REFRESH REWIND

THE REFRESH is a newsletter on Facebook Bulletin by Kerri-Lee Mayland.

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This week-- I want to take you back to a couple of REFRESH projects that touched our hearts, flexed our design muscles, and left us with some new friends. Our clients are why we do this in the first place, and it must always be about their taste, their lives and their favorite ways to exist in whatever space they are in. In other words:

Our first REWIND revisits a REFRESH for Julia.

When we heard her design dilemma involved bookshelves, we were so there for it! It might just be our favorite styling S.O.S. In fact, REFRESH team member, Mia, had been saying all day, she was ITCHING to style something since Julia visited our Sail and Roseby Boutique that morning. Julia and her fiance Tyler bought their first house just weeks ago, and they have not wasted any time making it theirs, but they hit a bit of a brick wall with a "problem" many of us dream of having. Their antique home was overflowing with charm, popping at the seams with potential, but it also came with banks and banks of beautiful built ins. That's a GOOD thing, except if you don't have enough "stuff" yet to style them. Years of life will eventually provide the knick knacks and memory makers needed to fill them up, but when you buy your first house in your early twenties, not enough living has been done to collect a massive curated collection. So REFRESH was happy to help this young couple hit the ground running with some of our unique thrifted treasures.

Julia picked out some of her faves, we added in some of ours, and after we finished up with some clients nearby, we made plans to stop by Julia and Tyler's. Team members Erica and Ella were with us, which was perfect, because while Mia and I styled, they joined Julia for a master bedroom planning meeting. Since they are all similar in age, it was easy breezy for them to jive on ideas for that space, and we killed two birds with one stone in this REFRESH sesh.

REFRESH : 5 BOOKSHELF STYLING TIPS
Pick some of your favorite pieces, but don't use ALL of your favorites. A collected look doesn't have to look cluttered
Less can be more, but spartan can appear unfinished. If your style is minimalism, and the room your bookshelves are in, is sparse, then it works. But if your room has more going on, exceptionally empty will look undone.
Organize your pieces first. Color block, and style with similar items, creating a thread of one color family first. Repeat with another color (or metal) making sure there is balance, and harmony in your threads. Soon, you should start to see a balanced cohesive presentation. Fine tuning can fix any remaining problem areas.
Lacking lots of styling pieces, and no budget to buy new? Go outside and create your own! Stones, bark, sticks in vases, fresh greens in glass, branches, moss. Forage and see what you find!
Variety is the spice of life, and your bookshelves best look. Vary your items. Pictures, art, candles, plants, and of all things-- books! They make your bookshelves burst with interest, function and style. I always include books in my designs partly because I love reading them, but also because I love the way they look. Go to Goodwill or your favorite thrift store, buy a bunch of them (they are usually about $2 each) then take off the dust cover and style using the solid colored hard cover.

Here are some BEFORE and AFTERS of Julia's beautiful builtin bookshelves:

Now, let's REWIND to Mina and Arman's REFRESH.

We met this couple through their next door neighbors-- and some of our favorite clients-- Kate and Ben. There are so many incredible projects at their home to share with you, but here's a little peek at their backyard project from this past spring.

Ok! Let's go back to next door to Mina and Arman's. It didn't take long for us to understand why K and B love them so much. Talk about a warm, loving, happy and GROWING family! Mina was 9 months pregnant, and her two absolutely adorable little girls couldn't have been more excited! With a baby boy on the way, Arman said the plan was to have everything in place before his "any day now" arrival, and that included pulling together the living room. Namely: figuring out how to style their throw pillows.

That may not sound like a big design dilemma but honestly, it can be a real bone of contention. When repeated efforts can't quite bring it together in ways hoped, the room feels frustrating, and that's where this family was finding themselves. Time was running out, so REFRESH stepped in.

REFRESH: 5 THROW PILLOW THOUGHTS
Mix patterns. I always try to keep in mind- big pattern, medium pattern, small pattern. If your rug has a big bold pattern and your drapes have a tiny print, maybe a medium print and some solid throw pillows would be a nice complement.
Change up shapes and sizes. Instead of having a sofa full of 16 x 20 throw pillows, what about adding a couple of lumbars? And having two 16 x 20's, and a bigger or smaller pillow to throw off any symmetry? Too balanced is boring!
Play with textures. Don't make it all too soft, or all too textured. Aside from mixing patterns, make sure there is some variety in the fabric of the throw pillows.
Keep a consistent color palette. Too many colors will break the bank, and too few can be blah, a nice mix of maybe, 3-5 might be juuuuuusssssttttt right.
Don't have so many throw pillows that it is no longer inviting. We have all seen it before, an over burdened couch or chair teeming with throw pillows leaving us nowhere left to sit. If you are unsure, try your seating out after you style it; your guests will likely feel the same way you do. Adjust accordingly after you give it a test drive.

We feel so lucky that families like Julia and Tyler, and Mina and Arman give us the honor of coming into their homes and creating the backdrops for future family memories to be made.

PLEASE leave YOUR design dilemmas in the comments below, about these topics, or whatever it is in your home, that has you stylistically stumped. And-- if you have been feeling overwhelmed by the pending projects around you, I'll leave you with some parting words from a guy that had a pretty good handle on creating beautiful canvases:

Cut yourself some slack, no need to feel overwhelmed. It doesn't have to take a lot of time, money or drama to get a REFRESH. XX Kerri-Lee

REFRESH REWIND

Kerri Lee Mayland

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