Weird and Funky Houses

Just a bit of crazy house fun for your holiday weekend!

I don't think I could sleep at night in this home.  I would worry about falling into the water!

Now that's a tree house! 
Wow!!!!  Talk about feeling on top of the world.
This home reminds me of the nursery rhyme "There was an old lady that lived in a shoe."

Well, here you go!  I think she lived here.

Upside Down House 
Okay, now I'm  nauseated
I'd say this house offers great hospitality
I want to go inside this one.  I wonder if a flight attendant would serve me a drink?

Maybe a bag of  pretzels?
I want this house in Texas!  The stone and the grass roof seems as thought it would be COOL in this ridiculous heat!!! 
Bank turned into a home. 
The bank vault got turned into their guest room.  I'd go to bed feeling pretty wealthy!

Yee Haw!
Wow.. now this is community livin'
I think NOT for the dots!
My husband's dream home!  Looks like an over-sized garage.
All I can say is the groceries would need to be delivered to my door!
I like!
I wonder if they can hear the ocean all night in this house?
I wonder how they made those draperies curved to look like eyeballs?
Wouldn't want my whole family in this house, it may go over!
No way!
Hope you have a great holiday weekend with family and friends.
I'm having a blast and feel blessed and honored to live in this wonderful country!
Ruthie

Pulling it all together

On Wednesday I went to a client's home to help her by just moving things around a little to make it feel more like home. 
BEFORE
Looks a little plain. 
 I looked around her house and found some other treasures that I added to their bedside table.  Moved the lamp and photo on the wall and now it looks so much more inviting.
AFTER
Tip: Sometimes if you take everything off your bedside table and change it up a bit by shopping in other rooms for items that work together. You can instantly have a new space just by "using what you have."
Cozy reading spot now.
Found some photo's that had the same look and put them together on the wall. Alone the framed photo's look just so so.  Grouping them together makes it WOW.
These were all separate and I thought they would look nice grouped together.
The mantel has great style now!
Groupings of three always look great together.
Take some of your rooms apart and start from scratch by shopping around in your house for a new look. Or just move things around a bit to enhance your space.
Here are a few of my tips:
  • Move lamps from room to room
  • Put a dining room buffet in an entry
  • Bring a statue from your garden into the house and place on a table for grandeur
  • Stack your favorite books in front of your fireplace
  • Move rugs from room to room
  • Stack beautiful towels on a chair next to your bathtub
  • Get rid of things you don't use and don't like
  • Only keep items that you LOVE.
  • Create height in a room by hanging pictures on top of each other instead of next to each other
  • Add a "character" chair to one of your rooms (show chair)
  • De clutter your bookshelves. - Add large items among the small objects to break it up a little 
  • Add one really inspiring and beautiful object to each room
  • Add luxurious textures to a room and you add instant warmth
  • Add large pieces of art to your space
  • Group all your crystal and antique candlesticks together and add to a wooden tray
  • Add an accent light to each room. 
  • Display some of your favorite china in your armoire and keep the doors open to show them off
  • Use one of your favorite mixing bowls or salad bowls to keep your fruit in on your table
  • If you want to declutter, I've found that most people have too  many family pictures in one space (unless your space allows for lots of these).  Reallocate family photos to private areas if you don't have space for them.
  • Don't forget to dust the tops of your pictures if they are hanging in your hallway
  • Get rid of fussy finials on lamps
  • Change out a lampshade - sometimes changing them out from room to room works
  • Remove a pillow or two or add a pillow or two
  • If you have heavy drapes on the windows that are outdated and you don't like them.  Remove them totally.  It's better to have none than look at ones you hate.
  • Get rid of candles that are old and dusty and replace with new ones
  • Take a risk and add a touch of leopard print
  • If you hate a lamp base, try painting it - spray paint is the best!
Ruthie
 

A good excuse to get "cooler" in Texas!

I went shopping today for some flowers for my dining room since we are having guests this week at the Staalsen Hotel. 
I've been running around everywhere to make sure we have all the necessities we need for entertaining and serving great food! 
 I love an excuse to buy flowers for the house and I did just that!
Aren't these hydrangea's beautiful?  The soft color blue in this grouping of flowers is perfect for the holiday weekend don't you think?  I'd love to find a few red roses to pop in there with this arrangement to make it really festive for 4th of July weekend.
I've been getting my guest room ready.  I love all the colors in this room but as you all know, I love to shake it up a little. 
I had this white, cream and turquoise comforter in another room but thought it would be a nice "summer" change for my guests this weekend.
I also added the mirror so we would get a nice reflection of the lamp on the bedside table.
The turquoise goes really nicely with the embroidered pillows and now I feel like it feels a little "cooler."  Anything to get things cooler in Texas!!  Those of you that live here know what I mean! 
Clean towels are ready!
New soap in every bathroom!  I love to add river rocks to my guest bathroom sink. 
Got the festive dish towels out!
Now all I need is chocolates on their pillows and we are set to go! 
Well....let me rethink that...
they are family but we don't want them to be too comfortable, they may stay too long! 
I think I'll skip on the chocolates.  Ha Ha.
One of my favorite things is to entertain so I love when my house is full of people and laughter. 
Let the festivities begin.  I know...it's only Wednesday but we are starting a little early!  Party on....
Ruthie

Church Converted into a stunning home!

A couple in Kyloe, Northumberland bought this church that need restoring and made it into their home. They kept the exterior just like it was and renovated the interior to their liking.
I could attend church here every Sunday that's for sure!  Just wait until you see the rest of the photo's.
Absolutely breathtaking!
I've said that I would never move again.....but...I would move to be somewhere as unique as this!
Love the painted stone.  Looks so fresh and pure!
Can you just imagine the conversations that went on in these halls.  Little feet going to Sunday School and adults sharing about their lives!  Love this history.
A little weird to have the bedroom right off the dining but I'm assuming these drapes close?  How on earth?  They must have a remote?
This photo makes you realize how big the church is.  Wow, wow, wow!!!  I'm speechless.
How Grand!
The only thing I wouldn't like is the tomb stones.  That's a little freaky!
Transformations like this one inspire me to no end!
Ruthie

Tired of dusting those books?

Anthropologie.com
I came across this bookshelf wallpaper today while looking for wallpaper samples for a client.  I thought it was fabulous until I looked at it closely and realized that the same stack of books had been pasted over and over again.  Nah, not for me.  
But what I do like is that there would be NO DUST on your shelves! Sounds great right? 
Now this is cool!  Quirky but cool!
All these pictures make me wish I had a library so I could use this idea and make a "reading" corner.  I could have a custom wallpaper made with all my favorite decorating books...wishful thinking.  Too bad I couldn't just scan all those books into my brain so whenever I needed a resource it would be there!
Here's another from HomeDepot.com
Such rich soothing warm colors.
You could get really creative with this border.  I know borders are OUT so I wouldn't use this design on a wall.  However, they could be decoupaged onto something....  How about making your own faux books?  You could have wooden pieces cut the size of a book and then you could cut each individual book from this border and paste it onto the wooden book end.  You could then glue a few together and have a little collection.  I think that would work.  See ideas below for safes, boxes, etc. 
While searching for other book ideas, here are some inspiring collections that I thought I'd share with you.
Designer Lynda Gardner
The owner and designer of the above room says: these photos are from the library which was once a horrible tiny bedroom which barely fit a single bed……it now has a wall filled with real books alongside a wall of Deborah Bowness wallpaper,…this room also has a couple of leather 1930s chairs, a star light handed down as a family heirloom and a cow skin hide….a cozy place to sit opposite an open fire on the opposite wall.

I like it!


Fauxbooks.com

Today faux books are valued by curators, interior designers, art directors and discerning individuals for their remarkably authentic appearance. The above books are genuine antique leather books either sourced at auction, borrowed from libraries or found in private collections.  Each spine is individually coloured, gilded and waxed by hand. A variety of colours are available all of which have a beautiful antique patina.
 
Leather books are my all time favorite! I'm not a collector of anything specific (don't usually like collections) but leather books I could collect. Actually when I went to Paris this past Thanksgiving, one of my purchases was a French leather bound book.

Fauxbooks.com

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Faux books can be used to hide all kinds of treasures.
These look particularly real because they are soft cover books, don't usually see them used for a safe or hidden hideout.
Fauxbooks.com
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This is what I was talking about in my idea above.
fauxbooks.com

A talented artist.....

Bookshelf by Jim Rosenau
Jim Rosenau was raised in a house with 5,000 books. He has been making and selling thematic bookshelves from vintage books since 2002. The idea occurred to him years earlier after reading an essay, "Books As Furniture," by Nicholson Baker. Given his background as the son and grandson of publishers, he assumed the reaction, should he make such a thing, would be furious. The work, once underway, proved him wrong.

Bookshelf by Jim Rosenau

  Bookshelf by Jim Rosenau
Fun that this one has a Spanish twist to it.

Bookshelf by Jim Rosenau

(Studio Dynamics)
Love the blue!
How very creative...
fun gift for a reader!

Project by Caitlin Phillips from Washington D.C.

Go to etsy to see more designs like these.
Decorate with your books.
  Look in your attic, I bet you have some sitting around that have some value or special family meaning to you.  When you are out and about at garage sales, dig through some of the old boxes...there may be a treasure in there for you.  I've found some great Hymn books at estate sales which I treasure.  They all have that wonderful old bound look and have some wear and tear on them.  I like that because it means they've had some wear and tear meaning someone has put some history into it.

Tip of the day......Take off your book jackets when arranging your bookshelves (most of them aren't all that attractive).  Underneath those jackets are some gorgeous books.  You will be SHOCKED how this simple trick can make your bookshelf so much classier!

Happy reading!
Ruthie