living room for a bro {mood boards}

Last week I posted my ideas for bedroom decor of my brother's new downtown Kansas City studio loft.  He already purchased a new sofa and chair so he was also looking for pillow ideas.  I took it slightly beyond pillows and came up with two different living room mood boards that could work for anyone wanting that slightly modern or urban vibe!

Since he already got his sofa and chair, I didn't have to search for those and it made it easy having the larger living room pieces already selected.  He choose very clean and streamlined look in a charcoal gray from Room & Board's Ian collection.  I also tried to keep in mind the colors he liked best from the bedroom mood boards, which was option #3 of blues and oranges.  I didn't want it to match exactly nor did I want it to clash, since this is a studio loft that is completely open.

Here's the first board I put together, using mainly warmer colors...

1.  Bondis Wall Clock - Ikea $19.99
2.  1900's Kansas City Map - Etsy $15
3.  Leisure Burnt Orange pillow 23" - CB2 $39.95
4.  Ribbon Pillow - Crate & Barrel $24.95
5.  Gray Linen Pillow Cover - Etsy $40 {shop sukanart)
6.  Jarvis Azure Rug - Crate & Barrel $249 {5'x8'}
7.  Kite Kilm Floor Pouf - West Elm $149

 Next option using blues and lots of geographic shapes...

 

1.  Amsterdam Canal Watercolour Print - Etsy $120 {shop simoneridyard}

2.  Vintage Blueprint Map of Downtown Kansas City 20"x30" - Etsy $29.95

3.  Castillo Floor Lamp - Crate & Barrel $229 {I imagine with the popularity of this style of lamp there is most likely a cheaper option available as well}

4.  Stockholm Cushion in Black & White - Ikea $12.99 {I own two of these and love them!}

5.  Stockholm Cushion in Blue - Ikea $12.99

6.  Leisure Blue 23" pillow - CB2 $29.95

7.  Lappljung Ruta Cushion Cover - Ikea $10

8.  Olin Black Rug - Crate & Barrel $149 {5'x8'}  --- I think this is a great price for such a classic looking rug - comes in other colors as well.  The gold color is currently on major sale!

Other honorable mentions that didn't make the cut... :)

Drake Natural Shag Rug - CB2 $339 for 5'x8'

Stripe Cabana Pillow in Cobalt - Pier 1 $20 {it's an outdoor pillow, but could still work as long as it's comfortable}

Eivor Throw - Ikea $19.99

Happy decorating!

bedroom for a bro {mood boards}

Based off the title of this post, you may think I'm going to talk about designing a bedroom for an obnoxious frat-dude, obsessed with partying, self-absorbed college punk... well no, that's incorrect.  Actually I'm helping out my actual BROther, Tommy, with ideas for his bedroom and living room in his new downtown studio loft.

I created 3 mood boards, which I have never done before, using Photoshop {I found a tutorial for using Photoshop here}.  Once I got going it was pretty easy to do! And it always feels better coming up with all these ideas knowing it's not your money that would have to be spent! ;)
Tommy and I have similar yet still fairly different styles.  Often times we like the same store but not always the same pieces.  He has much more of a modern style than I do.  I made 3 boards because I had a feeling the more options the better, in this case.  So here's my take on a modern, masculine, bedroom design...

Option 1... using gray, navy, a citron greenish/yellow...and stripes!

 1. Stripe Duvet Cover + Shams in white/feather gray - West Elm $69 {full/queen} $19 {standard sham}
2. Stripe Sham in white/citron - West Elm $24 {euro sham}
3. Stripe Sheet Set in white/citron - West Elm $69 {full set}
4. Embroidered Dot Pillow Cover in India ink - West Ellm $39
5. Solid Throw in regal blue - West Elm $49 {on sale!}
6. Nash Table Lamp - CB2 $49.95





Option 2... using gray, navy, off-white/cream, mustard yellow, and some different patterns...

1. Pietra Duvet Cover - Crate & Barrel $189.95 {full/queen}
2. Cotton Velvet Duo Pillow Cover in golden gate - West Elm $24.99 {on sale!}
3. Colorblock Stripe Pillow in mustard/cream/charcoal - Etsy {JillianReneDecor shop} $45
4. Y City Pattern Pillow Cover 20"x20" - Etsy {designjennis shop} $28
5. Evan Throw - Crate & Barrel $59.95 {on sale!}
6. Sherwood Table Lamp - Crate & Barrel $79.95
7. Solid Throw in regal blue - West Elm $49 {on sale!}
8. Window Pane Throw - West Elm $39.99 {on sale!}





Option 3... gray, orange, bright tropical blue, and a mix of stripes and chevron... plus some urban art!

1. Linen Cotton Duvet Cover + Sham in slate - West Elm $149 {full/queen} $29 {standard sham}
2. Leisure Burnt Orange Pillow 23" - CB2 $39.95
3. Chevron Crewel Pillow Cover 20" - West Elm $44 - could replace this with a cleaner, more straight-line chevron design, or the Y City Pattern pillow from option #2
4. Leisure Blue Pillow 23" - CB2 $39.95
5. Striped Orange Throw - CB2 $69.95
6. Clutch Walnut Table Lamp - CB2 $99.95
7. Avenue Print - CB2 $199.95
8. Rajika Bed Linens Standard Sham Set - CB2 $59.95 {for set of 2}


Next, I'm going to try to come up with some ideas for his living room! 

easter printables

I just recently removed my Christmas printables from the frames in my living room, and have been busy trying to replace that holiday decor with more of a spring-theme.  I've also recently got sucked into some really adorable graphics on Etsy, from shops like The Ink Nest & Angie Makes,  and also some freebies from an awesome blog, Pugly Pixel.  This all led me to wanting to make some printables for Easter!  I absolutely love playing around in Photoshop making these and maybe no one else out reading this on the interweb cares, but I love them to have to hang on my walls!
Here are the two I made...

For this one, I also saved it as a PDF with a plain white background to save ink in case anyone would print these at home.

{Floral graphics from the printable above are from The Ink Nest on Etsy}
{Fronts are Lullaby & MA Sexy - both free - I usually get all my free fonts from dafont.com}
{Digital frame from Angie Makes on Etsy}

{Fonts are same as above, Lullaby & MA Sexy - free}
{Cloud brushes for Photoshop were found via Pugly Pixel blog post but are from Lauren Harrison - free}

Feel free to download the printables by clicking on the links below:

- Paradise printable 

- Paradise printable (plain white background)

- He Is Risen printable

I also gave my blog another facelift... I know this is like the 3rd time in 6 months.  I'm fickle about it.  But, I think I've finally found a design I really like and can work with for quite a while.  I used graphics mainly from The Ink Nest & fonts FT Achor Yard {Fresh Picked header}, Traveling Through {sub header}, Soymilk {navigation bar & side pics} - all free.  Also, free clip art files like washi tape on the left sidebar & the "velvet corners" on the picture on my About Me page were also found via the Pugly Pixel blog.  {She even has a wonderful "freebies" section on the blog were you can find tons of free goodies}  I use Photoshop CS5 to create all of my graphic files but I know others who use Photoshop Elements, and even Microsoft PowerPoint!

So excited it's March! That means Spring is right around the corner... I think!