Classic Home in Historic Minden

This beautiful 1940's classic home is located on the historic tree lined streets of Minden. This charming home includes an updated kitchen with granite countertops, updated bathrooms, central A/C , new furnace, new attic vents and whole house fan. Entertain guests, or savor quiet time on the large deck surrounded by gorgeous gardens and mature trees, all designed by a master gardener. Hardwood floors, tumbled marble, built-in cabinets, french doors and cozy gas fireplace all contribute to the quaintness.

For the full listing, click HERE.

#DesignTipTuesday - Upcycling Furniture with Brown Bear Design & Associates

We love using up-cycled furniture throughout the shop and when someone asks for our recommendation on where to purchase paint and supplies or where to have items painted, we send them to the experts at Brown Bear Designs and Associates. Heather, owner of Brown Bear walks us through how to bring a old piece of furniture back to life.

“Up-cycling life worn furniture, pieces that don’t coordinate with your design style, furniture that is old, tired, decades past its prime....this is our wheel house.  This furniture was built to last and we use that to your advantage.

We feel that up-cycling life worn furniture is a huge privilege.  We get an opportunity to refresh pieces and yet they still retain memories of a lifetime.  The selection of furniture is deeply personal.  Whether you come by your furniture second hand or purchase it right off the showroom floor it should reflect you.  These pieces should be comfortable, they should be welcoming, they should be sturdy, and be beautiful.  Our parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles carefully chose furniture that would last and it has.  As these pieces cycle into our lives today we deliberate what are we going to do with them.  They have finishes that have long since seen better days, life happens on our furniture, but that doesn’t mean these pieces are no longer worth saving. 

From start to finish

The desk shown above is such a piece.  It belonged to the same family for four generations and was a part of a bedroom suite.  Our client was looking for a desk for her new associate, and this piece immediately came to mind.  It has beautiful lines and would look lovely in the reception area.  The initial idea was that it had to be pretty from the back too as it was going to be in a window space.  We use a matte finish paint by Jolie Paint, which means we don’t sand or prime.  Once a piece is cleaned, we get our paint on.  We always use two coats of paint. In this case, we added some transfers by Iron Orchid Designs and then we topped it with Clear Finishing Wax.  The front of the desk was cleaned up using Howard’s Restor-a-Finish.  We touched up the decorative drawer fronts, the pulls and handles, and around the desk top with gold Gilding Wax.  The end result is a tale of two looks and they coordinate so beautifully with the reception area feel.  It’s a space that is airy, bright and very inviting.

Color ... which one to choose

Jolie Paint has 42 magical colors in a can...that said we have recipes for more than 300 different colors. Plus, add four different Finishing Waxes and a world of color variation is yours to choose from. 

The hardest question to answer is, what color makes your heart soar, skip a beat, makes your world light up when you see it.  Once we get past “I only have earth tones in my home,” there really isn’t a color that doesn’t coordinate with or accent or make a statement with an established color pallet.  Oh, don’t get me wrong… there are always certain colors that play better with some than others.  But, take a look around when you’re outside.  Trust me, Mother Nature is full of glorious coordinated color.      

Did someone say white!?!

There are so many tonal whites...a selection of white is still a color choice.  There are blue whites, brown whites, grey whites, pink whites, yellow whites, green whites...well you can see where I’m going.  If white works for you, fantastic!  We used a transfer by Iron Orchid Designs to add a bit of interest to this secretary.  Again, it was the right size and scale for the space.  The extra storage was a huge plus, too. 

The moral of our story is ... they don’t make furniture like this anymore.  Older furniture can be up-cycled and made to fit your design style to live again.”

Brown Bear Designs and Associates up-cycles furniture that is long past it's prime or that needs a little pick-me-up. They offer local Jolie Paint™️ and Iron Orchid Designs Stockist to help up-cycle and repurpose life worn furniture. Looking for that perfect table or dresser to complete your home? They have it - they offer select furniture consignment, too!

They are in the shop painting and creating. Give them a call at 775-781-1853 and pop on by for a painting workshop. Not a big painter, drop off your furniture for a custom up-cycle.

Brown Bear Designs offers 42 colors of Jolie Paint and they have a wide selection of Iron Orchid Designs Transfers, stamps and moulds in stock. Plus, they offer Paint Play workshops for you to learn hands-on about different colors and finishes.

Brown Bear Designs and Associates

1492 US-395 #103, Gardnerville, NV 89410

(775) 781-1853

The Coziest Time of the Year

If there’s one word that describes the fall season, it’s cozy and I love being cozy.

And, today’s blog is about creating all of the cozy fall feels in your home. Here’s what you need:

My #1 favorite thing? PILLOWS!!! Marilyn Monroe said diamonds are a girls best friend but I don’t think she gave pillows a chance. Doris Day knew all about pillows though, she even sang a song about them (“Pillow Talk”). That’s my girl!

Back to the point... Pillows make everything cozier! I prefer down-filled pillows so you can refluff them. Poly-filled pillows can get out of whack if you sit on them or they can be too stiff. Not down-filled, they are our cozy winner. The other thing I love about pillows is they are an easy, quick and relatively inexpensive way to instantly change the look of a room. So load up on pillows to start your cozy fall journey off right.

A pillows best friend is the throw blanket. A throw blanket’s personality might be slightly more timid than the pillow but that’s OK, they are a great compliment to each other. I typically have a throw blanket or two on each end of the couch. I also always have backups standing by, just in case there’s more of a chill in the air than anticipated. Throw blankets aren’t just used on couches. Lately, I’ve been using them as a table runner too, for some surprise style and texture. I love this throw because of the fringed detail on the bottom and I especially love the color (we also have it available in a beautiful green).

Cozy means warm colors, beautiful textures and the overall feeling of comfort taking over your home. I know I personally look forward to this transition each year. Just like the leaves turning color on the trees in September, colors in the house change too. A few years ago, I found these awesome metal leaves and I love bringing them out every year. This is part of the Meredith collection so you won’t see these in the shop but don’t fret, we have loads of wonderful fall decor for you to choose from.

Now that it’s getting darker earlier, my recommendation for a cozy night in involves turning on your favorite Pandora radio station or putting on your favorite fall movie. When fall transcends on us, I can’t help but think of “You’ve Got Mail”. Anyone else know the quote about the bouquet of freshly sharpened pencils? Every year, I make sure to have a bundle somewhere in the house to signify the change of the season. I just love that movie! While the movie is on, light your new fall candle (raise your hand if you got one of our oh-so-popular Milkhouse Candles over the weekend), and hunker in to do a puzzle. I love sitting among the pillows, sipping on my favorite tea (Cup of Cheer from my friend Jody at Fresh Ideas) and admiring the glow of the fireplace.

I’ve got all the cozy feels writing this… Pearl’s ready to get cozy, how about you?

Sanctuary in the Foothills of Lake Tahoe

This one-of-a-kind sanctuary is located in the foothills of Lake Tahoe in the beautiful Carson Valley. Set behind the gated community of Sierra Country Estates, this secluded fully remodelled residence provides security gates of its own and sits on over 95 acres. One of the most private and tranquil properties in northern Nevada with year round creek funnels into a stunning pond below the main residence that is surrounded by lush landscaping and beautiful wildflowers. There is over 4200 sq ft of living space designed for entertaining. The kitchen is a chefs dream with top of the line kitchenmaid appliances, a 60" executive range, multiple ovens, oversized refrigerator, cooling drawers and a large butchers block island. The master suite is situated at the far end of the residence providing privacy, insane views, its own deck and a massive bathroom with walk in closet. This horse friendly property with outstanding water rights features almost 20 acres of meadows below the main residence, a tennis court and access hiking trials right out the back door.

For the full listing, click HERE.

September Signature Cookie - Pumpkin Cookies

These soft, thick, and delicious Pumpkin Cookies slathered in scrumptious icing are the perfect September Signature Cookie for you to enjoy before you head over to Eddy Street’s Fall on the Farm Sale! We tried them and ate the whole batch!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup (2 sticks butter), softened

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

• 1 eggs

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1 cup canned pumpkin

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

  Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1/2 cup 1 stick unsalted butter, softened

• 8 oz cream cheese softened

• 3 cups powdered sugar

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

• To make the cookies: Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Cover a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 1 minute. Add sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice and beat until well combined. Add egg and 1 vanilla and beat well then add pumpkin and beat until combined. Add flour and beat on medium speed until completely incorporated. The dough will be wet.

• Drop dough by heaping tablespoon a few inches apart on prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until tops are set and no longer look wet. Allow to cool on cookie sheet for a few minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

• To make the cream cheese frosting: In a large bowl, beat together butter and cream cheese until smooth with no lumps. Sift in the powdered sugar and add vanilla. Beat until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Once cookies are cool, frost with cream cheese frosting. Serve immediately or keep in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Recipe courtesy of: chelseasmessyapron.com