Decor I Adore

Oh The Possibilities.....

2012-01-01T20:20:00.000-08:00

Living Room Updates

2011-07-27T05:54:00.000-07:00

Wow it's been so long since I've posted something on here... I'm a bad bad BAD blogger! My life has been mostly about my two precious gems.. Jared and Naomi!

We've had a busy spring and summer full of activities; with friends and family visiting off and on...

I have been able to get a few things done around the house though. My living room is mostly done now. First let me remind you of the very embarrassing before.

Here is what it looks like now... We got rid of the horrible dark walls and gave it a nice lite grey color, added some great curtains for a more modern feel. And the yellow accents also help with bringing lightness into the room. Lightness is something I craved for in this room especially after purchasing this big brown monster of a sectional. The rug isn't really what I want in there, but I think I'll wait a few years til the kids don't feel the need to spill juice and other fun things on it (lets just say this rug was witness to Naomi's potty training in a very personal way).

The LOVE print is what inspired the yellow in the room. I purchased it from Made By Girl by Jen Ramos. She's an amazing artist and has a new shop called Cocoa and Hearts. I MUST own one of her pieces someday!

I adore the way the West Elm curtains sweep the floor. My windows are very tall and high maintenance, they love being dressed in curtains that accentuate the fact :).

I'm really loving the way the living room is turning out. What do you think? My kids seem to enjoy it just fine :)

PS I really missed you guys and can't wait to get back to regularly posting on here. Thanks for your patience!

Kiss, Hug and Tickle-Tickel

2011-07-26T05:40:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my beautiful Naomi Ann who turns 3 today... Incredibly unique in every way, she makes our days brighter and keeps us on our feet at all times. We love you Nani...

Kiss, hug and tickle-tickle...

I'm Ready!!!!

2011-03-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

I'm ready for clear blue skies....

...ready for beautiful flowers in all kinds of hues....

..ready for sunny rays of light brightening every room in the house, open windows and drapes flowing with the warm breeze....

...ready to use nature as our main source for a pop of color....

...bright longer days....

I'm ready to stuff all sweaters, coats and faux Uggs in a box, make it disappear into the back of my closet. I'd replace them with some of the outfits I've been playing around with over on Polyvore.

For now I'll just settle with feeling better. I've had a killer cough for the last 4 days.. my feet are cold and all I want to do is sleep. Hope you are all having a better week than I am.

images 1,2 here

images 3,4 via DecorPad

image 5 via Dwellings By Devore

For Japan

2011-03-18T05:37:00.001-07:00

Praying for the people of Japan.

Window Shopping: Everything But Coats

2011-03-15T17:48:00.001-07:00

When I finished decorating our master bedroom last year I felt that the curtains were the thing that gave the room that extra special touch that I'd been looking for.

I got these Waverly curtains at Burlington Coat Factory for only $19.99/panel, steal!

Since then I go there searching for little treasures. This time around I was not disappointed. First off I found this lovely little bench. I'm too cheap to pay $79.99 for it, but I must admit that I'd love to own one or two of them. I love the nail head trim and the white faux leather.

Of course my cheapness doesn't necessarily make me blind. I think this stool would look amazing with an identical twin sitting under a console table, kind of like this.

This mirror would have made it home with me if it would've been the same white as the bench. It looks small in this picture but it was huge and for only $99.99!

This cute little lamp caught my eye.. it would look great in a nursery.

This rug had me at hello! I never found out the price, but I was so tempted to get it. Love the graphic patterns on it.. it seemed to be very good quality also.

And there you go... I love sharing my "window shopping" trips with you guys... So much inspiration comes to me when I go on these. It's a real nice way to forget about my stresses and the everyday routine of life.

You can read more about my bedroom here and here.

Image via decorpad

At A Thrift Store Far Far Away.....

2011-03-08T06:33:00.001-08:00

I stopped by a Florida Goodwill while on vacation about a month ago. It's amazing how much better that Goodwill was than any of the Goodwill stores in our area... I (of course) wasn't able to bring anything home with me. But I couldn't resist the temptation to snap a few pics to share with you guys.

I don't remember the prices of all these items, but I do remember that everything was fairly priced. This little table jumped out to me right away.

I then looked for some pictures I've got stored away in my Decor I Adore inspiration file and noticed that this table could easily replace any of these:

Maybe spray painted in black?

I would say this table is it's distant cousin.

Here are a few of the other things that caught my eye.

Love, love this coffee table!

It was fun visiting this store, although it seemed like torture knowing all the potential of these pieces and not being able to take any of them home. But I was able to shop for some clothing. Tons of name brand stuff, I even found a few tops from Anthropologie!

Do any of you love to thrift shop as much as I do?? SOOOOOOOO much fun!

images via flickr, decorpad, decorpad, decorpad, decorpad

Crush- Found Decanter Lamp

2011-03-01T13:31:00.000-08:00

I am crushing hard on the Found Decanter Lamp at Anthropologie... Isn't she sexy?!

She is a big girl with curves, just like I like em' (lamps that is). She would totally come live with us if it weren't for the big price tag ($498 buckaroos). Despite the price I can still imagine her falling in love with my "new to me" side table that I recently got at my favorite thrift store.

This table was the perfect size for that little corner in our living room. I'm thinking of maybe painting it in the future, I'll play that one by ear as I add things to the room. I'm loving the lines on this table.. and it's got good space for storage, maybe some baskets to hold remote controls and magazines.

For now I'll day dream about that Found Decanter Lamp finding her way into our lives.

What can I say... when it comes to daydreaming, I'm always an optimist.

Happy Birthday To ME!!!!!!

2011-02-05T07:25:00.000-08:00

My only focus today is to have a dreamy day, kind of like this

Besitos to all my beautiful followers!

image via google images

2011-02-01T06:39:00.000-08:00

So our ~~dungeon~~ living room went from this...

to this..

It still needs a lot of work to get it where I want it to be. But I am so glad the wall colors are different. We chose Chocolate Froth by Behr for the walls, it makes the room nice and bright, which is exactly what I was going for. We got the curtains on sale from West Elm and they go just perfect against the wall color.

Here is what the other side of the room looks like...

My biggest goal for this room is to get rid of that TV cabinet. It just HAS to go!..

I want this room to be cozy but also pretty, here is a little mood board I created a few months back to show how I want the living room to look like some day.

Things won't turn out exactly as they are on here as you can already tell by my curtain choice, but I do want a lot of the color and playfulness I imagined on this moodboard. I am also debating whether or not I should keep the same rug. I am absolutely in love with this Trina Turk one on the mood board. It's something I'll decide on as the room evolves.

Let the decorating fun begin!!!

Dungeon Be Gone!

2011-01-30T15:16:00.000-08:00

Our living room is the room we spend the most time in. We watch TV here, play with the kids, and generally just lounge around. It's basically the reason why when we bought our sectional about two years ago, we decided to go for functionality instead of aesthetic.

I've regretted this decision more than once... the sectional is just so huge for the room! And it's dark color eats up any light in there, which is exactly why I called this room THE DUNGEON. But I am determined to work with what we've got!

The paint on the walls is something we chose when we first moved in 5 years ago. We were trying to embrace the old world style of the house. The "old world look" got old pretty fast with me and painting the living room had been on my wish list for a while.

We went wayyy lighter on the walls.

Looks better already, no?

A bit of a preview of what the living room looks like now.

I'll share more pictures and plans I've got for our most used room a little later. Stay tuned!

Still Alive

2011-01-26T19:38:00.001-08:00

I'm still alive!! My internet was down for almost a month and I've been pulling my hair out thinking of my blog having Christmas pics all over it... SHAME! Can I kind of make it up to you guys by sharing this lovely image? Lovely, love, LOVE!

Image Alice Lane via Viva Full House

Feliz Navidad

2010-12-24T06:47:00.001-08:00

I've always loved Christmas time. This year we are having a very low key Christmas, just the four of us doing little activities here and there. No big dinner parties or family visiting. We are just going to enjoy each others company. I wanted the house to look pretty though. Every room has a little something that says "it's Christmas!"

For the entry way I grabbed a large branch from our backyard and threw a few leftover ornaments. I wanted everything to sparkle so I used lots of gold in this room. So simple yet so beautiful if I may say so myself.

Of course I showed off the wreath I made on my last post... It's still looking pretty in our den.

I had leftover things from past projects and I threw this little wreath together. It now hangs in our dining room.

Also in our dining room I dressed up this cabinet with some garland and (why not?) some jewelry.

In the kitchen I used this topiary that I've had for ages and just threw a few leftover ornaments on the base to make it a bit more festive.

I've blinged out the tree a little more. I just had to buy some of the marked down ornaments out in stores right now. Plus I added letters as initials for all four family members.

But I really believe that whats got me the most excited this year is to feel how happy my kids are with seeing all of the decorations. Jared gets to light the Christmas tree every morning, and every morning he has a mini countdown.

Naomi has been able to control herself pretty well when it comes to pulling off the ornaments from the tree, I am soooo proud of her :). It's just contagious to see their eyes light up with all of the beauty around us. And spending all this quality time together will for sure make us receive the new year with a smile on our faces and in our hearts.

Feliz Navidad to all of my beautiful Decor I Adore followers!!!

Navidad: Our Christmas Tree

2010-12-07T15:53:00.001-08:00

I posted yesterday about DIYing the cutest little wreath over the weekend. The colors I used for the wreath were what inspired how I would decorate our Christmas tree.

Here's a look at the real star of the show.

Jared had the honor of adding the star at the top of the tree. The kids had a blast putting ornaments on the tree.. we made sure the glass ornaments were up high and the non-shatter kind are hung lower.

In the past I would keep our Christmas decorations very simple and elegant, maybe mixing two contrasting colors and nothing more. But this year it was all about colors.. I wanted to keep away from the traditional gold and red... I was wishing I could own a white Christmas tree just to make the colors on the ornaments pop even more. But I decided that it wouldn't be wise to buy something that I might not want to use again next year and the year after that. All in all I love the way it turned out... I love having a Christmas tree in the house, it makes everything look so peaceful.

Navidad: DIY Wreath

2010-12-06T07:13:00.000-08:00

I've seen this yarn wreath make rounds here in blogland... I love Joi's from Nuestra Vida Dulce's version of it. When I saw it I just knew I had to take a chance at DIYing my own.

Here is what I came up with...

I found these glittered flowers at Joann's at 60% off. All in all the wreath cost me about $8 to make. And the satisfaction I got out of it turning out so ultra cute is just priceless. When else can you get away with using glitter and even touches of pink and not have your husband protest about it... not many right?

I got the two glittered Christmas trees at Michaels at 50% off and the headless Chinese doll I had in another room in the house. I brought it in to add a little more whimsy into the mix. I just hung a white "ornament with a message" around her neck and called it a day.

These are the colors I used as inspiration for decorating our Christmas tree this weekend. My rule was to stay away from the typical green and red used at Christmas... The kids and I are soo excited!!! I'll share some images later.

Weekend Finds

2010-11-01T19:13:00.000-07:00

This weekend I went a bit crazy with the shopping. I just couldn't resist some of the things that I found.

Our local Goodwill was having their monthly 50% off sale so I grabbed this little round mirror and the little plate for about 50 cents each.

I got the "&" sign at Hobby Lobby for 1/2 off. All three of these are going to serve as inspiration for the little picture wall I've been dreaming of for the last few months.

Also at Hobby Lobby I found this sunburst mirror. Which I know is probably totally played out by now, but it was also 1/2 off for only $25 and I just had to have it! Do you see a bit of a theme here? I am LOVING gold right now! And with the plans I have in mind for my guestroom, these were all just perfect finds!

Also in my guest room is the Tall Boy dresser I refinished a few weeks ago. While at Hobby Lobby I found that drawer pulls were also 1/2 off, so I decided I would just make all the pulls cohesive instead of mixing the old with the new.

Of course my shopping trips are never complete if I don't visit TARJAY! I found these amazing looking plates from the John Derian for Target line. They will definitely be making an appearance at our annual Thanksgiving Day bash this year!

Also from the John Derian line, I found these adorable storage bins. In my mind there is no reason why storage bins should be made out of ugly plastic. I must admit I usually shy away from bugs. I can even go as far as admitting a bit a phobia towards them. But this designer makes them look (may I say) adorable?

It's so nice to shop for pieces that bring the personality to your home that you might not find in other homes. I just love the idea of having a unique space. I love that I know where each and every piece I purchased will live in my home. In the past I would make the mistake of buying things cause I thought they were beautiful, not really thinking about how they would function within my four walls. I've been trying to move away from that lately.

What about you? Do you have any great finds to share? Do you find yourself wanting to surround yourself with things that bring a smile to your face?

Come And Knock On Our Door

2010-11-01T17:30:00.000-07:00

Come and knock on our BLACK door that is! We are happy with how it all turned out. Although this picture turned out a bit dark cause of the time of day I chose to take it. I promise it looks much better in person though.

Here's a closeup. I just think it looks so stylish! It's like when you have on a new outfit and you throw on some jewelry, it makes all the difference. Well our door looks like a pair of diamond earrings for our house. Ok, maybe that sounds stupid, maybe what I'm trying to say is that I love it. And that I'm totally relieved that we won't have to buy a new door cause we messed it up by painting it black. PHEW!!!!!!!

I had a few people ask me what we had decided for the house numbers. I blogged about a few of the house numbers I was trying to choose from here. The ones I ended up loving were $100 plus shipping. Being that this is not our forever house and that it's highly unlikely that we will live in a house with the same numbers, I decided to go the cheapo/less original route and just got some house numbers from Home Depot. They still have that modern feel that I was looking for, and I must say I like them lots, specially since it only cost us under 20 bucks to get these :)

Now we are trying to decide on the lighting, I'll post about that later.

Once You Go Black.....

2010-10-25T18:35:00.000-07:00

There's no turning back now... our front door has been painted black and is drying as I speak.

It's pretty scary to see something being painted black, it feels like so many things can go wrong! Maybe it's cause it's so dark and "out there". But black really can be beautiful, it brings a moody feel to interiors that really can't be achieved with lighter (safer?) colors. Here are a few examples of what I am trying to articulate.

SCARY to even think about painting your trim black, but doesn't it look beautiful against the white? SO Chic!

Even scarier, black ceilings! This of course can only be done on very high ceilings.

A safer choice would be to use black as an accent color like in the images below.

Beautiful right? Would you dare paint a room black in your home? If so what room would you choose and why?

P.S. Shout out to my amazing husband who's become quite the expert painter! TQM baby!

All images found on DecorPad

This Old House: Drum Roll Please!!!!!!!

2010-10-19T20:24:00.000-07:00

We are finally done (except for a few minor details) with the painting of the exterior of our house which I blogged about here and here.

We are super happy with the results and sooooo thankful to my father in law without whom it would've taken us years to finish this project. With his help it took us just one summer. THANK YOU SO MUCH VAKE!

Here is a little reminder of what we started off with.

Before front of the house:

Before back of the house:

Before sides of the house:

Drum roll please............. After!!! Woooo hoooo!!!!!!!

We are so happy with how it all turned out. We LOVE the color we chose, LOVE how the white trim pops, we just LOVE our house a little more now... we sometimes walk outside just to stare up at it.. weird? NOPE! Just extremely satisfied!

We still have to put a second and third coat on all of the trim, paint the back steps white and paint the front door black (which we are going to try and sneak in the next few days). But in general we are done and very happy :)

Tall Boy's Handsome Makeover

2010-10-19T13:48:00.000-07:00

On my last post I talked about how I found this fabulous Tall Boy dresser for only $30.

I've been wanting to try my hand at repainting furniture for a while now. I think it is so awesome to bring new life into a piece that has been around a while. This dresser was the perfect opportunity I was looking for.

Solid wood and so, sooo cute! All it needed was so love!

Here is the After!!!

ISN'T HE LOVELY?! I LOVE the legs! I'm just so excited about having this dresser in my house! Is it weird that I'm this excited about a dresser?

I studied real hard before getting this project started. Thankfully, I found the "go to" blog queen for this type of thing. Kate over at Centsational Girl has a complete list of tutorials on how to do any DIY project imaginable. I'm a very visual person so having pics of her projects to show what she was talking about in her "how to's" was very helpful.

My only dilemma right now is that the dresser was missing a few knobs, so I went ahead and replaced them with some different ones I found at Hobby Lobby. Does it look weird to have two different types? I love the old ones (the little rings on the bottom three drawers) but those are the ones that are missing for the top drawer. Should I just go ahead and replace all of them?

I will definantly try my hand at this again! Unfortunately my garage isn't the best place for this sort of project. It has no heat and no electricity. So with the cold weather approaching, it won't be til the end of next spring til I can do something like it again. I can't wait!!!

Welcome Home Tall Boy

2010-10-04T06:35:00.000-07:00

Last week as I was driving back from dropping Jared off at school I found myself at some random garage sale. We've been needing a dresser for our downstairs guestroom, so when I saw this lovely Tall Boy with the price tag of only $30, I just knew I HAD to have him.

I almost forgot to take a before picture. I'd already started taking off the pulls when I remembered to grab the camera.
I really like the pulls, I might just change the color on them.

On another note, I've had this little table that I purchased at my favorite thrift store for only $3.96 sitting in my garage all summer. This little table is going to look so pretty once I'm done with her!

Beautiful details!

You guys, I am so excited about this project! I haven't done anything like this on my own, EVER. Can't wait to share what I've done with these pieces!

Guestroom

2010-09-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

What is now our guestroom used to be our home office when we first moved in to our house almost 5 years ago. All this time and two kids later this room has gone through more changes than any other rooms in our house.

This is a pretty good sized room and it has a bathroom attached to it, a huge plus for when we have guests over. This is a view of the other side of the room. Not the prettiest looking thing you've ever laid your eyes on right?
Well we also store toys in here. I would like to make this side of the room more of like a mini play area for the kids. Maybe a kid table and chairs where they can sit and draw. Also, maybe a shelf for them to store their books and toys. This changing table has got to GO! We haven't used it not even once this past year. It was helping us with toy storage for a while, but now it just seems to serve as a catchall and all it does is make the room look messy.
Right now I'm focusing more on the bed area though. I've created this mood board to give you guys an idea of what I want the room to look like. I would keep the wall color. Not my favorite, but my husband chose it and loves the mood it brings into the room. I decided to work with it and kept everything else in the room a neutral color to keep the room from looking too busy.

We are planning on purchasing a new bed and mattress so that will eat up the majority of our budget for the room. The rest of the stuff are things I'll have to get a bit creative about. I have a chair that has the same shape as the one above, but it has the most hideous faux leather fabric on it,I'll try to make it work. I also have a dresser in our garage that I've been trying to decide whether to refinish or place up on Craigslist to get some money towards a new one. I'd like to keep the same artwork we already have on the walls. I really really LOVE the Ikat curtains from West Elm and am tempted to splurge on them.

I'm a bit excited about this room cause it has potential to create many little projects for me. I've been working on getting a bit more hands on when it comes to decorating. I want to get better at DIYing... Maybe this room will help me build confidence.

Window Shopping

2010-09-21T18:15:00.000-07:00

I really do apologize for the lack of posts. We've been very busy with the painting of the house, my son starting school, changes in schedules and other life goals that I've got going on right now. But I honestly miss my daily posts and hope to be back with you guys soon on a daily basis.

In the mean time, I do want to share some things that have caught my eye on some of my window shopping trips that I do as part of my weekly "getting away from the house to get a breather" moments.

I am not allowed to buy anymore lamps for the house (HI MARC!) but these Target beauties made me want to break that rule!

I would love to have two of these spheres as part of a grouping on a stack of books, of course high up on a bookcase so that the kids won't use them as balls. They have so much personality don't you think?!

I hardly ever go to Kohls, I only go when I am in desperate need of a new bra or two ( I know, TMI). So I went there this week and just happened to stumble upon the bedding department. So glad I did!

These pillows from the Daisy Fuentes Collection I LOVED! It's like something you would have in your closet. Lace and ruffles are so in fashion right now, why not use it in your decor also?! I love these two black and white ones.

Vera Wang has some beautiful things in the bedding department. I only snapped a picture of this gray pillow (I'm still shy with the camera at stores), but she has a lot of beautiful things and they are all on sale right now.

And my favorite was this pillow from the Sonoma line. I've been wanting something, ANYTHING with a chevron pattern in my house. This beauty came home with me and is now living in our guest room.

Here's a close-up... isn't she pretty?! I have plans for this room and this pillow is a great jump-off point for those plans.

Tomorrow I will share with you the mood board I created for our guestroom. Til then!

Regrets

2010-09-09T15:07:00.000-07:00

Every time I come across this image I can't help but feel regretful. I saw a pair just like it this summer at a local Thrift Store for only $25 (for the pair!). I felt a bit intimidated by the reupholstery of the chairs with all those tufts... but honestly, when I see this image I wish I would have brought them home with me... I would've dared kept them in the ugly green fabric they were dressed in until I could maybe afford to get them recovered.
They were worth that price and more just cause of those beautiful legs and the beautiful shape of the chairs! I'm even more regretful about not having snapped a pic of them to share with you guys! Regrets, regrets, regrets!

image via High Heeled Foot In The Door

Like/ To Do List

2010-08-31T18:23:00.000-07:00

I want a little bit of everything in this image!

1. I've been wanting a morrocan pouf for some time now.
2. A touch of hot pink here and there.
3. Chevron pattern. Maybe not on the wall but perhaps on a pillow, some curtains or even a rug.
4. A wall of frames with my favorite images and pictures in them.
5. A lite colored shag rug to lighten things up in my den.

This list of likes is looking more like a "TO DO" list :)

Image via Caitlin Wilson Designs

Etsy Shopping: House Numbers

2010-08-04T12:02:00.000-07:00

Paint is still going up on the exterior of our home and to kill time I've been thinking about how I will be accessorizing our front door. I've been to the mailbox/house number department at Lowes and Home Depot a few times but I've been thinking of making our house numbers a bit less cookie cutter. So I turned to Etsy to see what I could find there.

First I found this amazing image of very simple house numbers that kind of has me reconsidering the idea of a red door (I talk about my color choices here). I think a black door would look so much more elegant. And it goes so well with the gray! But I digress, these vinyl house numbers go on very easy and they are super affordable. And in my opinion they look very understated and actually kind of chic for being vinyl. On the other hand, Marc doesn't really like the idea because he feels like the numbers won't jump out from the street, and I guess I would have to agree with that.

The next item that caught my eye comes from Pear Tree Mosaics. And I must admit these are my favorite! I'm thinking these would be the coolest house numbers on the block!

You can choose whether you want the numbers placed vertically or horizontally. I don't think I would be able to choose what colors I'd like included in the plaque and the price is a bit too much for our budget. But these are really tempting.

I think these last ones are calling my name because of all the homes I saw on my trip to Belgium with this same modern aesthetic. I like that you can choose the color of the plexi glass the numbers are mounted on (check out the color choices here). I am known for mixing old with new, but is it still ok to do this to the exterior of our home? Is it ok to put ultra modern house numbers on a 1920's home? I almost wish I could try them out for a few days and then decide, but that would be impossible. So please share your thoughts, I could use your help :).

Hopefully we will make a decision soon cause our poor mailman is probably a bit confused about our house being sans numbers right now. Please share your thoughts with me, I would really appreciate it!

Brooklyn Chic

2010-08-03T14:38:00.000-07:00

Jen over at MadeByGirl (one of my favorite reads) posted today about some beautiful homes in Brooklyn. Here are some of the images she shared.

Makes me want to move back to Brooklyn!!!

All images via MadeByGirl

Painting Our Old House: Progress

2010-07-28T19:51:00.000-07:00

We've been making progress on the BIG PROJECT we've taken on this summer. Our 1920's home is being beautified as I "speak".

We've run into some road blocks along the way. Our whole first week was spent trying to figure out the best way to get the peeling paint off of the house. We first tried things out with a Makita belt sander which we decided to purchase after reading great reviews online about how this machine was the best way to get the paint off. It's true that it was good at taking the paint off, but it was very heavy and would have taken us about 100 years (almost the age of our house) to get all of the paint off. We then moved on to power washing, this got some of the paint off but was too harsh on the wood. Our house is in worse shape than most, so maybe power washing will work out for anyone else but it didn't for us... We were left scratching our heads and actually about to cry (me at least) at the thought of having to scrape ALL of that paint off of the exterior of our home.

My father-in-law and I were driving around one day, trying to find other people in our neighborhood painting their houses (we were desperate) and then we remembered that about 4 years ago we had seen a couple painting a house very similar to ours and we had stopped to chat with them about what a good job they were doing with the painting of their home... Fast forward four years and here we are knocking on their door so that we could (maybe) be saved from our desperation. And she did! This amazing woman saved us by introducing us to THE PAINT EATER This machine is amazing!!! It takes off the paint without damaging the wood and it does it FAST. Here is a pic of my husband hard at work with it.

The Paint Eater discovered layers and layers of all colors a paint...

Another road block we hit was rotted wood which we had to replace. Neither Lowes nor Home Depot carried the wooden siding, so we freaked out for a few second and then found a locally owned company less than a mile away from our home that was able to provide the materials for us.

And kindly delivered for free when they saw us drive up in our ZOOM ZOOM (as they called it). Here is a picture of some of the replaced siding. We were kind of tempted to change all of it out just so that we didn't have to sand all of that paint off.. But yeah, that would have blown our budget! And the boys keep on making progress!!!

We WILL be done this summer!!!. Can't wait to show you some before and after pics ;)

Summer of Babies

2010-07-26T19:08:00.000-07:00

I know about 8 wonderful women that are currently pregnant... One of them is my brother's girlfriend which has me absolutely giddy cause I've always wanted to be an aunt and it's FINALLY going to happen!. I've been gathering up some images of nurseries for a few weeks now. So here it goes ladies, happy nursery decorating... hope I can inspire you to get started!!!

First up is my daughter Naomi's room. I feel so good every time I walk into this room, it just has this girly glow to it. Relaxing but at the same time full of color... and of course we can't forget the tree that Marc spent a total of 15 hours drawing on the wall.

Here is another great tree mural, found via Apartment Therapy.

This nursery comes from the amazing Jenna Lyons (executive creative director for JCrew). Image found via Decor Pad. If I would have a 3rd baby, this is the room I would use for inspiration. I just love the yellow paired with the black

Love this room with all of the fish on the wall. This room is just so adorable for a little boy. It's probably my favorite of the whole bunch, just cause its so different. Look at more images and information here.

The next two rooms (found via DecorPad) are great because they can both be used for either girl or boy. The first one has the most perfect shade of green on the walls and the story book prints are just so adorable! The second room also has the giraffe in it but as a decal on the wall. I adore the way the pink rug looks against the blue walls plus all of the black and white scattered around the room give it that eclectic touch that I just love.

I had to add this nursery (found via DecorPad) just cause of it's ultra girly-girly feel. The chandelier and the shimmery fabrics are absolutely fit for a princess!

Nicole over at Making It Lovely is one of the people I admire the most of all of the ladies I follow online. She took my breath away when I saw what she did to her little girls' room. Check out the rest of the room here.

Two words that define the next image for me are playful and whimsy. Isn't it just too cute?! Found via Design Sponge.

One word for the next image SUNSHINE! Found via OhDeeDoh.

Well I hope you guys enjoyed these rooms... I am passed this stage in my life but decorating nursery's is just soooo much fun. When I find an image of a nursery that I love I keep it in my files anyway :)... Happy decorating!!!

Eight Wonderful Years

2010-07-07T14:35:00.001-07:00

Eight years ago today I said "I Do" to the most amazing man in the world. My love for him grows and grows everyday... Can't wait to see what another eight years have in store for us.

Te Amo Marc!

View at our wedding ceremony Sosua, Dominican Republic

This Old House

2010-06-29T09:49:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned a few times that we are working on a HUGE project this summer. We are all weak at our knees around here because the size of this monster project is honestly overwhelming. Yes, after 4 years of ignoring our home's exterior, we have decided to paint. What makes it a bit harder on us is that the job was done so horribly by the person who did it before us. I mean, these guys totally painted over pealing paint.

We've tried scraping and sanding. We've decided to rent a pressure washer to get most of the paint off that way. So please if any of you have any other ideas send them my way, we are desperate here.

The picture below shows the back of the house where we've started experimenting with different ways to get all of the peeling paint off.

Things will get very ugly before it can all look pretty again... SCARY!

Thankfully we have my father in law who always comes to the rescue whenever we have a big project going on. He's been here for our big kitchen makeover and to help us remodel our upstairs bathroom. Can I just say that he comes all the way from Belgium to help us with things?!.. He is an AMAZING man! Thank you Vake!!!

We picked the paint about a month ago. We were debating between two colors. Marc painted a big piece of plywood with the two colors we were trying to decide on to give us a good idea of how the colors looked in different sections of the exterior of our home.

The two colors we were trying to decide on were Cathedral Stone from Valspar, which is the darker of the two (right side) and Hazy Stratus, also from Valspar (on left).

We decided to go with the darker of the two (Cathedral Stone) mostly because it went real nice with the red color we want to paint our front door with. The name of the red we chose is Posh Red from Valspar.

So there you are, the big secret is out! This old house is going to get all poshed up by the end of the summer (hopefully by the end of THIS summer). Here is the amazing BEFORE picture.

Can't wait for the AFTER!!!

Polyvore Fun- Livingroom

2010-06-11T14:03:00.000-07:00

I hadn't played around on Polyvore for a while. I usually go in and put outfits together just for fun. But today I decided to play around with some ideas for my living room, this is what I came up with.

I'm becoming a bit more fearless when it comes to mixing colors and patterns. I'm smitten with this rug and with the pillows I "found" for the couch. And I've been loving those curtains for over a year now, so I decided to include them as well. My favorite part of this whole mock-up has to be the wall of frames. I've been collecting inspiration for my wall of frames for a long time. Here are a few of my favorites.

{via 6thSt Design}

{via Chic Little House}

{Anyone know who this belongs to?}

Carrie's old apartment on Sex and The City II.

And I found this amazing image from a (new to me) blogger today which inspired this whole post. Her name is LEAH and she has the most amazingly unique home I've seen in a long time. I am absolutely in love with the way this turned out for her.

Very simple but still beautiful.

{via Martha Stewart}

{via Full House}

{via DecorPad}

I've already got some images that I would love to frame and hang up. Plus I have been keeping my eyes on some very cool frames and wall art in some area antique shops. I hope to get things started on my livingroom soon, although with everything we've got going on this summer it's gonna take a bit longer. But a girl can dream right??

Wonderful Things

2010-06-10T13:40:00.001-07:00

Wonderful things have been happening in my bedroom since we last talked about it. It looked like this when we last saw it. Well a few changes have taken place and here is how our bedroom looks now.

A bit different right? Well the first big change that took place was the great deal I scored when I found this comforter set on my trip to Maryland at the beginning of the spring. I paid $30 for it! I love the color and pattern on it. I was one of the only things I purchased there and well worth it in my opinion. The next big change in the room would be the curtains which were another great deal at Burlington Coat Factory.

They give the room a bit of a "Granny Chic" flair that I absolutely adore. Can you believe they were only $19.99 a panel??!!! Seriously, have you tried paying normal retail prices for curtains lately? I was so happy to find these. It took Marc a while to warm up to them, once they were hung though he was ok with them.

I also added this frame on Marc's nightstand with one of my favorite quotes. It's actually a card my cousin Grissel gave me a long time ago and I love it so much that I just had to frame it. It says (just in case you can't see it) "The best and most wonderful things n the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart." Isn't it this so true?

So this is what the bedroom looks like now and we are just dying to get into the search for artwork. Although we have a Very VERY big project that we will be working on this summer which I will be talking about later this week, please stay tuned.

Belgium In Pictures

2010-06-03T13:31:00.001-07:00

If you follow me on Facebook, then you've already seen the pictures of our trip family trip to Belgium... We hadn't been there in about 3 years, it was great to see my husbands family and to enjoy the great weather by visiting many of Belgiums biggest cities. We visited Brussels, Antwerpen, Brugges, Mechelen (where Marc was born) and Dinant... so here are some of the pictures, hope you enjoy them!

It was hard to leave there... everything was so beautiful! Can't wait to go back!

Hope you enjoyed the pictures!

Watch This: Sex and the City II

2010-05-31T05:25:00.000-07:00

I hope you've been enjoying your holiday weekend as much as I've been enjoying mine. Our house is slowly getting back into the rhythm of things after our big trip to Belgium. This weekend has been a good balance between relaxing, getting things done around the house and good ole family time. I hadn't had me time in about two weeks so I yesterday I dashed over to watch Sex and the City II. Let me tell you, these girls did not disappoint. I liked the movie because for the first time I felt like I could relate in some way to these women. This time it wasn't all about fashion and sex. Of course the girls looked fabulous as ever!

I usually look at set design alot while watching movies. There was soooo much to see in this movie. So much BEAUTIFUL EVERYWHERE! I must admit that I plan on watching the movie again, it was honestly distracting to have so much to look at. I sometimes found myself wishing I could pause the movie just to enjoy the decor more. Like in this image, I kind of wish Carrie would get out of the way just so that I can better enjoy this beautiful vignette. I adore the mirror flanked by the lamps.

I'm completely smitten with this living room. The velvet sofa with the great pop of yellow over it. And then that rug with the over sized coffee table. All this against the gray on the wall. I want to replicate this living room in my house soooo bad!

The center of attention in Big and Carrie's bedroom is this headboard. You can't see the nail head going around it, so elegant. I love the way patterns and colors are flawlessly layered throughout this apartment.

In the dining room my favorite things to look at were the Lamp and the bookcases. The way the book cases are styled is to die for! The dining room chairs are also something to talk about don't you think?

One can't tour Carrie's abode without talking about her closet. This his and hers walk-in closet make my toes tingle... YES PLEASE!

I of course still LOVE Carrie's closet from her old apartment... so girly, makes you want to play dress up all day long :)

And, talking about Carrie's old apartment, it just always takes my breath away... it is so pretty and just... seriously NO WORDS! I need to start creating a picture wall like that one somewhere in my house. I just haven't decided where yet.

Did you watch it this weekend? What did you think? Do you ever look at set design while watching movies? Please do share.

ALL IMAGES VIA ELLE DECOR

It's Been A While

2010-05-23T09:54:00.000-07:00

I haven't been around for the last few weeks, but I promise that at the moment I have a good excuse for it. I am on vacation with the family in Belgium and we are having an amazing time! I've been collecting eye candy from this side of the world for you guys, so please stay tuned.

I won't leave you hanging though. On Friday we went to the city of Brugge, my favorite city in Belgium. I had two things catch my eye in Brugge that I just had to share with you.

First was this exhibit at an Art Gallery in Brugge that had me drooling. The images are not that good cause I was taking the pics while trying not to get caught and while keeping my kid quiet in the stroller.

The colors are AMAZING!

You can read more about the artist and look at more of his artwork here

This hotel lobby also caught my eye. No one was around so I was able to snap a few pics. I was so busy being sneaky though, that I forgot to take a pic of the name of the Hotel. I kind of feel like taking another drive up to Brugge just to get the name, but that would be a bit crazy wouldn't it?

Check out the ceiling... Can you imagine a living room like this one???? All the light!!!! I'm also loving the golden accents in the room, SO CHIC!
La pièce de résistance in the whole room for me is the sofa. SWOON!

Took my breath away! Please stay tuned, I will be sharing pictures from my trip soon...

HSN- Nate Berkus Style

2010-04-21T07:56:00.000-07:00

This morning I was flipping through some channels and was stopped in my tracks when I caught a glimpse of Nate Berkus on HSN.

I am craving some of his products.

Woven Knit Throw

Lattice Sheet Set ( I want one in every color)

Dhurrie Rug

I'm in love with this rug. Here it is in black and white.

Studio Sofa

I've been wanting this little sofa for a while now. I would love it in the Pewter Gray color.

Wrap Headboard

This headboard is sooooo beautiful... no words!

I blogged here about how I bumped into Nate Berkus at a restaurant a few months ago. I wish I could have sat down with him that night and talked about what inspires him to create such beautiful products. I wish some of his creativity could have flown across the room and rubbed off on me just a little.

Hola Amor!

2010-04-19T06:09:00.000-07:00

I might be the last one in Blog land to discover the amazing Jennifer Ramos over at Made By Girl.

I've seen her art in many, many images; but never knew where it came from.

When I stumbled upon her blog this weekend I was in LOVE with her ability to create these prints that are so simple but that can bring sooo much personality into a room. Or a wedding, as you can see in the image below.

I absolutely must have the next prints hanging in different rooms in my house. You can order this one custom made. Marc hearts Eli, LOVE IT! And these prints (sold separately) which I'm choosing to call Hola Amor hanging in our living room. MUST HAVES!

OK so I've only focused on Ms. Ramos' business side. But this girl has a beautiful blog with inspiration images that will leave your head spinning. It's no coincidence that she's been featured on magazines like Marie Claire, Latina and many others.

UNINSPIRED

2010-04-14T17:14:00.000-07:00

I've been feeling a bit uninspired lately.. So I strolled over to the library and checked out some House Beautiful magazines, maybe this will help me find my MOJO again.

2010-04-10T10:29:00.000-07:00

Chillin' at my sister's house. She has a beautiful apt in NY. She makes me kind of miss single life :)

Thrift Store Find

2010-04-05T17:51:00.000-07:00

I found this cute little chair the other day on one of my thrift store trips. It was only $4.99 so I had to grab it, specially cause I've been wanting to find a good chair that I can learn to reupholster with. At 5 bucks if things go wrong it won't be the end of the world

She's cute, don't you think?

I started looking online for some inspiration of what I can do it. I found this chair on Design Sponge. Here is the before: And the after:

This one was also on Design Sponge. Not exactly the same, but very similar.

This beauty I found via Bazaar of Serendipity, a new blog I'm following. If the fabric cleans up real well, one can just paint it and call it a day... but that would defeat the purpose right?

I found this one in a mini skirt over at this FABULOUS blog

This before and after is also from Design Sponge. Absolutely beautiful!

And of course Joi over at Nuestra Vida Dulce inspired me with this beauty. Here it is before:

And here it is after:

So there it is guys, we know it can be done. The question is can I do it???

My kids agree that I can :)

House Stalking

2010-04-02T04:48:00.000-07:00

It's been too beautiful to exercise at the gym this week. So I've been working out outdoors, and with these views exercising wasn't as dreadful at it usually is for me.

And how lucky are the folks that live in these homes?! They get to end everyday with amazing Lake Michigan sunsets.

This is my favorite house on this strip. Would love to own one just like it someday.
I've always wondered what it looks like on the inside.

Happy Easter Everyone!!!

Maryland Trip Recap and Find

2010-03-31T19:17:00.001-07:00

Ok, so I must admit that I didn't take as many pics as I thought I had. But it's always a whirlwind of activity when I go to Maryland.. too many people to see, too many places to go! Here are a few of my favorite moments (or the ones I got pictures of anyway).

I spent lots of time with my sisters. Love these girls!

My little sister is so stylish! She is the cutest!

We hit up every store from Marshalls to TJMaxx to Ross and of course HomeGoods. I took pics of some things that caught my eye. I'm still a little camera shy in stores, specially cause my camera is so big. I'm thinking of getting a smaller camera, just so that I can sneak more pictures on my little window shopping trips.

I saw these beautiful throw pillows at Home Goods, I am into black and white prints right now. These were some of my favorite in the store. Seriously, Home Goods is like shopping heaven. You can find everything and anything in there. Wish I had one close by!

I talked about these Mongolian Lamb pillows on my Je T'aime West Elm post but I'd never seen them up close and personal. I saw them at a TJ Maxx (sorry, I didnt take a pic). The one I saw had a lite pink hue to it. It was gorgeous! I was trying to convince my husband of the kind of statement it would make in any room. He was looking at me like I was crazy.

Also at Home Goods I saw these amazing lamps. I thought they were beautiful and had never seen anything like it. They were $70 each.

Finally at Ross I found something that just had to come home with me. Its this 4 piece comforter set. I really liked this pattern and thought it would look beautiful in my bedroom. But what I liked most about the set was the price. At only $29.99 it would have been a sin to let it sit in the store.

I haven't had time to see how it looks in the bedroom yet, but I will let you know once I do.

We had tons of fun in Maryland. The kids love spending time with their aunts and I of course love seeing my sisters and all of the friends and family I have there. Here is Jared with his favorite cousin Adrian on one of our shopping excursions. These two are like the butt and the underwear :).

Two Things I love Around My House

2010-03-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

Kassandra over at Bac Woods Fern shares two things she loves around her house every other Tuesday. I'm joining in the fun this week by sharing two things I'm loving around my house.

I don't have any before pictures of our kitchen we remodeled it a few years ago. We are fortunate to have found some newspaper placed under the old cabinets, maybe planted there to show the date the kitchen was remodeled last. Well, we decided to frame some cutouts of it, and hang it where else but in our kitchen.

November 30, 1947

I love that it shows the prices of different products back in the day.

One of the most interesting things I cut out was this little clip that states how many auto accident incidents had been reported in the city of Benton Harbor. So funny don't you think?

And how about the price on this secretary desk? It would be hard to find one like this one these days, even at a thrift store.

I also like this colorful depiction of a housewife in the 40's.

So glad we are able to have found this, it feels nice to have something that shows the history of the house. We haven't found anything in the house from before this date, the house was actually built in the 20's.

I also love my two side tables (now functioning as coffee tables) that I got a few years ago at Target's Global Bazaar. They were hiding in the guestroom, which is now a messy toy/playroom. So I decided just recently to give them a more deserving place in our den.

Love the golden details on the sides and the criss cross on the top.

These tables are small but very heavy, very well made! Now that I see these pictures I realize I have to give them a good cleaning, YIKES!

Road Trip Epiphany

2010-03-28T18:19:00.000-07:00

I spent all of last week at my sister's house in Maryland. It was a very fun week, meeting up with some of my oldest girlfriends and spending quality time with my sisters. Getting away is simply very refreshing!

These are three things I was reminded of on our 10 hour drive back:

1. I have the most amazing husband! We were able to go to Maryland because he was going to work out of Pennsylvania all week. The office was 40 minutes away from my sisters house. So instead of flying away, he decided to drive me and the kids so that we could spend quality time with family. Such a sweetie, I owe him BIG TIME!

2. My kids are the best road trippers ever! They are very patient and don't complain much at all, they sleep a lot sing along to songs and play quietly in the back seat for hours and hours. We only had to stop a total of three times for an average of 10 minutes each time. We've taken other long trips and they always make it very easy on us.

3. Nothing feels better than coming home to a clean house after a long trip. Our house is at it's cleanest right before we travel. When we come home we feel welcomed and even happier to have arrived.

I will post pictures a little later of our trip to Maryland and I will of course include pictures of some of my shopping adventures. Stay tuned!

Window Shopping: New 2 U

2010-03-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

Lately I've noticed thrift stores popping up every... Some people wouldn't set foot in a thrift store, but to me it always seems a little like a treasure hunt. I love the feeling of giving new life to something that someone else has discarded.

Today I made my way to New2U, about a 10 minute drive from my house. It is also a consignment shop, so you can go in there and put your stuff on sale. One of the guys that work there informed me that you can add your name to a wish list stating the items you are looking for and that they would call you as soon as they got something in. I thought it was a pretty cool idea!

I thought these frames had alot of potential. After spray painting them and making them pretty, wouldn't it be great to frame different silhouettes like the ones below, found here.

One of my favorite things was this little tea set with a tea pot and beautiful tray for only $12! It is from Pier One imports. Love the mix of blue with pink!

I wish they would've had at least four of these plates. Loved the way they looked together. Perfect for a summer brunch! The designs look kind of yellowish, but they were actually white. They were priced at $1 a piece.
These bowls also caught my attention, they were the most perfect pink. I don't think I looked at a price :(

Moving on to furniture, I thought most of the furniture was overpriced for a thrift store, but I've been seeing alot of that lately.. It's frankly annoying! Here are a few things that caught my eye.

A little elbow grease and this dresser/buffet would look amazing! But I don't think that it should be priced at $200... I mean, seriously???

Same thing with this one at $150...

This desk was also priced at $150, but I think it was worth it. It was as good as new very sturdy and well made. Beautiful piece, would still refinish it though.
This chair is beautiful, don't you think? I think $25 is an ok price.

This very unique dining room set is beautiful! Can you imagine it painted white and with different fabric on the chairs?? Don't get too excited, this baby is priced at $900, yes that is two zero's after the nine... um, whatever!

The other day I blogged about wanting a vintage/vintage looking phone, I saw the one below today, but it's not exactly what I am looking for ( I want one that looks more like the one on my wists list on the right side of the screen).

As I was leaving the store I saw an ad for a dresser that caught my attention. This is a beautiful dresser and I want it!

I didn't really buy anything today, didn't plan to either. But it's always fun to dream up possibilities with things you find. I am loving the idea of framing those silhouettes though. Hmmm.

Daydream Shopping

2010-03-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I've been hitting up TJMAXX, Target and all area thrift stores cause I am getting antsy about finishing our master bedroom. So far I've got the bedding, side tables and lamps down. I'm actually glad I did this first cause it helps me kind of know what to do with the rest of the room.

We added the ceiling lamp a few days ago. I'm loving it! My budget and lack of time are slowing things down but that doesn't mean I can't share my plans right? Here are a few things I've been dreaming up.

I always have the hardest time buying curtains. I always fall in love with the most expensive looking ones and then refuse to pay the big bucks. I found the perfect curtains (below) at Ballard Designs for $179/panel! I love them but I would never pay that much (even if I could). So I am hoping I will be able to find similar ones soon. I am even willing to look for similar fabric and make my own with an online NO SEW tutorial. YES I AM DESPERATE!

I also found these curtains here.

She made them using the screen print process which she includes a tutorial for. I am in love with these also and they would be a very cheap option specially because I already have white panels that I am not currently using. All I would have to do is buy the screen print kit and have at it. I must admit that the whole idea of this kind of intimidates me. But aren't they just BEAUTIFUL?

These are the curtains hanging in the bedroom now. My mom had these made for our old apartment. It's time for these to retire!

On the other side of the room, which I have purposely ignored to show you guys, is our dresser. The picture frames on the dresser were hanging on the wall before we painted. We want them to stay in the room, but they won't be hanging over the dresser any longer.
Instead, we would love a large mirror like the one below to hang over the dresser.

I would really like a frameless mirror because I think it will make the room look bigger. If I can't find a frameless then I would like one with a light, preferably metallic frame, like this one:

I've shopped around and these babies are expensive! But I am pleading with the HomeGoods gods that I will score one of these for cheap. We have to travel 2 hours to arrive at the closest HomeGoods. So I'm hoping I can convince Marc of going there one of these weekends.

I would love to add a nice rug in the bedroom, not only to spice things up, but also to cover up our old carpet that we can't replace right now. I love the texture on this one from West Elm.

And although I know Marc will oppose, I love this rug, also from West Elm.

So that's the plan. Hopefully I'll get this done soon.

Green With Envy

2010-03-17T07:47:00.000-07:00

I'm Dominican and don't really celebrate St. Patrick's Day. But I can't help but be GREEN WITH ENVY of some of these spaces. To those of you who do celebrate St. Patty's day, have fun, enjoy yourselves and drive safely ;)

Erin Valencich

via decorpad

Candice Olsen

Via Better Homes and Gardens

via DecorPad

Good-bye Fugly Ceiling Fan!

2010-03-15T20:15:00.000-07:00

The ceiling lamp in our bedroom no longer looks like this:

I found our ceiling lamp on Decor Pad's Look For Less out of all places. I thought about it for a few days and decided I would take the leap, I ordered it. After it arrived it sat in our entry way for a few days waiting for our in house electrician (Marc) to have the time to install it.

Sunday came along and Hallelujah NO MORE UGLY CEILING FAN!

We were afraid that the lamp would look too small for the scale of the room, but we actually like that it's small since our ceilings are kind of low.

I love the shadows it casts on the ceiling when it's on. Isn't she pretty? She fits perfectly with what I've got going on in the bedroom so far.

I've got a shopping trip coming up that I'm hoping might end up completing the room. I'll talk about that a little later.

House And Home TV

2010-03-15T19:39:00.000-07:00

I've been very unhappy with the programming on HGTV. It used to be my favorite channel to get my daily decoration/design fix, but lately HGTV has turned into rerun hell and I find myself NEVER watching it.
Well today I finally discovered the perfect replacement, it's Canadian House and Home Online TV. They have 30 minute episodes that include house tours, small diy projects and interviews with designers.
Here are a few images I borrowed from the H&H website to encourage you to take a peek if you haven't already. You won't be disappointed!

www.houseandhome.com/tv

Watch This: "Remember Me"

2010-03-15T05:50:00.000-07:00

This weekend I snuck out to watch the movie Remember Me. I am Team Jacob all the way, but I was curious to watch another Robert Pattinson movie that did not involve vampires. Plus, the movie was filmed in New York, and any movie filmed in New York deserves a chance don't you think?

When I sat down at the movie theater I felt a little silly cause I was the oldest person there at one point. I was surrounded by teenagers on dates with other teenagers. Later on older people started to trickle in, but it was mostly moms accompanying their kids to watch the movie, I was so embarrassed I thought about leaving. By I stuck around determined to enjoy the movie.

I don't want to say a lot about it cause I feel that anything I say might ruin the movie. It is certainly not the BEST MOVIE EVER, but it's a beautiful film and I think you should go watch it :).

Check out the trailer here.

Breathless

2010-03-10T18:17:00.000-08:00

I hate exercising, but always love how I feel after I'm done. I felt especially good today when I went for a walk and found myself staring at the most beautiful sunset I've ever seen. Hues of lavender, orange,even pink contrasted by the most perfect color gray of the water which was surprisingly still. I stood there breathless and amazed at how small I felt at that moment.
As I turned around to continue my walk, I noticed that many other people had stopped to watch the sunset. In that moment I thanked God for giving us all another day to see the beauty he has surrounded us with.

I stole the following image from flickr to give you an idea of what I saw. I (of course) didn't have my camera with me. But the sunset looked a bit like this one, but way way more pretty.

And because I love all things decor, I must include some rooms that remind me of what I saw in that sunset.

via full house

via inspiration for decoration

Lake Michigan is just a 5 minute (brisk) walk from my house. If seeing this on my walks doesn't encourage me to continue exercising, I don't know what will.

via flickr

Hola Nostalgia!

2010-03-08T18:55:00.000-08:00

On Saturday all of our phones died. Just out of the blue they all stopped working. At first we thought something had happened to our phone lines but our Internet was working fine. Marc tried fixing them, but nothing... Right there and then we knew that we would have to buy new phones.

This is the second time this happens to us in the last 8 years. Marc says these things happen and that I shouldn't overreact, but I can't help but think about the good ole days. Growing up we had one phone in the house and I don't ever remember ever having to change the phone, they would last forever. The phone was not cordless, so that meant that I would actually sit there and focus all of my attention into the conversation instead of trying to do a million things and talk on the phone at the same time (cordless phones make you think you are a master at multitasking).

Anyway, I am really considering buying an old phone. Or a new old looking phone.

via google

They just bring so much whimsy into a room. Makes me so nostalgic...

via Country Living

via Decorno

via flickr

Nicole from Making It Lovely knows what I'm talking about, just look at how beautiful her office is. I just can't imagine a cordless phone with blinking red lights sitting on this desk..

via making it lovely

Ok so I probably won't get a vintage phone for my everyday use. Let's face it, I can't live without caller ID and with two kids in the house, I need to have the flexibility of a cordless. But I will keep my eyes open to see if I can thrift one. I think any of these phones would look beautiful as an accessory ;)

Estilo: 2010 Oscar Favorites

2010-03-08T17:06:00.000-08:00

I watched the 2010 Academy Awards last night. I usually only watch the red carpet event, but last night I decided to watch the whole thing. Here are my favorite ladies of the night!

Nicole Richie in Reem Acra

Queen Latifah in Badgley Mischka

Jennifer Lopez in Armani Prive

Elizabeth Banks in Versace

Demi Moore in Versace Atelier

Rachel McAdams in Elie Saab Haute Couture

Weekend Recap In Pictures

2010-03-07T17:24:00.001-08:00

This weekend, we decided that it would be all about the kids. We walked over to the Silver Beach Carousel which opened a few weeks ago. And then we moved on to the Curious Kids Museum. By the end of the day we were all very tired but extremely satisfied. Enjoy the pictures!

Two Things

2010-03-07T07:43:00.000-08:00

Today is Sunday, so I took a break from my usual health drink. Instead, I ate some delicious toast with brie and honey and a glass of orange juice. Yum, yum! Aren't Sunday's the best?!

and....

Our friends Rob and Sara gave us this gadget when they came from their latest trip to Spain. In my opinion this is the best thing since sliced bread. It drizzles oil perfectly, and refilling it is a breeze. Plus, doesn't she look pretty sitting on our counter top? I think so too!

Blog Love: Young House Love

2010-03-05T07:36:00.000-08:00

John and Sherry over at Young House Love have once again managed to leave me drooling over a dresser they refinished for their nursery.

They got this dresser on craigslist for only $20!!!

Put a little elbow grease into it and now the dresser looks like this...

Isn't she beautiful??!! And as if that weren't enough, they lined the drawers with very colorful paper.

In my opinion this project shows that one can have beautiful, personalized things in ones house, even if it's on a small budget!

Really, if you haven't done so yet, you just have to take a moment to check Young House Love out. It is really one of the blogs that has inspired me the most on getting my house looking pretty.

To see the step by step tutorial of how they refinished the dresser and how much the final cost of the project was go here.

Yes Please!

2010-03-03T18:37:00.000-08:00

Does anyone else think this mirror is beautiful?

via Secrets of Domestic Bliss

I Lied

2010-03-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

I lied when I said I hadn't found the lamp I'd been wanting for my bedroom. What I meant to say was that I didn't find the pair. The one I found is now sitting lovingly in my den. Isn't she beautiful???

I know she's too pretty to look at anything else in the picture. But please take a look at my beautiful starburst mirror!

I've been wanting one for the longest time, but they are soooo expensive. I snatched this one up right away when I found it for only $12.99. WHAT A DEAL!

I love the shadows it casts on the wall!

No more lies, I promise :)

Bedroom Reveal-Part One

2010-03-02T14:07:00.000-08:00

After showing you the before...
.. and after teasing you with some progress...

..my bedroom now looks like THIS:

Simple, with lots of textures mixed in very yummy ways and pops of color that yell "spring is almost here!."

It's not done yet, we still have curtains to buy, a ceiling lamp is on the way and a mirror to go over the dresser on the other side of the room. But so far I am absolutely happy with it!

I didn't expect it to look like this when I had to make a complete U-Turn on my plans after realizing that the "perfect lamps" that went with my "perfect bedding" were SOLD OUT at

every Marshalls and TJ Maxx in my area ( I blogged about that whole ordeal here). Instead of sitting in my car and crying it out I stepped into Target to see if I could find some inspiration. I had already purchased the black and white pillow cases weeks ago. I initially thought that I would use a darker gray than the walls to contrast the black and white pattern but when I realized that I would have to buy other lamps, I knew I had to rethink my accent color. When I saw this Dwell Studio throw pillow at Target, I decided to start from scratch.

I then found this off white Ralph Lauren coverlet for only $29 at TJ Maxx. The bedding I had purchased before had cost me $100, it was a no brainer, I would be returning it! I found a few more accessories that went perfect with my new plan, the tray on the side table, the black and white painting behind the lamp, etc.

But la piece de resistance was this lamp. I love the shape, the size; I was a bit worried about the color, but I decided to try it out anyway. When I put it on the tray, I knew the black wouldn't be a problem. It is so elegant and beautiful. This little vignette is my favorite part of the room!

Marc's side has a little less personality than mine does. I can't decide whether to buy another one of those trays for his side. I definanatly want to add some art behind his lamp, but don't know what yet. What do you think? Should I add a tray on his side also?

Did I mention how much I LOVE my night stand??? I want to spoon it :)

If you can share ideas of what type of curtains I should dress my windows with please send some links my way. I always have the hardest time choosing curtains.

So there it is, my bedroom so far. It really makes me smile when I walk by and catch a glimpse of it. And in my book that means I'm very happy with it!

Je t'aime West Elm

2010-03-02T06:07:00.000-08:00

I got the West Elm catalog in the mail today. I enjoyed some eye candy first thing in the morning. Perfect way to start the day! Here are some of my favorite things:

I'm loving the shape of this lamp and how versatile it is, you can fill it up with objects like Christmas ornaments to change the look.

I'm loving the colors on this bedding!

Love the lamp and rug!

These Mongolian lamb pillows make me giggle :)

And my favorite is this bedding. I'm loving the different shades of blue. So pretty!

U-TURN

2010-03-01T07:50:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my bedroom project took a complete u-turn when I found that the lamps I had planned to purchase were gone! I talked about them here a few weeks ago. I wasn't worried because they had 3 pairs of them. I never thought they would be snatched up so quickly, specially cause I visit the TJMaxx here at least once a week. I would always check up on them and they were all there on Thursday when I stopped by. But when I went in first thing on Sunday morning they only had one left. I was so sad. Right then and there I decided I would drive 45 minutes to see if they had it at either Marshalls or maybe at another TJMaxx.

No such luck! Neither TJ Maxx or Marshalls had them. I was so confused at what to do. I had already purchased bedding that went perfect with these. My only other options for lamps didn't go with what I already had.

Instead of sitting in my car and crying (which is what I really felt like doing) I decided to revamp the whole thing. And what I came up with I'm loving alot more than what I had before.

Here is a little preview:

I know I'm a tease, but I'm still playing around in there, I have a few details to work out before I give the initial reveal. Hope you come back and check it out.

Amaryllis

2010-02-25T08:54:00.001-08:00

(via flickr)

My aunt Amaryllis, who is as beautiful as the flower she was named after,

has been very sick this past week.

Please keep her in your prayers...

Green Juice & Snacks

2010-02-24T10:34:00.000-08:00

Every morning for the last month I've been gulping down a glass full of my home made Green Juice. I've even been thinking of replacing two meals a day with it. Marc and the kids won't even give it a try. They look at me in disgust while I'm drinking it, but really, it's not that bad at all.

I extract juice from spinach, parsley, cucumber, apple and carrots. The apples and carrots make it sweet and actually enjoyable. Give it a try and tell me what you think :)

As I mentioned before the kids won't even come near to the stuff, but what kid doesn't like sweets right? Instead of keeping tons of candy or cookies in the house, I always stock up on fruit.

Jared and Naomi absolutely love eating melon. I always try to have it at hand for them to munch on. Instead of having to peal and cut the whole thing every time the mood strikes, I prep it ahead of time. I believe that the secret to keeping a kid happy is knowing exactly what trick you will pull out of that hat next.

I use a melon baller to keep things interesting.

I then store them in my handy dandy ikea storage thingys ($2.99 for a pack of three). One melon fills up two of these babies. And the best thing about them is that they are stackable. Oh ikea, how much do I love thee... :)

I keep melon in the fridge until its snack time... I also store pineapple chunks, grapes or any other fruit that can be cut up and stored.

What are some tricks you use in the kitchen to keep your kids or hubby happy at a moments notice? Please do share!

Designer Crush:Erinn Valencich

2010-02-23T11:35:00.000-08:00

Our bedroom is redo is moving along slowly, but we are on our way to making it the bedroom of our dreams.

Meanwhile I've been looking online for some inspiration. A few weeks ago, I found the designer Errin Valencich. I just love how this designer plays with texture, she layers subtle layers one on top of the other and then adds little punches of color in the least expected places. It's definantly candy for my eyes.

This is what I meant by layering textures. The rug, the curtain, the chair and then the black and white shades. Four very different textures, but they live lovingly together. Absolutely beautiful!

I'm loving the rug in the background and the pops of green.

You can see more of Erinn Valencich's portfolio here.

Beauty Secret

2010-02-21T18:03:00.000-08:00

Last week Nicole, over at Making It Lovely , talked about a hair product she found that has done wonders for her hair.

image via making it lovely

I read her post and also focused in on reading the comments on that post. Women with all types of hair, including my hair type were raving about this product.

I'd decided I'd wait to go on my trip to Belgium, where there is a big Moroccan community, to purchase this product. Hoping that I could maybe find it at a better price there.

That same evening, as I strolled through TJ Maxx, guess what catches the corner of my eye?! The same exact product Nicole had talked about! I couldn't believe it! I hesitated a bit, maybe cause I'm ultra cheap and am not used to paying $30 for a 3.2 fl oz bottle of anything. Let alone something I didn't know for certain would work or not. But I took the jump, mostly cause my hair looks like crap. I can't find anyone in this area that can make it look pretty. They don't know how to cut my hair or style it correctly, and I end up paying for a hair stylist to make me look like a chia pet. Not really my idea of fun.

To make a long story short, I did my hair today. This product is awesome! It left my hair feeling light as a feather and soooo soft, I just can't stop touching it. I can't wait to find that perfect someone to give me that perfect haircut. If my hair looks pretty without getting a haircut in over 8 months, I can't even imagine how it will look and feel after I've gotten that out of the way. I'll be the cutest mom on the block!

Me, Myself and I

2010-02-21T16:44:00.002-08:00

Today I did something I love to do! I went on a date with myself... I took myself to the movies! Most people I know don't feel comfortable sitting in a movie theater all on their own... But I love going and sitting in this huge space where no one knows me, and just forgetting about my surroundings and completely submerging myself into the lives of the people on the big screen.

I ended up watching "Valentines Day"

This movie is basically the American version of Love Actually (one of my favorite movies EVER). It's not exactly as good as Love Actually, but it's a cute movie. No rush to go watch it at the theater, it's a netflix/dvd rental kind of movie. It's a cute date movie (wink*wink).

I was very excited to see this little preview:

Sex and The City II

I take myself to the movies.... what do you do to escape your daily routine???

Hopeful

2010-02-19T14:16:00.000-08:00

It's not exactly spring time outside...

..but inside, I like to pretend a little.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Small Steps

2010-02-18T10:58:00.000-08:00

I talked about my dreams for our dining room almost a year ago. I've made so many attempts to get this room to where I can love it. It's not at that point yet, but we are a step closer to it. Our dining room windows are no longer naked! They no longer look like this.

You might remember the big boo boo I got myself into last month when I purchased $78 Williams-Sonoma curtain rods for only $2.99 each. They turned out being stripper pole looking tubes with no ends or hardware. When I went back on the website I found that the ends and hardware (that had also been on sale when I purchased the rods) were sold out. Everything went wrong with that purchase, so I stuffed the boxes they were delivered in under our guestroom bed and walked away in shame.

Just the other day, as I made my weekly visit to Target, I found the perfect curtain rods, ends and hardware included! And best of all, they were on sale! It took finding these curtain rods to make me stop feeling stupid about the whole curtain rod debacle.

So, for about $75 total (curtain panels and rods included) my windows now look like this:

Don't know if you've shopped for curtains lately, but it's expensive! I could have easily paid $75 per panel. But I was able to get these curtain panels at $30/pair at Ikea. And the length is exactly what I wanted. Here is a close up of the pattern on the curtains. LOVE!

I'm not done yet, I still want a nice rug in there. I'd love some new wall art, a light fixture to replace the ceiling fan. I am also trying to convince Marc of painting all of the dark trim and doors in this room. I believe painting the trim white would make such a difference in there. But he is not convinced at all. We'll see.

Do you have a hard time finding curtains? Do you make your own? Do you have any secret "go to" places to get your window dressings? Spill the beans people! I've got many windows to go.

Cookie duh!

2010-02-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

The other night Marc and I were talking and he asked the question of why I didn't bake cookies with Jared. He told me about how fun it was when his mom did it with him. I think he really wanted some cookies at that moment.

So the next day I decided I would do it! I would take on the reality of my kitchen turning into this:

I knew exactly the answer to Marc's question a few minutes into our little adventure. I was suddenly surrounded by complete chaos. Between Naomi crying at our feet and trying to climb the chair her big brother was on and Jared pouring half of the ingredients on the counter (not in the mixer bowl). It was the most stressful hour of my life. At one point he even tried to bounce the egg on the counter as if it were a ball.

Amazingly, we got the cookies on the cookie sheets and started baking.

At this point I could feel the white hairs growing from my scalp as Naomi cried her lungs out.
And then cookies were ready to get out. They were kind of burnt on the bottom and super soft on top. So I decided to scrape them off the cookie sheet to flip them so that they could bake better. Mind you I didn't let them cool, so they fell apart as I did that (as you can tell, I am not the baker in the house). I decided to close the kitchen door and make believe none of it happened.

Positive side of it all:

1)There is nothing like the smell of freshly baked cookies.
2)Although the cookies don't look too good, they were super duper yummy. Even Marc was impressed (he IS the baker in the house)
3) I was able to snap a pic of the kids waiting for the cookies to get out of the oven. Cuties!

Birthday Getaway Recap

2010-02-10T08:47:00.000-08:00

Last week Marc surprised me with a made up story he wrote. Within the story he included highlighted words that were clues to what he would be doing for my birthday. I worked most of the week trying to figure out the whole thing. Here are some of the clues in the story: gold coast, "ology", second, art, 52 tables, indigo, Mr. Smith, city, weekend.

At first I had no idea how to go at it, but then it became so much fun. Thank goodness for things like facebook (I posted on there and got some of my friends to help) and google I was able to figure out most of the clues.

"Gold Coast" was the clue that helped me figure out most of the other ones. We live on the sunset coast in Michigan, so I knew that it meant that we were going somewhere outside of where we live but that it would still be somewhere on Lake Michigan. So I googled gold coast and found out that it was an area in the northern side of the city of Chicago. I knew that we would be staying there for the weekend. So that meant we would have to eat and sleep somewhere. The 52 tables clue sounded like an eating place to me. I googled it and found the restaurant Table 52. When I went into the website I saw that the chef of was Art Smith. Famously known as former chef to Oprah Winfrey. Marc and I also knew his style of cooking because he was one of the finalist in Top Chef Masters, a competition that took place on Bravo last year (yes we are foodies and we are reality TV junkies).

Table-52

By this point I was sooo excited about it all! I was able to get all of the clues by Thursday. Then Marc ran the whole schedule by me. We would leave to Chicago on Saturday afternoon and stay there overnight.

Fast forward......

After our 11/2 hour drive into Chicago we arrived at our hotel. We stayed at the Hotel Indigo, a very cute boutique hotel, also in the Gold Coast area. I snapped some pics of the room, not really my decor style, but a very uniquely decorated room. Not like many cookie cutter hotel rooms that have ugly bedding and art on the walls.

We were able to park our car at an outdoor parking garage over night and walk to all of our little destinations. It was cold, but not that bad for Chicago standards. Plus, who cares about the cold when you can walk around a neighborhood with homes like these:

Do you ever take a peek into peoples windows just to take a look at how things are decorated? Or maybe try to imagine how they live? Am I the only creepy person that does this?

source

We made our way to our "ology" location, which just happened to be Anthropologie. We don't have one in our area, so I was very excited to visit one. We didn't really shop for anything, but their home stuff is absolutely beautiful! Just walking through the store made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

We hung out at Anthropologie until it was time to walk over to Table 52, just a few blocks from where we were. The restaurant was tiny, very quaint and cozy. The cheddar and goat cheese biscuit they set on our table once we were seated was to die for! We had our meal, salivated over each others plates and then something happened. Out of the corner of my eye I see someone that looks kind of familiar. When I realized who it was I had a little bit of a OMG moment. Marc didn't know what was happening... and then I was all like OMG! Nate Berkus is right over there!!!! Without thinking about how rude I would look or how borderline ghetto I was being I snapped this picture:

I kind of regret it now, I can see how bad it is to invade someones privacy that way. But seriously I love him! I love his design style, his products, and I don't know, it's just I really felt for him when he lost his boyfriend in the tsunami. I remember praying for him when he shared his story of survival and loss. Doesn't give me the excuse to stalk him though :(. But here I am showing you the pic... isn't he cute???

When we were done eating we walked over to a comedy show at Second City. Very funny and enjoyable, although, at this point I was so sleepy all I could think of was cuddling up in my bed next to my hubby. We left before the show was over, it was 3am (MI time) so we decided to take a taxi to the hotel. We were just too tired to walk even though it was only about 6 blocks away.

The next morning we did the thing we miss most about our lives before our kids, sleeping in on Sundays :). We slept in til 10am (unheard of!). When we finally got up, Marc walked over to an area bakery and got us some delicious breakfast. We had breakfast in bed while enjoying the beautiful city view out of our bedroom window. After we checked out of the hotel we visited some local stores that we don't have in our area.

Later that day we drove back home, Marc satisfied with making me happy, and me sitting there thinking of the amazing husband I have, always trying to please me, always looking for special ways to make me feel special.

I know Lorilea will be reading this. So thanks Lorilea, both you and Lynroy are great for taking care of the kids while we were gone. It really means alot to us.

And to you Marc... You're love is better than chocolate! Jared will be my Valentine this year... but you will always be my love, year round.... Te Amo!

Watch This: 500 Days of Summer

2010-02-08T16:12:00.000-08:00

If you like the feeling you get when you remember that first (or second) time you fell in love, then you have to watch this movie. I know it came out last summer, but I just now got around to watching it and it was lovely.

The soundtrack was amazing! It includes two songs from Regina Spektor (LOVE HER!). You can hear my favorite of the two (Us) at the beginning of the trailer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQWjrkQ3Fvk

Enjoy!

Blank Slate

2010-02-05T14:36:00.000-08:00

Everything is in place for our bedroom makeover to begin. Our walls are the perfect gray we wanted and our nightstands (which we had been searching for for years) are now sitting beautifully in our room.

We had to decide between the two nightstands in the picture.

The black one on the picture below turned out to be too big for our space. It just does not look right. It is now sitting in our room waiting to be returned to T.J. Maxx.

We ended up buying this one which I mentioned on my Christmas wish list a couple of months ago. I'm glad we waited a bit to buy them because we were able to get them on sale(always a plus). The capiz lamp won't be staying, although it has many of the elements that I want in our room. I want our room to be lite and airy. With neutral colors but I'd like to layer textures so that the room doesn't turn out looking dull or boring.

The biggest issue we have to deal with is the dreaded window behind our bed. There is no way to move the bed anywhere else, believe me, we've tried it all. So it must stay where it is. But look at that pathetic window, off center and sooo tiny! In an Ideal world I would craiglist the bed and make my own head board at a height that would visually eliminate the window. Kind of like this one:

or this one

Either of those headboards would aid in making my sweetest dreams come true every night ;). But I know Marc won't be ok with us craiglisting our bed, so that is out of the question (at least for now). So curtains will have to do. I'm very afraid that it will look tacky. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Stay tuned!

Happy Birthday To Me

2010-02-05T05:40:00.001-08:00

(flickr)

32 of these and a couple of friends to share with would make for the perfect day.....

Two Things I Love In My Home

2010-02-03T15:29:00.000-08:00

I got the idea for this post from Kirsten at 6th Street Design School, she was inspired by Sweet Fancy who was inspired by Kassi at Bac Woods Fern. Isn't inspiration from our fellow bloggers the true beauty of blogging??

I loved the idea of posting two things I really love in my home. For me this would be something that makes me happy every time I walk by it.

So our den is one of the things in my house that makes me feel warm inside. I got these curtains when we first got the house four years ago and they've been hanging there ever since. Every other window in the house is either naked or has had curtain malfunctions or changes. But these have remained. I just love the way the light streams in through those sheers. It sometimes feels like it's glowing in that room.

This is a very comfy little couch. My husband wants to get rid of it, but I just love it and I want to keep it forever. It's the coziest and just most inviting space in our home.

When I happen to catch a glance at the following little corner in our downstairs bathroom I also have that little feeling of satisfaction...

Specially after I hung this print that I got many years ago in Paris

and since we hung our beautiful Ikea lamp. It just makes our bathroom glow.

This picture really does not do it justice.

So what are the things that you love in your home. It can be a room or an item... Please share!

PINK

2010-02-01T10:05:00.000-08:00

Did you watch the 2010 Grammy's last night? If you didn't pleast take a moment to look at the most beautiful performance I've ever seen. Pink was amazing!

Here's the YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0lq96Xr9LA

But even more amazing are the lyrics to the song.

Glitter In The Air

Have you ever fed a lover with just your hands?

Close your eyes and trust it, just trust it

Have you ever thrown a fist full of glitter in the air?

Have you ever looked fear in the face

And said I just don't care?

It's only half past the point of no return

The tip of the iceberg, the sun before the burn

The thunder before lightning, the breath before the phrase

Have you ever felt this way?

Have you ever hated yourself for staring at the phone?

Your whole life waiting on the ring to prove you're not alone

Have you ever been touched so gently you had to cry?

Have you ever invited a stranger to come inside?

It's only half past the point of oblivion

The hourglass on the table, the walk before the run

The breath before the kiss and the fear before the flames

Have you ever felt this way?

La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la

There you are, sitting in the garden

Clutching my coffee, calling me sugar

You called me sugar

Have you ever wished for an endless night?

Lassoed the moon and the stars and pulled that rope tight

Have you ever held your breath and asked yourself

Will it ever get better than tonight? Tonight

Trend Setter?

2010-01-31T19:48:00.000-08:00

So today I put a scruchie in my hair. I was all "so what who cares" while pulling on my blouse and shrugging my shoulders (a la Joy Bejar).

Catherine Zeta-Jones (left) and Sienna Miller (right) are scrunchie fans. Photos: Rex USA

Fast forward a few minutes

I'm sitting in my car and I take a look at myself in the mirror before taking off and I'm all like "HELL NO! I'm not gonna be a DON'T in next months Glamour issue". I let my hair down and rocked my curls.

Plus, the scrunchie clashed with my AMAZING boots that I got myself for Christmas!

Watch This: Viva Cuba

2010-01-30T20:25:00.000-08:00

My Netflix has been working hard for me these last few weekends. I just got done watching what was easily the cutest movie I've ever watched.

The movie is about two kids who believe that if they hug hard enough no one and nothing can ever separate them. This is a must see movie!

Here is a link to the trailer:

(The best trailer I found on youtube has french subtitles, but the movie itself has English subtitles)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnU1NTdF_qc

Psst. for those of you that have Netflix, you can watch this movie instantly on your computer ;)

What is your decor style?

2010-01-28T19:15:00.001-08:00

Lately I feel that my decor style has been evolving some. I used to like an eclectic feel, mixing old and new, with dark colors and tones on my walls. Now I am moving more towards an airy feel, still mixing the old and new but in a cleaner less cluttered way. So when I took this decor style quiz on http://www.sproost.com/ I found that they were right on with their definition of what I've been working towards these last few months.

This is how it was broken down, 38% Hollywood Couture, 38% Modern Elegance, 24% Zen Style. How interesting! I am equally Hollywood Couture and Modern Elegance. In reading both descriptions I figured that I am more Modern Elegance than I am Hollywood Couture. Maybe because I have two little ones running around my house. So catering to their needs is part of it also. But my style is also less sophisticated,, more laid back than what they define Hollywood Couture as.

Here are the descriptions of each style and a few images to go along with them.

Modern Elegance
Variety is the spice of life! And nowhere is this truer than in the design of your home... You either love contemporary but wish it wasn't quite so cold and austere; or perhaps you've always been drawn to more traditional rooms but are now at a point in your life where you'd like to pair down a bit or want to create a less cluttered and busy space. Transitional Style is here to marry those apparent contradicting designs. And guess what — it's the contradictions that make the mix of contemporary and traditional so successful. The result is an elegant room that appeals to young and old alike. A sofa with modern lines blends seamlessly with a pair of traditional chairs. New fabrics work so well on antique pieces. It turns out that modern art looks even more exciting above a collection of traditional pieces. The room feels simple and sophisticated, elegant and hip.

Hollywood Couture
"Welcome to Hollywood! What's your dream?" That's right, its time to roll out the red carpet and get ready for the sparkle of crystal and all things flashy that make up the Hollywood Couture style. Hollywood Couture style originated in high-end lifestyles that made up the years between the roaring 20's and the swinging 40's where it was important to bring a feeling of glamour to the home when the world outside may have lacked it. Nowadays it's scratching a similar itch in the sense that it's bringing a sense of opulence to a world that seems to have forgotten how much fun it can be! The great thing about the updated version of the style is how versatile it is. You can really take it in any direction and add almost any style into the mix, perhaps a contemporary leather sofa paired with lacquered Louis XIV chairs that have been upholstered in lush velvet. The key is that each item feels as rich and over-the-top as possible and yet everything still seems livable. It's not a space that screams: "do not touch" - rather it almost dares you to experience its luxury.

How about you? Would you like to find out what your decor style is? Go take the quiz at http://www.sproost.com/ and find out. Please share if you do!

Window Shopping

2010-01-28T07:37:00.001-08:00

This past Sunday, while Marc and the kids took naps, I snuck out of the house for some good ole window shopping. I found these beautiful lamps at TJ MAXX, and for only $29.99 each! I love them all! I wouldn't mind owning each and every one of them.

Although buying each and every one of these would be overdoing it, can't you just imagine the kind of personality a pair of any of these lamps would bring to a room? Here are a few images I found in thinking about this.

via Decor Pad

(And yes, that is the scene in Sex and the City where Big proposes to

Carrie in THE most amazing closet, that he had designed for her).

All The Best via Decor Pad

via 6th St Design School

via Decor Pad

Anthropologie via Flickr

I found a few more items that I will be blogging about later. Hopefully one of my finds will be a keeper :).

Laura Rae Designs

2010-01-27T08:16:00.000-08:00

Loving the giveaway over at Laura Rae Designs.

These letters retail for $75 and are 42 inches or 3 1/2 feet tall. What a HUGE statement for your walls!

Winner will be announced on Sunday, hurry over and enter!

Chocolate Ice Cream What Shall I Do?

2010-01-26T13:57:00.000-08:00

It is extremely exciting to order things online. When it's finally dropped off on your porch you run to the door and rush back in to open what you've been waiting for for days. It's like Christmas morning for a five year old. And when you open it, you just know it was all meant to be... That is if what you ordered exceeds your expectations.

Today I got my Williams-Sonoma "deal of the century" rods that I blogged about here a few days ago. When I opened up the box I was so happy, cause they were exactly what I was wanting. Heavy, thick rods and the perfect nickel finish sheen on them. I could already see them on my dining room windows.

But upon closer inspection I discovered that I had only purchased the rods, with no ends, no hardware, nothing. Whats most frustrating about that is that they had the ends on sale and for very cheap on the day I found the great deal. The rods and ends had been sold out a few hours after I had purchased mine, so I know there is no chance I could maybe go back and buy the ends now.

I admit that I made this HUGE mistake because I was just too blinded by the whole emotion of getting $78 rods for only $2.99. I didn't even read the product description. I was expecting the curtain rods pictured shown on the image below (the ones in the middle). I didn't think I would have to buy the ends separately.

Whats worse is that I can't seem to find the curtain rods or ends anywhere on the WS website (I would be willing to pay for the ends at normal price at this point). But even worse than that, the curtain rods are too thick for the grommets on my beautiful curtains that I bought at Ikea about a month ago :(.

I don't know how I will face Marc with this whole disaster. He would've noticed all of this, he would not have been blinded by the great sale.

What am I going to do now? I think I'll go drown my sorrows in some chocolate ice cream that I have sitting in the freezer, maybe I'll find the answer there....

*Update: Marc gave me some ideas on what to do with the rods.

1) Sod the rods together and use them as stripper pole.

2)Use as plumbing for our downstairs bathroom redo.

Do you have any ideas?? Please comment!

Plans for the laundry room

2010-01-24T18:06:00.000-08:00

Last week I blogged about how I make laundry day simple. I posted this very embarrassing picture of how the room looks every Wednesday (laundry day).

It's my ugly truth, and although I keep it under control, I do feel like things could look a lot better. When I surround myself with beauty, things seem to run smoother, I tend to keep things more organized and (most importantly) I have less temper tantrums. I actually feel happy when things are pretty around me.

Marc, being the amazing husband that he is, knows that I am at my happiest when things are clean and organized. So he has drawn up some very snazzy plans for our laundry room.

He's even given me more than one option to choose from. Can I say it again?? I have an amazing husband! He went to Lowe's and already knows how much everything will cost.

Here are some laundry room images that I've been gathering in my decor i adore folder. All of them have things that I would love to integrate into our project.

Because of the plumbing in the room, our washer and dryer are separated from each other; kind of like the image above. I think that it would be good to use that wasted space as storage.

I would love to paint the walls a pretty color, maybe a lite blue or green, or even a very lite gray. Don't those baskets look great on those shelves?

Look at how cute this room is. I love the rug and how it contrasts with the blue on the walls. I also like how everything seems to have it's place. Check out the broom hanging on the wall, sooo cute :)

This one is a bit more sophisticated than what I want, but I just love the way you can see how organized the towels are behind the frosted glass.

This is the look I am going for. Would love to finally own an ironing board.

And there you go, once again you've caught me daydreaming about how my house can look if only.... I don't know when we will be able to finish this room, as we are working on what feels like the whole house. But hopefully it will be soon.

Watch This: Away We Go

2010-01-23T18:35:00.000-08:00

I just got done watching this movie and I LOVED it! And, can I just say, my crush on John Krasinski has gone up a few notches (yes Marc knows :)).

Here's a link to the trailer of the movie

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi3933405977/

I would love to hear what you think about the movie. Leave a comment :)

Make It Simple: Laundry Day

2010-01-22T07:20:00.000-08:00

This is how my laundry room looks on Wednesday mornings.

At first glance this pile of dirty clothing can seem a bit overwhelming. But I have mastered laundry day by just following a few easy steps.

1)Laundry Day. Wednesday is laundry day. No matter what, laundry needs to be started (and hopefully) done by that evening. I give myself til Friday morning to have the room cleared out.

2) Hot Spots: I have laundry baskets in what I call "hot spots" all around the house. There's one in my closet, one in my bedroom, one next to the bathtub, etc. This helps to avoid having clothing on the floor everywhere in the house. On Wednesday mornings I gather all of the baskets up in my laundry room to tackle laundry day.

3) Sorting. I sort all of the clothing by color. And, a trick that I swear by is to separate the kids' clothing from our clothing. Separating the kids clothing from ours makes it easier to put away in the end.

4) The light at the end of the tunnel. After sorting I know exactly how many loads of laundry I'll have to do on that day and so I plan accordingly. All laundry has to be done by that evening and clothing folded and put away by Thursday evening. I am very strict with this part of the process, because this is my way of avoiding the whole catch up game that doing laundry can create for a family of four.

5) Organized processing. I set the baskets with sorted laundry to one side so that I can move freely around the room. And I try to get the laundry in and out of the washer/dryer to start the next load right when it's done. I have an alarm on my washer and dryer that let me know when clothing is ready to get out. If you don't have one you can use a timer to remind you when to load/unload.

6) No kids allowed. Once I'm done washing and drying, I let the clothing sit there til the kids go to bed. It is virtually impossible to fold clothing with the kids present. They are always climbing inside the baskets and flipping them over. I've found myself hyperventilating a few times over this. So laundry is folded at night after the kids go to bed and while I'm watching my favorite TV shows.

By Friday morning my laundry room should look like this:

All baskets and clutter cleared out. It isn't the prettiest room in the house, but when it's cleared out like this, I'm almost ok with that.

How about you? What kind of tricks do you have up your sleeves for this chore?

We have plans drawn up to make this room prettier and more organized. I will post about that soon, so please stay tuned.

Gracias TamStyles

2010-01-21T11:14:00.000-08:00

Williams-Sonoma

Thanks to Tam Styles at Get It Girl Style for pointing me to the most amazing sale of the century (as she put it). And at Williams-Sonoma of all places! I got me some beautiful curtain rods for our dining room and for about a $14 total (including shipping). The rods I purchased were originally priced at $78, I got them for $2.99 each. AMAZING! Go check it out!

Watch this: Jeux D'Enfants (Love Me If You Dare)

2010-01-17T17:00:00.000-08:00

I watched this wonderful movie this weekend.

Here's a link to the trailer of Jeux d'enfants

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtzjUjVQe9Q

Photography Giveaway

2010-01-15T06:14:00.000-08:00

Some beautiful photography prints are being given away at one of the blogs I follow. The photographers' name is Sara Norris from Albuquerque, New Mexico. You should go and check out her Etsy Shop.

Here are a few of my favorite photographs from her shop:

If you would like to take the chance at being the lucky winner of a $50 gift certificate to Sara Norris' Etsy Shop. Visit the fabulous Kate at Centsational Girl. But hurry, giveaway ends Tuesday January 19th at 8 p.m. PST.

MUST HAVE!

2010-01-13T07:14:00.000-08:00

I will be searching high and low, hitting up craigslist daily, visiting all thrift stores in our area til I find this side table (or something similar to it). Wouldn't it make the perfect sofa table in a livingroom or the perfect credenza in a diningroom? Also great for an entryway.

Image can be found here.

I've saved up other images in my "decor I adore" folder that would make me equally happy. Here are a few of those.

Wish me luck!!!!

P.S. All other images were found on decorpad.com