My Biggest Decorating Mistake (And My #1 Favorite Room Photo On Instagram Right Now)

I love Instagram. I don’t post on my own account as often as I should, but I love to look at what others have posted. I take at least ten minutes a day and scroll through Instagram, and I do so with one sole purpose — to find colorful rooms or things that feed my love of color. They’re harder to find than you might imagine, so when I come across such a post, I click that little flag to add it to my “saved” posts.

The problem is that I use Instagram kind of like I used to use Pinterest. I save a ton of stuff, but I never go back and look at what I’ve saved (which is why I stopped using Pinterest). In fact, for a long time, I was saving stuff on Instagram without even knowing how to access the posts I had saved. 😀 I finally figured it out, but I still forget to go back and look at them.

Well, last night I was sitting in bed with my phone, winding down for the evening, and doing my nightly scroll through Instagram on the prowl for more colorful rooms to hoard in my collection of pictures, and I realized that I hadn’t looked at my saved posts in a while. So I clicked over, and y’all!! It was like a refreshing wave washed over me.

Parker Kennedy Living / Meme Hill Studio / Miles Redd
Tobi Fairley / Jill Sorensen Lifestyle / Pencil Shavings
Amanda Louise Interiors / Homestyle Dreams / Blue Print Store

Oh my gosh, all of that color and pattern and texture and happiness!! And I just kept scrolling…

Ashley Whittaker Design / Blue Print Store / Addison’s Wonderland
Jill Sorensen Lifestyle / Amanda Louise Interiors / Honey and Fitz
Tobi Fairley / Gracie Studio / Stephanie Kraus Designs

I don’t understand why my mind is wired this way, but it’s like I can’t get enough. I can never have enough color or pattern. I want all of the colors in my house. I want all of the textures and patterns (but mostly flowers, plants and birds with lots of geometric patterns mixed in).

Brewster Home / Jean Stoffer Design / HGTV /
Erika Bonnell / 42nd Street Design / Tobi Fairley
Pencil Shavings / Sweet Chaos Home / Domicile 37

And as I scrolled through all of these pictures, it dawned on me. Do you know what my biggest decorating mistake is?

I play it too safe.

Vintage Meets Glam Decor / Elizabeth Louise Interiors / PMQ For Two
Tobi Fairley / Schumacher / Schumacher
Tom Scheerer / Amanda Louise Interiors / Ashley Whittaker Design

That’s not really something that just dawned on me last night. That thought actually hit me like a ton of bricks the other day when I posted about my orange lamp makeover, and I dug through some old pictures to find a picture of the lamp in its original state. The picture that I found showed the lamp in the first living room makeover that I did in this house, and it just made me sad. That room looked so depressing to me. I almost hate to post it here and ruin all of this colorful happiness going on in this post, so you can click here to see it.

Ashley Whittaker Design / The Leslie Style / Hunted Interior
Meg Braff Designs / Design Central Project / Tobi Fairley
Jonathan Adler / V Chamlee / Kate Decorates

I said the other day that the first living room makeover was like I was decorating that room for someone else. And in a way, I was. I was decorating for who I thought should be “mature, adult Kristi,” whoever the heck she is.

I just remember having so much fun with color and patterns and textures in the condo, but then when we bought the house, somehow I got it in my mind that it was time to leave that “childish” stuff behind and create an “adult” space for us in the new house.

And evidently in my mind, “adult” meant dull, dark and boring.

Brunschwig Fils / Pencil Shavings / Elizabeth Louise Interiors
Meadow Bank Team / Pencil Shavings / Shauna Glenn
Amanda Louise Interiors / Sugar and Cloth / Pencil Shavings

It took me a while to swing the pendulum back the other direction and just embrace the fact that I love color, and lots of it. And as I get older, I don’t see any signs of that fading. In fact, my love of, and need for, color just seems to get stronger every day.

And that brings me to my #1 favorite room on Instagram right now. Are you ready? Here it is…

Yep, I definitely play it too safe. I can’t stop looking at this picture.

So why is it that I’m so drawn to rooms like that, and yet I live in a house with neutral walls in every single room I’ve worked on so far?

I don’t know, honestly. But I want to learn to follow my heart and my vision more. I want to learn to be bold(er) and stop being so easily swayed by other’s opinions. I need to learn that when someone says, “Oh, I think you should have painted that white instead of a color,” or, “I think you need more neutral and less color,” then that person clearly doesn’t know me, and his or her opinion probably shouldn’t be weighted the same as my own opinion. I need to learn to get out of my own way and stop doubting myself.

I really have no idea where I’m going with this. These are just the thoughts of a color-loving woman who can’t seem to get out of her own way. I want to stop playing it safe, and I want to learn to set my creative mind free and to let my love of color really drive my decorating decisions.

My studio will soon be a blank slate. I hope I can put some of these things into practice in there.

 

 

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

68 Comments

  1. You certainly love color! I do love those rooms, too, but as a mom of 3 all I can see are backpacks and shoes and arts and crafts projects, etc. muddying up the view! We try to keep all of that mess contained to a few areas of the home, but come Saturday morning, when my kids want to make a pillow fort, whatever careful decorating I’ve executed gets tossed to the side for the weekend. Then on Sunday night I try to get the kids to put the house back together again. LOL! That said, I think you should pursue whatever you love and whatever works for you, Matt, and your furry friends. And, I think you’re right. If that is the look you love, then less is more is totally the wrong approach. Your approach should be more is more! 🙂 On a side note, while your first living room didn’t have a ton of color, I do think you did a great job with textures. Between the rug, the mirror, the drapery fabric, etc. there were some nice textures going on.

    Chase that color! 🙂

  2. Reading your post reminded me of a decorator my sister hired. The lady had totally opposite color preferences but came highly recommended. Sis was so unsure of her choices that she allowed major decisions to be made in colors she didn’t love. While the house looked nice, it did not look like a place where my sister would be happy. Eventually one of her daughters and I convinced her not to use that decorator anymore and to trust her own instincts more.

    1. I agree. All those rooms are beautiful! Color without some neutral space can just become schizophrenic! It is a careful balance for sure.
      That is something I had thought in the past, even tho you use color, that you stay in your comfort zone on the color wheel! Go for it Kristi!

    2. Yes, this is what I was going to add. Your favorite room has decidedly neutral touches (like the chairs, for example). Every single picture has neutral playing a major role. I don’t thin you play it too safe–I think the main thing is, you’ve decided to let your walls be your anchor, not your furniture. 🙂

      I love color, too. Pink, peach, and mint. Practically no other colors (except for metallics), just those three and white and wood and I’m happy! But without the white and wood, it would just look chaotic. The two neutrals let my colors stand out and take all the attention!

  3. Always go with your heart. I just redid my kitchen & when I get suggestions that dont go with my vibe I just smile and dismiss it! Im not saying I havent appreciated suggestions and at times gotten great ideas from them, but no one wants unsolicited advice.

  4. That’s an outstanding room! However, the drapes are solid white (with edge trim) the mirror is all white, the buffet is solid grey, the rug is solid grey, the wing chair is grey patterned, and the table is solid grey. It’s just a matter of understanding that using a neutral in itself can bring all those gorgeous colors together and not necessarily mean that all solid neutrals are boring. If each of those stated elements were additionally brightly colored it would be a hot mess. In other words it all boils down to balance and interplay (harmony). Neutrals are as important in a room as color. I love striking bold contrasts and color and it can be found throughout my home and in my artwork but I have to defend those neutrals. Probably my favorite neutral is black.

  5. OMG, I do this too. I think we consume so much inspiration that it can leave us confused. Neutral rooms are gorgeous, so I think, “yes, be more grown up and use tons of neutrals.” Then it just feels flat, because I LOVE color. The rooms I love the most in my house are the ones where I held nothing back and went nuts with color and pattern. More is more. <3

  6. The trouble is when someone offers their opinion, in today’s verbose, anonymous social media society, they offer it up as fact. And can be quite insulting, condescending and self-righteous about the fact that they are above reproach and you, for liking anything other, are just plain tacky.

    I would find it difficult to put myself out there because those people have sharp, persistent claws.

    I’m glad to see that you understand taste is subjective!!!!! While I’m not one who yearns to live in colourful rooms, more of the soft country romantic colour type girl, am I….. I do enjoy your journey and would love to visit your space. It makes me feel happy and your attitude makes me feel happy too.

    Keep on keeping on…. I’m enjoying your journey and am in amazement at the work ethic and pure can-do attitude.

    1. I so agree with your statement, just because one may have the ability to type something for a lot of people to read in a very popular blog’s comment section, does not make them an expert and everyone else tacky. LOL!

  7. I’d love to be able to decorate like that but my husband would hate it. Dang it. Also I have one wall in the living room that is the same brick as the exterior – rust, cream, brown brick – and I feel like it limits me so much on what I can use color wise. Would LOVE to whitewash that wall but husband would likely have a heart attack.

  8. It’s no wonder you can’t stop looking at this room. The pattern on the chair reminds me of your stencilled wall. The mirror is the same idea as your starburst and your green layered mirror. The wallpaper is birds and flowers like your wallpaper/mural. The wainscotting is your kitchen cabinets. The table top is your kitchen counter. The purple chairs is a lighter version of your buffet. It seems to me that the decorator must have been following your blog and picked things like you would like. That’s why it is so awesome to you. It is you.

  9. I wish I could invite you over for a cup of tea so we can both drool over color and pattern options. I’m with you 100%; I love color .. it brightens my heart; I adore all the Insta pics you gathered.

    You are immensely talented and I hope you break free and just go with your instincts. Anyway, if you ever do go just too far out there you can pull back easily enough … nothing is cast in stone.

    Go for it … have fun … then show off what you’ve done!

    xJane

  10. Kristi, I think you are sometimes too tough on yourself. If I have learned anything from you, it’s try it ,be brave, learn something from everything you do. So if the first try in your living room was a test, well… I think we all learned something from that room, tuffed ottoman, fabulous fireplace etc. So live in your beautifully colored world and for some of us we will live through you. But for many of us- we will “try it” , “be brave” , learn something. No effort is a mistake.

  11. Also there is trim down the side of the drapes like you do and the pillow is your shutters colour. The picture just says “Kristi was here.”

  12. Playing it safe is a matter of not having all the money and time in the world to redo mistakes. That’s why a lot of us keep the envelope neutral, including bedding and bring in color with with inexpensive things. There’s also the “clean/dirty” concept I see another color blogger discussing constantly. It’s the notion that you have to choose a “clean” or “dirty” color way and go with it. Mixing a clean color with a dirty color makes both look bad according to her. I would say you go “clean” with your colors now with all the fresh white in the photos. But you temporarily designed a dirty room. I wish there was a better work for it than “dirty” maybe we should call it “umber.”

    Anyway, I just love how you “go deep” into your decisions and personal growth. You are a good writer and it is “addicting!”

    1. I learned these concepts through color draping for fashion where they refer to it as clear colors or muted colors, which I think is so much less loaded than clean or dirty. Specially since I much prefer (and wear) muted shades 😉

  13. Yes to Lots of color for studio, but keep it a workroom.
    Don’t think you should do electrical in studio ceiling, what if you fell.
    Do outside projects now. Here in Mississippi 85 degrees this week, 90s coming soon.
    Love following you.

    1. Safety is always something to think about, especially since Matt relies on you. We had a relative that fell off a ladder, not from high height either, hit his head and let’s just say it was the beginning of the end. He just never recovered. If your gonna do it maybe wear a helmet😉

  14. That wallpaper is absolutely exquisite!! I LOVE IT!! It’s also interesting to note that the drapery in the photo has a trim reminiscent of your breakfast room drapes. Hmmm…

    I have some thoughts on color… when we’re going through stressful times there is something soothing about the plain white, gray, whatever. In my personal quest for a peaceful environment I’ve been staying “plain.” Deciding to get creative with color pushes that boundary and yet… your saved IG photos were incredibly uplifting to me. I’m so glad you shared them today. That was a gift to me. Thank you, Kristi!!

    On a side note… there is something to be said for plain white walls. They give the eye a place to rest when there is eye-popping color and texture in a room. I wouldn’t want all my walls to be like your final inspiration image as gorgeous as that is. In fact, with mostly white walls, I would be absolutely delighted to walk into “that” room often.

    Have fun playing with color!! I love seeing you change and evolve. That being said… I think you got your outdoor color scheme perfectly done. Can’t wait to see bright coral flowers in your window boxes. 😉

  15. Oh Kristi, you are beginning to scare me, just a little…..I guess I’m the old boring, mature play it safe 🤣🤣. HOWEVER, I painted my dining chairs different colors, have awesome flower seats around our barnwood table my husband built from his grandparents barn. And….I painted my antique side table PURPLE. My dining room feels like yours….favorite room in my house. I even stretched to hang colored printed drapes in my family room and painted my kitchen cabinets, teals and light gray. ALL BECAUSE OF YOUR INSPIRATION. I too, love your favorite pic..(a lot)…just more to think about.😁

  16. Kristi, is it possible to share/access your saved Instagram posts? I too love color, yet it’s such a rarity in decor, which means finding colorful inspiration posts is like searching for a needle in a neutrals haystack. It’d be awesome if you could share the fruits of your labor, for those of us who find neutrals boring and dull. 🙂

        1. You’re welcome! I got quite a few added, but I need to step away from the computer now. I’ll add the rest in my saved file soon, and then just keep adding more and more as I come across them while doing my daily Instagram browsing. 🙂

  17. I thought the same thing for you when you asked about artificial/silk plants outside?..Who cares what anybody else thinks?…I am ‘older’ and gotten to a place I don’t care what other ppl think/say or do..(maybe i got to the grown up part of my life???..:)….I choose what works for ‘ME'(and my family situations)…If outsiders don’t like it, they need to look the other way….we live in hot/humid East TX…droughts one day/floods the next…I don’t have time/energy/$$/green thumb enough to do beautiful yards/pot plants etc…My strengths lie elsewhere..So, I have some window boxes/several pots of’silks’/green stuff outside…(my mama used to do blue roses all over her yard!..even I draw the line on those!…they need to look passable ‘real’ to me.)..but even if I do like the blue roses and they make me smile, then I’m gonna do blue roses!..(with all the ‘hybrid’ and cross breeding they are doing in plants these days, who knows?…they might be ‘real’??…:) Life is too short (or long?!) to worry with what other ppl might think/like/say?…we are ALL different!…that’s what makes the world go round with lots of variety and interests!..there’s always gonna be some to love it and some that don’t?…You can’t please EVERYbody even part of the time!??…..I hope you stop apologizing for being YOU!….Do what you enjoy and then ENJOY it to the fullest. We’ll watch you!..Doing what you enjoy enables you to Love the naysayers and keep going ..I have learned lots from you…even from what may not be my ‘favorite style’ or those things you consider to be your ‘mistakes’..That’s why most of us follow you…we’re learning and enjoying the progress/process in DIY and personal ‘growth’ in you…skills and ‘maturity’….:))))))

  18. I can’t wait to see the color that you add to the music room! Ps, after my last move (and third downsize!) I finally admitted that I have always loved blue, especially turquoise, but I was afraid that in mixing it up, it all might clash! Now, I think…so what? At this point in my life (age 62) I do whatever I want! I am making everything be the way I like it! Decor, clothing, whatever!…

  19. You are a woman after my own heart! The biggest decorating mistake I ever made after I married my sweet husband was this: He said I could have anything I wanted when we began decorating our first house together, and I did not follow MY heart. Instead, I was trying to please him, bought an expensive pile of stuff, and although everyone said it looked beautiful, I absolutely hated it. I was stuck with some of it for quite a long time, even though we moved after just a couple of years. It was not long till I was back to color, and all that stuff was slipcovered, or painted, then little by little donated. I have never looked back, although I have tried every color combo and trend there is along the way. When I was a working decorator, I got to do a show-house a few times, and I always used LOTS of color! It was often the only colorful room in the entire house, and inevitably, it was always the one room that people would walk into and gasp and exclaim “How beautiful!” and years later, remember. Birmingham is seriously behind the curve in trends, anyway, and the younger set here still thinks grey and white is the latest thing… Sad.

  20. Follow your gut to all the beautiful rich colors and textures and floral’s and birds!! And as a woman barely on the other side of 50 🙂 my suggestion – to keep YOUR vision uniquely yours, don’t always ask for opinions on what your followers “like” or “love” (I’ve been guilty giving my 2-cents too) I would think it creates a vacuum of OMGOSH in your head. I had never realized it myself until I asked friends of mine what they thought of my own room re-do. My hubs and I love it and worked our tails off to accomplish it, but dang, such a wind tunnel of let down when a friend sorta stood there are remarked on how she would have done it differently – ughhhhhh. My feelings were sorta hurt but only for a minute because, really, she doesn’t live in my house! 🙂 🙂 😉

  21. Most of those rooms, at least the ones without wallpaper, have neutral-colored walls. I think even a dark blue can be considered neutral. Those neutral-walled rooms have lots of colorful artwork and furnishings, with pattern in soft furnishings and drapery. The walls with lots of pattern on them have few if no pictures or artwork because the wallpaper takes the place of artwork.

    I am a color lover, too, but I also love colorful, interesting art on my walls and pottery and objet d’art on my shelves and tables. I love to change it out or (as usually ends up being the case, for better or worse) add more. I have opted for solid-colored walls in most rooms and wallpaper in a couple others.

    For you, someone who loves art and who loves to create art, the painted walls work particularly well.

    I would also note that many of the rooms in your Instagram favorites seem to have larger dimensions and higher ceilings than those in your house. Those big, busy patterns work well there but might now work so well in a cozier space.

  22. Kristy did you ever sell your curtains from your first living room make over? If not I’m really interested in the two on the windows next to fireplace.

  23. Love your home…BECAUSE it is so different from my “taste”. No way could I live with all that color but, I appreciate your talent and style.
    Once again, thank you for sharing.

  24. The truth is, many love to visit those rooms and appreciate those rooms, but I think more often than not, most prefer a more neutral palette. So I believe most of the feedback is coming from that perspective. I personally love those colorful rooms but need color in small doses to feel calm and relaxed. But we (I) love watching you fulfill what you love in design, it is exciting, and everything you do is beautiful and inspiring beyond measure!

  25. This makes me chuckle. That’s because the room in this photo you love IS your rooms, darling! Perhaps a little shaken up. That chair pattern reminds me of your music room walls. The purple chairs reminds me of the color of your buffet in your breakfast room. Those teal moldings and wainscoting are your bathroom, and your kitchen cabinets. I love the wall…but you did something similar in the music room before, and then in your artwork. But that table is the neutral that your walls are now. I do love those pink lampshades. You ARE adventurous with color. Don’t second-guess yourself, because all those reasons you love this photo, your readers love YOUR photos! And by all means…go crazy in your studio!

  26. You mentioned how your house has a lot of neutral walls but looking those pictures, most of those rooms do as well. It is when they are fully done with all the finishing touches that the rooms seems to be bursting with color. I think you are well on your way to achieving that look. My only suggestion would to be to switch out your dining room draperies. You have mentioned a few times that you aren’t completely satisfied with them being white, and to me, they just don’t look like you. Maybe that is the opportunity for an additional pop of color in an already amazing room. Whatever you do, I can’t wait to see it. I’m already inspired by your use of color.

  27. I had a similiar epiphany to you a few years ago, why do I love colorful rooms but never have anything quite that amped up in my home. I decided it’s because there is some divide between what people like to see in photos, and where they want to spend their time. Being in a room is different from seeing a photo of it. And I realized while I liked photos of colorful rooms, in reality I didn’t want to be spending time in rooms quite that colorful. Just another perspective there in case you haven’t considered maybe you’re toning things down sometimes for that same reason?

    1. I don’t think that’s the reason in my case. I think my case is just a matter of being fearful of really taking the plunge. Because right now, when I sit in my completed breakfast room that really IS full of color, my eyes fall on the plain neutral walls and the white curtains, and I just want so badly to swap them out for MORE color and pattern. I sit in that room and think, “It’s a good start, but I want MORE.”

      I think there really is just something about the way my brain is wired that makes me crave more color and pattern than most people.

  28. I was thinking along the same lines. When I look at your current favorite picture, Kristi, one of the things I notice is that the colorful walls and fuschia chairs really pop in large part because they’ve paired them with a white mirror and curtains, and gray buffet, table, chair, and rug.

  29. You are crazy! I love the way you decorate with color and to me it IS grown up! Don’t change yourself, don’t change your style – it’s why I read your blog! You know how to take decorating to the next level!

  30. When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
    With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
    By Jenny Joseph

    I say don’t wait until you are old to wear purple; or, to paint your home in the colors you love. Colors are little pieces of our soul. Some of us need little bits around us, but are awed when we peek into someone else’s world that has multi colors around them. And those others, like you, revel and sing like a bird with those beautiful colors around them at all times. So, paint away, Kristi. I for one will peek out in awe from my fairly neutral world and enjoy each trip to the beautiful one you paint and thrive in.

  31. It’s your house! Yes, you are blogging about it, but in the end, you need to do what makes you and your husband happy and not give one whit what other people think! Life is too short! Your shutters look fantastic, by the way. 🙂 I LOVE color. And paint. The joke at our house is if you stand still too long, I’ll paint you and you will be a very lovely color. 😉

  32. I always say You do YOU! When the critics say they don’t like it or they would do it differently, just tell yourself (and possibly them!) that YOU live here, THEY don’t! There are so many “trolls” that just feel they should force their opinions on everyone! But you’d best not be critical of them!!! It’s funny—when you do a search on Pinterest for different rooms – living, dining,kitchens, etc. all you see for the most part is white, with a bit of gray or brown. Where is all the color? I think some try to convince themselves that they should follow along because it’s so safe to do what everyone else does. There can’t be that many folks who actually love washing slipcovers or duvets three times a week, and doing touch up painting like they do their nails!!!
    While I live with a mostly neutral, somewhat masculine color palette so that my husband is as comfortable as I am, I invoke color in art and accessories. But my bathrooms are my “let it go” places. I learned that from a dear friend long ago. Her tiny half bath was painted lime green, with tangerine, orange, pink and deep blue art and accents! It was shockingly fun to go in there – just made you smile at the quirkiness that this friend has! She’s my best pal, because she’s always surprising me, and we’ve been friends for over 30 years!
    I would like to see Kristi let go, be a free spirit, and live your life for you!!! Now get going!

  33. Yay! I’m so glad to hear you say this. I have been waiting to see you get more colorful. 🙂 Your love of color is what has me following you. I really enjoyed looking at all the pictures you shared. (I will be checking out your pinterest page.) Can’t wait to see how you add more color to your rooms! As always, thanks for the inspiration.

  34. Hi Kristi,
    Once again I visited my favorite paint store here in Macas, Ecuador. The question of the day by the owner was, “So what is new with Kristi’s house.” He and his wife have joined your fan club, too. I had to share the picture and details of the orange lamp since paint is what we talk about in their store. They were happy to see it. “Yes, and she made those shutters” (nothing I ever see in this place. I didn’t know the Spanish word for that.) It is fun to keep them up on your progress.

    I also love, love, love color. My apartment is full of it. Many of those IG rooms drew me too. I like your favorite room. I love creating a color palette from the colors in a wallpaper or in a large art piece to use in one room and then taking accent colors from there and making them a more dominant color in other rooms. For me, it makes a home cohesive.

    Things are coming along great for you. I am anxious to see the studio and a video once it is done. It is so wonderful to have a dedicated workspace that you love being in. Cheers!

  35. You are a woman after my own heart. I LOVE color! When I asked my friends about painting my kitchen cabinets a color, most of them said no, paint them white. Guess what I did? I ignored them!! Do what makes your heart happy.

  36. Well I haven’t read all the comments so I don’t know if anyone else said it. When you posted yesterday that you were going to just go all white on the credenza, I cringed. I just can’t see it all white with your other colors there. At least keep the gray if you can’t do any other color.

  37. Ok, my absolute favorite saved photo was the one of the dining room from The Leslie Style. So, I just spent 15 minutes following all the designers you shared, and wouldn’t you know- in her profile picture on the Leslie Style, she’s sitting in the same chair I just recently bought for my living room! 🙂 It’s fate. Thanks for all the great shares!
    I agree with others above- there are a lot of neutral elements that balance the abundance of color in that photo! You’re essentially doing the same thing, it just happens that your neutral palette ends up on the walls. I look forward to see what you do moving forward!

  38. YES! Another color happy person! That is a big part of why I love your blog, color makes me happy and totally neutral rooms make me nervous and twitchy. Sadly the majority of room that get blogged/IG/pinned seem to be neutral heavy, So when I do find a happy colorful room I save it or Pin it. I am in an apartment now and not supposed to paint the neutral walls so i have been trying to bring in color through the rest of the stuff in the rooms… But dang it I want to paint the walls. All I can say about them now is thank goodness they are beige/off white and not true white (i would have painted already if the walls were white)
    Anyway, I love your inspiration rooms, and I cant wait to see what this means for the studio!

  39. Just one thought… You complain about your walls all being neutral. Look at your example loves from Instagram. Almost all of them have neutral walls, OR the fun wallpaper has a neutral background (and is often used as an accent with the rest of the walls being neutral) . You are laying a great foundation for all the color, which will come with the accents. Remember, you are in the middle, and much of the color and fun you have planned will come at the end.

    I think you are doing great, and well on your way to the fun and colorful and textural home of your dreams. Just don’t panic in the middle, thinking you aren’t getting there, that there isn’t enough color, and switch directions. It is well on its way to AWESOME!

    BTW That wallpaper in your favorite room is AMAZING!

  40. The V Chamlee link isn’t going to the original post. It’s going to the post to it’s left.

    (I love your collection of photos!)

  41. Definately always follow your heart when it comes to color! Your post struck such a chord with me.

    When we moved into our current house it was hideous. I decided to ignore my love of light colors and went with darker more dramatic colors. I over furnished and “decorated” every room.
    I painted.our cabinets black and bought furniture that’s ornate and heavy.

    I left things that way until we started a total redo upstairs. I painted the bathroom a medium gray and hated it. Then I went to the store and bought a very light seafoam green. I LOVE that bathroom. It was a revelarion.

    I am not a color loving, visually exciting person. I have simplified our decor, deluttered and filled the house with neutrals, light blues, greens, and whites. I feel like Im walking on the beach on a sunny day when I’m at home. I finally know that I can admire other people’s decor and tastes but will only feel at home in rooms that feel relaxed and natural.

    It takes all kinds…the trick is finding out what kind we are! So happy you’re bring color back into your life!

  42. It’s so refreshing to read a blogger who loves color!! I always have had tons of color and “activity” around me, and the lastest decade of neutrals have driven me crazy! Thanks for helping this lady who also loves color have visual delights to enjoy!!

  43. Ha Ha!
    You go girl!

    I have to say, I too, was a bit shocked by that old picture of your living room. It just doesn’t seem YOU!

  44. I once read a quote or words attributed to the designer Mark Hampton. In effect he said listen to the colors that a client wants because that is an emotional response that will never change and will speak to the client when the project is completed.
    I think the colors you love can be put on anything that is trending now, or not, and the colors will make you happy.

  45. Hi Kristi, this is the first time I’ve seen this most- I realize it’s very old! First, I hope Matt is doing better. Second, I find myself often in the same place- wanting more pattern, more color, but struggling to do that in a standard American ranch house with 8′ ceilings! And maybe that’s the key for both of us- there is going to be a limit to how much we can do with the proportions of our homes. Those beautiful inspiration photos are probably in rooms twice the size of any room in my house. Anyway, I say this to remind you (and me) that we will embrace all the color, texture and pattern that our homes will allow! I just love your blog so much and I am so in awe of the work you have done. Today while fighting with a shower curtain rod, I thought of you and buckled down to see it through! LOL!