Style Cure -- Day 17 | New Table!

Day 17: Friday, August 22 and the Weekend of August 23 and 24

Assignment: Paint!

Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

Painting is n/a for us but this weekend brought us our new dining room table! 

I was super excited to return home from my hair appointment to see it. Then, as I was leaving the hair salon, I got a text from my honey that read: "There's a problem with how they put it together."

Ugh. 

If you have been following my Style Cure posts, you may recall that this is the table we ordered:

See how the top of the tables fits all nice and snug against the base of the table? That's what we expected our table to look like. Instead, we got three corners that look like the catalogue table and one that looks like this:

Yeah, that's not supposed to look like that.

Fast forward an hour and my honey got a call setting up a delivery day for a new table top. Crate & Barrel was worried that the top got damaged and so they are sending an entire new one. It should arrive on Friday. 

I should mention that the table looks fabulous in our home. Fabulous. I will post photos once we have a non-broken one and some chairs. Oh, and in the meantime, we plan to do chair shopping this afternoon. Fingers crossed.

Good thing our dinner and game night party is still a couple weeks away. 

Style Cure -- Days 13 - 16 | Playing Catch Up

I should preface with an apology for what I consider to be a fairly boring post. The next post will hopefully include a photo of our new dining room table and some Cuba photos and should be much more engaging. *fingers crossed*

Day 13: Monday, August 19
Assignment: Make some progress on your projects
Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

Honestly, I haven't done much related to the Style Cure since purchasing our new dining room table. You know what? I'm okay with that. This week has been nutty and work and working out take up most of my time. The things still on my Style Cure to-do list are:

• Purchase at least six new dining room chairs
• Choose, print, frame and hang Cuba photos

I'm not too worried. It'll happen.

Day 14: Tuesday, August 20
Assignment: Go with the flow
Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

Improving the energy floor of our home is something I think about quite a bit and I sort of have a plan for various improvements...to both our dining room and beyond.


Day 15: Wednesday, August 21
Assignment: Free day! Totally up to you
Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

Free day? Don't mind if I do.


Day 16: Thursday, August 22
Assignment: Get your room cleared out and ready to paint
Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

We aren't painting so this one isn't a big deal. However, I did receive a confirmation call that our new dining room table should be delivered Saturday afternoon! We will be moving our current table and chairs to our garage...and hope to donate them to our church's "Extended Family" program. Our church partners with a local shelter to provide furniture, household furnishing, etc. to families transitioning out of homelessness and helps them move. The program and the people are incredible. INCREDIBLE.

Style Cure -- Days 11 - 12 | Party Planning

Day 11: Thursday, August 15
Assignment: Plan a Get-Together and Send Invites
Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

This one was already completed. Woot. We just so happen to get together with two other couples every month or so for a dinner and game night. We alternate homes and the next evening was ours to host. Soooo, our friends will be coming over on Saturday of Labor Day weekend, we will be cooking up a feast of Indian food, and we will most likely play dominoes and Cards Against Humanity.

If you aren't familiar with Cards Against Humanity you should know that it is available for FREE (or already made at Amazon) and is a highly offensive version of Apples to Apples. I recommend that you don't play it with your small, southern mother. Here is an extremely mild sample of what you may encounter:

PS: Our friends are awesome and I look forward to another fabulous evening with them, eating and playing in our re-styled dining room.


Day 12: Friday, August
Assignment: Shop 'til You Drop!
Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

Well, you don't have to tell me twice! New dining room table purchased. (Check out this previous post for a photo.) Eeeee! (That's my super excited noise.) We got to pick our delivery date and *fingers crossed* our new table will be delivered this upcoming Saturday!

Please keep in mind that I have owned a hand-me-down (1970s?) kitchen table and chairs, given to me by my parents, since college. Don't get me wrong, the table and chairs are in fantastic shape and have served us well but it is time to move on...and up. We wanted to purchase something that is a better fit for our style and now we can donate our old set to a family in need.

Next up...exploring some local stores for dining room chairs. If all else fails, we can also order those online. However, I hope to find some unique, inexpensive options in person. Our new table will seat eight so our plan is still to get four white chairs (that match) and then two sets of two chairs that are different colors. Our goal is to have at least six chairs by the time our friends arrive for our dinner and game night.

Style Cure -- Days 8 - 10 | Planning

Day 8: Monday, August 12

Assignment: Choose Your Paint Color & Think About Your Decor "Pairing"

Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com 

Day 9: Tuesday, August 13

Assignment: Research Your Decor Pairing Project or Pairing

Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com

Day 10: Wednesday, August 14

Assignment: Make a Shopping List and Set Your Budget

Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com

These three days/assignments all work well together so I am going to summarize...

There are a couple things that I want to work on for this project. We aren't going to do any wall painting but the decor pairing will be two-fold. First, we are planning to invest in a new dining room table and chairs. The table and at least four chairs will be white, with a few colored chairs for contrast and as the decor pairing. Second, I want to print photos from our trip to Cuba to decorate a wall in our dining room and one in our living room. We captured some beautiful and colorful moments. 

Then, I saw this on Pinterest:

one crafty foxx on etsy.com

I immediately showed my honey and he said, "you want to make those, don't you." YES. Looks like we may be adding a kitchen art project to the Style Cure list. 

Here is our tentative dining room furniture shopping list, although we haven't quite figured out the chairs yet...

Parsons Dining Table w/ White Top & Dark Steel Base. Crate&Barrel.

Slim White Chair. CB2.

Felix Red Side Chair. Crate&Barrel.

Vienna Apple Side Chair. Crate&Barrel.

I was going back and forth a bit on if now is the time to spend the money on new dining room furniture. However, I keep coming back to the fact that we really enjoy having friends and family over and so this is a great investment for more fun at home. Also, cooking at home is much cheaper AND healthier. Decision made. 

Style Cure -- Days 4 - 7 | Preparations

Alright, so I'm a little behind in posting updates...

Day 4: Tuesday, August 6

Assignment: Set up a One-Room Outbox

Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com

I love the outbox idea and continue to use this one that I set up during the January Cure.

Day 5: Wednesday, August 7

Assignment: Create a Floor Plan

Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com

Okay, I didn't do this one. It sounded tedious, as I know it is. Also, our dining room is pretty much already set up the way we like it. We will probably just make some small changes later.

Day 6: Thursday, August 8

Assignment: Learn About Color

Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com

I married an artist and one of the perks to that is that I have an in-house color consultant. The previous owners of our house did a decent job with keeping things neutral but not just "renter off-white." We have added color through furniture, fabrics, accessories, etc. but may actually do some painting someday. 

Day 7: Friday, August 9...and the weekend of August 10 & 11

Assignment: Clean Your Room 

Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com

I did some major house cleaning, beyond just our dining room, and laundry this weekend. It turns out we got a jump start on our dining room on Wednesday night when our orange cat named Stella decided to contribute to the project...

I mean, I didn't really care for the mirror but that certainly wasn't how I planned on getting rid of it. 

Good thing she's cute. 

Style Cure -- Days 2 & 3 | Style Treasure Hunt & Choose Your Room

Day 2: Friday, August 2...and the Weekend of August 3 & 4
Assignment: Get out and about to take some inspiration photos
Full assignment at ApartmentTherapy.com 

Sooooo the getting out and about to take some inspiration photos definitely didn't happen this weekend. I got back from a business trip on Friday night and we had an event to attend on Saturday and come Sunday, after a long morning run/walk, all I wanted to do was stay home and do laundry. Thrilling, I know.

However, my honey and I did take some time to flip through our Crate & Barrel and CB2 catalogues and I earmarked some of my favorite dining room shots...since I am 99% sure that I want to focus on our dining room and/or living room for this project.

Classy and clean.

Love pops of color...

Mismatched chairs.

Day 3: Monday, August 5
Assignment: Choose Your Room, Sit for 10 Minutes & Take Before Photos
Full post at ApartmentTherapy.com

When I found out about the Style Cure, I already knew the room I wanted to focus on, our dining room. (and maybe a bit of our living room since they flow into each other...)

There are some things that I really love about our dining room, including our lighting fixture, teal tablecloth and Crate & Barrel wine cabinet thingy, but this is also a room that could benefit from a quick style update.

Depending on how much time (and money) I end up being able to dedicate to the Style Cure, I also hope to freshen up our living room. One of the things we loved about our home when we first walked in was how open and light the living room, dining room and kitchen are. These are also the spaces where we most often entertain.

Before photo. From the kitchen.

Before photo. From the sliding glass door.

Before photo. From the living room.

Style Cure -- Day 1 | Interview

Day 1: Thursday, August 1
Assignment: Complete the Style Cure Interview

Style Cure Interview

1. List your favorites in each category:

• Actor: Morgan Freeman. Tim Curry.
• Actress: Maggie Smith. Meryl Streep... "She could play Batman and be the right choice." - Cameron, Modern Family.
• Artist: Rothko, Monet...and my honey.
• Writer: J.K. Rowling, Alice Sebold, Jenny Lawson...just to name a few.
• Music: Singer/Songwriter. Ragtime. Lady Gaga. (My honey says my iTunes has one of the broadest ranges of styles he's ever seen. I would never argue with that.)
• Restaurant: I prefer to cook and eat at home. Or go out for sushi. Or to a brew pub. Or to Cracker Barrel whenever we travel to a place that has one.
• Automobile: Ours? 
• Movie or Television Show: For TV it is currently Boardwalk Empire. For movie, it is Harry Potter. All of them.  
• Clothing (pieces, designers or stores): Does jewelry count? If so, the jewelry my honey bought me -- engagement ring, antique garnet ring and gold triangles necklace. 
• Furniture (pieces, designers or stores): Grey couch from Ikea. Yellow flowered (hellooooo, 1970s) chairs from my parents. Crate & Barrel wine cabinet thingy. 

2. Choose three words to describe your personal style: Casual. Classy. Clean. 

3. Think back over all the homes you've lived in, both as a child and an adult. Which rooms would you choose as your favorites and how would you describe them?

• Favorite room from a childhood home and description: My bedroom. This was my favorite because it was truly my space. I decorated with things I liked and cared about and rearranged the furniture whenever I needed a change of pace. 
• Favorite room from an adult home and description: Our current family room. This is where I spend some of my favorite time relaxing with my loves -- my honey and our orange cat named Stella. 

4. Whom do you consider a role model? What three adjectives describe the qualities you admire in this person? My parents -- inclusive, generous, hard working.  

5. Every home has areas that are "just right." Which three spots or things in your home do you feel are beautiful and feel proud of, right now, as is: Kitchen. Dining/Living Room -- Ikea shelves with cookbooks & favorite lamp & friend's art. Divider shelf thing between kitchen and living room. 

6. A month from now, at the end of the Style Cure, how would you like your friends to describe your home? Comfortable. Interesting. Fun. 

Step two, analyze your responses...

• Questions 1 and 2 help form a picture of your style...
• Questions 3 and 5 are different ways of connecting with what you find pleasing, comfortable and beautiful...
• Questions 4 and 6 can help form a direction and your goals...

For more information and/or sign up for the Style Cure click here.