This post will have some affiliate links to help you find products or similar ones but will mostly be picture heavy because it’s all still a work in progress! We wanted to keep our leather couch and chair but I did add two chairs that have worked out perfectly from Target.  I waited because I knew that they needed to match my true love… our new coffee table.  And they do and it’s glorious! I am a sucker for a spindle leg and repurposed my hutch from the old house and painted it a beautiful blue because the wood clashed with the floor.  It works for our media stand for now and adds a fun pop of color.

I will do a post soon on my DIY artwork above the mantle. It was a huge canvas with trees on it that I found at a flea market, but just wasn’t working for me in here so to save some moola, I decided to paint over it because it was a huge canvas and fit the space.  I was nervous because I didn’t want it to look like a child colored it but it brought in the colors I wanted and for now it makes me happy because I used the lake in the mountains where we scattered my mom’s ashes as inspiration.  I gotta keep her close to me!

So enough chit chat! Here are some quick pics of our family room that is open to our kitchen and opens out to our patio and pool. 

/ Chairs / Stripe Lumbar Pillows /

/ Similar Animal Print Pillow (mine were from HomeGoods) / Coffee Table /

I love these chairs! They are comfortable and easy to move around when entertaining, not to mention a great price.  They are also a lower profile, which I wanted because I didn’t want them to block the pretty view outside when in front of the glass doors.

The rug and coffee table were big ticket items and to be completely transparent… aren’t my normal cost effective purchases.  But I planned and waited for sales and knew that these would both be large statement pieces that would be around for a very long time.  They were also very large and this room is fairly huge! The rug needed to be a 11 by 14 at least.

/ Chairs / Coffee Table / Rug / Similar Side Table /

The coffee table has had my heart for a very long time and y’all know that I tried to find a cheaper version for literally years!  But a good sale and a coupon code and I finally just pulled the trigger.  The details on it are gorgeous and it’s also ‘little boy’ friendly so it will last forever!

This room can be seen immediately when you enter our home so I wanted it to be both comfortable and pretty! And with no room in the budget for art, the DIY mantle painting and this little bow painting I did add just a bit of fun and color with all the blue and white. I plan on building out simple frames around both pieces.

And last but not least, this tiered side table was a clearance find that happened before we moved and I couldn’t resist it! It was $100 when I bought it and broke all of my self imposed rules of not buying something before it has a specific place and purpose… but it totally paid off!

Is it dangerous to have a glass topped anything in my house? Yes. But it has survived 7 months so we are just going to cross our fingers and hope she survives!

I hope you enjoyed this little peak into our family room and will update as we go! My absolute favorite thing about this room though? Is the peaceful view out back!

I will share our tips for building a pool and hopefully some new deck furniture soon!

xoxo

B

The post Family Room Decor appeared first on Windgate Lane.

These shelves are a fairly new product there and you can buy them in a multitude of sizes and really personalize them to what you want.

I wanted them to be a clean white so I simply spray painted them before assembly.  And by assembly, I mean, beat me over the head, have a meltdown, want to throw them out the window, 2 day ordeal.  I say this because I actually take pride in my Ikea assembling abilities.  I know all the little tricks and can read there poor directions like a boss now… but these were a mean surprise because it looked like they would be so so simple! They were not.  I managed to get it done but didn’t end up following any of the directions so I’m afraid I can’t help talk you through it… but I will pray for you! I think it turned out pretty well though and does the job for now.

This is in a corner of our dining room that I will share more of soon!

I’m not bitter at all that the movers removed 2 of the 4 wheels on my antique tea cart and are still no where to be found… not bitter at all.

Dalmation Trinket Dish found here but currently unavailable.

I love that I can enjoy my new collection and that it’s not hidden away anymore! The house is slowly coming along and this is motivating me to finish up the dining room fast

Pin below for sources later!

xoxo

B

The post Ikea Wall Shelves Hack appeared first on Windgate Lane.

The entryway in our new home was a bit of a question mark for me at first.  It’s very long and with the hardwoods, it felt a bit dark, which I knew I needed to offset.  Initially I considered a gallery wall, but decided that it might feel a bit cluttered and wanted it to feel very clean and simple while still filling the very large space.  I’m not used to having such high ceilings and a lot of our old pictures are sizes that would get lost in the space, so I needed to look for larger scale pieces.

During the first few months I ordered this console table from Ballard Designs when it was on mega sale for $200.  The price was right and so was the length! It’s huge and bigger than most I was finding.  But that’s what the space needed! I was debating for quite awhile on what to put above it but finally decided on a mirror because it would bounce the light down the dark hallway and wouldn’t compete with artwork that would hang over the mantel.

After some failed trips to HomeGoods and my other fave home accessory places, I got a new Ballard Designs catalogue in the mail and wouldn’t you know it… the perfect mirror was in it! Once again, huge, but just enough detail to give it interest without being fussy! Check and check! The only problem… price… definitely more than I usually spend on something like this.  But if you sign up for there email list (once again, this is not a sponsored post) you will get emails with sales and I did just that and they finally had a 30% off coupon and I jumped on it.  This won’t be something I will replace for a long time and the quality of it showed when it arrived!

And by quality, I mean it was heavier than I could describe without using a cuss word and tested our marriage to the limit while we hung it lol! But worth it in the end!

And why don’t we just round out my Ballard Designs love fest with the final thing in the entry, my faux fiddle leaf fig tree! I have yet to find one of this quality and size for the price (also waited for a coupon and got it awhile ago).  It looks so real and I just found the pot for it at HomeGoods.  I can’t keep a plant or tree alive to save my life so this is actually saving me money in the long run. 

Added in some of my blue and white pretties and voila! After 4 months we have a pretty, welcoming entryway! Do you like how I say voila and then 4 months later like it was overnight? Yeah… moving is a lot y’all.  Expenses and just figuring out what works in the new spaces takes patience and more patience, otherwise you end up buying a bunch of stuff that doesn’t really work.  Just ask our last house and the accessories that were in it for the first several years;)

If you have been around Windgate Lane for awhile, you know that these two pieces are more than I usually spend.  But with this new house and with 10yrs of design experience under my belt now, I knew where I would feel comfortable spending a bit more and that was on things that would be classic place holders.  The table and mirror will be there for a long time and my little accessory loving heart can decorate around them in all sorts of ways!

Each space is slowly coming together!

xoxo

B

**All photos are property of Windgate Lane.  Prohibited use without written permission.

The post Bright, Blue, and White Entryway appeared first on Windgate Lane.

We have driven up north of us and looked at possible locations for years.  I realize that sounds ridiculous, but things have happened each time we were considering that kept us where we were at and as the saying goes- “All in good time.”

With all of our moves, things have just felt right.  This move was a little different for me because it’s the first time I have moved with kids and that added so many emotions to manage that I have definitely been overwhelmed! But I planned out the best ways to get them settled in as quickly as possible, which I will share soon to maybe help others.

So blah blah blah… you want to see pictures, right?! Well today I am going to show you some bare bones pictures and then a vision board of where I’m hoping to take this new home.  It was a spec home, which means the builder built it in a new neighborhood to get the ball rolling and when we found it, it was nearly completed.  So I didn’t pick any of the finishes in this home but I do really love them because I wanted neutral and they did a great job of making it all very simple and classic.  But y’all know I love an old feel so my challenge will be adding in my own details to knock down a bit of the “shiny new” and make it feel like us!

Top of the list of what sold us on this property was that it was on a half acre and backed to woods.  The view out of the back of the house is priceless and with HUGE windows and sliding glass doors, I could just sit and stare out back all day long! (iPhone pics for the win here)

We back to a small creek and woods- more privacy than we have ever had! And still in a neighborhood with a school in it.  So you can see in the above picture of the back of the house the windows.  Those are out family room, kitchen/dining, and master bedroom and above is the playroom.

So let’s start in the kitchen! These photos were taken while work was still finishing up so there is still paper over the hardwood floors.  The kitchen opens to a 12×14 dining area and it is the only dining space in the house- no formal dining room which was fine for us as we only used it a couple times a year:)

So much light! And more storage than I could have ever dreamed of as I used to have to keep pots and some pans out on my stove in the old house because there was simply no where to put them! I have a lot of ideas for that dining space but am still playing around with it all.  I need to live in the space for a bit- I will say though that my oriental rug from the old family room has been put down in the dining space and I looooovveee it in there!

Next up is the family room- super simple but I love how the fireplace is grand and while the tiles are a little more modern than I am, the woodwork contrasts it enough to bring in some traditional.

The sliding glass doors out of the family room are my favorite.  It will be indoor/outdoor living here for sure! (there might be a pool post coming soon!)

Off of the kitchen is a nice nook that I will make family planning central! And I love that the granite is carried over to it.  Such a nice neutral.

The playroom upstairs also has the beautiful views and large windows…

And a cute little barn door leads to a fun media room that will remain empty until my husband can’t stand it and breaks down and gets a screen for in there:)

And the last spot on this first tour is the master bedroom which is where the final gorgeous windows are.  I have so many ideas for this room that I really need to start narrowing it down!

This has been an exciting, albeit bittersweet, move for our family! But we aren’t too far from where we were and plan on forcing our sweet neighbors to come see us often.  The boys are adjusting and we are excited to meet some new friends and explore the beautiful trails and ponds around us… I sang the Green Acres theme song the other day and it fell on deaf ears around here but I thought I was funny and clever so it’s good to know that some things don’t change

And here is your first sneak peek and my first stab at where this new home will go decor wise… lots of color and bringing the outdoors in…

Can’t wait to share this journey with y’all! First up will be figuring out widow coverings because while I love the view, we also need some privacy options and to block some of this Texas sun sometimes too! What would y’all do? Plantation shutters, curtains, blinds, nothing?

xoxo

B

The post New Home: Time to Dream appeared first on Windgate Lane.

Anthropologie Inspiration is at an all time high for me right now! Now notice I call it inspiration because y’all know that I am all about a good deal and these things are not in my price point.  But that’s how I get inspired and more creative! If I have to make my own or search HomeGoods for something similar… I’m all about the good deal brag.

What I love about looking though is seeing how fashion and interior design intermingle each year.  This year is going in a bolder direction with jewel tones, bold patterns (especially tribal), pattern mixing, metallics in an even bigger way than before, and while fringe was popular this last year, I think we will be seeing feathers in the same way this year.  So do I need a purse with sequined birds on it? No.  But do I love the colors and how it’s pulled together? Yes!

| Purse |

The neutral background is the paint on the walls to me with the colors of the birds throughout the room.
| Necklace |

The greens are everything, not to mention Pantone’s color of the year! This necklace makes me want to layer a neutral couch with velvet pillows in all of those green shades.  It also makes me want the necklace but I will control myself.

| Cross Body Bag |

This kimono basically combines it all.  Sequins.  Jewels.  Deep tones.  Fringe.

|Kimono |

And broaches are back in a big way and I kind of love it! I’m not sure that they work into my everyday outfits but what about putting one on a purse or having a bowl filled with antique ones?! Ok… don’t steal that idea!

While I love the all white and gray homes, it’s just not for me.  I need color and I need it infused through out! Whether it’s in pillows or art work or rugs, I like to bring it into decor that can be changed easily.  These tribal prints and patters are beautiful and would not go just anywhere but are note worthy and the bracelet seems like a possible DIY… ok, don’t steal that idea either ok?!

| Clutch | Bracelet |

I’m just going to put this out there… I want this clutch.  My Birthday was last week and if anyone forgot and wants to just send this on to me, that’s just fine.  I could make up something to fit it into my decor but really I just want to adopt it as my third child.

So am I the only one who sees fashion as inspiration for interior design and vice versa? Pin Below for sources later!

xoxo,

B

**affiliate links are present in this post- Windgate Lane receives a small percentage for click throughs but all opinions are my own and this is not a sponsored post**

Shop this post and more with links below:

The post Anthropologie Inspiration appeared first on Windgate Lane.

The stockings where hung, the presents were wrapped… then all hell broke loose and the only safe space was the dining room!

| Similar Shirts | Wrapping Paper |

This year was very special because I got new dishes! I can remember my Mom getting special dishes on Christmas and I’m so excited to have my very own… and you won’t believe it but… they are blue and white! I know, you are shocked.  This Christmas Table Setting is my favorite and will be used for many years to come.

I feel these blue and white dishes were just meant to be in my home.  Just nod your head in agreement.   I might have needed the matching platter as well.  I mean it was all on sale (still is actually)!

The bowls are my favorite and I will keep them on display in my hutch.  They match my thrifted acrylic blue napkin holders perfectly!  I have thrifted most of my silver as well but you can find similar pieces here.   For other room sources, you can find them in the Dining Room Make-Over!

The Holiday Desert Plates, which are currently out of stock but could possibly come back, are another favorite, but these are an amazing second option (and on sale) and it was a hard choice between the two for me!

And how could I forget the bar cart?! It had to get prepped for some holiday entertaining!

The drink shakers were a black friday present to myself.  Stop judging.  I saved so much money on everyone else it just made sense.   And the antique drink stirrers are about my favorite holiday decor ever!

We are ready to have a beautiful dinner and then carry it into a Happy New Year and I wish the same to you all!

** Windgate Lane shares affiliate links so that products mentioned are found easily and does receive a small amount for purchases made through our site.  We appreciate the support!**

xoxo

B

The post Christmas Table Setting appeared first on Windgate Lane.

It’s that fun time of year again!! Swap it Like It’s Hot, where a whole bunch of us get together and find thrifty randoms and send them to our friends to transform into whatever they can reimagine and I love it! This year my items came from our fearless leader, Charlotte, from Ciburbanity, and I decided to use them to spruce up our bar cart for fall.

Our antique bar cart got a little make over during the One Room Challenge that you can see here but it was time to change out a few things to try and entice fall to head into Texas;)

Charlotte sent me several fun things but I decided that these two were the stand outs to help in my mini make-over. This little tray and a wooden stand.

I actually liked the pattern on the tray, but the colors just weren’t working for me, which is the beauty of buying things and seeing them in different ways! All this tray needed was some black spray paint to get me started… and yes, this may be one of my children completely wiping out in the background of this photo… no children were harmed in the spray painting of this tray!

I used some glossy, black spray paint and gave it a shiny fresh coat! Then I decided to add my personality into the project… a few white stick on letters accomplished that because I got jokes people! My husband may not think I’m as funny as I do but he’s got the rest of his life to figure that one out.

So a man walks into a bar… and he says… can there ever be enough blue and white in a house? No! and that’s not even a funny question! You know I had to have my blue and white but I love the mix with the black and white and peach… yes, peach! I brought some peach accents with my DIY curtains into the dining room and love the soft contrast it brings.  That peach, velvet pillow cover though, was a recent Target purchase (lots of colors) for under $10- you can find it here and you’re welcome… love! 

The wood base was perfect with an old glass cylinder I had.  I simply filled it with these wood beads that once again, I found at Target, and then added some of my little, Christmas battery powered lights for some fall ambiance! So easy but added great texture and interest! For you locals out there, I am not going to lie… there were two boxes at my Target and I snatched them both up- I’m sure they will restock soon but they are on sale online and it is an unbelievably good deal if you compare prices to the wood beads they sell at Pottery Barn, etc, so I suggest you nab them if you can.

Best advice on decorating I can give… decorate for you… this isn’t going to be everyone’s style and that’s why I love seeing what other’s do with similar things because to some a tray is just a tray but to some it’s way to remind their husband that they are funny every time he sees it

And FYI in case I haven’t encouraged you to spend enough moola at Target already, that is in fact a fake fiddle leaf fig tree… and I couldn’t be more proud of a fake plant if I tried.  I actually had to ask our store manager and these will only be sold at some stores so once again, if you can grab it online I would for sure- they are so real looking and obviously for me the biggest plus is you can’t kill it!

So now I get to send you on your way to my friend Laurie over at Vin’yet Etc. who I sent this little group of thrifted finds- I can’t wait to see what she did with them!

And here are the links to all of the participants for today and I will come back each day and add the new participants as this will go on all week!

Monday

| Ciburbanity | Windgate Lane | Vin’yet Etc. | Casa Watkins Living | One Mile Home Style |

Tuesday

| Reinvented | ConfettiStyle | Confessions of a Serial Do-It-Yourselfer | Addicted 2 DIY

|Restoration Redoux | I Am a Homemaker | Maggie Overby Studios | PMQ For Two |

Wednesday

| Two Thirty-Five Designs | 58 Water Street | Create & Babble |

| Dogs Don’t Eat Pizza | Gourley Girl and Guy | The Charming Farmer |

Thursday

| This is our Bliss | Southern State of Mind |

| Two Purple Couches | My Life From Home |

xoxo

B

**affiliate links are included in this post to both ease in the sourcing of materials and Windgate Lane does make a small stipend off of purchases made through click throughs**

The post Bar Cart Styling | Swap It Like It’s Hot appeared first on Windgate Lane.

This framed, hand stenciled quote was such an easy project! And I am so excited that I got to make it for the sweetest family!

This last fall, I was invited by Charlotte, at Ciburbanity, to be involved in the furnishing of a Habitat for Humanity home.  It has been such a neat experience and I loved working with a special group of ladies and fellow bloggers to make this happen! The primary room I worked on was the master bedroom.  Because all of this was taking place in Connecticut though, I primarily concentrated on what we needed to buy rather than what had to be made.  Charlotte at Ciburbanity and Jilliam at I Am Home Maker were my amazing partners and bless them for the amazing build projects I will link to below!

After traveling out and meeting the family last fall with Charlotte, I was struck by the sweet Momma’s quotes all over her home.  All about love and family- and it was crystal clear that those are the most important things in the world to her.  So it occurred to me that I could create a larger version of one of her favorites for her Master!

“The best thing to hold on to in life is each other.”

I lucked into finding a perfect frame at the thrift store!  The family loves a county taste in their decor and the existing wood frame would tie right into that.

It originally had some birds on it so I primed it with Zinsser first to get a clean slate.  After that, I found some 1 inch letter stickers and placed them on, traced around them, peeled them off and took a black sharpie to color them in!

A fresh beginning for such a precious Momma and her family!

(photo cred Ciburbanity.com)

I’m so excited to keep sharing more and more of this project with y’all! There was so much heart in this that the outcomes in each room were just overflowing with love.  We have also been so lucky to have HomeTalk and Wayfair sponsoring this with amazing donations, not to mention RugsUSA with some of my favorite rugs!  If you would like to follow along with all of the projects, hop over to Instagram with the hashtag: #bloggershearthabitat.  And I will be back soon to share more inside looks and sources.

And to see all of the other amazing rooms, you can jump to all of these amazing women!

LIVING ROOM:
| Jaime from That’s My Letter  | Laura from Finding Home Farms

DINING ROOM/ DECK:
| Kris from Driven By Decor | Annie from Most Lovely Things |

MASTER BEDROOM:
| Jillian from I Am a Homemaker | Charlotte from Ciburbanity | Bee from Windgate Lane |

KIDS ROOM:
| Kristin from A Thrifter in Disguise |

GUEST ROOM:
| Evey from Evey’s Creations | Lynn from On Fern Avenue |

FOYER/ MUDROOM/ BATHROOMS:
| Sarah and Nick from Nestrs |

TEEN ROOM:
| Michelle from Weekend Craft | Stephanie from Sandpaper and Glue |

xoxo

B

The post Framed Quotes: Habitat for Humanity Projects appeared first on Windgate Lane.

The big reveal in my One Room Challenge was last week and the master bedroom is so much lighter and brighter thanks to my new bed skirt! (you can see the reveal here).  The good news is that no sew sewing has become my best friend! I spoke about using Stitch Witchery on my Dining Room Curtains here and decided to use that on the bed skirt as well.

I decided early on that this could be a simple project because the bed skirt isn’t going to be roughed up by little hands and is not in a high traffic area.  So now we turn to the best invention besides the Stitch Witch… velcro strips! I felt like doing an evil laugh when I came up with the plan (and I might have). And then seeing this fabric come to life in the room? priceless!

Ironing and measuring… I can handle that.  I measured how long I wanted the bed skirt to drop- most are 14, 15, or 17 inches- I wanted mine to be a bit dramatic so I made it 16inches (I added an inch on each side for the seems).  I then measured the length of each side (I did each side in individual pieces).

Once I knew the hight and length, I gathered the fabric into folds in about 5 places to have extra length for the pleats I wanted to create.  I was going for a gathered look rather than a clean look.

To Use the Stitch Witchery:

1. Fold your seams and iron at about an inch.
2. Cut your length and put Stitch Witch in-between ironed seem.
3. Start out giving a shot of steam from the iron and then immediately turning the heat down to medium with no heat and hold on one section for about 10-15 seconds.  (The directions do not say to use steam but I found that it holds better for me to give it a quick shot)
4. Let sit and cool completely.
5. Done!

Now that my seems were done, I gathered my sections that I wanted to add pleats and used about 2 inches of Stitch Witch to fold over the fabric at the top seem.  This gathered the fabric and gave me the look I was hoping for!

With the three sides finished, I put on a cheapo white bed skirt that I found here.  I did this to add some fluff behind mine and also to attach mine to.  I can easily go back and sew them together later but for now this was my fast no sew solution.   I simply attached the sticky backed velcro to my skirt and then pressed it firmly onto the other bedskirt.  I really don’t think you can get any easier than that! It has been on for almost a month now and no problems!

I even had enough left over fabric for a coordinating pillow… icing on the cake!

Now for the talented sewers out there, I tip my hat to you.  I truly wish I was a better sewer and that it came more naturally to me, but it sincerely doesn’t! Maybe some day I will do a whole tutorial on how not to sew… that’s about the limit to my helpfulness in that arena.

Pin here for later!

I hope y’all are having a wonderful day!

xoxo

B

The post Bed skirt: No Sew Sewing appeared first on Windgate Lane.

I will admit that two of my projects did not work at all… and by that I mean… I did not even try to work on them.  I had planned on painting the side tables, but honestly I am still undecided on exactly what color to paint them!  And the curtains still need something but I was afraid to fight the pattern on the bedskirt to much so they were pushed off the list as well.

What I did accomplish I am pretty dang pleased with though! I already showed you my DIY Floor Mirror and DIY fabric chair, but what I got to add to that little area is my favorite.   This antique needlepoint was the easiest buy I have ever made!

I came across this beauty at an antique fair and the colors and size of it just struck me.  Without knowing where I would even put it, I brought it on home.  It is so intricate and even stamped 1949 from France on the back, which makes me feel a little guilty that I bought a cheapo frame from Ikea and just popped it in there!  I’m sure it deserves a grander frame but for now, Ikea won out.

The bedding is my absolute fave.  A full affiliate source list can be found at the bottom of the post.  This quilt is so simple and yet so bright and playful to me and the euro shams weren’t going to be going anywhere, those buffalo check beauties are staying forever.  But it needed a punch somewhere and when I saw this fabric at Spoonflower, I knew just where I wanted it!

I love what it adds to the simple bedding! I will share the tutorial for how I made it next week… and yes, I did it myself and no, I do not sew!  The matching pillow just needed to happen for my matchy matchy heart and I just loved the fabric that much.

I still intend to do something to the side tables and would love to hear suggestions, but overall this room has become much more me.  Ahem… I mean us.  It’s cheerier for sure!

If you haven’t seen the Dining Room make-over, make sure you pop over to it here and I will be back with tutorials next week from both rooms.  But now… we sleep.

Affiliate Sources:

| Similar White Patterned Quilt (unfortunately mine just sold out) | Navy Blanket |

| Buffalo Check Euro Shams | Floral Fabric | DIY Floor Mirror | Lepard Print Tote |

| Similar Accent chair | Similar Headboard | DIY Lamps | Rug |

xoxo,

B

The post |One Room Challenge| Master Bedroom Reveal appeared first on Windgate Lane.