Rearranging / Graduation Celebration

Today, I spent some time rearranging and freshening the home of a client (and new friend) Barbara. She's been busying herself; getting ready to celebrate her daughter, Leah's, graduation from high school and has been slammed with party planning details. I was happy to help her out with accessorizing and reconfiguring some of her spaces and was even more thrilled to use numerous vintage family items in the decor.

Barbara has many wonderful old family pieces.  I love the vintage school banner (above).  As you can see, I had a little helper; Willow was quite intrigued with everything that was going on.

There's so much wonderful light in Barbara's home ~ I think it made for some pretty photographs.

Hubby will be quite pleased that his Nittany Lion (crouched on the table) has a place of honor. 

The hutch is a family heirloom passed down from the homeowner's mom. The shelves were impossible to adjust so I decided to hang a fun Dallas poster inside (a gift from their son's teacher when he graduated from high school) and framed it off with a couple of antique clocks.

The building blocks are also a family treasure that has been passed down, as well as the black and white framed photograph of the old family homeplace.

It was a fun time accessorizing and arranging for such a special event.  I enjoyed myself immensely as I learned about this sweet family and heard the stories behind so many gems (I especially love the grandfather clock above).

I left happy to have been a small part of the upcoming graduation celebration.  Congratulations dear Leah ~ much love to you and your sweet family!  xo ~ dana.

*You can follow Tattered Style on Instagram here. 

Afternoon Sunlight

I recently walked into my room and found this corner to be so pleasing to my senses. Nothing elaborate by many standards. Nonetheless, this spot makes me happy.

The vintage desk turned bedside table, was a lucky find I recently purchased from Thrift Studio (now going on thru May 23rd).

Resting on the table, is Downtown Chic by the dynamic design duo, Robert and Cortney Novogratz. It's another recent purchase from Thrift Studio (although it was published in 2009, it's new to me). ;)

The vintage silver and brass lassi cup was one I picked up from new friend, Courtney, over at Mela & Roam. I love putting fresh cuttings from the yard in it.

The vintage french hotel trinket dish I found on an excursion to a Paris flea market.  It holds spare change and things.

The simplicity of design and the sunshine filtering through the window was so pretty to me, I just had to share. I hope your week is going splendidly and that you find a smidgen of joy in a corner of your home.

Mornings

I'm not a morning person ~ I wish I was but I'm not.  It usually takes me awhile to come out of my sleeping stupor.  And I've come to the realization that life for me simply seems to go more smoothly if I ease into my day.

I crawl out of bed and put on my tattered house shoes.  As I make my way down the hall, I pull on a sweatshirt and rhythmically turn off every light switch that beckons me to wake up.  The morning people I pass (darn those happy folks) know me well enough by now and leave me to myself as I wander into the kitchen.  My daily ritual begins with my favorite cup of tea ~ (find it here).  

I'm becoming more human now and begin to open up curtains allowing the day to come in.  All the while the water heats on the stove as I anticipate my first cup of heavenly nectar.  As my tea is steeping, I may even tidy up a bit ~ but not too much before the real day begins.

As I cradle the warm cup in my hands, Penny and I traipse into my office and I snuggle up with a blanket in my favorite cushy chair (I recently realized my house slippers and chair have something in common ~ can you figure out what it is?).

I light a candle, take a deep breath and I'm still.  I tune into Pandora and close my eyes and let the music woo me awake as it gives life to my soul.  Then I spend a while reading.  It usually consists of a daily excerpt from The Divine Hours by Phyllis Tickle, a passage from the Bible and possibly a few pages from a self-help read but never, ever, fiction.  Not this early in the morning.  Currently, I'm reading Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin.

Then I have my quiet time ~ I think of all the things I'm thankful for and also do some soul searching and pray for those I love.  I'm by no means standing on a soapbox right now but have learned ~ for me ~ I can't do this life on my own and it's comforting knowing I don't have to.

I'm wide awake by now and am anticipating what the day has in store ~ Carpe Diem is my mantra by choice as I draw in another deep breath to go take on my day.  However you choose to embrace your morning ~ I do indeed hope it is lovely in every way.

P.S.  I would be happy for you to follow me on Instagram ~ it's snapshots of life as I know it.  You can follow me here. 

Steal of a Deal @ Anthro

For those of you who are always in search for great deals, here's one you may not want to pass up.  I found this amazing tablecloth yesterday at Anthropologie ~ on sale for 50% off.  Additionally (because it's my birthday month) I got another 15% off with my little yellow Anthro card.  Isn't it absolutely lovely?  And I got it for a steal!  Be sure and go here to see how you can get your Anthro Card (this is NOT a credit card) so you can get notices of sales and discounts on items too!

Reagan's Living Space ~ Continued

Sometimes life throws you a few curve balls.  In case you've been wondering if Tattered Style fell off the face of the planet, I didn't and I've missed being here.  I"m getting back in the swing of things and as I promised in my previous post ~ I'm putting up additional pics of Reagan's living room.  

 

 

The cool art and vintage chair belong to Reagan's roommate, Chris.  While many of the other furnishings were in Reagan's previous apartment.  Read more about them here. 

One of the primary requests for the living room was for it to be edited and clutter free.  I think we achieved our goal.

Additionally, the breakfast area was converted into an extra sitting/living area.  Bar stools at the counter and a table and chairs on the patio meet dining needs.  The best seat in the house is pictured below ~ it's an old vibrating massage chair that still works! 

I'm happy to share that Reagan and Chris are quite pleased with their new mid-century styled living room.  And in case you are interested, there's a plethora of mid-century modern treasures to be found.  Patience in locating the right piece for the right price is all that is required.  As proven above ~ a good number of the furnishings were found at wonderful vintage stores.  

I hope today you are gearing up for a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend.  

XO ~ Dana

Water Sprinkler / Paper Towel Holder

Today I'm excited to share how I upcycled an old lawn sprinkler into a paper towel holder.  We all know there are scads of towel holders on the market ~ but I couldn't land on one that I was crazy about.  Then I remembered this vintage iron water sprinkler I had in the shed.  It has character galore and was such a quick fix for what I had been searching for. 

Who knew this vintage lawn sprinkler would one day end up as a kitchen accessory?

I made a few adjustments to it so it could transition from the yard to the kitchen.  I gave it a scrub,  then wiped on a couple of coats of poly (find it here) with a clean cloth.  I actually used a piece of an old t-shirt to apply the sealer then allowed it to dry thoroughly.

The roll of paper towel fits perfectly on the sprinkler.  And it's heavy enough to stay in place when someone needs to tear a sheet of paper off so it won't go toppling over.  I love my new/old paper towel holder!  What do you think ~ fun, weird, cool, yep, nope?  I'd love to know your thoughts! 

Less = More with this Cozy Cottage

I love the picture of this little bungalow ~ it seems almost too perfect to be real.  I had the privilege this past summer of helping a client (who was downsizing) do some design work on this enchanting cottage.  There were so many things I adored about the Lilliputian house.  It was tiny and cozy and manageable.

As I worked on the space, I found myself envious of Michele and her family and their wonky abode. Sometimes I wonder if we all wouldn't be better off by downsizing and living with less.  Less can bring so much more into our lives like time ~ and how does one put a value on time?

I'm challenged today to live with less so my life can breathe and I can have the time to enjoy those I love.  Just a little something to think about...XO ~ Dana

Emporium Pies

Image via

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon while strolling the streets of The Bishop Arts District in Dallas, my friend Kelley (The Hidden List) and I stumbled upon the newly opened Emporium Pies.  The quaint shop is owned and operated by Megan Wilkes and Mary Sparks.  They offer up quite a tantalizing selection of from-scratch pies.

Image via

To name a few: Mr. Macintosh (apple cranberry), The Drunken Nut (bourbon pecan) and Mellow Yellow (lemon chiffon). They even offer a gluten free variety, The Smooth Operator (french silk chocolate with a pretzel crust), if you call ahead and request it.  Selections may be purchased by the slice or you can take home a whole pie for all to enjoy.

Which now brings me to the amazing fence visable as you approach the cozy shop. The giant oversized sheet music creation is fabulous. I can easily see this duplicated in an interior space.

Wouldn't it be fabulous used as a feature wall for an avid music lover?  I'm hoping your enjoying a wonderful weekend.  And if you're in the Dallas area, be sure and pay a visit to Emporium Pies!

Snapshot of Inspiration

What could be more lovely than a stack of old leather bound books with a vintage camera propped on top?  Presently I can't think of anything ~ this is what is inspiring me today.  The photograph comes from a vignette I put together for a client who has a passion for photography.  

Why not surround yourself with things you love?  It's touches like this that make a house a home and breathes personality into a space.  I'd love to know what's inspiring you today.  I hope you have a good weekend!

Stash / Our Last Day at Dallas Market!

In January, Tattered Style came together with three other friends, Gloria of A Modern Glo, Kelley of The Hidden List and Lisa of Cut and Paste to form Stash.  The Dallas Market Vintage FINDS show was our first opportunity to share and show our many varied vintage finds.  This past week we came together again at the second Vintage FINDS show at the Dallas Market.  It has been a week filled with excitement as we have made new friends and have had the opportunity to display and sell many wonderful unique and one of a kind vintage items.  If you are a designer or part of the retail trade, please drop in today.  We would love to brainstorm staging and display ideas with you!!!  Here's a sampling of some of the many varied treasures we carry: 

Kelley, Dana, Gloria and Lisa

We would love for the opportunity to meet you ~ please stop by today.  We are located in Market Hall ~ in the building marked "Vintage."  We are a cash and carry vendor ~ open today from 8:30 ~ 3:00.  Mention you saw this post and receive 10% off your entire purchase!  Also, if you are interested in purchases any of the above items and aren't able to make market today, please contact me here.  Hope to see you soon!  :)

P.S.  Check out this wonderful new vendor I met this week ~ Tinsel Trading ~ on my FB page!

Anthropologie Mirror Collage / DIY

Image via Anthropologie

Today I am excited to be sharing my latest project with you.  For quite some time, I've been drooling over this mirror collage from Anthropologie.  I love the character and charm of this mirror arrangement but found the price to be a little more than I wanted to pay.  So, I set out to collect some old framed mirrors of my own hoping I could reproduce this lovely idea.  Gradually, I was able to locate several beautifully framed and mottled mirrors.  However, they weren't quite as abundant and available as I hoped.  I decided the most practical solution was to amass a collection of old frames and then have them fitted with mirrors. 

I collected the frames pictured above and finally was happy with the assortment of sizes and types that I had accumulated.   

I took them to a local glass and mirror store and had mirrors cut to fit the sizes.  They were pretty reasonable in cost ~ I only had to pay $20 to have four mirrors cut to fit the empty frames.

The glass store suggested I affix the mirrors in the frames with clear silicone. 

I placed the mirror in position and ran a bead of clear acrylic silicone around the backside of the mirror and the frame.  The silicone is a little messy to work with and is a bit stinky so be sure to work in a well ventilated area.  After attaching all the mirrors to the frames with the silicone, I left them outside to dry for several hours.

I wanted to finish off the mirrors with a protective backing.  To do so, I measured each frame to determine the different sizes of backing I would need to mark and cut.  I penciled off each of the dimensions on foam core ~ the backing I chose to use.  Then, I placed the foam core on the cutting board and using a straight edge as a guide, I cut through the foam core.  
 


Lastly, I placed the foam core behind the mirror and duct taped it in place.  I realize this likely isn't the way a frame shop would back a mirror but I'm content with my method and  know I can rest assured the backing will stay in place. 

I've laid the mirrors out on the floor and I'm playing around with varied arrangements before I attach them to the wall.  I'm all out of time today ~ so please drop by soon as I'll be posting pics of how and where I decide to install my mock Anthropologie mirror collage.

Today's post is lovingly dedicated to my friend and neighbor, Sally.  She was a remarkable woman whose beauty was reflected from the inside out.  She will be greatly missed by all who knew her.