Ok Here I go!!!!! The flip flop has begun. Took down the Christmas decor and removed all the stuff from the walls in the dining room. I am going to start there.  This dining room will now become the family/living room.

Bye Bye dining room!!!!

Getting everything down and ready to paint.

Only bad part about the flip is everything from the dining room is everywhere now!!!! Stay tuned for updates. I am excited to get this project under way.

 

 Happy New Year everyone!!!! As the new year approaches and I detox from all the yummy and rich foods consumed these past few days I started to think about the months of January and February.  Yuk!!! Here outside Chicago January and February can be so cold and a little dreary.  I kind of have a hard time in those months with the holidays over so I decided to work on a project in my home that I have been thinking about for awhile.

I want to share my ideas with you and I welcome any input or inspiration you have.

When my husband took the job as Fire Chief up this way about 5 years ago and we also became empty nesters, we down sized our home and bought this smaller cottage ranch when we had to move North for the hubby's new job. This house did not have a formal dining room and it had a family room and living room. We hardly ever used the living room so I decided to make the living room into my formal dining room.  I have to say that was a great thing because I have so much room when I have family and friends over for holiday and parties.

My family room was a beautiful addition the previous owners put on the back of the house. I have loved this room as it houses my office and my family room. Very sunny and bright.  The problem with the family room is the layout.  Only one way to put my sectional and TV. I would love to have a little more seating since this is the only seating we have with not having a living room anymore. 

So my brainstorming idea is to flip flop the family room and dining room.  I still would have plenty of room for my dining room in the back and actually the room would work better as a dining area.  It will be right off the kitchen so I could see my guests as I am preparing food etc.  The living room that is now my dining room is wider and bigger so I could add additional seating.

My hubby is so good about all my reno projects and jumps in to help me make these things happen so I really would love to get him a special recliner to relax and enjoy his tv viewing in.  Flip flopping the rooms would give me the opportunity to have more seating.  He really is a trooper with all my cottage chic decor and doesn't mind all the white, creams and ruffles found in my home.  So I would love to give him a nice comfy chair of his own. 

The misson (if I choose to accept!!!) will be to find a nice recliner that will fit with my cottage decor!!!! Ha Ha and still stay masculine for him. Misson Impossible maybe not we will see!!!!!

Here are some pictures of my rooms now and I will keep you posted on my journey to change things around and redo the rooms. Any one in the Chicagoland area is welcome to come over and help!!!!!

Here is a picture of my dining area that use to be my living room.

This is the back of the family room.



This is the family room as you can see the only space for seating is taken up by the sectional. No room for a hubby chair!!!



This is the back of the family room to the left. The previous owners had this all blocked off as a closet. What!!! That lovely window was blocked off too. Had to open that up. This is a weird space and worked as a storage closet but I like it better as my office. That makes more sense to me to have my office back in that space instead of a closet. I will leave my office where it is and come up with a creative way to separate it from the new dining space.

Well dear blogging friends I will keep you posted as the journey of the flip flop begins.  I am excited to be having this project under way.
Kris
:)

Merry Christmas my blogging angel friends.  I have so enjoyed getting to know each of you in my short time in blogging world.  Many thanks for all your help with my blog and your sweet comments and inspiration.  I wish each and everyone of you a Happy New Year and much inspiration and creativity in the year to come.

Kris:)

Christmas Decor From The Past Year 2012

This is my 2012 Christmas Decor.  Kim at  Southern Savvy Style is having this week's Wow Us Wednesday posts to be from last year's Christmas decor (2012).  It was fun to look back at how I decorated for 2012.  So many changes have happened through the year with Junk Chic Cottage.  So this year's (2013) decor will be so different.  Rooms were flipped and lots of new changes.  Enjoy the past post of Christmas 2012 Junk Chic Cottage.



House Tour Christmas Decorations 2012

May you hear the angels sing.  Have a beautiful Christmas.

Sharing the past at Kim's Wow Us Wednesday November 26, 2013.

Hi Everyone.  I had to do a post after seeing these airstreams with Santa peeking out.  My life long dream is to have a real airstream parked in my backyard to fix up really cute.  In fact on my pinterest http://pinterest.com/krisvavra/trailers/  I have a whole board of cute airstreams and vintage trailers to dream about maybe having some day.  I just had to laugh when I saw this at Sears to put up for a Christmas decoration.  It just made me smile.

I want to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a hopeful and happy new year.
Kris

Merry Christmas to all my new blog following friends.  I have so enjoyed these past 6 months of getting to know each of you and getting so inspired by your beautiful blogs.  I want to wish each and everyone of you a beautiful holiday season.

In light of the recent events in Connecticut I felt I would take this week off from blogging and enjoy my beautiful family for whom I hold so dear.  The season is about love, hope and renewal of what is to come.  Hold dear what you cherish most in this world and feel blessed to have family, friends and freedom in our lives.  The holiday whooshes by and we get so caught up in the hussle and bussle it all brings but I this week feel inspired to take some time and enjoy my home, friends and most of all my family.

I had this card hanging in my office for some time and it hit me today that this sentiment and beautiful child with the angel child on this card is a great and hopeful reminder of what happened in all our lives this past week.

May all the small innocent children from last weeks tragedy find a beautiful angel to hold their hand in heaven.  May their families and loved ones that miss them dearly find peace in the days to come and know they are in safe hands until they will be with them again.

Thank you blog friends for always being so kind and visiting my blog.  May you have a beautiful Holiday.
Kris

I thought I would share some of the angels around my home.  I really love to surround myself with angels.  They are so serene and beautiful and symbolize hope.  I especially love to have them in my tree as ornaments at this time of year.

I will start with my Christmas tree.  I love this angel tree topper. I have had her for many years.

A dear friend gave me this beautiful little angel ornament one year for Christmas made out of her grandmothers vintage table cloth and costume jewelry. One of my fav angel ornaments.

Adorable little hand painted snow angel ornament.

One of my most treasured Christmas angels.  She has a twin sister on the other side of the mirror. Love these.  They are chippy and sparkly and serene.

One of my new favs to the collection this year this beautiful Santos angel made by Jennifer Rizzo. I love all the vintage touches. The box she sits on opens up too.

One of three rustic old angels I bought years ago at TJ Maxx. Loved this little find.

A dear sweet co worker of my husbands that is a follower on my blog gave me this beautiful pearled angel as a gift.  Eileen I love her she is so sweet and looks really pretty hanging about the chandelier over the mirror.

These are the set of angels I got at Home Goods and just strung white lites in them.  At night they are really pretty all lit up.

My master bedroom Angel. I like her because she fit so well in my cottage decor but also she is serene and a lovely angel to watch over us.

In one of my guest rooms I have this chippy vintage angel made out of old barn wood.

Another chippy angel in my old cottage basket.  Her wings are made of old barn wood too.

My pretty little garden angel all sparkly for the holidays

The only primitive angel I have in my cottage. I have had her for years and she hangs on my bathroom door.

A couple of little Nicole Sayre angels in the kitchen.

My little angel on my french doors to the deck.

Love this little angel with fencing for her wings.

A couple of favorite angels I have in my dining room. A sweet friend gave me the angel on the left.  She painted her white and used glitter and at night with the candle lit she is beautiful.

My friendship angels I have hanging over my desk in my office.

My little hope angel in the dining room.

Of course my favorite angel of all.  My little granddaughter Abby. Love when this little angel visits my home.  My daughter gave me this frame and I love the saying on it. "Great mothers get promoted to Grandmothers".  I treasure this gift and grand angel most of all.

Thanks for coming by and viewing some of my angel collection. Hope you love angels surrounding you too.