Every year I post New Year’s resolutions. (See previous years here: 2013 and 2014.) This year, I noticed that Red Leaf Style has evolved. Between the home solutions, tips and ideas, I’ve started adding more of my personality and style to the blog. I’m writing about travel, life and other randomness. That’s why this year, my resolutions aren’t just about home decorating. They’re about life in general. I hope you find them as inspiring as I do. 1. Be more in the moment It’s time to slow down. Breathe. Take in the little moments. I spent too much of 2014 rush, rush, rushing. I’m happy and content where I am right now. I want to enjoy it. This year is all about not stressing over the small things. I encourage you to do the same. 2. Read more books Nothing new in this resolution. But it’s a good one. I used to spend entire weekends devouring books. It’s time to recapture some of that bookworm nature. Today, I signed up for goodreads.com, a website that helps you keep track of the books you’ve read, as well as to check out book recommendations from others. Anybody tried it? How do you like it? 3. Write things down This year I’m actually...
5 Easy Christmas Decorations (Ones I Love!)
When decorating for the holidays, I like to keep it easy. I challenge myself to (mostly) decorate with only recycled items and items I already own. This year, I want to share my favorite items to decorate with for Christmas, and how I’ve used them in my home. 1. Decorating with fresh greenery The trimmings from my real Christmas tree make the perfect decorating accompaniments for the rest of the house. For example, I stick leftover boughs in vases and mason jars, and then place the “bouquets” throughout my house. This year, I used them to decorate my fake mantle (really just shelves above my couch.) They add greenery that lasts. You don’t have to water them or pay attention to them. Plus, they smell divine. 2. Draping a finger knit garland on the mantle Last year, I discovered the wonders of finger knitting while I was in bed with the flu for three days. Finger knitting is an easy peasy craft. And, it makes one long strand, like a garland. There are tons of tutorials out there that can show you how to finger knit far better than I can. Give it a try! It’s super easy. I made two strands...
5 Fun Storage Solutions for Your Desk
When I moved into my new house, I had a problem. The two bedroom home with no basement didn’t have room for an office. Before moving, I had said goodbye to my mid-century desk. So, at the new place, I didn’t need office space to hold a desk. What I needed was somewhere to put all of the books, office supplies, scrapbooking stuff, notebooks, stamps and other bits and pieces that had been living in my previous desk’s drawers. What my new house does have is a dining room. We’ll call it a dining room because I think that’s what it’s intended to be, but in all reality it’s an 11 ft. x 7 ft. opening with two doorways, one door and two windows. Not a lot of room to put furniture. Now, imagine a 7 ft. dining room table taking up most of that space. My boyfriend insisted on keeping his gigantic dining room table despite the fact that it’s way oversized for this house. (I’m actually fine with it—now!) I certainly wasn’t going to waste all that table space for “dining” when I needed desk space. So, I decided to turn the dining room—dining room table and...
Decorating with Fall Leaves
So, I might be a little cheap. I love buying a $4 bouquet of flowers from Trader Joe’s every once in a while, but during the in-between time I have another solution. I head to my backyard with a pair of green pruning shears and snip away. Fall is the best time to bring nature indoors. The reds, oranges and yellows only come once a year and I like to enjoy them outside—and inside. Here’s how I decorate with fall foliage. Stick a branch trimming from a tree with the leaves changing into a vase. You don’t need to add anything else to the display. All of those colorful leaves are just as good as any ol’ bouquet of spring flowers. Or, just sneak a few leafies randomly around the house. Here a couple of yellow leaves hang out in a potted plant in my kitchen. I love the look of this sparse branch with the pops of yellow. It worked well in the blue vase on my bar cart. Better hurry, those fall leaves won’t last long. Your trimmings will dry up within a day or two, but personally, I still like the crunchy look. Related articles: My Fireplace...
Welcome Home
I’ve been gone for a while. It wasn’t my usual procrastination or getting overly busy. I didn’t feel like blogging about home things because I didn’t really have a home. Within two weeks of moving into a new rental house in August, our house was broken into. My laptop, where I’d lovingly written every blog post on Red Leaf Style, and where I kept all of my photos, was stolen. Poof. Gone. For about a month I was in limbo. The place where I was living wasn’t my “home”. At least it wasn’t a place where I felt safe or happy. I was a little lost. This experience has reinforced more than ever that I’m a real homebody. I love home. I can’t wait to get home from work and make the space where I live comfy and inviting. I want to fill it with the smell of brewed coffee; I want to bake treats and cook dinner and sit on the floor with my doggie. I want to make a mess and start projects and decorate. Of course, decorate. I couldn’t do any of those things after our house was broken into. And I didn’t want to. But...
Published in VintageKC Magazine: Fall 2014
Although I don’t usually talk about it here on Red Leaf Style, I’m a writer, not just a blogger. I write professionally to earn a living and because I love it. For fun, I’ve been freelancing for VintageKC magazine, a local Kansas City magazine dedicated to decorating, DIY projects and fashion, all with a vintage focus. The magazine completely fits my style. It’s vintage for the modern girl (or guy). From glamping to the best paint to distress furniture, the magazine has a lot of great ideas for today’s vintage lover. I’m writing a regular column called Vintage Memories. Basically, every issue I interview someone interesting and build a story around a vintage photograph we dig up. It’s really fun. And I love how this issue’s column turned out. There’s Miracle Whip sandwiches and 50s dinner parties and a lot of other interesting tidbits from a lady who has lived in her childhood home for more than 60 years. Since I talk alot about vintage here on Red Leaf Style, I wanted to invite you to check out this issue’s column. You can find it in the digital edition on page 46. Related articles: Published in VintageKC Magazine! Vintage...
Old Dresser Redo
Taking something sad and outdated and transforming it into something beautiful? That’s my favorite. Especially with furniture. Take this dresser. I bought this sad number for $15 at a garage sale. It needed a lot of love. The drawers were fragile and starting to fall apart. (Thanks for fixing those, dad!) It was full of scratches and the stain was wearing off. But I loved the pretty scalloped detail at the bottom. Here’s the before. And now the after. This dresser just shows that it doesn’t take a lot of know-how to make a big transformation. I didn’t do anything crazy. I simply sanded the dresser and the drawers; gave it a couple of coats of Valspar paint in Crisp Linen; and perked it up with new aged bronze knobs. I love the classic look of the crisp white and near-black pulls. I’m really happy with it. What do you think? Related articles: Closet Makeover Reveal 5 Favorite Furniture Find–For Free! Wooden Chair Makeover: After...