RAMSIGN Giveaway Reminder

Remember to enter the RAMSIGN giveaway if you haven't already.  The giveaway will be open until 6:00 PM MST on Sunday, January 8, 2011.  I will announce the winner on Monday.

You know you want one of these pretty address plaques!

Feature Friday: Emily from Sawgrass Home

Today I am happy to introduce a new blogger, Emily from Sawgrass Home.  She just started blogging recently, but you can tell that she has been bitten by the decorating and DIY bugs!  Be sure to visit Sawgrass Home to learn more about the projects below and for some great tutorials as well. 

Buenos Dias everyone! My name is Emily and I am so excited to be
feature here on Saved by Suzy (it's my first featured post!) I
recently started a DIY blog with my hubby Jon (a.k.a Don Juan). We
purchased our first home in South Florida about two years ago. It was
both an exciting and overwhelming experience. The house had been in
foreclosure and needed a good amount of work. After we got the
essentials up and running, it was pretty much up to me to well, make
the house feel like a home. Don't get me wrong, Don Juan does his
share, but this little señorita is apparently very picky when it comes
to decorating... yet I have NO decorating experience or "know how"
whatsoever...go figure.

I found myself venturing out to places like Ikea, Target, & Homegoods
to try and transform my home (on the cheap). Instead, I circled these
stores for HOURS, developed MASSIVE migraines, and left with NOTHING.
I eventually just gave up. But thankfully there was still hope.
After all, I had also learned at the time about a little ol' blog
known as Young House Love. If you're a blogger then you know who I'm
talking about. They were just like Jon and I. Young, on a budget,
and with a dream of living in a beautiful home.

So after two years of reading, learning, and building confidence, I
have finally decided to give the whole decorating thing another try
(and blog about it through the process). My first real moment of
success came this past December when I dared to paint stripes in my
hallway. That's not something the average Joe does but it's definitely
something that bold, courageous, and confident bloggers/DIY-ers would
do! So here's our hallway before...

Talk about lack of motivation eh?

And here she is after!
 

HA! It can be done! I'm NOT a decorating failure! Thank you blog world
and Pinterest!
 

 That's a tiled mosaic mirror made by yours truly! And here are the
shelves I made too!

Ah yes, it's been quite the adventure getting to this point. But
there is no going back now. I have the confidence, I have the
internet, and I have that decorating itch that just wont go away. Up
next, the dining room. Onward!

MUCHAS gracias Suzy for allowing me to share my story on your blog. It was fun!

Suzy's House Party #24 - Link Up!

I'm still getting in the swing of 2012 and recovering from all of the fun that was had at the end of 2011.  How about you?  Have you been hard at work on any projects?

You all were very productive and creative last year.  I truly enjoyed reading through the posts linked-up at last week's party.  I even got to meet some new-to-me bloggers.  A lot of people chose either their favorite post of the year or a compilation of their top projects to share.  Because you all did AMAZING work, I don't think it is fair to showcase features or favorites from last week's party.  Don't fret though, features will be back next week.

<div align="center"><a href="http://savedbysuzy.blogspot.com" title="Saved by Suzy"><img src="http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd408/lizzygal18/Savedbysuzypartyblogbuttonchevron-1.png" alt="Saved by Suzy" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

•Link up your home decor project. Pretty much anything to do with you house is fine.

•Please provide a link back to my blog. A text link is fine, or feel free to grab my "Saved by Suzy" party button from the sidebar. The more people that know about the party and participate the better for all of us.

•Be sure to share the love and leave comments for others.

•That's it.

Another Black Door

My entryway has needed help for a long time.

It's not too bad from afar, as long as you ignore that big white blob to the right of the door. 

Let's take a closer look.

Those are scratch marks from the dog.  Ty's normally a big baby who sleeps most of the day, but as soon as he sees something out the front window, he starts lunging at the door and acting like a wild attack dog.

That curtain is just disgusting!  Let's hope that's only mud on there.

I don't even know what's going on here, but it's not good!

I had some black paint leftover from painting my French doors, so on New Year's Day I broke it out and started my first project of 2012.

The paint is a black enamel from Sherwin Williams.  It is super shiny and very durable.  I've had it on the French doors for a few months and the dogs have not managed to scratch it.  It's also perfect at hiding dirty little hand prints.  I repainted all of the trim Decorator White by Behr.  It looks so much cleaner already.

I also took down that hideous shredded curtain and added some privacy film.  Hopefully, the dogs won't be able to see outside and won't scratch the door trying to get to their prey.  (This is probably wishful thinking!)

Did you notice the paint swatches on the wall?

I've wanted to repaint my sandy brown walls for awhile, but it's going to be a HUGE job.  I decided to start by selecting a color.  These colors from the top down are Ben Moore Hazy Skies, Ben Moore Baby Fawn, Hazy Skies again, and Ben Moore Gray Owl.  Gray Owl is also to the right.

Hazy Skies seemed a little muddy with the brown tile.  So, I narrowed it down to Baby Fawn and Gray Owl, but I think I like the grayer undertones of Gray Owl better.  Baby Fawn reminds me of a much lighter version of what I currently have.

I've started the painting, but have no idea when it will be done.  My living room, dining room, kitchen, entry, hallway to my bedroom and back hallways are all open to each other.  Thus, I'm planning on painting everything!  I haven't even considered how I'm going to tackle the vaulted ceilings.  What have I gotten myself into?!?!?

Before and After

Giveaway Reminder: Be sure to enter the giveaway for a porcelain enamel address plaque from Ramsign.  The giveaway is open until Sunday.

Tangerine Tango Pillows and Prints

By now, you have probably heard that Tangerine Tango is the Pantone 2012 Color of the Year.

Source: en.paperblog.com via Amber on Pinterest

 I've found a few Etsy favorites in case you are thinking of adding a pop of orange to your home.

1, 2, 3, 4

5, 6, 7, 8

9, 10, 11, 12

We were at my brother-in-law's house over Christmas and he had just remodeled a bathroom in his home and painted it an orange color similar to Tangerine Tango.  It looked great.  I'll have to see if I can get pictures.  My sister is also using orange accents in her nursery and she has promised me pictures, but none have arrived yet.  (Gina???  Are you sending the pics?)

What do you think?  Do you have plans to incorporate tangerine into your home?  I like it in small-ish doses and think it's really cute with pink for a girl's room.

Giveaway Reminder: Be sure to enter the giveaway for a porcelain enamel address plaque from Ramsign.  The giveaway is open until Sunday.

RAMSIGN Giveaway

I would have liked to have bought you all a holiday gift, but it wasn't in this year's budget.  So, I have the next best thing for you: my first giveaway from RAMSIGN!

RAMSIGN is a Danish company that creates classic European porcelain enamel signs. 

Here are a few examples from their website:

This is my favorite style, called "Metropolitan."  It reminds me of the house numbers and plaques you see all around Europe, but especially in Paris:

I think these plaques are great as address signs on the front of a house, but would also be darling as part of a gallery wall or on a stand in a vignette.  You could choose your favorite number, the year you were married, etc.

RAMSIGN is giving away one address plaque of your choice, up to five numbers.  These retail for $99! The giveaway does not include nameplates, only house numbers.  The giveaway is open to readers worldwide.

This giveaway will be open all week and I will draw a winner on Sunday evening. 

You get one entry for doing each of the following things:

• You must be a follower of "Saved by Suzy."  Leave me a comment.
• Visit the RAMSIGN website and tell me your favorite style sign.
• Tweet, Facebook, or blog about this giveaway.  Leave me a comment with a link.

Good Luck!

2012 Goals

I've never been a big New Year's resolution maker.  In the past, I've had vague ideas in my mind about things I'd like to accomplish.  They were generally pretty broad, such as "lose weight" or "be a good mom."  This year, I've decided to jot down some more specific goals and things that I hope to accomplish this year.

Source: theprudentpantryblog.blogspot.com via Suzanne on Pinterest

Diet
This is probably the most difficult for me.  I love junk food and generally survive on a diet of sugar, fat, and caffeine (ugh!!).  My junk food diet leads me to be crabby and tired.  I need to change this and hope to eat more healthily in 2012.

Source: katiequinndavies.com.au via Suzanne on Pinterest

• Eat 5 fruits and vegetables each day.
• Keep the pantry free of junk food and the refridgerator stocked with fruits, veggies, and healthy snacks.
• Meal plan to make dinnertime more nutritious for the family.  Cook more dinners that we eat together as a family.

Fitness
This is probably the easiest goal for me because I'm a crazy person who actually likes to exercise.  I think exercise has been the only thing keeping my body semi-healthy despite the junk food/sugar obsession.  In this area, I want to continue what I've been doing this past year.

Source: leahremilletblog.com via Suzanne on Pinterest

• Weights 2x/week and running/spinning 3x/week.
• Run the Palisade half-marathon in May.
• Road bike more!  I love to bike, but never seem to do it enough.  Participate in one of the charity rides in my area (Tour of the Valley or Rose Hill Rally).

 Financial

• Revise the 2011 budget for 2012 and stick to it!
• Get back to couponing and menu plan based on what's on sale.

Personal

• Grow my legal and nonprofit consulting work.  Actively seek out work and clients.
• List and sell completed furniture on Craigslist.

Source: scrapstudio.tumblr.com via Kelly on Pinterest

• Simplify.  I'm not sure about everything this could entail, but I want to try to keep my and my family's lives simple so that we can focus on each other and what truly matters to us.  This might mean traveling less and staying home more; getting rid of clutter; not becoming overcommitted.  

• Have meaningful family together time several times per month where we do something together as a family.  It could be going for a hike, playing games, doing a project etc. 
• To become a better parent, take the Love and Logic parenting class in January.  Apply what I've learned to my family.

Source: etsy.com via Suzanne on Pinterest

• Remember that how I feel is a choice.  Choose to be positive.  Don't get sidetracked by negativity or worrying.  Try to instill this attitude of postivity into my children.  Choose joy!

Home

• Finish projects that I start or have already started.  This includes the girls' rooms and the unfinished furniture sitting out in the garage.
• Paint the living room, dining room and kitchen.
• Paint all trim throughout the house.
• Choose one room/area per week and organize and purge that area of unneccessary stuff.

Here's a good overview:

Source: lilacsaloon.com via Tobi on Pinterest

What are some of your goals for 2012?  What are your dreams?  What do you hope to achieve?