bedroom moodboard

This is a quick moodboard I did for my bedroom last week: 

 As I mentioned in my last post, I am going to be painting one (or two!) pieces of my furniture hot pink.  That might be a project for this weekend.  I have also always loved the image from pinterest of the black and white striped curtains, and I already have the white curtains.  Just need paint and to do it! I have been obsessed recently with overdyed oriental rugs like the purple one here.  If only they were in my price range.  Might try a DIY one in the meantime.  Somehow I need to get some color in my room, soon!

holidays are coming!

It's starting to feel a lot like the holidays! This is my absolute favorite time of year, when it's starting to get cold (cold enough to snow!) and the decorations start to emerge from closets and attics. The red cups appear at Starbucks.  Trees start to go up (a friend of mine already has hers up!) and it just feels cheerful. I love all of the bright colors present during the Thanksgiving/Christmas season, but at the same time, neutrals feel so right too. The bedrooms below look perfectly cozy and wintry with the white and neutrals mixed in.

Traditional Bedroom design by Houston Architect Maison Market

Traditional Bedroom design by Milwaukee Architect MCCORMACK & ETTEN ARCHITECTS LLP

Traditional Bedroom design by Chicago Architect Morgante Wilson Architects

My bedroom at the moment is very neutral.  My bed, furniture, walls, and curtains are all WHITE.  Which can be pretty, but I need some color in my life (despite how much I like the gorgeous bedrooms above!).  My project for this week is to paint my furniture hot pink.  I've been thinking about doing this for a while now, and my room just needs something!!  I will be sure to post before and after photos, assuming things go well.

 

Getting back to the holidays, I can't believe Thanksgiving is next week.  It's going to be a different experience this year for me.  This will be the first year I haven't spent Thanksgiving with my immediate family.  I just can't make it home to Charleston, so will be celebrating with my Grandma and my mom's side of the family here in New York.  I'm very excited to see these family members, but it will just be a little different.  Planning now about what I'm going to bring! Possibly some pumpkin bread...and if that turns out well, I may just share my recipe!
 

all images via Houzz.com

discovery.

dear friends,
It has been quite a while.  A lot of things have been going on in my life - good things!

I moved to New York (!) at the end of May - I finally, finally did it and have never been happier.

I sold my car.  I put my jewelry business on the back burner.  I got a new job.  I lost my new job.  I survived Hurricane Sandy.  I've rediscovered my love for creating.  I want my jewelry business on the front burner. 

I've discovered a lot about myself - and am so excited for my future here in my new home.  And I can't wait to get back to writing. 

I've been working through the book 48 Days to the Work You Love by Dan Miller, and let me tell you, it has been eye-opening.  The most important thing I have realized is that I like to make beautiful things, and ordinary things beautiful.  I've never been told before the past couple of weeks (from the book and others) that creating needs to be a part of my career for my ultimate happiness.  Never once.  I've always thought that creating had to be a hobby, that it was something from which I could never make a living.  That I was destined to work in the medical field and create at night - if I wasn't too exhausted.  Do you know how amazing this news is to me?!  It's exhilarating! This book, in addition to words from others around me, has inspired me to truly search for what it is I've been created to do. 

With that being said, here's to breathing new life into this blog (posts and design) and my business, to New York, and to discovery!

lists.

I love making lists.  To-do lists, shopping lists, things-I-need lists...but what I really love about lists is crossing items off my lists.  Since I do do a lot of list-making, I have an abundant supply of notebooks, notepads, etc.  Here are some of my old favorites, mixed in with a few new!

 Kate Spade 3-pack.  Available here.

This one makes me laugh.  But it's a good reminder!

Jonathan Adler.  Available here.

Cute, floral.  Rifle Paper Co. Available here.

This one is awesome.  Space for every possible list you may need to make!

Via LifesAJournal on Etsy.

Another cute Rifle Paper Co. Available here.

Loooove this one.  Very cheeky.  Via finchandhawk on Etsy.

What are your favorite notepads? Do you like to make lists/cross things off of them?

NYC love.

Love, love, loved being in the City.  Here's a photographic recap of my trip.

Day 1:  Had my interview and then a celebratory lunch at Haru.  Then went home because I was so exhausted!!

Gorgeous architecture inside Washington Irving High School.

 Farmer's Market.

Yummy, yummy sushi and beer. Ahh.

Day 2: I spent the day just walking around the city; went to Mood, Henri Bendel, etc...

I ventured up to Mood, just to see what it was like! It is amazing. So much cool stuff.

Day 3:  Met my cousin for lunch and got to see her adorable daughters, then wandered to SoHo and met some friends for drinks.

 

 West Village.

West Village.

SoHo.

Mercer Kitchen in SoHo, where I met two of my sorority sisters for drinks.  Love this place.  Such a cool atmosphere!

Nighttime in the City.

All photos via the fabulous iPhone.  This was the first time I relied solely on my iPhone for pictures - I don't think I took out my camera once! Kind of crazy, but it was much easier that way.

Being in New York was just another confirmation that I really, really want to be there ASAP!  I just love it.

Brief hiatus.

So I've been on a brief hiatus from life the past couple of days - I've been in New York for an interview. It has been good to get away for a few days. I'll share some photos when I get back - although I've been bad about taking them!

hamptons style {tory burch}

Tory Burch has an amazing home in Southampton.  I have a special affection for the Hamptons, because my mom is from Long Island and worked as a landscape designer in the Hamptons during college and beyond.  She has shared her love of Long Island and the Hamptons with me, and I am fascinated by the lifestyle.  The architecture is distinct, and the landscaping pristine.  Here are a few of my favorite picks from the Vogue article.  All images via Vogue.

Solarium.  Love that wallpaper and the brightness of the room.

Pool area.  SO Gorgeous.

Landscape.  The classic tall hedges of the Hamptons, boxwoods, and green grass.  Perfect place for a mid-summer party!

isaiah 61.

image via 100 Layer Cake.

 ¹ The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
   because the LORD has anointed me
   to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
   to proclaim freedom for the captives
   and release from darkness for the prisoners,
² to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor
   and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
 ³ and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
   instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
   instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
   instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
   a planting of the LORD
   for the display of his splendor.

 ⁴ They will rebuild the ancient ruins
   and restore the places long devastated;
they will renew the ruined cities
   that have been devastated for generations.
⁵ Strangers will shepherd your flocks;
   foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.
⁶ And you will be called priests of the LORD,
   you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth of nations,
   and in their riches you will boast.

 ⁷ Instead of your shame
   you will receive a double portion,
and instead of disgrace
   you will rejoice in your inheritance.
And so you will inherit a double portion in your land,
   and everlasting joy will be yours. 

This passage has been so influential and comforting to me over the past year.  It reminds me that God can take any situation and replace the ashes with a crown of beauty! I am His princess!

happy hump day.

 image via here.

This past month has been crazy but so much fun! I turned 24, and then my best friend got married last weekend.  The wedding was gorgeous; she really did such an amazing job!  I also just submitted an application to further my career aspirations.  I will find out in four weeks or so whether or not I will be accepted into the program.  So, more on that to come.

dressing mannequins...

 image via here.

At work yesterday, I spent the day dressing mannequins...and it was SO much fun! I needed lots of help from L to begin with, but it was such an exciting learning process.  It's amazing how one little tug on some fabric can make such a huge difference in the overall look of the outfit.  I can't wait to learn and do more!

On a side note, while I was dressing the forms, I was thinking a lot about the design process.  About how designers drape and measure on dress forms like the ones I was using.  And it was exciting to me.  I'm feeling so confused right now as to what my career path should look like...but I know that I am passionate about fashion and design.  I guess all of these experiences will help to narrow my focus.

Romans 5.

"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.  And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.  And this hope will not lead to disappointment.  For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love." -Romans 5:3-5 (NLT)


This passage really spoke to me this morning as I was doing my reading.  It is so true and a testament to the past year of my life.  He loves us more than we can imagine!!

new obsession: {all saints}

After a recent trip to georgetown, I have discovered this gem thanks to my best friend, v.  I'm obsessed with the intricately beaded dresses and tops and skirts, in addition to the leathers and knits.  Maybe I'm behind on discovering AllSaints, but I'm just glad I found them! Here are some of my picks:

images all via here or for direct links, here.

Amazing, right??  Who else is obsessed?!

2012 {resolutions}

I'm so grateful to be starting a whole new year.  2011 was a long, difficult year for me; it was probably the hardest year of my life thus far.  But, as I've learned, during the pruning stages in life comes new hope for regrowth and strength.  I've already started to see the fruit of the struggles of 2011.  I'm hopeful for a fresh new year of new beginnings, new relationships, and just happiness.  I know everyone makes resolutions, but for me, these are more like 16 things I want to do in 2012.  16 things I would like to see myself accomplish.

1.  Get my thyroid checked.
It's a simple blood test, and I've put it off long enough.  I'm always tired, and I'm tired of it!

2.  Read my bible daily/complete the bible reading plan.

The first half of Year Team I didn't do so hot on this side of things.  I am making a commitment to doing it every day.  I want to know my Lord and Savior on a personal level.  I want to put Him first in all that I do.

3.  Visit New Orleans.

 Made a promise to V. that I am going to keep!

4.  Do a cleanse.
Excited about this one.  I'll post info for sure.

5.  Exercise daily, even if I can only do a few crunches or plies.

6.  Be a better friend.

7./8.  Decide what I want to go to school for and apply for graduate school.

I need to get moving.

9.  Move to New York.

10. Be a wiser money-manager.

11.  Start to sew again.

12. Make pillow cases for the pillows in my bedroom.

 Love this fabric.  Except for my pillows.

13./14.  Read/complete 48 Days to the Work You Love.

15.  Read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.

16.  Go to a Virginia Tech game at Lane Stadium.

I've never been and need to go!

(images via my pinterest.)

 What are your resolutions? Do you even make resolutions?  If you do, do you keep them?