What do you gift the person who has everything? Or what is the MOST personal thing you can give someone in a scientific sense? Or how can you indulge the most egotistical person on your list? Or if you need an excuse to go all CSI and try to lift some DNA without their knowledge…

DNA11 has been known for their awesomely beautiful artworks that are made from your DNA! You send in a sample, pick a color scheme, and *poof* wall art that’s so YOU! I mean i can’t help wondering what someone can extrapolate from your DNA or fingerprint hanging on your wall… someday will they clone you based on your art?

They started with the DNA Portraits a few years back, which are the wall prints… then came the Fingerprint Portraits - you print yourself until you make the perfect one… then there were Kiss Potraits , where you “Apply the provided M.A.C VIVA Glam lipstick.”, and send them the perfect pucker… and freshly launched, there are now MINI DNA Potraits in beautiful desktop ready glass frames!

This is my favorite of five blue-glass pieces that I inherited from my late Granny Hamilton. You can find pieces exactly like this in almost any antique store, and although at first I didn’t think it fit my style, I find that the unique color adds just the right amount of eclecticism that I like to my home. Plus it reminds me of her, of the many summers we’d visit her house and she’d still have the Christmas tree up in July. Do all Grannies do that?

I found this at my favorite local antique shop, The Green Ant, and the moment I saw it I thought, yeah, we’ll be taking that home, thank you very much. It plugs into the wall and keeps the correct time, except my correct time is much different than the world’s correct time, meaning that the clock in the kitchen must be two minutes slow, while the clock in the bathroom must be five minutes fast. This one I’ve to set ten minutes fast, don’t ask me why because I don’t think I could explain it. It’s just the way it has to be for me to live my life, and now you can understand why Jon is rapidly losing his hairline.

But we’ve been left with one big problem: big, open walls.

Since we’re nearing the end of our decorating budget, I’m looking for ways to fill the wall space quickly in a way that makes a big impact visually, but not financially. Here are some things I’m planning on implementing. If you have more big ideas, share them in the comments.

Fabric Wall Art

Being the crafty gal that I am, I can’t resist the idea of displaying large panels of fabric throughout my house. It’s a fast way to create unique, beautiful decorations. CRAFT has a great video podcast that walks you through all the how-tos.

Wallpaper Panel Art

Sweet Jessie used vintage wallpaper remnants to create this dramatic and fun wall panel.

Fun With Stencils

With a little paint and the Stencil 101 book by Ed Roth, you can quickly add repeated visual interest to your walls. Roth’s designs are cool and edgy, and the book comes with tons of precut stencils, ready for you to use in every room of your house

Whether you decide to go with fabric, paper, paint or all three - don’t be afraid to make a big statement in your big spaces. What other ideas do you have for a big impact in your home decor? Leave them in the comments.

Last year for Christmas I asked Jon for these plates, told him exactly which shelf they were on at Anthropologie, and explained that if he decided to get me socks instead he could just go ahead and cut my heart right out of my chest because IT WOULD BE THE SAME THING. I take my Koi decor very seriously.

Ok, add this to that “omg, why didn’t i think of that?” list ~ Solar Lanterns! Such a perfect mix of traditional classic lantern designs infused with a tiny bit of oh so obvious technology ~ solar panel, light detector, and two tiny (but super bright!) LEDs. Basically the same technology as the Sun/Moon Jars and all those solar walkway lights you see everywhere these days…… only its hanging from your trees or patio!

Really it makes such perfect sense, i had to buy one to see how the lighting looked at night ~ after all, LED coloration can vary so greatly, and you never know how the shadows will turn out with these unknown fabrics. I purchased the Soji Silk Effects Square Lantern in Slate and its absolutely gorgeous both in the day and at night. The slight sheen of the silk-like material on the bamboo ribbing gives the lantern that extra little sparkle that makes it dance in the light of the sun, and create perfect mood setting shadows at night.

They also come in other colors as well as tear drop shape for the silk effects, and there are smaller classic spherical lanterns, but those are in flat colors (no subtle sheen what so ever), so they don’t look nearly as fun in the day time. In addition to the previous links, they are also available here.

Lovely, aren’t they? They are approximately the size of poker chips. With winter coming on, I’ve begun to question the wisdom of owning three sets of coasters, none of which is big enough to support a mug.

I’ve been poking around Etsy trying to resolve the situation, and here’s what I found:

Felt Coasters

$40 from Olive Brown

Red and White Star Coasters

$20 from Umbellifier

Concrete Coasters

$18 from G Design

Felted Wool Coasters with Bowl

$76 from Papaver Vert

Matryoshka Doll Coasters

$18 from The Sea Within

Blackboard Magnetic Coasters

$22 from Purpose Design

Here are some options for fun mobiles that would work in just about any room in your house. Read through them - if you can think of another place you’d like to hang a mobile, or if you have an idea for a clever kind of mobile to hang in a particular room in the house, leave a comment below.

This Felt Ball mobile from munchstuff on Etsy is simple and gorgeous. I love that it’s modern looking, but also soft and textural.

If you want to go super-modern, you can check out this Purple Modern Art Mobile from Deb Mobiles on Etsy. It’s streamlined and crisp - it doesn’t get any more modern than this.

For a mobile that mixes harsh lines and whimsy, check out this monochromatic airplane model mobile that Telstar Logistics posted over on Dinosaurs & Robots. This is one I’m hoping to try myself.

While technically a wind chime, I still think these charming pieces of silverware and crystal would be a fun way to bring some sparkle into your kitchen. (from Decadence Designs on Etsy)

And don’t think that all mobiles have to be cutesy or overly tame. This pin up silhouette mobil from SaltyandSweet on Etsy is subtly scandalous. I love it!

If you’re looking to make your own mobile, check out this tutorial from CraftStylish on how to make your own felted bird mobile.

Finally, one of my all-time favorite mobiles is one a friend of mine made more than a decade ago for her college apartment kitchen. I don’t have a photograph, but it was a fabulous “fruit basket turnover” mobile. She suspended a fruit basket from the ceiling (upside down, of course) and then hung several pieces of faux fruit from fishing line under the basket. It was so unexpected and fun, and always made me smile. I wish I had a picture of it.

So where else would you like to hang a mobile in your house? Any fun ideas for mobiles (along the lines of the fruit basket turnover mobile) you’d like to share in the comments?

Think anyone would buy it? Probably not on a cattle ranch. Cattle ranches, as everyone knows, aren’t very groovy.

I don’t know how to buy furniture. I’ve never really had to outfit a house all at once as we’re having to do with The Lodge. Aside from being a little overwhelming from a financial perspective, it’s also intimidating to think the decisions I’ll make over the next couple of weeks—what I’ve deemed the “furniture buying weeks”—will be with us for a long, long time. The last thing I want to do is go on a big splurge over a two-week period…and regret half of my decisions later.

So I’ve decided to make The Lodge very, very sparse, at least for now. And when I say sparse, I mean it: in the bedrooms, beds. Maybe a nightstand. In the dining room, a long dining table with benches. In the living room, comfortable sofas and enough end tables to allow guests to set down a drink. Maybe a lamp here and there for light. And that’s it, I tell you—IT! (Remind me I’m saying this, okay?)

I simply want to choose a few good pieces…then live with them for awhile. Then, gradually, we can add a rug and a piece of art and a buffet if it makes sense then. But right now, with the way the economy is toying with our brains, it just feels right to approach the furniture at The Lodge the same way the Pioneers did way back in the day: they had what they needed, and nothing more. The furniture they had reflected the time they were in. And drapes, expensive rugs, and drippy accessories were nowhere to be found.

Here are some things I’ve found lately.

I love the rustic simplicity of this. But since we need a table around ten feet long to fill the space, we’d have to get two of these…and I think four of these monstrous legs in one room would be too much.
Or would it?
See? I told you I knew nothing about this stuff.

These simple farm tables are always easy on the eyes. It’s hard to argue with them.

This 7-foot table could be mine for the low, low, low, low price of…$11,500.

But that’s nothing compared to this one: price tag $33,000. It’s made of recycled wood from old tobacco barns, though, which makes it worth every penny.
Or not.
I think it’s an exceptionally beautiful table, don’t get me wrong. But what happens if you spill fingernail polish remover on it? Your day would be ruined pretty darn quick. And then you’d spiral downward into a pit of despair.
Or at least I would. And I don’t want to sign myself up for that level of pain.
Plus, and this is an important point:

I’M NOT PAYING $33,000 FOR A DINING TABLE!

There. I feel better now.

I like modular pieces like these: you’re actually looking at six different pieces here. And even though it’s decidedly country, I can’t help but be drawn to the slats behind the cabinet…and the way the stark white dishes look against the dark wood.
White dishes might be a nice approach at The Lodge.
Dishes? You mean I have to buy DISHES?
My heart is starting to race.

I love this chair I found. It’s sort of contemporary, sort of traditional…but the nailheads give it a western look.
Not that the old Pioneers ever had NAILHEADS in their furniture, but I can’t be a purist all the time.

And here’s the sofa in the same style, in suede instead of velvet. I think I liked the velvet better.
But I love how long the sofa is. Perfect for stretching out and snuggling with your one true love.
I’d have to ditch the matching throw pillows, though, and add something a little more contrasty.

I thought this was a nifty desk, with a clever place to hide a keyboard.
Hiding computer equipment is one of the biggest challenges in my own house.

I ADORE this table. I adore this table because it can be a bedside table. Or a coffee table. Or a sofa table. Or a lamp table in a hallway. It’s very simple, rustic, and cleanlined, and most importantly…it’s something I could move myself. This table lights my fire. It satisfies something in my soul.

And I had a hard time not liking this lamp. Actually, at first, I had a hard time LIKING this lamp, because I was under the mistaken impression that it was—gasp—BRASS. But upon further examination, I found that it was more of an antique metal color, and before I knew it, the darn thing grew on me.
And then, upon further examination, I found that the lamp was $1,800.
What has happened to the world? Are lamps really $1,800? Have I lived in the country too long?

This isn’t going to be as easy as I thought.

One of my favorite artists online is Eleanor Grosch in Philadelphia, PA. She has a huge selection of screenprints available and I own six of them, including this Elephant print which is sadly sold out. Her designs are simple yet boldly graphic, and remind me a lot of Charley Harper’s work. Any one of these prints would make an excellent gift, but since I love elephants I will be keeping this one and hanging it in Leta’s room, although it will probably be years before she appreciates it.