Have a Lovely Weekend & a Fabulous 4th of July!



Morning y'all! This time tomorrow I'll be on my way to my happy place in Sea Island, Georgia.  I cannot tell you how excited I am.  That view is from the balcony of our family friend's house.  I took it when I visited last year and let me just go ahead and give them the award for winning at life.  It will be so nice to go down there and relax knowing that we basically sold our house (we still have a few post-inspection details to negotiate, but overall the inspection went really well).  I hope y'all have a wonderful weekend, and take a moment to celebrate America! I may try to post from Sea Island, but if I don't have a chance, I'll be back a week from Monday.  Follow me on twitter if you just can't stand not hearing from me for more than a week or if you want to know what I'm eating at any given moment of the day.  I promise not to tweet about any SCOTUS decisions (although I do plan on reading one in particular over my vacay - I'm weird, I know) or the heat (I love the heat so I am neither bothered nor surprised by it).  Also, enjoy these lovely linkiepoos:

I made Ina Garten's Linguini with Shrimp Scampi for my girls' dinner last night 
Easy & Yum! 

More of my Sea Island posts

How can I get this in the US of A? 
I need it for our guest room 
NEED



Before & After Kitchen from the lady who brought us O'verlays
Love navy blue cabinets!



Lots of blue and white chinoiserie on One Kings Lane today! 


And just for giggles, my sissies on the 4th of July when they were little:

Elizabeth in full clown make-up (it was a phase) & Laura in her smocked dress - I can't wait to see them again!

Last Day

Today is Melese's last day of preschool. In September we'll try a new school. School has been a real mixed bag for Melese. I feel like we started him too early.

His new school is just blocks from Meazi's. Somehow I feel this will make a difference.

We shall see.

Designer I Admire: Stephen Shubel

Morning y'all! While i was researching the source of this cozy bedroom last week, I ended up on the website of said bedrooms designer - Stephen Shubel. Apparently, I've liked his work for awhile, I just didn't know it all came from him.  Here are some of my favesies from his portfolio:

Love this fresh palette and the combination of formal with white slipcovers.  So my style.


Hi burl wood nightstand and silver lamp, I want you in my room. 


Pink and red :)


He does know how to do pink, this man.  I love this! 


In Paris, naturally.  



Love everything about this bedroom.  Even the cat, 'cause he's siamese.


I love the window treatments and the long banquette behind the dining table.


Oval island! Makes the room seem bigger.


Again with these window treatments.  Love!


Pretty

Isn't his work lovely?  I love that even though many of his rooms are formal he adds a touch of whimsy.

Probably won't have a chance to blog tomorrow.  Inspection's at 8:30 am, which shouldn't be a problem because Edward's in the habit of waking me up at 5:00 am.  8:30 am is basically lunch time for us.  Hopefully, everything goes well and we'll be on our way to planning for the new house!

Wordless Wednesday

sketchbook drawing : red streak


Silver Service

Morning y'all! Thanks for letting Edward guest post yesterday.  I actually started three different posts before I eventually gave up and handed the reigns to my rambunctious munchkin.  Today, I would like to share something I'm kinda into lately: silver.  While I love the warm tones of gold and brass especially the way it's been used lately, I'm finding myself drawn to the classic clean look of silver accents.  It also goes great with blue and white!

This is my bit of silver on my family room bookshelves (styled for house showings, so like kinda bare).  The Suze gave us this monogrammed champagne bucket as a wedding gift.  It's one her standard gifts because it was one of her favorite wedding presents.  It's one of those pieces that always reminds me of her.



The Suze loves her some silver, too.



I've shared this picture from The Suze's house before (see Suzeday Tuesday Vignettes).  Silver frames, trays and baby trinkets on display.


I actually chewed on that rattle.  You can see my teeth marks.  Rawr.

Kate Spade via Matchbook Magazine

Clearly, Kate Spade copied The Suze.  I love the look of a collection of small silver frames.  I'm also obsessed with finding silver lamps for  the new house.  Obsessed, I tell ya!

The Fairchild's living room that I've shared a billion time because I'm obsessed. 

Silver lamps via Pinterest 

Southern Accents 
Silver with a patina? or pewter? Whatevs, I like it.  I also like this ridiculous silver chandelier floating in a sea of blue and white heaven.

Axel Vervoordt
And then there's pretty silver accents like in these rooms (the dining room in the new house is the color of the first room so consider me inspired)

Southern Accents

Richard Keith Langham
And silver and lavender in the ladies room.  Love it!

Phoebe Howard

Heirloom Philosophy
This post could go on and on.  I'm sure I'll revisit this obsession later.  Have a lovely day!

sketchbook drawing : flowers


Oh Heyy Guys!


Edward here, bloggin' for my mama! She's kind of brain-dead this morning.  She thinks it's because I wake her up at 5:30 every morning and demand we watch Cars, but I think she's being a bit dramatic.  I mean, who doesn't want to watch Cars all the time? I know, right? No one.  Anyway, I love Cars and dinosaurs and buses, but that's for another blog.  Mama will be back tomorrow if she can get her brain together.

P.S. Can I just tell you how lame she's being?  She's all, "No Edward, you may not climb on the kitchen table, take a bite from each pear and then throw it on the kitchen floor." LAAAAAMMMMMEEEEE.

Have a Lovely Weekend!



* Images via Coastal Living 

Morning y'all! I have to say yesterday was exhilarating and exhausting! Our house went online in the morning and I was instantly inundated with texts, emails and phone calls regarding scheduled showings.  It was insanity.  I certainly don't want to jinx anything, but let's just say by the end of the day we were all smiling and laughing at just how well things are going for us ;) God is smiling down on us that's for sure.  I hope y'all have a lovely weekend!

I love these Acrylic Block Frames from Crate & Barrel
Mix them with classic silver frames for a more modern look

Also from Crate & Barrel, this Vertical Soft Headboard
I'm considering it for our new bedroom 

I wasn't planning a Nantucket getaway, but now I might! 

Kind of liking Yellow at the moment
thinking of it as an accent in our new green dining room 
normally not a fan 

For The Suze, she loves her some shutters 


Color Inspiration: Navy & Mint
for the new house exterior 

Oh to crawl back in bed ...

Stephen Shubel
I love this entire bedroom situation.  I've been thinking a lot about our bedroom in our new house and I can't commit to anything.  Maybe it's because I'm the princess in the pea.  I need near perfect conditions for sleeping as it is a state that does not come naturally to me.  So I'm terrified of making a design decision that will commit me to a lifetime of restlessness.  So dramatic, I know.  Lots to do today, but I'd rather be in this cozy bed.

sketchbook drawing : skill


Three Years ...







Three years ago today, I married my soul mate.  It was the best day of my life.  He's the most amazing man, husband and father, and, sometimes, if I take a moment to think about it, I'll get a little teary over it all.  He's the reason I believe that there's always hope.  Before I met him, things just wouldn't go my way no matter what I did.  Like for years.  It wasn't awful, but I didn't realize how good things could be.  Then I took some time to listen to that voice deep inside, God, my angels, my heart, the universe whatever you want to call it and suddenly I was moved in a direction that led me to him.  A weird and scary direction that involved moving away from all of my family and friends, but for some reason I knew I was doing what I was supposed to be doing.  Since then I've experienced small miracles and big ones (Edward) and my life is filled with so much joy and love.  There was clearly a bigger plan for me (and probably still is), but I know that plan includes Kip from here on out and that makes me the happiest person alive.  I love you Mister! Happy Anniversary!

{See more of our wedding here and here}

A Lovely Pink Moment



with a touch of blingy blue courtesy of a girly girl's girl Whitney Port and The Coveteur.  A bit of candy happiness to start my busy day! (And y'all it is busy). Be back tomorrow! 


xo

Moodboard Monday: Family Room & Art I Need

Susie Pryor - Beach Stroll

Morning y'all! I hope you had a lovely Father's Day weekend! Kip installed a fan and we ate our weight in fried chicken so I would say, overall, it was a successful weekend.  I've written about my favorite artist Susie Pryor in the past (see here).  I love her work, especially when her subjects are little ones.  I saw the above painting the other day, and I decided that I need it.  It reminds me so much of Edward, probably because he's pantsless and in what looks like an oversize t-shirt.  That's Edward's standard uniform at home when I'm too lazy to deal with his wiggles - who needs pants anyway? Also, because Edward is a wanderer, a trait he inherits from his Grandpa as well as his Dad.  He loves to take a stroll by himself (within reason, obviously, since he's one and a half).  Ms. Pryor managed to capture a memory of Edward that I will always have without even knowing him so I'm pretty sure it's meant to be mine.  I don't often want something that badly, so, ahem Kip, save yer pennies please because I want it realbad. 


So with that desperate plea, I give you a moodboard I'm working on for my family room (art I need included).  You can even get a glimpse of the family room in my new house in the corner! I would show you more images of the home, but I feel weird putting someone else's home with all of their stuff out there without them knowing (even though I kind of do that every day). It's still a work in progress, but basically a way to get my ideas out in front of me.


I've always loved the Kelly Wearstler for Schumacher Gordian Weave fabric.  I think it would be a great way to tie in (no pun intended) the black and white striped awnings outside the room.  Our sofas will be more spread out than in the current house so I think I want to slipcover the ottoman that currently functions as our coffee table and place it in front of the fireplace for more seating.  Then I can get some proper tables to use in front of our sofas.   The Suze has a pretty piece of thick beveled glass over two blue and white garden stools and it makes for a lovely low table so I may steal that idea.  Ok y'all, that's all for today! Have a good one!

Have a Lovely Father's Day Weekend Y'all!

{via dustjacketattic}

Morning y'all! How wonderful is that door?  I want to know what's behind it! Soo the showing yesterday went very well.  Of course, they called and wanted to see it in the morning rather than the afternoon so I had about ten minutes to scramble to get out of the house with Edward and the dog.  My mother-in-law's "pile every loose item in the laundry basket" trick came in really handy.  Luckily, I had checked off many tasks on my checklist the night before.  When I walked back into my home, I thought, "yea, I'd buy this place."  Regardless of what happens, it's just nice to have some positive feedback.  I'm excited for Father's Day on Sunday because it means we get to spend some time together as a family.  We've spent so much time working on the house, and we need a break to have some fun.  Hope y'all have a lovely weekend!

In case you missed it, my checklist before showing the house 

The Pink Pagoda Blue and White Store is open for business! 
and I'm in hog heaven

One King's Lane is also having a Blue and White Sale 
Ends Sunday

Holy Dream Home!!



I'm loving Tory Burch's Tumblr Torypedia 

Hilarious version of Beauty and the Beast


sketchbook drawing : sew

The Big Move: Checklist Before Showing


Morning y'all! We are showing our house today! It's not technically on the market yet.  We still have a couple of little things we have to finish before it's market ready so this is sort of like a practice showing, but with a legit, interested buyer.  I just had to sprinkle some fresh flowers around the house.  Trader Joe's y'all.  That orchid was $12.99! It's just as gorgeous as any $45 orchid I've seen.

Here's the checklist I devised for myself to prep the house for a showing.


Did I forget anything?

Getting your house ready to show is sort of a bizarre thing for someone like me who is constantly concerned with how my house looks.  Part of me is like, I don't want people to come in and think I don't have pictures of my family or prefer to keep my shelves bare, but the other part of me is like, whatever, I want to sell this place.  It's a strange dichotomy of making it look welcoming and ready to move in, but also like no one lives there, except like maybe an athlete or business person who travels a lot and just hired someone to furnish it with the bare necessities.

Tiny Dining Table
Case in point: the realtor suggested we take the leaves out our dining room table to show how big the dining room is.  We're using the same realtor who represented the sellers of our new house (he's a great negotiator), and I remember when I walked into the new house, the first thing I thought was, "Why do they have such a tiny dining table in here?" So now I'm all paranoid that people are going to come in and think the same thing about me.  And then someday, if I ever do design for a living, they'll be like, "no way, that girl loves tiny dining tables."

But Imma listen because, again, the point is to sell the house.

Blue and White Fabric Love

Morning y'all! I got so much done yesterday that I sort of feel like a rock star.  I wiped down all of the trim, doors, light switches and cabinets, which sounds kind of silly but it makes a huge difference (kind of like cleaning your windows).  I also touched up the trim and doors upstairs because I tend to run into things with the laundry basket.  I did manage to dip the bottom inch of my pony tail in the can of paint and then smear it all over my new white t-shirt.  Of course, I didn't realize this for a couple of hours so that's awesome.  

Enough of my cleaning biznis, it's soo boring.  As I clean I'm always thinking blue and white (and sometimes pink, but not today).  These are some of the fabrics I'm considering to get the blue and white family room that yesterday's images inspired.  I'd love your opinions*!  

* The new family room is white with white carpet, which probably won't last, and our sofas are a tan raffia and I'm thinking of adding big white euro shams and some smaller throw pillows in one of these fabrics.  I also want to reupholster some bamboo chairs I have in one of these fabrics as well.  I'll probably try to use the same fabric all around to keep it simple.  Finally, we have a black and white striped awning outside the big window.  There now you have the deets. 

This first fabric is so much cuter in person.  I stumbled upon it while I was meandering through Calico Corners.  It is called Medallion Handprint in Lake and it's currently the front runner**. 



Here's a closer look at the print: 


** UPDATE: after I finished this post, I had a new front runner.  ADD much? (see below) 

I also really liked the idea of this Robert Allen fabric for the bamboo chairs, but I haven't seen it in person.  Yesterday, Our French Inspired Home commented that sometimes the ratio of blue and white is off, preferring more white than blue.  I totally agree.  I definitely want this room to be more white than blue.  



Perhaps I should go with a classic toile instead? 

Like this Toile Orientale (** NEW FRONTRUNNER), 



Or this Grand Toile?



I think I prefer the first toile for the white to blue ratio.  My only concern about the toile is that our kitchen is covered in a black and white toile wallpaper that I plan on keeping for awhile.  The rooms are next to one another, but not necessarily open to each other, but I don't want to be "toile lady." 

Then there's the trusty ikat.  But will I love it in 5 years? Does it matter? 


Ok people, if you've stuck with me to the end of this incredibly long post, then you must be true blue and white fabric lovers.  Tell me what you think!

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