A few favorite {and helpful} interior design posts of 2012

Here are a few favorite 2012 interior and design posts from around the Internet. 

We chose these five posts because they have a wealth of information to help you decorate your home.  You can also find all of these posts linked on our Pinterest board.

Pay it Forward...

It is 4:00 pm, December 26th...

It is yukky yukky yukky outside...(but my backyard sure looks pretty)

I am still in my pajamas   (lucky!)

Last minute use what you have holiday decor

Happy Holidays everyone!

I just wanted to share some beautiful pictures and a few last minute projects you can do quickly to decorate your home for the holidays.

Where it went

A few more quick stories about where some favorite Lucketts Store items ended up. 

Also, be sure to stop The Design House this weekend {Dec. 7, 8 & 9 10am-5pm}.  It's the last event of the year and the girls are having a sale on Design House items ---- 25% off all holiday decor and 15% off all other Design House items. 

Mercury glass for the holidays

We love mercury glass around all year, but especially for the holidays.

Mercury glass pairs so beautifully with greenery and adds sparkle to your mantles and holiday decor.

We're really excited about our new mercury glass finish items available online.

Here are a few favorite holiday looks with mercury glass and a sneak peek of a few of our new online mercury glass items.

Design House open & free shipping weekend online

We are thankful for all of you, our friends and customers! Free shipping online Nov. 23, 24 & 25 on EVERY order. Use the code freeship at checkout.   Tons of new items & gift ideas!!!   (http://shoplucketts.myshopify.com/)

Yes, The Old Lucketts Store & Design House are open all weekend 10am-5pm.

Advice for a milk paint first timer

We see a lot of first-timers in the shop ready to take the plunge.  No, I'm not talking about marriage proposals, I'm talking about the first box of Miss Mustard Seed milk paint.

Many have a sheepish grin, and start off with very little confidence. 

New gift ideas sure to please

Over the next two weeks, we'll be adding several new products to our online store, Shop Lucketts.

Here are a few of our new favorites that are perfect gift ideas.  They'd be really great hostess gifts too!

56 drawer cabinet before and after

Customers just love large industrial-looking pieces.  Here is a beauty we just put out on the front porch....drool! 

This lovely cabinet looks like it was used in a library or large office at one time. 

I just realized I had a picture I can share when it was literally right off the truck.

Pin It Wednesday #23 - Holiday Mantels & three new products

For Pin It Wednesdays, we like to share some pins that have made it on to our Pinterest board over the last week.

This week we're focusing on simple DIY fall and holiday mantels.

Oh, and I have a sneak peek of three new products that just landed in our online store, Shop Lucketts, at the end of the post.

Holiday Design House & already thinking about Spring {Market that is!}

When Heather wasn't helping customers or being attacked by glitter during the Holiday Open House, she was plotting the theme & decor for the 2013 Spring Market.

We also finalized the dates for the 2013 Spring Market...yes, we are already planning for and looking forward to May!  The Lucketts Store's 2013 Spring Market will be May 18 and 19th (10am-5pm) so mark your calendars now!

Holiday Open House - the line up!

We have several local vendors joining us for our Holiday Open House*.   We really wanted a farmer's market feel for this year's event, so several months back we chose a few local businesses to help carry the theme for us and offer our customers some wonderful local products.

Don't forget, Marian Parsons will be joining us Friday, November 2nd, and Saturday, November 3rd. 

Weather & store closing updates

UPDATE Tuesday, 10/30:  We will reopen Wednesday, 10/31 with business as usual {10am to 5pm}.  The Design House Holiday Open House Nov. 2, 3 & 4 is STILL ON!  Bring your rain boots, the parking lot is a little muddy.  We will ALSO open The Design House Nov. 9, 10 & 11 for customers who will have trouble reaching us Nov. 2, 3 & 4 due to the storm.
 
UPDATE Tuesday, 10/30:  We are also closed today, Tuesday, Oct. 30th due to the recent storm.  We had minimal damage.  We will reopen Wednesday, 10/31 with business as usual {10am to 5pm}.

UPDATE Monday, 10/29:  We will be closed today, Monday, October 29th due to the storm.  We will keep you updated daily about our status.  STAY SAFE EVERYONE!

Bring on the bling!

I was able to sneak in to the Design House before the storm.  While I can still tell you there is some work going on to get things ready, there was a lot of eye candy!

I fell in love with the decorated trees.

Here are a few closeups of some of the holiday bling...

Did you miss out? Well, don't!

We have a TON of new items on Shop Lucketts.   Many were featured in the October Design House and the hats will be for sale during our November Holiday Open House {Nov. 2, 3 & 4} in Leesburg. 

We get a lot of comments & questions about how to get an item if one doesn't live near Leesburg, VA, what is available online, do we ship,etc.  Our answer now, is a very proud Y-E-S we have items online for sale and Y-E-S we can ship them!   What we've tried to do with Shop Lucketts, our online store, is offer some of the items we carry at the Design House, customer favorites, and great stuff we just love, to customers who can't get to the physical shop.

Direct links to each product are under each picture.  I hope you enjoy these new items as much as we enjoyed finding them for you!   Psssst...check out the new hats!!!

Building vignettes for the Holiday Open House

Last week, we were mostly building the bones of each room; adding furniture and large accessories.

Amy had already had her pow-wow with Henry and the rooms were painted, and it was decided what each room would "be".

Now it's time to add more layers to each room and complete a few vignettes.  Come read a little more about how we do it...

Holiday Open House - Sneak Peek

Aside from great holiday decor, ornaments, and new furniture, the Design House's Holiday Open House is going to be featuring some great gift ideas.

At our November 2, 3 & 4 event, we're going to have luxurious alpaca gear, made from local alpaca farmers, as well as several new styles of hats Amy & Suzanne found earlier this year that just arrived!

Shop projects - mirror painting

As we get some new items ready to bring in to the shop, we decided to try out a few different painting techniques and see which one was faster and turned out the best.

We tried petroleum jelly, painter's tape, and free hand painting. 

Let's see how it goes...

An owl pricing party

Who says we can't make pricing owls in a cold chicken coop fun? 

Here are a few pics of Diana, Tori and Kim, pricing owls in the barn and chicken coop a few days ago as we get ready for the Holiday Open House.

Awesome surprise....we also have Marian Parsons, Miss Mustard Seed, lined up to sign books on Friday & Saturday (November 2nd & 3rd) of the Holiday Open House weekend!!!  {read on...} 

Setting the stage - painting, furniture, alpacas & donuts?

Here's my third post in a series featuring how we're getting our Design House all ready for the Holiday Open House on November 2, 3 & 4.
So I left off my last post talking about pricing owls, angels, and more owls.  Now the October Design House is over and we can actually move the plans from Amy's head to actual paint on the walls and furniture in the rooms.... 

Let the games begin!

Here's my second post in a series featuring how we're getting our Design House all ready for the Holiday Open House on November 2, 3 & 4.  

So I left off my last post talking about going to holiday buying shows in January and pricing Christmas balls in July....

Christmas is really 12 months a year

I thought it might be fun to give everybody who enjoys our insane Holiday Open House, a little insight in to how it all goes down.

First off, I feel I need to mention that this year will be our absolute shortest amount of time for our most labor intensive, time consuming Design House of the year.

After hours

Second floor of Lucketts Store before renovation.

Earlier this month, I promised a little spooky story about our building.

Once a Post Office, a general store, and a family home, The Old Lucketts Store has seen a lot in its 150+ years of existence.  This time of year, we are asked if the building has any ghosts lurking about.

I'll tell you one of the stories, and let you decide...

Valley Homes & Style Autumn 2012

A great big thank you to Katherine Cobb who wrote a wonderful article about our Design House for the Autumn 2012 issue for Valley Homes and Style!  {click here for the article}

Suzanne and Amy are featured on pages 26-30.  Awesome!  Thank you Katherine!

The next Design House is this Friday through Sunday (October 5, 6 & 7) from 10am to 5pm at 42350 Lucketts Road in Leesburg, VA.  Here are a few pics from the October Design House preview.

Makeover time!

Our beloved store is getting a makeover this week!

Since work on a 100+ year old building is never complete, we are hard at work again on the exterior of the building before the cold weather sets in.

Store to Abode Fridays #22 - Fall Entries

For Store to Abode Friday, we take inspiration or items from around The Old Lucketts Store and our Design House, and give you ideas how you can create something similar in your home.

Fall is officially here.  The days are getting cooler, and now is the perfect time to set up a vignette with pumpkins and mums for the fall.

Five minute tray and mirror makeovers

Heather and Lynn scored a bunch of old trays and candlesticks on a recent buying trip.  

With so many mismatched finishes and styles, they decided to get creative and repurpose the items.

The result was three projects that took less than 5 minutes and cost only a few dollars.

Here's how it all turned out...

Shop Lucketts - new September products

We're so excited about our newest shipment of Shop Lucketts products for September!

Out with the old and in with the new, here are a few of the exciting finds we just posted for sale online.

Shop Lucketts Survey $100 Winner!

We recently ran a contest and asked for your feedback about our online store, Shop Lucketts.

Congrats to Kerry M.who filled out a survey  and won a $100 merchandise credit for our online store!

Kerry, we've sent you an email with a special code for your discount.  Congrats!

New in the Shop this Week

I wanted to quickly share some new pieces that are in our Leesburg shop this week.

All of these items are available for purchase at The Old Lucketts Store, which is located at 42350 Lucketts Road in Leesburg, Virginia.

While I was editing these pictures last night, I realized that I was taking pictures of lots of neutrals ---- greys, off-whites and natural wood tones.  So I guess that's the theme for this week. 

Inventory Clearance & Online Store Update

Retail $65, now $45 on Shop Lucketts!

It's been a while since we gave you an update on our online store, Shop Lucketts.

It's true...we haven't mentioned much about what's going on behind the scenes as we navigate online sales, shipping & fulfillment.

Maybe because it doesn't produce pretty pictures {smile, I'm going through UPS invoices!}.  And it's honestly a little boring to write about.  But it's a necessary cog in the machine...so here goes...

Store to Abdoe Fridays #21 - Doors

source:  YoungHouseLove

It's Store to Abode Friday, where we take something we sell at The Old Lucketts Store and give you a few ideas on how to decorate with it in your home.

This week, we're featuring repurposed doors.  For all the DIYers out there, you already know that there is so much you can do with a door besides rehanging it.

Take a look...

Where it goes....now we know!

{Primitive & Proper}

Thanks to all of our creative customers who shared their photos, blog posts, and links with us on our Facebook page last week! 

Here are a few more images of items purchased at the shop and what you did with them when you got them home.

Thanks again for sharing!

Milk Paint Q&A

Marian's milk paint line is here! It's been fun hearing from everyone about how they will use the paint ---- a demilune in Mustard Seed Yellow, a child's dresser in French Enamel, vintage frames in Ironstone... to name a few.

This post is devoted to some common questions we get about Milk Paint, and yes, you can purchase it from us online now!

Pin It Wednesday #19 Antlers

For this week's Pin it Wednesday, we are featuring antlers!  That's right, antlers.  We are seeing them everywhere, and we are a big fan.  Here are a few images that we think show great examples of where to hang them!

New products, paint arrives & a huge sale!

It's been a busy week and it's only Monday!!!

And we have a few big announcements, including a big sale, and new products at The Old Lucketts Store and online!

Store to Abode Fridays # 20 - milk paint

Store to Abode Fridays is all about taking something we sell at The Old Lucketts Store or our Design House and showing you how to decorate with it.

We got word today that our supply of milk paint will be at The Old Lucketts Store on Thursday, August 30th!

Pin It Wednesday #18 Statement Art

This week on Pin it Wednesday we are featuring fun statement art.  When we say statement art, we mean anything that when you walk in the room you go "WOW!" Below are some images that we would love to see in any room:

We want your opinions!

Earlier this year, we plunged in to an online store.  Well actually, it was more like dipped our toe in to test the waters.

We had heard from customers that they wanted us to offer some items online so we started Shop Lucketts.

We really weren't sure what to expect --- the number of people that needed to be involved, the time commitment, and shipping logistics.   And then there were some things we realistically just couldn't carry.  A few months later after navigating photo shoots, building websites, designing packaging, taxes, shipping, packing & warehousing, we would really like your opinion!  How can we make things better?  What do you like?  What don't you like?

We have a few more buying trips this year and they're a perfect opportunity for us to find more goodies, so we want to hear from you.  We've created a short survey where you can lay it all out for us --- and guess what?  We're offering one $100 merchandise credit for the online store {winner is chosen by random number generator from all the surveys received}.  What a better way to spend 5 minutes of your time?

We will collect feedback for the next few weeks, or until we receive a large enough sample size. Please leave your feedback on the survey {click here}, and not as comments to this post to be entered in the giveaway.  {One survey per person, please}.  Thank you in advance for your opinions!

Store to Abode Fridays # 19 - eco-friendly decorating with twine

We're baaaaack with another Store to Abode Friday.

Today we're using materials you probably have around the house and inspiring you to make a few Eco-friendly projects.

Here is my inspiration piece from Shop Lucketts --- our new twine and scissor set.  After seeing this piece, I stared to wonder, what other crafty things could you do with the twine, aside from wrapping some newspaper...

Five great ideas after the jump...

Pin It Wednesday #17 Pendant Lights

This week we are featuring pendant lighting.  In our travels this past couple of weeks we have seen some really good ones and can't help ourselves when we go home and start pinning!

Update on the Whyte Estate

I'm sure everyone will agree it's been one long, HOT July and now August!  But we've been pushing through the heat and the progress continues slowly at the Whyte Estate.

Henry, with his relentless "can do attitude" has been plugging away at scraping, glazing and painting the exterior windows. Always with a smile on his face (seriously, I don't know how that man does it!). When I do complain about the heat and say let's take the day off, his response is "Heck no, let's get her done!". Thank god that man is on our team!

Where did they end up?

A few more pictures and stories about items you bought at The Old Lucketts Store.

We love to see what you did with our finds when you get them home.  And by the looks of this newest group of pictures, you all aren't short on inspiration and great taste!

Happy Birthday Heather!

If you have a friend or a business --- and you're lucky enough --- you may know a person like Heather.  You know, the type of person who you can always count on, the person who is up for anything, always has a kind word or words of encouragement, and the type of person who seems to know more about your inventory than you do.

In a nutshell, that's Heather.  And it's her birthday!

In honor of Heather's birthday, I wanted to recall a few of the "little things" she does around here...

A few tips for dressing windows

I was trying to think of something we haven't covered much in the blog, and also something that we get a lot of questions about --- dressing windows.

Here are a few of our favorite tips to help make the most of your windows.

Please feel free to leave us a comment with any of your favorite tips too - we love to hear from you and get your perspectives!

A few more Design House pictures

The Design House event is in full swing this weekend - August 3-5th, 10am to 5pm each day.  It's located at 42350 Lucketts Road in Leesburg, VA.

I wanted to thank Karen for posting some beautiful pics of the house on her DIY blog {here}.  Karen is mega-talented and aside from her graphics blog, The Graphics Fairy, her DIY blog has some wonderful projects written by Karen and a team of some of the best DIY bloggers around.  Her blog is a real treat and you should check it out if you haven't already.

I wanted to show a few more pics of the house...

Finally the Design House is ready.....almost!

It all started last January when Amy and I sat down to hand pick and custom design a special container specifically for the Design House.  We banter back in forth for hours in that language that we can only understand, place a gigantic order and bite our nails for months in anticipation of it's arrival.

Bringing the outdoors in

We love decorating with garden elements, classical images, and colors from nature.  Garden decor is one of the easiest ways to make your space feel connected to the outdoors when you can't physically be outside.

What are some great ways to bring the outdoors in to your space?

Check out some tips for bringing the outdoors in below, and see two items from our online store that can give you that look....oh and we put them on sale at over 25% off this week!  Woohoo!!!

August Design House - Inspiration File

Mark it down!  It's been three months in the making....our next Design House event is August 3, 4, & 5, and we can't wait! 

Hopefully, you've checked out our first stop motion video.  {It's linked here if you haven't seen it yet.}

We have loaded in the furniture and we're adding in the next layer of accessories.  While we do that, I wanted to briefly share some inspiration photos that inspired some of our furniture choices.

Stop motion video debut

We've had the idea of using stop motion videos to highlight our decorating process for quite some time now.

Finally, our first video is here and we think it's super-cute!

Check out the video for our August Design House, where we've filled the house with new looks and a container full of new furniture.