design

Spruce Your Space with Tuesday Morning

DSC_0477.jpg

This post is sponsored by Tuesday Morning but all opinions are my own

If you’ve followed me a while, you’ve probably noticed that a lot of my posts are about social gatherings and us hosting our loved ones. ‘Gather’ is the word that was our family’s word before it became popular ;) When we lived downtown in a rougher part of town, we stood by that one word and hosted as often as we could. The neighborhood boys would often be on our porch, swinging with me on our swing. We would help them with homework, pass out ice cream sandwiches, and enjoyed every second of loving the people around us. This is our third spring in our new home (I can’t believe it’s been that long!) and what we love most about THIS house, is the natural light + the back deck. We have had so much fun turning our deck into a regular hosting space, and with the help of Tuesday Morning, I feel as though we’ve made it even better and brighter! Last summer I felt as though I couldn’t find the right pops of color accessory wise, so when we went browsing through our nearest Tuesday Morning, they did not disappoint. All the textures and patterns make me so happy and also make me feel like way less of the boring person I often feel that I am ;) (We’ve talked about my wardrobe struggles, right?)

Whether it is to come outside after the kids are in bed to just breathe in the quiet and coolness of the air, or to have our Sunday lunches with friends and family—the deck has become my sanctuary at home. Something else that we picked up from Tuesday Morning were some new flower pots. Asa loves to garden and does an amazing job. I am the flower lady, and no joke, weekly will get fresh flowers to have around our house. I also love to have potted flowers though, and find a lot of joy in pruning and watering during the spring and summers. These pots are so beautiful, and add to the different textures spread out around our back deck.

I think it can be really easy to forget the spaces that exist in our home, even when we walk by them or through them every day. Tuesday Morning really made revamping our deck possible, and I can’t encourage you, my readers, enough to do the same! The transformation that this deck has seen has been incredible. When we moved in, obviously nothing was out here. Piece by piece we’ve added to it, discovering our personal style and what we really love along the way. For me, it’s cozy blankets and pillows that I can curl up on/under with a good book or while talking to a friend. For my husband, it’s having the space with enough chairs and seating to host as many people as we can. (His love language legit, is hospitality.) We have been really impressed with the savings we received while shopping at Tuesday Morning, as well as the uniqueness in items that we found.

Have you ever been to YOUR local Tuesday Morning?? Click here to find your closest store, and I would hurry, while summer is on the horizon, because availability is limited and you want to make sure you find THE best items that woos YOUR heart and soul. Whether Asa and I sit at that colorful round table drinking coffee on the weekends or are curled up together on that chaise lounge, we are SO impressed with how Tuesday Morning helped us tie everything we’ve purchased together. Revamp your forgotten spaces, Friends. Do something for you, bring your favorite people into your space, and let Tuesday Morning help!

Working with Havertys: Our New Living Room!

Gaaahhhh! I can't even believe this is real life, y'all! The time has come and I am SO pumped to show you this post. Havertys Furniture has literally been a dream to work with, and it is thanks to them that our new living room is as gorgeous as it is. There was a LOT of time and effort in making this happen, and if you missed the shopping post, you may want to jet back and read that.

 December will mark my husband and I's ninth year of marriage. We have been really blessed to have some beautiful second hand pieces, but this is the first time we've been able to design a room AND fill it with coordinating furniture at the same time. For the last couple of years I have dreamt of owning a blue couch. I'm not exactly sure why? And trust me, a lot of people ask, ha! I think it may have been some design ladies I follow on Instagram that sparked the idea in me? But really, from the old raggedy brown sectional that has suffered through five pets and two kids, I mainly knew I wanted something brighter and more classic [and more appealing to photograph, duh.]

DSC_7761.jpg

Ta DA! There's our new living room! Okay, okay you know I'm kidding. Not funny? It's been a long day, y'all. Anyway, that couch has served us very well over the last MANY years, but let's face it: its' squeaky springs and slunk in seating just really isn't ideal for hosting company [or for a main living space period.] The minute we walked into this house, we knew we wanted the sectional to go upstairs in the GIANT third bedroom [aka, our new family room.] The console felt WAY too small for the grand living room wall, and speaking of the wall; IT made our 50-inch TV feel TINY. The rug is just old, and while I think it's still beautiful, I've really wanted something that blended with the space better.  

Havertys was really gracious to send their H designer Macey over TO our house, and she helped us set things up. I said it in the last post, but Macey seriously is such a gem. AND she has a beautiful eye for design! [If you're local and go the Hurstbourne location, ask for her!]

1.jpg

I told another H designer recently that this space has made me feel like a grownup. My friends have all asked, "Do you love your new furniture?" and I tell everyone that frankly, I just can't believe it's all OURS.

SEE THE BLUE COUCH!?!?!? When the delivery guys brought it, I almost cried. Legit. Speaking of, I wish I had THOSE photos to show you; the ones of everything being delivered and arranged? I TOOK them, but made a huge mistake and formatted the card without backing them up. Huge nightmare for a professional photographer and while I did everything to try to get them back, I'm out of luck. You'll just have to take my word for it that Havertys delivery team is as great as all the other departments! Friendly, professional, protective of our home and the furniture pieces, and FAST. 

The console is one of my favorite pieces, it is elegant and classy, and I LOVE the classic distressed white finish because it goes so well with the house. We went with the matching cocktail table, and one of the things we appreciate the most is all the newfound storage that is had with both pieces. I had no idea that having matching furniture would feel SO good, but oh my goodness, guys...my heart! 

Obviously the pets (much like our kids) aren't having a difficult time adjusting to the new furniture, but don't get me started on that...I swear Sammy [the fat black cat in the swivel chair] watched the delivery guys the entire time and then went all manic mode sprinting from piece to piece when they left! No way, Jose! I'm determined to keep these beauties at that--BEAUTIFUL! But from time to time I do allow him to take a cat nap there ;) Our old golden girl Elsa loves the plush rug as much as we do, never in my life have I stepped on a more comfortable area rug.

I have now spent all of my nights editing my photos and writing blog posts from this gorgeous velvet sofa, or else you can find me in the giant overstuffed chair you also see in above photos. We moved to this house at the end of July and it's safe to say that it finally feels like HOME SWEET HOME. 

Thank you so much, Havertys Furniture, for taking care of us and making our furniture dreams come true. Really though, it goes above the furniture aspect for me...this was a team of people who GRACIOUSLY handled my mistakes and mishaps, who laughed with me, planned with me, and who got things DONE. A lot of people have had questions about the types of companies I work with and what I feature here on this blog. Guys, I won't try to sell you something that I don't believe in, and I mean that. And it's because of great companies like this one that I get to DO what I do. 

If you have any questions about items that you see here, don't hesitate to ask! And let's all give Havertys some love in the comments below and tell them how amazing they are! 

Working with Havertys: Let the Shopping Begin!

35.jpg

The time has finally come! I get to share my incredible experience with Havertys and I'm starting with the basics--SHOPPING! I have a LOT of positive things to say, so I guess lucky for me, (and y'all!) I will be spreading these Havertys Furniture posts out throughout the course of the month. Really guys, I am so pumped to share this with you today, I have been itching to show you all the pictures and to tell you just how in love with this brand I honest to God am. 

We moved into our brand new house this past July, and there is quite a bit of extra space here (thank you, Lord!) One of the perks and selling features, was that there is a large bonus room on the second floor, and we knew the second we walked in that we wanted to use it as the family room. Our [very old] sectional would fit perfect, and it would function both as a family room and my office, very much a win win for this mama! Well, if we moved all our furniture, then we would be left with absolutely NOTHING in the main living room, which is a wonderful great room on the first floor. I decided to take a leap and send my look book to Havertys, in an effort to partner with them to help decorate our new house. I have always been a huge fan of their furniture, and I really wanted new pieces that would not only LOOK amazing, but last for a long time. 

As you can imagine, when I began to hear back and the e-mails began to trickle in, I was ELATED. We brainstormed what this would look like, had several phone conferences, and through this all, I have met THE best women (and people!) within Havertys. After hanging up from our first phone call, I said to my husband, "Okay, I love them all already."

Okay though, let's get to the fun [for you] stuff, shall we? The first part of this process was to go TO our local Havertys to get an idea of what we wanted design and comfort wise. My husband came with me, and we had a great Saturday morning shopping and planning. 

34.jpg

The H Designer, Macey, met us there, as well as the store manager. They were so kind to allow us to come a little bit before their doors officially opened, and I can't sing high enough praises about how helpful they were. Right away, I clicked with Macey; she was genuine, funny, and knew WAY more than we did about all things furniture. We had to figure out what was the most practical for us, since we do have two very young kids and FIVE pets, and she was the perfect help. 

Macey talked us through which fabrics would clean the easiest, and described the differences between styles of furniture; such as contemporary, modern, mid-century, etc. One of my design dreams has been to have a navy blue sofa, so she had a few different samples pulled for us based on what I had told the ladies at Havertys. We went and sat on numerous sofas, and I realized as much as I LOVE mid-century modern, a sofa such as that is really not practical for our family at this time. We wanted a sofa that is extra comfortable--you know the type, one where we could spend Saturday mornings lounging on, and one that would not be too difficult to clean. 

Havertys helped with putting together a look book for us, based on the design of our living room, and thank God for that because honestly I didn't really know where to begin prior to all of this. We picked the sofa pretty quickly; all that would need to be changed was the color of fabric [Can you tell based on any of this what color or style I chose? Wink, wink!] We gave some dimensions to Macey and she helped us choose two arm chairs based on the size of those numbers. It was so cool to watch her work and tweak things in her software--and it was especially cool knowing that it was OUR living room she was helping design!! 

One of my non-negotiable's design wise, was creating a living space where the TV was NOT above the fireplace. The way our house was built, it's very obvious that the TV was 'supposed' to go above the mantle, but both my husband and I agreed that wasn't what we wanted. It was a little tricky to configure the space where a console would be against the wall, but Macey made it happen! After we had all of our pieces picked out, the last thing we needed to do was choose colors and fabrics. It was so much looking at all the different swatches, and even MORE fun when I found one that would compliment the pillows I previously bought (that I was kind of building the rest of colors around!) 

It feels incredibly surreal to sit back and think about the many different pieces that went into making all of this a possibility. Coordinating between the local store manager, H designer, childcare on our end so we didn't have our rugrats running ramped through this very nice store, the e-mails, phone calls, gah! There has been SO much poured into making this dream a reality, and I really can't thank Havertys enough. Louisville and surrounding areas, if you haven't yet BEEN to the store on Hurstbourne, you need to change that. They have furniture pieces for every single person, and beautiful sets for all your home needs. And if you didn't know, there are over 120 retail stores throughout sixteen states, and you can ALWAYS purchase online. 

So many of my friends have told me that they have something from Havertys, and whenever I told someone that we were working with them, the feedback was always positive. "Oh I LOVE their furniture!" was the most common response I had, and seriously, I couldn't agree more. 

**If you want to see what we chose, you will just have to stay tuned! There will be another blog post SOON announcing the big reveal, and even after that, I don't think I will ever be quiet about the goodness of this company. And I would love to hear from y'all--what is your dream furniture piece? Anyone else obsessed with bold sofa colors these days?! Leave a comment below and give Havertys some love! And to my friends AT Havertys, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for working with me and helping my design dreams come true!**

Feels Like Home: Master Bedroom Progress

Well, we're here! Apparently I'm really good at writing posts and then taking long breaks, but we've had a pretty good excuse. We are all moved in and settled at our brand new home, and with as many questions as I've had for our master bedroom and furniture and decor used, I thought now was the perfect time to share with y'all. 

I loved our bedroom in our first home. It had three giant windows that overlooked a beautiful park, and the natural light was to die for. The first thing that I noticed when we walked through our new home, was that the master was beige. It's not that beige is bad [it's not!] it's just that it isn't me. I take a LOT of lifestyle photography in our bedroom, as well as boudoir, and I'm trusted by a lot of people and clients to use the space to produce great photos. So, the day after we moved in, our trusty painter came early in the morning and got started. He used Sherwin William's Snowbound, and three coats later, it looks exactly as I had dreamt it would. 

ashleyglass.net Lifestyle Blog

I wouldn't call the room 'complete' by any means. But it's at a great point that I can show you what we've done thus far, and I'll continue to update you as time goes on. High on my next must have, are matching and modern lamps. The one on the left is an antique Aladdin lamp that my dad has had since he was in his twenties; the one on the right is my great grandmothers. Both are beautiful, but I think they could be used elsewhere in the home (once we get new ones). 

The photo above was taken shortly after our Golden Elsa was home from minor surgery. She had a wart and small tumor removed (ouch!) and she was so tired, I decided not to finish making the entire bed. Ha, I'm a sucker for these fur kids. Anyway. Let me show you some more! 

We had a house warming party this weekend (yesterday!) and so many people said, "You bought a new dresser" when they walked in our bedroom. Nope!! We didn't. We've had this dresser our entire marriage, it's been in my husband's family forever. Before we moved out of our first home, he said, "What if we painted it with the exterior paint that's here?" At first I was skeptical, first of all, the paint was pretty old (probably a big no no in professionals worlds?) but I am thrilled with how it turned out. We purchased new knobs from Lowe's, and their finish is just beautiful.

The round mirror is something that I have wanted for years. Thank God for Instagram and the saving ability; I have had SO many photos saved of this mirror and as soon as the bedroom was painted, the rest of the room just started to flow. It's a Target find, of course, and I went to two different stores across town just to get it. It's currently 5% off now and you can get it online, so for all you who've asked, grab yours quick! 

 The I Choose You print is completely custom and from Dear Lily Mae. The quote is near and dear to my heart, and means a lot to my husband and I. We have it tattooed on our arms, so having it over our bed just made perfect sense. 

The curtains we actually switched with Reese, they used to be in her old room. I love how the gray and white simple design goes with the space. The bedding currently on the bed is from Boll and Branch, by far one of the greatest companies I've been blessed to partner with. The duvet is so soft, (Elsa clearly agrees) and we love using it.

Currently the room is simple, yet elegant, which is exactly how I had envisioned. I think there's some room to tweak and re-arrange, and over time we may get some accent chairs for some extra sitting space. Every day I wake up and open the curtains and my heart is so happy. My husband hung a hummingbird feeder and bird feeder on the deck which is right outside one of the windows, so often while I get ready I see my new bird friends enjoying their treats. It feels like home, and I feel abundantly blessed. 

**Thanks for following along, y'all! If you have any other questions, feel free to shoot me an email or leave a comment in the space below! Happy designing!**