Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Still Dreaming of Pink!

I have been coveting a pink shabby chic kitchen for weeks now. This after I have already embedded our kitchen with a modern edge and embellished it with a touch of Tuscan . I have always loved earth tones, those very rich and warm colors, and I have been especially attracted to Fall colors of gold, amber, clay, burgundy, purple, and I also love many shades of green.
And for years now I have been drawn to the style of Tuscany decorating, I find it peaceful, comfortable, and simple. I have read that "Tuscan decorating is the European version of Shabby Chic, with it’s Old World feel, and a love of all things worn and timeless". And I love the Shabby Chic style too which is similar with a comfortable decorating style only with a much softer, paler palette, so this was a way for me to marry the two.

But with Spring here and Summer just weeks away I am tiring of my warm, dark, earth tones and I am longing for the light, bright, and pastel colors of Shabby Chic. No longer do I want to be surrounded by earth brown and Autumn gold harvest, I want ocean blue and Summer beach sand to abound. Right now I have a touch of Shabby Chic in my home, but I need to find a way to bring some brightness and airiness into our surroundings.

Someone told me that slipcovers and paint will do the job very nicely. I am not opposed to slipcovers (in fact I love the look of slipcovers and this way I can go back to Tuscany and my cocoa and khaki colored upholstery when Fall revisits), but in pricing custom slipcovers we found that we could actually buy a whole new living room set for what it would cost (and Ray was not jumping for joy at either of those expensive prospects). And while I’m certainly happy to give the walls a much-needed coat of paint, (and I already have a few painted pieces of furniture), but as far as the furniture that is not already painted, well, I would have a hard time taking a paintbrush to beautifully worn wood. And there is no way I would paint my still new kitchen cabinets (at least they still feel new to me)! So I’ll just have to think on this awhile and see what I can come up with. And I know if I can get my husband aboard this latest design ship I will have the living space of my (most recent) dreams! Ray is very innovative when he wants to be! Plus, he's very handy, he's a jack-of-all-trades and in fact he's a master at most things, he's even made furniture for me, and I've posted about the sink project he and his brother worked on for me, and also the little cabana he made for our back deck, and he sews!! ( I have all the grand ideas and dreams, but unfortunately, not much talent as far as making them come true, therefore I rely heavily on my partner here.)

So I will be envisioning my home with thoughts of sunny days, beach cottages, sand dunes, ocean waves, pastels, and faded floral, but I will be shopping with a strict budget in mind, and relying on the mercy of my husband for his help (resourcefulness, toil, and labor) in these plans of mine! Let’s see how I do. Wish me luck!


On a side note:
I was so happy to read that the reason I had been seeing so much pink in kitchen supplies is because it was designed to support the cause of Breast Cancer research, and a portion of the purchase price on a lot of the items is donated to this cause. That made me want pink in my kitchen even more. Unfortunately, I’m always behind the times, or as my Mom would say “A day late and a dollar short”! For as I went to fulfill my quest for all things pink, there wasn’t much left on the store shelves, except for a very expensive mixer (a beautiful shade of pink though!) and a few smaller items. I’m not giving up on my mission yet, and I was able to scrape together a few things.
Here’s my progress so far:

This pink box is actually supposed to be used in a baby girl's nursery, I use it to hold paper, pens, pencils, markers, kitchen scissors, and other odds and ends I like on hand in the kitchen. And I found these pretty pink rose napkins in IKEA!


These belonged to my two grandmothers. The vintage pink rose kitchen towel was my Grandma's (my Dad's mother):


The pretty pink and white doily was crocheted by my Mom-Mom (my Mom's mother):


A pretty pink spatula that I couldn't pass up:


I found this tote bag and I hung it on a kitchen door, it holds extra rolls of paper towels:



The roses on this window valance look a little more pink during the day with the sun shining behind them:



I also incorporated my grandson's artwork into decorating my kitchen with a pink motif!





Ray and I were lucky to find some old tiles at a local antique warehouse. I display these behind my little prep sink in a plate rack along with a picture I found at a yard sale.



I like the fact that this picture not only has pink and pale blue in it but it also has the yellow, gold, and orange colors of my kitchen:


I wrote about my Grandma's everyday dishes in another post. I love these dishes with the pink roses. Here's the teapot, creamer, and sugar bowl from that set, along with a pretty rose plate I found at a church sale:


I'm still in search of more pink for my kitchen, and I've already purchased some pale blue pillows for the living room, and a blue and cream rug for in there as well as cream sheers for the windows (all from Target!). And Ray and I will be painting the living room and dining room a cream color (in a washed/sponged blend finish, well, Ray will be taping and prepping for me, I'll be attempting the faux painting), the walls in those rooms are hand plastered and they are already painted a light blush color but they need freshening up.
It will take awhile, but I'll post some pictures of the end results when we're finally done!

22 comments:

  1. Eileen, I love your decorating plans and especially your colors. Pink is my favorite color and until a couple of months ago I had pink in almost every room in my house. I have always preferred pastels, but like you I went for a new look and am now into greens/burgundy/pinks and creams. I always love flowers. Your lucky to have Ray to help you as I paid $2500 to have 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and a hall painted in Feb. It does look lovely and fresh though. I posted pictures in earlier post.
    Have a wonderful Wednesday and may all your plans come true......:-) Hugs

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  2. Adore adore adore the pink and white doiley.

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  3. Looks like you're doing a great job toward your pink theme! Love that pink rose tile and the doily...actually love your Tuscan kitchen too.

    Like you, tho, I like earthy tones, but pastels too, so I've had a beige, a bright yellow, a light mauve, a warm light orange and now a lt/med blue kitchen!

    Had to enlare Jayden's artwork because it was huge and I couldn't figure out where you had it or how it was hanging...you clever girl...on the dishwasher!

    Your door has a European handle just like our front door (Michael balked a little at putting it in), but it's so much easier to get in with packages.

    Now I see your sand behind the white posting section...that one day it was sand everywhere and I could barely read anything here.

    blessings and tons of hugs,

    marcy

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  4. Try JC Penney, they had alot of pink items for the kitchen. you can look online.
    dhoff

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  5. How exciting, I can't wait to see the finished project. The teapot,creamer and sugar bowl are so quaint. It is so much fun, once you have the decorating vision, to hunt for all the details at flea markets, rummage sales or even in your own closet or garage...Enjoy....

    Sandy

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  6. Bernie, I can't believe how expensive it is to hire painters! But I went to your post and it's a beautiful job!

    Simone, you are a do-it-yourself-ers dream! You give everyone such good ideas!

    Marcy, so glad my blog is being friendlier to you! I thought of the European handles after my Aunt complained about her arthritis and how hard the round door knobs are for her to turn. And they really are easier for everyone. I love the look of the vintage glass knobs, but they are not practical.
    And, Marcy, our very first kitchen was blue and white, I loved it. It looked so clean and bright! (Now I feel like breaking out in song ~ "Edelweiss"!)

    dhoff, THANK YOU! I am going on-line to look right now!

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  7. Sandy, thank you! I LOVE shopping flea markets, rummage sales, yard sales, and also it is fun 'repurposing' things around the house! I do that a lot!
    Thanks for stopping by!

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  8. I've never seen such a pretty spatula in my life! I also loved the valance and the tile. Looks like you've been collecting pretty much already Eileen. You should take before pix of your painting project too, so you can post both before and after. Thanks for thinking of me Eileen. I have tests today and tomorrow. Hopefully will know something by Friday.

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  9. Diana, Friday can not come quick enough for me! Many prayers are being prayed for your good health.

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  10. I love pink too. It's that very unique woman's only color. At least that's how I see it. THE feminine color. Looks like you already have a good start with it. Just keep going :)

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  11. Looks like you are well on your way of pinking up your kitchen Eileen...I loved the old tile and the picture behind the sink...

    It sounds like you will be fairly busy getting your projects done...I like to "summerize" my home too after the warm cozy feeling of winter.

    Smile and take care!

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  12. Your floral painting would feel right at home with mine! I posted them yesterday and kind of surprised myself at how many florals and pinks I've surrounded myself with. I vacillate between blues and pinks, I guess. It looks like you have a good handle on your decorating tastes and are well on your way to turning your kitchen into a shabby chic domain :)

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  13. Thanks for all the nice, encouraging comments!
    Wanda, if I had your outdoor surroundings I don't think I would care what the inside of my house looked like because I wouldn't be spending any time in there!
    Seriously, we have very little property, so it's nice to visit your place each morning. I love it!

    Jill, I so agree about pink being a true 'girl' color! That's why I don't decorate with it too much, but I really would like some for spring and summer and then go back to the more 'masculine' colors come fall and winter.

    Thanks, Rebecca (beautiful name!), I paid a visit to your blogs, very nice, uplifting!
    I feel a little bad for my husband with all my florals and pastels lately, but he's good. Never a complaint.

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  14. It sounds like you have put a lot of thought into your kitchen. I love all of the items you already have especially the beautiful art work your grandson made and those pretty kitchen tiles.

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  15. Really very nice! I especially like the tea set! Thank you for visiting. You are always a delight! Cathy

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  16. Pink and quaint....I thought of your decorating to shabby chic ....

    http://www.favecrafts.com/Dining-Room/Pink-and-Red-Teacup-Topiary

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  17. Sandy, that is so sweet of you! And I just saw a nice tea cup and saucer on-line that I'm interested in, (with lilacs on a pink cup). And I love the idea of a topiary, especially if I could do pink shabby roses! Thank you for thinking of me!

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  18. Thank you both, Carol and Cathy, for your kind thoughts and words.
    I love visiting both your blogs! Charli is so cute, Carol!
    And, Cathy, I am always inspired by your posts.

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  19. Oh no!! You've created a monster...now I want pink too!!! I've always had touches of mauve everywhere..yrs. ago I had mauve walls in my living room! I do love the pink though!! I saw some beautiful pink lace curtains (I think) on jc penney on-line. They were gorgeous!! Can't wait to see more pictures!! Love, Jerelene

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  20. Jerelene, you are too cute! And I did have a mauve phase too, my walls were sort of a pink/taupe, and I had two velvet mauve chairs and LOTS of mauve touches.
    Now I prefer a more pale pink (but only in spring and summer!) and lots of other pastels too.

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  21. Eileen-
    Thanks so much for commenting on my blog! I just had to come visit yours...and I am glad that I did! Your pink touches are wonderful! I especially love your Grandma's dishes! I was in need of some new bakeware accessories, so for Christmas, my sister bought me PINK measuring cups, spoons and rubber spatulas (from Wm. Sonoma, but I'm sure you can find them in many stores)! They make me smile when I use them! :-)

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  22. Oh, I LOVE Williams & Sonoma! Thanks for that suggestion, Lauren.
    We have one in a nearby mall, but I think I'll go online now and see what I can get.

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