Rainy Day inspiration

So instead of the beautiful sunny skies I enjoyed the last time I blogged, it's been pretty rainy and dreary in my area lately. And just what does that mean? I spend more time inside poring over design websites. It also means that I get in a very crafty mood and want to work on some DIY action. Here's a compilation of things I'm contemplating attempting currently:

What I love about the photo above and the one below is that they utilize items that everyone owns but those which are rarely used. I have all sorts of pretty dishes, vases, and cups that never get used because they are for 'company'--but when 'company' comes over it's my friends and they just use my regular dishes! So here are two options for using those pretty, pretty items in a way that you get to enjoy more than twice a year :)

I really like the way that the picture below turns your jewelry into wall art. It's easily changeable yet practical--gosh you really can't go wrong with that combo :)

Being a huge biology nerd, I smiled when I saw this clever use for a test tube rack. I might just have to ebay this. Or steal it from the bio lab? That's probably not frowned upon, right?

PrettyPrettyPrettyPrettyPretty! Lately I've been loving the look of opulent chandeliers in a modern home but can't actually afford one. This wire basket, candles, and drop crystal option is easy enough to make and satisfies my craving. I think this will be the next project I tackle. PS there are always wire baskets like this one at thrift stores--dig around a bit and you can find some good fixer-uppers.

Now these last four all have a theme: Cool paint drips that, while I currently am not allowed to paint the white walls of my duplex, have had me pondering alternative options for a while. Here's the picture that got me started thinking:

I just think that it looks so pretty dripping down the wall like that. This could potentially be cool in a kid's room or a nursery....yellow paint in the corner of a wall could make a unique sun in a mural?

I love pretty much everything about this picture, especially the saturated colors, but what really gets me is the artwork. Basic modern painting that looks that much cooler with paint dripping down from the top.

So as soon as I have my own place, I think I'll play around with something like this. The appeal of this one is the multi-color hues. Also I like that the paint is on top and it's plain down below--usually painting is done oppositely. Is that a word? Anway....I like it.

Last but not least, while I don't generally really like chairs or anything about the time period shown here, design-wise (other than that beautiful chandelier) I like how the designer brought some humor to the stuffy, pretentious chair by flinging paint all over it, Pollack-style. Now THIS is a chair I could see in my home.

Anyway, if I ever actually get around to it I'll post pictures of my creations. Until then, hope you were inspired by my rainy day musings, even if it's sunny and seventy wherever you are!

Summer summer summer....

Today feels like the first truly summery day yet. Big, fluffy clouds in a bright blue sky, light summer breeze, sprinklers going all over town, people walking dogs.....it's pretty much the ideal of small-town Midwest living, the kind Hollywood portrays with aw-shucks hicks saying "You betcha." And I love every minute of it. In the spirit of my mood, here's two beautiful setting that I would love to have to enjoy the summery sunset and warm nights.

All you need is a nice cold lemonade, a tennis ball to throw for your dog, and a nice cheesy romance novel to while away the afternoon. Maybe a crumpet, you know, to go with the teaset.

Can't get over how much I love this. The beautiful view, the gorgeous flooring, the nice open deck and most importantly, the built-in fire. I can imagine the countless hours I would spend sitting by the fire.....I want this. So much.

Anyway, hope you all are enjoying the weather as well. I'm off to grill out with friends.....gosh what a great thing to say.

Tiny Beautiful Details

So lately I've been really focused on tiny little details. I've been taking photos on the macro setting, I'm obsessed with the texture of fabrics...so I tracked down a poem I read in Chile by the famous Chilean Nobel Prize winner Pablo Neruda....if you haven't read his work yet....do. It's amazing. If you read Spanish it's even more amazing in the native language but there are some pretty good translations all over the Internet too. Here goes, his poem titled "Your Feet":

Your Feet

When I cannot look at your face

I look at your feet.

Your feet of arched bone,

your hard little feet.

I know that they support you,

and that your sweet weight

rises upon them.

Your waist and your breasts,

the doubled purple

of your nipples,

the sockets of your eyes

that have just flown away,

your wide fruit mouth,

your red tresses,

my little tower.

But I love your feet

only because they walked

upon the earth and upon

the wind and upon the waters,

until they found me.

How friggin' romantic is that?! So in the spirit of tiny details, I've decided to show a couple of details that I seem to be obssessed with, as I have multiple photos of multiple rooms with the same theme.

Theme one: Monogram letters:

I don't even know what the appeal is, exactly. I just know I like it, darn it!

Theme #2: Blackboard paint, in kitchens, bathrooms....wherever, really. The easily changeable decor appeals to me, a person who changes around her things constantly!

I LOVE this concept.....who really needs a mirror in a bathroom anyway? Save yourself the early-morning criticism and just accept that you look marvelous....

.....this last one was also posted based on the principle that Coco Chanel is right. So wise, that one.... ;)

Theme three: Pops of yellow: It's just too damn cheerful not to like!

I know that I'm really into something when I don't like anything else about the design--I'm really not into the gloomy grey--but even I have to concede that I love how the colors pop against the grey...

My favorite thing about this is that it was probably an ugly old guilt frame before and with just a coat of bright cheerful paint, the frame becomes modern. Combo of classic and modern? I'm there.

I never even use a landline.....but I want that phone.

Well it's late and I'm tired, gonna head to bed but I hope you enjoyed the details that I'm fixated on right now. If only I had a place of my own in which to make them come to life.....sigh. Suenos dulces, todos!

Know First Who You Are...

There's a saying by Euripedes: "Know first who you are; and then adorn yourself accordingly." I've learned a lot about myself in the last few years and am ready to adorn myself accordingly. If I had my own place, here's a peek at some things I'd love to have in it:

Love the multicolored pillows and the long swoopy lamp, not to mention the beautiful framed cloths on the walls.

How gorgeous is this collection of multicolored frames and photos? It has everything I look for in home decor: color, unity, and a personal touch.

Grassy green plus gold, plum, and tan = a beautiful color combo perfect for a relaxing bedroom.

Aaaaaaand for anyone who has read my other blog, you must know that I love all things Spanish-influenced. So here you go, some beautiful woven cloths and a gorgeous wooden cabinet. I'd love to have all of the below in my own place......if only!

And here's a non-home decor beautiful thing for you to enjoy: something that only gets better with age :)

The Orange

So I have this summer job. It's at a library. I enjoy it and everything, but honestly....it's at a college library in the summer. Not a whole lot going on. So in my down time, I have gotten into the habit of scouring internet interior design sites. Pouring over the beautiful things that other people have created got me to thinking about the beautiful things in my own life. It made me realize that so often, I take what I have for granted and don't really give those things the credit they deserve. But if I make a point to stop and highlight those things, perhaps I will enjoy them more.

So here it is, a brand new blog that probably nobody will read, which is kind of ok with me. It's like a my own little secret that is just waiting to be discovered by somebody else. My point in this blog is to post things that make me happy--things that are beautiful, things that make me laugh, think, ponder, things that make me angry and thus probe the topic deeper. Basically I'm going to post things that interest me. Maybe they'll interest somebody else, or maybe nobody will ever read this. But it's kind of cool to have that uncertainty.

Post #1 of something that makes me happy: This poem by W.B. Yeats called Had I the Heavens' Embroidered Cloths.

Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.



Happy thing number two: the exposed brick in this apartment.



Two random happy things, I suppose....but get used to it :)

OH! And one last thing: PAOLO NUTINI just released a new cd. I haven't listened to it yet but I'm sure that while maybe nothing will stack up next his "These Streets" 2007 release, the kid can really do no wrong so it'll be fabulous too. Check it out!