Update!

Sorry, it feels like it's been a long time since my last post, but I have been hard at work -- cranking out these pillows. I'm very excited about them. I've already taken the pictures I just need to upload them to the site. So bear with me!

New Pillows Coming Soon!

I just wanted to tell you how excited I am about this new fabric I bought. I've got some nice spring colors, as well as some nice bold colors, to give your home that extra wow factor you've been looking for. Keep checking on my shop at Etsy for the latest updates.

My Dream Bed

I was on Appartment Therapy earlier and saw someone searching for their dream bed with little to go on besides a picture. It got me thinking about my dream bed and how far I was willing to go to get it. I found it while looking on a website of a local store; the problem was I wasn't a local anymore. I moved over 2,000 miles away and they didn't do shipping. I went through all kinds of hoops to get it. I looked at shipping costs, I found who made the bed to see where else they might sell it, I found another seller who would ship it, then found out they had a store that was local to me. I went by the store and put the money down right then and there.

Calendar or Art?

I was out and about in Berkeley today and happened to pop into Paper Source when I was hit with a great crafting idea. Right now they're having 50% all their calendars so they had a feature wall of different months of the calendar and the display had me inspired upon first look. They used a solid color that was probably a 26 X 20 cover weight paper. On the top half of that sheet they had a decorative paper that left about a 1 inch border around the decorative paper (to reveal the solid color backing). On the bottom half of the sheet they had the calendar for that one month, but they decorated it using an image or two from the decorative paper on the top half which unified the whole paper (they left a 1 inch border around the calendar part as well). I did an example so you get an idea of how the end product should look. Now this is just to show how the proportions should look , the ones they showed in the store looked beautiful.

I think this project would be relatively easy with some scissors, a trip to your local paper store, some double-sided tape or non-liquid glue, a home computer, and a little imagination.

Side Note: Paper Source has a new color called fig, that I'm in love with.Think Eggplant mixed with Pomegranate.

Reading after Dark

For a while I've been wanting the perfect wall lamp for some in bed reading. One that is perfect for that time where it's too late to be in the living room reading, but still early enough to sit up in bed under the covers and read a little bit before I pass out for the night. Last weekend I decided on a wall lamp that works for now, but isn't the perfect lamp I would want for my bedroom. I decided to pull together a list of the lamps I wouldn't mind shining some light on a good read before bed.

from left to right --->

1. Adjustable Arc Sconce: from Pottery Barn, $129

2. Ceramic Reform Sconce: from Macys, $179.99

3. Gyllen: from Ikea, $59.99

4. Drum Sconce: from West Elm, $99

5. Murray Feiss Sconce, casual Luxury: from Macys, $139.99

6. Nickel Halogen Plug-In Swing Arm Wall lamp: from Lamps Plus, $59.95

7. Tolomeo wall spot: from Design Within Reach, $195

Sunday Buys

I don't know why, but Sunday always seems like a good project day. For me, it seems like the perfect day to make home purchases, start a new crafting project, or think about my next project. Today, I've done a bit of all three. We have so many books at our house that we've been meaning to get another bookcase so we can unpack the boxes of books in the closet. With so many options for bookcases I haven't really known what to buy. I decided on a hanging bookshelf from Ikea. I'm not the biggest fan of red, but for some reason it spoke to me. So I purchased it and immediately went home to put it together.[pictures of my finished product coming soon]

Our bedroom doesn't have a hanging light and the lamp we have in there doesn't provide enough light for me once the sun goes down, so while I was at Ikea I decided to pick up some wall lamps. I like the style of the lamp, however, I'm not too impressed with the lamp shade. I'll be looking for a way to spice up the lamps to my liking.

A while back I got some sewing books on making bags. So I've spent the better part of today creating the pattern for a bag I'll soon be working on. I'll keep you posted on how it turns out. I'm excited about this new project!

Decorating with Vases and more...

I'm very much into accessorizing a home. Accessories are a nice way to transform a room, especially if you're on a tight budget.What I like most about decorative vases and bowls is that you can put something in them or not, and it still brings a design element to your home. Here's a look at some must-have vases and more...

from left to right --->

1. Apothecary Jars: from Pottery Barn, $39-69
2. Small Spinners: from Romi Ceramics, $44
3. Mehendi Vase: from Anthropologie, $16
4. Bowl Shape Glass Vase: from Pier 1 Imports, $20
5. Suzani Vase: from Z gallerie, $79.95
6. Teco Pottery Vases: from Whorange, $60-195
7. Nature Willow Vase: from Cost Plus World Market, $69.99
8. Mini White Porcelain Vases: from RouDesigns, $30

New Pillows @ Etsy

Just wanted to let you know that I have updated my etsy page with some new pillows. Hope you like them!
You can check them out here.

No Fears Wallpaper

It seems you no longer need to fear wallpaper. Tempaper has created a repositionable self-adhesive wallpaper. While they only have a dozen or so different designs, they are definitely beautiful and unique. However, the best part is that if you're a renter you can use this wallpaper and when you move all you have to do is take it down and bring it with you to your new place. The wallpaper is definitely affordable and comes in rolls of 20.5 inch. X 11 yds.

Planting in Progress

For the last few weeks I have been researching how to go about creating my own terrarium. And I can proudly say that I have found my first two plants to incorporate. They should be great for someone like me who doesn't have the greenest thumb, but aspires to.

Now that I found the two stars of my terrarium, I can figure out what type of container I would like to showcase them in.

Under-Bed Lighting

I happened to be glancing through a magazine today and was reminded of something that I found rather neat a while back. It is under bed lighting. Now I wouldn't go so crazy as doing colorful lights, but a nice glow coming from underneath the bed would look visually pleasing and would also keep me from bumping into the edge of the bed. I'm curious though if the effect of the lights would be as nice on carpeted flooring as it would on a wood or slate floor?

Something to Hoot about

I think it's safe to say with the release of Legend of the Guardians, owls are definitely in this season; they can be spotted everywhere, from jewelry, home decor, clothing, you name it. Since owls seem to be everywhere right now, I decided to post a list of my favorite owl home accessories.

from left to right --->

1. Owl Umbrella Stand: from Gore Dean, $185
2. Ceramic owls: from West Elm, $9-16
3. Owl Table Lamp: from West Elm, $99
4. Hear no, speak no, see no owls: from At West End, $35
5. Cast Iron Owl Doorstop: from Cost Plus World Market, $9.99
6. Clay Owl: from Lekker Home, $66-135
7. Owl Salt & Pepper Shakers: from Pier1, $5
8. Owl Mama: from Needlings on Etsy, $30
9. Creature Kingdom Hook, Owl: from Anthropologie, $20
10. High Flying Clock in Owl: from Mod Cloth, $59.99

A fresh Look

As I've stated before, I've recently moved into a new apartment and typically most apartments come with the padded room look, so we've been looking for the perfect color to accent our living room.

We originally wanted a neutral color, like a cream, or a warm brown. However, after trying a few colors we decided what our living room really needed was a pop of color. Our ceilings are high so we only wanted to paint the wall that doesn't reach up to 14 ft. high -- so a neutral color didn't really work with the look we were going for. Here are some pictures of the paint going up and what it looks like now.

Now that we've painted, we feel like the room needs something else. The stark white blinds aren't the "pop" we wanted against the new blue background. So we've bought some curtains and shelves and hopefully that will make the living room a place we really want to be.

Forgotten Find

I was out and about today and ran across a store I had almost forgotten. It was an oldie, but goodie -- Cost Plus World Market. They had a fabulous sale going on right now, with 50% off furniture, that is sure to bring in the new year right. Normally their furniture can run a little more on the pricier side, so if you're looking to get something new I suggest you start there.