Another Decorating Post (but this time it's not my house!)

So I have this friend (we'll call her J). She's funny and big hearted. Honestly one of the most generous people that I know. J has watched my kids while John and I went out of town, she's giving me a heck of a deal on piano lessons...

Anyway, J let me help her decorate her home for Christmas, and after she put all of that stuff away, didn't get around to putting her regular stuff back up for a while. Then her boys got engaged - which means - bridal showers! Company! Time to decorate!

So, here's how it went down: we went shopping before she left on a vacation, then she gave me a budget, and turned her house over to me to decorate while she was gone! Fun? yes. Stressful? OH yeah!!

Here are the results. Sorry they don't translate in pictures as well as in person...

First up, the kitchen. I had some ceramic roosters that don't have a home at my house (have I mentioned that I have a small house?), that worked beautifully on top of the cabinets. Then I moved the wreath and hung it on the wall next to the lantern. Small changes, but pretty big impact.

This next one is the entry. There used to be a big picture above the table, but we moved that before the first picture was taken. When we went shopping, J had seen this arched window thing at Rod Works and fell in love with it. By adding the arch and a few accessories, the whole area is transformed. I hope she likes it as much as I do. The hourglass and small blue bird were new from Micheals, but everything else was hidden away in J's house.

I can't tell you how much I love being able to use things that people already have! It's fun to see things in a new place to give them a whole new life.

Next is the TV built ins. The tall skinny shelves on the side are hard to address because of how limited you are by the narrowness. I love to use old books to lift small items and give texture and warmth. The only things that are new on the built ins are the orange vase, and the potpourri in the jar on top. The rest was either mine or J's already.

So the great room - The lamp (yes, that orange flower thing in the corner is a lamp) is actually the inspiration for the colors. In the after picture, you can see the orange vase on the black shelf - J already had that too. Everything else on the black shelf we found at Rod Works. (gosh, I love that store!) The metal tree on the wall was something that J had bought a while ago and I was able to find the cute white frames to hang on it. And honestly, everything else was just being stored in other places. - Oh, except the pillows. The orange rosette pillows I got for a screaming deal at DownEast ($7.50 each, WHAAAT?).