Fluff the House: Bringin’ in the Sunny Surfer Vibe
Before I got into “fluffing” (a.k.a. causing my own plot twist with home decorations) my day-to-day decor was beach-y. I live near the beach. Lots of seashells and sun-faded signs. I love the color blue and I used to be a mermaid. So the beach-y vibe was a natural choice.
As you might predict, my monthly “fluffing of the house” often reflects the colors and theme of a specific holiday in that month. August: no holidays, so It’s my wild card month. A lull between red, white, and blue themes of July 4th and Labor Day, and too early to get into the autumn pumpkins theme.
August is HOT. Anywhere and everywhere in the northern hemisphere, August is hot. I could choose cool colors to balance the heat, but that’s so old school and predictable. Plus, been there, done that.
I’m kind of in the orange mood, but that color usually screams autumn leaves and pumpkins.
I want beach-related but different from my old beach-y. Rather than the cool colors of the sand and the sky, I want something that feels new!
August brings memories of family outings at the beach, chasing seagulls, playing in the waves, watching surfers.
August was the last chance to enjoy the out-of-doors, (Even though we all know that school start date has creeped backward from after Labor Day to eat up the whole month of August.)
Voila! A wildcard theme and color scheme is born! Hot orange with deep ocean blue, reflecting fun and sunshine and action . . . at the beach!
Next, armed and excited with my new theme and colors, I go on a treasure hunt in my house, my closets, my boxes in the garage to find old items that fit the new color scheme. Often I find things that I had forgotten that fit perfectly into the new theme.
The great opportunity in “fluffing” is to recycle what you already have for a totally exciting new look. The idea is not to go out and buy all new stuff. Even when I buy something new, I keep in mind how I might use it again in the future.
Then of course, I look around online for visual inspiration using my color and occasion keywords. And, I pick up a new something or two to further spark a connection from one room to another.
Join me on my adventure to “fluff the house” surfer style!
Entryway: Catching the Eye
I always start my theme and introduce my color scheme on the entry table. I want the entry to joyfully announce my colors. I want the things that I see when I first get home to make me smile.
So my arrangements are a combination of symbols of happiness for me. They might be past gifts shared with me that remind me of the giver. They might be my past fun retail therapy, recycled into a collage. Some might be new, reflecting the happy spark of creativity.
Your arrangements would be totally different, of course. Like Marie Condo advises in her book, “Tidying Up,” whether downsizing and creating space in your closets, or choosing elements for your fluffing adventure, just ask yourself, “Does it spark joy?” Or simply, is it beautiful to you? Does it make you feel cozy?
Throughout any theme, I want a flow of wood pieces, metal pieces, and glass. Each arrangement just seems more balanced that way. Different colors represent those elements as well.
If you’ve ever heard of Feng Shui (pronounced fung schway), I’m looking for a balance among the elements of earth, wood, water, fire, and metal. Each element suggests a different mood. Try combining these elements and see if your space feels more comfortable, more “right.”
I love having a vase here! Each time I swap out the flowers, the look is new and fresh. I think a space always feels better when it contains something alive.
For the bottom shelf display, I have an anchor of sea shells (new last year —– used for front door decor last summer), a couple gold journals, and a light blue Volkswagon bus. Doesn’t that just say out loud but not too loud: Surfer beach vacation?
The quote box is from Primitives by Kathy. Not only is the color perfect, I absolutely adore the quote! Thank you Kathy, I love your stuff! Here is a link.
And, I’ll let you in on a little secret. The Volkswagon bus was originally a Christmas decoration: it has presents piled on top. The quote box hides the gift boxes, and creates the perfect August endless-summer vacation theme.
Next are white sea stars. I have many more, but just a couple here. I have reused and reused these for many themes. So thankful! Here is a link just for you.
They call them starfish, but since they are not fish, I like to call them sea stars. Isn’t that name much more inspiring? I wouldn’t want any kind of fish on my Christmas tree, but tons of sea stars? Absolutely!
Amidst the “ recycled” shells and sea stars is looped a wood-beaded garland with tassels. It’s new! I have seen this style of garland in various colors online, but here I wanted the element of wood but still light without detracting from, or overdoing, the orange and blue.
I already love it and can imagine how it may fit among future displays. Here is a link for a pack of three of the neutral wood tassel garlands.
You’ll see how I utilized the other two tassel garlands as repetition to seamlessly link my theme to other areas.. I have a lot of glass surfaces in my house including glass table tops, ceramic tile floors and large glass floor-to-ceiling sliding doors. The wood element via the beads helps to ground the space and balance the water element represented by glass.
If you have lots of wood in your space, you might like the balance of glass beads instead. Here is a link for a garland with tassels that includes aqua acrylic beads with the wooden beads.
I am a big fan of these metal vintage beach signs. They add the depth of color and vibe I was hoping for. I had the mermaid sign from long ago, no surprise. The new metal surfboard sign also balances the shapes by adding a vertical dimension. I love it!
Here is the link for the orange surf boards metal sign on Amazon. Here is an additional aqua beach bum metal vintage sign I spotted on Amazon and thought would be an awesome replacement of the aqua welcome sign.
Item Links from Entryway Table:
Side Table Decor: Beachy Photo Frame Display
Whether framed photos live throughout the house or in one main cluster, I like them to reflect my current theme. For my Surfer Coastal theme, I swapped previous frames for any neutral, wood-looking, or seashell-resembling frames. Any that whispered: “beachy” and “fun.”
I focused on those that are clearly vintage looking and have the vibe I hoped for once put with other items for this theme . . . perfect! In my post, 5 Easy Ways to Swap Seasonal Decor, I speak about the ease of swapping out the color and texture of frames to fit the overall seasonal theme. Find out more great tips by checking out that post, here.
Most people don’t think of swapping photo frames to enhance the current fluffing. I bet you have a few wood or retro-style frames in your house that would work great.
Another way to enhance the theme is to display landscape, in this case, seascape or colorful animal photos that also reflect the color scheme. As you can see in the picture above, some of my framed photos are of family and friends. Some are not. They are of colorful scenes and ocean creatures.
I loved the color theme of the oranges and blues (so different from any other color theme the rest of the year) so I went on another treasure hunt, this time online.
I discovered the perfect collage of 4×6 photos. In orange, and blue! These are so fun!
So many great ways to use these photo collages! Arrange them together beneath a piece of glass or on a wall. Or, separate them, as I did, into individual photo frames to spread the fun throughout the house. Another bonus: different photos for other future fluffings!
Here is the link for these on Amazon. There are so many color combinations!
Back to our fluffing journey on the side table: another recycled vase because it fit with the color of the month. Also, another spot for living flowers. Muah, I love flowers!
Dining Room Table: Coastal Themed Centerpiece
Anyone entering my home has a clear view of my dining room table/office workspace, so it’s always the perfect opportunity to have it pop with the current theme. I spend a lot of time here so the display also serves as a day-to-day inspiration and motivator.
I absolutely love this table display because I was able to bring out tiny reminders of the beach. I had a few knick-knacks that fit right into the theme all in one place, all anchored with bright orange placemats.
I had these tall bamboo candle holders topped with blue glass candles/candle holders. Candles are another theme in my post, 5 Ways to Swap Your Seasonal Home Decor. Whenever I discover a candle I like based on its color or scent, I save it and use it when the appropriate color theme comes around.
I’m itching to break out all my autumn-colored themed candles! You will see I actually didn’t wait, because I’m using one on the coffee table. Only because it is the right color of course. I really can practice delayed gratification. Yes, I can keep Christmas gifts wrapped under the tree until actual Christmas Day. Well, most of the time.
Anyway, my house is going to smell amazing all fall long! Starting now.
In the center of my dining room table I placed a large wooden bowl. Yes, it’s my salad bowl, but hey, it’s perfect.
Inside are a variety of shells, beach stones and coral. Some are there for a pop of color (such as my sun magnet). Some make me remember a fun trip with my mom, or our Christmas tree with white sand dollars when I was a kid.
Happy memories help me feel grounded and closer to people in my life that live far away.
Here is the second of three wood garlands with tassels. Here is the link for the garland again. I already have a plan for them in September and November this year. More later. 🙂
A white candle which stays lit when I am home, is next to another beach quote box/card. Pattern, repetition, rhythm. This is the second candle I’ve had there this month. I love the soothing fragrance.
Beneath the wooden bowl is a stack of textured orange placemats. Orange placemats appear throughout the house for this theme. Multi-functional, to frame a collection and in this location, I pull them out when I set the table.
These came from HomeGoods. Here is a set of orange placements I found on Amazon. The color will extend nicely into the fall months. There are many colors to choose from with this link too.
Living Room Decor: Surfer Vibin’ Couch
My couch is definitely a favorite spot of mine to decorate for the season. I deliberately chose a neutral couch so it could be my blank canvas in the living room. Pillows and throws are my paints for that canvas!! This is another of the 5 areas I talk about in my post: 5 Ways to Swap Your Seasonal Decor.
Here I have monochromatic pillows with a fun texture found at a funky shop months ago. They continue from season to season because they support the other focal colors.They will do beautifully for the fall months as well.
The colored pillows are a dark teal blue. I got them at HomeGoods. Love them! They add the perfect complement of color along with my favorite pillow for August. Hot, Orange, Sunshine!
When I spotted this sun pillow I knew it would be a perfect addition for this theme. Here is the link to Amazon. The texture is so fun and the sun image fills the whole pillow. The orange/golden color clearly shoots from the couch to the coffee table. Love it!
To balance the HOT of the orange sun pillow, my throw is an oh-so-light and fluffy, cloud-like aqua. Just seeing it invites me to relax for a few minutes with my dog, Sparkles, and a good book. Here is the link for this comfy throw blanket.
Coffee Table Vibe: Keepin’ The Mermaid Alive
My coffee table composition starts with a large wooden bowl. I use this bowl a lot for fall and winter decor. Whether I fill it with a bunch of pinecones or ornaments, it looks awesome! Especially on a glass table like this. If your coffee table is wood, you might find that a metal or glass bowl would feel better in the composition.
Repetition pulls together vignettes in various locations. Here you can see I’ve added a few more of the orange textured placemats and the wood garland with tassel. The bowl has a giant orange candle currently, because I couldn’t wait), but it could also be one that repeats the cream or blue.
Of course I had to add another quote box because I just love them! They also add the rhythm of repetition. I had to bring “mermaid” in the mix in at least one other place or it just wouldn’t be “beachy” enough for me. Besides, I used to be a mermaid.
I popped a few other quote boxes in other key places too, like beside my front door. Same colors, same rhythm. Fun thoughts!
Seasonal Decor Swap: From Coastal to Fall
I’ve enjoyed this theme for the month of August. Whenever I am feeling the coastal vibe throughout the year, I have what I need. My goal for September is to put away the blues keeping the orange and wood theme going. I have white and orange candles ready. I can begin with a few white and cream pumpkins I already have.
I can feel the stirrings of fall inspiration as we speak. I’ll keep you posted. (Pun intended.)
Let me know what you enjoyed about this theme. I’d love for you to share your inspiration below with comments and pictures!