How would you spell "tuh duh"? (As in, introducing the final pictures of my crazy living room.)
I hope you all had a fantastic holiday. We had a great time and the pies were a success. I called my sister Rachel and she talked me through the whole thing. That, and your tips, did the trick. I actually chilled my crust overnight and rolling that sucker out was a dream. I couldn't believe it! I did forgo the Vodka tip, as the closest thing I have to Vodka is cooking wine. But Rachel's recipe called for 2 cups butter and a 1/4 cup shortening. It was flaky and buttery. Mmmmmm. I seriously think I need to make another pecan pie. I mean for more practice, of course :-) Check out my sconces. Those were Isaac's idea. I wanted some light coming from that side of the room. My floor lamp looked lame and my hutch is too shallow to put a lamp on it. The sconces solved the problem. I also found these at Lowe's. And, surprise, surprise, I spray painted them. I love you, Krylon ivy leaf!!!!!
And...in answer to some questions about my living room and dining room pics:
My shoes are from DSW and I love them more than I should love shoes. As for the wall paint, I confess I tinted it. It was just a bit light, so I darkened it a tad. Picking wall paint is a pain. It always looks different than you expect. And it may look different in someone else's house, with different lighting. The only sure fire way to get it right is to get those little sample cans.
I love all the colors in your house!!! We are in need of some new light fixtures... I am going to buy some spray paint to go with them!! :)
I say TA DAH, but I think TUH DUH works too. They sound the same to me either which way :)
Thanks for sharing... so inspiring!
Posted by: Nicole | December 01, 2008 at 08:19 AM
Did you get rid of some furniture or just re-arranged the existing one? It looks so spacious. Looove the orange!
Posted by: Madeline | December 01, 2008 at 08:36 AM
DUH!!! Ta dah, of course. I just knew that was off, but was trying to work quickly.
Trenna is responsible for moving my furniture around. Instead of having the furniture lining the walls she moved it all in, nice and cozy. It's much more conversational and we use it 10 times more.
Posted by: laura Gunn | December 01, 2008 at 09:30 AM
What an amazing room!!
Posted by: Andi | December 01, 2008 at 11:44 AM
Oh, I love it - so very pretty and comforting!
Posted by: Stacy | December 01, 2008 at 12:30 PM
Wow! I am so in love with your home! Spray paint is a girl's best friend! I've been so very uninspired by the lighting I am seeing so this is so wonderful to me. And your fireplace! Love it sooo much!
Posted by: Emy | December 01, 2008 at 02:00 PM
God, I truly adore your crazy living room!!!!
Posted by: celia | December 01, 2008 at 02:16 PM
I really like it. I wish my living room looked like this! Very inspiring. My favorite thing is the ORANGE fireplace (way too daring but fabulous!) and the picture on top of the mantel...WOW!
Posted by: Andee in Wisc | December 01, 2008 at 03:56 PM
All I have to say is "Love it" - I am so not afraid of color and love seeing other who aren't either - BRAVO!!
Posted by: Heather | December 01, 2008 at 04:47 PM
Gorgeous! The colors make it fun and fresh. And inviting! Great job!!!
Posted by: Janis | December 02, 2008 at 05:17 AM
Over the top gorgeous, Laura!
I'm in love with your decor, your house, and all of it! Your love and use of color is amazing.
Laurie~
Posted by: Laurie | December 02, 2008 at 09:43 AM
Oh my gosh Laura. I just adore your decorating style. Your home is fabulous!
Posted by: Liz | December 02, 2008 at 02:04 PM
I always spell it "Ta Da"
It took be a few times to master the pie crust. I never use shortening...blech. Sounds like yours turned out well. I use Martha Stewarts" Pate Brisee recipe (the only good thing from her in my opinion). Yes chilling always does the trick. Another thing I always do is to make sure the butter doesn't get chopped up too much so I use a pastry cutter rather than a food processor like a lot of people use, and the right amount of water is always tricky. I keep meaning to try to vodka one. My friend did it and he's turned out well.
LOVE THE LIVING ROOM!!!!!
Posted by: Alice | December 02, 2008 at 02:13 PM
I truly love your color scheme! It's so happy and bright!!! I love Krylon too! I have a growing collection! LOL
Posted by: Tiff@Trhree Peas | December 02, 2008 at 07:29 PM
Your living room looks great! I love the touches of orange and your hutch is to die for! Great job! Get the coffee on, I'm coming over to cozy up in that chair!
Posted by: Renee | December 03, 2008 at 03:28 AM
I just swooned off my chair, Laura! Wow--it's fully awesome.
Posted by: kirsten | December 03, 2008 at 08:04 AM
very beautiful.
Posted by: melissa | December 03, 2008 at 09:38 AM
Oh, I can't believe it. I just ordered a case (6cans) of Krylon Ivy leaf last week. My little town doesn't know how cool that color is and could order for me but had to order a whole box. I said that's OK, I will probably need 2 boxes. It's going to be a huge project. And seeing your sconces just made it a little bigger.
Thanks
Posted by: Sharon @ norah'S | December 08, 2008 at 08:04 AM
Beautiful!!
I just found your blog by way of http://annasnest.com/. I'll have to add you to my RSS feed. Merry Christmas! :-)
Posted by: Annie | December 24, 2008 at 08:00 AM