Decor

I’m always looking for children’s room decor that is timeless and won’t need to be swapped out as my kids get older, so it’s no surprise that these live animal art prints taken by photographer Sharon Montrose caught my eye.

The photos, available at The Animal Print Shop, are so pure and gentle that they’d be perfect for a new nursery, but they’re also lively and spunky enough for any “big kid’s” bedroom or play area too. I mean, how could you not be happy waking up to any of these little darlings?

Do you have any tips and advice for decorating your child’s space? How do you create a room that can grow along with your child?

All images via The Animal Print Shop

Doing some holiday entertaining this Christmas?  These easy DIY holiday tabletop decor ideas by Meghan Yang Interior Design are something you can do yourself, with items already in your house. Which means it is not only simple, but also free! You can even recruit your kids to help.

Here is a step-by-step on how to create DIY holiday tabletop decor to spruce up your Christmas table!

Gift Napkins

I took simple cream napkins folded them in to a square and then just wrapped them with Christmas ribbon to look like presents.  I then placed them on gold plastic chargers I had left over from New Years.  If you wanted a name tag you could easily hole punch card stock and tie to the ribbon.

DIY Holiday Table Runner

I used gold bark holiday wrapping paper and just folded it to size.  I then cut out paper snow flakes that I taped together and placed on top.  This is a great way the kids can help.  You could use both of these ideas together like I did, or use the snow flakes over and existing tablecloth or runner. Or the wrapping paper runner on its own.

DIY Holiday Ornament Centerpiece

I showed this 2 ways.

Centerpiece 1: The first is with a three tier cake stand.  I simply took left over ornaments and ribbon and stacked them around each layer. I just dispersed the color in a way that I felt was evenly distributed from any angle.  You will notice that the ornaments are all different. You don’t have to have a matching set to make it all come together.

Centerpiece 2: For this option I just showed a basic cake stand. You could get the same effect with a serving tray as well.  Since in this option there is only one layer, I clustered candles in the middle for height and then put the ornaments around it.

I used color because it is fresh and I thought it would photograph well. But this would still be pretty in just metallic. Or you could use the same idea for New Years with gold, silver, and black.

You could also add in fresh flowers instead of pine cones on the napkins, or in the glasses. If you wanted name tag a cute idea is to put them on a silver bell or a small pine cone.

Thanks Meghan for sharing these fun ways to make a DIY holiday tabletop!  Have a wonderful holiday weekend everyone!

www.MeghanYang.com
Fresh & unique OC interior design

[Disclosure: Meghan is a Tiny Oranges Sponsor]

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

To get you up to speed, this past summer was a game of musical bedrooms for us, one that started when my girls were receiving new larger Serta iSeries mattresses for their bedrooms.

Given that we were going to be receiving larger beds, I had to re-look at our spaces to see what made the most sense, and called in Shanna for help as it was more than I could wrap my head around!

Best decision EVER.

Please click here to see Reveal Post # 1 and fun un-girly blue and green modern girl’s room she did for my three year old daughter.

Please click here to see Reveal Post # 2 and the ultra girly feminine, pink and white girl’s room for my six year old daughter.

So now we are on to the third room, our guest room.

Given that it doesn’t get used that much, we scrimped as much as we could budget wise.  I still can’t believe what Shanna was able to accomplish for us on the amount she did.

This room was previously my youngest daughter’s room. It is a tiny room, and given that we squeezed in many big pieces of furniture always made it feel even smaller.

Here is a before…

And here is how Shanna transformed this space into a lovely, modern gray and yellow guest room…

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

On the pillow, she had our last name embroidered on it. Isn’t that a cute idea? Especially because the people that come to stay in that room in our family all share the same last name.

I also LOVED this idea: she took a child’s wall book holder we did not end up using in either girl’s room and mounted it on the wall in the guest room to use for magazines.  I would have never thought of using a wall book holder like this for magazines in a guest room, but it turned out so darling.

To further personalize the space, she took out the prints from two old frames, and had me enlarge two 8×10 black and white family prints showing the people that would be staying most often in this room. Enlarging them to 8 x 10 made them look like an art print (top of the shelving unit.)

 And I am in love with this inexpensive shelving unit. Such a great find. Visit Shanna’s blog for a complete sourcing list for this room.

After the fact, I also picked up a luggage rack for the guest room. I think having thoughtful touches, like a place for guests to put their luggage is a nice touch.

What do you do in your guest room to personalize it and made it more comfortable for guests?

Shanna is an interior designer who I met through blogging and her blog www.MyFavoriteEverything.com.

She has gone back to her designer roots after having three girls under 3 years and is taking on clients specializing in family living spaces and children’s bedrooms.

Having three little ones herself, believe me mamas, she knows exactly where you are coming from!

Shanna blew my mind and our expectations with the project she did for us.

For a complete sourcing list or to contact Shanna, visit www.myfavoriteeverything.com.

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

I am SO excited to share these decorating ideas for a 3 year old girl’s room and the recent redesign Shanna from My Favorite Everything did for my youngest daughter’s new “big girl” room which all started with the girls’ new iSeries Serta mattresses.  So here is the BIG REVEAL!

First a little about how this dreamy project all came together. When we first met with Shanna, she asked me what I wanted out of the space for Morgan’s room.  My answers were:

1. Solutions for a small bedroom.  

Her room is small so I wanted to make the most out of it by utilizing the limited space we had in a better way.  The old furniture (cute daybed and dresser with hutch) were cute, but too cumbersome in a small room.

2. Toy storage solution.

I wanted a designated place for her toys to make cleaning up easier for a 3 year old. The end goal was to get the bulk of their toys out of our great room and into their bedrooms so we could semi-reclaim our great room.

3. Clothes organization solution. 

Her old dresser drawers were cluttered and clothes would get thrown out and put back into one big messy mix.  Shanna had a brilliant solution for kids’ clothes organization. Keep reading. By far my FAVORITE part of this whole project!

4. Easy way for her to dress herself.

I am big on fostering independence so I wanted to make dressing as easy as possible for a 3 year old.

Other than that, Shanna asked me what her favorite color was, to which I told her GREEN and from there, Shanna worked her magic and the reveal was a huge surprise for us. 100 times better than I ever expected. Like jaw-dropping better.

Without further adieu, here are the befores of Emma’s old room (Morgan’s new room.)

And the first of the AFTERS! I just die every time I go into her room. I don’t know who loves it more – her or me! The transformation was phenomenal. The first thing I should mention is that we took the plunge after years of wanting to replace our carpet with hardwood, so the flooring was the first thing we decided do. Makes such a difference.

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

The “You Are My Sunshine” wall print was a fun find on Etsy. I love it because Morgan is like the sunshine to me, and “morgen” in German means “morning.”

The Taut Canvas print of the birds above her bed has also always been a favorite of mine so I was thrilled it worked in the new design. For a complete sourcing list of all major decor products in this room, visit Shanna’s post here on My Favorite Everything.

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

The cute bookshelf is the perfect solution for both book and toy storage. Plus it doubles as a nightstand.  The bed frame is high enough so that we are also able to store several toy baskets out of sight under the bed skirt. For a small room, we now have a ton of storage.

Plus, you won’t believe how much the adorable white wire bed frame was - guarantee your jaw will drop too. Visit Shanna’s blog to find out how much she found it for!

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

Shanna was able to fit her play kitchen in the space where the old dresser was allowing for more play opportunities in her room.  I also love the wall shelves with children’s books.  A great way to fill a wall with a cute display, but one that is practical as well!

The mirrored closet doors were removed and replaced with this darling green and white curtain closet door instead.  I love that it not only looks cute, but is super functional.  Her little 3 year old hands can easily get to her clothes for dressing.

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

The ledge above the closet was the perfect spot for more storage baskets.  The display opposite her bed is the perfect solution for her collection of barrettes, family photos and art.

And, now my FAVORITE!!! The closet and kids’ clothes storage solution…

[Photo credit: Tankersley Photography]

Every item of clothing was removed from the huge dresser and put into the closet. The clear bins are Container Store clear shoe boxes, and are organized by category for easy dressing on pre-existing shelving my husband installed a long time ago from Home Depot.  One for leggings, one for short sleeved shorts, one for underwear, one for socks, etc.

She can easily see her clothes (i.e. doesn’t need to open every drawer!) and get to what she needs.  It has also be helpful when putting away clothes, as it is easy to bring the bins to the laundry area for folding and putting away.  My girls are now “bin runners” at laundry time. I LOVE THIS SYSTEM! Shanna is my organizational goddess!

Even better, before our closet space was WAY underutilized, so to have it so functional is the biggest blessing. Plus, it removed the need for the large dresser in her small room.

Shanna is an interior designer who I met through blogging and her blog www.MyFavoriteEverything.com.

She has gone back to her designer roots after having three girls under 3 years and is taking on clients specializing in family living spaces and children’s bedrooms.

Having three little ones herself, believe me mamas, she knows exactly where you are coming from!

Shanna blew my mind and our expectations with this fun green and blue design. I mean, never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined what she created for us.

I love that her room is feminine, modern and fun, but not too girly.

If you like a pink and girly room however, just WAIT to see what she did for Emma’s room. It is now called the Pink Palace. Post coming next week! Stay tuned!

For a complete sourcing list or to contact Shanna, visit www.myfavoriteeverything.com.

HELLO mamas! I am very happy today because I have two amazing back-to-back giveaways this week. Just wait ’til you hear about this one!

Today’s giveaway is offered by Newport Cottages, a USA-made furniture manufacturer specializing in custom children’s pieces built to last a lifetime.  One very lucky reader will have the chance to win that Tiny Tots Table pictured above and a pair of Tiny Tots chairs! Not only that, the winner can choose their custom color finish from these 28 finishes! Did I tell you it was amazing? A $490 retail value amazing! Good luck, please enter below!

Every piece of furniture from Newport Cottages’ California coastal cool collection is made to order. This means your order is custom made for you, by real people, using Old World craftsmanship techniques. You can customize size, finish, style. The sky’s the limit.

If you happen to be in Fashion Island sometime, you should definitely check out their retail location in Atrium Court to see for yourself the QUALITY of their work.

I am sure many OC mamas are familiar with their gorgeous furniture, but did you know Newport Cottages also provides design services?

If you would like professional direction in creating your nursery or child’s room, they offer full-scale interior design services specializing in your family’s design needs.  From classical traditional to modern pop Newport Cottages is available to listen and meet your needs.  A list of sample services include:

~ Full custom design
~ Vendor referencing
~ Space planning
~ Furniture selection & layout
~ Color placement and theory
~ Custom bedding and draperies
~ Virtual room designs
~ Digital boards and  hand renderings
~ Selection of artwork, unique accessories, and decor
~ Help with developing your sense of style into your own home

Here are some photos of a recent Newport Cottages design project:

This design incorporated a custom conversion crib and a custom dresser. Don’t you just love the creamy ivory, pink and grey color combination? So sweet and feminine. 

This design included the Cape Cod bed with Rose Garland appliqué, Curved Drawer Nightstands, Taylor Three Drawer Nightstand with Hutch and the Tiny Tots Table and Chairs (like you could WIN!)

Jenette Di Fazio is the in-house Interior Designer for Newport Cottages and has a passion for bringing your vision for your child’s living space to life.

This is what Jenette shared about how she approaches design:

to me — it is the meeting place with my client, and an opportunity to transform an environment into a reflection of one’s own personality. A designer arranges and adorns a space, empowering an individual to express a relationship with an aesthetic, safe, well-balance environment. It is external insight and compassionate vision. The meeting between two persons to discuss and implement changes and improvements is the essence of the art and science of design. With education, experience and sensitivity, the designer introduces space into a palette of textures, colors and definition to create a domain from what was just place. In doing so one’s surroundings, become a living space that contributes to each who enters. This vision is my passion, and this is the experience you can redeem by building a relationship and project with me.

For more information on Newport Cottages Fashion Island design services or to inquire about any of their pieces you can call 949.644.4122 or visit www.NewportCottages.com. You can follow Newport Cottages on Facebook, @NewportCottages on Twitter, share design inspiration on Pinterest and follow current trends and tales on their blog.

 Newport Cottages Tiny Tots Table & Chairs Giveaway!

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[Disclosure: Newport Cottages is a Tiny Oranges Sponsor & we heart them big time!]