Heart and Home is Fresh For Spring !

Hello everyone. Thanks for visiting! If you're here for Transformation Thursday, I hope you'll take a look around, and then go read my Wednesday Gratitude post from yesterday (scroll down or go here). It's a little thank you note to all of you! Also, remember to leave me a comment.  I read each one and  love to know who came visiting!

Do you have Spring Fever?  I do! I get it every year. I start feeling restless, and I want to mix things up a little. It helps motivate me to get some things done around here!  So, I'll be celebrating Spring all month long, and showing you different projects as I complete them. Last week I switched things around in the living room, to freshen up for the sunnier days ahead. This is what the room looked like for most of the winter:

I had thick, soft tapestry covers on the pillows, lots of warm throws, and a wool rug thrown on for extra warmth and color. With a fire burning the room felt very cozy on cold days.

When we turned the clocks forward I knew it was time to renew and refresh! I threw the windows open, let the fresh breezes in, and got busy! I like to change the color scheme of the room with just the quick switch of a few slipcovers and accessories. I made these white and blue pillow slipcovers a few years ago. I bring them out every year when winter has ended. I popped them on every pillow I could find, and then plumped them up so they would be nice and comfy. They're all down filled, so they are soft! 

Here's the room in a very minimal Blue and White (well, mostly white!):

The new slipcovered chair is working out great! It's really comfortable, and a great spot to put up my feet to read and relax. I brought in an extra lamp, and moved the little triangle, three legged table to this side of the room.

I removed the throw rug and some of the accessories too, just to make it feel a little lighter and brighter in here. There's a  wicker "butler's tray" on a stand next to the sofa, that holds books and the lamp. I use the stand as a side table, since there's no butler in sight around here, unfortunately! It was used as the "coffee table" in here for a long time, until I moved the trunk in.

The white metal tray corrals some of my favorite magazines. I have to recycle pilesof them every couple of months, or the house would be taken over by them. It's bad enough to have stacks of books everywhere! But that problem will soon be taken care of with my next project...stay tuned!

All the little tweaks add up to a subtle change,  just enough to feel "Springy" in here! We don't live a "fancy" life, so this is not a fancy room - all the light colored slipcovers on the loveseat and chairs go in the wash and can be bleached, feet go up on the trunk, the dog and cats sit on the furniture. This room (like every room in our home) is filled with mementos, books, candles - things we love.  

We gather in here to sit and talk, or play games, or to eat dessert after big family dinners. The steps down into the room are a great place to sit when we have extra people over! I like to use all the rooms in my house, and I try not to worry too much about things getting messed up! Because we do live here, after all. For us, this works!

Awhile back, I cut a few branches from the downed Japanese Maples (more about that disaster, here!), and put them into a tall vase. They were just bare branches, I didn't know if I could force any growth but thought they might bud eventually. I thought I'd bring some Spring inside!

Look what happened after two weeks:

Spring growth! Pretty little maple leaves and blossoms, the final blooming of this tree! The vase sitting in front of the fireplace makes it look less dark and cold. Like the daffodils in vases in different rooms of my home, those green leaves make me smile every time I walk by. Do you have any special things you like to do to your decor to bring Spring in?

Have a great day, blog friends! I hope you'll come back soon for another visit. Why don't you join Heart and Home for Wednesday Gratitude sometime? I would love to have you at the party.

Until next time,

XO

Heidi

Go check out these other fun blogs! I'm linking to Transformation Thursday at  Shabby Chic Cottage, Thrifty Thursday at Tales from Bloggeriteville, Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home, Beautiful Life Friday at The Inspired Room and Finer Things Friday at Amy's Finer Things.  I'm such a party-hopper!! Thank you one and all, ladies!