Furious Shirley » decorating

Decorating w/ Gray

Shannon Shirley — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 16:38:50 +0000

Gray has been a popular neutral for awhile, but some people are still really reluctant to see it as anything other than drab. I love gray – it’s the color of our bedroom walls and a large portion of my wardrobe. To me, a gray room is elegant and cool and it goes great with bright accents or other neutrals. Perfect for someone [like me] that likes to change things up a lot. And you aren’t just limited to a gray living or bed room. Gray looks great anywhere…

via house to home

via decorpad

gray ruffle shower curtain from urban outfitters

gray & naturals kitchen makeover via urban grace interiors

shades of gray with awesome green pendants via washington post

gray kitchen makeover via willow decor

rustic and chic bedroom via sköna hem

indie style bedroom via decor pad

cute little gray bedroom via home sweet home

super comfy living space via apartment therapy

gray wallpaper and velvety furniture via the decorologist

tranquil gray via decor pad

Beautiful Wallpaper by trove.

Shannon Shirley — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:14:08 +0000

I have always loved wallpaper [despite my mother's love for floral print walls] and I totally flipped when I saw the designs at trove!

They also do custom prints and all of their wallpaper designs can also be purchased as window film. And be sure to check out their printed wood veneers – gorgeous!

Wicker Chairs. Yes, Wicker.

Shannon Shirley — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:05:03 +0000

Every time I pass through a yard sale or visit a thrift shop, I see some sort of wicker chair sadly sitting out with a low price tag dangling from a piece of string tied to the arm. When I think of wicker chairs, images of tacky yard furniture come to mind, but that doesn’t have to be the case. I found some great looking wicker on Flikr – cozy nooks, inviting porches, weathered vintage, and even a few modern looks. The next time I see one of those wicker chair cast-aways, I will not turn my nose and walk away – I am in need of a chair for my “office” [which is really just a corner of our living room w/ a desk and a bookcase] and I think a nice wicker chair with a cozy cushion would be the perfect fit. If you have some good looking wicker, I’d like to see it. Email me.

via deardaisycottage

via jlee 2008

via On Bradstreet {Amy}

Dreaming about Knick Knacks

Shannon Shirley — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 04:01:27 +0000

I swear I have been dreaming about curtains … and pillows, wallpaper, lamps, and knick knacks galore. Yes, knick knacks – those little things all over the house that gather dust, add personality, hold sentimental value, and just look cool.

Like this handmade ceramic “Ghost Camera” sold at Yellow Owl Workshop by husband and wife team Evan Gross and Christina Schmidt in San Fransisco.

I am putting this “White Iron Jack” from blonde birdie on my Christmas list and then I’ll put it on our coffee table. They also have a wonderful selection of children’s items that I will be highlighting in my next baby / tots post!

Everybody needs a little bit of vintage in the home. I found these itmes at hinsdvik vintage – some really great thrift shop wares [they also have a blog all about their finds, decorating, design, etc.]!

Eco-Friendly Home Decor

Shannon Shirley — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:16:20 +0000

Lately, the snippets of free time I usually spend working on blog posts have been eaten up by my new obsession of looking at apartment listings online. We are going to be moving to Chicago at the end of the month and it is all I can think about. I am so excited about getting to unpack in a new space, buy a few new pieces, and decorate! I love mixing vintage and modern and using neutral colors with bold accents and I visit various home decor blogs and online stores religiously! Eco-friendly furnishings and accessories are one of the hottest decorating trends, with many major store brands adding environmentally friendly lines at affordable prices [well, some of them] and more and more independent stores popping up every day.

Tamara Komuniecki, Editor-In-Chief of Long Beach Magazine, recently did a guest blog piece over at decor8 that made me fall in love with Union Eighteen. Handmade from the manufacturing waste of the carpet industry, these beautiful RAW rugs are one of a kind.

Olio United is a great little shop that partners with “socially responsible designers and artists” like Pigeon Toe Ceramics [Portland artist and graphic designer, Lisa Hough]. I love this Cast Kerr Planter [she also makes a very cute Cast Kerr Votive Lantern worth taking a look at].

I also came across Jill Bliss on Olio United. She creates pretty fabric and paper goods like this Yerba Mansa Native Herb Poster printed on recycled card stock and made with soy-based inks. Pop it in a frame and nail it to the wall – would look really great as a series of four or five prints above a sofa or on a dining room wall.

When I saw this Bamboo Screen for sale on the Gaiam site, I immediately wanted a room big enough to put it in. It is made from pesticide-free bamboo and rolls up when you’re not using it. Perfect.

That’s all I have time to post today … let me know what you think of my selections! Lots of great changes coming soon … in my own life and for the blog. Stay tuned!!!!!!!

Shop for great fair trade and eco-friendly goods now!

Nursery Porn

Shannon Shirley — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 16:33:26 +0000

Pink for a girl, blue for a boy, and yellow if it could go either way. How boring! Preparing your baby’s nursery is one of the rites of passage into motherhood. You want it to be as perfect as your newborn bundle … and you want it to be the envy of your mommy friends. Just be sure not to go overboard. Keep it simple, add some personal touches, and remember that this room is for your baby [not you]. Also keep in mind that your baby will grow out of things and into things pretty fast, so design a room that can grow and change with your little one’s needs.

One of the biggest trends in today’s nurseries are modern and playful wall decals. I found a great selection at blik, including this beautiful “Anise” design by Ilan Dei.

Another great way to add some personality to your nursery are mobiles [and your baby will love them too!]. This fanciful silk bird mobile by NightByrd is available at Fey Handmade.

I spent hours on the internet looking for ideas for Ava’s nursery. Project Nursery is filled with inspiring photos of readers nurseries, inspiration boards, DIY projects, and more.

And the nursery porn over at ohdeedoh cannot be beat. They also have tons of DIY and fun kid-friendly activity ideas.

The most important item for your baby’s nursery? Love. You can’t go wrong with that. XO

Cleaning Out the Closet

Shannon Shirley — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 03:13:44 +0000

My closet and drawers are overflowing with clothes – I even have clothes stashed away in suitcases under the bed. So why is it that I often find myself with the dilemma, “I have nothing to wear!”? On really bad days, I get so worked up about it that I end up in full tantrum mode … clothes tossed all over the bed and floor, trying on everything and hating it and then eventually getting mad at myself. It’s pathetic, but I think every female knows what I’m talking about. My biggest problem is that when I buy something new, I love it so much that I wear it all the time. I wear it until I can no longer stand the sight of it. Then, instead of getting rid of it, I pack it away or push it to the back of the closet because “maybe it will come back into style” or “maybe I will want to wear it again one day”. Then there are the clothes I purchase without trying on and never return when I get home and find out they don’t fit … “maybe I will lose those ten pounds”. So, today I cleaned out my closet and my drawers and those suitcases underneath the bed! I made a pile of clothes to turn in over at Beacon’s Closet and threw the rest into a garbage bag. I went through all of the seasons and tossed anything I hadn’t worn in the past year, anything that didn’t fit, and anything that needed mending [if I haven't fixed it by now, I know I never will.]. It felt good to purge – I actually have space in my dresser drawers, but now those empty closet hangers seem lonely. I just might have to go shopping … but until I do, here are some closets to envy.

Nicole Barth’s Closet from Making it Lovely

From Real Simple’s “Inspirational Closets”

Photo found on Decor Pad

Thrify Ways to Give a Room New Life

Shannon Shirley — Mon, 18 May 2009 04:18:22 +0000

There aren’t enough hours in a day or enough days in a weekend. It is Monday already and time to talk about “Things I Like”. One of my favorite things is decorating and redecorating the home we live in now and the home we will one day have. All of this decorating is completely imaginary … I do it in my daydreams as I flip through the pages of a magazine or click through pages on the internet or walk through the streets of my neighborhood, drawing inspiration from beautiful things I see. Money is no object in my make-believe design frenzy, but in reality I have a budget and can’t afford to buy new furniture and fixtures every month. Instead, I have come up with a few low-cost ways to breathe some new life and color into any home.

Pillows. Better yet, pillow covers. Just zip them over your existing throw pillows on your sofa or bed and give the room an instant color makeover. Buying [or making] just the covers saves you from trying to find somewhere to store the pillows you aren’t using and makes it so easy to change things up anytime.

Try these colorful covers from Meringue Designs in Provo, Utah.

Lampshades. We just purchased two new shades for the bedroom this weekend. Want to DIY some new shades? Check out this great article from Apartment Therapy on “Revamping Your Lampshades“.

You can also change up a room by putting up new window treatments, or adding an accent wall with a bold paint color or interesting wallpaper pattern [later in the week, I'll be talking more in depth about custom wallpaper].

You can refashion your bedroom in a snap with a new duvet cover. There are loads of selections at The Company Store and they even have some great eco-friendly choices.

And for the kitchen, I came across these super cool chalkboard panels for your cupboards at Wallies.

And yet one more way to refresh the look of your home is to gather up all of your knick knacks and accent pieces and re-disperse them! Thanks for reading! Come back tomorrow for posts “All About the Babers”. XO

Have an easy decorating tip? Email me!