Planked Wall Hallway Gets *NEW* Light Fixtures!

Planked walls seem to be all the rage this year.  They are really a

great way to add character and cottage charm to your home.

I have expressed my frustration with the  'six-door hallway' in

our home.  Yes, I am not kidding, the hallway has 

SIX doors!  I tried painting an accent wall {a mistake, I admit}

then finally decided to add the planking. 

The hallway also had oh-so-blah recessed lights.

I knew adding some semi-flush mounted

lights were one more way to add some 

interest to my crazy hallway.

{and maybe take some attention away from 

all those doors!}

This is a really tough spot to photograph so bear

with me on these crazy angled shots!  

Last weekend my hubby got busy hanging these

wonderful light fixtures from Bellacor.com!

I love the simplicity of the fixtures which

I would say are both modern and traditional.

The fixtures are called the 'Livex Heritage Convertible

Semi-Flushmount' and at $99.00 are pretty

affordable for a light fixture!  Aren't the so pretty?

And if you aren't a fan of these, Bellacor has 

tons more to choose from as well as other

great items for your home!  

We have nine foot ceiling so the fixtures also fill in some of

that vertical space and add so much interest and charm

to this once very dark and boring hallway!

I often find the most interesting homes are ones that don't ignore

spaces that one wouldn't normally think of decorating.  I think

someone needs to start a movement to begin making uninteresting

spaces more interesting - at least ones that have six doors!

In all seriousness, I often tell overwhelmed clients that
small changes, like paint and lighting really can
work miracles!  I think this hallway proves that.

My 'Flea Market' sign was a find at a local antiques mall - it's not

authentic but a made by a local gal here in Portland.

Can you see where I have yet to finish painting my

planks???  See that *VeRy* think strip next to

the door?  Yep, just haven't been able to muster

the motivation……maybe this weekend???

Around my house…..today.

It's been a productive day - lots of work done and even

in my own house.  It's been entertaining watching

my Instagram feed - so many snow photos from 

all you southern folk!  Stay safe out there!

When I was in Atlanta at the gift show, I made exactly

one purchase for myself - this sweet set of

antler mounts from Two's Company.  They

arrived yesterday and of course, I couldn't wait

to hang them…..and then snap some photos

to share with you!

My entry is hard to style because it is narrow. There is  no room

for a bench or console, typical for entryways.  This hat rack was 

a fun addition but felt it a little lonely.

It is lonely no more!

Keeping Up…..with Kourtney Kardashian.

Confession time…..

reality TV is just one of my many guilty pleasures 

and yes, I watch Keeping up with the Kardashians.

I actually REALLY loved the family home Kris

and Bruce lived in during the first few seasons -

it was comfortable and 'real' -

{in comparison to many uber-fancy ones that dominate the reality TV genre}.

If I were to pick a favorite of the current homes the family

lives in - I would choose the home of Kardashian sister Kourtney

{and her boyfriend Scott and their two children}.

The home was recently featured in InStyle magazine.

InStyle

While I consider this home to be 'fancy' and very well 

designed, there are lots of nods to the small children

that live here.  It is obviously a comfortable family home.

InStyle

The home is full of neutrals, textures, graphic patterns

and lots of black.  It's traditional and contemporary

all at the same time.

InStyle

I love that Kourtney chose to incorporate pieces from her

parents' homes from her childhood - meaningful pieces

make a house a home!

Are you like me?  When you watch shows on TV

do you get lost looking at the sets?

What are your favorite TV homes?

I plan on showcasing some of my favorites in

upcoming posts.

InStyle

Happy Monday!

Full Circle

I am lucky to have friends with fabulous homes.  Friends who effortlessly

create beautiful, comfortable, personal spaces that are

magazine worthy.  

You all went crazy over my friend

Meg's cottage when I posted photos here.  

{and BTW - her home will be featured in an

upcoming issue of Cottages and Bungalows}

Remember

the photo below?  

It is a photo of my friends Meg and Allie.

In the photo, they are looking at architectural 

plans for Allie's possible new home.

Now look at the photo at the top of this post.

That photo was taken of these two special friends

in Allie's new kitchen - this week.

A full circle moment. 

I promise I will post more…..promise!

** I still have two pillows left for sale - you can go here
to see them.

Pillow Sale!

Call this 'winter cleaning' or just me having fun here on the blog.

I know you all love a good pillow as much as me - pillows

are 'instant re-decorating gratification', right?  Well,  I have

been known to go a little crazy with ordering/buying pillows for myself

or clients and sometimes they just don't work.

I love to offer pillow covers to you for a good price.  And for

as long as I have had this blog, you all seem to like 

a good pillow sale as much as me!

To purchase any of these covers just email me at

jillbeth{at}aol{dot}com - it's first come, first served.
When a cover is 'sold' it, I will mark
it as such here on this post.
*Sorry, only US buyers, please.

Batik bolster $40 {includes shipping} 12x34  SOLD!

Indigo Crewel Birds $30 {includes shipping} 14x24 SOLD

Vintage French Toile with Black Ticking $50 {includes shipping} 24x24 SOLD

Charcoal/Red Dyed Grainsack $55 {includes shipping} 21x55

Indigo/White Zig Zag $40 {includes shipping} 20x20

Happy Shopping!

Sweet Room for Twin Girls!

My e-design client's twin girls are moving out of their

cribs and into 'big girl beds' and need a shared bedroom

that is still 'little' girl but can grow up with them too.

The wallpaper from Anthropologie was

the jumping off point for the design and color scheme.

I really LOVE this wallpaper.

I am finally opening up my e-design queue for

additional clients.  Please e-mail me at

jill{dot}hinsondesigns@gmail.com if you

are interested.  I charge $250 for a comprehensive

room design but I also do custom pricing if your

project is smaller or if you simply need suggestions

for pillows, accessories or paint.

I would love the opportunity to work with you!

Winner!

Happy Saturday morning!  Just popping in to announce the winner of the Starbucks Verismo.  I used Random.org and NUMBER 22 was chosen!  Congratulations Rene from Cottage and Vine!  You will receive an email from me!  Thanks to everyone who entered - in the end, I had 117 entrants for this giveaway - a record here at the Forever*Cottage! Woo-Hoo!

Friday……good stuff.

Snapped this photo this morning - my current pillow combo and the white 

tulips on my dining table…..each bring me frivolous joy.  I am also grateful it's

Friday.  We have a weekend full of happy - date night with my husband

tonight, soccer games, sleepovers and my big girl goes to her first

high school father/daughter dance{their 'date' is on Saturday}…..

as my fav Kenny Chesney would say, "it's the good stuff".

I hope you have lots of the same……make sure you enter my 

giveaway, I am blown away by the number of entries!

Coffee talk……{a fun giveaway, oh yea!}

Staples gave me the opportunity to try a Starbucks Verismo in my home.

The single-cup brewing system was fun to use

and made yummy drinks just like you get in 

your local Starbucks all in the comfort

of your very own home.

I am not ashamed to admit, I am not a coffee drinker,

despite living in the pacific northwest {I hear all your gasps!}.

However, I love tea and really liked to be able to brew

a single Chai tea latte.  My girls enjoyed making

hot cocoa and the photo at the top is of my dad

who was visiting at Christmas and enjoyed MANY 

a hot beverages courtesy of the Starbucks Verismo!

Staples has generously offered to give one lucky
Forever*Cottage reader a Verismo of their very own!

To Enter The Giveaway:

* Leave a comment with your favorite Starbucks order,
that's it!

Enter by midnight PST on 1/17/14.  I will announce
the winner on Saturday.

Good Luck!

The Atlanta Market

Well, I'm home!  I am feeling inspired, overwhelmed and sort of exhausted!

To say the trip/experience was a whirlwind is an understatement.

I really didn't know what to expect when my friend asked

 me to come along saying she thought it would be

good for my business.  

Believe it or not, whenI began helping 

clients decorate their homes, I really had

no intention of purchasing wholesale.  My original plan

when I decided to dip my toes, so to speak, in the decorating

biz was to advise clients on mass market sources and allow

them to do the buying - for me it was not as much a 

financial commitment and for the client it means that

they don't typically pay me as much as they would a

traditional interior designer.  However, as my business

has grown, I know that I will need to offer wholesale

buying services - it just opens up more options for my clients.

 I was a total newbie - as I walked around not fully understanding

how all of it worked but that quickly changed.

It is a true sensory overload!

As just a longtime retail shopper, especially for home decor

products, it was so fun to see the showrooms of some of

my favs - Sugarboo, Design Legacy, Two's Company and

BoBo Intriguing Objects just to name a few!

I also discovered some new favorites too.

And I loved being in the South!  It's the land
of blingy-bling, monograms galore and
barbecue everything!  Walking the market and
listening to all the southern accents was fun
for this yankee-girl.  My only disappointment
was not connecting with some blog friends at the
market - between the harried pace and the bad
cell service inside the mart, it just didn't happen
and I am sorry for that ……but there's always
next year!

Atlanta bound!

Today I am heading to Atlanta, I have flown through many

times but never stayed.  I am looking forward to seeing new

and old friends!  You can come along by following me on

Instagram!

Ba Bye!!!!

Weeknight Dinners……favorite blogs….heading to Atlanta!

I love to cook, I really do. But sometimes, cooking on 

weeknights, when the day has been busy and the nights

activities are many is a chore.  I have vowed to do

better and cut back on the too many 'taco nights'

that seemed to creep into the repertoire.

I was thrilled to find this Weeknights with Giada

hardcover cookbook on sale at barnesandnoble.com

for $5.99!  It will be my inspiration, and considered 

a good start on a more varied weeknight routine.

You can get one HERE.

****************

Also, I have added some new blogs to my blog

list on the sidebar - go check them out.  Of 

course, I want you to come here and be inspired

but I also have lots of blog favorites that

inspire me and always love to share!

****************

Finally, I am heading to Atlanta to the gift and home show tomorrow.

I am tagging along with a friend and look

forward to check out the new trends for 2014 in home

decor - I have never attended a show like this

so I don't know really what to expect.  I am bringing

my camera and hope to be able to share some

fun photos with all of you.

A fresh start, a clean slate…my beginning.

"Anything is possible"…..I have been an eternal optimist {mostly}

 throughout my life, so I always love the seemingly new beginning

that the start of the new year brings.  

I know it doesn't make sense, pick a

random day in a month and it could be YOUR new 

beginning but a fresh start but for me is officially on the biggies - new years,

the day my kids go back to school after summer vacation or

even at the first signs of spring.  They are my personal trimesters.

I'm pretty sure that where I am in life 

with my children and family determines

 my beginnings and endings. And I'm going with it…….

and holding on for dear life to the surge of optimism, energy

and hopeful feelings that 'anything is possible'.

I happily make lists and plans and goals….

I strategize and plot and make more lists, 

I organize and purge……..

 and with way more giddiness than 

I probably should admit to, 

I happily cross off items on my lists

……..anything is possible!

The first place that feels my energy is usually my home - after

all the Christmas decor is put away I go into

super re-arrange mode and this year was no different.  

My mantle was cleared and restyled with some favorites - I 

know it's a little weird to have a mirror with hooks on

it but I had it in the closet and I like the light a mirror

reflects during these darker Pacific Northwest winters.

The large antlers are from an elk and found by my

brother near his home in Colorado - he brought

them to me at Thanksgiving.  The vintage brass candle

sticks have been collected over the years - mostly found

at thrift stores for less that $8 a piece.  I break my

"no faux plants" design rule for these crazy 

cool faux boxwood-like orbs - what can I say, I 

am a plant killer and crave greens in the winter.

Here's wishing you all fresh starts in 2014!

A Fun Client Living Room

My client is a young mom{and dad} with four small children who all 

by herself has great taste and does a fine job decorating

her home.  However, I am happy she has sought my

advice to help her finish spaces in their new larger home.

This formal living space has high ceilings, and gets 

lots of light.  After I suggested SW Urbane Bronze as a 

paint color choice for her new kitchen island, my client 

fell in love with the color and painted the living room

walls Urbane Bronze too!  It is a dramatic, dark color -

not meant for many spaces but this room gets load of 

light and has lots of white millwork to balance the

dark walls.  

We are working with some existing, more traditional pieces

already in the living room.  When I crafted the design

board for the space I tried to make the space feel 'young',

layered, yet traditional too.  For example, I mixed the vintage

bird prints with a more contemporary art piece - and

added a ghost chair {knock-off} which will be paired with a very

traditional secretary that is already in the space.

This style is REALLY me.  And working with

clients who trust me and collaborate with me is just 

the best!  I also happen to think it yields the best design results.

I am going to be updating my design services page {above} - 

about time, huh?  However, it has taken this long

to really decide what types of services I prefer to offer, 

what I am best at offering as well as making sure I offer

services that best meet the needs of local AND

e-design clients.

2014 - Let's get this party started…..with a look at my bathroom {before/after}.

For whatever reason,

sharing photos of my bathroom is sort of weird for me but I imagine you are

all just like me and love peeking inside the most intimate parts 

of other people's homes. {Tell me I am not the only one who loves

driving around at night and being able to peer inside the windows

of homes!}  I know, totally weirdo!

We really did a full cosmetic makeover in this guest bath over the last year, for very little $.

It all began with stripping wallpaper then adding beadboard and wainscoting

{thanks dad!}.

After those basics were done, I relied on styling the space

with some fun vintage finds and items that make it a personal space too.

I found the vintage brass combo cup/soap/toothbrush holder last

year at a flea market and knew it would be used in this bath.

The small painting is a beach scene of the Oregon coast and the 

number 4 is used all over our house…..cause there's 4 of us.

I found the 'Delaware Dr.' sign at another flea market and bought it

because my husband's company is headquartered in Delaware and

we lived there for a few years.

The bamboo shelf is another flea market find {I think I paid $5 for it} - the jars

are from Target.  I simply spray painted the lids gold.

And you all thought I wasn't crafty!

The French hatrack is something I have had for 

many years, has served many purposes in many homes.  Here

it serves as a great place to hang your towel when you in the shower.

As I was taking photos, this guy decided to photo bomb -

as he often does.  Such a poser!

And in case you are still here, and interested…..

this is what we started with!

I have lots of fun plans for 2014 - I can't wait to share them with you!