It's a Dog's Blog's Life

Yesterday when we were out-and-about, we drove up alongside this...I'm so impressed Ben was able to snag this shot in a moving vehicle - with a point-and-shoot no less! I doubt I would've been able to do it with my fancy-schmancy DSLR! I think it gives me a photography complex ;)

Speaking of complexes....You know, I visit a lot of blogs - many of which I consider to be top-tier design blogs, written by professional Interior Designers. Most indulge me with inspiring and beautiful images, but the best design blogs also offer a glimpse into the creative mind of an interior artist - and are happy to share the process.
I'm a serial-commenter, so I'm always grateful to bloggers who respond politely to comments I leave by taking a moment to hop over to MLHP and give me a quick hello. Some have even been gracious enough to answer my design and career-related questions. {thank you, Joni & Rebecca}
You can tell a lot about a person by their virtual manners - there are those who are truly humble and kind despite being oh-so-busy & talented, and those to whom I (little 'ol design-loving, blogger-Mom ex-patted to Brazil) am just far too low on the food chain...

O-Kaaaay...'nuf of my sniveling - let's talk weekend, shall we? What were ya'll up to? This was the first weekend we've had together, as a family, in weeks. Ben travels a lot for work, so it's always a special treat to have weekend time home to be lazy lizards, or busy bees! I can't say we were of the Bee sort, but we did do some furniture rearranging - so I consider it a productive weekend!

I've been bugged by the furniture arrangement in our big living room - just too many pieces placed on the diagonal, and not enough symmetry. (Sorry about the poor image quality)

It was starting to make me go cross-eyed! So, time for some editing...

First things first...remove (let's face it) the ugly, leather slipper chair.

I bought this chair when we were furnishing our home in NC - it was a quick-fix buy, nothing I was ever all that jazzed about - you've had some of those purchases, right? Anyway....the chair sort of blocked a walkway - so it got stashed in the office until I can (hopefully) sell it...

Next...in from the covered porch came my (as yet un-finished) but still beloved Chinese Chippendales... We placed them opposite the TV cabinet. The painting was Ben's Valentine's gift to me this year - that's a story for another post!

FYI - Yes, I'm trying to choose paint/fabric for these chairs - I'll keep ya posted!

So, this was the finished product...

Can you tell what we did? Yes, I still have two chairs on the diagonal, but moving the ottoman to make it parallel with the sofa, and putting the Chippendales side-by-side created a much more visually-pleasing arrangement. The room feels sooooo much more aligned and organized - I swear I can think more clearly now!

I've got some other ideas brewing for this room....maybe we'll dish on that on Friday. What did ya'll do this weekend? Any good projects? Either way, hope it was restful and restorative!

DD Update: Carrie's Living Room "Evolution"

Craving a Design Dilemma update, you say? How 'bout Carrie's DD - you know the one I posted a couple of weeks ago about design style evolutions? If you missed Part Uno - go here

*In case you're new to MLHP, we devote each Friday to Design Dilemmas. It goes like this...you, your friends, anyone can send me a Design Dilemma you're struggling with. Just send me an email {atexski@yahoo.com} (hopefully with some pics) describing your dilemma - I'll work on some ideas, shopping suggestions, etc, and feature them on a given Friday! I'm taking orders as we speak, so email away!

OK..where was I? Oh! So, when we left her, Carrie was deciding how she would incorporate some other colors besides brown into her front living area. She took MLHP's suggestion of throwing in some turquoise by ordering this lamp from Tarjay...

She loves the lamp, but, unfortunately, felt it was too small to give the impact she had hoped for on her pine chest...

...And, she really does love this lamp her MIL gave to her...

But, she's thinking a black lamp shade would give it more "oomph." I agree, and as I was cruisin' my usual web haunts, I saw these that made me think of her...

Top three lamps: Lampsplus, bottom image via Urban Grace Interiors

There's something else that's been brewing in my brain, though....and it all started when I saw this entry in We Love Domino's "How Domino Inspired My Home" contest. The contestant, Beth, wanted a "statement" piece of art, but didn't want to fork out a ton for it (I think she was smart to invest in the Stark Ghost Chair - that's just me...) Anyway, she bought a large canvas, a gold paint pen, and went to town putting her own handwriting and flourishes to the canvas, and voilà - great art!
So, I was thinking...to get a dramatic, turquoise "fix" where the Target lamp didn't work out, maybe Carrie should buy a large canvas, paint the background a fab shade of turq-waz ;) and do the same kind of free-flow writing on it - maybe in gold, maybe in black. A large enough canvas would add a lot of drama to the wall behind the chest, and compliment the generous lamp she wants to use. Just a thought????

As for her chair...She said (incredulously!) she's leaning towards brown! You know, here's the thing...you shouldn't worry about what you think you should do, do what your gut tells you - even when it comes to a seemingly simple decision like room decor! (Although we ALL know these are not minor decisions ;)

Despite wanting to get away from "all the brown" in the room, if Carrie truly loves it, and keeps coming back to it - she should go with it! Putting a more dramatic patterned upholstery on the chair will still have a lot of impact in the room, and she can always throw a colorful pillow in the chair for pop.
I would love to see her use something like these - both from Calico Corners, and in the $20/yard range.

Aviary in Earth, and Blossom in Chocolate

Yeah, yeah, I know...this was supposed to be an update, not another full-blown DD...oh well...can't help myself! Sooooo....Carrie also recently put up some new drapes - you can see a bit of them in the chair pic. I believe they were Ballard, twill, perhaps in unbleached white??? Anyway...how fab would her windows look with these badboys added into the mix? Source: BB& B

Inspiration:

Layla's Living Room via TheLetteredCottage

Oh for Pete's Sake!! I just looked back at the chair pic and realized she has white wood blinds...Craigslist and trade up to bamboo?? ;) (CJ, wanna strangle me, yet?)

Oh! One more thing...remember those Foo Dogs I bought at ZGallerie during my last trip to Texas? I posted about them here...Well, it turns out it would've cost me more to ship them down here than it actually cost to buy them...so, rather than have them sit in my mother's guest bedroom closet for 2+ years, I sent them out on loan. Here they are, looking rather fabulous (if I may say so!) on Carrie's mantel. To my dear Foos; be gracious guests, and bring good fortune to my great friend and her family!

And to you, my dearests, who are headed to Warrenton today without me - it goes without saying that I'm pea green envious, but mostly just miss ya'll, and want to be part of the girls' day fun! Don't buy too much!!

Not-so-closeted Francophile

Me and Ben, Paris (duh?!) 2005

I'm not sure why I titled this post in that way...I mean, really, is there a need to be a closeted Francophile? No, indeed not - but remember, a few years back, when many people were touting an anti-France sentiment? Freedom fries instead of french fries, etc, etc... I guess it stems from that - no matter...I was never on that bandwagon, anyway.

I've always wanted to be fluent in French. Took the first two, five-hour-credit courses of French at UT (made A's, thank you very much!), but dropped it during my third semester, when I changed majors. I should have continued, even if my new degree program didn't require it... C'est la vie, n'est pas?
You can only imagine, then, how fluttery I got when I discovered Corine at Hidden in France. A French woman, writing about design (among other things), while living in The States. Her writing style is wonderfully engaging, witty, and self-deprecating TOTALLY my kind of gal! But wait! Get this...She's begun a new endeavor (and this is where my francophilia really kicks in) - She gives French cooking classes....while teaching French!
I think this is such a brilliant idea, and if I lived in SoCal, I'd be ALL OVER THIS in a heartbeat. Since I'm not, I'll have to settle for the blog version: Cooking in French.

I know France is known for 5-star "haute cuisine," but my preference in French fare is the simple, yet amazing food you get from bistros and brasseries. I imagine Corine provides a taste of both. Here's to you, mon amie blogguere!

On a side note: if you like simple but fabulous French fare - I recommend Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris cookbook.

Spring, from upside-down

In case you missed it on your calendar, the seasons officially changed from Winter to Spring on Saturday. Down here, below the Equator, our seasons are opposite. Despite the Brazilians calling any rainy months "winter," we are actually moving into what will be dry, cool weather - the Southern Hemisphere's version of Winter.

I'm still functioning in North American seasons (I wonder if that will ever change?) - so for me, Spring sprung on Saturday!
Everyone always asks about the weather down here. Most people envision Rio when they think of Brazil - and Rio is indeed very tropical. Here in Brasilia, though, we are at a higher elevation. The terrain is considered "tropical savanna," and it is much more arid than Rio - despite being only an hour-and-a-half flight away. Our weather here reminds me of Southern California - typically very pleasant (60s) in the mornings and evenings, but quickly warming up to the 80s-90s in the warmest seasons. In the dry season (mid-April to early November), the humidity is very low - a bit irritating to the nasal passages, but perfect for "good hair days!"

Since I've got Spring on the brain, I thought I'd share some thoughts via photos from our yard down here in Brasilia...

This time of year always makes me yearn to get out in the garden - plant something new, or try my hand yet again at something I've been unsuccessful at growing (ahem, lavender!)
I'm a little slow this year, as I'm still learning the names of native plants, what will do well, etc, etc...
One of my all-time faves that will thrive just about anywhere are succulents - I'm a sucker (pun intended!) for all the unique shapes and sizes, AND the fact that each little bud propagates a whole, other plant!

Unfortunately, most of my pots look like this one...

Good news is, Ben will finally be home this weekend, and we have big plans to hit up the jardim botanico (nurseries) - I know, we have a fantastically thrilling life ;)

I'm not much of a rose person, but this bush was already going strong when we moved here, so I'll give her some props for bein' showy!

More spectacular to me, though, is the fresh little orchid I found growing on one of our palms. Orchids of all variety grow naturally on trees down here - I absolutely love it! I can't wait to see what this little beauty turns out like.

I have to say, though (and this is totally unrelated, and quite superficial)...one Spring wish I repeat each year is to hope I can pull out the white pants and look this effortless, chic, and yes....slim....

pants: Boden, image: thirdcoastpreppy

Happy Springtime, to You!

I knew it, I knew it, I KNEW IT!!!

Yep, I knew it....tried to fiddle around with a new blog template, which included some html harassing, and (despite saving my template) I managed to lose a lot of my site features, including all my site links and my entire blogroll - Arrrgghhhh!!!
As I've mentioned, I want to redesign MLHP, but have been wishy-washy as to what exactly I want to do....
So now, I have a decision to make - either recognize my screw-up as the perfect moment to make some design changes, or enlist the help of a professional for a complete overhaul. As I don't have anywhere near the graphic design tools or skills I desire, I'll probably end up doing a little of both.
Anyway, over the course of the next few days/weeks/months you'll probably see some "tweaking" going on as far as the looks of the blog go, but keep in mind, it's still ME, just doing my best to make MLHP even Happier!

Design Dilemma: Brilliant Bedroom Basics

You would probably laugh if you knew how nervous I become preparing these Friday Design Dilemmas. That's not to say I don't thoroughly enjoy putting them together (because I do!), I just recognize my own OCD tendencies, and have to put them out there for your humor as well...

Having said that, this was probably the most stress-inducing DD to date! As you'll soon see, the Dilemma itself was very straightforward, but the challenges for me were unique:
One, this was the first DD I've done on a home I've never visited, and
Two, to carry-out some of my ideas would require some skills with a tool set, and unlike HGTV, MLHP isn't equipped to provide the standard carpenter/painter/seamstress team!

I batted around multiple scenarios, talked to other design junkies, (I bounced so many ideas off Ben, he should probably charge me a consulting fee), but in the end, I thought maybe I should just go with a whole stream-of-consciousness approach - so, with that clumsy intro....

Design Dilemma: Turn basic bedroom treatments into stop, stare, and enjoy amenities!

My friend, Nicole has been busy, busy putting together all the final touches in the home she purchased a little over a year ago. As I said, I've not seen her place in person, but from what she says, as well as the pictures she posts on her blog, Nicole's Treasure Chest, I can tell she really enjoys making sure her home is charmingly pulled-together.
Despite doing her best to create a cozy, restful bedroom space, Nicole hasn't been able to conquer the demons of standard-builder wares - namely: vertical blinds and track closet doors.

Here's the pics she sent.

Note: the vertical blinds and closet doors are positioned on the same wall.

Here's more-or-less how my thought process went after reading her email... "OK, easy - take bad-news-bears closet doors out, replace with a nice curtain panel. Crap! If I hang a curtain over her closet, what in the world do I do with her window - or is it a glass-sliding door?
Option 1: Hang TWO, matching curtains & rods - one over the window (removing vertical blinds, of course), and one over the closet (removing closet doors)
Option 2: Hang curtain over window, do something else with closet doors (i.e - paint, replace with frosted mirrors/glass)
Option 3: Get one, large curtain rod and several panels to run the length of the wall - covering both the closet and the window
Bingo! We have a winner - behind Door Number 3!"

Here's why I think Option 3 is the best way to go....
First and foremost, seamless-ness - You want to focus the eye not on what is dull and uninspiring (like closet doors and vertical blinds), but rather on something striking - like beautiful curtain panels.
I would order a very long, decorative curtain rod, and hang it very near the ceiling to create visual height. I would also consider painting a contrasting border near the ceiling. - no more than two inches in width. This would create the illusion of architectural interest (like crown molding without the expense!) Next, I'd order curtain panels long enough to slightly puddle on the floor.

Nicole's bedroom is very traditional, so I'd try to flow with that look. This bedroom has the same trad-sumptuous feel - along with a wall of curtains hung high (I can't emphasize this enough!!)

Here's how I'd carry it out:
Curtain Rod: JCP Nichole (how do you like that!) Rod in Sienna Bronze - the 72-144" rod runs a very fair $59, and you can get a 40" extension rod for another twenty bucks - that should cover the length of the closet & window wall - don't forget to order a couple of extra wall brackets!

Because Nicole's bedding ensemble has a lot of intricate pattern and satiny-shine, I'd probably try to contrast that with a rich velvet drape - again, all in keeping with the boutique look she already has going on.
Depending on the width of each panel, I'm thinking she may need four to cover the expanse of the wall. Maybe something like this would work...

Overstock is also a great resource - these "signature velvet" panels run $79 each for the 84" panels, $149 for the 96". They've also got a pair they're running for $29, but curtains that cheap are gonna look that cheap, just sayin'.... In this case, I'm really digging the lichen green (Hello, Scarlet O'Hara's "mother's portieres" dress!), but I'd also consider the cafe or espresso - just think the maroon wine would be too "matchy-matchy."
So, there's my take on killing two birds with one stone...

But, we're not done, yet! Nicole would also like a different venue for her TV. She mentioned she hates her current TV stand, and would like an enclosed cabinet, but doesn't want to crowd up the room with a bulky armoire.

So, here's my thought....{fidgeting} OK, I'm gonna say it...let's lose the TV. Don't feng shui-ists declare that TVs destroy the good energy of a bedroom? (Same goes for computers and exercise equipment.) I know, I used to be a big watch-tv-in-bed-before-dozing-off kind of gal, but now that I don't have it - I realize how nice it is NOT to have to look at it the other 23 hours of the day!
I would love to see Nicole replace the TV and stand with an elegant little writing desk, like this...

Highland desk via Overstock

...Put a lovely chair to the right - I happen to think a Chinese Chippendale - in glossy black - would look particularly fab

...Where it could be easily pulled up to the desk for letter-writing (people still do that, right?), bill-paying, etc. This one is via Ballard

I'd wrap it up with a lovely lamp - something like this..or this

both from Lampsplus

Probably add some sort of living greenery - maybe a potted palm - and call this Bedroom Bliss!

Roll Out the Welcome Mat

I've been wanting to make a small improvement to our entryway since we moved in....Although I'm not going to drop a lot of coin putting plants into the ground of a home I don't own, I also won't totally sacrifice a little charm at the front door...So, today - the little scrubby (read: ugly) shrub to the left of the doorway got to say buh-bye...

...and I got to say Hola to a lovely little palm, trailing purple-ish/blue flower in pot, and yellow Lantana that should thicken up to a ground cover. Muito melhor!

I'd love to take credit for the loveliness... but our "landscape architect" did all the dirty work. I picked out the plant combo, doesn't that count for something? ;)

Hope all your green thumbs are wigglin' as the weather is warming up - up there in the continuous 50!

Trendspotting: Samovars

I love samovars - you know, a large (typically) silver urn with a spigot? Traditionally, they are used to boil water for tea making. I think they are beautiful...

flickr images by: maryuta, le_shirin, LenSOP, burlap jacket, flickmor

I found one a few years ago - a steal at an antique co-op. So, how tickled have I been to see them popping up as a new "It" kitchen accessory?!

House Beautiful

Crazy, crazy about this HB kitchen mix of natural elements and glamorous marble - really turns the silver samovar into an eye-catching piece of kitchen jewelry!

You may not be able to tell in this pic of a Kelly McGuill Home design, but this kitchen has two!

kitchen by Tim Clarke

I doubt they'll go the way of Kitchenaid mixers or Dualit toasters in terms of iconic kitchen gadgets, but what's wrong with a little shimma' near your stove?