Did you think I forgot?

So remember this post - waaaay long ago?  No?  Well no problems.  Let's recap.

My dining room used to look like this, thanks to the previous homeowners.  Maroon paint, old curtains, and lots of outdated, floral wallpaper.

Then hubby and I spent time updating it.  So it looked like this:

But I really wasn't fond of that knock-off Pottery Barn circle candelabra from Target. But hey, we all make decorating mistakes, when you're broke and renting.  But that mistake followed us to the new home.  And, granted, it's not like I hate it, I just think it needs the right wall.

I didn't feel like the massive, blank dining room wall was right.

At first I thought I wanted a dried wreath.  But I couldn't find one the right size, or that matched the decor.  I took the candelabra down several weeks back, and have been staring at a blank wall ever since.  But I really liked the sand dollar project I did for the living room and thought maybe it was a good idea for the dining room as well.

So taking this as my inspiration

I created this:

I ordered two black sea fans from the same online store as I purchased the sand dollars.  The frames are also from Ikea, and I had left over burlap from the first project.  Now the previously blank wall, feels more full and complete!

Having the burlap from the living room repeated in the dining room, really ties the two rooms together and makes everything feel a bit more planned (even though half my decisions are truly spur of the moment).

I even had enough fabric remaining to create a burlap table runner.

I used some white ribbon to create a border, with a nice detail on the end.  Fabri-tac is a wonderful thing.

I didn't forget about this project, or updating you.  The dining room was one of the first rooms we really tackled in full, so I think I needed to step away and take a break.  By working on another room in the house, I was able to get some good inspiration and the energy to finish this project.

And I think I'm done here....for the moment.