I randomly selected another email from my Pick My Presto inbox this week, and had fun photoshoppin’ a picture of a wall niche sent in by a reader named Martha. Her email read:

Hi Layla!

I would love to get your feedback on what you would do with this niche in the back hallway of our home. The rest of the house has a very “cottage” feel, but I could never figure out what to put in this space, so Venus De Milo made a home there!

Thank you!
Martha

My first thought was to trim it out and add shelves, so I used Photoshop CS5 to create a (quick) inspiration photo for Martha. Move your cursor on and off of the picture below to see it in presto change-o action.

(PS- Google Readers will have to click over to our blog to see it switch back and forth.)

(Note: My presto change-o pics are for inspirational purposes only, and the ideas shown in them are just that. Spontaneous, totally flexible, just-for-fun, ideas that may or may not actually work in the room. Boom.)

Here’s a still photo in case you weren’t able to view the interactive one above…

The shelves I popped into my presto pics came from PotteryBarn.com…

…but the sky’s the limit when it comes to how Martha’s niche could actually be trimmed and decked out, ya know? She could even use glass shelves if she wanted to keep the light. Fun, fun!

And speaking of neat-lookin’ niches…I’m cuckoo for the one at Mary Kay Andrew’s place, Breeze Inn, on Tybee Island…

…and speaking of MKA, to celebrate the upcoming release of her new book, Spring Fever , I’m going to host a fun giveaway here later this week. The book comes out on June 5th, but she and her publicist (Meghan) put together a whole bunch of goodies especially for one lucky Lettered Cottage reader- so stay tuned if you’d like to enter for a chance to win!

In the meantime, I hope those niche ideas come in handy, Martha! Let us know if you decide to get your trim on- we’d love to see your transformation pics!

Would you like to submit a photo for our Pick My Presto series?

Send an email to PickMyPresto [at] aol [dot] com titled, “Living Room“. (Replace the words Living Room with whatever type of room you’re actually submitting.) In the body of the email, include your name, your blog name (if you have one) your design likes & dislikes, and one photo of the space in question. (No links please.) It should be clear, and measure at least 400 pixels high x 600 pixels wide. (In other words: at least 4″high x 6″ wide) The bigger the better though! Make sure it’s a photo you’re comfortable with me showing and writing about on our blog. Oh, and since I love surprises, I probably won’t email you to let you know I’ve “picked your presto” unless I have a specific question for you about your space.

She and her husband, Chris, bought a fixer upper a couple of years ago and I’m so excited to share their recent bathroom redo photos here today.

Here’s what the room looked like when they moved in…

…and here’s what it looks like now!

Before…

After!

Before…

After!

Didn’t they do a great job? And how fun is that antique dry sink they turned into a vanity for their vessel sink?

The whole redo cost around $1800 and you can find more of Chris and Lindsay’s happy home improvement ideas over at LifeOfSplendor.com.

And speaking of room renovations- I’m supposed to get a quote back from a carpenter I met with about building some closets in our guest bedroom/home studio/office today or tomorrow, so hopefully it’ll be a good one, and we can cross that project off our to-do list soon too!

Planning and executing the$e kind$ of project$ always seems to require a lot of patience, and I know a guitar-playin’ guy who will be very when this before & after is finally done.

It wasn’t the most fun home improvement money we’ve ever spent, but apparently home owners insurance doesn’t cover damage caused by dead trees, so it had to be done.

I didn’t want to be all up in their Kool-aid when they first started working, so I snapped this picture of them (tying a rope to the tree) through my home office window…

I know. I was thinking the same thing.

Why is dead tree removal guy #1 not holding the ladder for dead tree removal guy #2?!

I could barely watch. Especially when #2 shifted the ladder to the left and right while he was up there working. So freaky!

But, like a tree-climbin’ champ, 2 made it back down safe and sound, and proceeded to cut a “break” into the bottom of the tree…

…and then 1 and 2 went deep into the woods and pulled that sucker down by hand. Going…

Going…

Thud.

They say that the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, and the 2nd best time to plant one is today.

Time to find my shovel.

The day he left, I bought sample pots of paint…

…and stared at swatches on the wall…

I went with the second sample from the right- a Sherwin Williams color called Roycroft Mist Gray…

I painted it it high…

I painted it low…

I wore the same t-shirt for three days in a row.

I got lazy last year after applying only 2 coats of sealer to the floor in this room, so when I was done painting, I got busy sanding off some “Max stains”…

…and then sealed the floor two more times…

There are four coats of Varathane on it now…take that, Mr. Maximus Minimus!

Kev came home late last night and I showed him everything we still have left to do in the room the room this morning…

Thankfully, he was still smiling after I told him about what I have planned for the ceiling and for around the windows at the far end of the room. Here are a few inspiration pics I’m going to show a local carpenter to see if he can help us build/install it all…

(Sarah Richardson)

source

(House Beautiful)

A local carpenter that I may or may not have made an appointment with already. (hee hee)

Wait a second. That came out wrong.

Seriously though, I have had an absolute BLAST playing around with my pictures and putting together photo collages…

…creating and incorporating my doodles and getting my “graphic design” on…

…and designing (and re-designing!) my blog over the past few years, too…

It’s like e-scrapbooking, and I dig the creative process so much!

I mention all this artsy-fartsy-ness here today because I’m stoked to announce that Kevin and Josh launched their Photoshop Elements 10 training class over at ShootFlyShoot.com this week!

I’ve been using Adobe Photoshop to create design elements for the past 10 years, and lemme tell ya, I wish I had been able to take their class when I fired up Photoshop for the first time back in 2002. Holy Overwhelmage, Batman!

Like their Photography 101 training class, the guys’ Photoshop Elements training class is affordable ($49), easy-to-understand, and once you buy it, you have access to the training videos forever. You can watch them at your own pace, and hit pause and rewind and play as many times as you need to!

The entire (4 hour) class is made up of 13 separate online videos that will (patiently) walk you through everything from organizing your photos, to using the tools in the toolbar, to working with text, and layers, and actions. It’s a training class for beginners, and it also covers things like opening and saving images, editing and cropping photos, touching up photos, and much, much more.

So, if you’re interested in learning how to use Photoshop Elements to edit your photos and create design elements for your blog, click on the banner below to head over to ShootFlyShoot.com!

The guys hope to launch their Adobe Photoshop CS5 training class next month- so I’ll be sure to announce when that’s up too. Thanks in advance for taking the time to stop by and read this today, and please let me know if you have any questions about the Elements class. (I’ll ask the teacher for you!)

PS- Working with an earlier version of Photoshop Elements? No problem! Kev and Josh’s instructions will apply to those too! Looking to purchase Photoshop Elements 10? It’s available in the Shoot Fly Shoot shop!

Hi! I’m Shannan, and about five years ago, my family and I bought our dream farm-house, complete with six acres, six bedrooms and a whole world of possibility. Over the next four years, we spent untold hours and more money than I’d care to count whipping it into shape. (You can find some of our re-dos here, here, and here.)

Then, right about the time we sank the last nail, we decided to sell. We felt a brand-new urgency to simplify, to step out of our comfort zone. The day we passed the keys to the successors to our dream, we still had no idea where we were really headed.

As it turns out, we are headed to a declining neighborhood in a nearby city. The program we are working with tears down abandoned homes and builds new ones. Following the path of simplicity has led us to right now, when we are faced with all sorts of decorating conundrums. (We knew God was clever, but we had no idea how ironic He could be.)

The home is much smaller and the floor-plan is simple. We will live in a sea of vinyl, and that’s alright with me. Still, I feel my inner Layla Palmer clawing her way out. I’m itching to seize the opportunity and try something different. Because if you’re going to build a house, you might as well build a house that you love.

Which brings me to this: What exactly do I love? Beats me. I’ve never started from scratch before. I’ve always lived in old homes, where the heartbeat is slow and certain and everything comes together over time. This is brand new and I’ll admit, I’m a bit overwhelmed by the options and the sheer velocity of the build.

When pressed, I begin to realize that I love a little bit of everything. I hunt down beauty everywhere I go. Often, it is found in the most unexpected places. If you cock your head just right, it seems most things can wiggle into the shape of art. I eat lunch with my sister-in-law and decide to paint it all white. I visit a friend and have an urge for orange. Soft interiors have me daydreaming about open windows and naps in the middle of the day. Bright colors beckon my inner quirk. So, what’s a girl to do?

I read once that one should take her decorating cues from her closet. Paint the walls the color you wear most often. Do you have a favorite pattern? Hang it on a rod.

It’s worth a try.

Take one: Denim sofas. Pillows made of sweatpants. Gingham curtains. Gray everything. Sweet.

The grand idea seemed to work in theory; not so much in practice.

But I’m a desperate girl, so I took a closer look. Here’s what I found:

I am most “me” when I’m casual and comfortable. Ratty jeans and a T…

I’m farmy to my core (city be danged)…

I’m a fearless pattern-mixer, with a shot of charcoal gray to ground the look…

I’m textured and collected…

I’m an awful lot of gray and white, but there’s got to be some color…

I do, in fact, have a head…

And I promise, that isn’t the only pair of jeans I own. (yikes)

Armed with my new self-awareness, I took to my Pinterest boards. Behold, a vision emerged…

via

via

via

via

Ah, I feel so much better! Maybe there is a light at the end of the quick-as-lightning, builder-grade tunnel.

The lesson here? You really can teach an old girl new tricks.

Do you find yourself stuck on a design dilemma? Take two hours in your closet and call us in the morning.

 (No really, call us. We’re dying to know if it works for you, too.)

FlowerPatchFarmgirl.blogspot.com

She’s one of the most entertaining little gals I’ve ever e-met and I think her YouTube videos are more fun to watch then most shows on TV. I came across this one she did about “jazzing” up her outfits with scarves last year…

Some of my favorite parts are:

(:31) “This is like, um, the one I like because it’s kind of funky, you know?”
(1:31) ”How cute is this sweater?!”
(2:22) ”It’s like, jazzy, you know?”
(2:48) ”There’s a style. You know it?”
(3:03) ”It can be anything that you can do, but it has to be jazzy up, you know?”
(4:07) ”Because, you know me, I like it to jazz up, you know?”
(4:37) ”Even you can even put a hat on, just go to the gym with a scarf on- HOW CUTE, IT ‘LL BE!”
(5:04) ”Okay, you are never, ever, scream…look at this scarf right now. You know, I love Hannah Montana, that’s right!”
(7:19) ”It’s jazzed up. I loved it jazzed.”

I also love this one she did about setting a kids table…

A girl after my own photo stylin’ heart!

After seeing that one, I emailed Dawn (Lucy’s mom) and asked her if I could share it (and the scarf one) here on my blog. I was pumped she said yes, and told her if Lucy ever felt inspired to do one about kids room decorating ideas, me and TLC would love to hear her ideas about that too! A couple of weeks later, a brand spankin’ new video, made especially for all of us, landed in my inbox. Click the play button below to watch…

Note to Lucy: Thank you so much for recording this video for us!! The storage baskets, closet curtains and book cradle are all awesome ideas and I know a lot of people will be inspired by them when they see your video!

Note to Dawn: Thank you for letting Lucy “come over”! She is just so much sunshine to the square inch and I wish y’all lived closer so I could bear hug ya both today!

Note to Lucy fans: If you have a moment to leave Lucy a comment today, I know she would be so happy to hear from you. (XO) Also, Lucy will be back here soon with another fun (giveaway) video, so stay tuned for that sometime in May!

PS- If you’d like to visit Dawn’s blog, you can find it here: OurLittleChinaGirl.blogspot.com.

It’s about the day I decided to see Rock City and how I forced myself to move a mental mountain thanks to a wobbly walkway that I was positive I’d never be able to cross.

(source)

It was called the Swing-A-Long Bridge and I had no idea you had to cross the thing to get out of the park. It stopped me dead in my tracks, and I truly believed, with every fiber of my being, that I would not be able to cross it.

No way.

No how.

Not. Gonna. Happen.

I mean, I really, really believed it just wasn’t something that I could do.

For some reason, I don’t do well with a number of things, but extra loud places, extra quiet places, extra dark places, and extra high places are a few of my biggest fears.

(source)

And believe me when I say, the Swing-A-Long Bridge feels even more treacherous than it looks in that last photo. It had an Indiana-Jones-and-the-Temple-Of-Doom vibe and visions of a falling Harrison Ford & Co. began to run rampant in my mind.

Walking all the way back through the park wasn’t really an option though. At one point you have to go through something called “Fat Man’s Squeeze”, and as you can see in the photo below, it’s really a one-way traffic kind of a thing:

(source)

So, much to my dismay, I had to get across that bridge if I wanted to go home. (insert paralysis here)

It was about that same time, a group of young kids came running up full speed behind me. I noticed their parents walking in the distance behind them, and it was pretty apparent the kids could not WAIT to bounce their way across that scary, swingy thing.

(source)

And when I say “bounce their way”, I mean: all three kids grabbed ahold of those rope rails, and seriously shook that sucker up and down the entire way across it.

It was horrifying and comforting all at the same time. Horrifying for obvious reasons, and comforting because once they made it safely across, (whew!) I did feel a wee flicker of youcandothis. 

It was in that moment that I decided to just do it. I had to quit thinking about it, and just do it.

I looked behind me to make sure there weren’t any more speedy little bridge bouncers coming up from behind, and once I was certain the coast was clear, I grabbed ahold of those rope rails and started walking. The walkway bobbed up and down with each careful step, and I heard noises that had my heart racing like crazy. I kept my eyes firmly fixed on the finish line the whole way.

Needless to say, I made it to the other side, and I was instantly filled to the brim with happiness and adrenaline! I felt so alive, (no pun intended) and ever since then, I’ve referred to those types of accomplishments as “rope bridge moments”.

I’ll admit, I’m still too chicken to put myself in those kinds of positions more than a few couple times a year, but forcing myself through something that initially feels scary-impossible, and experiencing a rope bridge moment after the fact, does help me to remember that I don’t have to be fearless. I just need to try to not let my fears paralyze me from taking action. And even though they are few and far between- rope bridge moments sure do have a way of adding up, don’t they?

…so if you’d like to read about those kinds of things, and/or would like to join in on the conversation- I hope you’ll swing by!

I have this thing for the sea.

I’m not sure how or why, but the sounds of the tide bring me to a place of peace. They roll around in my head, pushing fear and doubt far from the shores of consciousness. The stress of it all simply floats away. I am whole. I am enough.

This is surely why, then, that I let my husband and cousins convince me to make the 4 hour trek (and back) to the Keys from Ft. Lauderdale……in one afternoon…..before driving 12 hours back home the next morning.

The smell of salt in the air, and the promise of Jimmy Buffet blaring out open windows was just too much to resist. As we were driving, it occurred to me that the drive to Key West is a lot like life.

It starts out carefree- we want for nothing…we laugh a lot. We aren’t afraid to throw off the bowlines, and sail away from safe harbor.

All we know is dreaming, and exploring, and discovering.

But the journey can get complicated along the way, can’t it?

Traffic jams knock our feet out from under, and conjure up uncomfortable emotions. We lose sight of what was, and we often deal with things the wrong way.

But when the temptation to become pessimistic raises its ugly head, sometimes something marvelous happens.

We realize peace was there waiting for us all along…

…and feelings of joy come rushing back in.

The journey rolls over and under, in and out of and twists and turns. And if we’re lucky?

Glory. 

Goodness spills over, and spreads from one person to the next…

…and the drive is totally worth it.

PerfectlyImperfectBlog.com