Home / Archive for November 2010

Glimpse into My Thanksgiving Weekend Trip...(Via Made by Girl)

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Isn't it FRUSTRATING trying to get into the swing of things after getting back from a Holiday trip?!? I've got a TON of emails to catch up on amongst other things & all I want is to be outside in the sun (even if it is cold). 

Well, for those of you who weren't aware, my guy SURPRISED ME with a Thanksgiving wknd. getaway to California. He planned the whole trip, every single stop! 

He knew I was dying to visit the Getty as well as the MOCA and he took me straight there! It was such an amazing experience to be around all these great paintings. Of course.... I LITERALLY got goose bumps when I came across Mark Rothko & Franz Kline (2 of my all time faves). 

above: A Franz Kline original painting....I was mesmerized.






below: the delicious carrot cake we bought at the Getty cafe













These 2 paintings of Jesus were especially touching...



Below: I was so excited when I got to the area where the HUGE Mark Rothko paintings hung, wow.



Below: don't ask, I totally forgot who did this....
P.S. it's by Cy Twombly, thanks to Devon.




below: the Getty had several outdoor areas with SPECTACULAR views of the city, my jaw dropped when I first saw this. Trust me, this picture doesn't do it justice!





Besides paintings, they also had a ton of sculptures and old European decor items.






I'm so grateful that I got my dose of culture because LV is seriously LACKING in that department! Have you visited the Getty or MOCA? What museum would you recommend??


We also headed to Palm Springs to see the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway.  After seeing it featured in Rue Magazine, (I expressed my interest in going) my guy decided to take me there! 


Stay tuned for those pics soon! 

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Japonicas Jewelry.....(Via Made By Girl)

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Hope you all had a fab Thanksgiving weekend. My guy surprised me with a weekend trip to California, he planned the whole trip! Will show you some pics of the trip later. 


Now.....If you're looking for pretty girly type jewelry, check out Japonicas creations! Japonicas meaning Japan white windflower is run by designers Jet & Ace. They create a handful of intricate pieces that any girl would love for her collection! They've appeared in several magazines including Seventeen Magazine this past May and are quite popular on Etsy! After looking through their shop my favorite is DEFINITELY the Chimes & Whispers necklace, made from antique brass with a very vintage feel to it. 


For those of you doing your HOLIDAY shopping now, Japonicas is offering 15% off of all necklaces with this CODE: Made By Japonicas. You can ONLY get this discount by shopping at their main site here.  Enjoy! 



 images via japonicas 







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Your Weekend.....(Via Made By Girl)

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Time for me to get ready for our EARLY THANKSGIVING dinner....we're eating out since our ZGallerie table hasn't arrived yet!  It would've been our 1st THANKSGIVING in our new place... so I'm a bit disappointed. However, I'm certain the CHEF at the restaurant we're heading to will make a lovely meal! After dinner we'll be going on a WEEKEND GETAWAY.....finally!!!


Hope you ALL have a great thanksgiving & remember the things you are thankful for today & always...


I'm thankful for:

  • that my mother and father are alive & healthy
  • when my guy makes me dessert
  • my 2 dogs in good health
  • a man that cares about me & shows it
  • weekend getaways when I need it the most
  • a lovely place to live
  • being able to meet others that share the same beliefs
  • wood floors
  • my business is doing well
  • God in my life
  • my blog readers & the support they have given me for the last few years
  • going out to dinner on weekends
  • an upcoming renovated kitchen
  • gorgeous weather
  • new friends at my church
  • the invention of tiramisu
  • other bloggers i've met online who are super nice
  • the gift God gave me to be able paint & draw
  • the gift God gave me of creativity
  • the friends i havent seen in so long who still stay in touch
  • the fact that i'll get to eat a nice meal on thanksgiving
  • serving at my church
  • my best friend
  • art & music 
  • care for those in need
  • that my mother & i talk almost everyday on the phone

There's alot more i'm thankful for but these are some that came to mind this year. Talk to you Monday!

So tell me, what 2 things are you REALLY thankful for??!?


HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 


pic by jen




 
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Rebecca Omweg Stylish Cases for iPhone... (Via Made by Girl)

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Of course, I keep finding things to put on my HOLIDAY wishlist....poor hubby. LOL What is he going to choose?!? I wonder.

Either way, I'm on a Python craze and I'm obsessing over all things PYTHON. I came across designer Rebecca Omweg who designs STYLISH handmade snakeskin cases for electronic devices (that means my iPhone too).  I don't own an iPAD but if you do check out the pretty bright pink python case, now that is cute.

On my wish list is the classic python ivory case seen here. It's subtle, yet chic. I swear APPLE really needs to get on board and offer cases like these....I have visited the APPLE store a bazillion times and can't seem to find a DECENT (nice looking) case for my iPhone 4. Almost IMPOSSIBLE!
images via rebecca omweg




Thankfully there are designers like Rebecca out there catering to people like me with a design sense....know what I mean?!?
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ALLEGRA HICKS Book Review ...(Via Made by Girl)

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I'm a BOOK FANATIC!  I own a ton of them & STILL find myself buying more!! It's really hard not to when so many amazing titles keep popping up all over the place.

I also get BOOKS sent to me by publishing companies, but when I'm in IMPATIENT I'll buy a copy myself! 

Today, I'm reviewing ALLEGRA HICKS, 'An Eye For Design' by Abrams Books.  I love textiles & am always so INSPIRED by them... this book was a must-have for me! This title contains 224 pages of full COLOR and is only $26.

Here's a little info on Allegra Hicks: She's a London-based fashion & lifestyle designer whose line of luxury  homewares, and accessories is sold all over the world in department stores and boutiques as well as in her namesake store in London! She's quite well known for her unique textile designs, which she uses in her interiors as well as her popular fashion line.


The minute I SAW THE COVER of ALLEGRA Hicks, I fell in L-O-V-E.  Don't you just love a book cover that reminds you of textile?? Very appropriate in this case.
Another book cover that remind me of textiles is 'Glamorous Rooms' by Jan Showers (Leopard Print cover) which I blogged about here.






images by jen


You can buy your copy of Allegra Hicks here.





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DIY doggie socks...

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This is what I see when I look down almost every morning. Yes, those are baby socks converted into dog booties. They protect the wood floors better than the original booties I bought them & were super affordable!!

My dogs don't hate these as much & can walk in them just fine. We bought velcro strips and sewed them onto the tops of the baby socks, so glad we thought of this. They look funny at first glance, but so adorable.... They work!
P.S. make sure they are non-slip socks!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone'
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Ikat & Suzani at Material Recovery (Via Made By Girl)

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If you love Ikat and Suzani textiles from East & Central Asia you'll be excited to check out Material Recovery on Etsy. They carry several antique embroidered textiles along with a few vintage and antique pieces of furniture. I selected a few of my faves below... 

Take a peek at their shop, the cushions they carry would be a great addition to anyone looking to bring some color into a DRAB looking living room! 

Do any of you already own ikat or suzani cushions??










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Becky's Basement Re-do....(Via Made by Girl)

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Hello everyone! How did YOUR weekend go? I had an amazing weekend & it looks as if we now have plans to go away for Thanksgiving weekend, which will be fun! Can't wait....I DESPERATELY need a break. Then hopefully when I get back it's kitchen RE-DO time!!

This MONDAY I'm bringing you Photographer Becky Kimball's home which was featured here on my blog back in March.... & I loved so many aspects of it. It was simple, cozy and stylish. Becky slightly re-did her BASEMENT, making it more interesting by adding wallpaper & a few gorgeous accessories! 

So, if you're looking to decorate YOUR BASEMENT, take some inspiration from Becky, she did a FAB job! You can also check out Becky's blog here.

What do you think??
















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Check out: The Loaded Trunk....(Via Made by Girl)

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I was sent some info about a shop called "The Loaded Trunk" and immediately fell in LOVE with their unique PREDATOR staplers. OMG!  

How cool are these staplers?? 

I've just placed one on my WISH LIST.... I think one of these would look amazing in my office!! Check out their entire shop to view interesting items from all over the world including the popular Mexican Coverlet! Oh...the holidays are just around the corner, hope YOU TOO are gathering gift ideas!



images via the loaded trunk




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Thank You Sonja....

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I wanted to send a quick thanks to Sonja from Tied With A Bouw blog for being so kind enough to send me the CLEO Magazine I was featured in from Malaysia! We don't get that mag here so it was great to see her offer...oh & she sent me a super cute housewarming gift as well! Colorful chop sticks, which we'll definitely be trying out soon! Thank you Sonja for putting a smile on my face!!

Please visit Sonja's blog here, she's about to have her FIRST BABY any day now.....


images by jen



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My Kitchen Update...(Via Made by Girl)

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Thank you soooo much for those of YOU commented so far (on this post) & emailed giving us some suggestions regarding our kitchen re-do. I got 2 bids so far & will probably get two more this weekend! Based on OUR BUDGET and the bids, it doesn't seem like we may be getting uppers this time...


To be HONEST our budget is $5000 & that would have to cover painting cabinets white & some kind of uppers. (Am I crazy???)

Now, the only OTHER option we thought about was that WE paint ALL the cabinets ourselves and then use the rest of the money for uppers. Hmmmm . It's the labor that is KILLING this whole deal for me.....oh, decisions, decisions & all I want for CHRISTMAS is a white kitchen..... (ok, and uppers too)! 

(click on pic to see larger image)


I'll be HONEST, I'm a bit bummed out, but we have to move ahead & hope the next 2 bids give us some better news!



image by jen 

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My Kitchen Re-do & Suggestions Needed... (Via Made By Girl)

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This week I'm having a few LICENSED contractors over my place to give me estimates on my kitchen.  I've been dreaming of having an all white kitchen for quite sometime now.  The photo that really did it for me was shot by Donna Griffith and was featured in the January 2010 issue of Style At Home magazine.

It's my inspirational picture for my kitchen re-do. Normally, we would TACKLE this project ourselves, but I just don't feel there is room for MISTAKE! Get what I mean?? Plus, we're LACKING time & this project requires several days to get it done right! My current cabinets are new (great condition) but not the best looking cabinets, in fact they are just plain BLAH UGLY!!!  I'm thinking of several options for the re-do, all the while trying to stay on a REASONABLE BUDGET. 

My options: 
  1. Have the current cabinets painted all WHITE (boxes and all) 
  2. Get ONLY the doors/drawers replaced to a shaker style (in white) and get the boxes painted white. 
Believe it or NOT there is a 3rd option: To paint the existing cabinets all white, and then ADD UPPERS as well! Of course, the 3rd option may be quite pricey!! But what do I know??  I've never done this before.  Have you???

As for the back splash & hardware..... I have a few ideas and resources I may try.

Backsplash: Perhaps a carrara marble tile from a company called Oracle Tile & Stone or plain white subway tiles.
Hardware:  Either black or Chrome from Restoration Hardware or Lowes OR??

I WOULD REALLY LOVE YOUR INPUT & any RESOURCES you can provide where I may be able to save some $$$ money. Please leave your suggestions on which option you think I should go for. 

 REMEMBER, I'm getting quotes this week, so I'll more than likely go with the most reasonable one.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated! 

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A Modern Home in Paris....(Via Made By Girl)

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How amazing is this modern pad in Paris?? I'm really loving the DARK hardwood floors combined with white interior walls (my absolute favorite look)....sorry, I'm JUST not into colored walls anymore! Wallpaper however... I will do! 

Placing LARGE scale ART on white walls makes the white not seem so stark. The ARTWORK or PHOTOGRAPH seems to pop even more when placed on a white background...of course, that's my opinion.

Oh....to live in a place like this in Paris, what a dream!!

The design is by French designer Vincent Parreira (who I'm looking forward to seeing more of) and it's an eighteenth century home converted into a modern masterpiece.  








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