Coastal Collective Co.

Coastal Interiors: Casual Chic Living Room

Edesign, Home Blog Posts, Interiors, Living RoomAnneke McConnell

It makes such an impact when you have at least one piece of furniture or home decor that has character and personality to it.....one that really speaks to your taste and interests. Today's design features a larger piece of furniture, a sofa, that has a unique style to it. I LOVE it!

Everything else in the design is pretty neutral, including natural rug which lends a more casual sophisticated vibe, all while grounding the space.

I'd suggest adding a different pop of color here and there throughout the seasons to change things up a bit.  This is easily accomplished through changing out curtains, pillows, blankets, even items such as candles, baskets, etc.

Also, be sure to check out the NORDSTROM Half Yearly Sale.  It's one of my favorites to snag amazing quality items for less.  I've shared a few below, but if you've got boots, coats, New Year's Eve dresses or outfits on your list, check it out!

xo,

Anneke

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Last Minute Gift Ideas

Anneke McConnell

Last minute Christmas Gift Ideas......

 

 

 

I hope this Christmas season hasn't been filled with stress.  Wherever you are, I wish you the Merriest Christmas this year!  There are a couple of sites like Nordstrom and Amazon that are offering AMAZING last minute deals for free express shipping if you're looking for that last minute gift idea for a loved one, friends, co-workers, etc.  

Whether it's a cozy sweater, the perfect leather boots, a fun new gadget (I couldn't live without my backup phone battery!), or the perfect new year's planner, I hope these ideas inspire you and help you out with any last minute decisions.  I would have shared a couple more personal ideas, but then a special someone would know what was being wrapped under the tree! ;-)

Also, be on the lookout! If you have goals in mind for the New Year, we are getting very close to starting up this year's Make It Happen Challenge!!  Get ready to have breakthroughs this year friends!!!

 

xo,

Anneke

 

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Coastal Interiors: Home Office Beginnings

Interiors, Office, EdesignAnneke McConnell

As we're wrapping up things around here for Christmas and the New Year, my husband and I have settled from the craziness of our beach house kitchen makeover and were ready to dream about that "next step".

We seem to go in waves like that (no pun intended), tackling a larger project, then a smaller space, getting our house organized, then thinking big again. It's been quite the process and remaining content through it all has been key.  Otherwise we'd never enjoy our beautiful view!

On the upper floor of the beach house you enter a larger room, which then goes into another smaller room.  There are plenty of windows and light, but it is a challenge to work with.  At this point the smaller room is our bedroom and the larger room is a living room/media room.

You can see the set up below of when it was a vacation rental. The entire reveal series can be seen HERE on my previous blog This, That and Life.

So NOW, we are going to make the current living room (bunk room in the above photo) into our Master Bedroom, and the corner room (living room in above photo) will become the home office I've been dreaming of for some time. I am SO excited about this!!!

Since I'm working on my laptop most of the day, I think I could get used to this as my work space! The view and the fresh air don't hurt!

Needless to say, the perks outweigh the design challenges. I'm working with every wall containing  either a door or window.  We have 4 windows and two doors.  The room on the other side of the two interior windows is our kid's shared bedroom.

I'm currently working on space planning considering our needs, but here's a very tentative plan.

 

 

This is just the beginning, but I'm already dreaming of other finishing details such as paint, window treatments, plants, and maybe even a wall treatment.  It needs to fill a variety of needs while not feeling visually weighed down and remaining streamlined.

I can't wait to see it come to life!  Let me know what you think in the comments below or connect with me on social media.


xo,

Anneke

 

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Coastal Kitchen Makeover: Things To Consider When Choosing a Roman Shade

Home Blog Posts, Interiors, KitchenAnneke McConnell

It is amazing how ONE single change can impact the look of a space.  The function is the same, but the style and look is what makes the room "you" and feel pulled together with other design elements.  I'm happy for my recent experience working with Blindster to share our kitchen window update today!

Let's back up a bit first though.  Recently, I decided to tackle our kitchen for the One Room Challenge, and am SO in love with the results so far!! We painted the cabinets white, added brass hardware, got the cupboards organized, and pulled it together with a new rug, curtains, desk area, etc.  You can see the process over the weeks in the following blog posts.

Week 1 / Week 2 / Week 3 / Week 4 / Week 5 / The REVEAL

At the end of the challenge, we were still waiting on our lighting and window treatment to arrive, and now that they have, I NEED to update you on the changes! It looks so good if I do say so myself!!!

Just to review, here is the BEFORE when our home was a vacation rental.

FOCUS on the window area above the sink.

Here are just a few thoughts on the design process and why I chose what I did:

  1. I love, love LOVE natural shades.....anything bamboo and beauty and I swoon.  There was something in me saying that they just were NOT the right fit for the kitchen.
  2. One of my main goals after painting the cabinets white was to creating either a focal point with the window or something that would flow seamlessly and give the kitchen a larger feel.  
  3. I usually lean toward inside mount shades, but from previous experience I knew I wanted ALL the light possible without a shade or valance covering the top portion of the window when it was fully open. (see below)
  4. Also, there was an awkward space ABOVE the window and our ceilings are low, under 8 feet high (which was also a challenge when selecting our island lighting) >>>>> SO, choosing an OUTSIDE MOUNT WAS KEY to creating a visually higher ceiling AND letting in the most light possible.
  5. Because this window is right above our sink, I already dealt with the frustration of pulling a string that seemed to always be in the way and I opted to go with a cordless roman shade.
  6. The light sea blue roman shade brought some softness to the room with the fabric and color versus a hard surface/texture of a bamboo shade.

Below is a photo from our previous home showing you what I mean in #3.


So there you have it!  That's how I went about choosing our window treatment, and yes, Blindster was FANTASTIC the entire time to make sure I was going to order something that I loved!


Below you can see when I was popping the plastic parts into the bottom backside of the shade.  This allows us to easily pull the shade up and down with the cordless mechanism.

 

We are so happy with how they turned out!

When they arrived, they had a bit more of a green hue to them than I thought they would, but I love them just as much.  The texture of the fabric is amazing, and the lining is great quality.

Here is EXACTLY what I ordered if you're wondering.

 

Yup. Wilmington Water did not disappoint!!  Of course I had to get our little maltipoo Copper in a shot. ;-)  And yes.....he desperately needs an appointment with the groomer, because I give up! 

He often comes and lays on the rug next to my feet while I'm cleaning the kitchen from dinner.  You can't tell from here, but there is a bit of a view of the water from the kitchen sink.

 

Because the shades are cordless, it's nice that it comes with a clear plastic part that slips easily on and off the bottom of the shade.....not so easily that it detached when you're using it, but easy enough to take off and clean.  The fabric on the shade stays nice and clean this way. #winning

I love adding custom shades to homes because they really fit the space perfectly.  Even as an outside mount, I measured these so that they would fit with just enough space on the sides to add a little margin room and a couple inches below the ceiling to add height without going ALL the way to the ceiling.

I'm happy it looks so beautiful and next up will hopefully be the faucet!

I hope you have found this design post helpful - if so, please pin it and share!

***This is not a sponsored post, however the shades were provided by Blindster, and all opinions are my own.

 

xo,

Anneke

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