Colorful Decor by Kirsten of 6th Street Design School

We're so glad to have Kirsten at Bloom again teaching us about how to incorporate more color into our home decor. Hope this is helpful! Thanks for being here, Kirsten...

Color can be very scary. For some people bringing color into a home feels very complex. There are so many questions like; what color should I choose? What colors look good together? Where should I put the color? What if I don't even like color!? Just take a deep breath and stay calm. Color is your friend.

The biggest advice I give to my clients if they are afraid of color is to stay neutral with wall color and big furniture pieces. Then they can add color with pillows, draperies and other accessories.

rug from West Elm, coffee table and side table from Bungalow 5, sofa from Williams Sonoma Home, Lamp from Pier 1, pendant from Currey and Co, draperies from Anthropologie, lobster pillow from Thomas Paul, chevron pillow from allmodern and art from Etsy.

Here is a mood board I created for a summer living room. In this room I picked three key colors. Teal, yellow and red remind me of summer and make this room feel fresh and fun. I kept the rug, sofa and draperies neutral. I then brought in my three colors with artwork, pillows and a fun yellow side table.

If you are bringing in a neutral rug then your coffee table is a great chance to bring in some color. Upholster an ottoman in a fun fabric or paint an old coffee table a fresh color.

If you are confused on what colors to choose take stock of what colors you are drawn to. My favorite thing to do is find a single pillow and take all my colors from that.

pillows from Milk and Cookies

You can buy pillows in coordinating colors. Now you have a foundation to draw all your other colors from.

In figuring out what colors you like or work well together you can get inspiration all over the internet! Look through blogs and magazines to find great color combinations.

1. 2. 3. 4.

If you really just can't stand color don't worry. You don't have to like all of the colors in the rainbow. Pick one or two colors that you love and stick with those.

Even just one color can bring great personality and interest to a room.

{photo}

Here a blush pink makes this neutral room dreamy and angelic.

Color doesn't have to be cartoonish and crazy. It can be very sophisticated. To avoid your home feeling too "teen" or "juvenile" avoid bright colors and instead bring in deep jewel tones or soft pastels to make your home feel rich and elegant.

{photo from House Beautiful}

You don't have to be color crazy to make your home look exciting. Just bring it in every so often to breath some life into your space.

For more inspiration, visit Kirsten's blog: 6th Street Design School.
**CSN Giveaway Winner posted below - scroll down!**

Brighten Your Home for Spring/Summer by Bloom Guest Kirsten of 6th Street Design School

Happy Tuesday, friends. Hope you had a fun-filled Memorial Weekend. We're tickled to have Kirsten of 6th Street Design School here sharing a few tips on refreshing our homes for the warmer, sunnier months!

Today I am sharing some of the simple ways I decorated for spring and summer this year. After spending so much money and time decorating our homes for Christmas each winter we are sometimes burned out when it comes to decorating for spring and summer. However, spring is such a happy time we should be able to celebrate it in our homes!

These are some of my favorite ways to add a bit of spring fling to your home.

Coral is a big design trend that we saw last summer. I still think it is a fresh and stylish way to bring some beach flair into your home. I found this coral piece at a thrift store for $1.00! It was a little dingy but some white spray paint brightened it up.

Pillows are my very favorite thing when it comes to decorating. A pillow can transform a space. I found this cheery Dwell Studio pillow at Target. For around $25 this pillow makes my space feel happy and bright. Simply find a colorful and bright pillow to bring out every year at springtime. A pillow with a floral or nautical theme is great for this time of year. You can find some great ones on Etsy or check out Target's new Liberty of London brand.

I am such a fan of a little bit of greenery in every room. I made these topiaries for under $10. The best part about them is that I can leave them up all year long. Add some festive ribbon and they become a great winter decoration.

Nothing says Spring like fresh flowers! Wether you pick some from your yard or you pick some up at the store, fresh flowers will instantly improve your mood. Every time you are at the grocery store just pick up a little flower or two. Display them throughout your home. Flowers are a great reminder that spring is here!

Bunting banners are a big trend right now and the best part is that you can make them yourself so easily! I mad this spring banner by just using scraps of fabric and some ribbon. I plan to make a great red,white and blue one for July.

And speaking of bunting flags...

I recently came across this great banner that I used at a bridal/baby shower. It's made of oilcloth so it can be easily wiped down and is perfect to hang outside. Can you just imagine how fun it would look at a barbeque or birthday party!

Displaying your fruit is a cheap and functional way to add color and zest to your home. Lemons and limes are so colorful and the perfect way to bring some summer fling into your kitchen.

Lastly, decorating for spring or summer can be as easy as displaying a fun dish towel. This is something that can be changed out each season. This one that I recently got at Anthropologie makes me smile when I'm cooking in my kitchen.

I hope these images from my own home have given you a little bit of inspiration to make your home a little bit more colorful and festive this spring and summer.

Thanks, Kirsten!

I could peruse Kirsten's ideas all day long;
for more of her style, visit 6th Street.

**Blue Eyed Freckle Winner posted below.

Confessions of a Project-holic

A few days ago our kitchen looked like this...

At the exact same time, a small part of my bedroom looked like this...

Hello, my name is Sally, and I am an obsessive project starter!

I get these ideas in my head and it doesn't matter what I'm working on or what I've already got stashed away in the closet, I can't rest until I buy the supplies I need. Then one of two things happens. Either I start on it right away and then get bored with it so it sits unfinished, or I put the stuff in my craft closet and never start on it at all because I've already started thinking about something else.

It's a pretty vicious cycle. One that I'm determined to break. So, I buckled down and pep-talked myself into finishing one of the projects I started this summer. Refinishing our kitchen counters.

I had been wanting to do this for quite a while, but I was nervous about putting paint on my counter tops. I read a lot about the process on the Internet to make sure it would hold up, and then I consulted my Dad who is a contractor, who then consulted his painter for me on what product to use. And guess what? The painter said that it is perfectly fine to paint counters. In fact, he does it all the time.

Before I get into the "how to" part of my post I want to show you a picture of what our kitchen looked like when we bought the house. Keep in mind that we bought it as a fixer upper. There was no kitchen sink, but they did leave us a can of paint.

Then, after some hard work it looked like this...We removed the paint can and replaced it with fly paper. Nice huh?

Definitely a major improvement, but I still wasn't completely satisfied. The beige counters and white cupboards just weren't jiving for me.

So, here is my solution to ugly Formica counter tops...

First you have to clean the counter really well. I used vinegar and water.

Next you want to rough them up as best you can with sand paper and then clean them again to remove all the dust.

After that comes the primer. If you are using a dark color I would recommend a grey primer.

Now you have a couple of options. You can roll on a solid color, you can do a rag technique with several colors to make it look like marble (see example here), or you can do what I did and use stone effects spray paint.

I will say, that if I ever have to do this again I probably won't do the spray paint. I love the way it looks, but spray paint is extremely messy especially in a kitchen. It costs about $6.50 a can and I ended up using about 10 cans so the price was higher, and in order to get a smooth finish you have to sand it down with fine sandpaper really well and then put at least ten layers of the top coat on to make it completely smooth. Basically I'm telling you how to do something and then saying "don't do it like me." Is that dumb? I like to think of it more as sharing my live and learn knowledge.

OK, so no matter what technique you use the final step is the top coat. I read a lot of conflicting reports about what product to use, but in the end I went with what my Dad's painter uses. It's from Benjamin Moore and it is called Stays Clear. Something that I didn't know is that most polyurethanes tend to yellow, but this one won't.

You'll want to avoid setting anything on the counter for a couple of days to make sure it is completely dry, but then you get to enjoy your new pretty counters. If you look close you'll notice that I still haven't taken the tape off the edges, but I'm taking baby steps. Maybe my daughter's dress will actually get finished by Easter.

It's not small, it's cozy.

Abbie is joining us today for some apartment home Q&A. She's a new New Yorker, living there with her husband and their two children. We’re excited to get a little peak at her cozy Manhattan home. Read more about their adventure here.

Let the questions begin!

Q: How many square feet is your apartment?

A: About 850 square feet.

Q: How do you keep things clean and organized in a small space with two kids?

A: Throw it away or give it away! If you haven’t used it in the last two years, it should be in the garbage or at goodwill. I also try to clean up every night. A little mess can look enormous in a small space, and I hate waking up to an enormous mess.

Q: What is your favorite spot in your apartment?

A: Definitely the bay window in our bedroom. We spend hours sitting backwards on our bed looking out at the boats in the Hudson, New Jersey, the park, and the (really far away) Empire State Building. We feel really spoiled to have such a great view.

Q: What was the most challenging room to put together?

A: The kids’ bedroom/playroom. It was tricky finding/making girl stuff that wasn’t too girlie and boy stuff that wasn’t to boy…ie. And, if you have kids, you know it’s hard to find a good way to organize their toys. I also made a lot of the wall décor, so I was up late multiple nights getting my craft on. My husband would come home to the crafting zone: paint, scrapbook paper, and a lot of Mod Podge all over.

Q: Any decorating tips for a tight budget?

A: A lot of IKEA, a lot of Mod Podge, scrapbook paper, little bottles of acrylic paint or spray paint, and most of all – using stuff you already have. Things always look better with a fresh coat of paint and paper Mod Podged to it.

Q: So, what is your favorite homemade creation?

A: Hmm...that's hard. Can I give you five? :)
* pictures will link you to more info on the projects)

1&2. the FHE chart and 3D family picture that my son helped with:

3. the vanity:

4&5. super girlie shelf and the top of the kids' dresser:

That's our little corner of Manhattan. Hope you enjoyed the tour! If you have any questions about any of the décor or the projects pictured, don’t hesitate to contact me or check out our blog.

Thanks for having me, Bloom!

Thanks for being here, Abbie. I love the way you've put pieces of yourself and your style in every room of your home! Can't wait to have you back at Bloom again.