21 April 2009

My Cup of Tea.

Well, I'm exhausted. But never too tired to think of tea. More specifically--tea cups. Yes, I have a very big soft spot for dainty little tea cups...especially antique or vintage. And I'm definitely planning to create a lovely dining room/coffee table display like the one below as soon as my collection begins to multiply.

Photo by Janis Nicolay, via a favorite blog of mine, poppytalk.

The cutest cake toppers of all, found here on Etsy.

If only I had this selection for my daily cup of tea. Found on flickr.

Mmmm...just lovely. Also via flickr.

Have such a wonderful evening! I know I will...shared with best friends over a lovely dinner and glass of wine. Yay!

20 April 2009

Anthropologie.


So I took a week from blogging to get my life in order...and I'm so excited to say the reason I was so busy was that I started a new job! Yay! Finally having an income is definitely a cause for celebration in my book. And, the fact that I'm actually using my degree and working toward a possible career in the marketing field excites me even more. It's so great--the other girls I work with are so fun and amazing, and already I've been introduced to so many great new contacts. Wish me luck!!

With that said, this new source of income has me drooling over Anthropologie again. For those of you who don't know me, Anthro is my favorite, favorite store of all time. I do love their clothing, but for me, my heart lies in their home section. I even fenagled a best friend of mine to host an Anthropologie wedding shower for me last summer. Yes, I love it that much. My dream job actually entails designing their retail displays. I gained some experience in display set-up and design while working at Williams-Sonoma and I just loved it. How amazing would it be to actually make a career out of it and have the opportunity to spend the majority of my time in the one place I obsess over? A girl can dream, can't she?

I mean, the biggest compliment I think I've ever received is that our apartment somewhat resembles the inside of an Anthro. I would have to disagree, but am so very thrilled someone else thinks so.

Anyway, Anthropologie's home decor displays are such an amazing source of design inspiration for me. They're ingenious. I rarely purchase anything from the store itself, as my wallet hardly ever allows, but I've had so much fun replicating the Anthro style with thrifty finds of my own.

So...I thought I'd share some photos that make my heart do little leaps of joy.










Have an amazing, inspiring day!!

And, remember, if you have any before/after pictures, or any pictures of your home in general that you'd love to share, please feel free to email them to me!

10 April 2009

It's a Good Friday.

Mmm...it's about to rain and I'm snuggled in my apartment with coffee cup in hand feeling quite cozy.  C and I are in the midst of tidying up and washing a billion dishes, as we had about 6 couples over for dinner last night (and yes, no dishwasher).  But, the apartment's quite clean and we actually have some gorgeous fresh flowers on hand, so I thought I'd give you all a little sneak peak. I'm in the process of photographing every room in detail, which I'll post on a later date, but here's a few of my favorite little snippets of our place.

My favorite little corner in our apartment.  I found this dresser at an estate sale when I lived in Oklahoma and hauled it all the way home to Kentucky.  It's adorned with new hardware from Anthropologie.  Sitting on top of her is an amazing, horse shoe wine rack that Corey made me as a wedding gift.  Yes, I said made.  How cool is he?


The tattered trunk at the end of our bed.  I love her.  My mom actually used it as a coffee table when we were growing up.  In front of it sits an antique crock/butter churn that belonged to my grandfather.  It conveniently holds my woven pink slippers. 


Just a glimpse of one of our dining chairs.  I'm so lucky to have a dad that collects amazing architectural finds and then is so willing to give them away :)  


Mmm....mint cookies n' cream, a top my favorite dish towel.


Corey's washboard and my minnow bucket.  Perfectly perfect together.


A vintage photograph I discovered in my mom's storage shed and a vase C brought me from China, both which flank the mantle.


M bday gift from C.  Vintage luggage.  He knows me so well.


A photograph I took of C playing guitar rests in our dining room window alongside a vintage pitcher I, once again, inherited from my mom.  Yes, she has the coolest stuff of all time.


Our M mugs...stacked on a cake plate.
  Thank you Anthropologie for all of your amazingness.


I had two fruit bowls, both which I loved, so I stacked them.


A snippet of our western corner in our bedroom.  The horse shoe I gave C on our wedding day, his dad's old cowboy boots that I adore (& often live in) and just a really cool picture.  Makes C feel as if he's Gus or Call :)

More to come!! And, next time I show the apartment, I'll give you each room in its entirety. Can't wait to show you the rustic coffee table Corey constructed!

Have an amazing weekend!


08 April 2009

Etsy Love.

For those of you who have yet to discover the amazing, quirky little site of Etsy, let me introduce you to all of it's glory. I'm one of those who likes "indie" things, so Etsy is right up my alley, as it's a place to buy and sell all things handmade. The most talented artists sell any and everything from jewelry to handbags to homemade clothing to photography to silkscreen prints. I mean, any and everything. And, what's even more amazing is you're helping to support an independent artist and, therefore, a small business that might not have the chance to make it otherwise...especially in this economy. And, Etsy makes it easy for you. You can search for specific items, or, they've broken the site into categories for you to peruse...which I do way too often.

And, below, a few of my very favorite Etsy items.

Incredible hand-carved stamps by The Mayberry Sparrow. I've already ordered a few custom from her, and have my eyes on the above little numbers. I adore their vintage appeal. Her blog is also worth paying a visit to.


Amazing headbands that are oh-so-fun, made by LouandLee. More eye candy on the twins' blog, here.


I love this shop owner's quirky photographic eye. She also sells purchase-worthy notecards and hand-printed items, here, in her store Wren & Chickadee. I also adore her blog and live on it daily.


I'm currently planning a photo wall in our bedroom, and fell for these little guys. Made and sold by Dozi.


Words can't describe how much I heart these little letterpress prints. You can bet I'm purchasing the windy branches, made by Bittersugar, here.

Have fun perusing Etsy!! You know I will...
Can't wait to purchase a few of the above little numbers.

Dinner for Two.

So Corey and I concocted this little number for dinner last night, and it was so good I thought I'd share. Not only is it healthy, but it yielded the perfect serving size, which means I didn't have to fool with a week's worth of leftovers that we're inevitably going to get sick of...really sick of. It truly was the perfect amount for two. So here's what you'll need in order to recreate this fantastically easy dish:


1 13.25 oz box whole grain thin spaghetti (linguine would be delicious as well)
1/2 bag of shelled edamame (found in your grocer's frozen veggie section)
1/2 large red bell pepper, chopped
1lb package chicken cutlets, cut into cubes
3-4 tbsp soy sauce (to your taste)
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp minced garlic (more or less to your taste...we like ours pretty garlicky)
freshly grated Parmesan to garnish
salt & pepper to taste *(we use Jane's Crazy Mixed Up)
also, a wok or a skillet with tall sides is essential

Boil noodles til al dente. Drain and set aside.
Follow directions on edamame package for boiling, however, cut the boiling time in half as the edamame will cook in the wok.
Add 2 tablespoons soy sauce to wok and allow this to heat. Add chicken and follow with garlic. Allow chicken to cook through in soy sauce & garlic to fully absorb flavor.
When chicken is no longer pink, add noodles, edamame and red bell pepper to the wok.
Add the canola oil, white vinegar and the rest of the soy sauce and toss all ingredients together.
Keep tossing til bell pepper softens and all ingredients are hot.
Salt & pepper to taste, or add more soy sauce.
Serve hot!
*I like to garnish with Parmesan, but I like cheese on everything. I realize that Parmesan isn't very asian, so use your discretion here.

Also, a side salad is the perfect complement to this dish, both in health and taste. Corey and I love using organic baby romaine and adding bell pepper, apples, blackberries, gorganzola and drizzing a homemade vinaigrette overtop.

Homemade salad dressing is definitely the most-health conscious choice here, and it's so easy to make. All you need are a few key ingredients and a vessel to store it in. And it literally costs just pennies to make. Sure beats buying an over-processed, over-sugared, fattening $4.00 bottle at the grocery. Click here for a great site that explains the perfect ratio behind homemade vinaigrettes.

07 April 2009

My Kind of Feminine.

Needing some inspiration today, as the weather's decided to take a turn for the worse. How again was I in a skirt and sleeveless shirt two days ago and now it's 36 degrees? 36? REALLY? So, there goes all those beautiful spring flowers I've been raving about. Kentucky...that's all I have to say.

Moving on to something much more enjoyable than the weather....

Since I've been married to that wonderful husband of mind I've tried to be super conscious in decorating our space...as it is our space. By that I mean I've edited out a lot of pieces that are feminine in an attempt to create rooms that he can not only live with, but is even excited to show his rock climbing/beer drinking/handy-man friends. It's really been quite fun melding our styles together and taking the challenge that two different perspectives presents and running with it. He's been amazing about it, and we have a pretty cool place to show for it (at least that's what we think).

And although I can't really place a label on my exact style/taste in design, I'm definitely a sucker for combining modern pieces with vintage (aka mintage) and all things primitive/rustic. But there's also a tiny place in my heart for some things feminine. I've disguised it from C with a single pink flower in a bud vase on my side of the bed, a fluted cake stand that I sometimes display cookies or muffins on, girlie coffee table books stacked under a rustic vessel by the fire place and a purple flower (that's supposed to be for my hair) that flanks the gold, bamboo-esque mirror in our dining room. And..there's kind of a lot going on in our kitchen with pottery, dishtowels and lots of pattern, but hey...overall, I've really limited that little feminine urge of mine.

But, if I had my way...









I'd live in these rooms. And that's my idea of the perfect kind of feminine.
Enjoy!!

06 April 2009

April in Ashland.

I couldn't emphasize the fact anymore that I'm so thrilled spring has arrived in Lexington, which is unbelievably gorgeous at the moment. But I have to say, the city is pretty much always gorgeous. It's funny...I've lived within this town my entire life, and although I'm desperately itching to move on to bigger, more thrilling places, I'll always find serenity here.

So, as Corey and I delve into life and all of its uncertainties, we take great comfort in the quirky little apartment we've made our home in the midst of Ashland Park. We adore this apartment, and, more importantly, this neighborhood, which is infiltrated with gorgeous little parks and really cool old houses that have so much character. The neighbors are always out and about with their dogs and the cutest little kiddos, and it's so fun to sit on our front porch and admire life and all of its little pleasures. So, I thought I'd give you a glimpse into the life we love so much here (for the moment at least) in beautiful Lexington.

An assortment of images from Ashland Park, which we have the pleasure of living right down the street from. The park's historical value lies in the fact that it was once called home by Henry Clay, a well-known politician from the civil war era. This is where C and I walk that shaggy mut of ours.

Did I mention I would live in this cozy little cottage forever and ever, and I mean ever if I had the chance? Probably the tiniest house in our neighborhood, and it truly is tiny, but by far my very favorite. Hint hint, Corey.

Mmm...Monday.

Happy Monday!! High hopes that everyone had an amazing weekend. I'm currently recuperating from quite a good one myself...hence the lack in posting. Today happens to be Kendall's birthday, so the weekend was spent celebrating with her closest friends and family who flew in from Baltimore to surprise her for the occasion. The weather was more than perfect, and we had the best time playing cornhole and beach volleyball...and of course an inevitable dance party ensued. The festivities began Friday afternoon and ended about 10:30 last night, after a day at Keeneland and another inevitable dance party at The Paddock. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I had the most fun weekend I've maybe ever had. And, as if that's not enough, I met some wonderful people that I'm so excited to keep in contact with. Hoping everyone has a safe trip home to Maryland today!

So, in the midst of all the celebration, I also had the pleasure of attending the most beautifully done baby shower for my best friend Britney, who is a mere 3-6 weeks shy of having her little Kennedy Brooke. I'm so excited for her--and I know the baby shower was everything she could have hoped for... and so much more. I mean, there were even chocolate cake pops dipped in pink icing that spelled out Kennedy. So very cute... not to mention scrumptious. And...Britney's so cute, and glowing all over with anticipation for her timely arrival.


So well done. Congrats Brit!!

01 April 2009

In Stitches.

There's something about these sunny, spring mornings that make me want to sew. It would just be a teenie bit helpful if I actually knew how. So, last night I pulled out my lonely-yet-amazing machine that's been sitting in it's cover for ohh, 3 or 4 years now, dusted her off, and dove into the manual. I'm fairly confident that I can whip up some simple pillows and dish towels now that I can brave the threading of the machine...which truly is the most complicated part of it all. My mom is so talented when it comes to sewing, and she's helped me make curtains in the past, so I can definitely sew a straight line or two, right? Hmm.....

Anyway, all this thought of creating delectable little things made me decide every avid sewer needs his or her own space. Not that I am or will ever be an avid sewer, and not that we will ever have enough square footage for a sewing room, (I mean, I'd be thrilled with my own corner even) but there's no harm in being just a little envious of those who do. For now I'm entirely happy with my dining room table, and also happy that I can drool over these.

Love the light blue walls. And how happy is that machine cover?

Simplicity at its finest.

Turquoise paint + vintage machine = creative bliss.

My eye can't help but drift to that amazing piece of vintage, canvas luggage. I want, I want.