how fun

All images via At Casa. Interior designer Ghislaine Viñas.

image via pia ulin

bold color

images via pia ulin

girl time

image via epicurious

There is nothing sweeter then an afternoon spent with a dear friend. So when I saw this image I instantly longed for the spring time. For fresh air and fresh conversations. For brunch with girlfriends and for moments that left me giggling uncontrollably. These days it’s not as easy to step away and get out but when I do, I cherish that time and inevitable those moments become some of my favorite.

home decor and cupcakes

Look, my home.. (or, potential home).  Color wise that is.

via 100 Layer Cake, Photographer Miles Aldridge for Vogue Italia

 

I came across this image last night when I was checking out 100 Layer Cake. First off, I’m really enjoying this new blog. It has a lovely layout, lots of pretty photos and the most adorably calligraphered logo of a cake. And to boot, the name is just swimmingly cute. I highly recommend checking them out if you still like to peek at wedding related things.

Back to the strikingly beautiful image from Miles Aldridge. I’ve been second guessing if I should paint my closet pink (of course I am!). I’ve also been second guessing yellow as my choice of “pop” (no surprise there). This image makes me think I should go for it. Lets examine, there’s lots of blue with a perfect balance of grey yet the pale pink and burst of yellow seem to fit in perfectly. And that’s my home… lots of blue, a perfectly balanced dash of grey and now the potential to add a smidgen of pink and yellow. Beautiful, no?

I’m almost committed. Perhaps someone can give me a nudge. So tell me, what do you think?

And while I am posting about pretty things I find on other blogs I have to share this lovely I just spotted via Oh Joy! I’ve been thinking a lot about the things I want to bake. I’m a bit obsessed with cake and all things cake, like cupcakes. So when I saw these adorable paper liners I knew I had to have them.. and perhaps, maybe you need them as well.

via Oh Joy!, Cupcake Kit by Elinor Klivans

 

home decor: more pink talk

Months ago I came across a photograph of what appears to be fuchsia smoke. I spotted this photograph via Habitually Chic. Since that time I’ve thought a lot about this image. I can’t help but to be drawn into it.

Smoke 14 by Mark Elverson found via Habitually Chic

 

When you come into my home, and pass through our entryway, you slip past our hallway before entering into our main living space. That hallway leads to our bedrooms and guest bathroom. At the end is our master bedroom. It’s a rather short hallway. As you pass through, if you quickly glimpse to the side, you see into our room. When you do so you see deep colored walls painted charcoal grey and a stark white dresser. I’ve begun to contemplate changing our room around. I haven’t taken measurements but I wonder, and I hope, that with some manipulation I might be able to fit a working desk where my dresser presently stands. It would be my space to craft and wrap and think. I am not particularly found of McMansion homes but the one thing I wish I did have was a gift wrapping room. I don’t foresee myself ever owning a large home but I’d still love an open space to craft and roll out ribbons and papers. And if this were to happen I’d love a beautiful chair draped in custom fabric. Above that chair would hang an equally beautiful piece of art. I have a great fondness for photography and I particularly love the image Smoke 14 because it draws me in and it adds that burst of unexpected color I like. Paired with my grey walls I think it would look lovely. If I did follow through with this new arrangement then a pale pink closet would be a nice touch. Almost as if the fuchsia smoke photography is a foreshadowing of what lies behind my closet door. With that said, the door leading into our walk-in closet is always open and I’m not entirely certain I want to always stare into a pink room.

I don’t want to sound crazy or annoying but I’m just thinking this through on all aspects. I purchased a sketch for my master bathroom about two years back. I really wanted the image and it was only being sold as a set of four sketches. So I bought all four in an effort to get the one I wanted. The sketches came framed and two sit in the back of my closet, stored away. Both are pink and it would be nice to hang them side by side in my closet on pale pink walls. The frames are ornate and bit much for me but I can see them being a burst of sweetness that you walk into every morning.

At this point my husband says he doesn’t care. He’s pretty certain he won’t notice them… or the pink walls.

This weekend while leafing through my Living Etc. magazine I came across the most sumptuous blue paint. I could slather that on my closet walls without batting an eye. I haven’t mentioned it but I’m such a sucker for blue. I have four blue rooms and in a two bedroom home that’s more then half our place. When I put it that way it makes the pink sound more appealing.

Mark Elverson

Habitually Chic
U Gallery

home decor: closet paint

Happy Presidents Day to those who celebrate!

My husband and I just finished having cocktails in the kitchen, which is much needed when listening to CD’s of children’s music and rhymes. Why are the songs always so dreadful? Not that it matters since the cocktails managed to make it all bearable and amusing. I am now “paying bills” which translates to popping into my blog. Please don’t tell my husband about this fib. Though I must run soon as we are headed out to a local lounge for more drinks while socializing with our neighbors. Votes for the co-op board are coming up so there is much to discuss.

I wanted to mention that I did some painting this weekend that didn’t come out too well. Today I repainted with much better results. Also, colors for my closet have weighed heavily on my mind this weekend. Don’t shoot me but I’m thinking pink. My friend Parker suggested red and when I think cherry red I’m completely intrigued but on the other hand I don’t want a dark color. I’d love to do a plum but again, too dark. So I’m thinking the palest of pinks. I even tested a swatch this weekend but I’m not sold. I need to think about this one a bit more though I’d like to start on the project mid March.

I found this lovely image while searching pink over the weekend. The fact that there is yellow in the room has me smitten.

via Domino Magazine

 

 

home ideas: paint by color

I‘m particular. Clear minded if you will. Instinctively – I love it or I don’t.

But wait, hold on. It must be mentioned that I selected the most phenomenal couch, which we returned to the manufacturer two years later. It didn’t work within the dynamics of my home. My mother and I spent an afternoon last December meticulously hanging 12 photos on my living room wall. Each image was perfectly spaced and leveled. The photos were hand picked and arranged with precision. This past December we took them all down. The scale was all off. Two years ago on a June summer morning my husband and I walked into Bloomingdale’s out of pure boredom. We left with a dinning room table. I’ve come to hate that table. I hate how the legs bow out. Plus, the chairs are all wrong and not my style in the least bit. I hate them as well. I’m presently in the process of convincing my husband we need to Craig List the entire set. Shrug!

The point is, I know exactly what I like. But when I bring it all together, sometimes things don’t work. I’ve learned a lot about my style through trial and error. And as you can see, I’ve had a lot of error in decorating our current home. So when someone recently asked me for help I felt conflicted. I’m just finally figuring out my style after two years of racking my brain. I’m not certain I should be anyone’s go to person on help but I will try. Tammy wrote:

I would like to do a mini- make-over to my apartment by the spring, lived there for 7 years and have not change the antique white paint on the walls. Any ideas, shall I go for light colors, neutral or dark? I have large windows so I get a lot of sun light, so maybe light colors would not be such a good idea.

The palest green or blue would be gorgeous. I’m thinking so pale that the hint of color is only visible when the light cascades through your windows. Or a bold butter yellow that drenches your wall in color. And I love see-through-pink or sex-and-the-city-teal. My neighbor did an olive green that I adore. Your options are endless but I do think your personality should guide you. I’m listing a few easy steps you might want to follow:

1. First, decide on your style and vision. Then, stick to it! This might be dictated by furniture you already have if you plan to keep it. I think the style you decide on should guide all your choices and thus eliminate error or a room that looks miss matched.

2. Decide on a color that YOU like. At the end of the day it’s about you coming home and loving the space that you walk into.

3. Don’t be scared of color and don’t feel like you need to play it safe. I personally love deep bold colors, I love pale pallets and I think white can be a phenomenal choice. Regarding white, I think it works when that is the color you intended the walls to be.

4. Be open to error. If you mess it up, it’s a pain to fix. I’ll admit that. BUT it’s also *just* paint. Test your color first by painting a swatch on the wall and live with if for a few days. I have skipped this step several times and I deeply regret it. Either way, it’s relatively inexpensive to correct a problematic paint job. Cut yourself slack and know that it’s ok to repaint.

Tammy – I hope that helps. I think you need to figure out the best color for you. For inspiration I’ve included several photos below. All images are from House Beautiful. 

Buena suerte!

 

 

Pale Green

 

Pale Yellow

 

Simply White

 

Sunny Yellow

 

Lavender Pink