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?

kisses of pink + red

did everyone have a good weekend?

ours was very...ecelctic.

we spent some time battling coughs and

sneezes, looking at houses (still no luck),

lazing around, and eating out too much.

and, today i will be running around

like a crazy lady, trying to fulfill

all of the obligations that i signed myself up for 

at the beginning of the school year.

i think "february autumn" needs to go back

in time and remind "august autumn" not to

sign up to bring treats AND help out

at ALL three kids valentines day parties....

ei-yi-yi.

anyway,

in honor of valentines day,

here are some gorgeous rooms

with kisses of pink + red.

happy valentines day!

***

all images

sarah richardson, tobi fairley, amanda nisbet

framing stained glass

a local client had some stained glass windows with sentimental value

that she wanted to display in her house.

 the problem?

her style is very contemporary/modern and she

didn't like the look of the original wood surround.

the solution?

i suggested we remove them from the wood surround and

have them framed in more modern looking frame.

a local frame shop removed the wood and putty,

and we selected a new frame.

it really is amazing how

a great frame can transform just

about anything!

we were both really excited about the way they turned out,

and can't wait to see them up on the wall.

***

sometimes when i see pictures of a project,

from start to finish, i kinda chuckle to myself.

like this project...it looks really simple, right?

like it probably took a week or two?

NOPE.

i started this small project in november...

but the holidays, 

two busy people's schedules, 

and a lot of work on the

framers end made this take quite

a l-o-n-g time. that's ok though,

it was worth the wait.

happy weekend friends!

glaziers west london

love tree

i am not the biggest "fan" of valentines day,

but i am a big fan of love,

and of my husband.

so, to celebrate, i made a little tree

in honor of some of the many ways i love him...

it's an inexpensive way to show that

special someone just how much you adore them... 

and i promise, that it is easy enough

for you to put together before

valentines day!

 
here is what you will need:

i bought the wood clips, circles, paint and glitter from michael's.
i had all of the other supplies at home.

punch a hole in the circle,
and paint both the circle and
the clips pink.
using a foam brush apply glue to
the front of the circle,
and sprinkle on the glitter.
attach the clip to the back of the 
circle with hot glue.
use wire to attach the clips and the ornaments to your branches.

stick your branches in the can, and

add some craft rocks in the bottom of the can to add weight.

attach your ornaments and picture hangers to the branches,

and clip on your photos.

 
i imported the pictures into WORD,
resized them, wrote my messages in a text box,
and layered it on top of my picture.
if you don't know how to overlap text on top of a picture, 
simply make copies of your pictures 
(mine are 3" x 2"),
and write your "love note" on the back!

happy valentines day sweetie!