Category Archives: Decor

I Chose the Chosigt

This week something exciting is happening here in Memphis.  It’s an event that I was excited about even before we made the move here almost two years ago.

This Wednesday IKEA is opening their doors here in Memphis!!!

Our family loves IKEA.  When we lived in Birmingham we would travel to Atlanta a couple of times a year and we always made sure we included a stop at IKEA. And now we are going to have a store right here.

IKEA is known for their small space solutions, and low budget good quality furniture.  They have a serious following of people. Blogs have been created that are devoted to sharing  IKEA hacks.  We are pretty big fans ourselves and have even hacked a few IKEA items like….

esther05

Esther’s Kitchen we gave her for her third birthday.

So I thought it would be fun to share a few of our favorite… but random IKEA purchases.

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Chosigt

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This is seriously  my favorite IKEA product. I love it so much that I’ve given it as a gift. Why do I love it so much?  It’s one of my favorite kitchen gadgets because the cheese is shredded directly into the storage container.  Less mess for me and my freshly shredded cheese (without all those chemicals that are in pre-shredded cheese) stays fresh for a long time.  And at five dollars each I’m pretty sure I’ll find myself purchasing a second one because this is one product we use almost daily.

Mattress Protector

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My friend told me about her love for IKEA mattress protectors so a couple of years ago we bought new mattressprotectors for all our beds.  We got waterproof ones for the girls that have definitely come in handy.

I fallen in love with IKEA mattress protectors now too because they can withstand being washed over and over again. Ours also haven’t torn at the corners of the bedding where it receives the most stress.

Astrid

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We bought two Astrids a few years ago to hang above our night stands.  They are perfect for integrating wall mounted lighting into an older home… plus they helped to free up extra space on our nightstands.

Sherwin Williams Rain

The Astrid is $15 each… which is a bargain for nice looking wall lamps.  The head pivots so that the direction of the light can be adjusted.  I think my lamp gets more use than Michael Lukes because I’m the one who often stays up late reading.  The nice part is that when I’m ready to fall asleep I don’t have to get out of bed to turn the light off.

Plants

fejka-artificial-potted-plant-lilac__0367989_pe549550_s4Flowers are beautiful placed throughout the home.  Not so much though when you tend to forget to water them, have a cat that eats them, or lack the needed sunlight.  I do not have the sunlight needed for orchids. So when I came across FEJKA near the end of one of my IKEA shopping trips I just had to have it.  The color is vibrant and it honestly doesn’t look fake and the best part is that the only maintenance required is the occasional dusting.

We have several faux plants displayed in our apartment with plans to add more soon.

Ok, so that’s a wrap on a few of my favorite items at IKEA.  It’s by no means my exhaustive list and I’m sure by this time next week I’ll have even more favorites but hopefully it has given you a little insight into why so many people love IKEA.

So tell me… whose planning on visiting their local IKEA this week?  Are you looking for specific items or just to browse and see what all they have to offer?

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Prepping for Fall

Today as I sit curled up on my sofa with my Chromebook propped up on the arm rest I see the leaves beginning to change color outside and the gray clouds looming over our house bringing the first chill to the air.  I love it!  This is what fall is to me.  When this happens it means it’s time for hearty vegetable soups and to prepare our home for fall.

Fall is the prelude to winter and both of these seasons are when we spend the most time inside.  During the colder months I love to hibernate inside and enjoy the aroma of Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Orange essential oils diffusing in the air. I also love to swap out some of my decor for warmer tone pieces to help really create that intimate and warm feeling in my home.

When it comes to home decor I like to purchase one or two good pieces each season.  I don’t typically go for the cheap or fad stuff but for a piece that I feel like I will be able to use for years. For me it is an investment.  I found several pieces that I adore this year while I was browsing through Pinterest.

Amber Crackle Glass Pumpkins


These glass Pumpkins from Pier 1 Imports caught my attention because they remind me of my pieces of carnival glass that I have collected over the years.  Beautiful glass like this is one of my favorite ways to bring the deep hues of orange into the house.

Faux Oak Leave Stem


Faux foliage and flowers are great ways to add height and color to a corner, end table, or mantel.  I know some people like to use real foliage from outside but faux makes more sense for us since we are living in an apartment until after this next adoption.

Round Iron Flowers Mirror


This beautiful round iron flower mirror from Arhaus can either be hung on a wall or laid flat.  I would have to place this one in the center of my round coffee table and light the candles on those nights when I just want to curl up and finsh the last two hundred pages of my Lauraine Snelling book.

Dashing Deer Art


I bought a beautiful painting of a horse last year for our living room. Ever since then I have been head over heels for animal artwork and this Dashing Deer one is no exception.  To me its a perfect pair of rugged and feminine decor.

Pillows


We were shopping the other week and the girls fell in love with the mermaid sequin pillows.  I’m not kidding you, they played with them for about fifteen minutes in the store.   They are like decorative sensory toys.  The ones we found in the store were priced a little higher than what I wanted to pay for a sequin pillow but one quick look on Amazon and I found these for a much lower price.

Pillows are a fun and easy way to change the look of a sofa.  So why not have a little fun and add these (deer, arrows, cowhide)  cute pillows in for some seasonal comfort.



Sectional Sofa

I’ve had our current sofa for thirteen years now.  It’s a good quality sofa with a color and pattern that is very forgiving of spills.  As much as I love my sofa I’m going to be about ready for a change next year when we move.  Sofas are so important because as a family that’s where we spend a majority of our time together.  Comfort and durability are key with little ones.  Michael Luke is a huge fan of sectionals.  I wasn’t quite on board with the idea during the first few years of our marriage but sectionals have really grown up and can really look quite stunning in a living room.  For instance take a look at these from Arhaus.


For me a sofa is an investment. It’s a piece that needs to be well crafted and look beautiful for years to come. That’s one of the things I love about Arhaus sofas. Plus,wouldn’t they look amazing with the pillows I selected, the round iron mirror on the coffee table with the pumpkin glass on top, and the deer artwork hanging on the wall?  The only thing lacking might be this super soft throw.

Yeah, now I feel ready for fall.  What pieces do you love to use to prepare your living area for fall?

 

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Not an Orphan Anymore

Ok, I have to admit I was a little shocked when I saw that it had been nearly a month since my last post.  I’m not quite sure what happened because in my mind I thought it had only been a week or two.  September was one of the busiest months that Michael Luke and I have had in a long time.  We knew it was going to be tough going into it but we had no idea how quickly it would tire us and leaving us grasping for some free time. So much so that we took a much needed vacation to Seagrove Beach in Florida at the end of the month just to recoup.
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All this brings us to October.  A month that I have never welcomed so warmly until this year.  Oh, I am so excited for October to be here.  I’m ready to embrace Fall and hibernate down for the Winter.  Anybody else with me?

If you are like me… when life gets busy the housework gets left behind.  And boy did it!  There was the changing of the guard from Summer clothes to Winter clothes for the girls, laundry, laundry, laundry, Fall decoration boxes, bags of luggage for our vacation, and general mess from life with two girls, a scatterbrained mom, and a working husband.

So, last week it was refreshing when I cleared off the mantel and began decorating it for fall.  Amiss all the chaos there was finally some peace & calming (pardon the essential oil pun).  The girls helped me and they loved it.  Esther was ecstatic that we were decorating. They helped me pull each peace out of the box and danced around the room as I placed everything on the mantel one by one.

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It really doesn’t differ much from my Fall mantels in previous years except for one little piece.

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We found our “Not an Orphan Anymore” block in Nashville back in September when Esther got to reunite with her bff from Hong Kong.

esther in nashvilleYou may remember him as the one who wanted a family and went home before her so that she could see getting a family wasn’t such a bad thing.  Thankfully, she finally came around.

Anyway we passed by a vendor with engraved wood blocks and boards that were reclaimed from old barns.  We immediately fell in love with it and knew that if belonged in our house.  Not just because Esther isn’t an orphan anymore but because as Christians none of us are.

he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will.  Ephesians 1:5

Adoption is a picture of the gospel because as Christians God has adopted us!

So now this little reminder block finds it’s home on our mantel.

Mantle 2 10.14

Oh and as for the big board in front of the fireplace.  He’s going to be moving above the television cabinet… eventually.

mantel 3 10.14Maybe I will actually get around to refinishing the cabinet, painting the walls, and hanging the board this year.  Maybe. I will get around to blogging more though because I miss you. I miss typing and sharing.  I miss blogging so here’s to letting you know that I am back.

What have you slacked off on recently that you have really been missing?  Go ahead and find your moment of sanity and try to sneak a little bit of it back in your life.  I dare you!

Linking up at:

OurJoyHisGlory

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