Artist Spotlight: Beth Allen

Beth Allen is a talented artist and friend who lives here in Arizona in a historic ranch style home with her husband and young five children. Six years ago, Beth and her husband bought their home and have been tackling projects as a family ever since. Beth's home is filled with color and character, and speaks so much to Beth as an artist and person. I'm so glad she agreed to let us share some of the special corners of her home and studio here!

Beth loves art and pieces in her home that are special, that feel like they tell a story. She is an avid thrifter (a kindred spirit!) and her favorite thing to hunt for is vintage paint by number paintings. Beth's secret for decorating with kids in mind is all about thinking outside of the box. Like, she loves using vintage trunks and luggage for a storage boxes, and she loves framing her kids artwork. She also likes to let her her children help with her home projects, so they feel connected with and ownership over their family spaces.

Beth is an artist and her husband is an amazing baker! He owns Proof Bread and makes some of the most delicious baked goods I've ever tasted. Some of the goods are baked at home, so their house always smells like heaven! I'm on Whole30 right now, so I can't even drive by their place. ;) Arizona friends, you can buy Proof breads and croissants at the Phoenix Flea and Gilbert Farmer's Market every weekend. Run! They often sell out fast.

I asked Beth about how she likes to shop for art for her home. She recommends shopping for a mix of masculine and feminine, vintage and modern. She likes buying and supporting other local artists that she's met at the markets she sold at. She also loves to support other up and coming artists on Society 6. She often buys art that is totally different than the style she paints.

Beth works in the sweetest little studio on their property. Though she loves watercolor, her favorite medium is oil and her favorite thing to paint is portraits and still life.

You can find Beth's work in her shop and on Society 6. And don't miss out - Every Friday she sells a original mini-painting on her Instagram feed!

Thank you to Breanne Johnson of Red Poppy Photo for taking these beautiful photographs!  If you would like to share an artist to spotlight on LGN, email us! 

Five More Minutes: Midweek Hosting

Nothing helps me get my house in shape faster than when guests are headed over! We are going to be traveling a lot in June and the thought of my house sitters seeing my majorly blah bathroom was such a bummer! Something had to be done, and fast.

Happily, Target Style invited me to shop their new spring collection from Threshold and Nate Berkus. Hello, dream job! They believe (and so do I!) that with just five more minutes of attention and the addition of just a few cool, what I call top-layer pieces, even the most boring space can become a showpiece room that you'll be so excited to share with your guests!

Remember what my bathroom looked like when we moved in? Baby blue walls, weird vanity, dark baskets that shed everywhere, and absolutely nowhere to hang towels!

I painted the walls Benjamin Moore's Classic Gray (one of my very favorite colors!) and changed out the baskets, which helped for sure. But I knew the room could look a million times better and be much more functional with a top layer of cool accessories.

I planted a really hardy succulent in this great Nate Berkus bowl for on top of the shelving. Every room needs a little bit of greenery - even a bathroom! That oversized basket that we're using as a laundry hamper is new from Nate Berkus, too.

We added six of these wooden hooks to the walls for robes and towels. I love the warmth that the wood tones bring in! And I'm obsessed with the white bath sheets and the adorable black and white towels with fringe.

I eventually want to replace the mosaic pendant light with something more permanent, but for now I hung a white paper lantern right over the top of the old pendant.

One of my very favorite additions to the bathroom was hanging these Threshold mirrors on top of my outdated sheet glass mirror. It only took a minute to put these up with a few large-sized picture hanging strips. I love the dimension they add!

There are some fabulous gold and brass toned accessories at Target right now that I just couldn't resist, especially this glass jewelry box. I love to have a pretty place to stash my wedding rings at night before bed. And that pencil holder works perfectly as a make-up brush organizer! 

And how sweet is the gold shaving mirror? I'm obsessed with the design - it is solid and looks so beautiful in person!

Those mint and navy turkish towels were on clearance and they look so cute with my green glass oil can soap dispensers (a long-time favorite of mine!). And I think the Moroccan-inspired bath mats are just the right pop of pattern in here.

But the pink stool! She's the hero of my additions! I can't tell you how much joy that little stool brings me. I tucked her in to that little vanity spot and it was like the whole room came alive, just like that! And suddenly I've gone from embarrassed to excited to show this room to our house guests! It's so much better, right?

Target Links: gold and ivory bowl (planter)  //  oversized basket  //  wood hooks  //  white bath sheets  //  black and white fringe towels  //  wall mirrors  //  shaving mirror  //  brass organizer  //  oil can soap dispensers  //  marble canister  //  glass jewelry box  //  pink ottoman  //  Moroccan bath rugs

Other Links: baskets, bins under the sink, accordian mirrors, white lantern

PS Check out Smitten Studio to see how Sarah transformed her outdoor entertaining space with just five more minutes!

This post is brought to you by Target Style. Shop the new Home collection in stores and online.

Canopy Beds Of the Non-Princess Variety

It's so embarrassing to admit it here, but we've been sleeping on two twin mattresses pushed together with a king-sized feather topper - for the last two years. YIKES! It was meant to only be a temporary thing right after we moved, but here we are! Honestly, it wasn't a big deal and that's why we let it go for so long. But the time has arrived and a real king-sized mattress is coming our way this month (yay!!). The sort-of bummer is the bed I made for the Domino shoot is too short for a true king-sized mattress. We're giving that frame away to someone who wants it, and you know me - I'm just as happy to have an excuse to start fresh, so no big deal! 

I've started looking around for a new frame and I can't get the idea of a canopy bed out of my mind. We have really high ceilings in our bedroom and I think a canopy would fill the vertical space so perfectly!

image

Some of you might be thinking canopy bed = fussy princess bed. To which I say, WRONG! So wrong. It can be that, but check out how completely modern canopy beds feel in these eclectic spaces:

image

image

image

image

image

image

image

image

image

There are SO many great online options for canopy beds since the last time I checked. There are a range of prices here below, but some are only about $350 for a King! Crazy talk, right there. 

1  //  2  //  3  //  4

1  //  2  //  3  //  4

1  //  2  //  3  //  4

Did I miss any canopy beds that you love? I am getting pretty stoked about the idea for our room...