Going Neutral Or Going Nutty

My favorite decorating philosophy, if you can call it that, is to keep walls, furniture and flooring neutral, while adding "pops" of color. I have always loved red, and have a new crush on that fabulous aqua blue that everyone is using.

Somewhere along the line, while adding pops of color, my house starting looking like one of those popcorn machines, the ones with the see through dome, where you can see the popped kernels flying everywhere. My "pops" had become out of control. As Vern Yip would say "it looks like a rainbow threw up in there."

Actually, he'd probably say something MUCH worse, but we'll just go with that for now, okay?

Here's an example.

In this picture, you can tell that I threw the whole "neutral" idea out the window with my dining room walls. They are painted "apple green", an Eddie Bauer color from Lowe's. I looooooove this color, and have kept all of the accessories in that room black and cream, to keep the color from overpowering. The artwork is hanging in the foyer, a great example of "pops" gone wrong. It's a small space, and I've added WAY too much color over time.

It's almost like that fashion rule. You know the one, some famous fashion designer said to look in the mirror after you've finished getting ready to go out, and take one accessory off. That's how you know you haven't gone overboard.

That's kind of what I'm doing now. Taking a step back, checking out the room as a whole and "taking stuff off."

You know, all in my bid to be CALMING and SOPHISTICATED. ( I can finally spell that word all by myself!)

So, anyway...I decided to change out that artwork. Swap the colorful accessory for something more understated. I took my 6x9 canvas dropcloth and cut out two rectangles to match those frames. Using my trusty Canyon Black craft paint, I stenciled a word in each frame. The kids wanted to go with something seasonal. Since I reluctantly agree that this is their house too, that's exactly what I did.

This is not nearly as crooked in real life as it looks in these pictures, I just REALLY need to work on my photography skills. I stuck with the pumpkins for seasonal color, but everything else is black and cream. I'm still using lots of pattern with the stencils, the polka dot paper on the candle sconces and the ruffly edge of the plate. I'm going for neutral, but not boring.

Here's a closer look at my marginal stenciling talent.

That's all I got for today. The longer I look at these pictures, the more I think I might change them a little. Does anyone else have that problem? I think Wendy, at The Shabby Nest calls it

OCD (obsessively consumed with decorating). Yeah, I've got that, so bad that I'm linking up to Wendy's Frugal Friday party.

Edited to Add:

There, that's better. Have a great weekend!
This post is linked up to Kimba's DIY Day. Enjoy!