plain and fancy

supermarket

2009-02-27T05:45:00.000-08:00

Ben found this really awesome online store direct from designers called Supermarket, sort of like Etsy, but better. They have everything from earings to furniture, so check it!

"Posy Wall Graphic" by Elly Nelly:

"Fleurs de Korall" Valerydesignwrks

"East Pico" by 33Sstewartavenue

"Deer Standing in Grass" L2Design Collective

Pretty affordable, very cool stuff.

animal prints

2009-02-23T14:18:00.001-08:00

Check out this hilarious and cool looking photography:

Catherine's Animals

thumbtack press

2009-02-16T06:28:00.000-08:00

I heart thumbtack press! It's full of prints under $20 and the artists are really talented illustrators, some from popular children's books, like this big bad wolf one.

the beauty of molding

2009-02-13T05:38:00.000-08:00

I LOVE crown molding, wainscoting, batten-board, and pretty much all molding. It adds such elegance and interest to a room. We are thinking about how to protect the painted wall below our breakfast bar that is getting filthy from little boys dirty feet and hands.

Here is what we're thinking about putting in under the breakfast bar and windows to delineate the dining/eating areas from the rest of the downstairs:

Ours wouldn't be quite as tall, but the shaker style matches our home style perfectly. Our windows are even framed out the same way as the one in the above picture.

Other cool ideas I found on BHG's website:

ironing bliss!

2009-02-11T13:27:00.000-08:00

My ironing board cover is starting to pull up on the ends and this gets rather irritating and time consuming to have to adjust it with every turn or shift in the fabric I'm trying to iron. I was also wondering about pretty ironing board covers, because I figure if I have to iron, which is such a drag, I want to have something cheerful to look at while I'm doing it.

I found a few stylish options and I'm sure there are plenty more to be found but these ones seemed cute enough:

This olive branch one from Dandi is pretty cool.

My favorite is probably this one from Etsy seller Hestia Houseworks, this designer used an Amy Butler fabric, really cute!

sitting pretty

2009-02-11T11:57:00.001-08:00

We are about to refinish and spruce up an older solid oak round dining room (with a leaf) that we purchased from Craigslist a couple weeks ago. Right now the table is a bland oak color, but in great condition. In our search for the right dining room table we discovered that most furniture stores (even nice ones, like Pottery Barn) sell only wood veneer tables that cannot be refinished if nicked or scratched, so we had to be patient and search craigslist for the perfect solid round pedestal table to turn up. Eventually we found one and it only cost us $250, which left us a plenty to purchase new chairs and barstools.

Our plan is to refinish the oak top, staining it a bit darker brown and then crackling the pedestal in an antique white color. In order to have the chairs match the stain, we bought unfinished chairs from furniture in the raw. I chose: six "Empire Side Chairs" and four "Schoolhouse" bar stools.

I will post pictures of this project along the way. But here is a before shot of our Craigslist find:

the walls around us

2009-02-07T11:55:00.000-08:00

Textile design is one of my most favorite things in the design world, but when it comes to wallpaper, the thought of picking one and committing to it seems almost as hard as deciding on a tattoo (part of the reason I don't have one and never will). Wallpaper is more permanent than paint; harder to install and harder to remove. And for me, it's like picking a piece of art, that will hopefully help to express the desired effect of comfort and cottage-style I want to bring to our home.

While researching, I found a cool alternative to wallpaper that is really appealing because of their removable nature. The designs work well to add a pop of charm or interest to any room in the house. Blik "wall graphics for the commitment phobic", appropriately described, has some beautiful designs. Some of my favorites are: "Insomnia", "Incredible Circus, "Chandelier" and "Ambition Killed the Cat"

Of course my all-time favorite store, Anthropologie has some gorgeous wallpapers. I especially love "Lady of the Manor". My favorite is Vanuatu Twilight.

Another great source of inspiration is Domino Magazines: Wallpaper guide.

Decisions, decisions....

pondering a town center

2009-01-31T11:43:00.000-08:00

When you think of a town center, what do you envision? I think of quaint shops, restaurants, outdoor spaces, markets, and convenient everyday-kind-of-places like a movie store, a theatre, a gym, outdoor picnic areas, a town hall, and so on. A place you can walk to from your home without having to set foot in your car.

Living in Austin, TX and having just moved in to my dream cottage in the new Mueller urban infill community, I'm incredibly excited about the town center that is being planned for my new neighborhood. I've been thinking a lot about town centers. Back east, particularly in Boston, there were lots of town centers in the various communities surrounding the city. Some of my favorite: Brookline Village, Cambridge, Belmont, Sommerville, and the list goes on and on.

The proposed town center for Mueller is being designed by ELS Architecture, Urban Design and LIve Work Learn Play and ROMA Design Group. The concept around the town center is to create a live, work, play environment where neighbors can gather. The pictures shown at the proposal meeting were mainly from California, since two of the design firms are based there: ELS in Berkely and ROMA in San Fran. Similar to Santana Row in San Jose.