfect place to set up shop for a while now. We were looking for an older building- a bit of a fixer upper, and we wanted to find the perfect location. We {finally!} found it. It was built as a residence in 1901 and it has been home to a church, a yoga studio and now our little shop, East Street Home.

The building sits on a hill that overlooks the Farmers Market and in the winter the city piles up all the snow and makes a huge sledding hill. They have ice skating, warming tents and marshmallows. As a person who strongly dislikes winter, this actually sounds perfect!

There are a few Anthropology-ish elements like these doors. Chipped perfection.

... then there is this 90's Kitchenette. Yikes. Don't worry, it's already gone to the curb.

We are working on refinishing the floors, painting and reviving the interior a little... and finding lots of goods. Our home is a balance of old, less-than-perfect pieces mixed with new pieces and our store will be just that. Home away from home.

More updates soon.

Designing with our better half

2015-08-22T17:27:00.000-07:00

As an interior designer, I have learned that there are design elements that guys just will not go for. No. matter. what. Here are the top unspoken guy design rules. {I'm hoping to change a few of these in our house.}

Herringbone pattern: It's a no- go for wood flooring, fabric patterns, and definitely the kitchen backsplash. I've tried. I was able to sneak it into our tiny wine room floor, so there is *some* hope. Same goes for Chevron pattern. How can you not fall for this classic crisp zig-zag pattern?

Via

Pink: They will look at it closely and turn to me and ask if I see a hint of pink. Ladies, they are super suspicious of our every {design} move!

Via

Brass: My husband thinks it's old fashioned and grandma-ish. Oh how I wish he could be converted to the ways of Anthropologie. When I tried to spray paint the claw foot tub feet brass he jokingly said,"brass is *ss".

Via

Turquoise: This happens to be my favorite color so I have to sneak it in the house gradually. My hubs thinks it's too vintage-y. I've even tried calling it blue-green to accentuate the blue side of it. Not happening.

Via

Love it or list it

2015-07-17T15:24:00.000-07:00

So I've been on a bit of a break with the blog since my life turned into Love it or list it. Really.

We received a handwritten note in our mailbox a few months ago from someone that was interested in buying our house, if we would consider selling. {Our house wasn't for sale but we had been thinking about relocating, so we were tempted.}

We agreed on a price and then during the inspection the buyers criticized *every* detail... down to the garbage disposal and every shingle on the roof. We loved our old house and started to feel like we were giving it away. We were scrambling to find a house we liked better. After *weeks* of back-and-forth the buyers backed out. They wanted a new house, not a 100 year old one. I was devastated. It took me a while to bounce back. We weren't working with realtors, so I was talking directly to the buyers. {Lesson learned: A realtor is worth every penny and keeps the transaction from getting too personal.}

Our house isn't huge. It doesn't have walk-in closets and there isn't room for a gourmet Kitchen, but it feels like home. Looong story short, it worked out because we love our old house and we can't imagine leaving. We are going to love it ~~list it~~ and stay a while.

P.S. Did you see the website that ranked all 50 states from best to worst? Michigan is #1! The commentary for each state is pretty hilarious. People were getting angry about the results so BuzzFeed made a list you can re-rank. Too funny.

Spring pillow faves

2015-03-17T08:32:00.001-07:00

It feels like Spring here. Well, after too many days at -20 degrees, any sunny day feels fabulous.
It's a game changer when it warms up around here. At first I couldn't figure out why my daughter was dancing down the grocery aisle. It's because we *all* love Spring.

So how about a round up of my fave spring-ish pillows. The vintage inspired rosette pillows are 2 for $60 at Urban Outfitters. So cute and so many mix and match colors. I have a love of all things scalloped so the grey and mustard rectangular ones from West Elm are a must.

I wish the hubs could warm up to the color mustard... I mean he loves mustard as a condiment, right? At least he is on board with my turquoise/ teal obsession.

Bathroom restyle

2015-03-03T16:29:00.000-08:00

Our bathroom remodel is complete! It only took a little over a week, and no blood, sweat or tears. Maybe a little over- obsessing...we have been thinking about this project *for a while*. {I'll share the details and the budget in my next post} I'm all about a well thought out design- but creating something that is easy to clean is what I'm really after.
{Check out the before: here & scroll down.}

Choices that helped with our remodel:

Choosing tile/ stone:
We skipped natural stone and ceramic with a crackle finish in the shower to avoid any extra maintenance/ sealing. {Our small counter tops are marble, but I think I can handle sealing those!}

Go with medium/ dark toned tile:
Dark tile= dark grout= less scrubbing the grout with a toothbrush. Keep this in mind for the shower floor tile too.

Skip the trends:
Keep tile choices simple and clean.We all love those arabesque and chevron patterns but saving it for accents will extend the life of your design. {think rugs, wallpaper, and art}

Be picky about grout:
Read up on types of grout to find what suits your space best. We chose TEC Power grout. It is mold, mildew and stain resistant and it never needs to be sealed.

Storage:
Don't skimp and buy only one corner shelf. If you have a standing shower I recommend three {two for storage and one installed lower for a shaving shelf.}

Be you:
We chose a shower curtain over a glass enclosure. Sure, part of it was the cost but I really prefer the look of a fun patterned shower curtain over a {watermarked} glass shower enclosure. I don't want to squeegee. Ever.

Pick colors you like, not *beige because of resale*. Plenty of customer confess to me that they hate beige, but it's easy and safe. You can still have fun with colors, even if you keep it neutral.

Small Bathrooms:
If you have a small space like us, keep things light and monochromatic to open up the space. I *adore* subway tile- the more the better. Tiling all the way to the ceiling really made the shower feel larger. We selected a threshold {4-1/2" wide} instead of a shower curb {6" wide}. This made the shower floor slightly larger. It all adds up.

Re-use what you have:
I kept the cabinets, 2 pairs of sconces, towel bar, and the wainscoting and worked it into the design. That's huge savings. I gave the wainscoting a new coat of paint and used the left over paint from our basement ceiling for the upper part of the bathroom walls.

* * *

Week in Pictures

2015-02-12T17:04:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy week. I bought a church pew and {another!} card catalog piece on my lunch break.

Buy what you love and it will all fall into place, right? Fingers crossed.

We have been getting some fresh air and working on our ice skating skills.

Well, not today- it was 5 degrees! I have lived in Michigan for most of my life and I still don't totally understand what people do all winter. I usually hibernate and remodel a bit.

I would *like* to say that this isn't our bathroom, but it is. We bought it as-is and haven't touched it at all. Lots of beige tile and gold paint... and those strange triangle cut-outs in the shower walls.

We are doing a quick update for as little $$$ as possible. It's like a little contest. So far just $300 for shower plumbing and a new pedestal sink. I *can't wait* for it to be finished. It's like the odd-man-out in our 1915 craftsman.

Asheville for New Years

2015-01-13T06:16:00.001-08:00

Let's have one more Christmas related post, shall we?
We just got back from a sunny, fun- filled vacation in Asheville, NC. We stayed in these adorable craftsman cottages for the first half of the trip. The cottages are hidden in the woods just outside of town and each one has an outdoor hot tub.

It's like trying out the hip-tiny-house-movement for a little bit. It was the perfect amount of space. I think we could manage in a tiny house. Maybe.

The second half of our visit was at The Grove Park Inn. We were in love. It's 101 year old {only a year older than our house!} and full of so much rustic design. Mikhail Baryshnikov stayed in our room. {Yes, I was excited about the plaque on our door because I studied dance for a decade or so.}

I could have hung our at the Inn all day... but Asheville has *way too many* great restaurants and waterfalls to hike and explore. They had at least 20 Christmas trees, some with full sized nutcrackers on them. Fabulous.

Happy

New

Year

2015

No present left behind

2014-12-24T14:04:00.000-08:00

I don't do super fancy gift wrapping, mainly because I am pretty frugal. {spend that money on the present!} I Christmas shop pretty early and I like to wrap each present as I go, so things can get a little mixed up under the tree. Over the years I have come up with a system to color code my presents. We all have multiple parties, so why not try picking a different color or pattern for each party.

Pine needle pattern for my sister's house
Tree pattern for the in-laws
Striped paper for my friend's house

No present left behind.

Happy Holidays!!

Christmas photo chaos

2014-12-12T14:39:00.000-08:00

I was inspired by a Christmas photo on Pinterest and I just *had* to do it right then. Mmm hmm. You know the one- the kids are infront of the tree and the Christmas lights are fuzzy circles in the background and the lighting is just right.
*Everyone* is smiling.

Here is how it went:

{Darn, we didn't have a Christmas tree yet...I'll improvise with my small pre-lit one.}

1. Look for tree in various closets. The strand of lights are burned out on the pre- lit tree.

2. Spend too much time cutting out said light strand.

3. Go to the closet to find a replacement strand. I can only reach the first bin but that's okay because I found 2 strands. Sweeeet.

4. Plug in each strand only to find that they are half lit. Awesome.

5. Scrap the Christmas tree light idea and wing it.

6. The camera battery isn't charged.

7. Decide that today isn't the day for this and wait for the weekend... or next year.

True story.
My back-up plan: use my handy camera timer and take some quick outdoor pictures of the three of us. Then search and search on Simply to Impress for something a little glittery. Done.

via

I hope all your holiday shopping is coming along better that my Pinterest project!

* * *

Stuck at 90%

2014-11-18T08:44:00.001-08:00

Why does a project stay at 90% for so long? There is always something missing, some touching up and styling, and daily clutter getting in the way. So... I'm posting the rest of our basement remodel now because, well, we may not make it past 90%.

I'm okay with that.

I mean, we all have dinners to make and homework to tackle.

Our Pratt and Larson bar backsplash is *finally* installed. Snacks included.

We *finally* touched up our claw foot tub glaze and finished the the tile work

around the plumbing at the floor.

I *finally* made my desk area a little more presentable. Some of us have a serious paper problem.

* * *

Half your age plus 7

2014-10-28T06:45:00.001-07:00

I was at a work party chatting about our 20s, 30s, and 40s and which was the best and I mentioned my age, 37. {I have recently thought about my upcoming birthday a few times and felt a little stressed about 38. Ridiculous, I know.}

A friend mentioned that he believes in the the half your age plus seven rule for dating. Equal parts random and funny, right? We were making calculations with his formula and someone mentioned that I was in fact, {a-hem} 36.
What the heck? When did I add a year? How long have I been this exaggerated age? Is this what starts to happen as birthdays accumulate?

More importantly:
What am I going to do with this *bonus year*? LOL.
* * *
*P.S. The 30s are *way better* than the 20s. Don't you agree?

Welcome West Elm!

2014-10-07T17:48:00.004-07:00

West Elm is coming to Michigan! It's about time... sometimes our sweet little
mitten state gets overlooked.

In honor of one of my *fave* stores moving nearby... here's a little wish list.

Seriously, how cute is that salt cellar and those critter containers?!?

Oooh... and if I ever get the courage to remodel the Kitchen {aka live without a range and sink for a few weeks} these shelves would work perfectly.

All Things Winged

2014-09-16T06:41:00.003-07:00

I just wrapped up the most hectic art show weekend ever at the DIY Street Fair in Ferndale, MI. It is always *the best* show to be a part of. The vendors and the crowd are creative, sweet, a little hipster and so much fun to chat with.

I sold almost all of my organic soy candles {All Things Winged on Etsy} which had me thinking... I wonder exactly how many of these I have made so far?!?

I had some amazing thrifting over the past few weeks. The squirrel container and the Southern Comfort glasses made me giddy. I love thrifting.

The pizza from Woodward Avenue Brewers is picture- worthy.

The best pizza *ever*.

I'm getting back into my beer cap trays. Hello friends...yes, I will be hoarding all your beer caps again. This one is a vintage cake stand.

I'm going to ~~get some things done around the house and relax bit.~~ make more soy candles for my Etsy store, All Things Winged.

* * *

A new tradition

2014-09-02T13:24:00.000-07:00

The first day of school jitters are gone. {Yay!} This morning I took my second grader to school and she asked if I could drop her off. What? No way. So we parked and we made it half way to the school doors before she insisted that I stop, and let her find her way to the class line.

Our new tradition {year two!} is loading the back to school pics on the computer only to find the settings made the pictures blurry, foggy, and ugly. So here's to our new tradition of recreating the photo after school, lol.

We wrapped up our basement remodel with a Pratt and Larson backsplash. I have loved their tile for *years* so it's fun to finally have it in our house. Their new tile shapes are so fun to design with. This is the triple scallop, fish scales, clouds or ghosts... depending on who you ask. We chose 7 colors and created a custom blend {only 10% of the white and dark bronze color}. My coworkers voted on the percentages- yet another perk of working with other designers. We agreed that it should blend with the wall color, and that some colors should be super saturated.

I'm not finished styling the bar yet, but I thought I would share it anyway. We might add a distressed shelf with metal brackets above... and attempt to keep the snack jars a little more full.

* * *

Off the grid

2014-08-17T13:50:00.002-07:00

We went *way* off the grid for a week this summer to Charleton lake Camp in Whitefish Falls, CA.

No phones or t.v., fishing for dinner {except for me and my veggie burgers!} and cooking over campfire.

{7 hr drive + 1 hour ferry ride + 1.5 hour drive + a quick boat ride = destination

Get comfortable... because this post is full of pictures. This place was so beautiful I couldn't stop documenting. Shocker, I know.

I know this isn't camping, but it was pretty close to it. I settled on the term cabining, because it for sure wasn't glamping like the Housewives of New York would do.

We took our little fishing boat to a different island each night and started a campfire to cook our dinner. We all hung out until dusk and then headed back to the cabins to play cards.

{no internet or t.v., remember??}

My in-laws have been coming here for over 40 years.... cooking dinner the same way each time. Soups for appetizers, skillet potatoes, and fresh pancake battered fish.

I have at least 40 pictures of the lily pads, moss, and lichen. There was a good amount of time spent fishing, so what's a girl to do?

* * *

Paint color answers

2014-07-15T09:16:00.002-07:00

Some of you had questions about our paint colors and our process... so let's do this.

We chose the neutral ceiling color first and made sure that it worked with the travertine flooring we fell in love with. {That sounds easy, but neutrals can have a green cast, pink cast etc.}The living room and studio color are from the same family on the fan deck to give a little variety, while keeping things balanced. It was the same thought process for the playroom... the laundry room color is a darker version of the playroom. Long story short- we like lots of colors in our house, just variations of a few colors to keep it simple and monochromatic.

Some people feel more comfortable in a Skittle house- a different bright color in each room and some pick one neutral color for the whole house. We are somewhere in between.

Benjamin Moore paint colors:
ceiling:
Cape Hatteras Sand AC-34

living room and studio:
Shenandoah Taupe AC-36

bathroom:
Clay Beige OC-11- a favorite that has followed us from house to house!

playroom:
Bali 702

laundry room:
Knoxville Gray HC-160

* * *

Happy 4th... or 8th

2014-07-08T07:06:00.004-07:00

We stocked up on homemade salsa and hummus and headed Up North for the long weekend.

The essentials, right?

This salsa recipe is better than anything you can buy in the store- *I promise* and it's fresher too.

{recipe at the end of post}

Every day was a fabulous beach day.

Each ended like this with appetizers on the deck. Pretty relaxing... well, as relaxing as it can be with a seven year old that loves to sing and dance *constantly*.

Hope you had a great weekend too.

* * * *

Salsa time

2 onions

1 jalapeno

4 large tomatoes

2-3 limes

1 large bunch of Cilantro- chopped

Pre heat your oven to 425 degrees.

Add 1 roughly chopped onion, 4 large whole tomatoes and 1 jalapeno to a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil and 2 Tbs. of minced garlic over the top and bake until lightly charred. The jalapeno will be slightly blackened. Let the tray cool and then puree everything in a blender/ Cuinine Art.

Place the mixture in a large bowl and add 1 finely chopped onion, one large bunch of cilantro, and juice of 2-3 limes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add a little cayenne pepper if you still want more heat.

It will taste even better if you have time to chill it over night.

Basement Remodel- Part One

2014-06-18T18:20:00.001-07:00

I can finally say that we are in the home stretch of our basement remodel. Isn't it fun to see the *ugly before* photos first? My poor card catalog looks sooo lonely.

We decided to divide the space with book shelves, since the room is very long and only 15 feet wide. We saved *a ton* by going with painted ceilings instead of drywall... and MDF bookshelves and doors instead of wood. It all adds up, right?

One item on our remodel wish list was a hang out area for family movie night. We can all spread out on the sectional and relax. It's perfect. We always try to mix a little old with new so we picked an old tile cart from work as our coffee table.

We chose all of our sconces from a big box store. These hammered bronze ones were $35 each. We found them in the exterior/ garage lighting department.

Here is a little snack and bar area with a wine room on the right... still in progress.

I have Pratt and Larson tile planned for the back wall. I'm in love with *all* of their designs. The wine room door is original to the house {from 1915}. We removed it from the bottom of the stairs in our Dining Room. It was always in the way there.

We found these pub dog handles years ago while antiquing and just *had* to have them.

We are hoarding one less thing now.

We found these stainless sconces in the exterior/ garage section too. Rustic barn lighting can cost a ton, but these were $15 each. Wouldn't they look super cute spray painted in bright laquered color, like turquoise or coral?

Sink: We found in an old farm house sink in our barn up north.

Faucets: We removed them from a pedestal sink a neighbor was throwing out.

Cabinets: We found two matching nightstands on casters while antiquing and dreamed up the wood top to bring it all together.

Claw foot tub: We removed this from our first house so that we could have a shower. {We only had 1 bathroom!}

Grand total... $200 {!!!} We plan on adding a bit of wood at the front of the vanity to hide the plumbing.

Peyton's playroom with the oh-so-popular disco ball and sliding barn door.

Our studio and office space

I wanted to leave the center cabinet green, but I think the hubs will win on this one and I'll paint it black. Not sure yet.

BBQ filled weekend

2014-05-29T18:04:00.002-07:00

We had a perfectly sunny weekend full of dinners on the patio with friends.

We roasted mini marshmallows...

for these camp fire cupcakes.

The hubs made ribs marinated in Coca-Cola. I'm vegan so I'll have to believe everyone when they said that the ribs tasted *just like bacon*.

We worked in the garden... everything is planted and in full- effect.

Left to right:

winter squash, cucumbers, 4 types of tomatoes, strawberries, basil, sage, chives- going crazy, tarragon, thyme, salsa peppers, and green beans all along the fence. It's like we are growing salsa in there.

* * *

Door dilemma

2014-05-15T16:55:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that I have been ignoring my front door and it's problems ~~lately~~ for 3.5 years. You have to hip check it to lock it and it takes quite a bit of effort to open when a guest knocks. A molding fell off a year ago and I put it in the closet- out of sight out of mind.

Fast forward to present. The window pane is cracked from all the above mentioned hip-checking.

Door abuse.Yikes.

Option 1: Leave the door as is, let the house fall apart, become a shut-in with lots of stray cats and some

over grown landscaping.

Option 2: Repair and refinish the 100 year old door. Probably $$$$.

Option 3: Find a new door {that operates properly} and fits the look of our 100 year old craftsman.

Option 4: Paint the door bright turquoise and surprise the hubs when he comes back from his golfing

trip. This *isn't* a real option, but I wish it was!

What is a girl to do?

Red+ Pink= not too cutesy

2014-05-01T12:38:00.001-07:00

Adding a little red to pink makes everything a little less cutesy and matchy- matchy.

I've been noticing the red/ orange and pink combo lately.

Would you wear it?

Could you live with it? I could!

Images via Apartment Therapy, Remodelista and Censational Girl.

Earth Day

2014-04-22T19:43:00.003-07:00

I ordered some seeds so I can grow one of my fav flowers, Billy Buttons. They arrived today... what a perfect way to celebrate earth Day. I mean, I'm vegan and I recycle so I think I'm celebrating Earth Day everyday, right?

I would share a picture, but right now they are just 30 cups of dirt with sand sprinkled on top. Not too exciting. I hope they fill my garden in the next month or so, we'll see. Billy Buttons are native wildflower to New Zealand and Australia. Hopefully they will like a Michigan summer too.

A little cabin in the woods in Asheville

2014-04-17T16:12:00.000-07:00

So,off to Asheville, NC we went!

Asheville has all you could ever want in a vacation:

a cabin in the woods with a hot tub, tons of waterfalls...

great hiking spots...

and a crunchy and fun downtown.

Every restaurant had vegan options. I was in love.

Hangin' at The Southern. {other fav dining places: Mela for Indian, Mayfel's for southern}

The Biltmore was even more fabulous inside. Insane attention to detail, 65 fireplaces, 8,000 acres, and greenhouses like you wouldn't believe. I didn't even sneak any pictures inside. Someone is learning to follow the rules. ;)

Enjoy the weekend... and hopefully the nice weather too.

Linen closet love

2014-03-28T16:18:00.001-07:00

So the linen closet is *finally* done. I purchased 4 different stain colors in hopes that a standard one would match. This project was already a little intimidating, but making a custom stain color took it to the next level! I mixed two colors together in a pickle jar, made a test swatch, and somehow it was the perfect shade. I love it when a project goes smoothly.

*Yes, that is a hole in my roof. It was like a rustic skylight for a while, nice huh?

It's that indoor garden time of year

2014-03-21T17:42:00.004-07:00

Hello friends. It's been another cold wintery week so I decided to liven things up and start our vegetable garden. I did a little research to make sure this year's garden is *better than ever*. Some of my research came from my elderly next door neighbor who can't tell a story in less than 45 minutes, likes to take naps in a chaise lounge in the back yard, and can tell me about every family that has lived in my house. He likes to swap vegetables, give me gardening tips, and call me kiddo. I kinda love it.

Important details for a successful indoor garden:
* Most seeds should be started indoors 6 wks. before the last frost. If you start too early
they become leggy and won't transplant well.
* The seedlings need 16 hours of light- use a timer if you want to keep things simple.
* Remove the seedling lid (in picture) once the sprouts are growing and almost touching
the lid.
* The seeds/ seedlings don't want to be soaked- just keep the soil moist with a spray
bottle.
* Start the fluorescent light about 2" above the plants once they sprout. Adjust the height of
the light to maintain a 2" gap as the plant grows. This keeps the seedlings warm and
happy.
* The most important step- make sure to harden the plants. A week before planting them
in the ground give them a few hours of sunlight, increasing the amount each day. Make
sure to bring them indoors at night if the temperature drops or if it is too windy. By the
  end of the week they should have a full day or two of sun light an ready for planting.

Let's get started:
(2) 4'0" chains- {make sure to double check the weight limit on the chain link you choose}
(4) S hooks
(2) eyebolt screws
1 Fluorescent light- try looking on Craigslist before buying one
Seed starting kits- make sure to get the larger pods if you are growing tomatoes.
Seed packets- to find out what seeds are ideal for your zone check here.
{I found this all at Home Depot... so easy.}

The set up is just as easy as it looks. Screw the eyebolt screws into the ceiling and loop the chains through each one. Secure the light fixture with S hooks and the end of the chains. That's it. Then plant the seeds as the directions on each packet suggests. Then sit back and wait for your seeds to sprout.