A New Light for the Hallway

I can’t believe it. I finally got a light fixture in my upstairs hallway. Remember back in March when I showed you the exposed wires sticking out of my ceiling? Well, they are gone and finally there is a light.

I really have no good explanation for why it took months to complete this project. Part of the problem may have been what I found under the old canopy cover attached to the ceiling. This required patching, and I thought I would have to repaint the entire ceiling. Also, since my house is close to 100 years old, it used to have gas ceiling fixtures. Which, to be honest, is totally amazing, but it makes hanging a new fixture a nightmare. There is a capped off gas pipe sticking out of the ceiling where most of the light fixtures hang. That means everything needs to be retrofitted to fit properly and safely.

At any rate, the light fixture is hung and I’m totally loving it. It’s the Clarrisa Glass Drop Chandelier from Pottery Barn. I’ve loved this fixture since it first came out. A few weeks ago my BFF hung a similar one in her house and that sealed the deal for me. Plus, I had a gift card, some store credit, and a coupon – so it was quite the steal. I’m actually a huge fan of Pottery Barn’s lighting. I have five fixtures from them. Crazy.

I thought this would be a good time to also show you some other changes around this area. Other than getting new carpet in December, I haven’t really done much in this space since closing my B & B. I figured it was time to make it feel a bit more like my home. So I pulled some random accessories from around my house to give it a little something-something.

First, I found this amazing set of letters on Etsy a couple months ago. Yes, that’s A,N and E. Hung on it’s side it just looks like a fun squiggle or symbol. If you remember, there used to be a giant mirror on this wall. It was there to block a door into this bathroom. I always hated having the mirror there, but it was essential to block off the space when my house was functioning as an inn. Blocking the door kept the bathroom private and secure for those in the room. This was actually the only bathroom in the house when it was first built. As you may or may not be able to tell, it needs a major update.

The room to the left of the bathroom is currently being used as a (very cluttered) storage space. (That’s where my cowhide chairs have been hiding out.) Before I decided to close my shoppe, the room was going to be my office. Now I have plans for turning it into a spare bedroom.

Last week I showed you the temporary office portion of my bedroom; this is the actual bedroom. Not much has changed in here. I did find this art at a local antique shop. I’m not sure I love it here, but it works for now. Also, I just noticed that one of the frames is a tiny bit smaller than the other. So that will surely drive me crazy. I think the ikat pillows are also new. I found them at HomeGoods. The pattern is gorgeous, and I figure they are neutral enough to work anywhere.

My wonderful mom bought me these amazing gold sculptural spheres from West Elm for my birthday. I freaking love them!

I also got this mini-frog (at least that’s what the folks at Buick called it). It was a gift from the designers I worked with when I created my dream Encore. This was actually the color I choose for my winning design. Isn’t it beautiful?

That’s it, folks. My new light and a couple other small updates. I still have lots of plans and ideas so it feels good to be making some baby steps. What spaces are you working on in your home?