26 September 2011

An end to my hiatus.

Eeek--you're probably wondering what happened to me.  Well, me too.  I got sort of busy, and in the mix of it all, lost a bit of my blogging motivation. But, that's two-fold, as with that lack of posting comes some exciting change and some exciting news.  I'm working on developing the direction and branding of my business, and with that will come the direction and branding of my blog. In the meantime I promise to keep Maple and Shade afloat with eye-candy and inspiration, but my hope is to put my dreams in action and reorient my blog around my design obsession (and business).  Direction is a good thing, I've learned--so here's to the in-between-stage of figuring out my new course.

Thanks for being patient, dear friends and readers. I know how frustrating a blog hiatus can be, especially when the author keeps you in the dark. So here marks the beginning of the end to my unpredictable blogging whereabouts and whatabouts.

Speaking of whereabouts, my week's been relegated to Pawley's Island--an eclectic, laid-back Atlantic beach community an hour and a half north of Charleston. I'm on vacation (although you never really feel that way working for yourself), and finding myself completely enamored by the emerald blues and greens that make this coast such a tranquil escape. Juxtapose these rich, refined hues with an edge of black and white and you've got a pretty stellar color palette.












 {all photos via my pinterest}

Inspiration is everywhere.
Here's to being inspired. 

HAPPY MONDAY.

Can't wait to show you what I've really been up to.
I'll give you a hint: it's gray, and orange, and it's all in new a dental office... :)


02 September 2011

The details.

It's all in them.






Be brave. Go bold. Soak up the details.

And long live your weekend.

I hope it's at least three days.
Mine is four.
That means I'll see you on Wednesday :)




01 September 2011

Vintage peacock chairs.

Most of you assuredly know that I'm a bit of a bargain hunter. Good design absolutely does not have to come with a high price tag--you just have to be willing to put lots of effort into scouting deals. Eventually, you're sure to get lucky.

And, by now you've happened upon the fact that I have a pretty eclectic (bold...crazy...whatever) sense of style. We'll just say I have a 'well-versed appreciation for one-of-a-kind things.' Now, that sounds better :)

So, here's a little story. Maple and I are building a patio because, well, we have a giant, giant, giant yard (for the 'burbs, that is) and it's pretty much like taming the outback. Snakes, spiders, lizards, crocodiles (okay, kidding...maybe), you name it. So, like I said, we're building a patio and treating our yard so I, once again, will want to venture outside and maybe, just maybe, spend some good QT time out there. As depicted from our outback-ish yard, we live in the tropics (ok, the Carolinas), but we're totally running with the tropics theme for our patio. I, of course, have been dreaming up furniture and aesthetics, and decided peacock chairs would be royally awesome.

Never heard of peacock chairs? Well, that's because they are rare (and no, not because they are hideous, as Maple insinuated). They're handmade, and AWESOME, and you have to have pretty bold taste to weather their regal presence. Therefore, they're hard to come by, AND, when you do find them, they're priceeeeyyyy.

Take a look:

 (Not nearly as cool as...)
 (Okay, maybe this photo isn't exactly helping my case. But look at that chair. Who wouldn't want to sit in it? Throw in a tropical cocktail and well, I'm not leaving. )
 (This bookshelf would be outright boring without Mrs. Peacock. Throw her in the mix and you've instantly contrived a feature wall. )
 (Via Lonny...of course, of course.)
(This photo might be as vintage as the chair. And awesome.)


So, are you ready for this?
I was perusing craigslist in search of a "set of chairs" for a client of mine.
I clicked on a random posting. 
And I found:

PEACOCK CHAIRS.
Two of them. 
The most amazing I'd ever seen. 
 At a crazy, ridiculous steal of a price.
FIFTY DOLLARS. For the pair.
Let me introduce you:



Guess what Maple came home to yesterday? They're giant. And crazy. They took over our front porch. And I love them (they've grown on the Mr.). They now sit in our living room, awaiting the day our patio is built. I can't wait to have friends over...plop them down in these babies (in front of the fire pit, under the canopy of lights, amidst the tropical plants) and serve them fruity cocktails.  Won't you join us?

And, lesson learned. Keep treasure (and deal) hunting. It will pay off. Especially if you live in a community where A. people truly don't know the worth of what they have   and/or   B. they have too much money to even care (as in this case--the owner was moving her estate to NY and simply didn't want to deal with them).