Those Chairs

I want those chairs... This photo makes me think I will never tire of gallery walls as long as they are well done and interesting. Also, I am thinking about painting our dining room and a color like this is what I have in mind.

Image Nate Berkus Associates

WOW: Marie Hines

I am so amazed right now & totally tearing up.  I just got a supersweet email from singer/ songwriter Marie Hines about her latest song/ video from "Better From the Living Room Sessions" and I clicked on her link to see the video.

{Marie, if you're reading this, I'll be honest, I really had no idea what to expect.}

But I was blown away.  Really blown away.  I definitely teared up.  She has such an incedibly beautiful voice, IS so incredibly beautiful, and you can just see that she is seriously passionate about what she does.  I'm instantly a new fan & wanted to share it on the blog because I thought you might enjoy her songs too:

http://www.mariehines.com/

Marie decorated her living room featured in the videos herself & styled it beautifully with a million candles.  You'll love it.

Thanks so much to Marie for sharing & you have got it GOIN on!!!




If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

Let's Get This Week Started

Let's get this week started with updated classics...Casual hair and embellished clothing...
A sunny kitchen with a great floor...
Another project to add to your list for next weekend...
And a little animal to take us a long way...
Hope your week is starting off on a high note! Images Pinterest

Quiet Time

These were sent to me by one of my sweetest friends at just the right moment. You know you have a good friend when they send e-mails like this your way....

"Let obstacles only make you bigger. The grace of our Lord will not be lacking: 'inter medium montium pertransibunt aquae!' -- 'through the very midst of the mountains the waters shall pass.' You will pass through mountains! What does it matter that you have to curtail your activity for the moment, if later, like a spring which has been compressed, you'll advance much farther than you ever dreamed?" ~St. Jose Maria Escriva The Way, 12

"I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;

I will turn the darkness into light before them

and make the rough places smooth.

These are the things I will do;

I will not forsake them."

~Isaiah 42:16

Yay for a Fall Friday

I am so happy it's Friday.  I really am.  It's 5:00, there's a little fall chill in the air and it's a bit overcast.  I made a batch of rice & potato soup this morning and it's been simmering for hours.  I'm ready to put on cozy sweats and hunker down...  watch movies & read & eat.  And of course hang with my family.

(I wouldn't quite fit in here in my sweats but it suits my mood ;)

I love this time of year...  both indoors & outside.  I love coming in with a chill and warming up and I love being outside, crunching acorns on the sidewalk when it'c ool enough for a scarf but not cold enough for a coat.  I made my kids wear hats today pretty much because they looked cute in them.  (I pretended they needed them and it thrilled me to no end.}

{Not our apples...  photo by Mikkel Vang via dress design & decor}

For the past few days I've been busy loading images of my new fabrics into the online store.  I'll be honest and say that it's a kind of torturous process.  It takes FOR-EVA.  Like Forrrrreverrrrrrrrrrr.  BUT----   I know it'll be worth it in the end, and the previously empty online store is starting to look good and take on some personality. 

Here's a sneak peek at one of my newer designs, Fern Star:

Last weekend for the photoshoot, I experimented with washing some of the fabrics to give them a bit of patina and I loooove how they turned out.  They're so soft & vintage-feeling and now I'm dying to redo my house.  Definitely doing some bedding for the boys new room in them.

Anyway, hope you had a great week & enjoy your weekend!!

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

50 Big Ideas for Small Rooms

Thanks so much to Terri Sapienza & the Living Team at the Washington Post for including me in today's article "50 Big Ideas for Small Rooms."  Terri interviewed 17 local designers (some good friends & colleagues!! :)  to compile a laundry list of ideas dealing with designing small spaces.

If you're local, just check out the Local Living Section of today's Post.  If you're not, click here to read.
Enjoy your day!!



If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

Love The One You're With- Design Manifest

If you need a dose of inspiration then look no farther than Naomi's blog...

As part of father/daughter design duo (how great is that?) her great taste is evident in every post. See what I mean?....

Hey everyone. I'm Naomi from Design Manifest and I need to be reminded daily to love what I've got. I am your typical OCD redecorator type. I'm always looking at my space with a critical eye- analyzing what needs to be improved, what editing can bring a better balance, etc etc. But the truth of the matter is that I am so lucky to live in a beautiful loft. That's why I love Marianne's series so much, it's helped me appreciate the good stuff.

So let me give you a little tour of a few areas.

This is one section of my living room. I recently added a slipcover to a modern sofa and I love how it's changed the personality of my entire space.

Nearly everything I own has been found at flea markets, estate sales, craigslist, or Ebay. I just don't have the budget or commitment to spend more right now. I scored my glass coffee table for $30! What's not to love about that?

I found this painting in my grandmother's basement and paired with two Ikea Rast cabinets. A little black paint and some new hardware totally changed their look.

I have a serious weakness for La Fiorentina fabric so I splurged on this entry bench. I paired it with a free mirror. It was a little small, so I painted a frame around it to make it pop.

I dressed up my Ikea bookcase with plate mirror backs and lots of pretties. The pop art was also found in my grandmother's basement. My nana's house is so stylish, even the basement looks better than my pad!

Since I have an open loft with 20' ceilings, I left most of the walls white. But I did paint a bold blue in my office nook. I painted a second-hand parsons desk hot pink. I just love that blue pink contrast.

One last thing I love- my clerestory windows! Every time I look up at the ceiling I smile.

So those are just a few elements of my apartment I love. I hope you enjoyed them too. Looking back at these now, I'm noticing how much pink I have! I swear it isn't as obvious in real life.

Marianne, thanks so much for having me over. I'm honored to be over here.

xo

Naomi

Thanks Naomi! I don't know where to start with your space there is so much I am obsessed with! First, your rug is one I have been DYING for for years now. Also, you are making my love of pink stronger. And those windows...they can come stay at my house anytime!