Living Room Update | Modern Lighting

I’m so excited about new living room update. Over the past year I’ve been making a little tweaks here and there to my living room. It all kicked off when Hasani and I added built-in bookcases to our living room which was an amazing addition.

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The bookcase brought in much needed hidden and vertical storage and helped make our small 1950’s living room feel larger.

One thing I wasn’t loving is how off the our drum shade was looking and feeling in our living room. Over the years the drum shade had accumulated a layer of dust making it look yellow and no matter how I tried to clean it, in the above picture you can see how off the light was looking.

The light fixture was killing the entire vibe of my living room. I began my search a few months ago, looking for something that would be more sculptural and lean towards mid century modern, but feel modern. Check out this recent post for modern lighting ideas for the living room.

I’m a huge fan of layered lighting in living rooms to help set the mood, in our living room we have a central light, recessed lights and lamps. The more lighting options I have the better! I’m so in love with our new light fixture, it has a modern glam vibe and looks so stunning our living room.

The lamp looks high-end without the sticker stock. Friends, are you sitting down, I found this amazing light fixture on Amazon for under $ 105.00 bucks! The Grammercy Light comes in a few different finishes and glass glob styles and down-rod extensions.

Since this light fixture is hanging our living room and we have standard 8 ft ceilings, we opted to use one six inch down-rod to keep the light fixture close to the ceiling.

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The light looks so include and was easy to install, however this light does require a little assembly and the right light bulbs. Attached the globes on to the light fixture can be a little tricky so they’re glass and you want to make extra careful. But ones you get one glob on the light, the following ones go fast.

I’m a big fan of even lighting especially in living rooms, I don’t like crazy shadows. The frosted globe lights provide nice even lighting. The light fixture is bright, so use a dimmer! Honestly all the lights in your bedroom, dining room and living rooms should be a on a dimmer! Our center light is on a dimmer switch so we can easily control the brightness.

My least favorite thing is light bulb shopping, its a nightmare! And light bulbs are so expensive now, its crazy! For this light bulbs, I used LED Dimmable Light Bulbs (LED Dimmable are a must, yes they cost more) I’ll update this blog post with the exact light bulb we used to save you the trouble of going to 3 different stores like I had to find the right size light bulbs!

In addition to adding the light, I wanted to add a ceiling medallion to give some oomph to the light fixture and add dimension. I went with a white 16 inch medallion, that looks so good! I still need to caulk around the light fixture so everything lays nice and smooth. That’s tonight’s DIY Project!

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SHOP THE LOOK

Check out my recent blog post for more modern lighting ideas for living room, here. I’m loving this light and how pretty it looks in our living room, it makes me so happy!

What do you think of our new light fixture and do you also finding shopping for light bulbs to be a nightmare?

Create Impact with Tile in Small Spaces

I recently took a tour of Natural Stone Design Gallery in Sacramento and was blown away with all their handcrafted tile options they have to make your spaces truly stunning. I’ve partnered with Natural Stone Design Gallery to showcase ideas on how you can create impact with tile in small spaces. Their beautiful showroom is located in Sacramento, CA and filled with exclusive handmade tile options including handmade ceramic tile, imported Italian marble tile, Mosaic tiles, cement tiles and much more.

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When visiting Natural Stone Design Gallery, I would recommend making an appointment to meet with one of their onsite designers to discuss your project. Bring inspiration pictures and be ready to be blown away with all their tile options and colorways. Their designers will walk you through the design process helping you select the right tile for your space.

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Natural Stone Design Gallery carries many exclusive brands, a few of my favorites tiles were from Sonoma Tilemakers, made in Sonoma, California. Their tiles are amazing and came in so many colors. I also loved the tile options from Walker Zanger.

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Below is a small sampling of some of the tiles I love from Natural Stone Design Gallery, all the tiles shared come in various colorways.

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Tile Information // ONE Stellar Isla Stone Blue TWO 6Th Avenue Fog Glass 2 inch Hex THREE Stellar Boka Leaf Quicksilver FOUR Stellar Laurel Color Mist FIVE Stellar Chevy Lefi Stone Blue SIX Stellar Penthouse (Crackle Glaze) SEVEN 6th Avenue French Clay

In addition to tile, Natural Stone Design Gallery they also have a stone yard. Guys, I was in heaven! Lovely Marble Slabs for days in both polished and honed, Quartzite Slabs, Granite Slabs. They also have Quartz Counter top options. If you have a small project be sure and visit the stone yard for remnants priced at steep discounts.

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Remnants pieces in the stone yard

This month Natural Stone Design Gallery is hosting a Tile Design & Trends CEU Workshops for Designers. The event is on October 17, 2018 and connects local designers with leading tile industry specialists, sharing future design trends for tile. For more information on the event and visit NSDGallery.com/ceu-workshop

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HOW TO CREATE IMPACT IN SMALL SPACES WITH TILE

I love how selecting the right tile in a small space can make a room come alive by adding color, pattern and the good drama. Small spaces make it budget friendly to splurge on handcrafted tile.

KITCHEN IDEAS // In kitchens, create a pretty focal point above your stove with a tile mosaic pattern back splash, or a tile pattern design above the stove. For me subway tile is a classic forever tile, using glazed crackle subway is a great way to add a timeless look in your kitchen and elevates the look of subway tile.

image via Driven by Decor and Pinterest (no direct link given)

BATHROOM IDEAS // Small bathrooms are a great for adding a big punch of style with tile. In a shower add a niche inset and use splurge on a pretty pattern tile. I also love the idea of adding a marble slab in a shower niche, talk about stunning!

images via Designer Drains and Decor Pad

LAUNDRY ROOMS // Add a fun element with patterned tile flooring in a laundry room, or use wood-look tile laid in a chevron pattern on the floor.

images via

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What are some of your favorite ideas to add impact in a small space with tile?