It's Great To Be Home

Pretty Paints

July 14, 2010 By Liz - It's Great To Be Home 16 Comments

I just couldn’t resist, I had to share Sarah Richardson’s new paint collection for Para Paints. After checking out the palette, I’m sad that the collection is only available in Canadian Lowe’s {or at least it appears that way – anybody know otherwise?}. Wouldn’t it be fun to get your hands on a gallon of one of these beautiful hues?

Take a gander at the vibrant spaces she created using her paint collection. I’m not so in love with the kitchen, but I could move right into the bedroom and living room!

Are you guys hoping as much as I am that this collection makes its way into your local Lowe’s? Have any of the Canadian readers out there given it a whirl yet?

Images courtesy of Sarah Richardson Design.

Blog Party: Inspiration Tuesday!

August 25, 2009 By Liz - It's Great To Be Home 3 Comments

Um, yeah. If you stopped by IGTBH at any time yesterday, you know that my idea to give this blog a spiffy new look didn’t exactly go as I’d planned – to put it mildly. After I made one mistake that snowballed into about 30 mistakes, IGTBH disappeared altogether! I was totally horrified, as you can imagine. After wildly trying to fix it, stomping around, and crying in the corner (I’m totally exaggerating here – I was never in the corner), my husband had the brilliant idea to call in the big guns and actually hire someone to fix it. In no time, everything was back to normal – whew!! Why couldn’t I have thought of that 12 hours earlier?!? Anyway, the plans for the spiffy new look are on hold – but hopefully not for long.

Anyway, enough of that! It’s time to party!!! After all the fun we had last week on Inspiration Tuesday, I think we need to do it again, don’t you? I thought so!

Since I spent the majority of the day yesterday locked in my office/craft room, I’m feeling totally inspired by home offices today – and I think you will, too.

I feel right at home in these first two offices – maybe because they’re most like the room that I work in all day at home. Cheerful, casual, and filled with what looks like a thousand fun things to play with. I’ve recently been thinking about mounting a bookcase horizontally under a window like in the first picture – what do you guys think?

What’s not to love about this home office? Sophisticated, coordinated, and totally do-able at home. The simple color palette of black, white, and crimson (along with hidden storage) keeps everything looking neat and tidy. And who can deny the impact of some gorgeous framed wallpaper?

This next home office shows that you can create an inspiring workspace just about anywhere. This cold, unfinished basement went from depressing to fun and funky with just a little concrete paint, squares of plywood screwed to the studs, and a funky color palette in black, avocado and maple. I’m pretty sure I could get some serious work done in there!!

So what are you inspired by today? We’d all love to swing by your blog for some inspiration – if you’d like to join in on the fun, just add your link below. Here are a few pointers:

(1) Make sure that you add the permalink to your specific blog post (like www.itsgreattobehome.net/inspiration-tuesday-home-offices), instead of your general blog address:

(2) Give everybody an idea of what you’re inspired by in parentheses after your blog name – like Liz @ It’s Great To Be Home (home offices).

(3) Make sure that your link works – otherwise it might get deleted (no fun!!).

(4) Try to include a link to this party somewhere in your post so that your readers can get in on the party!

(5) Click on the other participants’ links and let them know if they’ve inspired you!

And wait!! Before you run off and find your post, be sure to take this fun little button with you:

Alright, now let’s party!!!

Images courtesy of Better Homes & Gardens.

Tonya’s Cozy Master Bedroom Transformation

May 18, 2009 By Liz - It's Great To Be Home 8 Comments

When Tonya sent me before and after pictures of her master bedroom, I was completely blown away by the transformation.

Here’s a quick peek at the plain and impersonal master bedroom that Tonya and her husband Tim started out with:

Now take a look at the cozy retreat that these crafty newlyweds made with just a few cans of paint, a tight color palette, and a little creativity:

Here’s what they did and how they did it:

1. Make it cozy. The builder’s beige walls that Tonya and Tim started out with were boring and stark. They instantly added depth, warmth and interest to their bedroom by painting a dark chocolate accent wall that draws your eye towards those great windows. By keeping a tight color palette in neutral tans and chocolates, the space feels restful and soothing – the perfect place to relax after a long day. A simple green plant adds a pop of color and life to the room.

2. Make it cohesive. Like most newlyweds, Tonya and Tim inherited an army of mismatched furniture – but you would never know it by looking at their master bedroom. Their trick was to drape the mismatched pieces in gorgeous tan and chocolate fabrics that matched their color scheme – a quick and easy transformation that instantly ties the whole room together.

3. Make it crafty. Of course, Tonya and Tim couldn’t just throw some fabric over their mismatched furniture – not this crafty pair. Instead, they sewed custom slipcovers for each nightstand and the dresser out of upholstery material. For added storage, they sewed pockets onto the slipcovers for the nighstands to stow away reading glasses, books and the remote control. Genuis!

Pretty snazzy, right? Have Tim and Tonya inspired you to cozy up your bedroom?

Want to see your makeover featured on It’s Great To Be Home? Just send it on in to itsgreattobehome@yahoo.com.