make do {and make lovely} monday - log cabin living room

For one weekend only, I came out of retirement. Designer Retirement that is.

Years and years ago I used to design and decorate homes. Before the economy bust. Before both my boys where in school.  Before a lot of things. And I loved it. Most of it. But I really don't miss it most of the time. It was a lovely job, a dream come true experience, but I never saw it being my lifetime career. Not even when I was in the thick of it.

Way back then, not long after I began decorating, I landed the best client of all, Liz . Over the past 10 years I have been able to help her design everything from her grandkids playrooms, to a family vacation condo, to her shoppe and tea room - and more.  From the beginning Liz has been more than a client, has been a friend. Now, every so often, Liz will give me a call and need a little fluffing help. And only for Liz do I come out of designer retirement.

Last weekend I got to play designer in her log cabin living room. This is one of the only rooms left in her and her husband Terry's lovely log home that I have not yet completely made over.

Because the ceilings are two stories and the walls are all wood there was a need to both ground and lighten the room up.

(These pictures will not do the room justice because I was in a hurry and I have not quite figure out how to combat the orange glow of solid log walls.)

Liz and Terry's style is a mixture of country, Pottery Barn, vintage and contemporary. They love to travel to the beach, they love their family, and they love to share their home with others. All of these factors went into each and every piece that I chose for them.

I hung the large driftwood lanterns using extra large curtain tie backs from Lowes. I just love those lanterns. They are huge, but they fit the scale of that room just right.

The sofa and two matching chairs are from Bassett. The chairs are a pale robins egg blue and the couch is a linen. We had them overstuffed for comfort. The pillows came from Target and the rug from Pottery Barn. Red stripe may be Liz's most favorite pattern of all time so I had to go for it with the rug. 

Whenever I design a room for Liz I try to use a good mixture of old and new pieces. Their log home lends itself well to this look. I want it to feel loved and lived in without feeling like you have stepped into Cracker Barrell.

My mother made the curtains a few years ago when we re-did an adjoining room, and I used them as inspiration for this project.

Here you can see the curtains in the other room, just through the doorway.

I wish I had a great shot of the mantle but I ran out of time.

The footstools. I love them. What were the chances I would find two exactly the same, from different flea markets?

Maybe it's because I have short legs, but I am never comfortable just sitting in a chair unless I have high heels on (making my legs longer) or I have an ottoman or stool to prop them up. I figured Liz and Terry would appreciate the same sort of thing.

This lamp is Drexel Heritage and came from Home Goods. It is beautiful up close, almost like sculpture. I love the unwound ball of rope on the cake stand. Pretty and functional together.

Sweet Man made the coffee table using an vintage chicken crate and a creeper (the kind of thing you use to go underneath cars.) We left the rope handle on the creeper for added whimsy. I love how these pieces worked together and how it all came together. 

So there you have it. A log cabin living make-over by yours truly.

Hope you enjoyed this little tour, and maybe found some make-lovely inspiration along the way.