Just wanted to let you know I’m moving to a new site! First of all, thanks so much to all who have subscribed, visit and comment. If you have subscribed by e-mail then you should still receive notifications but if for some reason you don’t, you can still find me at http://www.thestyledsoul.com.
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Thanks again for following along! See you soon!
Forever Love
Ok, I know Summer isn’t officially over yet but there is just the slightest touch of fall in the air and it’s got me thinking about the holidays. I am totally one of those people that puts up their Christmas tree the DAY after Thanksgiving and I adore chic Christmas cards, like the one shown above. I found it on a Norwegian website. Click through to the source if you want to see some very cool photos. And if you speak Norwegian tell them I’m a fan. ;)
Anyway, I’ve been pinning images of some majorly creative Christmas decorating to get some inspiration for what I want to do this year.
This year I think I’d like to go a little more eclectic. I’m thinking more color and more pattern. As my husband would say, “bring it”. Check out these images I found for some amazing and VERY non-traditional Christmas decorating ideas.
Houzz
folklifestyle.com
lonny.com
Jill Sharp Brinson
Adorable Home
Better Homes & Gardens
BDG Style
The great thing about decorating for Christmas is that you can get outside the box a little, since it’s only temporary. I just might have to get started early this year!
Do you get excited about Christmas decorating? Do you use traditional reds and greens or do you mix it up? I would LOVE to see pics of what you’ve done in the past. Post a link below and it could be pinned to my “Decorating for Christmas” Pinterest board!!
You may or may not know that I work in a furniture store. Yes, I’m a furniture sales person. Well, my official title is “Design Consultant”. I sell beautiful new furniture and I often get to help people decorate their homes. So, I blog about DIY decor and refinishing old pieces of furniture but I also sell new furniture. Maybe that seems like a weird conflict of interest but the truth is I just love furniture and decorating of all kinds and price ranges.
I grew up with a father that refinished furniture for a living. He is pretty amazing. BUT, it wasn’t until I started working in the furniture industry that I really began to learn about decorating and began to develop my own personal style. I had already been following DIY/decor blogs for a few years and thought about how much fun it would be to have a blog of my own. So when I began working in the furniture industry, and really started to develop an interest in the field, blogging just seemed like a good fit.
I know that many DIY/home decor bloggers have at one time or another worked in the furniture industry so they pretty much know what it’s like. But for those that haven’t I thought it might be fun to share a Day-in-the-Life of what it’s like to work in a furniture store.
Before I get into all this let me tell you about the place I work. It’s called EF Brannon Furniture. It’s family owned and operated. The people I work for are AWESOME, the furniture we sell is high quality, and I work with some very talented people. I have learned A LOT here. Ok, here goes.
My work day starts at 9:30 am. Of course I have to start my day with coffee. Now I don’t usually get Starbucks but I happened to have a gift card and it was a Monday so I needed a little extra “Go Juice”.
Monday mornings are when I check the status of all my orders. This means making sure everything is on schedule and that all the fabric numbers and item numbers are correct. While I’m doing that a customer calls and requests that I fax a quote she needs. As I make my way to the office I spy a bolt of fabric that I had been waiting on for a customer. Then I do a little happy dance. The fabric had been back-ordered and I expected it to take a little longer. (Those of you that have done this type of work know the relief I’m feeling right now). Call said customer to give her the good news.
This customer was shopping for a white slip-covered sofa and dining furniture with a coastal look. We can do that. He wanted to accent the pieces with bright greens and blues so we picked out some pieces and pulled some fabrics. I love this kind of look by the way.
Earlier in the day I had received a call from a customer that needed a little help decorating. She recently moved into a new home and wants a look inspired by a particular issue of Traditional Home Magazine. Unfortunately, she had lost her copy and couldn’t find another one anywhere. Of course I had every issue of Traditional Home at work EXCEPT the one she needed. Of course. Luckily I found it in my stash at home and got it to her the next day.
In the meantime, we meet at her home. An “In Home Consultation” basically consists of measuring the space and discussing things like, what type of look they want, colors that inspire them, and how they want the room to function. We want it to look great AND be functional. So we choose some possible paint colors for the space and talk about fabric colors and patterns. After we finish up I get back to the store and get to work.
After sketching out a VERY rough draft for the floor plan I pull some fabrics. A lot of times we bounce ideas off each other in the design center. That’s Mary on the right, a co-worker and an awesome decorator.
So I pull together two possible options.
Next I choose some tables and other accent pieces.
So now that I have a plan I just need to put it all together to present to my customer, which I will do before we meet up again.
So 4:00 rolls around and it is definitely time for a coffee break. You know I still have that gift card and luckily for me Starbucks is just across the street. So I have some coffee, check my e-mail and try to organize the mess that is my paperwork.
I greet another customer who is looking for a sofa and a chair. She loves grey and is going for a dressy look. We look at a few things and she decides on this pretty combo. She will have to come back though, to let her husband pick out a recliner. I know what you’re thinking, “a recliner with that”? Don’t worry, it can be done. We carry a lot of different styles of recliners and I know we have one to work with this. You know what Tim Gunn would say. Make it work.
So there you have it. While there is so much more that goes on behind the scenes that is basically a Day-in-the-Life of a furniture salesperson. Or at least, a day in MY life. Some days are crazy, some days are a little more quiet, and really anything can happen. I guess that’s one of the things I love about my job. Everyday involves different people with different requests, so it never gets boring.
Hope you enjoyed this little summary of my day! Have you ever worked in a furniture store? What was it like for you?
Thanks for taking the time to read this!
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Just wanted to share a little about a place I love to go. It’s called Southeastern Salvage. They carry a mix of building materials, furniture, and accessories. Oh, and they have free popcorn.
Even if I don’t buy anything I always leave a happier person. You won’t find them in every city but if there is one near you, and you haven’t been, you need to check it out. You don’t get a lot of info on the website about what is actually in the store and that’s because the inventory changes a lot. So here is a SMALL sampling of the awesome things they have in stock right now, at the Chattanooga location.
LOVING these Moroccan lanterns and decorative driftwood balls.
I’ll take anything tufted or with nail trim.
Don’t even get me started on the Union Jack. I never get tired of seeing that in design.
Whitewash? Yes please!
I feel like I NEED this leather sofa in my life but it would take up our ENTIRE living room.
Cute pillows for $8.00! I mean, come on! How awesome is this stuff? The prices on most things are pretty good, especially the accessories.
I bought this for $3.00.
I probably would have spent more time looking around (and getting better pictures) but I had to get this little bear to the vet.
So go check it out and if you do let me know what kind of great goodies you find.
Have you noticed a trend in fabric lately? This really cool black and white spotted fabric that’s half polka dot half cheetah print? It has such an eclectic chic vibe.
I’m drooling over these images from pinterest.
How amazing are these chairs in this living room by Tommy Smythe?
I’m loving this pillow from Furbish Studio.
I was feeling super inspired by all these looks. I LOVE this fabric and was dying to use it somewhere.
I found this great fabric at Warehouse Fabrics Inc.
I could have ordered a yard of it but I just happened to have some white fabric and of course I had some basic black paint. So I decided to make my own ;)
It was super easy. Seriously, if I can do this anyone can. These are the things you will need.
Take a basic cleaning sponge and pull it apart lengthwise so it isn’t as thick. Then cut out two or three circles. They don’t have to be perfect.
Next, iron your fabric and lay it on a flat surface. Pour some paint into a paper plate and place an empty paper plate next to it (this is where you will keep your sponge circles) along with some paper towels. Now that the set up is ready you can start the “painting” process.
I didn’t really go with a pattern since I wanted the spots to look kind of random. I just started in the center and worked my way out. I had three pieces of sponge cut out and I started with the biggest one. I dipped the sponge in the paint, pressed the excess off on the paper towel then pressed the “spot” onto the fabric. I could get about two or three spots on the fabric from each dip in the paint but I did have to go over some of the spots that didn’t look like they had enough paint.
This is what it looked like just after I started.
And this is what it looked like when I was finished.
I just hung it with a clipped pants hanger to dry overnight then I covered this little chair seat with it.
Maybe next time I’ll try it on the wall. Should I?!?!
I have a problem. I’m somewhat addicted to gold spray paint. I feel the need to paint ev-er-y-thing gold. It just adds a touch of drama. I love that.
My dad gave me this old Bentwood rocker and I took it without much excitement. I put it in the basement and forgot about it for a while until one day when I just felt the need to paint something.
So I took it outside and painted it blue.
Yeah…not so much. Huge fail.
Then I put it back in the basement and forgot about it for a while. Again. Well, shortly after that my obsession with gold spray paint began and I had been thinking about all the different things I could paint gold. That’s when I remembered the rocker. I’m loving the new glam look.
So much better than the blue.
I just covered and taped off the wicker and spray painted the rest with gold metallic spray paint. I used both Valspar and Ace brand paint. Both are terrific spray paints. Then I used a paint brush to paint the wicker in Balboa Mist.
I still haven’t decided where it will stay but I will probably put it in the living room. It would also be a great bedroom chair. How cute would this be in a little girl’s room?
Do you have a go-to color for spray painting? I would love to know! Leave a link to your projects in the comments section.
Hope everyone has a fun holiday weekend!
This week I’m linking up at some very cool blogs. You should check them out.
http://madeinaday.com/2013/05/23/made-u-look-linky-72/
http://www.classyclutter.net/2013/05/spotlight-saturday-link-party-6.html
http://suburbsmama.blogspot.com/2013/05/sunday-linky-party-9.html
I have to get off topic for a minute. Today I’m taking a break from my around-the-house-projects to celebrate my parents’ anniversary.
Last Tuesday marked my parents 44th. I’m so proud of them. My parents have done something that isn’t always easy. They stayed married. Three kids, two grandchildren, and more than four decades later here they are. Sure, there were hard times and struggles along the way but when it comes down to it they always make it work and they love each other through every bit of it. They are role models for my own marriage. I’m proud to call them my parents.
Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!
So we are back from a week at the beach but I still have beach livin’ on my mind. The sounds, the scents, the colors, oh how I love all that beachy goodness. Everything about being at the beach is so inspiring. I used to dream of living in a home that was straight out of Coastal Living.
Well my taste has changed a little since then but I still LOVE all things coastal. So I brought back a few things that would add a little coastal charm to our home.
Seashells! (of course)
One morning as I was walking I found a couple of these awesome shells. Are these capiz shells? (If anyone knows please comment below). And why have I never noticed these before? I thought if I could find enough of these they would look really cool in some sort of glass dish or jar in the dining room. Still haven’t finished the dining room but that’s another story.
Next, I found these!
The colors and shapes of these have a great coastal feel and they are perfect for collecting small things like jewelry, keys, and makeup brushes. The best part is that they were only $1.00 each! I found them at this cute little thrift store near the beach. They had SO MANY things I loved and lots of great furniture, such as …
THIS!
I found this little chair sitting outside the thrift store just waiting for me. I’m a sucker for anything wicker, cane, or bamboo. Hello gorgeous! The chair and cushion are both in great shape and it’s actually really comfortable it just needs some paint and new fabric. I can’t wait to get started on this I just have to decide what I want to do with it..so many possibilities!!
So, after a week of relaxation, great food, and much needed time spent with my little family I’m feeling thankful, inspired, and ready to tackle some projects.
So long summer…..
The Styled Soul 