City in a Bag Blocks

I am absolutely loving these City In A Bag Blocks from MUJI!  If I had children I would definitely get these!  They even ship to the US!  They are available for many different cities including:



London

and Paris.

And the Country In A Bag which include:

Italy



and Germany!

Staircase Gallery

I think that many times staircases get overlooked in a homes' design.  Here are some that make a statement all their own!

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I love this one because of the dual purpose it serves.  Not only is it stairs, but it provides tons of storage space and makes for an interesting design element.  (Yes, there are no handrails so based on where it is and whose living in the home it might be against code to build with no handrails.)

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This one's beautiful natural materials speak for themselves!

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This stair design, at first glance is just a standard wooden staircase.  But all the risers are actually drawers!  Ingenious!  This is in my file for ideas for my own dream home!

Shawna's Stair Redesign via Homebug.  Another awesome idea!  These stairs were carpeted.  She removed the carpet, painted the treads and wallpapered the risers.  Absolutely gorgeous and such clean design!

Apartment Therapy Boston

I love painted runners on staircases.  It's a quick way to add a color accent.  Imagine how boring this home would be without that simple painted blue runner!

Ok, I have so many more awesome stairs bookmarked so I think I'll save some more for later!

**Don't forget to enter our current design challenge!  See here for details and the submission form!  There's an awesome headboard up for grabs to the winner thanks to BedroomFurniture.com!

Refurbishing old Dining Room chairs

Look at these beautiful table and chairs that Emily sent in to show us!  She purchased the drop-leaf table and four chairs on Craigslist for $100.  She stripped, sanded, painted and reupholstered the chairs.  It brings a whole new look into her apartment and looks incredible.  For more pictures of the process, click here.

It just goes to show that good design and beautiful things can be done under just about any budget.  Do you have a project that you'd like to share with us?  Send it to contactus AT freshnestdesign DOT com or click here.

Spray Painting a Wooden Chair

I've been very busy around the house with spray paint.  Everything that is wood, or metal, or ceramic has taken a hiding place in the corner for fear of getting a new color.  We just announced our 2nd design challenge and this is where some of the inspiration came from.

This project was very simple.  I sanded the entire chair down with a 100 grit sandpaper and then used Krylon Indoor/Outdoor Wood spray paint {in cherry red}.  Make sure to do this outdoors on a good day with no wind, away from the house {the smallest wind can pick up the spray paint and start decorating for you- not good}.  This paint dries in about 10 minutes so I applied a couple coats back to back.  After I let it sit overnight, I sanded it down with 320 grit sandpaper, and applied a Lacquer gloss spray paint to the chair.  I also did a couple coats of this.

Don't you think it adds a nice color pop to the room?

Go here for more details and to enter the design challenge for a chance to win a toddler bed.  For this challenge, you can change the color of anything in your house, using whatever you want.  Paint a wall, change out your pillows, hang a new picture, or frames so it adds a different feel to your room.  If you have any questions, be sure to let us know.