Epiphany: Fabric as Art!

Posted on September 26, 2012 by Simply Styled

So yesterday, while browsing fabrics, I kept seeing so many that I loved. Unfortunately for me, so many of them would have been visual overload in our small apartment, but I kept coming back to this one again and again (isn’t he cute??)

Finally it came to me – while this bird was never meant to be on the curtains I was making, he was still meant to be in my house. As what, you ask? As a pretty piece of art, singing on the wall!

I did a little investigation, and discovered that others also had this brilliant idea already, turning textiles into art. I am apparently late to this party… I love this example from Elle Decor, where this Ikat print breathed life into what could have been a rather ho hum office.

Here, another office, posted on Apartment Therapy, where they used the same fabric in four different colors, with a matte behind the desk. I love that these give the feel of screened windows, and tone down the very green walls.

This room has different patterns and different colors simply matted in black frames – easy, inexpensive, and impactful. I love it.

Finally, framed fabric featured in a hallway. Pretty pretty – I don’t think I’ll be framing anything this large in our small space, but I’m encouraged seeing how awesome it can look in other spaces.

I’ve revamped my original design board, to include a few changes – including my mocked up birdie.

While the original inspiration board (featured here) was fine, it lacked energy and interest (I’m the first to admit it). The white roman shades were blah, and the room was boring. It was was all blue, white, and brown – so one dimensional. I think the citron printed fabric (the Secret Gate pattern is the winner for me) will make a lively addition as a roman shade in this space, and my dear little mockingbird (or is it a nightingale?) will tie everything together in a big bird-like bow.

I am starting to think that my mockingbird/nightingale might need a partner in crime up there on the wall, so I’ve started looking at other fabrics that he might pair well. With the trellis rug and the citron patterned shades, I think we’ve got enough graphic patterns going on, so I’m thinking something more “picture-like.” Here are the options I’m debating…

OPTION I: Bird with the Working girls

That description came out all wrong… These girls are working… not as hookers! Get your minds out of the gutter! I’m even thinking that with a grey print, a light wash of color from some watercolor paints might be neat. Am I being optimistic with my artistic capabilities?? Perhaps… I may just go ahead and try it…

OPTION II: Bird with the Turbaned Turks

I swear I can’t make this stuff up! This fabric is actually called Turkish Toile! I love it, but is this too much yellow? Is the yellow here too different from the citron color in the shades? I do like that the guys in ths print are sitting around drinking and probably gossiping about their mistresses. I’m going to keep this one in the running…

OPTION III: Bird with the Garden Toile
I think this print is really pretty, but my biggest concern here is the border. I love the blue border because it ties in really well with my sweet bird, but what if the toile print is so big that the border is cut off by the frame! There is nothing that gets my goat more than something non-symmetrical, so if it can’t be perfectly centered, I don’t want it at all. I think this one, as sweet as it is, has to go. It’s not worth the $20 per yard to test it out.

OPTION IV: Bird with the Turbaned Turks (part II)
I just keep coming back to these Turkish dudes, right?? This one is different though I swear! Difference #1: This print is black and white – no yellow anywhere to be found. Difference #2: These Turks are at the same little hut, but in a different climate. Take a close look – they’ve got palm trees here, so they must be somewhere tropical. In the other print, it’s pine trees encircling them… so they are likely in the mountains somewhere. Gosh, the more I think about it, the more I like these Turks. I’m feeling like we are already becoming closer friends than I am with the mockingbird.

Ok, enough crazy talk… must make some decisions!!

A Nautical Navy Affair

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Simply Styled

Has anyone else heard of Indian Summer?? I grew up thinking it was a real season the way we honored it. California is is notorious for really perfect weather in September and October – when it’s cooling off in other states, the weather here gets warmer. Technically, it’s already fall, but it feels like summer, so we’ve named this season “Indian Summer.” Totally PC, right?? Who cares… I say, break out the moccasins!

Anyway… my mom’s birthday falls right within “Indian Summer”, which means the days are sunny and the night’s stay relatively warm – the perfect recipe for an outdoor birthday dinner. The theme?? Nautical Navy. Yes, I just made that up, but we are going with it.

The Fish Market is this awesome seafood restaurant in my hometown, and while the inside feels very “fish market-y” with a fish counter, and a tank of live crabs, there is an adorable outside patio that sits right on a lagoon. It really is a gorgeous setting, and the perfect spot for my Mama’s birthday dinner.

Once the reservations were made and the invitations inked, I called the restaurant for the details on the patio. Are there white linens? What color are the napkins? About how long do you anticipate the table being for a party of 16?

Once I found out that there were no linens unless requested, napkins were red, and a table for a party that large would be in the ballpark of 16 feet, I went to work putting together inspirations for a lovely birthday tablescape. Since the napkins were red, color choices for my tablescape were more limited. With the restaurant on the water, a nautical theme was an easy choice.

Queue Pinterest: the Mecca for inspiration (well my Mecca at least).

I gathered up a bunch of online inspiration, and based a lot of my decisions on these pictures:

The priorities were to find a graphic runner in navy, and pair it with white floral arrangements. I had dabbled with the idea of red florals, but when I ran the idea past my dad, his opinion that it would be too much red with the napkins, and we “didn’t want the table to look like communist China”. Oh dad… you have a delicate way of putting things…

I found this great runner from Etsy – it measured 108″ (9 feet) which is apparently the longest length for runners without a custom order. While it wouldn’t cover the entire table, it was good enough for me, so we went with it.

I also ordered a bunch of small glass votives (candlelight changes EVERYTHING), and several large mason jars for the flower arrangements.

The result??

All in all, I’m really happy with how everything turned out.

The chevron brought in the graphic piece that would have been missing on such a long table (can you imagine that massive expanse of empty white tablecloth??), the flowers were low enough that everyone could pass food and chat across the table, and the red in the napkins ended up giving everything a fun pop of color.

Together, it created a really fun feel for a special birthday celebration… and just look at this pretty lady… not a day over 39!

Fabulous Find: Fun, Funky Fabric (like the alliteration?)

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Simply Styled

There is a good thing going on at Lewis and Sheron Textiles with tons – and I mean TONS – of amazing interior fabrics to choose from. They have a promotion right now for 20% off all fabrics when you use the code LSFABRICS FIRST. I’m thinking that since I’m doing a little freshening up at our house, it could be a great chance to get a few designer patterns at a discount!

I’m loving the citron colors in these patterns:

Clockwise from top left: Secret Gate, Coral Splendor, Azzuro, Kalita

I’m also really loving this bird print, and dabbling with the idea of ordering a bit of it since it’s just so pretty! What I will do with it, I’m not sure yet, but I have a few ideas in mind…

This set of indigo prints are so pretty – this is one color that I love, but it doesn’t exist anywhere in our house. I’m thinking that this might be really soothing and pretty for the bedding in our bedroom. The rest of the room is pretty much a neutral palate with light taupe walls, bright white trim, and creme colored silk curtains. With white fluffy bedding, and an upholstered headboard with nail head trim… a few pillows in these prints could really wake things up.

Clockwise from top left: Cross Section, Casablanca Whtfla, Joy (very aptly named I might add… this linking print in a blue bell color just makes me happy), Bloom Stripe

Finally, I just LOVE this water colored floral print – it’s pretty enough to frame! I’d love to order it, but I don’t really have a great spot for it at the moment…

I’ve Been a Busy Bee

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Simply Styled

Holy moly – does anyone else need a weekend from their weekend?! I definitely do! I got together with an old friend for brunch and mani pedis on Saturday, celebrated my mama’s birthday with a big dinner party that night (more on that later), and on Sunday, we headed up to Mount Tamalpais in Marin county for what turned into a very tiring hike.

This is the view from the top… you can see San Francisco wayyy in the distance… and all that fog?? Yep, that’s where the ocean should be!

Between all of that, I swear I have been making progress on our little hallway in the last week… proof?? Here is a sneak peek at the freshly painted and “antiqued” console table… excuse the wires in the background – the console has made a temporary home in the middle of our living room while the hallway gets painted.

Happy Birthday Mama

Posted on September 21, 2012 by Simply Styled

To my beautiful mama on her 60th birthday – you are the most caring, loving person I know. The first person I want to talk to when I have a problem, because you know just what to say to put everything into perspective. You are such genuinely good person, a great friend, and such a wonderful partner to dad. I admire your patience, your optimism, and your ability to see the good in everyone – all qualities I WISH I could have more of!

Practically perfect in every way, you have always been the standard that Elissa and I hold ourselves to (I know… I dangled my participles… twice now).

I am so proud to call you my mom.

To a lovely birthday today, and another wonderful year.

xoxo

Tory Love

Posted on September 21, 2012 by Simply Styled

Are there any items that you’ve lusted after, and every time you see someone else with it, you get a pang of jealousy? Well for me it’s the Tory Burch black clutch with gold medallion detail. I’ve agonized over it in the store more times than I’d like to admit, but I am too practical to spend over $300 on a bag meant for partying.

Imagine my surprise and glee when one of our sales partners invited my team to a private shopping event at Tory Burch’s store downtown. I think I pretty much died and went to heaven.

Doors closed early at 5:00 last night to host our private party there – flutes of champagne in hand, we browsed the store like royalty. It was actually pretty surreal to be in there with a sales person dedicated to finding me pieces. I tried on shoes, blouses, sunglasses, and several darling dresses, but I knew in my heart what I was leaving with…. the black clutch. The photo above is of part of their handbag display. Love love loveeeee!

Onto my favorite part… the decor…

Can we talk about how well styled these stores are?? I WISH my house could be this fabulous! I was too embarrassed to actually ask the staff to take a photo of us, but I did get out my iPhone to snap a few covert pictures of the displays. I felt like I was walking around inside a pretty jewelry box – it was just fabulous from the graphic diamond rugs, to the vibrant colors, and amazing orchid arrangements.

This display in particular was one of my favorites. The X leg benches were perfect next to the gilt trim table with it’s super shiny lacquer top.

Anyway, here she is… my new little baby 🙂 Isn’t she amazing??

Pumpkin Doughnuts

Posted on September 20, 2012 by Simply Styled

I am fairly certain that after the amount of eating I’ve been doing for work (elaborate dinners, lunches out, cupcakes, cheese platters, and gallons of wine in the last week) that the last thing I need is a Pumpkin Doughnut, but after finding this recipe, I’ve become convinced that I need to make these tonight.

Try to tell me that these don’t look life changing…

Yes… life changing indeed.

My first thought was, I don’t have this special pan for them… what about muffins, but as I read through the recipe, they specifically said, don’t try this as muffins. Whelp, looks like a trip to Williams Sonoma might be in my future to pick up one of these…

As a side note, these are baked – not deep fried – so the recipe actually looks really easy! Start by pre-heating the oven to 350 degrees. You’ll need:

– 1/2 cup vegetable oil

– 3 large eggs

– 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

– 1 1/2 cups pumpkin purée (canned pumpkin)

– 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, or 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon plus a heaping 1/4 teaspoon each ground nutmeg and ground ginger

– 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

– 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Put all these ingrediants into a large mixing bowl, and beat everything together until it’s smooth.

Add 1 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour, stirring just until smooth.

Lightly grease two standard doughnut pans, and fill the wells of the doughnut pans about 3/4 full. Bake the doughnuts for 15 to 18 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of one comes out clean. If you’re using self-rising flour, bake for the longer amount of time.

Remove the doughnuts from the oven, and after about 5 minutes, loosen their edges, and transfer them to a rack to cool.

While the doughnuts are still warm (but no longer fragile), gently shake them in a bag with cinnamon-sugar. Or better yet, pumpkin-spice sugar, made by combining the aforementioned pumpkin pie spice (or substitute) with granulated or extra-fine sugar.

You are welcome in advance. How AMAZING do these look?!

The Shops at Target

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Simply Styled

Is anyone else as excited as I am for the new shops at Target?! They have partnered with four AWESOME local shops in a major way… New York’s Odin and Kirna Zabete, Boston’s Patch NYC, and San Francisco’s The Curiosity Shoppe. My favorites are Patch and the Curiosity Shoppe, mainly becuase they have the cutest, funkiest little accessories for the home.

Patch NYC’s collection is full of pieces with a woodsy vibe (think fuzzy wool blankets, and woodland creature figurines), and for extremely affordable prices, you can prepare for hibernation with new lamps, pillows, dishes, and throw blankets.

I think the owl lamp and owl bookends are endlessly charming – I also love the woodpecker lamp! As darling as these would be paired up in a sophisticated child’s bedroom, I also think they’d be really cool in an office, hallway, or entryway.

Their woodsy pillow collection is pretty awesome too. I actually think the stag pillow would be great for the holidays since this little guy looks quite a bit like a certain red nosed reindeer (without the red nose)

And for any fox lovers out there (aka my sister’s friend Rebecca), they have an array of fox themed goods from lamps to candle holders, to sweet little dishes

The Curiosity Shoppe has a lot of great things for entertaining, from fun straws, and drink mixers, to photo booth props, cheese platters, and gift wrap! They had really cute dishes, cake stands, and even journals! Looking through the collection, it dawned on me that this is the perfect one-stop-shop for a funky bride on a budget. Am I right or am I right?! (Tip: I’m right)

How cute are these props for a photo booth, and these old timey straws?? They remind me of mini barber poles! Isn’t there something about fake mustaches that are so fun?!

I LOVE the USA cutting board – quirky and cute! It would also work really well as a cheese platter – what would be REALLY adorable is if you featured different cheeses from different regions like a Humboldt Fog Bleu near San Francisco, or a Wisconsin Cheddar up near the great lakes…

They also are featuring some super cute gift boxes and tags – for anyone (like me) who struggles when trying to wrap a present, these boxes are so pretty, you won’t want to cover them up!! I especially love the yellow one with the wood grain print on the top…

**As a side note, this is NOT an advertisement for Target, or any of these individual vendors. I just happen to be obsessed with how awesome they are 🙂

The Hallway is Getting some Love (FINALLY)

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Simply Styled

There are a few changes taking place in our home right now, and most of them involve a bit of paint. In this month’s issue of House Beautiful, one designer was quoted saying that paint is the cheapest and easiest way to update a room. I couldn’t agree more!!

The first face-lift on the list is our small hallway that leads from the front of our apartment (living room, dining room and kitchen) to the back (bedroom and bathroom). The hallway isn’t long – it’s maybe 15 feet, and it’s main feature is the large linen closet that takes up most of it. As you can see from the photo’s below – it’s less than attractive.

As it stands, the hallway is monochromatic – the walls, ceiling, trim, and linen closet are all currently painted the same color of blah off-white, and with the wood floors and wood console table, it feels dark, drab, and utterly boring. To make matters worse, the runner we’ve got in there right now is also brown. The hallway is brown on brown on brown. It really can’t get worse, so my plan is to transform the space with a few cans of paint.

*View from the Dining Room *View from Bedroom

Brown on Brown on Brown…. so ugly!!

Anyway, the main changes will be to our existing console table that is in serious need of some TLC. I found it on Craigslist a few years ago for around $20, so since it’s not a priceless antique, I am very excited to slap some paint on it. The table has great lines, but the overly shiny finish makes it look cheap. It’s not good.

I did a little research into removing lacquer and it sounds like A LOT of work, so instead of bending over backwards to refinish and re-stain this cheap wood console table, I’m going to paint it. Easy.

*The faux inlay isn’t bad… but the shine!! Oye! *It’s like a mirror!! Woof!

Luckily, the console table has really great lines – it has a pretty carved apron and cabriole legs that give it a French Provincial look, and I think it’s going to make a really great makeover.

The top of the table has a faux herringbone inlay which I had originally planned on painting, but I haven’t FULLY committed to covering it up yet. Perhaps the inlay will look much better once the varnish is gone? Who knows, but if it still looks god awful, my plan is to distress the wood – aka really ding it up with a hammer and some extra gritty sandpaper. Once it’s distressed I have a dark taupe paint called “Squirrel” that my sister will get a kick out of (side note: she is deathly scared of squirrels, so as soon as I saw that the paint was named “Squirrel” I had to have it) The plan is to paint the legs and apron first and tackle the top afterwards.

*Look at these great lines! I love the turned legs, the scalloped apron, and detail on the drawers!

This is the console table set up in the garage, ready for it’s makeover…

Aside from some paint on the console table, I’ll be painting the walls, trim, and linen closet to brighten up the space. The walls will get a warm creamy color and the trim, doors, and linen closet will be painted a glossy bright white. I think the color is actually called “Decorators White” so I can pretend I’m some sort of professional. Ha!

Here is the inspiration board I built around what I hope to achieve:

Finally, that awful brown runner is getting the heave-ho, and my newest purchase from Ballard – the Saybrook Indoor/Outdoor runner – is going in it’s place. I actually got this runner several months ago, but it’s been waiting for the rest of the hallway to catch up in terms of aesthetics. I love the calming colors, and since our dining room (that is adjacent to this hallway) has a lot of the same colors, it will make for a pretty seamless transition from room to room.

I once read that in small spaces, it’s good to repeat similar color palates from room to room, as it makes the space feel larger. We will see if that is true….

Stay tuned for updates!!

Off to Drink Wine like a Greek Goddess

Posted on September 15, 2012 by Simply Styled

This is view from Ravenswood – a winery that is located in Sonoma who makes one of my FAVORITE red wines. Their winery is also going to be one of the stops on our wine tour tomorrow. Oh, did I mention we were going wine tasting? If it were an Olympic event, I’d be a gold medalist… not to brag.

Anyway, I am counting the minutes until we are in our car, heading up to the wine country for some weekend relaxation.

Have a happy, sunny, wonderful weekend!