Ooh, La, La

I found a large wooden frame hanging up in the shop. Russ wondered when I would notice. It was left by the previous owners along with a few other cool things (such as the old door knobs), and quite a bit of not so cool things.

Color, lots of it, has been appealing to me lately. Robin's egg blue is a current favorite. So the frame got painted up and looks lovely as a focal point above my mantel. I used a foam stamp and black craft paint to create the design in the center of a white platter, hanging it in the center of the frame. Voila! (The craft paint will wash right off the platter when I'm done using it for wall decor.)The empty frame and silhouette grouping that was originally above the mantel moved into a horizontal position above the piano: I would have painted this frame, but I liked the way the wood tone ties it in with the piano. I wanted something that would fill the space above the piano to compliment the size of the black cabinet next to it. The black silhouettes also tie in the black with the wood tones.

I tied the blue star to the cabinet to break up the heavy black.

Do you see the variety of ways an empty frame can be used? It is a great decorating element to have on hand. It can make a bold color statement (and is easily repainted). Imagine a bold, glossy red! It can highlight a single wall decor item, or increase the visual size of that item. It can group items together to make a single focal point.

I'm thinking I need a collection of frames painted various colors. That would be a fun grouping in itself! Wouldn't a mass of painted empty frames hung on a large wall look awesome! (Or am I off my rocker again?)

Today's Project Heidi Challenge: Go find yourself an empty frame! I'd love to see what you come up with.

We also have a short lesson on pairing colors today. Red is a mainstay color for me because my T.V. armoir is red. I enjoy having a neutral wall as it gives me more flexibility to choose a second or third accent color.

The best way to tie in a second color is to find a pattern with both colors. A few possibilities: tablecloths, cloth napkins, throw pillows, window treatments, or fabric to cover the seats of chairs. If you find the perfect pattern on a piece of fabric, why not let it have the spotlight by using it to cover a canvas artist's frame? Scrapbook paper or wrapping paper can be used for wall art or to embellish simple white candles.

Many of these ideas can be easily changed if you choose to switch up your color choices every once in a while.

My circle collage is what I've used in my front room to tie in the red and blue:

Speaking of my armoir, this is what it currently looks like:
One of the books in my stack was a birthday gift, and I can't wait to share it with you! I'll be chatting about the statue (also a birthday gift) in an upcoming post as well. Anyone recognize her?

I'm taking a break for a couple days, but I'll check in on the comments. I promise I'll answer the chair painting questions later this next week. Have a terrific weekend, everyone!