neighbors

The love and war between Texas and Oklahoma dates back to the early 1900s. It's a rivalry as old as College Football. And while there is no love lost between the two states during the annual Red River Rivalry, during times such as these, Oklahoma is undoubtedly, our beloved neighbor.

We've made the short trip across it's border countless times, to visit friends and explore. I wish we were with those friends now. My heart aches for the communities, neighborhoods, and families impacted by this devastating storm, and my thoughts and prayers are with them.

via

{How to Help}

Make a donation to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief fund, or give blood at a local branch. 

Text "redcross" to 90999 to donate $10 to American Red Cross Disaster Relief.

Family pets and animals are also severely impacted. Donate to the Central Oklahoma Humane Society.

The Salvation Army and Oklahoma Disaster Relief are delivering food and disaster response to victims and are accepting financial help.

Text STORM to 80888 to contribute $10 to the Salvation Army’s relief efforts.

{Dining Room} Pink! There It Is!

You guys didn't disappoint when I offered up our Dining Room wall color to your vote, and I can't thank you enough for your great feedback! After a family vote, and a Pinterest consultation, we went with my original plan, but gave it a kick in the pants!

 

Oh yes, we did!! We painted the walls pink and the ceiling red! If you've read this blog for more than a week, then you know we are not afraid of color (hello, navy bathroom and green door!). And, in this instance, all we had to lose was the cost of two gallons of paint. The Dining Room had come a long way (see before shots here), but it lacked energy, and that little something-something special.

Now there's no putting this baby in a corner.

The room positively glows, and the ceiling adds the unexpected touch I love in a room, not to mention, a big dose of energy.

I could marry this ceiling, I love it so much. The red (Sherwin-Williams 'Showstopper' in flat finish) is the perfect masculine counterpoint to the pink, and keeps the room from being prissy, or too sweet. What I didn't anticipate, though, is how much pinker and more intense it would make the walls.

  

First, the painter rolled the pink walls (Sherwin-Williams 'Verbena' in satin finish), and it matched the paint strip exactly. We clapped, and patted ourselves on the back for choosing the perfect sophisticated, barely-there, pale pink. (By 'we,' I mean me.)

But after the red went on the ceiling (only needed two coats...Sherwin-Williams paint gives the best coverage!), I walked in and literally gasped. First at how much I loved the red. Then at how much pinker the walls had become. I think it's absolutely gorgeous, but it's not exactly the subtle pink I was going for. I'll live with it awhile before making any decisions, but right now I'm a little nervous. And funny enough, Mr. Sugarplum and our son LOVE the whole combination...and want the pink to stay as-is!

I love how the red ceiling ties to the Entrance Hall rug, and all the red accents throughout the Dining and Living Rooms.

Yikes! Those yellow undertones in the Entrance Hall need painting, fo sho.

And the pink ties in with the Living Room bookshelves and rug. See, there was sort of a method to my madness!

The blacks and golds look more bold and glamorous now, and the wood tones even richer. The room positively glows...like you're sitting inside a shell, or a genie lamp.

The wall color intensity changes, depending on the light and time of day. Sometimes I love it more than Fritos. Other times, I'm not so sure.

 

But there's no denying the impact two gallons of paint made on the room!

This fancy Dining Room makeover is almost complete! What do you think?!   

(Check out all the handy Sherwin-Williams Color Selection Tools that can help you with your home makeover.)

Dining Room List

(click on each link to see the project)

Moodboard Plans

Attempt to Makeover Existing Chandelier

Replace the Chairs

Replace Chandelier

First Round of Sideboard Lamps

DIY Gold-Lined Lampshades

New Drapes

New Wall Color

Brighter Rug

Address Knob Situation on Sideboard

What to do with the Piano?

Repair Piano Leg

Piano Bench Makeover

Replace Lampshade on Piano

Wall Art?

For a chance to win a $100 Sherwin-Williams gift card, let us know what you think about this makeover, or what room you would like to make over in your home!

No duplicate comments.

You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

1. Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
2. Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: "#SweepstakesEntry"; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
3. Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
4. For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 5/20/2013-6/10/2013.

Be sure to visit the Sherwin-Williams brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

The Friday Five

I think it's safe to say that warm temperatures are here to stay! This is my very favorite time of year in Texas, while it's warm enough to enjoy the perpetual sunshine, but not so hot that you seek shelter in the air-conditioning. The impending Summer season is a big influence for today's Friday Five.

1) My girl, Chassity, declares the Sam Edelman Gigi as the perfect sandal. I've seen them on countless celebrities, and I've heard they are super comfortable and hold up well season after season, so I'd have to agree. I'm cuckoo for the Zebra & Gold combination.

Zebra & Gold | Black | Citrine & Cork 

Tangerine |  Snake & Leopard | Leopard

But Target just released a Sam & Libby version that looks reeeeeallly similar. They are only $25, so for the same price as one pair of Sam Edelman's, I could get two pairs of these. Hmmmmm. They're only available online, so I haven't tried them on. Have you seen them in person?

Leopard & Black | Snake & Pink
Aqua & Tan | Citrine & Cork

2) How gorgeous is this banquette? Well done, World Market!

3) I mentioned getting a Clarisonic Mia for Mother's Day, and loved hearing how passionate so many of you are about yours! I've only been using it for a week, but I'm already totally obsessed hooked. I did a lot of research and shopped around before pulling the trigger, and am really happy with this one on Amazon for under $100.

4) I'm super excited to be participating in Pottery Barn's latest Mystery Box Challenge! It's a "friendly competition" (please, they have no idea how competitive I am!) between five bloggers to create a 'Summer Sips Cocktail Party'. I posted this image on InstaGram (@cassiesugarplum) this week to announce it, and I think some people thought I was going on a Pottery Barn shopping spree!

The challenge is each of the five bloggers received the same mystery shipment, and Pottery Barn's Facebook fans will vote on who creates the best set-up with those items. We were also gifted with $50 for supplies. I'm so excited I can hardly wait tear open these boxes...the whole thing goes live next month, so I'll be sure to keep you in the loop. I'm not too proud to beg for your votes!

5) I'm thrilled to welcome Design Your Dwelling as Hi Sugarplum's newest sponsor! Beth creates custom mood boards for any room in your house, each including furniture, color scheme, lighting, flooring, window treatments and accessories. Along with the Design Board, you'll receive a full shopping list and instructions for any DIY projects. That's serious bang for your buck! She also offers 'Quick Fixes' for your design questions and dilemmas for only $25. 

Thanks to sponsors like Beth for providing us with some project funding! The DIYs would be pretty sparse around here without it. Happy weekend, lovebugs!

Preparing for Houseguests

Hey, hey, hey! We've been busy organizing the garage the last few weekends, but with Summer break just around the corner, we'll be welcoming house guests soon, so I spruced up our spare room, too. I can't really call it a Guest Room, since it's more of a dumping ground. You know the kind of room I mean...that one you keep the door closed and pretend it's not straight out of an episode of Hoarders. Please tell me you have one of those?!?

The peeps at Command gave me further incentive to clear a walking path in the room. They challenged me to use their new products to create a welcoming space for guests.

After shoving everything in the closet cleaning up the clutter, I made an organized place for overnight guests to put their things. We want them to feel as comfortable in our home as they do their own

Living out of a suitcase is no fun, and neither is forgetting your toothbrush! I stocked little pails with all the essentials, and hung them from Command Brand Terrace Hooks. Guests can grab the whole pail, or just what they need, and head to the bathroom.