La-La-La-Lighting

Who would've thought that of all the decisions we faced during our home build, that lighting would be the MOST difficult part? (Okay, maybe the marble decision was a tad harder but this is a close second).

I'm not sure exactly what it is. The fact that lighting can be trendy and go out of style quickly? That it can get really expensive and I'm incredibly indecisive? All of the above. I'm also not looovving any lighting out there. Nothing knocks my socks off and makes me think "I gotta have it". Not having that feeling, and needing to spend mucho denaro anyways, is a bummer.

I'm also completely confused about which metals I can use in an open space without looking clashy. I have never been a matchy-matchy decorator, but can I pull off black for the entry light, chrome and glass for the island pendants, and brushed gold for the dining room? In our great room, you will be able to see our pendants, dining room fixture, stairwell pendant, and a peek of the entry if you stand in the middle of the room. So what's a girl who doesn't want to match but doesn't want to clash to do?

Despite my lack of passionate love for lighting at the moment, I have compiled some that I like enough to consider.

This brushed gold chandy from Capitol Lighting (initially spotted on Joss and Main) is my top contender for the dining room. It's the only one I actually really kinda like. But does it play nice with the other options? Black/ORB in the entry and chrome glass pendants over the island? AND I just checked and it's now on sale at just $299 and it was over $450 the last time I checked. I think I have to order it! At that price, I will happily replace it if we ever go to sell and the lighting is too specific to my tastes and not the general public.

I also really love the lines of this one from Lamps Plus, but not loving the colour, so a major spray paint job would be involved. The lines also play well with my top dining room contender, so this could work in the stairwell in the great room (we have 18 ft vaulted ceilings and we need a large pendant that will be halfway up the stairs that will be visible from both living room/kitchen/dining room). It's only $299 so maybe not a big deal to spray it?

While not my favourite light in the existence of all lighting, this Capitol lighting could work because it's from the same family as the dining room, and it substantial enough to go in such a large space. What are your thoughts? And it's $410 which is pretty good compared to the $1K plus options I've been looking at.

This is what I'm loving for the island. It's from Shades of Light. Simple, clean, classic. But again, can I do chrome (actually this is polished nickel) and brushed gold in the same space? Or do I need to match them? Help! We are doing two pendants over the island instead of three so I cna't go for the mini pendants out there or they won't be to scale.

Have you ever had to pick out a bunch of lighting at one time, and do have any insight for me? I consider myself fairly well versed in what works and what doesn't for home decor, but I'm really stumped on this one!

How to Make a Faux- Marble Table Top with No Cuts, Thinset or Grout

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words... and other times a picture doesn't tell the whole story.

Let's take this photo for example.

I bet you by looking at it, you would never guess that the top looks like.... that.

The horror! It's pretty bad, I know. This Danish modern sideboard was a $40 craigslist find, and was refinished long before I discovered blogs and paint tutorials. We literally thought all we had to do was sand and paint. So that is what we did. In retrospect, it really needed a good layer or two of Killz primer, because this baby bled like a red sock in white laundry.

I literally applied TEN coats of paint in an effort to make it white, and not blotchy orangey white, and the result has been an ever tacky surface that dings and dents like nobodies business. I try covering it with loads of accessories, but that just makes it look cluttered. A few days ago, I just had enough, and decided to do something about it.

You know how most projects take way longer than anticipated and cost way more than budgeted for? Well, this was not one of those projects. In fact, it was the opposite. Because I was determined to not have to make any cuts in the tile, my search was narrowed to finding tile only 12 by 18 ". Since the table is 5 feet long, and 17.5 inches deep, five tiles would give me perfect coverage with a slight overhang.

I went in looking for marble. Obviously. Who doesn't like marble? But... Home Depot only had 12 by 12 bianca marble tiles and that just wouldn't do. Plus, I found the patterns very inconsistent and some very grey and veiny, and the purpose of this tile job was for it to blend as much as possible and look like a solid piece, and not look blatantly tiled. I think that the marble tiles they had were the rejects of the quarry, and that all the nice pretty white marble went to go live as a massive slab on someone's island.

So after a few minutes of pouting I let go of my marbled top idea... and then I saw it.

From afar, it looked like perfect white marble with just the right amount of grey veining. Mostly white and incredibly consistent. In a 12 by 18. As I made my way over to view this godsend, it hit me. This wasn't marble. Not even close. It's porcelain tile. It's porcelain tile that looks like marble. Shucks!  I almost walked away, and then I shrugged. Hey, it's better than what I've got now, right? It's the perfect size. It's super cheap. Ya. Why not? Let's just go for it.

And so I did. Determined not to use thinset or grout, I devised a plan. I used a tile setting mat and since there would only be 4 seams to fill, I would caulk it instead.

After cutting the sticky mat to size, I carefully spaced and lined up my table top. I wish there was a tutorial, but it was so stinkin' easy it's not even worth it. Peel and stick the mats, place tiles on top spaced evenly, caulk the grout lines. Caulk a couple more times to fully fill the space. Voila!

I would be lying if I said it was the dreamiest of projects I've ever done. I like the result. I like it boatloads more than before. And for a $50 makeover, I'm happy as pie! But one day.... one day... I will cover that baby with a big ol slab. That said, it certainly isn't bad for an interim solution!