Chic on the Cheap

Hey friends, have you been to Target lately?  I was there for a few items and stumble upon this beauty.

Instantly I thought of the Tory Burch pom pom tote she had earlier this spring/summer.  Obviously the two bags aren't that similar, but it still has the cute straw pom pom accent and in my opinion a bit more subdued of a look.  I'm a die hard Tory fan, but here I prefer good old Tarjay.  Plus there's about a $300 savings, my checking account can breath a sigh of relief. 

High/Low Nursery

One of my favorite blogs Simply Seleta did a post on a high/low room by StyleatHome.com and naturally I was intrigued.  When I was cruising through the site I found this high/low nursery. 

Can you guess the high and the low?  Find out here.

Shoe Love: Attention All Pregos!

Just bought these cuties for cheap at the Gap and I LOVE them.  They are so comfortable I feel like I am wearing house shoes, but I'm not!  Leather and worth every inexpensive penny.  I am considering getting a black pair.  You can never have too many comfortable black shoes. 

Beautiful and Affordable Play Room

Do you love the way this gorgeously styled play room looks? Could you envision it in your own home and does it make you yearn for an interior designer?

Photo from Sloan Mauran ID

If you answered yes to any of the above, then you are not alone. I too stopped dead in my tracks and wished my upstairs rec room looked like this. Well my friends, good news! This gorgeous and yes totally affordable room is more achievable than it looks.

Okay so let's start with what you might not have in your kid space, beautiful hardwood floors, 8" baseboards, beautiful AND expensive wood double hung windows and of course that arched window seat. But aside from the architectural details, the styling of the room is perfection and yes achievable.

Would you believe the meat and potatoes of this room comes from Ikea and a few other chic and cheap retailers? Allow me to demonstrate....

First we'll start with Ikea, where you'll find about 80% of the items for this design.  This rug is not the exact same as the photo, but a very close second and you can't beat the price.

The ever so popular Ikea toddler table and chairs.

The bookcase...Ikea as well.

   

Or the Ikea Expedit turned on its side.

Some baskets to fill the shelves.

The comfy armchair in pink if you have girls or if you are striving for gender nuetral, the red.

The apple green pillows, also Ikea.com.

And the wall art.  Frames from Ikea and wall cards from LandofNod.com.

And finally the biggest splurges for this very affordable room, the beautiful gord lamp and custom roman shades.  The lamp is from LampsPlus.com and the fabric is an apple green cotton duck from fabrics.com.  The perfect fabric for a simple roman shade. 

So there you have it, high style for a steal.  keep in mind this design works beautifully because the bold furniture and asseccories are accented with clean crips neutral walls. 

Ice Cream Dreams and Waffles

I love this fun and vibrant breakfast nook featured in Traditional Home magazine.  Styled after a traditional ice cream parlor, it's a setting perfect for food, crafts and fun. 

This look would be so easy to duplicate in your own home.  Striped walls with a pale barely there pink on the bottom and that table looks a lot like this oh so chic and affordable Ikea one. 

A similar chandelier could be found here and spray painted white, then pull it all together with a set of vintage chairs recovered and whoa la!  High style for a steal. 

Sassy Spring Styles for Tots

I love spring clothing.  Personally it's my favorite seasonal wardrobe because it's the best of both extremes.  The weather is cool enough to still sport your favorite jackets, scarves and sweaters, but the warm air blows in the sundresses, skirts and shorts. 

While scouting Old Navy last night I found these cheap-on-the-chic spring styles for girls.  I can't wait to start dressing my tot in these.

My favorite Valentines t-shirt by far!

Gray is the new Black AND Blue

Incase you haven't noticed, gray is THE color of the moment.  Interior designers, home furnishing stores and design magazines all claim gray is the color to have in every chic home.  So...if you are anything like me and are a slave to trends (I love trendy touchs in a home) then you'll want to know how to incorporate a little gray without having to overhaul all your furnishings.  By the way, any of these items below work for children and adult spaces.

Any of these rugs from West Elm would look beautiful in any room.

Even Ikea has a beautiful and affordable gray rug.

I also love these Chunky Tassel Throws from West Elm.  The throw name is Platinum.  How chic.

This Gray Damask fabric from Buyfabrics.com is one of my favorite affordable fabrics around.

And if you think gray is too drab for your taste, check out the color paired with yellow.

Restoration Hardware has painted all the interiors of their stores from their classic silversage blue to beautiful gray and the result is stunning. 

These gorgeous antiqued candle sconces from Wisteria are painted a beautiful aged gray.  They are sold as a pair and would be beautiful in a girls room.

Another option for lighting, this gorgeous platinum pendant shade from West Elm.

Love this gray hutch from Layla Grace.

For those of you who have some serious cash to spend, there is this beautiful Gustav Gray children's furniture set from Posh Tots.

Or if your cash flow is more in line with mine, then perhaps this more affordable Ikea option in dark charcoal gray.  This vanity would make a perfect desk for a child.  You can see the entire Edland line from Ikea here.

And yes even our beloved Pottery Barn is riding the gray train with their PB Teen line.  Check out just one of their new bedding styles for boys.  Gray, of course.

Frugal Friday: Chic and Easy Fabric Art

I spied these beautiful framed fabrics on a featured nursery room from Spearmintbaby.com.  It got me thinking, how EASY and CHEAP this project really easy.  Even if you don't have a crafty bone in your body you can make this art for your child's room.

To help you out here are a few beautiful and FREE templates from the beloved Amy Butler.  To make this fabric art, start by printing your desired template on computer paper and enlarge or shrink to fit your frame as needed.  Once you have the right size cut out the template and pin it to your fabric.  Try to arrange your design so that it hits the center of the fabric pattern.  Notice above how the damask butterfly is perfectly centered over the fabric pattern?  It makes for a much more eye catching piece of art.

After you cut your fabric designs, glue or tape (double stick tape) the design to your frame back.  You can also use construction or other decorative papers to create a prettier background. 

Hope this helps sparks some decoration inspirations for your homes!  Click here for the Amy Butler patterns.