Start With a Dream And Get Your Spirit Back

NYC's Incredible High Line - it began as a dream!

How You Can Get Your Spirit Back By Starting With a Dream

No matter where you are today, you may feel a lack of enthusiasm, or feel doubtful or anxious about the future. Maybe you are still a victim of the hurricane Sandy or out of a job, a home or a relationship or all the above. 

But at some point you will be anxious to get your life back. Where do you start?  You start with a dream.

Dream of a home that is warm, dry and full of family and friends. Picture yourself in a place that makes you smile. Go through old magazines and tear out pages with photos of that living room or open kitchen that calls to you.

Pin those pictures onto a bulletin board, your refrigerator or place them in front of you at your desk.

When I am working on ideas for clients and I need some inspiration, I have always researched using magazines or the Internet. You have to start somewhere!

Start today! Check out the links below. See if they can provide ideas to give you a glimpse of your new wonderful life and home. 

 

• Pinterest.com - a storyboard experience, create your own or get inspired by others
• HouseBeautiful.com - scores of photos, stories and links to furnishings resources
• CoastalLiving.com - the source for coastal colors, homes and places
• ArchitecturalDigest.com - see what the 'Who's Who' are doing
• BestDesignCoach.com - my other blog to help you with your design challenges

My bulletin board is crammed full of tear sheets that feature rooms, fashion and inspirational quotes. But the one thing that hangs on my bulletin board, that is the most inspiration to me, is a note from my mother. She wrote this message to me and I am now passing the message along to you:

I am proud of you today, 

 I am sure that the future will be great. 

You deserve the best!

How to get a fresh look in your 'New Old House'

Photo courtesy of Designskool.net

Older homes often have a charm that comes with age through a multitude of renovations. So, in the past I've found it interesting to see homes featured in the magazine New Old House (no longer published, darn!). You could see how the renovations brought an old house up to date, while keeping the spirit of an older home in tact.

Since I've been working on a house with that same charm, I needed to find some inspiration for a basement TV/Game Room concrete floor. While part of the room will have FLOR tiles installed to give it a 'rug' effect, the rest of the floor will be exposed, showing the painted concrete floor.

My client came up with the idea of using paint splattered on the painted concrete floor to hide the inevitable spills and smudges that come from daily living, especially in a room that will be enjoyed by children. With inspiration as my goal and the Internet at my hands, I found great resources for information on best practices and various techniques to do splatter painting on a floor.

My favorite source of information was at a blog titled -http://designskool.net/. You can see in the photos how the splatter effect lends a touch of whimsy to old floors, that will hide the inevitable spills and dirt of daily living.

I'll keep you posted on how our spatter paint project evolves. See you later!

Interior designer, Mary Alice Smith of M. A. Smith, Ltd. can be reached at: 732 690-2030

Take a minute to check out my website and BestDesignCoach blog:

M. A. Smith Ltd.,Interior Design

Best Design Coach Blog