Today is the first day that I’ve been back online in almost a week. Last week I spent 3 full days in front of the computer working on things for the TpT store and on the blog. Then when I got up Wed. morning to get at it again … nothing. It was like I’d used all my online time and I was totally out of minutes! Ughhh! So after the cable guy spent a couple of hours here last night, I’m back at it today. Yay!
Well, in all that non-online time, I had time to think. (scary!) I came up with the idea of transitioning my decorating style from what it is (eclectic maybe) to more of what I’m going to call a Southern Style. And you can’t get much more Southern than where I live.
I’m thinking old plantation look with a more modern twist. Throw in some vintage, some farmhouse, some rustic, some French Country, some shabby chic, some cottage, and just some stuff I like and you get my idea of Southern Style. Ok, maybe not so much old plantation as just “me”.
I have to say though, I’m not the first to coin “Southern Style”. Once I decided to do this, of course as all good Pinners do, I started myself a Southern Style board on Pinterest. And once I started searching for just what I wanted, I ran across an actual book that you can purchase on Amazon titled Southern Style. As of now, I haven’t looked at the book, so I don’t know how far off we are in our ideas. But soon I hope to take a look at their book to find out.
After looking at all the things I pinned, I needed to decide what basic color palette I was going to use. Right now I’m not all over the board, but I will need to become a little more consistent. I decided to go with whites, creams, taupes and a little black. This is great, because my house is basically painted in creams and taupes and I use a lot of black for accents in decor. I can’t go crazy with the white, because I live with one messy/dirty (as in loves outside and digging in the dirt) man and have two young grands accompanied by all their little friends. *This is why I bought the leather sofa/chair.
So I have a good basic plan that won’t require a total down to the walls overhaul. Now I just need to start collecting and decide what goes and what stays. And I’ve LOVED collecting all the pins for my board. Pinterest is such an awesome tool to help get you organized and there are so many other blogs to tour so you can look for ideas that you like.
Southern Style
Elements: (I made a list of these in the Notes app on my phone so I can refer to it when I’m out searching)
vintage, vintage silver, vintage wood, vintage furniture, vintage bottles, vintage baskets, natural wood, natural fabrics, rustic metal, plants
So here are some of my favorite pins. Take a look at my board for more ideas: Southern Style
This of course I just found not too long ago and is a favorite. Right now it’s hanging in my guest bathroom.
This was just a temporary box filler that I created to use until it was time for my Easter Bunco.
From a beautiful blog in Norway (so not Southern! :D). Vibeke has a beautiful style with awesome photography skills. I already have a collection of about 10 shakers that I used for my Vintage and Burlap Bunco. I also love using the vintage silverware that I already have.
This aqua color is the accent color that I’m already using in my living room and bedroom. I think it will work great with this idea.
I have my grandmother’s white decorative iron bed in my guest room along with Chris’ great grandmother’s rocking chair and I want to create this kind of ambience in that room. Who wouldn’t want to come stay there?!?
I couldn’t even start to do this without looking at Yvonne’s farmhouse style at Stone Gable. She also has a beautiful blog with awesome photos. And one of the first ideas I want to try is Yvonne’s idea from her blog on painting a lamp shade. I have one in my living room just begging for it.
I forgot about the Savvy Southern Style blog. It is also full of great ideas like this mirror vignette. The beachy pieces and horns wouldn’t work for me, but I love the rest.
Well, that gives you a good idea of my Southern Style concept. Make sure to check out my Southern Style Pinterest board for many more great photo ideas.
I love that foyer from Stone Gable and I’m crazy about Aqua. We have a long list of “when Ian is gone” projects to do. Not that we want him gone, but big projects can just wait. ?
I love most everything at Stone Gable. It was hard to just pick a couple of photos. And she takes great photos as well. But I will admit, sometimes I feel like I’m trying too hard and this gets overwhelming. It all works out better when I don’t try so hard and just let it flow.