Wallpaper Stencil LOVE

Well my sweet husband finished the LR wallpaper stenciling this weekend!! The stencil was roughly 17 x 20 inches & it took 3 days of painting. (RL stencil from here )

He says the worst part about it was having to wash out the stencil between every few applications of the stencil. We used a latex paint: Sherwin Williams 'Ancestral Gold' recommended by Maria from Colour Me Happy & the color coudn't be more perfect!! (a pale goldy-green- awesome with the sofa- Thank you Maria!!! :) He didn't use a stencil brush & we just went with a Home Depot cheapie about 2-3 inches wide. The application isn't even & is just what I was looking for. (perfect imperfection!!)

Here's what our living room looked like before:

And here it is after the stenciling:

(A clear glass floor lamp is on its way to the right of the fireplace to balance out the chandelier & we're adding a custom mirror in the fireplace box.) It's hard to see in the far away photos because of the light coming in through the windows, but there is a sort of grid-like pattern where the stencil applications meet. I've been going around by hand to fill in these areas (this will also take FOREVER) but it's worth it because it makes it look continuous.

It reminds me a little of my grandparents' wallpaper (where I lived growing up) and looking at it just gives me this feeling of "home." I seriously teared up when Dave finished it. (ha pregnancy! ;) It looks like a timeworn wallpaper & I couldn't be happier. It really warmed up the room & made that huge high wall feel smaller.

Now my dilemma is this: I don't think I can cover it up with my 30 Leonardo Da Vinci sketches!! (At least not right away because I just want to gaze at it lovingly.. not kidding.) But I already ordered them... SO now I think I'm going for a CRAZY gallery entry with them going all the way up the 3 walls in the entryway. Any thoughts??? Should I put them in the living room or entry? If I put them in the entry, what your thoughts on the living room? Should I put the black window-like mirrors back? (in above before pic-- they're very loft-like & strong.) Just keep it empty & lean whichever mirror and/ or art I feel like at any given time? (below) Do you think it feels too empty as it is now? (This is tough because it feels "emptier" in photos than in person because the wallpaper stencil stands out much more in person...)

Ok, would love your thoughts & ideas. And one last pic of my chemistry beakers!! (In case you didn't read the comments in a previous post, I had to laugh so hard when Terri of WindLost said she loved everything in the room except for the chemistry beakers because she's a scientist. hahaha Yes, I have to agree that I wouldn't feel the same way about them had I her job!!)

Looking back over the weekend stenciling project: YES, I almost told my husband to quit after it took an hour and a half to do the first 3 stencils. He was a serious trooper & just kept going & going but I KNOW I wouldn't have done it myself. I don't have the patience. IF you have an insane stash of patience, it's a project worth doing, but I agree with many of the comments in my last post that wallpaper doesn't seem nearly as expensive now. He's moving onto the foyer this weekend & that will be rough on a ladder the whole time but I'll post when we have pics!

xoxo,

lauren

ps- Head over to Velvet & Linen to vote for which readers' rooms you think deserve the GORGEOUS brickmaker's coffee table!!! I took part in the selection of the finalists & I cannot tell you how many beautiful well-designed rooms were sent in!! It was SO tough- bloggers & readers are so talented!!!

xoxo

Wallpapering Is Hard To DO-O...

(That's being sung to the tune of "Breaking up is hard to do!")

Dave installed the breakfast nook wallpaper last night... AFTER mowing the lawn, accompanying me & providing the man-power on a Home Depot trip to buy shrubs/ trees and 3 huge bails of hay and finally, digging holes for 2 tree-shrubs (don't know the name, just that they were tall & are helping it make as if people live inside our house!) and 5 rhododendron bushes. He really deserves a medal after the past few months.

I'm loving it!!!! (He said it was really hard to install and wants to hire a professional for the hallway... I'm okay with the few wrinkles you can barely see!) Next up: baseboards & bamboo roman shade installation & crystal sconce installation (and then of course some pretty things/ accessories) and I'll show more pics when it's all done next week. Anyway, have a great weekend & will be back Monday!!! :)
xoxo,

lauren

ps- Michele from My Notting Hill was at the Pear Tree Cottage Design Seminar & did a great (and very sweet!!!) post on it here Thanks so much for coming Michele!!

Grisaille Murals & Wallpapers

OK, all I can say about the entry in one of Martha Stewart's homes (above) is LOVE LOVE LOVE. I've been attracted to large-scale murals & etchings & toiles lately as you can see here.



Grisaille is a term for painting executed entirely in monochrome, usually in shades of gray or brown, particularly used in decoration to represent objects in relief. (I'm not going to lie, until I heard this term I always called them toile-like scenic murals ;) The 7 feet by 4 feet blown up Durer print on fabric that we're going with in our dining area (above) is my way of getting the look of a handpainted wall mural on a budget. (With the feel of a tapestry).



I thought I'd share with you a few beauties I've found along the way.... The image below from http://www.michaeldute.com/images_chinoiserie.htm:



This one below from House Beautiful has been floating around a lot lately biut I just can't get over it. I love the shades of green against the warm, rich browns of the furniture. perfection.



Here's one found in a restaurant by frenchbutchic.blogspot.com:

And of course, we needc to include some hand-painted wallpaper from de Gournay:

SO GORGEOUS!!!! Here's another one, below:

The image below from http://charlottesullivan.com/portfolio/murals/index.htm and I love how soft it is, receeding in the background:

Remember this one??? More of a large scale toile but I'm in love anyway. I contacted the company about this handpainted paper but never heard back. (Just as well, I'm pretty sure it's just a smidge out of our price range. ;)

The warm-toned Chinoisserie mural below is from http://kathleendeyo.wordpress.com/2008/11/ :

And here's just one more from de Gournay... Maybe one day I can replace my "tapestry" with the real deal???? Oh just so beautiful....

Hope you enjoyed these beauties. As soon as I get my "tapestry" up I'll post pics!!!

xoxo,

lauren

ps- If you didn't get a chance to weigh-in on the question in the previous post (below), I'd love to hear your thoughts!!!

I got my wallpaper!!!!

Yay!!! We're (my husband) is hanging the wallpaper as I type!!! I should be packing but had to let you all know!!!!

It's going in the breakfast nook of our kitchen (which will have dark walnut hardwood floors installed in a couple of weeks, also courtesy of wonderful husband.):

If you remember, I really wanted Studio Printworks' "Pineapple Petite" but found that it just wasn't in the budget:

I also loved Cotwan & Tout's Botanique Spectaculaire wallpaper & it was also too pricey:

So I started searching & searching for something I loved and found something I like more than any of the others!!! It's a bit more old-fashioned which I really love juxtaposed against the saarinen-style table. ( I found it here)

Here's an image of the same "Etchings Collection" Floral Toile paper in yellow:

I wanted to go black & white so I could switch up my table settings to suit my moods and... because I have black counters & shelf brackets and whitebeadboard:
I'll show after pics as soon as the floor is in!!!

xoxo,

lauren