What Would You Do With. . . Orange??

One of the most fun things about fall is decorating!  How do you decorate for fall?  I'm guessing 9/10 chances you're using the color orange somewhere.  Aubrey and I decided it would be fun to show you how we're using the color orange this month!

Last year I made a cute burlap banner to use on my hexagon shelves and this year I'm showing you how I added the color orange to my shelves to bring a little fall cheer.

I fell in love with this cute fox at Target (of course!) and so did my kids!  I decided we would splurge and get him, but that he would strictly be a decoration, not a toy.  My kids are swimming in stuffed animals and this one was too cute to be a toy.  (It really isn't made to be a toy either)  The bright red-orange flowers are from IKEA.

Olivia and I painted jars with orange paint two years ago I believe.  We put a tea light inside and it's very pretty when lit.  You can also do this with glue and orange tissue paper, and then glue black cutouts on top.

We have the best babysitter and she always brings awesome crafts for my kids.  This wooden craft pumpkins was painted by Olivia.  She did a little bit better job than Axel on her pumpkin so I chose to display hers.  (I did try both but it was difficult to balance the shelves with two pumpkins haha)  These orange flowers are also from IKEA.

So link up your fall decor posts so we can see how you used the color orange this season!  Next month we'll be seeing what you do with . . . left over turkey!

An InLinkz Link-up

House Tour: Kitchen

My new friend in the neighborhood suggested we do a kid swap twice a week.  I take her daughter for a couple hours on Tuesday and she takes Olivia for a couple hours on Thursday.  While Olivia is gone, Axel takes his morning nap!  And I get a couple bonus hours of free time.  This week I used my time to deep clean the kitchen.

It only took 30 minutes!  It's amazing how much you can get done when you're not being pulled on every five minutes.

Then I used the rest of my time taking pictures and playing Frozen Free Fall on the iPad (try it!  It's just like candy crush but SO pretty because it's based on the movie Frozen!)

Of course I'm going to blog the pictures. Ha!  I'm a little bummed though that my paint doesn't look nearly as beautiful in the pictures as it does in real life.  I need someone to come take pictures for me.  Anyone want to practice interior pics with their DSLR?  This is what the walls actually look like:

Anyway, on to my kitchen.

BEFORE

AFTER

I decided to leave my sewing pile up because I didn't want to move it.  Also there is a vase of sticks above my spice rack that I took down after this picture.  I just stuck it there to see if it looked good and now two months later I'm deciding that it doesn't. 

BEFORE

AFTER

That white cup next to the sink is there all day.  If I drink 7 of them it's a little more than 100 oz.  I usually make it to 4.

BEFORE

AFTER

This is the most unkidfriendly (is that all one word?) dining room set of all time.  A new one is in the plans.  Also in the plans, a new light that we got for Christmas from Oilo, but haven't picked out yet. 

Maybe new tile someday.  And art on the walls, obviously.

I put some apples in a bowl just for these pictures.

Painting the cabinets white is in the plans for the summer, along with a new dining room set (my grandparent's vintage tulip style chairs!!!  I just need someone to haul them up from Orange County) and a new light fixture. 

House Tour: Living Room

I've been waiting to finish decorating before I post pictures of my house on the blog, but yesterday I "deep cleaned" the living room (there isn't much in there so basically that means I put everything away and vacuumed) and I thought I could use some advice/ideas/fresh eyes.  So I'm going to post before and middle pictures instead of before and after.

Naturally when I went to look for my camera it was no where to be found, so I had to improvise and use my iPad camera.  I tried to replicate the angle of the original as much as possible because I hate before and afters when I can't even tell that they used to be the same space.  Obviously we haven't changed things THAT much, but still.

I have to say that I'm not a big fan of accent walls.  Also these dark colors just really brought the walls in a lot.  So we brightened it up with some light gray paint and light furnishings and art. 

BEFORE

MIDDLE

I realize now I should have done these when the sun wasn't shining in the window but I'm not going to stress it for my "middle" pictures

BEFORE

Yep, the kitchen was yellow (AND RED) meaning that you can see three colors when you walk in the front door!  And that is all I'm going to say about that.

MIDDLE

Obviously I need to fill the frames, and the couch is nothing special.  I am going to make a taupe slip cover for it, so that's in the plan.

And another picture because I couldn't fit it all in one picture.  I didn't think to turn the iPad sideways.  Duh.  Also, do you love the color of my kitchen?  I'll post pictures of it soon.

Now I'm trying to decide what more to add to this wall.  Since the wall above the couch has my gallery wall, I don't really want to repeat that on this wall, but it does need something.  The DVD player there is temporary (our blue ray wont play library DVDs!  Go figure) and obviously I'll need something there to balance out my vase with sticks.  And yes, the vase does need a few more rocks.  I thought I had enough, but I was mistaken. 

So I know that my pictures aren't as great as the befores, but I really love the colors I have going on here!  I just need lots of money so I can finish my plans (I actually have some Christmas money left and I'm going to use it for the couch slip cover).  Also if you have any ideas for the TV wall, let me know!

Art for Olivia's room

We're getting a house!!!

I still can't believe it.  So happy.  But also, the first time I've ever been able to really make a space my own.  Roommates and rentals have made it impossible to really fulfill my visions.  The scary part is, no more excuses!  Money is my only excuse, but I think I can do pretty well on a budget, so we'll see!

One thing I'm excited about, but having a hard time nailing down in my mind, is Olivia's bedroom.  When asked what color she wanted in her room she said "sparkly".  I also wanted to do a collage of sweet girl things.  I'm trying to decide between a gallery wall and a cork board.  Maybe both, on different walls.

One piece of art that's very important in LDS (Mormon) culture is our temples.  We our encouraged to teach our children about the importance of temples and to have pictures in our home so they are always on our mind.  But while most temple photos are beautiful, they just weren't what I had in mind for my girls room.

I eventually found this sketch of the Los Angeles Temple (where we were married) and I love it.  Guess what?  It's super tiny.  They don't make large prints of it.  It's just a temple recommend holder (the size of a credit card)

And then, light bulb!  I thought to check etsy (don't know why that wasn't my first thought) and here are some awesome pieces I found.  Which one do you like best?

By Lily Gene, the San Diego Temple silhouette
I love that you can customize your temple and color.  I would pick the LA, just because it's where we were married.

By Gewaly Art, the Oquirrh Mountain Temple
They don't have the LA temple print available, but we lived by the Oquirrh Mountain Temple when Olivia was born, so it is also special to us.

By Cherish Me Designs, the LA Temple
I love how vintage this print looks.  It fits much better with what I want for Olivia's room.

By Acorn to Zebra Collage, the LA Temple collage
I love how quirky and fun this print is. 

Which one is your fav?  Do you know anyone who sells temple sketches like the first one?  I love the others, but I still love the first one the most!!!

Intentionally white

I used to have an interior design blog.  I guess I still have it.  But, I dunno, I'm just feeling like all blogging needs to be centralized and I'm going to centralize it here.  So yeah, no more Design Salt.  Instead, I'm going to do the occasional interior design post here.  With my etsy shop, and doing some sewing for my sister-in-law's company, I don't think I'll be offering design services any time soon (which was kind of the point of that blog)  And now that we're looking for a house (TO BUY!  So happy) I'm starting to be excited for interior design again.  I want to share, but I'm not willing to help you with specific questions.  (TOTALLY joking.  I would gladly help if you need it.  Just let me know) 

All that to say, I'm thinking about paint colors for the new house.  Gah!  What is it about town houses?  It feels like most people are getting their own space for the very first time (like we will) and they're just so dang excited to paint!  Paint all the things!  Paint all the colors!  Well, the house we're hoping to make an offer on like today has a dark brown and blue living room.  A yellow and red kitchen.  And I can't remember what the bedrooms are, maybe just taupe. 

Imagine that we do move in there.  First I'm going to have to correct the living room, because dark brown?  Royal blue?  I can't.  (I don't want to show pics in case, I don't know, they find it or something.  Silly, but the internet can be a smaller place than we know)  Also, I really want a new couch but let's be real, we're not going to be able to afford new furniture right away.  It's going to be a work in progress (which I think is the best kind!)

Am I crazy for wanting white walls?  I know, I know, we all grew up with them and we promised we would never.  But I don't want that egg shell color that comes standard in tract homes, I want my walls to look intentionally white.

Oh wait, why white?  Because I currently prefer grays and blues and white works better than the tans and taupes we're seeing so much lately.

Here are some white I'm considering (source)

Extra white by Sherwin Williams: This feels very minimalistic like what you would see in a Scandanavian home, which is my main inspiration for the designs in my new home. 

Modern Living Room by Miami Interior Designers & Decorators CLAUDIA LUJAN

Pure White by Sherwin Williams: This just feels classy.  I love it with the black, but I'm wondering how it would pair with a navy (I thinking of doing a simple couch cover in navy, to help me feel better about not getting a new couch just yet)

Traditional Entry by Chicago Architects & Designers COOK ARCHITECTURAL Design Studio

Dune White by Benjamin Moore: I like that this one has a gray undertone, but I worry that it will make the living room feel too cold.  Is that possible when you have a tiny living room?  Maybe it would be a good thing.

Traditional Living Room by Dc Metro Interior Designers & Decorators BROWN DAVIS INTERIORS, INC.

Natural Choice by Sherwin Williams: I love the earthiness of this one, but I worry that it will look too "egg shell"  I love love love the way it's styled in this home, however.  It looks great with the dark wood accents.

Contemporary Kitchen by Sacramento Architects & Designers Debbie R. Gualco

Which one is your favorite?  And please tell me you didn't paint your kitchen red.  I just can't see one more red kitchen (like half the houses we've looked at have red kitchens)