My Breezy Room

Modern Rugs that Fit Any Style

in Home & DIY on

I am in love with modern rugs right now. There are so many awesome rugs out there, and even more not-so-awesome rugs. That makes rug shopping a little less than enjoyable at times. Add in the fact that the good ones are typically WAY out of my price range, and rug shopping can be downright frustrating. I’ve been looking for reasonably priced modern rugs that fit any style for quite a while, and these are what I’ve come up with.

These are affiliate links to link up all my favorite rugs, and prices are for the 8×10 size. Obviously I’m super drawn to neutral rugs and even the few that have color in this list can be neutrals, which is win to me!

As you look through these, I want you to think about what my designer friend Abby told me. Your rug is a statement piece, but then you should decorate around it like it’s not there. Of course you don’t want to pick a rug that completely clashes with your other decor, but most of the rugs I picked can truly be paired with any style despite their more modern patterns. Click the images to be taken to the product pages of the ones you love!

Modern Rugs that Fit Any Style Under $300

Rugs under $300 aren’t usually known for their quality. But that being said I am actually surprised by some of these. Some of them are from stores I expected to have much higher pricing! My top 3 in this category are the connected stripe rug, the taji geo, and the izmir maze.

Modern Rugs that Fit Any Style Under $600

To me, $600 feels like a lot to pay for a rug – but not all of these are quite that high. They vary in price from $3-600. And for an 8×10 I guess it’s not that bad. I’m loving the texture and patterns these rugs have and I really love the traced diamond rug.

Modern Rug that Fit Any Style under $1100

I guess you get wait you pay for because these are my very very favorites. There is something so striking about the black and white of the commune rug, and I’m loving the pinkish color in the norrie. I am definitely going to work pink into my home decor somehow now.

I put this list together as a follow to my post about designing a living room. Jump on over if you want tips on making a master plan and how to put it all together!

Designing a Modern Living Room | My Breezy Room

Designing a Modern Living Room

in Home & DIY on

I realized it’s been a while since I’ve shared any areas of my home and how they’re coming along, so I thought you might want to see how I’ve been designing a modern living room for what I call our front room.

We live in a tri level house and this is the first room you see when you come in the front door. We do spend a lot of time here, because it’s right off the kitchen, but our main living room is actually down a flight of stairs and that’s where we watch TV and try to keep all the toys contained.

This room has been a long SLOW process. It was completely empty for about a year. We moved here from a one bedroom apartment and filling up 2 living room areas was a challenge. I was also pregnant with Graham when we moved in, so preparing spaces for the baby trumped preparing a welcoming living room.

One main thing here that made a huge difference was tearing down the old fireplace (see it here in it’s outdated Christmas glory) and building this shiplap fireplace. Guys…I LOVE THIS NEW FIREPLACE. But…whomp whomp…it’s not up to code and that’s why I haven’t officially shared it here.

We made a super rookie move and didn’t look up building codes and there needs to be a fireproof surround around the fireplace. Basically, currently the wood is too close to the opening. It’s one of those things that I feel like we are never going to have time to complete, so I’m not sure when it will be done. Check back in 10 years.

Designing a Modern Living Room

So my overall plan for this room is obviously a simple, modern design. I’m combining textures and patterns with a few statement pieces to stick with a minimal theme without being boring.

The black couch (a thrift store find) and shiplap fireplace are my main statement pieces. My goal with everything else is to add texture and make it feel fun and cozy. That would be the pillows, plants, baskets, blankets and rug. It’s funny how adding just a few of the right things helps everything come to life.

This past week I added the shelves and the rug. Before that, the mirror had been centered over the couch and it just didn’t look right. Since then I’d been wanting to play around with some shelves and envisioned them offset from each other like they are now. I run all my ideas by my sister (lucky her, huh?) and she wasn’t completely sure about that idea, but I’m glad I stuck with it.

I think it just adds a little more interest to the space.

The shelves are from Target, and I got all the small items on the shelves from Homegoods, but they need some more work. I still envision a drapey viney plant like ivy on the top shelf.

The rug is also from Homegoods, but I’m not sold on it. Actually I’ve already returned it. I didn’t love the color or the fact that some of the shapes resembled snowflakes. I’m loving this rug, which is a little surprising because of the pinkish color, but it’s just so good and I think it would compliment the other colors in the room well. The rug you see here just blended in a little too well while also clashing too much with the carpet in real life.

I’m really happy with how this side of the room is coming along. The opposite side of the room is still completely bare, but I’ve always got an eye out for the perfect set of affordable midcentury accent chairs and have plans for a bench + plants in the window.

How to design your living room

How to Design a Living Room | My Breezy Room

So the big takeaway here is that is really doesn’t take a whole lot to create a nice, pulled together space. What is does require, however, are the right things. And I know figuring out what the right things are can be a hard, but here are my tips. I used these while designing a modern living room, but these tips will work for any style!

Decide on your statement pieces.

Pick 2-3 items that you really want to stick out. For me its the fireplace and couch. Yours might be a crazy colorful rug or a bright colored chair. Or even a super fancy chandelier. Maybe you have a brilliant piece of furniture that really shines, it can be anything.

Consider furniture, lighting and tables.

Cover the functionality of the room next. Where are you going to sit? Where do you need end/coffee tables so people can gather and chat comfortably with a drink? Try to imagine yourself relaxing in that room with a book at night. Where does it make sense to add extra lighting? Do as I say and not as I do (because there is no extra lighting in this room yet) but floor and table lamps are a great way to occupy space and balance out your decor. And duh, they provide light.

Fill in with the basics.

Every living space has to have texture to pull it together. Basics are pillows, blankets, baskets, rugs and plants. These will fit in more naturally if you can find practical ways to actually use them.

Keep enough pillows on your couch to be comfortable to sit around, but maybe overload it to the point that you’d have to move them. When buying baskets, think about what you’ll actually put in them (maybe blankets and pillows that aren’t in use?). I’m always a huge fans of plants in baskets. And please please please, add some plants to your home! This is a game changer when it comes to making your home feel ‘done.’

Now you can add in decor.

This is where you add in mirrors and shelves and your small finishing touches. At this point you can decide what your room is lacking and how to make up for it. Do you need more color or something more neutral? Are things looking flat and you need to add some more texture? Is there a big area of the room that looks bare or out of scale with the rest of the room?

If you liked this post, you might also like:

Why Kansas City is the Best City to Live In

in Recent Projects on

I’ve lived in Kansas City for nearly 6 years now. I grew up about an hour north of Kansas City in a small town, and this is the most logical place to move after college for jobs. Growing up, we visited KC fairly often. This is where we came shopping regularly and went to the occasional event, like Christmas lights on the plaza or a concert. Back then, I didn’t realize how cool KC really was. But since moving here, I’ve done a lot of exploring and have an entire list built up of why Kansas City is the best city to live in.

The best part about it is there is SO MUCH to do here. 6 years of exploring, and there’s still so much I haven’t seen or even heard of. But I wanted to share my favorite places that I frequent now.

The Northland

I live in the Northland. This is basically everything north of the river. I actually live as far north as you can get in KC, in the Liberty area. It’s definitely a suburban area that has it’s pros and cons, but for me it’s super convenient to jump on the highway and head to my hometown, so we love it up here.

 

Liberty has it’s own historic downtown that is fairly small, but new hip businesses are popping up all the time and it’s a great place to grab some food and do some local shopping.

I love this little coffee shop Hammerhand Coffee Co. where I’ve started hanging out to work. Some of my favorite shops right off the square in Liberty are Wild Juniper, Nickel & Suede and Catfish & Tater. I love supporting local small business owners here and it’s just nice place to spend time.

The West Bottoms

The West Bottoms was the first thing I fell in love with in Kansas City. The area is known for it’s vintage revival and is full of amazing old factory buildings that have been repurposed into a shopping experience full of vintage furniture and home goods.

The area comes alive during First Fridays – the first weekend of the month that includes a Friday – and there are floors and floors of things to shop. Local vendors work all month to find/make/restore anything and everything and you can’t possibly see it all in a weekend.

I actually started my blogging career by painting furniture and was a vendor at Bella Patina. Some of my other favorite stores are Goldie & Myrtles, Varnish & Vine and The Space.

The other reason to visit the West Bottoms during First Fridays – the food trucks. So much good food. You can also find amazing food trucks in the Crossroads district on Food Truck Fridays.

The East Bottoms

Similar to the West Bottoms, the East Bottoms are another area of old buildings, train tracks and now some really awesome places to eat and shop. I can’t have a post about Kansas City without mentioning BBQ (although I’d need an entirely different post to cover all the best BBQ places in KC) but Pigwich is really good.

This trailer is attached to their butcher shop, The Local Pig, and you order right at the window and eat outside.

Then you can walk right around the corner and visit Urban Provisions, a cute little boutique full of handmade goods from local artists. I love little boutiques like this, they’re always so trendy! There are also some other bars in the area and I have no doubt more cool stuff with continue to pop up here.

City Market

City Market is another awesome area super close to downtown. (At this point I feel like I need tell you that I’m directionally challenged so you’re probably better off consulting a map than listening to me try to explain where things are located.)

Every Saturday when the weather is nice there is a farmers market and flea market. You can buy all sorts of fresh produce at the farmers market and there are different restaurants with food from all around the world in the strip surrounding the market. If you’re looking to experience something new, this is a great place for it.

This is also where the Steamboat Arabia Museum is, a steamboat lost in the Missouri River in 1856 and not recovered until 132 years later. They actually found it buried in a farmer’s field. To figure out how that happened, you’ll have to visit the museum and hear the full story and see the artifacts that were perfectly preserved for all those years!

There’s a lot more to do in City Market like jump on the new Kansas City Streetcar and eat great food at restaurants like Harry’s Country Club.

Shopping and Nightlife

The Plaza, Wesport, Zona Rosa, Brookside…there’s unlimited areas with great shopping, food and nightlife around KC.

Parks

The amount of parks in Kansas City is insane. The city is actually pretty spread out, which allows for a lot of cool places for everyone to enjoy nature. This is Roanoke Park, and here is a comprehensive list of the best Kansas City parks.

Why Kansas City is the Best City to Live In

The biggest reason this city is so cool is that my list here doesn’t even start to touch on all the amazing things KC has to offer!

Here are some other lists that will convince you that KC is a place you need to live, or at least visit.

25 best things to do in Kansas City
The ultimate guide to eat and shop in KC
City of Fountains – find them all here
33 free things to do in Kansas City
Hidden KC
Where to find Kansas City’s coolest walls
11 things you can’t miss in Kansas City
5 awesome Kansas City hiking spots
9 awesome experiences to have in KC before they go mainstream
Why I love the Northland

Ok I have to stop here. BUT SO MANY COOL THINGS!!!

If you are looking to move to Kansas City, check out ForRent.com’s guide to Kansas City, as well as other cities they have determine to be the best cities to live in!

Adorable Kids Pillowcases for a Modern Room

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Graham’s room was the very first room I painted in our house, and that’s really about as far as I got in decorating it. Since we didn’t find out his gender, I wasn’t in a big hurry to finish it until he was born. Then he was born and it just didn’t happen. I have plans for repainting it more of a neutral color and would love to completely redecorate in a more modern style. When Oh Susannah reached out to me about collaborating, it was just the push I needed to get started. Their site is full of adorable kids pillowcases, like this one about cookies!

I’ve used my affiliate links to show you my favorite Oh Susannah products!

Graham’s been coming to my bed in the middle of the night occasionally lately and he likes to steal my pillow. So you know how it goes…he’s in my spot on my pillow and I get about 3 inches on the edge of the bed. I decided it was time to get his first pillow so maybe he’ll use it in his own bed and can bring it to my bed when he ends up there so I can keep mine. We ordered this one and so far so good.

I absolutely love his new pillowcase. I love the simple black and white with a funny saying. It goes well with his current bright colored room and will be perfect when it’s repainted too. They have so many cute ones to choose from it was a tough decision, but ultimately I decided his love for food earned him this one!

I mean just look at all of these…so cute! I kind of want to go ahead and get the aviator glasses and save them for when he has a bigger bed some day. Those are so fun. And the donuts make me hungry. (these pics are clickable if you find one you like!) And there’s even more on their website.

They even have some fun pillow cases for adults. These were my favorites! They’re so cheeky!

I’m going to end this by telling you how difficult it was to get photos while Graham was awake. Obviously I couldn’t photograph his room during nap time, so he joined in on the fun. And he is definitely a little goofball. He wanted to be in his crib and was trying to pose for the camera. But he doesn’t quite have the angles down yet, ha! It did result in some pretty funny pictures :)

If you like this post, pin it :)

Chesapeake Bay Candle: Creating Calm at Home

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A while back (like a long while) I talked about how I really wanted to establish some sort of morning routine to set the mood for the day. I know it’s the little things that make or break your productivity and just wanted something soothing to start off with.

I’ve tried buying a couple essential oils and I just can’t get into them. Because I forget I have them and the process of mixing them, putting them in a diffuser, etc is just more than I want to deal with. Also the diffuser needs to plug in, and frankly with chargers and everything else, it just seems like one more cord in my home. I love the idea of essential oils, I just can’t seem to stick with them. So when I got the opportunity to try out the Chesapeake Bay Mind & Body Collection, candles that are infused with essential oils, I was all for it!

Simplicity is my jam and I have one of these candles in all the main areas of my home! They fit in perfect with my home decor and the scents are ah-mazing. They will be great all year round, but I feel like finding refreshing candle fragrances in the summer is challenging, but these are perfect!

The Mind and Body Collection from Chesapeake Bay Candle consists of 10 fragrances, including the strength + energy, simplicity + hope, balance + harmony, and reflection + clarity fragrances that I have. They actually come in jar candles (what I’ve got), reed diffusers and pillar candles. They were designed for people like me (and probably you) who are into living an overall healthier lifestyle and simplifying life. They’re meant to help you pause and enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

I love that message so much and I can tell you that since getting these I’ve done plenty of pausing and enjoying them. They’re so good!

I’ll show you the areas I’ve set these candles up in my home and how I’m using them. Since they’re made with essential oils that have specific purposes, I’ve tried to put each one in the appropriate spot to get the most out of them.

I decided to put the simplicity + hope candle in our master bedroom. I want my room to be a place where I can relax and be happy, so I thought it was fitting. It has a mint basil scent and is perfect for that spot.

I’m also happy to have it here because this is a space I’d been neglecting and had on my to-do to decorate for quite a while. I finally pulled together some things from around the house and I love how it turned out

I put the strength + energy candle in our front living room, the place where I do a lot of work and Graham does a lot of running. He doesn’t need any more energy, but I certainly do to keep up with him. This one has a pineapple coconut fragrance and it miiiiight be my favorite. I’m actually burning it right now. :)

The reflection + clarity jar candle is living in our main living room. We spend the most time here so I think the relaxing sea salt sage fragrance is perfect in here. And you can see the wood lid the candles have – so cute!

balance + harmony is in the kitchen, the chaotic center of our lives. I figured that’s the space we need the most balance in as it’s the place people gather, meals are made, work is done and bills are paid. The waterlily pear scent is so fresh. It sets the perfect tone for the room.

It really is the little things in life. These wellness fragrances from Chesapeake Bay Candle are exactly what I was looking for to enhance my morning routine – and the rest of the day too. They’re easy and smell so good that I’m burning at least one of them most of the time. And I’ll take all the help I can get when it comes to creating calm in my home!