home decor

March is the month when my heart beats a little faster because spring is on its way and opening our summer place begins to be a reality. Each year at this time I plan what the coming year will bring in repairs and DIY projects.  This post summarizes some of our past projects and how they have come together to create our special place. It is modest and quite ordinary looking when viewed from the outside, but  we have a million dollar view, and an interior that reflects our interests and skills.  We are perched on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean on the Bonavista Peninsula in Newfoundland and through the seasons we see icebergs, seabirds, whales and beautiful full moons.  One October I even saw my first display of the Northern Lights. Come along for a virtual visit to Ryall's Seaside Home and Studio. View outside the studio window mid summer After the storm Full moon over Bonavista It's a magical place and it hardly matters what goes on inside, but over our years here th...

Do you like a little nature inside your home? Do you love to find something that looks good and costs little or nothing? Do you like quick  pops of texture and colour ? Barnacle vessel by Anita Singh Then think ferns.  Wild ones, the ones you see growing in the woods or other damp places.  They are  a constant in my summer decor mostly because I don't have ready access to cultivated options and also because I love to create interest and a homey, nature inspired look without spending money. Living on the edge of the ocean, in a meadow with thick woods behind me is the perfect spot for foraging for bargain accents.   I often combine sea related objects, some found and others hand crafted. Another trick I use is to continually move around objects I have to create new looks.  My summer place is small and there isn't a lot of storage for "accessories".  The candle replaced the sculptured vessel in the photo  above.    .      Th...

I should make huge apologies for stalling my blogging over the last couple of months, but I have a letter from ... the artist.  I spent most of June, July and August at my summer house without access to the internet except through my phone. Blogging uses data.  If you follow me on Designing Home you know my life is very cyclical.  I have to find time for two careers- interior decorating and art.  I often flip my attention for blocks of time, and traditionally summer is  art time. I allow my decor business to match my summer speed. It doesn't hurt to be unavailable!  I'm finding it difficult to accept summer has dwindled into fall.   That doesn't mean I don't make art the rest of the year; I just have to share my time with business. But those summers are important for the rest of the year when you take time to reflect.  I found out that: Nature fuels creativity   A long summer, spent on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean with whales breachin...

I love eclectic pieces of furniture rather than matched when I decorate my own home. Sometimes I paint these finds and other times  I strip the original finish and create a custom wash .    We recently had to replace this green washed oak  dresser in our summer house when we relocated  it  to our newly renovated master bedroom  in town (that will be another post). We bought this gem  at  Habitat for Humanities Restore for $20 dollars when it passed my husband's structural integrity test being  pronounced solid and square with good sliding drawers. Sometimes being married to a wood worker can become tiresome.  I liked it  because it had great lines.   The walls of this bedroom have been  Ben Moore Revere Pewter for ten years.    I wanted the ocean view  to be the focal point so I choose a colour for the dresser  that was just a little darker than the walls.   I sanded liberally and pr...