27 May 2011

White.

White walls: tired, or true? I, personally, like to be a little more daring and infuse my personal space with cozy, carefully-selected hues. Maybe it's the years we've spent living in dingy, white-walled apartments that led me to choose a soothing palette of grays and browns, but--there's certainly something to be said for clean, white, seamless walls, like those found in the home tour below. I love the design aesthetic: clean yet eclectic; warm yet modern. The white walls really provide the perfect backdrop for their carefully edited artwork, and the heavy, velvet pillows and draperies really soften the austerity of the space. And...those kitchen tiles...need I say more?






Take a look at the kitchen sink: I love the simplicity of the stainless faucet floating on the white, flat wall. More and more I find myself leaning toward a backsplash-free backdrop, and (more out of budgetary reasons), will be doing just that in our own kitchen. Those antique-bronze wall lamps are stunning, and the floor pillows and the draped, slipcovered chair make the perfectly tailored space warm and inviting.

So...enjoy the above eye candy, and your *hopefully* long, holiday weekend; may it be filled with good company, amazing food, warm sunshine, and long, leisurely days  (I know ours will).

24 May 2011

This is how we do it.

Maple was off hanging with his Kentucky boys at the beach all weekend, so my weekend was left wide-open. I used most of my quiet time to catchup on the design projects I have in my inbox...and house projects, of course...but this was my Saturday night:






Look at that shaggy little pup of mine, begging at the cook's bare feet. I don't blame her--that open-flame queso fundido was pretty much out of this world. Yep...this is what summer nights in Charleston are all about: good friends, good food, and really good times.

23 May 2011

The romans.

Roman shades, that is.

Yes...in the midst of adorning the many bare windows in our house with some dressings, anxiously awaiting the polished, homey feel the fabric will lend to each room. But--you know what that means: having to make a dang decision. Really, I'm the worst when it comes to decorating our own place. I can help other people all day long, and fire off ideas and decisions, but my gosh there's just too many fabrics/patterns/textures/styles/looks that I love and want to see in our house. I have a friend that's a designer at a local fabric/home design shop here in Charleston, and she must really think I'm crazy due to the hours and hours I've spent wandering her aisles (aimlessly, or so it seems) with the most confused look on my face.

But, this weekend we made some much-needed progress and decided on roman shades for the kitchen's three windows and the master's two large windows. I love the soft, simple look of romans in the kitchen--where Maple and I spend the majority of our time together. We want the room to feel clean, but cozy and welcoming. The windows are wider than 54" (the standard fabric width), so to make up for the lack in fabric, we're going to do white romans bordered in a dark gray, to match the color of our cabinets.

As for the bedroom, those windows, too, are super wide. We've chosen a light gray and cream diamond-esque/geometric fabric for the shades, and will border them in an army greenn burlap (to match the bedding)The walls (yet to be painted due to all the prep work) will be a soothing, light gray, and we bought a gorgeous, woven ikat fabric with tones of brown, gray and cream for large (26"), billowy, plush bed pillows. We want our bedroom to feel cozy and electic, but with a "grown-up" air to it.

Anyway, enough of my window treatment novel...below you'll find some eye candy that's proven to be my window design inspiration:




{photos via pinterest}

Do any of you have roman shades in your home? If so, anything you particularly love about them? Anything you would've done differently? I'd love to hear :)

HAPPY MONDAY.


18 May 2011

Of course.

It always happens this way. I'm writing to you from the bleak, rather depressing interior of La Guardia (I mean...did they have to make it gray and maroon?), folks--because it never fails:
my flight is wayyy delayed.

This weather has been something else: days and days of rain and fog.  I really didn't mind it until now--afterall--Charleston is on the brink of being a million degrees with matching humidity (okay...being a bit dramatic here) so floating around the city in a jacket and scarf really wasn't unwelcome in my book. But here I am, just wanting to get home to my hubby (who leaves tomorrow, I might add), and I'm watching that tall, towering skyline disappear amongst the gray, filmy rain.  Let's just hope this pour-storm dissipates so my flight can pick me up.

The only upside?

Ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani just smiled at me...

 :)

13 May 2011

The village.

Life is pretty good at the moment. Holed up in the West Village of NYC partaking in 7am big-city yoga, sipping espresso and working in cool-vibed coffee shops (amongst film producers, I might add--yes, I eaves drop), lunching in quaint eateries with a best friend, walking the brownstone-laced streets (gazing at Brooke Shield's new house around the corner), taking in all the sights and sounds this eclectic, bustling neighborhood has to offer. I keep telling Bea--who I'm crashing with--that all I really want to do is see a celeb. Sad...I know...but pretty much true. I'm thinking the closest I'll get (because that's just my luck) is the photos of Jude Law and one of the Olson's I saw on the wall of Economy Candy--the floor to ceiling, knock-you-over-it's-so-ridiculous, infamous East Village candy store. It was amazing, and we ventured home on the subway snacking on candy I had never even seen before. Bea thinks I had a deprived childhood because I didn't have a crammed-full candy drawer at my disposal, so she's desperately trying to makeup for that void in my life. I'm okay with that :)

Anyway...a few pics documenting my first day of six in NYC:







I had more--but for some reason blogger is really not liking them at the moment and won't let me upload. By the way--did any of your posts mysteriously disappear?

Well, I'm off to finish up some work and make a tour of the West Village as we make our way to dinner. HAPPY FRIDAY.

See you next week :)


11 May 2011

Bound for the big city.





Feverishly packing for my big-city escapade. Six whole days in the big apple means endless adventures (and blisters) under the canopy of sky-high buildings; soul-raising, mouth-watering, never-to-forget food (and beverages); late nights catching up with college-found friends (one being a bestie I haven't seen in two, too-long years); finding inspiration...everywhere...for current clients and future designs, an incredibly-anticipated rendezvous to Brooklyn Flea, picking out textiles and accessories for a NYC apartment re-do, oogling over the latest and greatest stationery designs at the National Stationery Show, and...really, really missing my Maple.

I am excited, nonetheless. And no worries, I'll be checking in next week--updating you on my where-and-whatabouts.

Any must-eat/see/go/do suggestions?

09 May 2011

A well-rounded breakfast.


Healthy?...no.
Delicious?...unbelievably so.

Maple and I are lucky enough to have some pretty amazing friends, from pretty amazing places, who are generous enough to give us pretty amazing things, like melt-in-your mouth (very legit) French chocolate croissants and smooth, delicious organic brew from the coffee-mecca Colombia.

Thought I'd share.... :)

Happy Monday! Hope your weekend was perfect. Ours was pretty close: we hosted a Kentucky-themed Derby-day dinner party, complete with mint juleps, bourbon balls, derby pie, hot browns, bourbon and brown sugar roasted carrots, and mashed potatoes (of course). It was a feast--and really so much fun.(Pictures to come).

04 May 2011

Craiglist: another gem.

It's amazing the things one can find on craigslist, ebay...my gosh, even the curb (as long as you are diligent in searching). People really don't know what they have, and, as goes the case in Charleston--they have too much money to even care; they simply want it gone to make room for new things.

Which brings me to this swoon-worthy find:

Stunning, right?
What's even better is the price-- $200.
And yes, that's still a chunk of change. But, can you imagine waltzing into an antique store and coming across a gem such as this? The price tag would surely be hundreds more. Why so cheap? There's a watermark on the top--a watermark that's entirely curable with a little elbow grease. The owner is moving and simply doesn't have time to deal with fixing her up.

I'm avidly attempting to convince Maple we need this beauty somewhere in our house. The thing is, though--we don't really need it. At all. There are rugs to buy, fabric to purchase, bedside tables to find, plants and trees to get in the ground, and patios to build. The list goes on and on and on and on. Essentially--this $200 could do a world of wonders elsewhere. But it's always so hard letting a beauty like this one get away...

So, dear sideboard...I guess this bids you goodbye.

02 May 2011

What a Monday.




{photos via everythingfab.com}

Good morning, sweet readers. This morning will certainly live in infamy, as the world awakens to the news of Osama Bin Laden.  This post seems a tad trivial (and shallow) in comparison to the weekend's events that will surely be written into the history books, but I hope it inspires beauty and hope in your day, nonetheless.

HAPPY MONDAY.
And a  huge thank you to our troops.