New space/new furniture. Will it fit???

OK guys, so recently I was invited to a new home that is near completion and the homeowner is wanting new furniture for her living room. She has envisioned two new sofas, two new chairs, two ottomans, along with side tables, a coffee table, a game table, and two accent chairs. Sounds great!!! Wait a minute, I am standing in this big, brand new, beautiful, open space and thinking to myself as she is explaining her wants............ I don't think all of that will fit in here!!!!! Much to her dismay, she says..... really?? So, just a bit of advice:) Get out your tape measure and some blue painters tape and tape off the furniture in your space to make sure your vision will actually come to fruition. This is an easy way to actually visualize it in the space and gives you the opportunity to play with the arrangement before you make a big investment!

This is a before (bottom photo) and in-between (top photo) of a client of mine here in Duncan. I had helped her pick out fabrics here at the Loft to re-upholster some existing chairs to match a sofa she purchased from me. She recently moved into a new house and called and asked me to help her arrange the pieces in her new space. The draperies were not hung at the time of this in-between photo and she needs a tree in the corner to finish out the space. See her before and afters soon on our website www.theloftduncan.net.

AFTER BEFORE

One of my favorite things to do is to re-arrange an existing room with my clients own furniture, then add great pieces from the store. I wanted to share with you a few rooms I am currently working on, although they are not completed. This first before and after is from one of my favorite clients that I have in Wichita Falls, TX. She is a HUGE Beatles fan and has some really great collectibles. She wanted to turn this library into her very own space. A place for all of her treasured Beatles memorabilia. She wanted to use her existing sofa and leather chair and incorporate her great grandmothers piano in the room. So, we painted the walls a neutral color, rearranged her furniture in order to accommodate the piano (which is not in there yet), it will go in the space at the end of the sofa, incorporated a fun rug ( which will be placed in front of the sofa, we will add pillows, window treatments and an accent chair, and re-upholster the piano bench to make the room come together in that fun and funky way that she wanted. Look for the completed before and afters on the website http://www.theloftduncan.net/ soon. Also, I must mention that the sconces on the wall in the after shot that you see will be hardwired in and black shades added. Remember, this is just the before and in-between pics!!!! I really wanted the pictures to be below my text, with the before pics first, then the afters, but oh well I am still learning how exactly to do this!!!! You get it though, don't you?? Ohhh and also, I have to mention this to all you Beatles fans out there!!! See the album above the mantle, I thought it was missing, oh no, this is the infamous Beatles White Album:) hee hee. Don't think I didn't get a few chuckles from the homeowner on that one!!!!

First of all, something you may find cool is that I am one of Dr. Phil's nieces. Yes, I mean, THE Tell It Like It Is .....Dr. Phil!!!!! That's the one! My mom is Robin's sister. Her name is Cindi Broaddus and you may recognize her from being on TV herself. She was involved in a random act of violence in June of 2001. Read her story, A Random Act of Kindness. You won't be able to put it down! Anyway, we had the honor and privilege of being invited out to LA to the Chanel Boutique on Rodeo Drive to celebrate their first grand baby, due to arrive in March, for a baby shower. It was awesome:) I wanted to share a few pictures with you.

This is me at LA Ink in LA!! It was sooo cool even
though I did not get to see KAT VON D !!!! Check out
this cute outfit from the Loft boutique!!!


This is my mom, Aunt Robin, me and my sister
Brandi, in my aunts dressing room at the Dr. Phil show!

Wanted to share this beautiful table scape if you

thinking about your baby shower or wedding reception

or any kind of party really:)

My mom and I atop the Chanel Boutique balcony!
Doesn't she look great in her Loft boutique outfit!!

Couldn't get of the CCCCCC's at

Chanel:)

my life continues

Now that I have introduced my family, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Angela, I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend. I own an interior design studio in downtown Duncan, OK that offers extraordinary custom design pieces, interior finds, and fabulous clothing. I have always loved to decorate and feel like it has always been a part of my spirit. When I went to college, my ambition was to be a clothing designer. After a couple of semesters however I changed my major to nursing. DETOUR!! See, I was at home on Christmas break and a family friend had a premature baby. They brought some home video of the NICU ( Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) stay and I was hooked. I changed my major to nursing the next semester and ended up graduating with a BSN four year later. I worked as a nurse for the next 10 years all the while decorating for friends and family. Although my nursing career was rewarding, and I was good at it, decorating has always been my passion. At the time you are traveling your highway, you never know where it will lead you. That is the really cool part! I never thought I would have this wonderful, rewarding, great, awesome, yet frustrating, overwhelming pit stop I am at right now. To catch you up to the present, I was offered a once in a lifetime opportunity. Ever had one of those??? Well, mine came in a phone call one day in the middle of the afternoon, while I was at home on my day off from the hospital. " Hello....................Angela.......yes...... this is Donna Hunt". HOLY CRAP!!!!! I was sooooooo nervous that THE decorator in our small town of Duncan America was calling me. what could she possibly want from me???? After the "How are you's", she very sweetly said, " I am thinking about selling my business after 28 years and after much consideration, want to talk to you about buying it". ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? This was something I had always wanted, why is it coming at this time in my life? You see, I had been looking for a way out of my nursing career and was introduced to ARBONNE. A health and wellness company, where you could own your own business and in the process have the potential to make a lot of money. I truly believed at that time, that WAS my way out. Little did I know, it would be a SIGN of things to come. While I loved this company and the smart business concept behind it, I did not know at the time that this would be a little speed bump toward getting me where I am today. You see, I said, "While I am greatly appreciative, I feel like God has led my down this road. WHAT???? Am I crazy, did I really just say that???? After all, this was my dream of owning my own business, especially a decorating business. I remember asking her if she could give me some time to think about it and she graciously agreed. Four months went by, when I made the very scary phone call and said, "When can we meet?" After that first meeting and many, many meetings, prayers and tears later, I became the proud new owner of the Loft on January 1, 2007!!!!! The last three years have been the best, hardest and most remarkable time in my life thus far. While I will interject memories, thoughts, feelings and the many wonderful, funny, not so funny and not so wonder moments, I will also introduce you to the many special friends and my family who have been there for me every step of the way; offer decorating tips and answer question. First, however, I want to start by telling you all about the things happening in the here and now:)

My life is a highway

My youngest sister once told me that she felt like her life was a highway. i did not really know what she meant by that, until recently. My highway has been one well traveled...........full of detours, speed bumps, road signs, speed limits, tickets, caution,yield, toll booths and many, many mile markers!! I would like to invite you on this awesome ride with me. It starts out of course when I was fifteen and a half, permit in hand and my first real boyfriend, now my husband of almost 17 years!!! Steven and I are best friends, loyal companion and life partners. He is really the reason I started this blog. He has almost earned his psychology degree from listening to me live my latest highway journey over the past three years. He would say I have detoured off the highway and found a roller coasters. OF EMOTIONS, that is:) I discovered Paxil however, and it has helped me find my way back to the ON ramp!! Just kidding:) he has been a wonderful sounding board for me. Of all the mile markers in my life, my proudest ones are of course my two wonderful kids. They make our life so fun. My daughter is about to hit the teenage years and will be 13 on May 1st. Her name is Kennedy. she loves to sing and one day aspires to be on Broadway. She is currently in 7th grade, a cheerleader and is super smart. Our son just turned 9 on March 1st and he is extremely funny, just like his dad. his name is Carson. he is a sports fanatic and loves them all. He is in the third grade, a mommas boy and has lots of friends. We are very proud parents!!