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Happy Easter weekend everyone!  Is it starting to feel like Spring where you live yet?  It always takes our area a bit to catch up, but that doesn't mean that I am ignoring my urges to bring a little bit of the season indoors.

Not only is spring influencing my color choices as of late, it is also inspiring me to check a few unfinished rooms and projects off of my To Do list.  I always feel like I have 101 projects in the works or in the wings and that type of chaos tends to get a little overwhelming.  Because my husband works outside of the home, a lot of what we do is completely based on the time we have and what we are able to build into our nightly schedule.  One day we may have thirty minutes to tackle something small in the studio and the next we may have three hours to go after a project in the laundry room.  I have become custom to working in this way, but unfortunately, it has gotten a little out of control.  We have project supplies purchased for our utility room {still not done six months later}, our laundry room, our living room and our studio.  I am aiming to take a month off of starting anything new and focusing on one area at a time to just finish the areas nagging on us the most.  This week was our dressing room.


Earlier this week I shared the biggest piece of the dressing room project, which was adding in a few storage towers with shelves and drawers for our extra accessories.  I also grew my jewelry board with a fun coral addition; which consisted of pairing a bed sheet with a stencil and cork board.

After living with the coral for a few days, I knew it was the right move.  Bold, but happy and fresh and exactly what I was aiming for in my windowless sanctuary.

We use our dressing room multiple times per day, not only for getting ready each day, but also for doing any exercise, stretching and treadmill running.  We also use it at the end of our day to prepare for bed.  I have always wanted to create a sanctuary that greets me with a smile each morning, as it is the first thing I see when I open my eyes and the first room I enter to begin my day.  I am a believer that your surroundings impact your attitude and mood, so I am excited to finally be putting a few more details into the space.

I initially purchased a coral flat bed sheet after seeing the new Threshold stools at Target.  The stools totally made my heart race, but there was no need for me to purchase them when I had two perfectly useful x-base stools already sitting in the center of our dressing room at home.  So, I set out to recover them in the same color as the inspiration stools, using a twin sized flat sheet.  The sheet covered both stools as well as the cork board I shared earlier this week. 

I shared our initial stool reupholster project back here, and we essentially followed the same steps.  We removed the scarf {which held up surprisingly well over the last year given that it was never upholstery material}, and pulled the sheet tightly around the bench cushion.  We secured the sheet with our staple gun, giving each staple an extra tap with the hammer to be sure everything was nice and secure. 


The bottom of the stool already had pre-drilled holes for the tufted buttons.  But the original blue buttons were not going to cut it with this new color scheme, so I set out to create new white buttons with the help of a kit.


Once the buttons were created out of some scrap white fabric, we tufted those stools and it was awesome.


The next project was to create a chalkboard to track our weekly exercise plan.  A place to jot down our running sessions and routines and the results of any time spent on our workouts.

I started with a frame found at a local thrift store, and gave the glass five coats of chalkboard paint.


I also painted the decorative frame with some flat white paint.  Once the chalkboard paint was dry, we used an oil based Sharpie paint pen to create the lines for the tracker.  We followed our previous chalkboard calendar tutorial here.


The letters on the calendar were created out of some gold foil with my Silhouette die cutting machine.

The final fun project we did was finally get around to hanging a print I purchased back in October {that totally seems to be how things roll around here}, as well as a decorative hook.  The hook was placed near my wardrobe as a place for me to hang outfit selections.


I have been living with a stand in table for a few months while I used my vanity in my studio, however, I had enough of that and brought it back in where it belonged.  For a hot second, our entire dressing room looked magical!


And a view from our bedroom....


With all of the airy and spring like colors being used, I tossed in a few black accents to keep it all a bit balanced.  I totally heart it!


We just hung the new chalkboard workout log yesterday afternoon and you can imagine I am giddy excited for Sunday to roll around so I can begin using it!  The hubby and I are about to get competitive, so this will be a perfect place to track some {fingers crossed} results.  More on our exercise corner here.

The vanity is happy to be home.


I topped it with a coral vase filled with one of my favorite blooms, as well as a candle, glass of amazing gold makeup brushes {gifted to me from a very dear friend} and a small lamp for added lighting.


You can see how I organize my makeup here.  And how I tackled the interior of my wardrobe closet here and here.


It was so fun to see what a few simple additions could do for our space.  One coral corkboard, a set of coral stools {made from a bed sheet}, a framed print paired with a decorative hook hook topped off with our black and white striped throw and boom!




I was asked in the last post if my space always looks this tidy and the honest answer is no. I love having good systems in place, but we have piles of laundry and bedding and personal items out and about at any given time.  I try to tidy up once per week or if company is coming, but just like the rest of our home, the space is loved and used. 

How is spring inspiring you lately?  Any new colors being used or projects being done with a nod to the seasonal change? 

Part of my goal in 2014 is to find more balance, and part of that means placing an effort on taking better care of myself.  Things like a better sleep schedule, a better daily routine, making time to eat better throughout the day and having the ability to step away from the computer to get in a quick workout.  This past year I found that I was at my best when I would toss on my workout clothes and go for a quick run.  Outside.  But the winter months don't allow for me to do that, and I find myself spending more time on the computer and snacking than getting active.  Not a great combo.

We purchased a treadmill years ago, and it is something you don't see make an appearance on the blog all that often because 1) it doesn't get used as much as it should and 2) it is ugly.

It once lived in our laundry room, and once we re-designed the dressing area off of our bedroom, it moved into a corner there.


I hate to say, it was doing a better job holding piles of things I need to deal with, my accessories and handbags and even clothing and hangers.  Oh, and collecting dust.  Not a very inspiring space to step away and get a quick run in.


The front of the treadmill hid the rest of our gear.  Clearly, it needs a good cleaning and a little lovin'.


My goal was to give this little corner a quick refresh to inspire me to use it more frequently, and easily access the workout items.  I also wanted to bring in some items to make it even more effective and easy to use when the mood strikes, and also for cleaning up when we are done.  Heck, I may be inspired to even create a workout routine and schedule when all is said and done, but one thing at a time.

Part of the problem with this area is that everything is tossed on the floor and becomes dusty and messy.  After a bit of measuring, I realized I had enough room to bring in a narrow bookcase to get items off of the floor and make them simple to use and access.

A quick run to our local Target and $20 later, and we had a cheapy white bookcase.  Doing what I can to keep this room looking pretty {it is my secret little getaway space}, we decided to give the bookcase a little extra attention.  We started by lining the back with some leftover wallpaper from this bookcase project, and building a cap for the top.  The cap was designed out of some inexpensive poplar wood from Home Depot.


The cap was essentially a way to make the bookcase seem a bit more substantial and to give the top a finished effect.  It would also make it a smidge stronger and hide and wear and tear from shoes and equipment being placed on top.  By nailing a few pieces of trim around the front three edges of the poplar board, and giving it a quick coat of stain leftover from past projects, we successfully brought the bookcase from cheap to chic in minutes. 


And it just slides on, so it is not a permanent update, but one that we think will stay.



Here is a better view of the area after the bookcase was assembled and everything was put back in place.




I placed the heavier dumbbell weights at the bottom, since that is where there is the most support and the shelf is less likely to sag.


The next shelves hold some more standard gear, such as the medicine ball, yoga brick, resistance bands and back care kit.



Another shelf holds our water bottles, my headband, fitness magazines with workout ideas and cleaning wipes to help us keep things a bit tidier in-between uses.


The upper shelf has been installed and used for a few years now.  It is from Ikea, and when installed upside-down, it is the perfect place to store our mats off of the ground.  This is one solution that has rocked since the beginning for us!


To hold my iPad during a quick run or down on the floor while stretching, I use an acrylic plate stand.  I have been using this for years and love it; it works great at my desk as well.


The small white dish holds our treadmill key.  Keeping it there is a safety feature to prevent the littles from hopping at in a moments notice.  We also decided to keep it unplugged in-between uses for the same reason.


I added an adorable small basket {also from Target} to hold extra towels for those really intense runs {the kind that have me screaming for help and wobbling off of the treadmill after a good ten minutes}.


And that completes the tour!




I also like to store my workout clothing in their own drawer in my wardrobe as well.  That way they are always simple to find.


This little update sure put a fire in me to want to run inside and make better use of that little corner of ours.  I always say I feel more productive in a neat and orderly environment, and this is definitely no exception to that rule.

As far as a routine goes, I sort of just do what I have time for and what I feel like I want to focus on for the day.  My goal is 15-30 minutes of some sort of exercise Monday - Friday, just to break up the hours of sitting I do on the computer, but any tips and suggestions from those of you who have mastered this already would be sincerely appreciated.

So how about you?  How do you keep your fitness nook organized and inspiring?  Any essentials that you have found make for a smoother workout?