This kitchen kills me in every way....the dark cabinets, the fab Tom Dixon lighting, the mirrors, but mainly the concrete table here. The industrial look of concrete pairs so nicely with more glamorous surroundings. I love its color and the feeling it gives off of weight and strength....kind of like it will outlast everyone and everything. I'm in need of a concrete desk for sure.
Just a few ideas for Mother's day gifts today. It is just a few weeks away if you can believe it. I'm making my mom a chocolate and ice cream cake that I made once before and everyone died over it so she requested it again. Mom's are so special and should be pampered accordingly. It doesn't matter how old you get they worry about you every second of every day and always want to protect you as best as they can. There is no purer love than a mother's love don't you agree? Now that I'm a mom is when I really understand this.
I want to introduce you to Elizabeth Showers and her fabulous jewelry collection. I met Elizabeth last weekend where I got a chance to chat with her about her line and her mission to empower women with her jewelry designs. I cannot accurately express the feeling of pride that came over me when she shared her belief that all women are beautiful inside and out.
Today I want to introduce you to the sweet, beautiful and talented Michaela from Michaela Noelle Designs. She covers it all in her blog, from hair tutorials, to decorating ideas to fabulous fashion finds. She shares her fave things with us today. So excited!
Many of the living room images I have been pinning (follow me on pinterest here) have pedestals. The look especially fab in living rooms with high ceilings where they add height. Not to mention they add sophistication and a sense of layers. I love the image above where they add some tall indoor palms to dress up the room. Easy and efficient.
This story begins with this photo taken by me to show you my DIY malachite boxes. Recently, Jenny from LGN, borrowed the photo for a malachite DIY roundup she was doing. That same day I receive a comment from a very sweet lady, Carolyn, telling me that these flowers are from her family's faux floral company called Diane James Home, a company which her mother started and is now run by herself and her twin sister. She told me exactly where and when these flowers were bought- twelve years ago at Bergdorf's. Yes! Exactly I said! They had been a gift from my mom for Valentine's day way back. I was so excited about this email because a) these flowers have a special place in my heart b) my mom is also a fan and has several of these arrangements c) I just love coincidences. So, I emailed Carolyn, right away to tell her I could not believe she recognized the arrangement and to share with her my excitement.
I just found out about this fabulous online store of baubles called Juweliq where everything is $25 and under. Gaby from The Vault Files (whom I just met after being virtual friends and who is as every bit as awesome and sweet as I pictured her to be) was the one who told me about it this weekend. Aren't these cute? And the price makes them even cuter I think. This is is the perfect website as a go-to for friends' birthday presents or for a little pick-me-up treat for yourself. These that I rounded up for you above are my favorites.
Hey my beautiful friends- do you all know what is in all your beauty products? You all have heard me talk about natural beauty products before (like my friend's magnificent skin care line Tata Harper which I blogged about here and here). Well, yesterday I had the privilege of learning about a new skin care line called Beautycounter that uses only nontoxic ingredients. I was so excited to learn about this new line directly from the founder, Gregg Renfrew, (don't be fooled by the name she is a woman!) I was in awe with this force of a woman and her powerful vision for the future of the skincare industry. What was alarming to me were some interesting facts about the FDA. For example, did you know that the European union has banned 1,300 ingredients from being used in cosmetics because their effects on humans are not quite known? And how many do you think the United States has banned? I would have thought maybe 300? Well, its actually 11. Yes, be surprised and angry and realize that we all need to be aware of what is in the products we use for our daily routine.
I'm thrilled to have the amazing duo behind The Short and Sweet of It- Kirby and Alexa. What a great team they make bringing such fabulous inspirations for us everyday- from beautiful hotels, to the cutest shoes you ever did see. Today, they will be sharing their favorite things with us. Yeay! So, here we go!
I'm
so excited to bring you some inspiration from my friend's parents' home. This is my third post in the new series I began called
"Inspiration gathered and noted" (see first home tour here and second tour here). This series, is basically a home tour where I will try and identify different sources of inspiration that
have caught my attention and that I would like to file away as lessons
learned for any future decorating or designing projects. I hope they will be inspirational to you as well.
So excited to have the third edition of the "We love " series. Here was the last post in the series in case you missed it. To refresh your memory Sam from The Peak of Tres Chic and I
will be gathering inspiration under a certain theme a
couple of times a month and sharing it with you. Sam will guest post here in my blog and I will post at Sam's. I guess you could say we are swapping for the day. This time around its all about pastels!!
Gosh, I really hope the weather was as fab this weekend for you as it was here. It was perfection! Sunny, clear blue skies, breeze, warm but not too hot, and most importantly - there were NO MOSQUITOES!
I probably say this every Friday but I'm thrilled the weekend is here. I still have catching-up to do plus I have to gear up for what promises to be an even busier week next week. And in between all that we will go to the museum, go to some birthday parties, celebrate our wedding anniversary and plant a little tree. Mixing it up is the best way to go.
I'm most grateful to-
|| House Beautiful. I was so honored to be featured in House Beautiful's Top Blog Posts of the Week last week alongside great company like Lindsay from Sadie And Stella. See here.
|| Live Laugh Decorate. The sweet Nicole from Live Laugh Decorate included one of my peak pillows on her fabulous Houzz article about how to add color to a room without major commitment. Her answer- change your pillows! Read the article here.
|| Little Green Notebook. Jenny did the most amazing and comprehensive feature on malachite and included my box DIY here.
-for mentioning my little blog. I'm truly honored.
And for some link love:
|| I loved this DIY from The Vault Files because it is adorable and easy. I think it would be ideal for a little gift for a friend or for as kid's birthday party favor.
|| I wanted everything in The Now Stylebook's Lust list. You will love the zebra stationery and the pineapple sandals.
|| I got these cute sandals from Zara after seeing them on my most fashionable friend. I could not stop thinkin about them after seeing them in her cute feet. And these were on the next shelf. It was a spur of the moment decision. I grabbed them as well and went.
Have a wonderful weekend! xx
[ image by Tommy Ton for Harper’s Bazaar ]
I happily present Emily from Isn't That Charming for this week's My Favorite Things series. Emily has some fabulous style and beauty posts and is as sweet as she can be. Her voice is fresh and real and you can't help but fall in love with her. Here she shares her favorite things-
One of my favorite things about Spring is hearing all the birds chirping and flying about. They are busy, busy this time of year. Its kind of nice to wake up to their beautiful songs instead of the alarm clock. This fabulous Alexander McQueen rug expresses this sentiment exactly, a kind of happy, free, and colorful excitement to begin the day. It is woven in silk and metallic threads giving them jewel-like tones. I can just think of its presence in person. I don't think I would need a bed if I had this rug. And wait till you see it in action.
This beautiful apartment in Madrid designed by Lorenzo Castillo is a jewel. This dining room set-up stole my heart. I have always been a big fan of dinner parties. I love giving them and going to them. Nothing beats an evening with friends over delicious food, good wine and even better conversation. I also love when people with large spaces opt for having two dining tables- it just breaks up the room so nicely. Add to this shiny chandeliers, beautiful mirrored walls, brass tables, and a banquette and you have yourself a glamorous space that is probably the envy of many.
Its no secret lace is in vogue- from housewares, to jewelery, to clothing and has been for a few years now. Gilded lace accessories are really having their moment now (much like the cuff and earrings above). The first time I came across gilded lace jewelry was when we met Monika Knuttson to interview her for our blog (read the post here). These pieces are truly delicately beautiful. Ever since, I have been seeing more and more artists explore this art-from of dipping lace in gold. I feel like lace is having a revival and is no longer your grandmother's lace but a modern, edgier lace, no longer reserved for wedding dresses.
My sweet beauties! I cannot tell a lie, I'm thrilled its Friday because I get to catch-up on what feels like a huge backlog of to-dos! The list just keeps getting longer. How does this happen? Life as usual I guess.
Well, I'm so, so excited to share with you these beautiful photos of Roxy's feature on the Everygirl. Roxy from Society Social is such an inspiration. You know I love raving about her, but really she just never seizes to amaze me. Read the article, you will fall in love with her even more.
Welcome to today's Luxe Lusting feature filled with all shades of happy pinks. I know not everybody loves pink, but you can't deny its a happy Spring color and it plays so well with so many other colors. You know what color combination I'm loving lately is pink, black, and white. Soft and edgy at the same time. Here is an outfit and a vignette with this color scheme to help you visualize -
I'm in love with this styled desk I spotted last night on pinterest. My love of this picture is partly rational and partly emotional. I see that beautiful glass filled and I immediately think of my grandmother who used to drink a scotch on the rocks everyday. Johny Walker Black. This she did until well into her seventies. And the scissors remind me of her as well. She used to have a similar pair with little owls on them. Pretty cool grandma no? That is my emotional attachment to this image and the rational part- You can never go wrong with the boldness of black and gold in my opinion and a little Hermes box mixed in.
Happy Tuesday! Happy April! Happy, Happy!! I'm so glad to be back home. I love going on vacation, but I love coming back home. Of course, I'm a bit behind on everything....you know, emails, bills, errands, to-dos.....And of course I won't be stepping on the scale for a few days, so you can add dieting to the list as well! But, we rested and bonded and it was fabulous. So, back to reality and life as usual and blogging.
These Miles Redd curtains have stuck to me like glue since the first time I saw them. You know Miles Redd is one of my favorite designers (remember this post?) and I think everything he does is magnificent, especially the lacquered walls, which must happen sometime in the near future.....and these ruffled curtains.....oh the ruffled curtains.....