Mochi Home - Paint Ideas, Home Decor, Virtual Makeovers

Getting Over a Case of the Blues

carly — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 03:35:20 +0000

Dealing with the exterior of your home can seem like a daunting task. This new homeowner is inheriting a house full of blue vinyl siding. Aside from upgrading the entire exterior, there are some simple options for de-emphasizing the “smurfiness” (as our reader put it!)

This house is super cute – a classic American vernacular with easy proportions and lots of surrounding trees.

I happen to like the blue siding, but I think the front could benefit from several things:

Shutters that aren’t blue
An architectural feature
Landscaping

And that’s it! With as much or as little work as you want, this house can be transformed.

Option 1

Check out my first idea below – the classic red, white and blue with black contrast (actually, it’s a lot like Papa Smurf!) The red door makes a great focal point and a little overhang gives the front facade some punch. Just one or two high-end accessories can really boost the look, like these sconces from Restoration Hardware.

Option 2

This update focuses more on landscaping and doesn’t require much work on the actual facade. Here I’ve toned down the blue with tasteful warm gray shutters and doors. For a tailored French country effect, how about some well groomed topiary? And a stone/iron fence sets the mood right from the street. It’s like your own little European estate.

Option 3

For this last option, I cheated a little. Rather than visualize the actual house, I’m going to throw out an idea. For more of an architectural feature, a sweeping front porch would really set this house apart. You’ve got to check out this great little before and after from Vintage Woodworks. I think it would work like a charm here too.

BEFORE: A little blue house.

AFTER: Not only does this look more interesting, now you have a shady place to chill out on summer evenings.

Don’t be blue! Just get a little creative with doors, shutters and landscaping and your exterior will be ship-shape in no time.

Multi-colored Interiors

carly — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 14:38:20 +0000

One of the biggest challenges of decorating a home is making sure that the separate spaces around a house work in harmony to create a greater design vision.

This is particularly true when it comes to paint color. You don’t want to paint your entire house the same color – that could be boring. But you can’t haphazardly paint rooms without a greater vision – that could be unruly! I’m reminded of one of my favorite quotes (not sure by whom, but passed on by my good friend):

Action without vision is a nightmare. Vision without acton is a dream.

Well, Mochi Home is here to help nail down your vision (and avoid the nightmare). It’s up to you to take action and make your home gorgeous!

Case in point: this lovely Craftsman style bungalow, complete with beautiful hardwood floors and architectural detail. It’s hard to see, but the kitchen is painted yellow and the living area is tan. The adjoining dining room is a dark maroon. The owners are looking to lighten up the dining area (good call!), while still coordinating with the exiting paint colors in the other rooms.

The Vision

It’s always helpful to lay out your color palettes and understand how colors work together. Check out our Mochi Matrix (well, it’s just a color palette chart!) All three ideas work with the existing yellow and tan. I kept it light and soft with muted shades of blue, green and sun-bleached terra cotta. I like them all!

Idea 1

Blue is a beautiful contrast to the warm wood details.

Idea 2

Yellow/tan and muted green make for a friendly and fresh take on earth tones.

Idea 3

I’m surprisingly into this color, which I call sun-bleach terra cotta. It retains the warmth of the wood detailing and is very earthy.

The Full Palette

Well, I like all three options! As a final idea, to keep more continuity between spaces, you could paint the dining area the same shade of tan as the living area, reducing your paint palette to two colors. Don’t forget – trim, ceiling and those wooden details are all colors too and should be considered a part of your overall palette.

Small Space, Big Style

carly — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 03:41:31 +0000

I’ve spent exactly half of my life living in apartments 1100 square feet or less. So you can imagine I’ve seen my fair share of small spaces, awkward spaces and even windowless spaces. I think small and awkwardly shaped spaces pose the biggest challenge for DIY decorators, but I’ve learned over the years that with a little creative thinking, small spaces can offer the biggest rewards.

Take this house. It’s fresh and new, with good bones. But, this living room is a little small. You can’t just throw furniture in here and expect it come together. This space needs a little a thought, so that’s what we’ll give it.

I have three different strategies for designing this room. All of them do have one thing in common – and that’s reorienting the furniture to not block the entrance area.

Monochromatic Chic

A small space can always benefit from a monochromatic treatment. It streamlines the whole room. Open up the space by creating a conversation circle and add a few inches by mounting the TV to the wall. Curtains soften the edges and few pops of color keep it vibrant.

The Bold and the Beautiful

Another strategy for small spaces is to go bold – which can be surprising. A deep rich color on one wall quickly draws you into the room and away from the size (or awkwardness on some cases) of the space. I’m always a sucker for purple, as it’s both warm and cool at the same time. A graphic rug draws your eye down (again, away from the size of the room) and some spare furniture keeps the air flowing. The Fatboy bean bag chair is also super fun for kids.

On the Diagonal

The last strategy is to literally think outside the box…and on the diagonal. Most people are afraid of orienting the furniture like this, but in a small space, it might be your best option. Tuck the TV in the corner to open up some floor space and throw down an area rug at an angle. This small room is pretty dynamic. Curtains and a high bookshelf soften the space and a pretty purplish-red keeps the room warm.

Actually, with so many options, I’m not sure which is my favorite!

Here are the details of the rooms:

Monochromatic

Bold

Diagonal

A Mid-Century Modern Bedroom Update

carly — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:48:44 +0000

Here we have a spacious and bright bedroom with a good start on furniture and and some nice features like a fireplace (on the left wall just out of the photo) and bright window. There are few challenges with the not-so-flat far wall and ceiling beams, but with a little creativity, we tie this room together in no time!

Raisin Torte

An instant, easy update is to paint an accent wall behind the bed-seen here in Benjamin Moore Raisin Torte. It’s a great compliment to the mauve bench and moves your eye away from the choppy window wall. This room is so spacious, it needs a nice area rug to tie it together and I like to create a conversation area by adding another armchair. A leaning floor mirror is the ideal coverup for the breaker box (and it’s great for getting dressed in the morning too!)

Curtain Call

Fabric covered walls are one of my favorite tricks. They accomplish three things really well: 1) hide flaws; 2) create a sense of depth with the illusion that something is behind the curtain; and 3) soften (and quiet) a space. They are also a great non-permanent solution which can even be achieved with a bolt of fabric and a staple gun.

In this room, the soft curtain is a neutral backdrop for a bold jewel tone accent wall in Benjamin Moore Summer Nights. Some neutral chairs and lighting don’t compete with the bright wall, but a little pop of yellow in the Flor rug keeps the color in balance.

Retro Wallpaper

Lastly, a cute retro wallpaper makes a great accent and the small pattern hides the irregularities of the wall. It’s matched up with Benjamin Moore paint in Saddle Brown. Notice that the ceiling is also painted, making the room more cozy. A few simple accessories like a white shag rug and glass lamps compliment the retro furniture, but still keep a modern vibe.

Sources

Raisin Torte

Curtain Call

Retro Wallpaper

Make a Headboard (and a Statement!) with Fabric

carly — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 15:18:22 +0000

I’ve been trying to update my guest room/study for the last two years. I started out with a bold chalkboard wall, which serves as both an accent wall and a place to scribble notes. And I love it! For some reason, though, the rest of the room just wouldn’t hang together.

The Floor Plan

So I buckled down and worked out a better floor plan. While I lost some floor space, I gained better working/desk nooks, made the bed more accessible and opened up the bookshelves. This room works hard as both a cozy guest area and a daily working space for two people.

With a new useful floor plan chalked out and ready, I needed to do some decorating to tie the whole thing together. It seemed to me that I just needed one simple focal point – which should be the bed.

The Headboard Focal Point

New layout, very little decor.

I was on a budget, on a mission and working with a limited amount of space. It seemed like the best solution was to create my own headboard using fabric. Here’s how I did it:

Find some fabric that you love. I like something with a pattern or color because this fabric will become a piece of art on the wall.
Look for home decor fabric. Fabric for decorating comes in a full 60″ width (clothing bolts are only 45″ wide). Note: Queen sized mattresses are also 60″ wide, which makes this project super easy.

I actually used the "wrong" side of the fabric for the slightly more faded color.

Use the full width of the fabric. I kept the look casual and didn’t even bother cutting or sewing the sides. You can still see the selvage edge of the fabric (but I think it adds character)
Cut to the desired length, leaving about 4-5 inches extra as a header and footer.
Now for the simple sewing. Fold and sew the header. I made a 2 inch header. You can fold it twice to make sure the raw edge is covered. Do the same for the bottom (but smaller). If you don’t have a sewing machine, just use the iron-on tape to fold the fabric over.
Attach fasteners. I used 3M Command picture hanging strips. You must actually sew the strip onto the header of the fabric. The adhesive will not stick to fabric. I sewed 4 strips onto the fabric and then stuck four strips on the wall.

Voila! Hang your fabric flush against the wall (without causing any wall damage).
Note: In the past, I have also used a staple gun or small nails to achieve the same effect. 3M strips are better for the wall and probably less dangerous in case something should fall.

Check out how some simple fabric makes such a bold statement! It really helps to ground the bed…and the entire room.

Awesome new headboard focal point!

I find the selvage edge charming (and I'm lazy), but you can fold it under for a more refined look.

Bonus Tips and Tricks

I also made some quick matching pillows for the ensemble (the two smaller pillows). For one, I made a simple sham, which is basically like sewing a square. For the smaller pillow, I did a quick no-sew job using a pillow from my living room. I turned the pillow to show the nice linen backside, and then literally pinned a “stripe” down the middle. Done!

Other great low-budget decorating for this room include the white duvet. I used an old duvet with a red stripe and turned it over. It’s always a good idea to raid your closet for sheets, towels, scarves and other items that can be turned, tied or folded into something new and fresh!

And lastly, who can resist the rainbow spectrum book bookshelf?