It’s Easy Being Green; Home Decor!

As the More is More Mom®, I’m all about…….more being green! Whether you reuse, recycle, repurpose, or simply find inspiration in the most natural of hues, green is the color of the season. Take a cue from Mother Nature; green goes with everything!

Green is one of my all-time favorite colors. In fact, when we renovated our kitchen a few years ago, I selected the most beautiful, warm and welcoming shade of green for my customized cabinets. I chose a slate tile backsplash as an earthy and interesting compliment to my bold granite counter tops. As with most families, we practically live in our kitchen. It’s one of my favorite rooms in our home!

What could be more classic and traditional than toile? While toile is beautiful on upholstery or window treatments, it’s downright delightful as the foundation of a room. The simple two-tone nature allows toile to become a chameleon; it can take center stage but also lends itself to use as a strong but silent supporting player.

I absolutely fell in love with this Dining Room! The graphic nature of the flooring begs for a wild pop of color. This bright yellowy-green is just so happy!

Kelly Green is one of my favorite shades of green. This lacquer desk is to die for! It is amazing and serious and playful and fun partnered with the leopard pattern wallpaper.

A Powder Room is a fantastic opportunity for playing with bold patterns and hues. The paisley makes a terrific grand sweeping gesture to the clean lines of the bathroom fixtures.

 

A new color doesn’t have to set the stage for an entire room. Incorporating pops of color can make a room feel fresh and new as with all of these wonderful accessories;

Artichokes have a great sculptural quality. This lamp would be adorable bedside or on a console table.

Lanterns are so versatile! They are welcoming on a front porch or in a Foyer, playful in a Powder Room, a beacon of light on your Kitchen table or island and perfect on your patio.

Tossing a few new pillows on your sofa or favorite chair can make a huge difference in the mood of a room!

Artwork is another fantastic opportunity for reflecting our interests and aesthetics. An oil painting in a grand frame would be a lovely addition to a Family Room,, Living Room, Den, Foyer or Hall.

I am a collector of urns of all sizes. They are perfect as the base of a floral arrangement but also make wonderful vessels for pens and pencils, flatware and Kitchen utensils. It’s always so much more fun to use ordinary items in unusual ways.

Moss is awesome! What a fun way to bring nature into your home. Shape, color and texture; it’s a veritable trifecta!

Decorative birdcages are a beautiful accent that will find a home atop a bookcase or armoire, on a Sun Porch or console table.

 

Color effects the way we feel. It’s the perfect way to bring a little more life and personality to our homes!

 

More interesting interiors, more fun furniture, more gorgeous greens, more happy homes!

Please visit me at http://vanessanunleydesigns.com to learn more about my Interior Design services.

 

To schedule an Interior Design or Life Style consultation, and for any questions or comments, please email me at moreismoremom@aol.com

The Fraternity Mom Prom……

As the More is More Mom®, I’m all about……more of the fraternity Mom Prom! With Nick away at school, our household just isn’t the same. Nick is a night owl, Amanda is an early bird. Nick’s hockey schedule took us to parts near and far at all hours of the night, while Amanda is in her high school track season, which meets after school. Nick likes pasta, Amanda is a carnivore…..we haven’t had spaghetti in ages.

 

While we miss him like crazy, we’re thrilled he’s embracing the college experience, including pledging a fraternity. He’s a Delt now. Amongst the rituals is the annual mother/son celebration, otherwise known as the Mom Prom. I couldn’t book my accommodations fast enough. However, in his small college town, there is exactly one hotel on campus, which of course had no room at the Inn. Nick suggested I stay with him in his dorm. Wow! What an offer. Without the benefit of a ladder or guard rail, I would have to perform some pretty impressive acrobatic moves to make it up onto the loft bed. Once there, I would have the pleasure of sleeping on sheets that hadn’t been washed since the last time I did his laundry. Not to mention the fact that he has two roommates who would have been super psyched to have a mom bunk there for the night. No thank you. He next suggested I crash at the frat house. Wow, an even better offer! Fortunately I found shelter at a darling Bed & Breakfast.

 

When I pulled up to his dorm, I was grinning from ear to ear. Though we are fortunate to talk to Nick daily, there is nothing like wrapping my arms around him and seeing him in person. He looked the same, only a little wiser and in need of a haircut (it wasn’t that it was long, but that he allowed a girl on his floor to cut his hair. I hope he learned his lesson; cute girl doesn’t equal expert hairstylist. Perhaps, instead, next time he should run with, “Can you help me with my homework?”).

 

It was awesome! I had an entire 24 uninterrupted hours with Nick. We went out for lunch, went to Great Clips, and drove in circles until we found the B&B, just talking. I put on my cocktail dress (a Jason Wu, for Target, that my mom found for me) and Nick wore his suit, which to my surprise, was not on the floor in his closet. Dinner was quite nice. While I’ve met Nick’s roommates on several occasions, it was great to get to know their moms (and exchange phone numbers).

 

The best part of the night, however, was yet to come; changing out of our party attire, we headed to a bash at the frat house. Nick was so excited to take me on the grand tour. The formal rooms were stately, there was a great big commercial kitchen (and house mother who actually lives at the house and cooks for the boys), a dining hall and the rest looked exactly like the movie Animal House, including the bar. For our entertainment there was a hypnotist, karaoke, a DJ, and wine.

 

What impressed me most was the attentive ways in which most of the boys interacted with their moms. They sang karaoke duets, danced and played beer pong. While I’ve never played beer pong before, Nick and I versed another mother/son team. I stunk and we lost. Thankfully they weren’t enforcing the loser-makes-a-naked-boulder-run rule. That would have horrifying for all.  

 

Though the party was still going strong, we called it a night at 1:30am. Nick stayed with me at the B&B and in the morning we headed straight to the Laundromat, where we spent a little more quality time doing five loads of laundry. In a flash our visit was over. After a little lunch, he was heading out with his team for golf practice. It was such a treat to get a little Nick fix, but as always, I was misty-eyed as I pulled away. Nick is such a delight. Even though he has been gone for six months, I’ll never get over missing my boy.   

 

More college experiences, more frat fun, more Mom Prom, more time with Nick……

 

Please visit me at http://vanessanunleydesigns.com to learn more about my Interior Design services.

 

To schedule an Interior Design or Life Style consultation, and for any questions or comments, please email me at moreismoremom@aol.com