Hudson Goods Giveaway Winner

Congratulations
Beth
from





Random.org selected your comment as the Hudson Goods Giveaway Winner. Please drop Karl a line at millerkarl@yahoo.com to claim your Santa's! :-)

Thanks to everyone who entered, and stay tuned for another AWESOME giveaway starting on Sunday!

Kevin and Layla
:-)

This post brought to you by...

Guest Post by Rhoda of Southern Hospitality

Today we'd like to welcome another special guest poster to our blog.
Her name is Rhoda, and she writes the blog "Southern Hospitality".



Rhoda's was also one of the first blogs I found while surfing the net one night in the Spring of 2008. Since then we've met up a couple of times, and it's been so fun getting to know her!

Here we are (with Susie) at the Endless Yard Sale 2009...



We had such a good time. I can't wait to do it again next year!

Now, let's get this party started......heeeeeeere's Rhoda!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Hello!

When I first met Layla last year via blogging, I was immediately drawn to her warm and sweet nature, just from the emails that we exchanged in the beginning. She and I have become great friends over the last year and I have SO enjoyed seeing "The Lettered Cottage" grow and mature, and become what it is now a much loved blog by so many people.

When Layla asked me if I would be interested in writing a guest post for her, well, I was just elated to be invited over here! She asked me to share some of my favorite tips about how to "decorate on the cheap", which is something that I know a thing or two about since I’ve been doing it for many years now. It just seems to come naturally to me. My friends say I have a knack for finding bargains and scouting out deals. Personally, I've discovered it’s a much more rewarding way to shop!

So, my guest post will include 10 ideas that will beautify your home, without breaking the bank.

Now before I begin, I must warn you- I’m known as a "Yardsale Diva" and "saling" is my favorite way to find things for my home. I love the thrift stores too, but I have found SO many great deals at the yardsales, they still remain my #1 shopping venue.

10 Tips for Decorating on the Cheap


1. Burlap

This wonderful fabric has been around for a while now and has become a real staple in the decorating world. It's great fabric to use for updating a lot of different things. My favorite has to be when I used it to recover the lamps in my dining room. I just used on spray adhesive, cut my burlap to fit and then before adding it to the shade, I had a monogram stitched on it. Of course, to make it even more cost effective, you could easily trace a monogram and fill it in with paint. Same effect, but even more cost effective.

2. Light fixtures



About half the fixtures in my house have come from scouring the yard sales. Actually, my favorite ones were found this way, including the one above which came from a thrift store for $5. You can find all sorts of vintage and not-so-vintage fixtures out there for next to nothing. I’ve successfully changed out all the ugly builders brass that was in our home for bronze or antique brass, and what a difference that makes.

3. White dishes



Another thing that I look for while at yard sales or thrift stores is white creamware or ironstone. It's such a great thing to collect. Once you start, you won’t be able to stop yourself and you’ll be looking for it everywhere. It doesn’t take long to get your collection stocked up. My favorites are white platters, bowls, and tureens. White dishes can all be mixed, none of them have to match exactly. Slightly different tones are okay, creams and white shades will always look beautiful together.

4. Candle holders



There are so many great ones out there to choose from: glass, iron, wood, ceramic- you can mix them together and use them all around your home. I love using them on bookshelves, sideboards and in the middle of the dining room table. Having several on hand to choose from is a great way to freshen up your décor and get a pretty new look. These can usually be found for just a few dollars if you keep your eyes peeled!


5. Urns



The shape of an urn is just so appealing to me. I’ve collected many of them over the years- white ones, iron ones, ceramic ones and metal ones. All shapes and sizes. They really come in handy for decorating too. I have an iron one that's my absolute favorite. I picked it up at a yardsale years ago for $5. It's been a real workhorse for me. I’ve filled it with pinecones in the winter, and seashells in the summer. It works equally well either way. The white pottery urns are so pretty filled with sticks or natural greenery if you want to add an outdoor element to your shelves.

6. Natural elements



The last couple of years, I have really gotten into collecting things in the woods: pinecones, acorns, moss, sticks, hickory nuts, and sweet gum balls are just a few of the things that I’ve brought home to decorate with. Especially around Christmas time! They're all free and it just brings such a great element of texture from the outdoors to the inside of your home. Try it, you’ll love the things you can find outside!

7. Seashells



As a lover of the beach, I always have a few seashells around to decorate with. Now, whenever I go to the coast, I make sure I leave some time to beachcomb so I can add some new shells to my collection. It’s been a fun way to decorate because seashells are so pretty and unique. I've also found some very unique shells at yard sales.

8. Beadboard Wallpaper



You might not think of this as "decorating on the cheap", but it really is. If you have a wall or an area in your home that has zero architectural appeal, this great product can do wonders. Especially if you are like me and don’t have any power tools around. I’m the "handy girl" at my house, so when I discovered how easy this stuff was to work with, and how it looks JUST LIKE the real thing when installed, I became a believer. For just $25 per double roll, I had enough to do the ends of my kitchen cabinets, master bath cabinets, and a wall in the guest bath. That’s quite a big bang for the buck!

9. Books



Another great thing to look for at the yardsales, I’ve picked up so many inexpensive books over the years. Some of them I buy to read, and some of them just because I love the covers. They are great for stacking on shelves and using as risers for other accessories in your home. Books are textural and pretty, whether they are old or new.

10. Mirrors



Another thing I’ve collected so many of over the years is mirrors. These can be found very plentifully at yardsales. Adding a mirror to an area can expand it visually and really help to bounce that light around. I’ve never paid much for my mirrors, whether old or new, and I still have quite a few in my collection that I’ve had from my years of collecting. Painting them is a great way to reuse them in another spot.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That completes my personal go-to list of wonderful ways to decorate on the cheap!

I hope you got some ideas that you can try at your house.

Please come and visit me at Southern Hospitality for more budget-busting decorating ideas!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you Rhoda! Kevin and I loved your post, and those were all excellent ideas!

Now if you haven't visited her yet, I encourage you to stop by Rhoda's blog, "Southern Hospitality" to see what she's got cookin' over there this week...you will be so glad you did!

Exciting news from Blogland and Sindy's Master Bathroom Redesign

We received a couple of emails from fellow bloggers this week and we wanted to share their exciting news here on TheLettered Cottage.net!

The first email came from our friend Kimba at A Soft Place To Land about her new e-book, "A Very Kimba Christmas".



For just $8.99 you'll find five of the most detailed Christmas-themed tutorials Kimba's ever done!

I just finished reading it, and let me just say, you will definitely be blown away by all the information she's included and the awesome photography that shows each and every step of all five projects. The book is 72 pages long and there are 180 photos total. Talk about bang for your buck!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The second exciting email came from Roeshel of The DIY Show Off.

After reading about the True Value DIY Drama Contest on our blog, she decided to enter the contest by submitting a video of her unfinished master bathroom. Roeshel wasn't thrilled about showing the room in its current state, but the space has lots of unfinished, challenging projects that have left her and her hubby stumped.
Well, all her worries about uploading her video have now subsided because the folks at True Value have selected her as one of their top ten finalists!
How insanely awesome!

If you'd like to check out Roeshel's "DIY drama", and vote for her to win the $5000 True Value shopping spree and the assistance of a True Value professional to help them finish their master bathroom, click on the badge below and cast as many votes as you'd like between now and December 4th!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Speaking of master bathrooms, here are some highlights from a recent Photo Consultation I worked on for a client named Sindy.
She hired me to help give her budget friendly ideas on how to beautify her small master bathroom. She wanted the palette to coordinate with the blues, browns, whites and woods we used in her master bedroom consultation.
Among other things, I suggested adding some wide, white painted trim around the small windows to give them more of a presence, and to help them feel more intentional, and less like an afterthought.
Vinyl, peel-and-stick wood planks over the existing linoleum would help ground the space and would also inject some old world charm without breaking the bank.
A tiny chandelier, swagged over to the center of the room would add a touch of whimsy...something every little bathroom should have!
A pretty new wall color, completely dictated by (but a few shades lighter than) the blue in the shower curtain would really bring the room to life, and would make all the freshly white-painted baseboards and wide window trim snap, crackle and pop.
Replacing the existing hardware, fixtures, hinges and shower curtain rod with oil-rubbed bronze finished ones would add even more casual elegance. Changes like these can be done over time if you can't afford to do them all at once. Just take it one fixture or hinge at a time! I like to look on eBay for my hardware/fixtures. You can really find some great deals there.
I suggested finding a local seamstress to add the first letter of their last name to the shower curtain. Little touches like these can really make a room feel special!

Even though in some homes the master bath is a small room, (maybe the smallest in the house) think about how much time you actually spend in there. It's not like the guest bedroom you never go into. It's not like the basement you forget is even there sometimes. The master bathroom is probably the first place you visit each and EVERY day, and last place you visit before you crawl into bed each and EVERY night. Not to mention, a great deal of personal time is spent in the master bathroom. Sometimes you're in there for an hour or two at a time- depending on how long you like your shower or bath, and how much time it takes to "tame your mane" and "paint your face". :-)
Those seem like pretty good reasons to make sure that even the tiniest of rooms is nothing short of spectacular, right?

Hover your cursor back and forth over the photo below to see Sindy's "before" photo change to the inspiration drawing I created for her...

Here are some of the items I suggested Sindy use as inspiration when pulling together her room...

Maison De Ville Collection Mini Chandelier:



Matine Toile Shower Curtain:



PB Classic Stripe Towel:



Recessed Medicine Cabinet:




Peel-and-Stick Vinyl Floor Planks:



Chocolate Ticking Woven Cotton Rug:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And in case you're wondering about the bathroom at our house, Kevin's got the left "basketcase" finished, and he's all set to go back to work on the farm table. I cannot wait to have a sink hooked back up again. Not that we ever use it, but it just feels so weird not to have it there! We're still shooting for November 30th as our finish date for the vanity side of the bathroom. We may have to pull a couple of all-nighters, but we'd love to be done before we leave to drive to Virginia Beach on December 4th.

Have a fantastic Thursday! We've got a fabulous guest blogger stopping by tomorrow, and you're going to LOVE her list of Top Ten Budget-Friendly Decorating Ideas!

Layla

This post brought to you by...

Hudson Goods "Three Wise Santas" Giveaway

How'd ya like to win these sweet little Santas courtesy of Hudson Goods?



Karl has generously offered to give one of our readers this set of three, porcelain, vintage-style Santas. One holds a bird, one a wreath and one a birdhouse. They would look great displayed on an entry table, on a fireplace mantle, or even in a bookcase or hutch. Each Santa stands 10" tall, and measures 4" wide.

To enter the "Three Wise Santa's" giveaway, leave us a comment on this post between now and Friday, November 20th at noon, Central Time.

Only one entry per person please.

The winner will be chosen by Random.org on Friday at noon, and we'll announce his or her name sometime that afternoon. When you get home from seeing "The Blind Side", make sure you stop by our blog to see if you've won! :-)

In the meantime, stop by Hudson Goods and check out Karl's selection of fab furniture and accessories. You'll find a wide variety of goodies, and "The Lettered Cottage" readers can take 20% off their total order by typing in the promotion code 540 at checkout.

Good luck to everyone who enters the Three Wise Santas giveaway and thank you Karl for offering to give away such a fantastic prize!

:-)

This post brought to you by...

This giveaway ended at noon (Central Time) on Friday, November 20, 2009 and Random.org chose Beth from "The Stories of A to Z" as the winner.

Guest Bathroom Reno - Day 16

Greetings! It's very late, but I couldn't go to bed without posting the video I mentioned earlier today! I thought it would be neat to share how Kevin put the "chunky" in our new chunky shelves. :-)






Before I head to bed, I do need to mention that the pieces I called 1x3's in the video are actually 1x4's. Oops! I told you math wasn't my thing. Where's the dude in the cardigan when you need him. :-)

Layla

This post brought to you by...