Springtime Decorating

With the roses blooming like crazy (I counted 64 buds a week ago!), that's the easy solution. But the pecan tree needed some trimming, so I brought in some branches for the first time.

T's grandma's bookshelf. I love the detailing at the top.

The bookshelf in the dining area, w/ WW2 era accordion.

The dining/piano hall, for lack of a better name, with new *matching* chairs! Only took 4 years.

The dining/piano hall, with The Emma hiding from the outdoors, keeping an eye on it.

And in the backyard garden:

Basil getting larger...  Bugs! Stay off my herbs!

Planted these last year. They survived the drought, the freeze, and look better than ever.
May need to plant more of this...

It's been pretty quiet over here. Just working hard on inviting and trying to stay afloat, with as few meltdowns as possible.


p.s. How many skulls did you spot in the interior pictures?
One is hard to see, but there are 3: dining bookshelf, piano, grandma's bookshelf.

Great Way to End the Year

Bought a vintage vanity! Finally! And for under $100!!!

So I spent much of the afternoon cleaning, moving furniture, and organizing clothes.

I will be starting 2012 with all dishes cleaned and put away, and all clothes off the floor and ottoman. 2012 will be a great year.

Happy New Year everyone!! XOXOXOXOXO

It Looks So Small...

When it was in seven or so boxes, my inventory (boxed cards) looked like so much more. Now that it's all nicely tucked away, it doesn't look like i've been busy at all!

Or maybe it just looks like I get a lot of etsy sales? Sure, we'll go with that.

Top shelf, A7s, A6s, and my groovy "goth invites" as well as some of the smaller packs.
Middle shelf, A2s and 4bars, plus coasters and bookmarks.
Bottom shelf - holiday items.

On display, jasmine-scented candle (my favorite scent for candles), extra SXSW invitations because they look so damn cool, a little budha, a sequined skull (the question isn't why do i have a skull, it's why *don't you* have one?), and an antique stamp (for fabrics i believe) that was a housewarming gift from one of T's gaming buddies and his g.f. Pretty cool.

No, I still haven't finished painting.
Like that surprises you.

A little closer...

to getting organized.

Last night, after printing and trimming invitations for SXSW, I spent a little time purging and organizing things on the bookshelf. Of course I still have 2 envelope-boxes of little decor items that are currently homeless...

Decided not to paint the little A-hook and hung up my small collection. I need/want more : )

Other things wanted for the study:
-bulletin board or bulletin board/ dry erase board combo, 18x24 roughly.
-ornate frame for bulletin board
-plush faux fur throw from target
-small wall-mounted fan for corner by closet.
-small rubbish bin, small recycling bin
-wall mounted lamps for desk area, clear up some desk space
-reading/floor lamp for chaise corner

I found a cabinet for boxed-card storage. It's a lot like the white (tea) cabinet that I purchased a few months ago, which I still love, except it's darker and doesn't have the little drawers. It should hold quite a few packages, which will clear out the boxes stashed (and overflowing from) under the chaise. Of course if I had more sales, this wouldn't be a problem...

My Mostly-Painted Study

Since the other bookcase's order was closed (still not happy about that) I found a quick replacement for 1/3 the price. Super quick (and free) shipping was great but
a) it was a bitch-and-a-half to put together. I believe it was a 2-person job but that's not how i roll.
b) it's cheap. during the shopping portion that's great, but during assembly, not so much.

But it's up, and while less real estate than my bricks-and-boards leftover from college, i'll make it work. (Bulk trash collection was the other day but someone adopted my cinder blocks before it came. Glad they got a good home.)

The color is from Lowes, "pink wink," and i actually brought in a letterpress card i printed to match because i really love the (discontinued) paper:

So, the plan I guess:
-finish painting, maybe Friday evening I'll complete it. I have above and behind the door, above the window, and some touch-ups left. Then of course the door itself, which i'd rather just replace but i can't find what i want.
-paint the trim and door frame. Plain white or glossy black?; ) Probably white. bah.
-paint the wood of my desk chair and an "A" hook (thanks, mom!) glossy black.
-figure out how to hang my collection of framed art and pictures. Over the chaise (aw, there's a kitty curled up on it right now.) i think.
-oh, and most importantly, get myself organized!!

Eagerly Awaiting...

Other than being "antique black" instead of "black" I think this will be a great addition to my study. So excited to finally get rid of the "bricks-and-boards" leftover from college.

Should arrive late Feb.


The snow has all melted away. : (

Ready for a Change, Part 2

Well, sadly the black is out. I purchased a black chaise and as much as I like black, black furniture and black walls is not right.

SO.

Now I'm looking at soft blush. Light pink walls with black furniture can look just as glam and fabulous, I am sure.

And WTF, Ikea. This is some bullshit.

There is no way in hell i'll pay $99 shipping for a bookcase. No effing way.

Guess I have to hold off on my bookcase until i can get up there with someone with a good trunk/flexible seats. Mega-bummer.

Checked on craigslist too, but they only have the lighter colors, and pre-assembled. (No truck.)
BUMMER.

Ready for a Change

I have next week off from work, and am super excited about it. One thing I plan on doing is re-painting my study.

Here's a fairly recent picture, tho the bookshelves and desk position change often and no longer look like this.

Paint color is from Lowe's, "Vintage Pewter. Still pretty, but scuffed up. Plus, i want to go BOLD!

BLACK BLACK BLACK
Repaint my little desk white.

And one day...
-get a large bookshelf from Ikea, the Expedit for it's great storage options (in black)
-get a chandelier for some glamour
-get a settee/loveseat so i can study/stream a movie/draw comfortably
-and get some new curtains

Here are a few things that I like/want/wish I could afford:

 Why is anthropologie's furniture so expensive?

This is a little deeper than I'd like, but the shape is good.

Maybe i'll get lucky and find something (clean) on craigslist that will work.

This is affordable ($133), I'm just waiting until I'm ready.

And the bookcase, in black-brown 

(would prefer just black, but i'm sure a quick paint job can fix it. 

OR i can just get white... Think the black would "disappear" though.) 

Also affordable ($129) it's just a matter for going to Ikea to get it!

Thoughts? I need my study to be a refuge/creative space/virtual shop space for inviting. Want it bold, glam and creative.

Earrings!

Had some time this afternoon to make a few earrings, and then put together a make-do earring holder. I really like the empty frames with wire strung across in several rows, but until I find a frame that i like, this may do. A little w.t. but it's making me happy.

All the post-earrings are in a fancy dish above my dresser but all hook earrings are here.

What I would love to do is find a vintage/art deco vanity for use in the dressing room and move the dresser into the bedroom to store linens.
Something like this:

Craigslist often has some excellent looking pieces (and for under $200!!) but with no truck it makes it difficult. Can't really throw it on a skateboard and drag it home on the scooter, can i?

Oof.

I was hoping to have more here this year but have been very busy with the printing. And when I'm not at the day job or working for the weekend job, I'm trying to do nothing. (Nothing sometimes = a beer on the couch while zoning out to South Park. Need to get to knitting again, holidays are coming up.)

But alas.

Seriously, i've "worked" the past 2 weekends, and have 2 more coming up. Longing to sleep in, but with the temperatures the way they've been, even with the portable a/c unit, the mornings are the only good time to print. And there's been a wedding, personalized cards for a photographer in PA, cards for a friend in NYC, experiments, etc.

I do love it though. : )
And am very much looking forward to winter- sleeping in a little, enjoying a nice long morning, and then getting up to go print.

Anyhoo. What has been going on?

I turned XXIX and got sick with a horrible sinus infection a couple of days before so was totally miserable that week, and I even had 3 days off from work to celebrate ME and it was terrible. Then that week my girlie doctor told me she wants me to lose weight, to get back where I was 2 years ago. (If I didn't like her so much I'd call her a total bitch and be looking for a new dr. But a good dr. is hard to find, and she is pretty cool. And okay, fine, she's right. Still.)

But my bday wasn't a total dud: my brother and his Ashley came over to grill dinner and my mom baked a rhubarb crumble. It was a nice dinner but I was just wiped out.

 I have a thing for fun make-up palettes

and am trying out a dry-shampoo for those 

'i really don't want to wash my hair' days.

There's been a make-do area in my kitchen area: an old aquarium stand with a crappy shelf laying on top of it, serving as a little "this is where i keep my tea pot and sugars" area. And yeah, it was probably as bad as you're picturing. But looking on crateandbarrel.com they had this lovely tall and narrow wine shelf thing that would have been perfect... except it was over $500. Bah. And all the bakers racks I'd seen were too country, too 'vintage wine country,' or too traditional - so not us. But then I saw a simple  little white cabinet, glass doors, 2 drawers, would look great in that space... for under $150! Sold! And i got it 2 days later. Crazy fast $1 shipping. : )

Well, then I had to put it together.

 Fuuuddddgggge. NOTHING came pre-assembled.

1 cocktail (Pimms & Ginger), 10 minutes of music, and almost all of Gordon Ramsay on Master Chef, it was completed!

And it's perfect. Little (and I do mean little) drawers hold teas and sweeteners, and as it's mounted to the wall, nothing jiggles when the doors open or close. Only thing I need to change- add 1 more shelf (crap, and i was at Lowe's this morning too) so that I can hold ALL my tea things and not have anything stacked. But it looks nice, right? Surprisingly, even T likes it.

Since inviting has been rather busy this month (had to make project sheets to keep everything straight- it's been wonderful!) I've been taking any help I can get. Business Partner's been coming out again, and when photographing and posting in the afternoons when it's too hot to print, these two have been helpers:

The Emma's "helping" cut paper? Uh, okay. 

She also keeps an eye on the computer while I'm out  printing. 

I come in to wash my hands and see her either on my desk or on my chair, supervising. 

 Darcy "helping" me with etsy.com listings.

And see? Been busy, and this isn't even everything I've worked on this month! (But I'm really not complaining. I *challenge* you- let's see how many orders I can handle. Hit me with your best shot. And, uh, the holidays are coming up. Really, they'll be here before we know it! Shop early and you'll be less stressed later!)

New Chair

I haven't taken the tag off, so please ignore it. : )

Deco Bacall Velvet Side Chair
Darcy acting as a silly chair model / Ignore the tag under the chair

It's not a "comfy" chair but it is good for sitting with good posture and maybe a cocktail. Plus, it looks fabulous, does it not? I think it's going to be one of those 'the more I see it the more I love it' things, but I do like it a lot- especially the way the fabric is pulled down so low in the back.

Happy Valentine's Day

As some of you know, we took Darcy to the vet for a small bump on his chin. Poor guy had a (non-cancerous) tumor that needed to be removed. He did really well, the people at the animal hospital love him, and he had to wear a silly collar (which he kept flipping back like a bib so we just left it like that) for a week, until his stitches were removed.
Here's Darcy trying to sit comfortably:


I have a slight eye glases addiction, thanks to the super affordable zennioptical.com. Had $ to use up from my flex spending account in December so I ordered SIX pairs. Here's one of the more fun pairs : ) It's lime green on the inside, black on the outside, and had lots of sparkles at the corners, pink sparkles making little flowers, too.


And for my dressing room, I made a very nifty purchase. A girl needs a place to sit while she puts on her stockings and shoes, no? Found a fabulously huge (40" across), tufted, round velvet ottoman (from overstock.com) for a *great* price (plus used BillMeLater so no payment is due until May- nice). Here's Darcy modeling it, the evening his stitches were removed:

And on the stationery business front, the AMOA (austin museum of art) downtown is holding a Hatch Show Print exhibit and the buyer, who is fabulous, contacted inviting about having cards for sale in the gift shop during the exhibit. I busted my butt last week and got 2 dozen of 5 designs printed and packaged, and they will be in the shop early this week! Show your support for a local letterpress printing shop and buy a few cards. I'd love to get an email saying "we sold out and need more!"

(The trains are actually printed in brown, not orange)

That's it for now! More later I'm sure. Since I've neglected this I have some catching up to do! : )

Happy Valentine's Day, whether you celebrate it or not. We pick up some chocolate covered strawberries from Amy's Ice Cream, a pizza from Homeslice, and watch a movie; nothing fancy. Almost like any other day ; )

Post-Holidays, and in need of a de-tox!

Oh my goodness, the xmas dinners are over. After sleeping for 10 hours last night, I feel rested again. The past 2-3 days have been BUSY with preparations and cookings and cleanings. And now it's the weekend, the wonderful weekend!


Xmas eve we celebrated with my mom, brother, T's uncle, and a friend of mom's and had a super fun time!


Dinner was: sirloin/scallops/shrimp fondue, lefse, salad, bacon-wrapped-stuffing balls, pickle things, steamed green beans, roasted tomatoes and eggplant bruschetta, cheese puffs, brie stuffed mushrooms, and I can't think what else. T's uncle brought sparkling wine, and dinner wine to share- delicious! Plus we had some cocktails/beer before and after dinner.

After dinner we opened gifts and planned on playing a game or two, but by then it was too late for games.

A wonderful xmas eve.

Xmas morning there was breakfast (and Santa gifts) at Mom's home, and we played a few rounds of Pictureka. I knew my brother was be a stiff competitor, but T surprised me- he and my brother dominated! Fun times.

Then, a few hours (and no nap for me) later, my dad, stepmom and her son arrived at the house for xmas dinner. I purchased ham and cornbread stuffing from Threadgills the day before so we had that, zucchini cakes, cheese puffs, pickle things, lefse, steamed asparagus, more brie-stuffed mushrooms, marinated mushrooms, and something else I can't remember. After lots of conversation, a little bit of pie, and more sparkling wine, we opened gifts at the tree.


There was a long running argument between dad and my brother about the spurs trading manu ginobili (who apparently is "a bad man"), which was quite funny! Yes, bourbon was involved.

After they left, we (T, my brother, and I) tested out the Santa gift- a fire pit.

Good times. But I am glad it's all over. Now regular life can resume. : )


I hope everyone has had enjoyable winter holidays.
It's such a pretty season how can you not enjoy it?

And, now I need to detox.
As there are some yummy leftovers, I'll start Monday. : )

How do you detox?
I am thinking no sugar, alcohol, breads, fried foods, cheese (sniffle), and go on nightly walks (looking forward to longer days). No coffee, only tea, unsweetened. Proteins will be baked or grilled, veggies will be fresh or steamed, and that will be it for a couple days.

Got any recommendations for me???

Holiday Stuff

First, probably the best "modern" (well, non-classic) holiday song. : )



Second, check out inviting's etsy shop for letterpressed goodies.

And third, here's our tree!


P.S. Need help tying bows? This fabulous little video will help!

It's here, it's here!

The new sofa is here!

So now this is how the living room looks. Much better than just a large entry, but still loads of work to do!

Some ideas are here.

Apartment Therapy Cure Update:
So last week I was supposed to clean the whole house. I didn't do that, but I plan to do it week by week. Tomorrow starts Week 2: The Kitchen and I was on my hands and knees last night scrubbing the floor. I loathe mopping so only do it half-assed, so it needed a good scrub. At Target last night I purchased a large (machine-washable) rug, the same as the one by the door in the above picture, so hopefully that will help keep the floor clean. The cats' food and water now have a carpet-sample as their placemat (maybe they'll get a proper one for xmas?) and I cleaned out their food bowl as well. Ew.
I haven't been buying fresh flowers, but clipping them from the yard. There's a soft pink rose in the front living room and a zinnia on the windowsill in the kitchen.
This week I'm to try a new recipe so I bought a rice cooker (it also is a steamer) at Target and am going to attempt a brown rice california roll this afternoon. Will take pictures later.

Yesterday I got the most fun thing in the mail- a pack of 3 british home magazines from my aunt! Trent kept laughing at me because i was *so* excited! Such a treat!! Thanks, Aunt Teresa!


I'd love to hear from you- leave a comment! : )

House Things

It's coming! The fabulous sofa from Macys will arrive this coming Saturday! We are so excited.

I've also signed up for the Fall Cure. Hoping to finish some projects, make a few adjustments and changes, and not necessarily redecorate. It starts on Monday.

Last weekend my Grandma from MN was in town visiting (hi Grandma!) and it was really nice seeing her. We had birthday burgers in the backyard (luckily the weather cooperated) and met for pizza before the end of her visit. Yesterday my dad and stepmom were up for the record convention and we all (brother, his girlfriend, and her parents) met for dinner, then had a belated-birthday cake and drinks over here.

The house is decorated for halloween, sans the foam headstones for the front yard and the purple lights for the crepe myrtle. Maybe I'll get to those today...

Spring/Summer Rolls = Yum!

Finally tracked down some spring roll wrappers, at my World Market (they're cheap!) and got around to my first spring rolls last night.


What's in them? Thinly sliced steak (first time cooking steak), thinly sliced carrots, cabbage and lettuce, rice noodles "cooked" and broken up, and a few torn basil leaves. I think that was it. Yum!
Also made a peanut sauce to go with it: about 1 T natural peanut butter, 1 take-out packet of soy sauce, a squirt of sriracha, a teeny bit of water. It's peanuty with a kick.

Will try these again, with different veggies and a marinated steak/chicken/shrimp/tofu (depending on what's in the fridge I suppose!).

In decorating news... ; )

Started painting the bathroom. Covering the blah-inducing yellowish, beige-ish, i-look-ugly wall color with "muffin mix"- what we used in the bedroom in the apartment! Oh, it is so much fresher looking in there. It looks surprisingly great with the green tiles. Will finish the first coat tomorrow and pick up a qt of a satin-finish for the second.

Also have pretty much decided to paint the hallway a really light sky blue (oh, and have replaced the blah light fixture, with a bubbly one like I did for the ceiling fan!) and to paint the Peacock table a super-glossy teal. In honor of the Peacock? Perhaps. Besides, that color will look GREAT with the ivory sofa.

In crafting news...

How fabulous will an embroidered/cross-stitched Dita von Teese photo look? Pretty great, I think. Will be looking through my book (that I was told one of T's Conan buddies was going through last game. Funny mix- barbarian speak + burlesque.) and scanning a few pics to see which will make the best pattern. Think it'll be my to-the-Valley-road-trip project, but I may not be able to wait that long.

Peacock Furniture

My favorite (tho not often frequented) bar closed down a month or so ago, and last week I got an email saying they were having a garage sale on Saturday. I really wanted a pair of chairs but those were sold as a lot to some other bar. I did manage to buy one of the side tables they had.

The cats approve. They take turns with it.

It definitely needs a paint job, but I can't paint it until we buy the sofa for the front room, and I can get an idea of what colors will be in there.