Fiesta Americana Grand Los Cabos

Wishing you a wonderful day of FREEDOM today as you celebrate with your families!

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(The shells and coral I collected on the beach)

I just returned home after a great time in Cabo, Mexico  this past week!   I have never in my life needed a vacation away like I did this time.   I was in much need of a mind declutter from projects, all the hats I wear and needed a time to think about nothing but being with Mr. S.

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 It is always so incredibly wonderful to get away and have time to be still.  At first the quiet was kind of weird to get use to.  However, the more I heard the natural sounds around me, the more I craved the sounds of that peacefulness.

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I can't say enough about the resort where we stayed.  It was amazing!  The service was INCREDIBLE, the views were breathtaking, the food was absolutely delicious (and my husband is a foodie)  and the grounds were immaculate!

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My girls went to Czech Republic to teach English for 10 days so it was the perfect opportunity for us to get away together!

Enjoy this quick video of all the beauty I captured on our adventure.  No words can express what it was like but pictures can start to give you a glimpse!

God bless vacations and GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Tropical Bamboo Gazebo

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Okay, so you wonder what we are up to on the weekends?

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 Well, my husband and daughters have been extremely busy doing some updates  to our cabana.

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 My husband built our cabana about 4 years ago (see above picture) because our previous one (canvas)  collapsed in a snowstorm (see previous below).   The above picture is before it had the terra cotta tiles put on the roof.

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We are outdoor people and love to sit outside on summer evenings.

 Being that I grew up in Africa and my husband in Papua New Guinea, outdoor living, even if it's hot, appeals to us.

We decided that we wanted bamboo as the walls around the cabana to make it more private and tropical.

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We found these bamboo panels online and knew they would be perfect!  My girls are looking to make money for their missions trip that is coming up this summer.  So...my handy husband put them both to work and is teaching them how to work hard, that's for sure.  He even had them using the drill by the time they were done.  He was PROUD.

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Our paradise!  We feel as if we have escaped to another place when we are in our backyard.

Hope you have a great weekend.  Take some time to sit out on your patio.  Great conversations happen when you take time to just sit and enjoy each other.

Montclair Estates Elegance

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This past week a had a quick getaway to Arkansas to kick off the summer with my family.  It was an incredible time.  It was eye opening to me to see how my "DecRenew" team took care of everything while I was away!  I am extremely grateful to the contractors that work along side me, they are continually making my job such a pleasure.

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 It was hard to come back after being in paradise at Lake Greeson in Arkansas.

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My mind was renewed (as much as it can be for a few days away) and I was ready to get back to work the day after we returned.

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A wonderful family hired me to decorate their piano room, dining room and entry.  They have been in their home several years now and have remodeled each room.  They just hadn't done any decorating  to their 3 front rooms.  Of course, these are the first rooms guests see first. They hired me to make it look inviting, comfortable, classy and welcoming.  This is Phase I of the decorating.  We will be adding some additional items sometime next month.

 The dining room was already furnished and had all the lighting.  We just added draperies, artwork and accessories.

BEFORE

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 Amazing what a difference color, texture and draperies can do to a room.

AFTER

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The artwork was inspired by the drapery fabric.  Mary Howe from Divine Inspirations did the painting for us.  I outlined the concept and colors and she did her magic like she always does, such talent!

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I created the urns by adding moss to a round Styrofoam ball and then surrounding them with grapevine to give it a really natural look.  I just love using greenery that has lots of branches incorporated.  Truly looks like you picked it off a tree.  The urns were aged with an aging solution.

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 My camera died in the middle of taking these photo's so I apologize for the "not so vibrant" shots.

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The piano room was cleared out completely.  We kept the piano where it was because it is the star of the room.

BEFORE PIANO ROOM

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 AFTER PIANO ROOM

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BEFORE

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AFTER

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BEFORE

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  We had the fireplace fauxed with layers of  grays.  It now is more of the focal point in the room and coordinates with the colors in the entry. We added all new custom furniture, rugs and accessories, leaving the piano as the focal in this room.

 

AFTER

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 This oil painting is the mom of my client.  She is perfect for above a mantel in a piano room don't you think?

BEFORE

We created a gallery wall with all of the oil paintings that were done by family members.  Framing them all in the same frame made them a grouping that works together, even though they are all quite a bit different.

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AFTER

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 I didn't use the oil painting with the fruit because I felt like that one is more appropriate for a kitchen.

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Substantial dark frames changed the look of the artwork drastically!  Grouping them together makes it more of a collection.  Spreading them out all over the home would have lost their impact.  Seeing them all together tells a better story and showcases the collection.

I found the glass  lamp bases and changed out the shades with something a little more decorative than plain white.  The muted chevron pattern is gorgeous with the rug.

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 These custom chairs are my favorite thing in the room!  The colorful  pillow makes the entire room come together. Well....I love the gallery of artwork too!

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BEFORE ENTRY

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AFTER

 

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 The entry accent wall was painted a similar color to the fireplace surround,  uniting the rooms together.

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 I found the chair at an estate sale and had it painted a light gray.

 Reupholstered the seat to match the pillows in the piano room and united everything together with a  cream Brazilian  hide.

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 These Spanish doors were added to the stairway wall and are an incredible statement to the home with their weathered texture and color.

The amount of work that goes into one of these installs in incredible.  It always blows my mind to see the ideas that have been swirling around in my head come together within an 6 hour time frame. Months of preparation and organization.  Such an  awesome feeling to see it all put together.

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The reveal is always so exciting and this family all gathered together to do the final walk thru after being gone all day.

The moment you drive away from a client and watch as the family walks back into their home is always such a rewarding feeling.  I love knowing that as they enter the front door, new memories will be created as they have friends and family gathered around for meals around their dining room table.  I can imagine lots of gatherings around the piano too, especially  for holidays and special occasions.

Thank you Lord for the blessing of using my gifts to warm the hearts of others.  It's a gift that comes back to me ten fold.

 

 

Young Executives Colorful Dallas Townhome

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It has been such a privilege to work with my recent client. She is young and has been extremely successful.  Recently purchased a beautiful town home and called me to help her add personality and fun to it.

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She had a few accessories, a small round bistro table and a beautiful town home to work with.  The furniture that we couldn't use, she donated to charity.

BEFORE

(dark and drab)

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Being that she is young and fun, I presented a design plan to her with color and crisp freshness. She loved it and we got started right away!  We painted all the walls a soft gray and that in itself transformed the entire room.

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The beautiful watercolor that you see in the hutch below was my inspiration for the room and helped us incorporate some of the existing blue accessories she already had and loved.

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I found the used china cabinet below and had it professionally repainted, bringing it up to date!  It had such great bones and I knew the curved arches would add interest instantly.

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 The outside was painted a rich gray and the inside was painted a light gray to showcase all the colorful accessories I added.

My client does not like a cold modern, contemporary style.

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 My goal was to make her home feel updated,  functional and comfortable but also give it a feeling of youthfulness and style.

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 She wanted it to be a place that  is a casual refuge for her to come to after a long day at the office.  I placed some old leather books, along with some pottery she had and mixed in unique artwork.  I also found these antique wallpaper stamps and they make a great conversation piece placed in the cabinet.

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 It now exudes a colorful, free spirit just like she has.

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BEFORE

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AFTER

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A wonderful tufted ottoman is a place where all feet can rest comfortably!

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The existing table she had now looks to scale, especially underneath her new chandelier.

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Underneath the large front window we added a new console table.

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I found these two fabrics and knew combined they would be perfect for her style.  Blown glass vases inbetween the lamps are showcase pieces now with the light shining in on them and above them.  They also have a bit of sparkle so that was a fun surprise for her.

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The mantel was painted black. I proposed to my client that we move the mantel up due to the wierd space between the ledge and the mantel however, due to the budget, she decided that could be done later.  We worked with what we had for the mantel and I think it turned out nice.

 BEFORE

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AFTER

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My client returned home after being at a meeting all day and fell into her  comfortable couch and immediately started enjoying her NEW room!  She had the wrought iron shutters already, we just rehung them somewhere else.

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Team DecRenew was extremely tired after a hard day with an extremely early start; 3 truck deliveries, 2 cars full of breakables and flowers, a wonderful handyman, my assistant Lesley with her crazy good  organization skills  and "get it done" attitude, and of course Tim my drapery installer that always does his magic.  I couldn't do it without them all!

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It was hard work and required a ton of planning ahead of time,  but it was all worth it.

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Fun, happy, casual and inviting!

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 I could live here, couldn't you?

Watch this before and after video of the space!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Db-QVFe1lbQ

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DecRenew Interiors

Before and After Online Consultation

DecRenew Interiors Consultation  

One of the things I love to do is online consultations.  A client will send me a picture of a decorating problem they have and I will then create a document with a visual of what I think the solution would be.  I'll ask you questions about your design style and what items you would like to include in the design.

Above is an example of a picture a client sent us.  You can see the after next to it with how I envisioned the mantel fully done.

  Big difference, don't you think?

Book your online consultation today - Send me your picture and I can give you my thoughts and a visual.  For this kind of consultation, I charge by the job and will do one picture at a time.   Before I do anything, I will respond to you with your quote.

Tomorrow we have a fun install so I'll be posting before and after pictures soon!