Be My Guest

The folks are coming to visit next month so naturally we're compiling a list of things we feel like we should get finished before they arrive. Nothing like hosting to motivate you to get things done.

We have a little guest "suite" downstairs that gets a fair amount of natural light and has a small sitting area as well as a full bathroom. It's a cute little corner but it still needs some personality.

Deep in a closet there is a box of things that moved with me from my old house that still haven't found a place to live on these walls. This was my first stop and I came up with enough items to adorn this space.

I laid everything out on the floor in a configuration I liked and then because my fall-back style of guessing, hammering, and realizing the position was wrong would have made for a far less interesting story, I busted out my newspaper, scissors, and tape.

After I had cut out shapes for each of my pieces and placed them on the wall the first time I decided the grouping was a little high and a little too far to the left than I wanted.

My next placement was better, pulling everything down a little closer to the chair and over to the right as well as spacing some of them apart a little more. 

Comfortable with this arrangement I went ahead and began hanging, starting with the center top piece (the portrait of our adorable pooch, Xia) and working my way out.

This was the placement that I had been trying for but the black print in the dark frame dragged the whole arrangement down, so I tried an old mirror that was hanging on an opposite wall.

This had the desired effect of brightening up that corner but it felt a little too bright since every other piece had at least a little black in it. Plus I liked the mirror on the wall going into the bathroom better than in a corner.

So I sacrificed a white frame I had and tried for the black horse print again.

Better - the look of the black image in a white frame is a fun contrast to the lighter images in the black frames - but I'm not sure I'm sold. It's great for now because it's 1. Done and 2. Didn't cost me anything. Now to remember to put a battery in that clock. 

Do you have a corner in your home that needs a little love? What are your plans for it? Are you trying to do it on a budget or is it something you've been saving for?