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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

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August 1, 2011

Design Challenge presented by Common Ground!


A Design Challenge. Now who among us doesn’t have one of these on a regular basis? You know that corner of your bedroom you just can’t figure out how to decorate. Or, whether you should paint your fireplace or rearrange the mantel. Should you paint some of your traditional cherry furniture white or leave it alone?  Or, you could be like me and have a WHOLE ROOM that is a design challenge!
That is why we were so excited when Debra from Common Ground introduced her Design Challenge Series…
Common Ground
where blogland can come to the rescue of the “design challenged”! Every week Debra will be showcasing a different challenge and we bloggers (and non-bloggers for that matter. grin.) can help solve the challenge submitted.  Isn’t that awesome?! Do you know how much people PAY for design advise, and now we have an opportunity to receive it for free!
So…not only did Debra invite us gals At The Picket Fence, along with several other fabulous bloggers, to be sponsors of Design Challenge…but gasp! I get to BE the first challenge! Yikes! Exciting and scary all at the same time!
As most of you know, I have s.l.o.w.l.y. been working on a DIY kitchen remodel. So, of course once you start on one room all the others start looking a little…well..in need of an update…to put it nicely.  Enter..my formal dining room.
dining-room-entry
It is the first room you see when you walk in my home. 
dining-room-kitchen-view
and it also looks straight into my (in the process of being) remodeled kitchen.
I would love to have it blend better with the Vintage Formal Farmhouse feel I’m going for. Is that even a design style, or did I just make that up? grin. And, I am hoping YOU will be able to help me!

So, how can you help my ho-hum dining room you ask? You did ask right? grin. WELL… you can visit Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday this week, where Debra will be sharing my dining room as the inaugural Design Challenge and offer your suggestions and ideas….did I already say, “Yikes!”?
I thought it would be fun to give you some idea of the look I’m going for to get your creative juices flowing. You can visit my Pinterest Dining Room Board to see some of my inspiration! If you can’t see it, just click to follow us on Pinterest!
So, be sure to join us over at Common Ground this Friday..where you can tear apart gently offer suggestions for my dining room makeover and then I will reveal my newly redesigned room in the next month…or so! Smile 
We would love it if you’d help promote Design Challenge by placing the Design Challenge button in your sidebar!


Thanks for joining me today at the picket fence and we look forward to seeing you at the Design Challenge at Common Ground!  And don’t forget about our $100 e-shopping spree giveaway from Joss & Main going on all week here at the fence!!
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This post is partying at:

DIY by Design: Sizzle Into Summer
Savvy Southern Style: Wow Us Wednesdays

21 Comments Filed Under: Decorating, Design Challenge, Good Ideas

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Becca says

    August 2, 2011 at 9:09 PM

    What a fun series! I’m sure you’ll receive fun suggestions for your already beautiful dining room!

    Reply
  2. Kim @ Savvy Southern Style says

    August 2, 2011 at 9:19 PM

    I looked at your board and obviously you want wainscotting. I say get to work.

    Reply
  3. Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions says

    August 2, 2011 at 9:32 PM

    Ooooh, exciting Heather! I’ve already got ideas just from looking at your room that involves moving stuff around a little. I’m heading off to study your pinterest board! I have a feeling you are going to get so many ideas you won’t know where to start! : )

    Reply
  4. Judy says

    August 2, 2011 at 9:34 PM

    What a great idea. I looked at your board and love all of the inspiration photos.

    Reply
  5. Debra @ Common Ground says

    August 2, 2011 at 10:19 PM

    Thankyou thankyou! This is going to be so much fun…can’t wait!!! I’m heading off to your Pinterest board!
    xoxo Debra

    Reply
  6. pamq says

    August 2, 2011 at 11:22 PM

    Very cool idea!

    Should be very interesting to see/hear all the thoughts of bloggers and then to see what you do with them!

    Always fun to find out how differently everyone sees the same thing…….

    Love all the ruffled skirts on the chairs on your Pinterest board!

    Reply
  7. Shannon Jacobyansky says

    August 2, 2011 at 11:25 PM

    Hmmmm…you’ve got my creative juices flowing. This is my second time to your blog and I LOVE IT!!! Please visit me at my new blog…a work in progress…only a few days old at…

    http://www.grapevinewreath.wordpress.com

    I’ll be back!!!

    Reply
  8. Anonymous says

    August 3, 2011 at 7:30 AM

    wood floors and wainscotting

    Reply
  9. Debbie says

    August 3, 2011 at 12:20 PM

    This sounds so fun! Of course, I can’t offer suggestions since I’m so remedial. I sure would love to have the help for one of my design space nightmares, though.

    Reply
  10. Paula Jo @ Home and Garden Decor says

    August 3, 2011 at 6:17 PM

    Gosh, this sounds like fun, but interesting. I’m anxious to hear what people suggest.

    Reply
  11. Lazenby Family News says

    August 4, 2011 at 1:48 AM

    Oh, this just became my fav blog. Happy, happy…joy joy! I LOVE everything!

    Reply
  12. Ivy and Elephants says

    August 4, 2011 at 2:09 AM

    Wood floors and crown moulding are a must. Wow this is going to be so much fun.

    Paula

    Reply
  13. Shannon Jacobyansky says

    August 4, 2011 at 2:11 AM

    Hey just wanted you to know that I posted your blog on my blog today and wrote a brief article about Heather’s dining room dilema…lol…hope it sends some traffic your way! Thanks for visiting my blog!

    Reply
  14. At The Picket Fence says

    August 4, 2011 at 2:21 AM

    Hi Shannon! I hope you see this. 🙂 Can you post or email me your blog name? I would love to read what you wrote about the design challenge and share it on our facebook page. I tried to email you but your profile is set to no-reply. I think you might have left your blog name for us before and I am so sorry that I can’t find it. Looking forward to seeing what you wrote!

    Heather

    Reply
  15. At The Picket Fence says

    August 4, 2011 at 2:43 AM

    Found you Shannon! Ignore the post above. 🙂 Heather

    Reply
  16. Michele Smith says

    August 4, 2011 at 6:51 AM

    How exciting! What a great series. I’m looking forward to popping in over there on Friday and reading all the suggestions…hopefully I’ll have some for you myself LOL

    I also want to thank you for your sweet comment and keeping me in your prayers. You are one of the sweetest women I have met here in the blogging community.
    Michele

    Reply
  17. Alicia@ eco friendly homemaking says

    August 4, 2011 at 12:39 PM

    This sounds like a lot of fun! Such a great series!

    Reply
  18. Kim @ Savvy Southern Style says

    August 4, 2011 at 9:25 PM

    Thanks for hosting girls. Great features.

    Reply
  19. Anonymous says

    August 4, 2011 at 11:13 PM

    woodfloors,wainscotting,crown molding,paint a light blue

    Reply
  20. Sue says

    August 5, 2011 at 8:02 AM

    Your pinterest has some beautiful ideas. Your kitchen looks GREAT!

    Reply
  21. Natasha in Oz says

    August 8, 2011 at 12:00 AM

    I can’t wait to see what you come up with. What fun!

    If you have 5 minutes to spare please drop by and check out my latest post. I have started a new Weekend linky party where you can link up posts about your favourite songs or your your favourite Pinterest Pins, or even both! This post would be so great to link up!

    Best wishes and happy weekend,
    Natasha.

    Reply

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Yesterday on the way home from school I had the ra Yesterday on the way home from school I had the radio tuned to my daughter's favorite station and a song that was playing had a line in it that really stood out to me. It made reference to a 'season of the sticks' which I think its safe to say must mean winter. I thought that was such an accurate, albeiet kind of depressing, picture of this time of the year.

While we definitely have more than our fair share of evergreen trees here in Oregon, we also have plenty of trees and bushes that are reduced to sticks during the cold months. But, this morning as I looked out my kitchen window, greedily sipping from my mug of coffee, I marveled at the beauty of the winter sunrise. The sky was all pinks and oranges with frost on the rooftops and a little bit of fog. And, I realized that part of why it was so amazing is because I could see it more clearly through the sticks. The bare branches allowed me a view that I wouldn't be able to see if those same branches were covered in leaves. Being stripped down to almost nothing revealed something magnificent.

We have seasons of the sticks in our lives too, don't we? Times when we feel as though we've been stripped bare and left exposed. It's easy to think that this is a place where all is ugly and dark. And yet, just like the winter sunrise was more visible because of the bare branches, the vulnerability we feel in the winter season of our souls allows us to get a glimpse of beauty that we wouldn't see otherwise. In the lush, warm seasons it's so easy to become comfortable. But in the bare, cold seasons we recognize just how much we need to rely on the One who placed the stars in the heavens and is sovereign over all.

If you feel like your soul has been stripped bare and you've been left exposed and vulnerable, may I encourage you today to ask the Lord to help you to see the beauty in this 'season of the sticks'.

“Answer me quickly, O Lord! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit. Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." Psalm 143:7
I just went to make my mid-morning protein shake a I just went to make my mid-morning protein shake and grabbed a banana out of the freezer and was about to put it into my shake before I realized it was a frozen egg roll. Sooooo that's how my day is going so far! 🤪How about you?

It's honestly fairly representative of my state of mind these days as I can't seem to make the date on the calendar match the date in my spirit because it feels like it should be January 45th. Every year this month drags on and every year it seems to surprise me for some reason. In addition, my heart just feels heavy as I witness a lot of darkness and sadness around me. So, I'm choosing to control what I can control by making my house feel as cozy as possible, relishing the sunshine whenever it dares to peek through the clouds, gathering inspiration for warmer weather projects and, most importantly, resting in the comfort of the sovereignty of my Father.

“God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding. He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’ and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’ So that everyone he has made may know his work..." Job 37:5-7
What if you could do something at the beginning of What if you could do something at the beginning of your day that would be a gift to yourself later on? That’s what we’re talking about on this week’s Tip Tuesday! #tiptuesday
The sun decided to make another appearance today! The sun decided to make another appearance today! It’s been such a lovely Sunday. Chocolate croissants for breakfast followed by church then naps/football/reading/etc and soon we’ll be heading out to dinner with friends. These are my favorite kind of weekends. Hope yours has been lovely too! 🌿
Yesterday was stormy and cold but today the sunshi Yesterday was stormy and cold but today the sunshine is breaking through the fog and my house just seems happier. We definitely needed to see that light streaming in through the windows and it’s a gift I don’t take for granted.

And yes, there are still twinkle lights on my mantle because those help when the sunshine goes away again. ✨
Happy weekend! The rainy and gloomy weather here i Happy weekend! The rainy and gloomy weather here in the Willamette Valley has me feeling less frustrated about my migraine forcing me to just snuggle up indoors and these flowers in my kitchen are lifting my spirits. What are you up to on this holiday weekend?
It’s time for TIP TUESDAY! This week, I’m offe It’s time for TIP TUESDAY! This week, I’m offering a gentle reminder from my own parenting experience after feeling my heart pricked with conviction about what was waiting for my daughter every day after school. I hope it will encourage you! 🌿#tiptuesday
The day after Christmas I found myself laundering The day after Christmas I found myself laundering and folding all of the linens we used the previous night as we hosted my husband's side of the family for dinner and other festivities. As I laid out each cloth napkin and folded them one by one, I couldn't help but be struck by what a simple, yet meaningful, task it was. It's such an honor and privilege to be the hostess and, at this stage of my life, I realize that this has almost one hundred percent become my role now. Our parents are in their 70's and have either downsized significantly or simply don't have the energy to take on hosting duties for a large group. I could resent this. I could feel overwhelmed by it. But, instead, I'm choosing to embrace it knowing that, someday, I too will pass the hosting torch and I hope that I will be welcomed with love and attentiveness. So, I fold the linen napkins, taking pleasure in the way all of the creases line up and how neat and tidy they look in the drawer of my dining room buffet. These seemingly simple chores are part of the lifeblood of homemaking and my attitude towards them can either be one of gratefulness or grumbly-ness (yes, I'm making up words now). 

And I’m choosing gratefulness. 

“This job has been given to me to do. Therefore, it is a gift. Therefore, it is a privilege. Therefore, it is an offering I may make to God. Therefore, it is to be done gladly, if it is done for Him. Here, not somewhere else, I may learn God’s way. In this job, not in some other, God looks for faithfulness.” (Elisabeth Elliot⁣)
Welcome to Tip Tuesday! I’m so excited to be kic Welcome to Tip Tuesday! I’m so excited to be kicking off the year with a brand new series! Each weekly installment will feature a tip for everything from your home to faith to parenting to family life and so much more. My goal for 2023 is to have far more personal interaction with this community while continuing on with the mission of weaving together all things heart and home. I hope you enjoy this first tip and I’d love to hear from you about whether or not you decorate for winter! 
#tiptuesday #organizing #winterdecorating
“He has made everything beautiful in its time. H “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” 

Here’s to beginnings. Happy new year friends! May you experience the majesty and sovereignty of the Lord in 2023 like never before! ✨
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