Totally Inspiring Room

The living area in a project my Isabel Lopez-Quesada via ECLECchic.

This living room is by Spanish interior designer Isabel Lopez-Quesada. This is my second time featuring her work on a Totally Inspiring Room post and I’m sure it won’t be the last! Her rooms always seem supremely livable and effortlessly chic at the same time. Definitely something I find totally inspiring… not to mention that I’m totally in love with the blue/purple/pink/coral scheme. See more of the project at the blog ECLECchic or see more of Isabel Lope-Quesada’s work on her own website!

Happy Tuesday, all! Until next time…

Laced With Sweetness

You know how sometimes you see something and it makes you swoon? Something that literally resonates… Today while looking over ish and chi, the blog of Vivian Mansour, I saw this old post (from August 2010) showing an outfit she wore and a project she worked on… Guess which one I swooned over?

How beautiful is this ensemble!?

It is a two year old post so the gorgeous lace blouse is no longer available at ModCloth… *sigh* I bet some enterprising seamstress could whip up a reasonable copy though. It’d be worth it! I could see wearing a top like this as it’s shown or over a black cami with a pencil skirt and pumps, or over jeans with the sleeves pushed up. It really is a knockout! Anywho, the top may not be available anymore but this pic is definitely inspiration for a silhouette to match with a beloved maxi dress that needs a little extra something.

Want a last closer look?

Dainty and Demure Top.

In other news (somewhat related to my post Truly from earlier this week): I have taken the first steps toward going back to college for an interior design certification/degree. I’m nervous and excited and hoping it all works out for the best. Wish me luck!

Picnic Anyone?

I’m off work today so I decided to go through some magazines and catalogs that I’ve only skimmed over because I’ve been so busy with work and life stuff lately.

ACME Party Company's Picnic Basket for Four. (Image from House Beautiful via Design Scouting.)

This gorgeous picnic basket is in the market section of the April issue of House Beautiful. it is available through ACME Party Box Company starting at $150 depending on the options you choose (with or without a knife or two styles of glasses). I would totally love to own this… though I’m not sure how much use I’d get out of it. As much as I want to be a Martha Stewart type, I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I probably am really not that domestic. So actually planning a picnic menu, packing it up, and then taking it and a few friends out for a spin is probably super far off the list of realistic things I would be doing in life. Especially enough to justify a over a hundred dollar price tag. Still, this picnic basket is just beautiful enough to make me dream of moving it up the list a bit. 🙂

Hope you’re enjoying your Wednesday. Until next time!

Project: Lamp

I don’t know why I love doing lamp projects so much… but I do!Maybe it’s because they are compact, easy pieces to work on. Whatever the reason, when I saw this lamp at my local thrift store, I knew I had to take a crack at an idea that I’ve been wanting to try ever since I saw it on Pinterest.

Twine wrapped bottles in neon + neutral. Image via Remodelista.

I found instructions for it on Remodelista. Pretty cool looking, right? I thought it might be cool to do a similar look on a lamp instead. The only thing is I don’t want to cover the whole lamp with twine. I’m thinking a little over halfway will look good. The thing about that is that I’ll have brown lamp hanging out where I don’t want it. So, for the top I’m going to take a tip from Isabella and Max Rooms.

A DIY lamp project from Isabella and Max Rooms.

I’m going to repaint the lamps with spray paint and high gloss clear coat then go over the bottom two thirds with neon and natural twine. I think. I may do some pretty colors that I have in mind for my room. We’ll see! When I’m done I’ll post pics. Speaking of which…

I got these great lamps as well:

But I’m not sure what to do with them. I think they are entirely lovely but the applique pattern has some slight damage and I’m not in love with the color. Any advice on what to do with this pair of lovelies?

That’s it for me for today! I hope you all have a great weekend and I’ll catch you next time!

Vintage Remix

Kishani Perera is an LA based designer who has risen, in the design world to rockstar recognition in just a short time. Her work is being featured all over the place, from magazines to blogs to tv… With good reason. Her eclectic mix of bold color, high and low brands, vintage and new is something to inspire or aspire to. I was excited when I found out (light years behind all the truly savvy decoristas) that Ms. Perera has a new book out. It’s called Vintage Remix: The Interiors of Kishani Perera. I’m aiming to make it a part of my collection now. In the meantime, I’ve been checking out more of Ms. Perera’s work online:

Kishani Perera design. Image via Project Pretty Blog.

Kishani Perera design. Image via Aphrochic

Kishani Perera design. Image via Color Sizzle.

Each of these bloggers has done a great feature on Ms. Perera’s work. There are more photos (and gushing… not unlike mine!) on each of these fab blogger’s sites. Please check out all the great pics they have of Kishani Perera’s work. Just click on one of the pics above.

Kishani Perera at her LA based store, Rummage.

There are some great pics of Kishani Perera’s store, Rummage, on the blog Brittany Stiles. Just click the photo above to take a look. You can also see some great shots of the Vintage Remix’s sections on The House of Fifty blog or pick up your own copy and make it a part of your collection. Isn’t Ms. Perera’s work fab?

I hope you’re having a fabulous day… and colorful day! Until next time. 🙂

Totally Inspiring Room

I saw this room while I was surfing Pinterest. I followed the links to La Dolce Vita’s blog where it was shown as part of the This Or That feature. The home office belongs to Lauren Gold of Nate Berkus Associates and was featured in the July/August issue of Lonny last summer. The whole apartment is amazing but this office just… Wow! Right?

I’m off to work now. I’m trying my hand at fashion tomorrow. You’ll have to let me know if I’m hopeless with that. 🙂 Have a happy Tuesday, everyone!

The Color of Memory

I was surfing Pinterest today and I saw this picture from the blog A Beautiful Mess. It made me smile. You see, I wanted to be an artist when I was young. I took took art classes and spent my pocket change on sketchbooks and art supplies.

After I had used a few different kinds of mediums, I fell madly in love with oil pastels. They were easy to use and so much fun to work with. I loved the colors! But the best part was how tactile it was. Using pastels is like fingerpainting. I would have pigment all over me, not just on my paper! I didn’t care though. I thought the mess was as cool as the rest of it.

I think reason why I enjoy interiors so much is because it reminds me quite a bit of using pastels. It can be vibrant or muted, tactile, and messy… But the end result? Yeah, that makes me smile.

Totally Inspiring Room

From La Maison Boheme.

I’d like to be somewhere like this right now: quiet, old, beautiful, filled with books. It seems as if it could be a little slice of heaven on earth.

I hope you’re having a happy Tuesday, everyone. See you tomorrow. 🙂

Wish I Was Here…

One of the best things about life is that no trouble lasts forever. At some point even the worst things come to an end. The past few months have been a real trial for me, personally and spiritually. My solace and consolation has been my sister, Jada, my friend and DIY partner, Dawn, and writing this blog.

Lately my interactions with readers and fellow bloggers has started to increase dramatically. It’s been such a balm to my spirit. Thank you all for stopping by, commenting, sharing your suggestions, and your own creativity with me. I really appreciate it. I think it’s probably what is keeping me sane.

Hopefully, the new year will bring some peaceful changes onto the scene. In the meantime, I’m dreaming of time with family and friends, a walk on a sunny dune like this one, maybe a bonfire, and lots if awesome music and conversation. My idea of a perfect day.

Happy Wednesday, everyone. Until tomorrow!

Neutrals + Lilac + Orange

Ralph Lauren Paints in (left to right): Palais Royal, Washboard, Oatmeal, Spring Violet, Bold Orange.

I was surfing around for something else (isn’t that the way it always is?) and discovered this lovely palette of black, gray, cream, lilac, and dark orange from The Pink Couch blog. The colors seem really fresh and current… even though the blogs author picked this palette two autumns ago! In the spirit of this awesome combination of colors, I’m sharing some of my fave rooms and pieces featuring these colors.

Sources from top left: unknown, unknown, Crate & Barrel, Elle Decor, Patricia Gray.

Top Row: Calluna Vase/Crate&Barrel, DIY chairs/BHG, Close rug/Christopher Farr, Tod Table/Zanotta.
Second Row: Benson chair/Anthropologie, Flynn lamp/Arteriors, Hee tray coffee table/A+R, Azure Sofa/Crate&Barrel.
Third Row: Hard Candy in Tangerine/Brentano Fabrics, office chair/Windsor Smith, DIY Le French dresser/Wary Meyers, Amethyst Marbled fabric/Domesticate.
Bottom Row: Drop stool/Zuo Modern, Watercolor Drops fabric/Domesticate, Purple & Black boxes/A Lille Shop, Slim Round end table/Room&Board.

One of my favorite things about this scheme is that it is truly unique. You’re not going to find it everywhere like you might with classic combos like black and white, yellow and blue, etc. It would take a lot of thought and careful searching for just the right pieces to pull it off. I love that kind of challenge!

I hope you’ve got some color in your Monday everyone! Tomorrow is another totally inspiring room. 🙂