29 July 2011

Maples Ahoy.







Yep, we bought a boat...and last night was our maiden voyage.
We dropped anchor in a marshy river bend, shared a little toast, and cruised those soft, summer waves.
Balmy Charleston evenings will never be the same, nor will our weekends.

HAPPIEST FRIDAY.

Design idea: Vintage National Geographic

Hello, hello, my loyal blog readers! I must first send a big thank-you your way for being ever-so-patient with my lack of posting. I hate to say it, but it's tough to make blogging a priority when life gets busy and there's the potential for an income to be generated doing actual work. I love posting inspiration, and showing you what I'm up to, and I so very appreciate your reading support!

Anyhow, pinterest is glorious--is it not?! I find myself perpetually pinning design ideas and inspiration...and products and resources I intend to use for ongoing projects. And somehow, someway...in the midst of all of that...I stumbled across these: scans of vintage National Geographic material.

Totally awesome.





{okay, I couldn't resist. But just look how teenie they seem! in the words of Liz Lemon, 'I want to go to there.'}





Amazing, are they not? Yes, it's so cool that photography has advanced to capturing stunningly clear pictures with crazy megapixel technology, but don't you sort of wish photographs still came out looking like incredible paintings, without the aid of photoshop? I'm truly smitten by the vintage aesthetic.

In fact, so smitten, that I can totally see these images lining a bare wall in a gallery-style fashion. Of course this sent my mind reeling, and one little ebay search unveiled a lot of 1960's National Geographics for ten measly bucks. TEN dollars.  From there you could frame them as-is, in simple/modern frames from Ikea (to create a bold contrast with the vintage subject matter), or...you could scour thrift stores and ebay for neglected vintage frames. Hang them in two rows with at least four photos in each row, and there you have it: an inexpensive, statement-making fix for a lonely, neglected wall! Hmm...thinking this might be the perfect addition to our wood panelling-clad TV room, where I'm wanting to create a dark, inviting, cozy library environment.

Anyway, there you have it: a simple, cheap, and totally awesome design idea!

22 July 2011

Working from home has its perks:



Don't be fooled: I do do work. But, since my home office is still very much a blank canvas (aka uninspiring) and today it was actually the stage for a photoshoot, I thought it best to curl up on the (above) cozied sofa.

See that pretty plump pillow? The geometric one? It was in the shoot, which I can't wait to show you the results of. The next issue will be out soon--so I will have to wait til then to reveal it. My last night and this morning consisted of preparing for the two shoots, both centered around projects that I designed. I offered the corner of my office for one, which meant I was hurried to paint, hang curtains, scout furniture + props, and style it all. It was pretty much my dream. And somehow I'm lucky enough to get paid for it.

Okay, back to work...
xoxo, my pretties.
Until next week.
Enjoy your week's end.

Blame it on the rain...

Or the beach, as that's been the reason for my recluse the past week and a half. It was glorious--and just what I needed--days and days of surf, sandcastles, starfish, cooking, laughing, coffee, good reads, sweet treats, screened porches, that salty ocean breeze, and...best of all...lazy days with much-missed family. 

So I'm back. 
And I think these are pretty:





{photos via my pinterest}



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08 July 2011

Porch, magazine, weekend...oh my.

It's Friday! You know what that means: yes, I HAVE been drinking coffee all day. How'd you know? It's because it's raining. One cup just didn't suit. Anyway, I'm also gearing up for the weekend. You'd think living in the sunny south we'd have quiet, restful weekends full of drinking peachy iced tea and mojitos on the porch. But we don't. Nope. In fact, we pretty much have friends/family in town or we're out of town just about every weekend of the summer. Anyway, next week is our vaca on the beach with Maple's family, so I've been preparing to ditch work for five days, and I can. not. wait.

(For the record, this might be the longest M + S post ever...and yet-to-come. Let's just say there's lots to catch up on and I'm not entirely good at showing you all that I've been up to. Oops.)

Anyway, fixing up the house has been happening at ice-age speeds. Has it even happened? Yes...yes...I have to keep looking at those "befores," but my gosh it takes forever. Especially, when as mentioned above, we're perpetually entertaining or being entertained, meaning painting/yard work/hanging curtains/attaching hardware/etc etc etc has to wait. And wait. And wait...

But...I've made a teenie bit of front porch progress. Remember what she looked like before?

Baghh! Scarring, I know. 
Carpet. Carpet?! Yes...carpet. Guess what? It's still there. Because...of course...there is ASTROTURF underneath, clinging every-so-tightly to that concrete with construction adhesive, meaning we will have to rip and scrape our lives away when we decide to tackle that mess.

So, after scouting craigslist for some furniture finds, revamping the ultra-cool chairs with new fabric and pillows, and giving some life to the downtrodden space with plants, here is what she's looking like now:


Ohh...carpet...I can't wait to rip you up, roll you out, and hand you over to the city dump. 

See the wrought-iron column? It haunts my dreams. But, thanks to this variegated confederate jasmine, those hideous, winding spindles will soon be boasting a full, flowering vine.

We still have some plans for it, like: constructing a prettier step and redoing the akward walk; surrounding the exposed side with grasses and other privacy-bearing plants and shrubs, and placing some more substantial planters at the front. But, guess what--those were cheap and definitely fit the bill until we're ready to splurge.


Now for the rug. 
It's not looking so hot these days, being that the sweltering sun has sucked the color from it, but...I did make it. It was a magazine project of mine. 


The rug was featured in the latest issue:


See! It used to be pretty...

And here's some shots of me (painstakingly) making it.

The Before:

The during: 




  
(Soo I must've misplaced my hairbrush that day)


And the photoshoot:


(I told you this post would be excruciatingly long).

Anyway, there she is, in her finest form. 
And now she greets me on my front porch each day, reminding me that life is pretty great and doing work for the magazine pretty much rocks.

HAPPY WEEKEND!

07 July 2011

Abstract.

Alas, I am back...and wiping the drool that's accumulated from spending wayyy too much time ooo-ing and ahhh-ing over the splendid work of Sally King Benedict: an inspired Southern artist, in every sense of the word:







Maple and I want a painting, much to the likes of hers, to hang in our dining room, just above the console/buffet table. It's a very bare wall at the moment, and an abstract oil (toned down a notch with neutral gray/white/black hues) is sure to fit the bill, especially when flanked by a pair of sconces to lend a  light, airy feel to that side of the room. Perfect for the dining that so often goes down in there. My pocket can't quite afford the splendor that's shown above, but lucky for me I have a super talented sister-of-a-friend (did you catch all that?) that's willing to take on the task. She surprised us with a different abstract canvas (our 1st piece of art, I might add) as a wedding gift, and from that day forward we've been sold on her skill! I'm a wee bit excited to get this piece commissioned, and show you the real deal hanging on the wall :)

Now, back to the grind, I guess. Working on a magazine project that's set to debut in the upcoming end of August issue! That, too, I'll have to clue you in on.

HAPPY THURSDAY.