fun project for the den

i have had a fun little project in the works for the den...

it is a collaboration between me and 

my very talented sister-in-law, nicole.

i dreamed it, drew it, and nicole did all the hard stuff.

here is a peek at the drawings and notes

as we were planning it all out:

there are just a few more finishing touches to

add,

and then i will let y'all have a look at it

at the end of the week!

5 things i've learned the hard way: #3

get down.

or, feathers + down.

ok, let's talk pillows.

pillows can really bring a room to life.

the right pillow can tie an entire room together,

or add the perfect punch of color. 

(via caitlin wilson design)

however, i firmly believe that if you are over

the age of...12, that the inserts in all of your

pillows should be feathers + down.

(unless you are allergic)

those polyfil inserts just make your

pillows sad. 

i promise you, that if your pillows could

talk, they would beg you for feather/down inserts.

(via 6th street design school)

not only do pillows with feather/down inserts LOOK

better, but they FEEL better. 

(via caitlin creer)

if you have some pillows in your home with

inexpensive polyfil inserts that you love, 

just swap out the cheap inserts for some feather + down ones.

i promise you, your pillows will thank you.

5 things i've learned the hard way: #2

many thanks for the well-wishes!
i am feeling SO much better, and
am ready to reveal the rest of the
"things i've learned the hard way."
#2
life is messy. 
plan accordingly.

(via)
(i find this picture completely and utterly hysterical.)
pets.
kids.
food.
husbands. 
(huh? what did i just say?)
probably the three biggest culprits 
when it comes to messes.
but guess what?
with some careful planning and
forethought, you can still have
nice things, PLUS pets, kids,
husbands and FOOD.
here are my top three tricks
to help disguise and avert the dirt:
1. install wainscoting or bead board in
high traffic areas like halls and stairs.
after living in house #1 for just over 3 years, 
the walls in our stair well and main traffic areas
looked like a dozen chimpanzees had been
living there for a decade.

when we built house #2, i swore
that i was going to avert the little greasy
handprints, "accidental" crayon doodles, and
mysterious splashes of food that always seemed 
to plague our walls.
and so, we installed wainscoting in most rooms
 and bead board in the halls and stair wells.

we did the same thing 

in house #4 and house #5.

the walls still got greasy handprints, 
and "accidental" crayon doodles, but they always 
cleaned up beautifully. 
2. choose patterns, leather, and heavy woven fabrics (including velvet)for upholstery.
as a mom, i always try to imagine what a fabric will
look like after being sweated on, stomped on,
walked on, thrown across the room, spilled on
and used as a plate. cuz that's what's
GONNA happen to most fabrics, so you
might as well plan for it...

(via decorapad)

by choosing a fabric that will look great for
years to come(despite what horrors it may have to endure), 
you can protect the investment that you
make in your upholstered items.


3. when selecting tile and carpet,
always select one shade darker than
you "think" you want.
carpet, tile and other floorings can be tricky to select because you are usually looking at a tiny sample, right up close to your
face, but the final product can be hundreds of square feet...
and, well, at your FEET. 
the first time i made the mistake of selecting a carpet
was when we built our first house. i remember showing up just
as the carpet installers left, and declaring 
to my husband that they had put in the WRONG carpet.
i was SO sure they had installed a lighter color than
what i had selected, that i marched out to the car, 
grabbed my little 2" x 4" sample, threw it down on the newly
installed carpet, and.....it was a perfect match.
oops.
of course, it still looked great,
but it wasn't as dark and rich as i was picturing it would be.
my advice when selecting flooring:
1. always ask for a bigger sample.
many  companies will order large carpet and tile samples
from the manufacturer and have them 
sent directly to your  home. 
 2. always look at samples the way you will be looking at
them when they are in your house...on the FLOOR.
you get a much better perspective on the color they will
appear when installed. 

boo.hoo.

i've got the flu.

i'll be back in a day or two.
(yes, that rhymed.)

(i thought i might give you a visual of exactly

what i look like while recuperating from the flu.)

***

the nasty bug has been making it's way around our home,

and i am it's latest victim. 

and you know you're not feeling well AT ALL

when even typing on the computer wears you out.
(phew. see, i am about to fall asleep RIGHT NOW.)
and i am sure that you are all DYING to see
the other "4 things i have learned the hard way",
but it will just have to wait. 
(i'm thinking i should add 
"not getting a flu shot" to the list....
***

oh, and i hate to be the bearer of bad news,
but that is NOT the way i look while
in bed, recuperating from the flu.
it's actually a MODEL in room at the
viceroy anguilla,
designed by kelly wearstler.
..kinda wishing i was there right now.
enjoy the view:

i think i might be feeling better...
pretty interiors = me.
 spinach = popeye.
see you soon friends...z..zzzzzzzzz....

5 things i've learned the hard way: #1

this week, i thought i would take some time 
and share  with you 5 things 
i have learned the hard way. 
we have all had the..."privledge" of learning from 
our own mistakes, but i thought 
i might give you a heads-up on some of 
the mistakes that i have made. 
(so that maybe you won't make them too.)
plus...it was a great excuse to post some pictures
of some beautiful bedrooms.
here goes:
thing i have learned the hard way #1:
cotton (or linen) bedding is the best.

i have always been a lover of cotton bedding. 
i wouldn't say that i am an expert on high thread count bedding, and i have never had the mindset or the funds to drop six figures on sheets, but i did enjoy buying my high thread count cotton sheets at places like tueday morning. 
and then "the shift" happened.

yeah, you know what i am talking about...

in the space of just a few years,

we went from being financially stable

business owners to...well, where we are now.

and about a year ago, i NEEDED new sheets.

but, i just couldn't justify dropping over $100.
on sheets.

so, one day as i was walking through ross, 
i spotted the cutest sheets

and the cutest duvet set!

and they were only $15.99 a piece!

oh, you should have seen how quickly those flew into my cart...

and then i spent the next 15 minutes,

walking around the store, and

talking to myself 
(in my head, folks! i'm not THAT crazy!), and

reading the label:

"microfiber? it's gotta be ok, right?

i mean, i know it's durable or they wouldn't make 

upholstery out of it...right??"

 feeling them:

"well, they FEEL pretty soft.

i mean, they don't feel like 600 thread count

egyptian cotton, but they feel a whole lot softer than

some of those cheap 200 thread count cotton sheets,

which frankly feel like burlap sometimes..."

justifying the price:

"well, gheesh

how bad could they be?

i mean, i could give my entire king size bed

a complete makeover for less than one of

those high thread count shams."

and so i took them home.

and put them on my bed.
oh, they looked cute, alright.
i was so excited...my 
entire king sized bed got a total
makeover for less than $40.
and so, i snuggled into my
bargain bedding...

and then,in the middle of the night,
i woke up sweating.

it literally felt like i was sleeping
inside of a ziploc sandwich baggie.

at first, i just thought the the house itself was hot...
but after a week of waking up uncomfortably HOT,
i realized, sadly, that it was my new bedding.

i am back to purchasing cotton bedding...
no more microfiber sheets for me.
sure, they look cute, but they
don't allow your skin to breathe the way a natural fiber does.
i still see cute duvet sets when i go in stores like
ross or tj maxx...but i swiftly walk past them now--
even though they are attractive AND affordable,
i would rather be out a few extra dollars
than wake up feeling like i'm sleeping in a ziploc.

welcome sponsor: apothica + a giveaway

i am excited to welcome a new sponsor today:

apothica.

apothica is an online beauty boutique that

sells all kinds of goodies...

amazing lollia candles,

as well as many home fragrance lines including

k hall, voluspa and archipelago.

however, the single item that i am most excited

that apothica carries is

 my personal fave/

holy grail/

can't live without lotion:

l'occitane shea butter hand cream,

that i blogged about here.

to launch this new sponsorship,

apothica will be giving away a 

$50 gift card 

to one of my readers.

so, be sure to check out their site and leave me a comment

to let me know what you would buy with the gift card...

caldrea granite polish?

nars blush?

dolce & gabanna cologne?

bare essentuals makeup?

cucina hand soap?

bobbi brown concealer?

clinique sunscreen?

vera wang fragrance?

wow.

so many fabulous choices!

and, for those of you that live in the salt lake area,

be sure to drop by and visit apothica's

retail store, located in the gateway, just

down the escalator from the movie theater!
(and follow them on facebook and twitter for
a heads-up on deals and insider info.)

good luck!

the winner will be selected on march 4.

changes

i am FINALLY giving my "dump"

a much needed facelift...

whew.

it's about TIME, right?

i have been wanting to do something for almost

a year now,i have no idea what has taken me so long!

jenna and i are currently working on revisions, 

and should have the "new" blog up by the end of next week.

i thought you might enjoy seeing a peek...

what do you think?

design plan: tween boys bedroom

another fabulous mom contacted me about 

transitioning her son's

"little boy" room into a room 

that will take him through his teen years.

the room has great bones...hardwood floors,

crown molding, and a new light fixture 

from restoration hardware.

the "man in training" loves harry potter,

reading, legos, and sailing. 

here's what i came up with: 

as a courtesy to my e-decorating clients, i do not list 

sources from idea boards on my blog.

if there is a specific item that you would like

to know about, please contact me.

interested in working together to make your space more

beautiful and functional?

e-mail me at autumnclemons@yahoo.com.

affordable find: barrel accent table

i just spotted this $79

spiral barrel table from kirklands...

...which bears a striking resemblance to the very gorgeous

cabris accent table by lexington,

which retails for around $600.

 it also reminds me a little of these two beauties:

platner side table

($692)

brass side table

($1559)

***

and yes, i bought one.

i have absolutely NO idea where i will put it,

but i just couldn't pass it up...

***

happy shopping!

striped curtains

stripes make me happy.

on the walls, on rugs...

on shirts and scarves...

and especially on curtains.

(via apartment therapy)

i LOVE the double set of stripes in these curtains,

and i am also dying over those mustard yellow pillows.

this whole room has this masculine 

sophisticated vibe that i just adore.

(via atlanta homes)

how can you not be happy looking at 

these boldly striped curtains?

they are so cheery, i just want to HUG them.

(via decorpad)

i loved these as well...

the stripes appear to be rather random, don't they?

and check out the tiny green stripe under 

the blue stripe...

perfection!

i love little details like this.

they make my heart flutter.

(and WHAT a fun and classy kids room!)

(via decorpad)

this room is all kinds of yum.

but those curtains remind me of a 

classic mens shirt.

notice how the stripes don't go all the way to the floor?

an interesting choice...

(via amy howard)

the bold pattern on these panels adds 

a fabulous graphic element in 

this otherwise very traditional and serene room.

***

i am already dreaming of how i can

work another set of striped curtain panels 

into house #6...is it too much to have them in

every room?