Innholdsfortegnelse for April - May 2020 i American Farmhouse Style

EDITOR’S LETTER I’ve recently brought three pieces of furniture into my home: two new accent chairs, and a vintage coffee table I refinished, painted and created a tufted top for. All three are now in my living room, and make the space both more functional and more beautiful. While the chairs are new and the coffee table is old, it’s the combination of the two that adds character and personality to the space. That’s what good furniture can do for your home—add style, character and livability. Whether you’re looking for new furniture (page 24), vintage finds at the flea market (page 26) or DIYing from scratch (page 16), we’ve got you covered. Take a look at how good furniture layout works with modern farmhouse style (page 100), European farmhouse style…

AmericanFarmhouseStyle.com TOUR THE ITTY BITTY FARMHOUSE Get a peek into the home of Jessica Russell and her darling farmhouse. 7 STEPS TO GET REMODEL READY Join us for this fun email series on how to plan a remodel this year! We’ve got free printables for you too. Head to AmericanFarmhouseStyle.com/Remodel-Ready/ WHAT IS RUSTIC FARMHOUSE STYLE? Wood, leather and DIYed touches are at the heart of this aesthetic. FABULOUS FLORALS Celebrate spring by learning how to add floral designs to your home. IS GRAY PAINT OUTDATED? Stay in the know with this designer’s insider tips for using gray in your home. Follow us online on Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest for daily inspiration!…

Furniture is a perfect item to shop for at the flea market. It’s versatile and can transform easily with a DIY makeover—whether you’re painting, staining or reupholstering. Here are our three top tips for shopping for vintage furniture. KNOW THE MARKET. If there’s a particular piece, furniture designer or style you want, do some research to know what the price range should be. For example, midcentury furniture is hot on the market right now, so high-quality pieces from the 1950s and ’60s will cost more. If you want to paint your new credenza or dresser, stay away from expensive pieces that will do better with their original stain anyway. On the other hand, if you’re not looking for a particular style, you can avoid more expensive pieces and transform an…

Sometimes, a simple hobby can turn into a full-blown passion. This was the case for wedding photographer Megan Vaughan, who didn’t originally set out to build a greenhouse. At first, she was just trying to keep a few plants in her home alive. SMALL BEGINNINGS “I never, ever had a green thumb,” Megan says of her gardening expertise. She’d never had plants when she was younger and had no idea how to care for them. But after she and her husband suffered a miscarriage, she began keeping a few plants around the house for therapeutic purposes. Beginning with a pot of daffodils a friend bought for her, Megan’s green and growing collection ballooned from a few small pots to hundreds of different plants. Eventually she realized she wanted a greenhouse…

“I am inspired by the usefulness of plants, but also by how overlooked most of them are.” As we learn more about natural products, it’s getting easier to make decisions that are better for our home and wellbeing. Author and certified herbalist Ashley Moore wrote The Women’s Heritage Sourcebook: Bringing Homesteading to Everyday Life with Lauren Malloy, Emma Rollin Moore and Audria Culaciati so other women can learn and enjoy the benefits of using natural products. “I am inspired by the usefulness of plants, but also by how overlooked most of them are,” she writes. While herbs are well-known as cooking aids, they can also be used as ingredients in natural, handmade self-care products such as medicines, hair conditioners, body scrubs, skin care and dyes. Here’s the best way to…

Flower paper template, page 14 LEATHER WORKS PAGE 22 For more on Keyaira, visit keyaiira.com. WHERE SHOULD THE BED GO? PAGE 32 For more on Joanne, visit joannepalmisano.com. BEAUTIFUL BREAKFAST ROOM PAGE 40 For more on Beth, visit homestoriesatoz.com. Fabric cube storage bins in linen, wall cube shelving, Sure Fit duck dining chair slipcovers: Better Homes and Gardens at Walmart. Visit walmart.com. Garland: Hobby Lobby. Visit hobbylobby.com. Throw pillows and covers: Amazon. Visit amazon.com. LAKESIDE LUXURY PAGE 44 For more on David, visit davidcharlezdesigns.com. Interior design: Bria Hammel Interiors. Visit briahammelinteriors.com. DOWN ON THE FARM PAGE 54 For more on Jenny, visit bigfamilylittlefarmhouse.com. Boy’s room bedding, bunk-bed room bedding: Beddy’s Beds. Visit beddys.com. Boy’s room walls/shutters, bunk beds, kitchen counters: Custom DIY. Bunk-bed bedroom wall décor: Pottery Barn Kids. (800)…

The Best Greenery for Arrangements Not all fresh arrangements need flowers. Especially if your home is all neutrals, greens might be best. Here are our favorites. 1. Eucalyptus. There are many different species of eucalyptus that make beautiful arrangements. Silver dollar eucalyptus has round, shimmery leaves, while baby-blue eucalyptus stands up in tall, thin strands. Seeded eucalyptus has more traditionally shaped leaves, with the addition of seeded branches. 2. Fern. Delicate and lacy, ferns make a great showstopper for arrangements. As with eucalyptus, there are many different types of ferns you can use. Our favorites are leatherleaf fern and maidenhair fern. 3. Myrtle. Myrtle branches are popular greenery for arrangements, and they work well on their own or paired with other greens. This type of branch stands up on its…

Antiques and vintage pieces sometimes come with expensive price tags. But you can create your own instead by adding the patina of a vintage farmhouse table with its cracks and chips and timeless appeal to a yard-sale or thrift-store find. It’s so much easier than you might think. All you need is a little glue and know-how to create this DIY table for your living room or another space in your home. WHAT YOU’LL NEED: • Piece of furniture• Paintbrush• Glue• Paint• 220-grit sandpaper WHAT YOU’LL DO: 1. LIGHTLY SAND. Begin by lightly sanding the surface of the table. This gets rid of any raised parts on the surface, but it also prepares the table for the glue and paint. I also want to introduce an important concept about crackle.…

On the porch, summer calls for a glass of lemonade, and the crisp fall air calls for hot cider. It provides shelter from storms, a respite from heat and a spot to relax with family and friends. The American porch has served as an ideal connection between a home’s interior and exterior for more than 150 years. PORCH HISTORY The design style surged in popularity in the late 1800s in America, although its beginnings can be traced to Africa and southern Europe, where heat necessitated outdoor living areas. By the early 1900s, the front porch had become a prime gathering spot. Porch parties became the rage for informal entertaining, allowing guests to easily come and go. Many communities hosted contests for the best porch decorations. Porch parties became the rage…

What is a breakfast room, anyway? For blogger Beth Hunter of Home Stories A to Z, it’s a second, informal dining room. “This small space may be the tiniest room in the house, but it also seems to be everyone’s favorite,” she says. “It’s where we eat most of our meals and where I often sit to work or catch up on social media.” Beth transformed the room from builder-basic to farmhouse chic, with fresh seasonal touches. Here’s how she did it. ONE-ROOM WONDER Before the remodel, the room was a big box. Beth added several stacks of cube storage bins along one wall, which she uses for both seating and storage. For the cubes on the sides, she added drawer fronts to make them look like built-in cabinets. “I…

With American Farmhouse Style’s Project Home 2020 officially underway, ground has been broken on the Carlton Landing, Oklahoma, home and we’re looking forward to seeing all the details come together. You’ve already met our builder, J.J. and Lindsey Morris from Scissortail Homes of Carlton Landing. We’ve also chosen Rachel Shingleton, interior designer and owner of Pencil Shavings Studio in Oklahoma City, to lead the interior design portion of the build. “We want to create something that’s exciting and different, but also hit all of the right notes for readers,” Rachel says. “Lindsey and J.J. have a more modern aesthetic… They have a very specific spin on the farmhouse look, and it’s been exciting to be able to push the envelope a bit.” “As a homebuilder,” Lindsey says, “we’ve built our…

1. Framed art. Arrange the pressed flowers into a flat bouquet and sandwich them between two panes of glass within a frame. The transparent art will be both subtle and eye-catching. 2. Bookmarks. This one is classic. Arrange the flowers on a bookmark-shaped paper of your choice; then laminate the piece. You can even punch a hole in the top and add a ribbon. 3. Coasters. If you have any leftover square-shaped tiles, affix pressed flowers to them; then give them a top coat with a craft adhesive such as Mod Podge. 4. Book art. Instead of framing your flat bouquet between panes of glass, attach the flowers to a few book pages instead. Then frame the pages or tape them on the wall with some colorful washi tape. 5.…

Handcrafted and artisan goods are in vogue these days, and paper-based crafts are no exception. Paper is a versatile yet delicate material that lends itself well to creating organic shapes like flowers. In her new book Build a Flower: A Beginner’s Guide to Paper Flowers, Lucia Balcazar has created an impressive and thorough introduction to the art of crafting paper flowers. Get started with this simple project to create a paper Butterfly Ranunculus. WHAT YOU’LL NEED: • Fine crepe paper (60 g)◦ Color for the petals◦ Black for the center◦ Green for the leaves• 18- to 20-gauge floral wire (cut to 9 inches [23 cm])• Recommended glue: extra-strength glue stick or tacky glue and a brush to apply it• Templates: Butterfly Ranunculus petal, Butterfly Ranunculus calyx, Butterfly Ranunculus leaf (See…

Like many American makers, Keyaira Terry started her business from a passion. She grew up on a small farm in northern California, and her grandmother taught her the value of the land, natural beauty, upcycling and sustainability. “If we didn’t have it, we made it, and if something broke, we fixed it,” she says. She took those values with her and turned them into a boutique business. Her online shop of leather home goods started with a homemade bag. “I made a ‘Mary Poppins’ carpet bag for myself, and then I got requests from patients (I used to work in healthcare),” she says. “I started using leather straps on the bags. It evolved from there.” Now her online shop includes items such as leather drawer pulls and handles, wall straps…

Deciding where to put the bed can be difficult. This is especially true when the bedroom is oddly shaped or smaller than average. Bedrooms obviously feature a bed, but should it take up the entire room? Joanne Palmisano is an interior designer and the author of a new book, Rock your Rental: Style, Design, and Marketing Tips to Boost Your Bookings. We’ve asked her to share her advice on where to put the bed and how to optimize the space in smaller rooms. MAKE ROOM Every room is different, and bed size can run from twin to California king, but one thing remains constant. “Having enough space to move around the bed is important,” Joanne says. “For a queen- or king-size bed, make sure there’s room on both sides of…

Breanne Doucette is a DIYer, self-taught designer and the personality behind the blog Rooms For Rent. Here’s a bit about her story and how she became a central personality for the online farmhouse community. American Farmhouse Style: Where did the name “Rooms for Rent” come from? Bre: When I started my blog in the fall of 2011, I knew it was going to be about decorating, but I wanted people to find designs that they felt like they could duplicate in their own homes—“rent” the ideas, so to speak. My eyes stumbled upon one of my favorite signs hanging on my wall that says, “Rooms for Rent.” I got it from Pottery Barn on major clearance, and I remember at the time I bought it realizing that you can decorate your…