Pinch Pleat Curtains for the Bedroom.

I haven't always liked the look of pinch pleats. In fact in our last house I really wanted to have exposed rods with tab curtains (and I did). But after looking through some old decorating books and again at the fabulous Retro Renovation website I decided that pinch pleats were the only way to go. Luckily I had kept the double rods that came with the house (original pinch pleats were donated to goodwill), so I was able to put them back up. It was a good thing I kept them since our windows are really long and it's almost impossible to find rods without going custom.

My Mom and I looked up pinch pleats on the internet and we weren't able to find the instructions I needed (though I'm sure they are out there I'm just impatient). But then she remembered that I had some of grandma Harriet's sewing books in her basement (also an excuse for me to get some of my stuff out of her house). And of course I found great instructions in Better Homes and Gardens Sewing Book. Originally published in 1961 this book is a great guide for sewing and pattern making. I love the tag line too : Custom sewing made easy, Money-saving sewing ideas. So practical! In chapter 18 Sewing for Home I found the instructions I needed. I bought the pleater tape I needed at Fabricland and found the pleating hooks discounted at Walmart. I bought all the inventory since Walmart was closing it's sewing department down (which I view as some sort of sign that people are become less practical but that's a different rant). The fabric I got at the Lethbridge Sewing Center. The ladies at the sewing center are so helpful and nice, and they helped me determine how much fabric I would need to be able to match up the repeating motif. I chose to use a fabric called Lotus from the Amy Butler line. Behind the valance I hung ready made drapes from Ikea.

This is view of our bed with the window above. The bedspread and headboard are both from Ikea

Here is a close up view of the valance.

I decided to hang white curtains behind the valance after seein a similar style on Mad Men in Anna Draper's house in California. I really liked the sets that depicted her house, I think it was in Bakersfield? I could be wrong. Next up I will be making a set of pinch pleats for the kitchen and also a valance for the Living Room.

Heavy Goose or Dolphin?

Paint color names always crack me up. At one point when I was working at the ACAD library, my coworker and I looked up how a person gets the job of naming colors. Turns out it involves a marketing degree. It would be a pretty cool job.

I decided to go with subtle grey tones on the walls of this house. After checking out this super cool website Retro Renovation. I stumbled upon a post about mid century colors done by California Paints. California paints has a 20th century pallet with authentic period colors. Including the 1930's-40's, which would be a good resource for another gal I know who just bought a house, Stephanie I'm talking to you!

I started to look for colors that were close to Modern White, Organic White, Post War White, Conservative and War Weary. Because we don't have California Paints in the bustling metropolis of Lethbridge, Alberta, I looked for similar's at Home Depot. Instead of buying the gallons and then changing my mind later, causing the vein in Bill's head to pop out, I planned ahead and bought samples! Responsible!

*Please excuse the terrible quality of the photo, my camera is in a box so all my pictures are taken with my iPhone.

We ended up choosing the first (Silver Drop) and second (Heavy Goose) colors (going left from right). They are the closest to Post War White and Organic White. The third color which I loved in the sample and the one that is closest to Conservative, looks really flesh toned with the warm wood, and really grosses me out. And Bill nixed the last one since it was too dark for his liking.

We chose Behr's-Silver Drop for the living room and hallway.

And Martha Stewart's-Heavy Goose for the Bedrooms.

It's difficult to tell the difference on the computer screen but Heavy Goose is a darker cooler grey, while Silver Drop is lighter and warmer.

Here is a pic of the bedroom wall (I've purposefully cropped it so you can't see our bedroom, Bill and I are living like the Bouvier Beale's right now). Done in the Heavy Goose.

And a pic of the office done in the same.

Once it is on the Martha Stewart paint line looks nice, but I would not purchase the brand again. The coverage is not great and it's kind of gummy. I have a bit of sanding to do in a few areas. However I really like the the Martha Stewart palette and the chips are true to color and laid out nicely. If the paint formula was better I would be all over this brand. But won't use it again. I might just get the chips color matched into another formula.

Here is our living room in Behr's Silver Drop in a matte finish. The Home Depot guy was hesitant to give me a matte finish as you have to let it cure at least a month before you wash the walls. I assured him I would restrain myself from washing the walls for July.