Mid Century Modern Carport Lounge Reveal Spring ORC

It’s the end of the Spring 2021 One Room Challenge and time to reveal our new mid century modern lounge carport! I swear Dave enjoys this space, even though he refuses to smile for a picture (proof at the end of this post).

Thanks to Linda who puts this whole fun thing together and the media partner Better Homes & Gardens.

I didn’t have a full plan when I started and the design sort of grew organically, which is typical of my design process. The bamboo lounge chairs from Briggs auction were the first find and then I took off in the direction of bamboo. I guess that’s possibly not mid century modern, but who the hell cares. Let’s call it Mid Century Modern + Bohemian.

Lounge with Bamboo furniture in a carport

I found a bamboo sofa from Remix Design and it was already reupholstered in the perfect color palette so it had to be mine. All 3 pieces are movable, so right now I have it set up as a love seat and a separate chair, but all 3 pieces can go together as well.

As I mentioned before, the coffee table was a used furniture score while in college and it’s traveled with me for 20 years. I finally gave it the makeover that I intended to 20 years ago. Dave actually ended up doing a lot of the heavy lifting of taking off the varnish, so thanks Dave!! At first I thought I could just sand it, but then I did some internet research and realized I really should take off all the varnish. I had some leftover black paint from when we painted our stairs, so I used that to make it look fresh and new. I love the legs on this piece. Actually the legs of all the furniture in this space are amazing.

The turquoise chair was recovered in an outdoor fabric

The blue chair was another Briggs auction find and it was recovered by Jen Tiberi @j.tiberi. She did a fantastic job and I am so glad I didn’t try to recover this myself. I did try to recover the bamboo lounge chair cushions and it was a big failure. But the as is fabric works for now.

Seating area with a view in the carport lounge

Bamboo and wicker were made for each other, especially with the addition of some fun accent pieces

I love the HomeGoods faces side table. That was a great find, because I love to add unexpected and fun elements into my designs. The white shelves and two mirrors were something that I had and were patiently waiting for a new space. I removed the mirrors during last year’s Spring One Room Challenge from the bathroom and kept them knowing I would eventually find a space for them. They work so great here to bounce around the light and reflect the killer view.

A really great way to make design projects more affordable in your own home is to use what you already have. Moving a piece or two from one area to another can bring fresh life to both the item and the space. I have a basement full of objects just waiting for the right project.

The door got a new coat of paint, Brandywine from Sherwin-Williams. It’s the color that I used for the bathroom ceiling, which is right inside this door to the left.

The view from this space is just magical and I love that now I can really relax and enjoy it. During the early to late evening the sun shines through the leaves and just really looks amazing. The birds fly by and stop to take a rest on the ground or shrubs. We even see the foxes from this spot.

Mix and match furniture to make the design interesting

Let me know what you think! I’d love your feedback. Remember I am available to design YOUR space, so send me a message or take a look at my services and I can create an oasis for you too.

Brandi of Brand-Eye Home enjoying the new space

Be sure to check out the other g uest participants (that’s me) and featured designers. It’s the big reveal for everyone and you can see all of the amazing spaces that have been transformed.

As a reminder, this is where we started.

Sources: [note my posts are not sponsored and I buy everything my self]

Badass wicker chair: Briggs auction, recovered by Jen Tiberi
Bamboo wicker three piece sofa: remix Design
Bamboo wicker lounge chairs: Briggs auction, extra pillows came with remix Design couch
Orange, turquoise pillows: made by me, Brand*Eye Home
Striped pillow: don’t remember (it’s a couple years old)
Rugs: Ikea
Coffee table: vintage find while in college 20 years ago
Black pedestal planter: Target a couple years ago
Terracotta ribbed planter: Hilton Carter for Target
Tall terracotta ‘planters’: Restore
Face table: HomeGoods
White round table: At home
Mirrors: saved from bathroom remodel
Hanging planters: had and many years old
White shelves: had from Ikea
Black fire ring: had from in laws
White lights: Lowes

I occasionally sneak a photo of Dave and here is proof that he does smile and enjoys the space. I had wanted to redo this space for a few years and he didn’t want me to, because he ‘uses is as a work space.’ Work somewhere else dude! His current thoughts on the space is that he was wrong and he loves it. Praise be.

sneaking a photo of us with a remote shutter while my camera is slowly falling

*Brandi

Week 7 One Room Challenge Mid Century Modern Lounge

house, One Room Challenge

I only have one week left to the 2021 One Room Challenge and I am certainly not going to be able to have everything done that I first envisioned, but it’s totally ok. This week had a lot of failed attempts at DIYs and sewing projects and if you watch my IG stories you will have seen the failure.

But let’s talk about the stuff that IS working. I showed you the bamboo chairs that I initially picked up at an auction, but I haven’t yet showed you the sofa that I bought at a vintage shop. I love IG for finding gems and I saw it there first. The shop was pretty far away, but it was a good price and already recovered (hooray) so at least I didn’t have to spend any time recovering it. Here is a sneak peak and you’ll get to see all of it next week during the big reveal.

I don’t want to give too much away, so here is a view from the Japanese maple. This tree is so pretty and I love to sit and stare at it and watch the birds that fly by. It’s really peaceful here.

Another success was a chair that I had recovered. I picked it up today and it looks SO good. I will show you next week, so be sure to tune back next week to see what this space looks like. In the meantime, send me some good vibes that my remaining projects work as I plan.

Be sure to check out the other guest participants (that’s me) and featured designers. There is so much inspiration to be seen!

*Brandi

Week 6 One Room Challenge Mid Century Modern Lounge

house, One Room Challenge

I am getting close to the end of the Spring 2021 One Room Challenge and it’s all starting to shape up! I am actually writing this blog post from the space and it’s such a great spot to chill. Even though it’s not finished, we have been enjoying the hell out of it. Winnie is enjoying it too!

Winnie Cooper enjoying the MCM Carport Lounge

I was recently asked why I love orange and teal so much (because my house is already full of it) and I don’t really know why. I mean, I just love it. It’s the best color combo in my opinion, and I really should branch out a bit. I swear that I didn’t intend to make this space orange and teal, but when I uncovered the seat cushions and the orange/teal floral fabric was staring back at me, I had to keep it. I will eventually recover these chairs, because the fabric is not in ideal shape, but it still has some life left in it. Not everything has to be shiny and new and I like a bit of age to pieces.

Pillows made by me with outdoor fabric and outdoor inserts.

I made a few pillows for the space that I love. In all honesty, a lot of times it is more expensive and definitely more time consuming to make your own pillows. Trying to sell what you’ve made is even harder! It cost the same in materials to make them, if not more, than buying them off the shelf and of course it takes way more time. But this way I get to make them 100% unique and ‘me.’

Pillows and the original floral fabric that I uncovered.

The coffee table I decided to use I’ve had since college. My roommates and I bought it at a second hand furniture store on Baltimore ave (WAAAAYYY before Jinxed was there) and then carried it two blocks to our house. We rented an awesome row home in West Philly at 46th and Baltimore in 2000-2001. These ladies (both named Jen) are awesome and I’m so grateful for science that we get to hang out in real life again. Getting back to the coffee table, it needs some serious work. The middle is falling apart and it needs a coat or 10 of paint. But for now, it works.

This view is just simply amazing and I love the way the light filters through the trees and into this space. I already had the urn planter above and the two black iron hanging baskets. I just added an insert, dirt and some plants. I decided to use house plants in the hanging baskets and am going to try to overwinter them in the house.

Houseplants which I will move inside over the winter

It’s been hard to find an electrician (my usual one is on medical leave), so the new lighting will most likely not be finished in time. I will be replacing the light below with a ceiling fan to (hopefully) keep the bugs away and to keep it cooler.

You can see a bunch of the pieces of the design in this post, but remember it’s not all in the right place or finished. That wicker chair is going to be recovered and I can’t wait to see it! I am thinking of using the turquoise fabric. I also picked up a bamboo sofa today to add to the mix!

What do you think so far? You can see the general vibe, but once everything is in place (with all the plants added) it will look amazing.

Be sure to check out the other guest participants (that’s me) and featured designers.

*Brandi

Mid Century Modern Lounge-Week 5 Spring 2021 One Room Challenge

house, One Room Challenge

It’s already week 5 of the One Room Challenge and I still have a lot to do. This weekend we power washed the area so now I can put everything back into place and hope it stays clean until week 8 when I photograph it for the blog. 🙂

I figured out some of the seating arrangements and rug situation. I also half figured out the planting situation, but I just need to buy a few more plants. I also need to get the right drill bit to drill some holes in a couple of the hole-less planters that I have. It’s shaping up, but I don’t have a lot of photographic proof of it just yet. Stay tuned to next week when I will hopefully have much more to share with you of this journey. Life has been so busy, this is just taking a back seat.

The ‘hidden’ fabric underneath the covers just so happened to be my favorite color palette.

While shopping at HomeGoods I found these very cute gardening gloves. I wore a hole through two fingers of my last pair, so it was time to treat myself.

Be sure to check out the other guest participants (that’s me) and featured designers.

*Brandi

Week 4 Spring ORC Mid Century Modern Lounge

house, One Room Challenge

We are now halfway through the Spring 2021 One Room Challenge. I only have 4 weeks left to complete this space!

The space that I am redoing is the carport and I am going to turn it into a mid century modern lounge vibe. The view from here is gorgeous and you see lots of wildlife around. Yesterday while working on clearing out the space, I saw the adorable fox baby who lives on our property. If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I am obsessed with the fox family and I post IG story videos of them all the time.

Yesterday we cleared out the space behind what will be the seating area. It’s a storage area where we keep the yard equipment and trash cans. It was really disorganize and full of a lot of stuff. We got a bagster, which is a large bag that you fill with trash and they come to pick it up. It’s so convenient and it feels great to get rid of so much stuff. We had old building type material behind the shed and other stuff around that is trash.

When I was taking off the cover to see the condition of the fabric beneath I realize that there was a cool fabric underneath! Look how cute it is! This fabric contains my two favorite colors, orange and turquoise. Unfortunately, the back of the fabric doesn’t have the same fabric situation so I have to recover that portion. I actually have leftover outdoor fabric that is the same exact orange shade that I used for our camper cushions. I hope I have enough to redo the backs.

I love the lines of these bamboo chairs and how the two different designs have similar curves. This space is going to be beautiful.

Chair to the right to be recovered. I need to find fabric this week!

This past week was the peak of the rhododendrons and they really put on a show. I am still on the hunt for more white planters.

We still have to move this pile of wood to the back of the house. The plan is to build a cover for it back there, eventually. We may wait until the price of wood comes down. It’s crazy right now! In the meantime, a tarp will have to do.

The light here in the evening is just so pretty. The light filters through the trees and is so peaceful. I can’t wait to chill out here.

Be sure to check out the other guest participants (that’s me) and featured designers.

*Brandi

Week Three-ORC Spring 2021-MCM Lounge

house, One Room Challenge

It’s week three already for the Spring 2021 One Room Challenge. I was away for most of last week, so there aren’t too many updates this week.

My new lighting arrived and I found a cool white side table/garden stool at HomeGoods. I also picked up a new white planter, but need to find even more of them. I may have already missed ‘planter season’ at HomeGoods. They used to have SO many.

HomeGoods table with an auction find chair

The ceilling in the carport is wood, just like the rest of the house. I will be swapping out the current lights with a similar style, but in white. I think they will pop nicely with the ceiling. I will also have white planters and I found that awesome white side table above. All of the white accents will look rad.

The entry light is a lot larger, so it will make more of an impact. I still have to find a couple of rugs and fabric to reupholster the chairs. I got an estimate for someone else to do the chairs, but it’s more than I want to spend ($800, just for labor, nor even fabric) so I will try to DIY. I found some perfect fabric, but it’s back-ordered and like $70 a yard, so my search continues.

The door will also be repainted with a color to be determined. I’ll decide what color to use after I figure out the rug and fabric.

I recently read a blog post on Emily Henderson’s blog and it was from another designer that she is working with who designs completely differently from her. While reading it, I kept thinking, that’s what I do! While Emily (and most designers) start with a plan this other designer just starts buying things he likes. That’s exactly how I design for myself. If it’s for a client, I will put together a plan, but if it’s for myself I just start looking for things that I love and it all ends up working out in the end. I think that’s why most everything I buy will work in pretty much every other room in my house.

Be sure to check out the other guest participants and the featured designers for the One Room Challenge.

*Brandi

Week Two One Room Challenge Spring 2021-Mid Century Modern Carport Lounge

house, One Room Challenge

It’s week two of the One Room Challenge. You can find my last post here.

As you read last week, the room I am decorating is our carport, which is in desperate need of a refresh. Not much has happened in the last week, but I did decide on and order new outside lights. I decided to go with white, which I may regret when I have to clean them all the time, but I think they will look fabulous. Plus I plan to spend a lot of time out there, so it’ll be easy to keep them clean.

Here is a design mood board. This area will also have a lot of plants everywhere, which will break up all of the wood and brick.

I will recover the above chairs and keep the wicker/bamboo natural. I found a matching bamboo sofa on Instagram, but it sold before they saw my reply to buy it! I was so sad, but it just means something better will come along. Or at least, that’s what I am telling myself.

Be sure to check out the other guest participants and the featured designers for the One Room Challenge. Check back next week when I will reveal more about the design plan.

If you’d like to check out my past ORCs, they are linked here: Dressing Room, Powder Room (this one was my fave), Guest Bedroom, Master Bedroom.

*Brandi

Spring 2021 One Room Challenge-Mid Century Carport Lounge

house, One Room Challenge

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you know I LOVE to participate in the fun event called the One Room Challenge. Well, it’s that time again and this time I have 8 whole weeks to redesign a room. I decided to tackle the FIRST thing you see when you come to our home, the carport.

Although it is technically a carport, we have never parked a car in here. It has become a place where junk is just accumulating. Since the past year has seen much fewer visitors due to COVID, I really didn’t care. But now that we are VACCINATED and ready to hang with people and have visitors, it’s time to re-imagine this space! It has a lot of potential and doesn’t deserve to be this ugly and junky.

It looks ok from far away, but once you get a little closer you walk into this modge podge of wood and smokers and grills and a giant ax.

The storage area should be large enough to store everything, but we just have accumulated too much stuff and need to do a serious edit and reorganizing. This area doesn’t have a light so this will be remedied.

The view from this spot is very cool and I can’t wait to be able to sit here and watch the wildlife walk by. I have seen foxes and deer from this spot, as well as the usual neighborhood cats (who will also probably enjoy this area), chipmunks and squirrels.

This wood pile will be moving to a location TBD.

This area will become a comfy lounge spot

The ideal plan is to break out the blacktop and carry the brick all the way through. That would look DOPE and we already have the brick. The problem is this will be a lot of work. The ORC has to be complete by June 25th, so this may or may not happen. Either way, it’s in my long term plan.

My design plan is slowly coming together in my head. I bought this chair online at an auction a couple of months ago to use in a design project for a client. When I saw it in person I realized it wouldn’t work. So now I get to keep it for myself.

I also picked up this set last week at the same auction (Briggs) and am picking it up today, whoohoo. I just need to recover the cushions to a fabric that is more my style.

Here is the list of things I have to do, which is subject to change at my discretion. 🙂

Reupholster chairs with new fabric (fabric TBD)
Find and add an outdoor rug
If time permits remove blacktop and add brick (huge project, time will probably not permit)
Replace light fixtures
Add lots of planters and plants
Possibly add a bar cart or bakers rack

Be sure to check out the other guest participants and the featured designers for the One Room Challenge. Check back next week when I will reveal more about the design plan.

If you’d like to check out my past ORCs, they are linked here: Dressing Room, Powder Room (this one was my fave), Guest Bedroom, Master Bedroom.

*Brandi

Dave’s Short Rib Ragu Recipe

Cooking

If you’ve been to our house for a dinner party, you may have been lucky enough to eat this divine dish. It’s rich and delicious. Everything my husband Dave makes is delicious, but this is a stand out. It was frequently the main dish of dinner parties, back when we could actually have people over! For now we will enjoy it by ourselves and you can enjoy it too. Here is the recipe for you to make at home.

onion, carrots, garlic, salt, pepper, berbs

Ingredients:

Short Ribs (1.5 -2 lbs)
Two carrots diced
One large Onion diced
Three cloves of garlic finely chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
Herbs (rosemary, thyme, parsley)
1/2 c dry red wine
1 c beef stock
1 tbsp flour
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Pasta

Directions:

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a dutch oven. If you don’t have a dutch oven, use a heavy bottom, oven proof dish. Generously rub salt and pepper on the short ribs. Add short ribs to the hot dutch oven with heated olive oil and brown all sides of the meat. Remove the meat from the pan and set it aside. You can remove some of the fat in the pan at this point if it seems like a lot. You will need enough fat in the pan for the next step, sauteing the carrots and onions.

Lower heat to medium and add onion and carrots to the dutch oven. Cook them until they are translucent, then add garlic. Cook a few minutes more. Add tomato paste and flour and stir/cook for a few more minutes. Add red wine and beef stock along with the herbs (you can tie them together or add to a cheese cloth package, so it is easy to remove at the end). Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Add the short ribs back to the dutch oven and bring to a gentle boil. Place the dutch oven in the oven and cook for around 2-3 hours.

Remove the short ribs and separate the bone from the meat (you can save the bones to make a stock). Use two forks to shred the meat and then add back to the pot.

Serve with your choice of pasta. Some of my favorite pastas with this dish include pappardelle, fusili, or rigatoni, but anything will work. We decided to make our own rigatoni.

Here are some photos of it being made. Let me know if you make it and if you have any questions.

brown all sides of the short ribs in a dutch oven

Cheers.

How to Choose Wallpaper

Design, house, Wallpaper

Do you love wallpaper, but get overwhelmed when you try to figure out how to incorporate it into your own home? It’s easy to admire it in a restaurant or someone else’s home, but taking the plunge in your own home may be daunting. I personally love bold wallpaper and have used it in my own home as well as in client’s homes. This blog post will guide you through the considerations you need to make in order to find your very own perfect wallpaper!

Before you start searching every website out there, narrow down your search by considering the following topics.

Click below for the full post.

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