The Decorating Diaries

When we last left our heroine she was surrounded by paint samples and fabric swatches, fighting to retain her sanity.  Sadly, the battle was not to be won.

Enter the decorator.  Having proved time and again they are incapable of bringing together matching prints on their own, our favorite couple has  sought the services of a professional (decorator, not therapist...not yet anyway). The decorator took them shopping, showed them pretty things and promised it could all be theirs.

One teeny-tiny problem.  Said decorator came in with a budget DOUBLE of what our duo had allocated.  Being the calm, nurturing soul that she is, our heroine (that's me) pitched what may best be described as "a hissy fit." Decorator woman backtracked and cut her cost in half, but much of the pretty stuff was taken away. Settee?  Gone.  Black table with beautiful inlaid gold-leaf trim?  Buh-bye.  Pretty red leather boxes that would look oh-so-cute perched precariously atop a walnut armoire?  No boxes, no armoire. 

Hope remains.  It appears our duo is on the verge of picking out--and committing to--fabric selections for bedding and curtains as well as paint.  Could this be the turning point in the bedroom gone horrible awry?  Will our couple finally find the warm, romantic, yet not overly frou-frou or decadent looking environmental solace they've been seeking?  Stay tuned...

The Decorating Diaries - Drama

God help us, we've decided to give it another go. Decorating our bedroom that is. For those longtime fans of the Dena & Blair bedroom decorating diaries, you'll recall that our awesome duo have been trying to create a snug, restful sleeping abode for the past 9 years. And yet, they haven't quite made it yet. Let's stop here to review some of the highlights of their journey.

Airsick China Man Look
After reviewing photos in Architectural Digest and a color wheel at Sherwin Williams, Dena feels she has a grip on the whole color scheme and decides to decorate the bedroom in a palate of reds and golds. She paints the walls a Grand Canyon yellow, convinces Blair red carpeting is the way to go and calls it a day. The result? It looks like a China man threw up on their walls and flooring. With a little tweaking, the color combo would also be effective in a whorehouse.

Neutral Nights
Deciding color was a bad, bad idea, the duo run to Home Depot, grab the first 5 cans of off-white paint they see and throw it on the walls. Now we have white walls, cream trim, and pinkish-red carpet (the many tears cried over it for the sheer ugliness of it faded it out a bit). They live with this for almost a year.

Green Getaway
Agreeing they need help, our duo consult a decorator and allow themselves to be convinced green is the color for them, ignoring the fact that most shades of green make Dena want to puke. So they surround themselves with pale green walls, deep green floral bedspread with matching bedskirt, and a purple and green chair. However, ever the cheapskate, Dena refuses to spend money on new furniture and goes with the "garage sale/parent's basement/great find on the side of the street" look. The end result? Even the cats are scared to enter the room.

Orange Oasis
Yes, orange. Frankly, it's the best of the looks so far and the one currently on the walls. Blair was on a 5-day trip and Dena decided the green had to go so she brought home 3 shades of orange, discarded the Salmon and the Pumpkin, stuck with the deep coral, and surprised Blair when he came home. Pluses: the warm tone makes skin look alive and vibrant vs. the chalky death mask look of living in the green. Minuses: It's an orange room, for God's sake.

Can This Couple Be Saved?... We think so. Our hearty duo is working with yet another decorator, returning to their first love of reds and yellows but in muted tones and done with elegance and understatement...we hope.

Stay tuned for the ongoing woes found in DECORATING DRAMA.