Lambrequins?!?

What sounds fancier and is more timeless than a valance??

A LAMBREQUIN!! 

A lambrequin is a style of pelmet or cornice that extends down the sides of a window, often to the sill, or even to the floor. They were popular in the early to mid 19th century and were made with stiffened  buckram, paper or wood.  Designs for lambrequins were first found in "The Workman's Guide" way back in 1883.

If you asked Ms. Harriet Beecher Stowe, she'd say, "...the patterns of these can be varied according to fancy, but simple designs are usually the prettiest.  A tassel at the lowest point improves the appearance." 

Like so...

Look at a pair designed by Miles Redd ....

As seen in the December 2009 issue of Elle Decor. In 2119 this room will still look just as elegant and fresh.

Why am I talking about lambrequins you ask??? 

Because I'm hoping to have one made for a new client!! A client that has a love for Asian antiques and contemporary design. We'll see what I come up with, but a lambrequin is seeming to fit the bill at the moment.

 It's strange how talking about a centuries old idea like a lambrequin, sounds more current than talking about a valance. The power of words. 

I'm excited!!! Wish me luck!!

Get Right Out of Town!!!

I won a giveaway!!!

The fabulous Krystal over at Village hosted a giveaway for Pop Pop Portraits last week and yours truly is takin home the prize!!! That's three prints and a tote bag!!! How's that for a lovely Wednesday surprise?? 

I adore these painted portraits by Helena and I will love to have a few in my home!

Here are my favorite prints: 

Miss Marianne

My Lovely Aunt

Grrr....Like A Tiger

Molly the Greeting Card Designer

High Bun

Seesaw

Road Trip With Ro-Ro and Ronald

Ro-Ro's Big Day Out

You know I'm loving the background color of the last three prints and I love that the flamingo is named Ronald. You know you want to travel around the world with a flamingo named Ronald!! 

AND 

A tote bag!! 

Sebastian Tellier is Pointing Thataway

A girl can never have too many tote bags!!!

Thanks SOOOO MUCH to Krystal and Helena!!! You've made my week! 

If you haven't been over to Krystal's blog, you're missing out on some fabulous giveaways and some awesome posts!! You can check out Helena's blog HERE. 

Hope you're all having a great week!!

P.S. I know you want ALL of these Jess!!!!

ArtWorks Inspiration Board

Happy Monday! Here is the inspiration board for my ArtWorks project:

Sherwin-Williams paint colors: (far left) Functional Gray, Black Magic, and Griffin

Notice all the MANliness?? 

Lots of black, brownish grays, industrial metals, shiny metals, rivets, and the one missing element on this board....wood. The store has perfectly imperfect wood flooring with the kind of character that only age and circumstance can create. We are also incorporating wood pieces that have an industrial feel, like so....

I'll be on the look out for some huge industrial wheels and hinges. Pulleys too! 

I picked up a couple metal bins at a garage sale the other day for $1!! The lady who sold them to me was very surprised that I actually wanted to buy them. I don't think I was supposed to find them buried under the other stuff in her garage. 

Not everyone will see the coolness in these bins. 

I cleaned them all up and now they're ready to hold some merchandise. 

So, you might be asking, "where's the color!?!"

We will incorporate color in a few different ways. Through the colorful art supplies, the containers holding the art supplies, and through the artwork. There might be a couple walls of color, but I'm not sold on that idea yet. We'll see what happens when I get there :) I'll keep sharing the progress as I go.

Hope you all had a great Father's Day weekend!

200 Posts!?!

I'm celebrating my 200th post by indulging my infatuation with pink...

via HouseBeautiful

via Mosaicworks.ca...you should really check out her work if you haven't already! The BLOG is just as awesome!!!

Some Annie Selke fabric I'm dying for!!

Pink peonies and newspaper. 

Let's pretend for a sec that this purple is my pink. I love the gray with the green moss balls and the pops of purple/pink and the touches of black and white.

This image makes me want to get some canvases and pink paint for the little Miss to play with!! She'd have a ball and I would have some great and meaningful art!

I'm also falling for more blush like pinks paired with black and white. I think it has something to do with my other infatuations....

and 

Barbie!!

via Jonathan Adler

How's that for a celebration of pink!

I'm thinking of having a pink sort of giveaway!! Hmmmm.....this idea should get my wheels turning!

Hope you're all having a great week!I'm so thankful for all of your support and kind words that have made 200 posts so worth writing! I love all of you beautiful blog buddies!!

HomeFinder.com Article

My monthly contribution to the HomeFinder.com blog is up. This month it's about making big changes in your kitchen without spending big money. 

Most of you have already seen my kitchen transformation but if you haven't, you can check it out by clicking HERE

Happy Tuesday!!

A Powder Room Makeover

The powder room makeover for my MIL is almost complete!! 

Here is the sconce we went with. The Circolo from Kichler lighting...

The vanity is a simple shaker style in black like these...I don't have my own image just yet...

I want a mirror like this....

but that's not what we have....yeah....I'm still fighting this battle, and it's a hard one because my opponent costs only $20!!! I will win. Eventually.

Here is what the powder room looked like....

Very dark. 

Very Country/Colonial. 

Not ANYMORE!! The powder room is now completely empty and has been painted Simply Elegant Blue,  from Pittsburgh Paints. It took some convincing, but the ceiling was also painted the same blue. I believe in painting the ceiling a complementary color, when you can. The ceiling is a wall after all, and it does deserve some attention. Painting the ceiling a light blue can almost make it disappear.

The floors have also gone from linoleum to a beautiful solid oak. You CAN put solid wood flooring in powder rooms and it's always wise to keep flooring as seamless as possible. It's how you make spaces feel bigger, cleaner, and visually connected.

I should have some images to share within the next couple weeks! I'm excited to see this clean and elegant powder room come to life... even if I don't get my dream mirror!

A Little Bit...

A little bit of progress that is.

The pottery tools section has been getting some attention. 

You know how ridiculous I am about the small details??? Well, that comes in handy when you're trying to maximize your retail real estate. Notice how the peg board with the supplies could be bigger and display a bit more merchandise? 

When you're squeezing a lot of merchandise into a small space and you REALLY want more space for displaying and selling other things as well, then you have to be extremely conscious of each square inch. Leave that to me, cuz I'm crazy like that.

The area is still not completely finished because I REALLY want a floating white shelf above the peg board that will look like these....

and possibly display...hmmmm....POTTERY...how relevant would that be???

AND that would make me about as happy as that girl holding up that shoe!! 

P.S. this is a photo of a Natuzzi ad. 

Here is the new pegboard with newly painted black walls...

There is just enough space above the pegboard and between the two white columns for an awesome floating shelf! The "pottery tools" sign will also be changing to something more graphic...not sure what yet.

Also, you will probably note that I need to work on the area below the white table where the roll of canvas and all the palettes are. Makes me cringe a little to show it this way, but that's what it is. Point being...it won't be for long!!

There is still room to grow!! Now I gotta figure out how to make a super sturdy floating shelf that won't fall on a customers head someday! Yikes! 

Ohhhhh Sweeeetiee...my dearest dear...I need help :)

Wish me luck!!

Update: Message Center

I had a hot date with a roll of painters tape the other night.......

....nearly an entire roll later, I have me some green stripes! 

It's tedious work and I have changed my mind regarding painting any stripes on any of my walls. Ever. 

Unless they are at least 2 feet wide.

Did you notice the large spot above the message center??

Something like this....

...will be going up there to fill the space or maybe even a fabric covered bulletin board since it's up high enough that the little Miss can't reach it.

The frame is from Goodwill and I had my framer cut me a couple mats with standard size openings so that I can change out the pictures whenever I feel like it.

A peony pink next to the green stripes and the green walls would be quite predictably and quite perfectly "ME".

As for the rest of the message center, I'm still trying to find the perfect calendar and the perfect dry erase board. It just seems that all of my options are either too big or too small. I may have to make my own!

I would LOVE any of these Madeline Weinrib fabrics for the bulletin board!!!!

They seriously make me swoon!!

I'm hoping to have this finished very soon! I'm searching the internet like crazy looking for the perfect pieces! If you know of any unique products that might fit the bill please drop me a line!!

Fresh & Airy

A couple months ago, my Mother decided that we needed to trade drapes. 

I was like "Are you CRAZY?!?"

You see, she hand made her gorgeous drapes out of beautiful white linen fabric and.mine are just "pretty good" quality chenille drapes from JCPenney. Hers are worth 100 times more than mine! 

 I remember when my Mom was slaving over those drapes about 12 years ago!!! Yep. 12 years ago!! Maybe even 13!! Since she didn't have all 7 panels for my living and dinging room she started slaving over the extra panels I needed. Thanks Mom!! 

The old drapes still look brand spanking new. That's the lovely thing about classic white. It never goes out of style.  You can also spice up white panels with ribbon or a fabric border if you ever want to change things up a bit.

Here is the dining room with the beige drapes....

They aren't fresh enough for my palate, but I was just gonna deal with them and get new ones later, seeing as how I have bigger fish to fry at the moment.

Thanks to my Mom and her great taste and exceptional sewing skillz, I don't have to fry my bigger fish first...here is the dining room with my Mother's lovely drapes...

A fresh and airy difference, wouldn't you say? 

I love them!! The best part is that I know my Mom put lots of love in them for me! 

Now, I just hope they can withstand a two year old and a dog!

Hope you're all getting a great start to the week and can't wait to see what you've all been up to!