March 28, 2014
A Glimpse & A Peek (P.S. I’m still alive)
Hello dear Readers, I am happy to tell you I am alive. I am so sorry for my absence, really I am, and I have missed...
my design projects, inspirations, & a few personal tidbits
Here you will find what inspires me, and a peek into how I pull spaces together – the good, the bad, and the sometimes ugly mishaps along the way. I sprinkle in a little family life, travel, food, fashion, and party events, too.
March 11, 2014
How To Create A Baby’s Breath Flower Arrangement
When I was in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago, I got to tour a modern loft outfitted with furniture solely covered in Sunbrella fabrics. The loft was beautiful, but I was especially taken by the baby's breath flower arrangement. The lighting is not the best in this cell phone pic, but the arrangement was really interesting in such a modern space. And it looked good, folks. Real good.
I know, I know, baby's breath has gotten a bad rap. But it can really be beautiful.
Baby's breath, also known as gypsophila, was introduced in the US in 1828 when gardeners from Britain introduced several of their favorite garden flowers.
An instant hit in the States, baby's breath became a symbol of everlasting love, innocence, and purity. Opinion differs on how gypsophila became "baby's breath". Some say it was given the moniker because of the sweet smell, and others say the name was prescribed because of its delicate appearance.
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The arrangement in Atlanta stuck with me, so the week I returned home, I bought three bunches of baby's breath and got to work. 
March 10, 2014
DIY Iron Display Shelves
Oh boy, am I excited about today's post!! I had this idea months ago, and I am so happy to have brought it to fruition, and I am even more happy to finally share it with you!
The story begins on a trip this past summer to see a good friend of mine who lives in Northern California. She took me to the most amazing restaurant in St. Helena called French Blue. (I wrote about it here) The food was amazing, but I was completely swept away by the decor. It was light and bright and organic feeling, and at the time, we were just finishing the 300 square foot addition off of our kitchen that had a similar feel as far as natural light and lots of windows. I fell in love with these shelves, and it is hard to tell from this photo, but they are made of an iron grid material.
Shortly after I returned home from this trip, I emailed French Blue and asked about the shelves. I wondered, "Could I order them?" The reply was swift and disappointing, as everything was made on site specifically for French Blue. Super kind of them to respond back to me though, right?
I thought I could order the iron material, but after a little research, even that was a little out of my price range. Since I had splurged on lighting (see here and here) more than planned (totally worth it by the way), I knew I needed to make this happen on the cheap.
And then, my friends, the DIY stars aligned, and I found two eight foot pieces of iron in a local salvage yard for $30. It was a complete surprise, as I was looking for something totally different.
Side Note: My husband, when previewing this post, called the above photo "Inspiration" and the below photo, "Desperation", ha!
Now to most people, these pieces probably look like bad locker room shelves, but I knew they could make shelves just as amazing as the ones at French Blue. The problem was the sizing. They were 24" wide, and I needed them to be cut down to 12"; therefore, cut in half. (The two pieces would make four shelves, which was what I was wanting.) I also needed them to be six feet long, instead of eight feet long. And because of all the cuts, the iron would probably need some extra strips of bracing. Now I'm pretty handy, but welding, I cannot do. Lucky for me, there was a guy that worked at the salvage yard that told me he could do all of this for $40. Done and done.
A couple of weeks later, I went to pick them up, and that's where the fun began. Painting these babies.
March 7, 2014
Master Bedroom Cornice Boards
In our Master Bedroom, we have two windows behind our bed. They are actually different sizes as one is four inches wider than the other. Why? I have no idea.
Can you see which one is bigger?
In case you are wondering why I am showing you such a snippet of this room, you should know that it is completely covered in sheets and plastic due to our master bathroom renovation. (I posted an update yesterday in case you missed it) We sleep in this little plastic cocoon!
I did not really want to put full length curtains on these windows (although I tried that once) because this room is pretty small, and I did not want to move the bed forward to accompany their thickness. Therefore, I knew I wanted shades or something similar, but the problem I was running into was how to better conceal the difference in window size.
My good friend and vintage furniture lover, Kristen, texted me from an estate sale and sent me a photo of these cornice boards. I immediately loved the vintage fabric, and I said "yes, get them!". You know you have a great friend when she loads two huge cornice boards in her car for you. Love you, KD!
The problem is the trim. I think I want something a bit more modern looking.