Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Happy Birthday Pammy!

photo by Jocelyn DesRoches

Happy Birthday to my like-minded big sister Pam! We think we share a brain:)
(She's standing in the back along with my other sister Julie!)
Hope you have a great year and best of luck as you head back to the classroom for another year! 

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Barn Doors. Yea or Nay?

I was watching an episode of Candice Tells All, where she puts a sliding barn door in a kitchen/family room. A very rustic element in an otherwise modern space that totally worked. It gives that modern farmhouse vibe that has been so popular of late.



Source: google.com via Jane on Pinterest

It got me thinking about my sister's attic. She has been planning a major renovation of the attic of her
home and would love to put a rustic, sliding barn door in the washroom. I think it would be an amazing architectural element in the space.
I searched pinterest for some inspiration.

My absolute favorite.
Source: google.ca via Jane on Pinterest

A fun pop of color!
Source: google.ca via Jane on Pinterest


                       Love the black hardware.


Source: None via Jane on Pinterest

These are huge!

Beautiful space.
Source: google.com via Jane on Pinterest

Ok. I know it's not sliding doors but I absolutely love this nursery.
Source: ohdeedoh.com via Jane on Pinterest

So what about you? Does the rustic charm of a barn door paired with clean lines make you swoon too? I'd love to hear your opinion.. yay or nay?

Monday, August 29, 2011

We Have A Winner!

Happy Monday all! 
Time to announce the winner of the Modern Jane exclusive Eastwitching bluejay print
(Can you tell I love saying that?)

The winner is.... Barbara of Hodge:podge!


Thanks to all for entering! 
Barbara send me your address so that Alison can pop your archival print in the mail! Fun Fun!

Thanks so much to Alison for this fun giveaway! 
If you haven't had a chance to check out her etsy shop.. you must!

Well, this girl is off to set up her classroom for another year! Wish me luck!

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Last chance!

Last chance to enter the Eastwitching blue jay print giveaway! Exclusive to Modern Jane! 




Closes tonight at 10:00 AST! Go here to enter.

*** contest is now closed! ***

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Eastwitching Print Giveaway!

As promised, I'm back with an exciting giveaway today! About a month ago I shared my new Eastwitching flamingo print. I am in love with the softness of Alison's watercolor prints and love how mine looks in the bright yellow frame.


Alison and I started messaging back and forth and not only is she talented but also unbelievably kind and generous. First offering my readers a fun freebie and today a great giveaway! 

She offered to create a Modern Jane exclusive watercolor! How exciting is that? This print is unique to a Modern Jane reader and not sold by Alison in her shop! We talked about what she should create and we thought a moody blue grey theme and we decided on the blue jay because it is the provincial bird of my beloved Prince Edward Island (plus, she loves painting the feisty little bird!).

I am so excited to reveal to you the finished product today and start this giveaway.. it's going to look spectacular in someone's home!

Isn't he beautiful?!

So here is the deal. In order to win this little guy, you must:
  • be a follower of Modern Jane
Then... 

or
  • become a follower of Alison's blog and come back here and let me know!
Why not do both, you can enter 2 times! Best of luck!

The giveaway will close on Sunday, August 28th at 10:00pm AST. 
I will announce the winner on Monday!


Sunday, August 21, 2011

I Won!

I rarely enter giveaways on blogs. Mostly because I'm lazy and not because I don't really want to win them. Also, I generally am not one to win anything, which is why I seldomly bother to buy lottery tickets and when I do, I forget to check them.
That being said, my luck has changed! I entered a giveaway over at Designwali (a favorite Canadian blog of mine) because I thought the necklace she was giving away was beautiful! 


Wouldn't you know it! I won! I can't wait to receive it in the mail. 
It's from this shop, with tons of other beautiful pieces.

Thanks Designwali!

Also... stay tuned for a fun giveaway here at Modern Jane this week!

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Door Dilemma.

I've been trying to get some painting done on the front porch. I'm feeling the pressure of the return to work looming and I really thought I'd get it all done before then. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and my paint brush handy!
I wanted to get all the paint on the house, posts and railings first then I was excited to give my front door a fresh coat of paint as a finishing touch. However. It seems that everyone seems to love it which leads me to think that I should definitely not change it.
Here is the thing. I painted that door 2 years ago. I had seen this door on Design Sponge home tour and had to have it. 


I couldn't get the same color so I made a guess. Here is  my version. It's called Calypso Green:

I remember my parents coming by after I painted it and they were snickering that it was a little "bright". I liked it instantly but it seemed to take a little while for others to come around. Maybe the color mellowed a little?

Sometimes when I tell people where I live they say "oh! The house with the green door!" I don't know if that means they like it or they don't :)

And as I've posted progress pictures of the porch, I've had several inquiries about the door color and lots of compliments!


So now to decide. I do like the color and especially love that it's versatile with each season. Fun in the summer, perfect in the fall with a pot of mums and Christmas friendly too! So I should keep it, right? But sometimes you just need a change! Something to freshen things up around here. A soft grey-blue would be so pretty! So I should change it, right?

What do you think? Keep it? Change it?

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Drooling.

For the last couple of days, I've been absolutely drooling over this home by Tiek Built Homes in Utah. It's been featured already on a couple of blogs but I'm sharing just in case you missed it. It's really just too good to miss out on.

My style is not generally this traditional but I could move in tomorrow. I think it's the herringbone floors that really got me. Definitely on the top of my dream list.

I know it's a lot of pictures but I couldn't leave one out. Seriously, sit back and get ready to die. It's that gorgeous.






Here are those magical floors I was talking about. I'd give my right arm for them. 
Don't miss the incredible ceiling either!






 The home is being styled by one of my favorite designers, Caitlin Creer. She's genius I tell you. I love the lavender nursery that she just completed. So so soft and pretty.

Hope your weekend is going well! The sun decided to join us here after several rainy and dreary days so we are happy here!


Thursday, August 11, 2011

Loving... This Week.

It's been a while since I've posted some of my favorite projects from around the blogosphere! With the dreary weather we've had here this week, I've had the time to read some of my favorite blogs. Here are some of my favorite projects of the week!

Jen of IHeart Organizing's stenciled wall. Lots of work but oh so worth it!

Ashlyn's adorable new play kitchen. Listen little one... your mom and dad are the best!

The gorgeous new color of these dining room buffets
Alison of My Little Happy Place is helping her sister with her little happy place!

My dream washroom via Design Sponge. You have to check out the before to truly understand:)

If you love these projects as much as me be sure to stop by their blogs and let them know! 
Have a great weekend everyone. 
I'll be busy tomorrow getting ready for a little yard sale chez moi on Saturday!

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

My Favorite Room.


Hi everyone! I'm excited to be over at Sadie + Stella today sharing about a favorite room in my home. I chose my living room and shared some fun before and after pictures.



Head on over and check it out. Be sure to hang around a while and check out their fun blog. They are a team of two good friends who share a passion for design and their pups - sadie and stella (and billie)!

A little update on the front porch... I'm dying for it to stop raining so I can get out painting. We are on day two and it looks like it won't let up until Saturday.. patience:)

Monday, August 8, 2011

Thanks Marc!

Well in two days my brother successfully completed the new porch! He works quickly when he gets going.


The floor joist of the porch is all new, as are all the boards. We decided to keep the same railing to cut down on costs and it is still in great shape. Just needs a good coat of paint. He also made a new post at the top of the stairs. The old one was in bad shape and super ugly.


He had some steps that were left over from a deck project that he recently completed. They were only a couple of years old and were in near perfect condition. We decided to use those and I gave them a couple of coats of grey paint. They look brand new!


I painted the pillars above the brick (ugly brick I might add... any suggestions on what to do with that?). It is only one coat but I think I like the effect.

Next decision is what to do with the railing, post and trellis. I'm thinking of going all grey but I'm not entirely sure. I would love your feedback!

The floor board will have to wait till next summer. Apparently you can't paint pressure treated lumber for a year. Oh well.. one less thing to tackle for now!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Coming Along!

My brother worked all day yesterday and make lots of progress. I tried to help by clearing out all the demo pieces, feeding him lunch and being a gopher but mostly just tried to stay out of his way! He works carefully and meticulously and I don't bother to ask too many questions. He did such a great job on my kitchen that I trust him!

Here is how it looked last night:



And after a few hours this morning.

I wanted to keep the same railing so he is re-attaching those now and will soon be putting in the new stairs. It's all coming together!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Bye Bye Porch.

So much for just giving the porch a facelift! My brother got started early this morning, ripping up the boards and tearing down the stairs. When he stopped for a coffee break, he had some bad news for me. What he found underneath was not what we expected and realistically, the best bet? A whole new deck.

Within a couple of hours, it went from this:




To this:




He is out now buying the supplies to get started. I know it's going to be more labor time and more money to redo the whole deck, but I'm excited to have it all redone. Wish us luck!