Erin Go Bragh - Ireland Forever
Who can resist the pull of an Irish Pub? An unfettered range of the green of spring and warmth of woodland forests—a place where faeries and leprechauns dwell in corners, just beyond the veil of this world, in magical places existing in a space between dreams and waking states. With a family history including names like O’Shane and Borden (there’s a story there, but for another day), I couldn’t resist giving 3 Squares Cottage a luck ’o’ the Irish transformation for the month of March.
Design Inspiration and Elements
Considering the month of February had very feminine accents of pink; this month I strived to make the space feel more masculine by providing deeper tones of green, brown, and black. Mallard ducks, frogs, and wood accents help bring the pub to life.
TIP: If you are looking to change up the decor in your own home think about the calendar in terms of colors and not holidays or events. By thinking in terms of colors; there are a few colors of decorations required to meet the needs for the entire calendar year. (Example, the color red can be used for various months - February, July, August, September, November, and December - with just different accent colors added.)
Living room
A new carpet featuring traditional patterns in green and cream seemed fitting for the foundation of this theme. I added lime and hunter green accents in throws and variegated pillows to bring the glas (gaelic for green) and dathannach to life. Some of my favorite features of the living room are the frogs on the fireplace and in the metal basket on the hearth, the 3 Squares Cottage Irish Pub clock, shamrock table runner on the bar and various vintage style-advertising signs. But, the pièce de résistance this month the wine barrel end set between the inset bookcase-turned bar-stock bottle shelves and the wine steward credenza; a fully functional “wine on tap” dispenser of Prohibition Red, a California red blend box wine that aerates and comes into it’s own as it flows from a tap inset on what was intended to be a piece of wall décor, made from the end of a wine barrel. I actually prefer a box wine from Black Box, called Red Velvet, but it is almost impossible to obtain here in Utah.
Shop: Green Dining Room Rug; Amazon; Mallard Ducks, TJ Maxx; Wood Bowl, Ben Behunin; Artcrest Decorative Velvet Bed Throw Pillow Cases, Amazon; Luxury Flannel Velvet Throw Blanket; Amazon; St. Patrick's Day fans, Zurcher's + Michael's; Chess Game, Amazon; Old Shamrock Stout Vintage Metal Tin Sign Bar Irish Pub; Amazon; Personalized Irish Pub Wall Clock; Embroidered Irish Shamrock Table Linens, Amazon.
Dining Room + Entry
Adding a royal feel to the dining room, I brought in a pop of corcra (purple), where one of my favorite china patterns, Eva Opulent Aubergine by 222 Fifth is featured this month. The purple, gold, and green dishes, along the with green and purple teacups, lend a formal but fun feel to the dining space. Bows on the lamps and curtain rod end ornaments, complete the look. I also loved the village of lighted houses that I bought on clearance at TJ Maxx (they were white with red roofs) and painted different shades of green to match this month’s motif.
In the entry, signs were switched to welcome friends and to warn about shenanigans and malarkey, and a gold coin garland added to the lights above the entry mirror, reminiscent of the pots of gold awaiting at the end of the rainbow. The bowl of faux yellow tulips is complete with moss on the north side and looks lovely in the antique McCoy green tufted jardinière.
Shop: Gold Coin Banner (pictured with the lights in the entry), Zurcher's; Lighted Houses, TJ Maxx; Ornaments, Seasons by David; McCoy green tufted jardinière; Garner Antiques.
Kitchen
The USA Pottery vintage pig cookie jars and salt and pepper shakers, add to the theme of the month, as their bellies are covered with 3 leaf shamrocks. A pot of gold (chocolate) is featured in the middle of the island on a wooden lazy susan, inlaid with “gold”. I obtained a new round metal container (I bought it in 2 sizes- larger one is featured) for the irresistible cinnamon knots from a local bakery, Granite Bakery, at 902 East 2700 South in Salt Lake City. (Everything from there is magically delicious!)… and speaking of magically delicious, the kitchen this month wouldn’t be complete without a large jar of Lucky Charms™ Cereal right out on the counter for all to see.
Shop: Gold Coin (chocolate), Amazon.
Bedrooms
The Master Bedroom this month also adopted the lime green accents in pillows, plants, and the throw at the end of the bed. Amenities, such as the SwissAir® humidifier and Young Living Essential Oils diffuser help to combat the dry Utah winter air and the SAD that sometimes accompanies the long days of the season.
In the second bedroom, deep colorful accents adorn the room, along with vintage postcards on the shadow boxes commemorating St. Patrick’s Day and whimsical days-gone-by, when dropping people a note was the equivalent of today’s text. The rich lanturn style lamp hanging next to the television, above the stacking oak bookcase (sometimes known as a “legal stack” because of their frequent use in law offices) was added last month.
Shop: Garden Odyssey Decorative Pillow (master), Stein Mart.
Bathroom
Since green is the color of the month, all bath and body products provided in the bathroom this month come in green. One of my favorite things about them is there is such a great array of fragrances which come packaged in green. The scents available for everything from body wash to candles and air fresheners to deep facial cleanser range from Tea Tree to mint to lime and verbena. New mint green bath mats and bathroom rugs round out the theme in this small space.
winter amenities
Holy Snow! Well, winter as we expect it, has finally arrived to Utah. At the cottage, there has been oodles of snow in the past few days! Each year, when this finally happens, everyone turns child-like as snowballs are thrown, snow angels as we shovel, clearing the walks, and providing extra blankets to snuggle in once coming inside.
Ski and snowboard storage are provided in the garage room on an olive wood and post rack. Heated/forced air boot and glove dryers are available on the back porch of the house, on the landing, just beyond the kitchen door.
Wishing you the best luck + that you find your own Irish forever this month. -Kari