Hi friends, as always I hope your week is going great.  We are all doing well, glad to have Cole back home, and the kids are staying busy with school activities.  We’ve been here five months now, hard to believe how fast time flies.

This blog post is about what challenges many of us with each move into a new home, it’s the white walls. After ten moves over the last twelve years, I’ve grown tired of painting and repainting.  It doesn’t matter if you’re in a rental, base housing, or a newly built home, many of us are afraid to take the first step.  Paint isn’t your only option, don’t worry if the commitment of wallpaper scares you, there are many options at your fingertips that are less frightening.  One of the most current trends is a clean white room and using bold accessories to add  life to the space.

Let’s start with this lovely entryway.  If you notice, the bones are the white walls, hardwood flooring, and the wooden door.  The accessories with all the bright colors and textures draw your eye in and you don’t notice the walls anymore.  The first thing I notice is the Aztec patterned rug, which is on my wish list.  The next key element is the mirrors, it’s like adding another window to the space, bringing in light and color.  The linen curtains and last but not least the beautiful fresh-cut flowers finish off the space.   These four key elements can be easily changed or removed without breaking the bank.

via www.brit.com

via www.decorpad.com  Another white room taken to another level with two colors you wouldn’t think to put together, green and gray. The rug, bedding, and curtains are the three key pieces to accomplish this look.

via www.kishaniperera.com One of my favorite rooms of all time, I’ve shared this beauty in a previous post.  This once white room looks so soothing and comfortable with an eclectic mix of different patterns, colors, and textures.

via www.kishaniperera.com Love the simplicity of this dining room,  designed by the very talented and one of my favorites, Kishani Perera (check out her website to see more of her amazing work).  This Aztec rug is the centerpiece and makes the room.

via www.jenlangston.com How about this neutral room with a purple couch,  this piece adds life to the space. When using such a bold color, you want to keep the accessories to a minimum to avoid looking cluttered.

www.pinterest.com Go bold with striped curtains!  Your curtains can make the room, these most definitely do.  Curtains are one of the first and most important key elements to a room, they add warmth and give the room a finished touch.

www.pinterest.com  This room is full of bold colors in the bedding and rug, perfect for any little princess.

via www.houseofturquoise.com  Another white room with small splashes of color, it’s easy to change this look with the seasons or if you grow tired of the original details.  You’re not breaking the bank by changing a few pillows and your curtains.

via www.theeverygirl.com  Bold doesn’t always have to be bright colors, try black and white with and few small splashes of color spread around the room, an equally beautiful and timeless look.

See, white walls aren’t as intimidating as you thought, just start with a favorite colorful piece and work off of that.  The white walls are a blank canvas for you to create something beautiful.  You don’t have to decorate the entire space all at once, buy a piece, see how you feel about it and step-by-step build on the key pieces.  If you get stuck or need a little nudge in the right direction just shoot me a picture of your space on my “Contact” page or on Facebook.

I also wanted to share a nice website I stumbled upon the other day, www.DecorPad.com,  this site is strictly design ideas from designers and decorators, the photos are categorized by rooms. It’s easy to navigate,  but be careful, it’s a rabbit hole that you may fall into and take an hour or two to get out of.

Hope this post gave you few ideas to get started on your design dilemma!  Have a great weekend!

Jessica