Road Trip!

I am headed out for a road trip with my awesome hubby and our little (okay not so little) dog, Calvin too. :) We are off to "Up North" Wisconsin to escape some of the unrelenting heat of Texas.

More pictures to come soon.....

Have a beautiful day everyone! :)

Splash of Color

Every time I see this piece in the Gump's magazine it catches my eye.....

So the other day on a whim I went out to Sherwin Williams and bought myself some paint, Burma Jade SW2862 to be exact and tackled my own boring bookcases in my sitting room. (It's the cobbler's kids have no shoes theory with me if you are wondering why I had boring bookcases in my own house....)

And voila, here is how it turned out. This is our private sanctuary so I can't think of anything better to look at in there than pictures of family and friends in frames I have collected over the years, that is another project though, updating and tweeking some of these frames....It's sooo much easier to help my clients than myself.

What inspires you? Do you ever act on a whim with a splash of color?

Urning for a Home Urinal?

Ewwww gross, I know....

But why not?

Let's think about this for a minute....We women wouldn't ever have to worry about falling into the toilet again because someone forgot to put the seat down.... ;)

Now yes they really only work in larger bathrooms because quite frankly who wants it by the soaking tub, ugh, the horrors!

I think mom's would love these for their sons bathrooms, maybe it would keep the floors drier...I am just saying... ;)

It's good for our environment, because you can get waterfree urinals and save thousands of gallons of water each year or even if you get them with water, they still use less water per flush than your standard toilet.

So I am not recommending these by any means, but I am intrigued...If you want to see some other home urinal designs, check out Style Estate's blog. They too just posted a blog on home urinals, must be something in the air.....

Do share your thoughts here, thumbs up or thumbs down...?

Don't Be Afraid of The Dark

Paint your small spaces (for example powder rooms) in dark, rich, yummy colors, it's unexpected and beautiful!

I not only like dark paint, I like to soften and add more interest to my clients dark walls by doing some kind of faux work, either by changing the wall texture with venetian plaster or fauxing with a goldy/silvery finish, for added luxury.

Powder rooms are fun because they are contained to a small room, so if budget is an issue, you can choose higher priced finishes in there and get a lot of credit for it, especially for it's higher visibility with guests.

I have a Squidoo page (don't know what that is? Well just click on my link and see), where I share lots of bathroom tips. Check it out....Bathrooms!

Have you been bold in your own powder rooms and if so what color did you choose?

There's No Place Like The Greenbrier

Or so I think, you see I haven't been to the famous The Greenbrier Hotel in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. But it's on my list of things to see because of Dorothy Draper's influence there and well I want to see the famous bunker too. :)

Here are some FUN FACTS I found on The Greenbrier Resort and Dorothy Draper's remodel....

-This was the single largest hotel renovation ever achieved.

-It included more than 45,000 yards of fabric.

-15,000 rolls of wallpaper.

-She created furniture for the hotel, such as the "dresk", a combination dressing table and desk.

-She also designed the china, tableware, menus and even the matches.

-It was Dorothy's single greatest design achievement...She was the first to approach a project and design the total environment.

According to Carleton Varney, Draper's protege and President of The Dorothy Draper Company, Inc. The Greenbrier is quintessential Draper, the most highly prized jewel in her crown".

Did you know that Carleton Varney still oversees all interior design of this fabulous resort?

I found this blog that had some great photos and wanted to share it here with you...

Paris Hotel Boutique Journal: Dorothy Draper's Greenbrier

Of course before I came along my husband had his Fantasy Football golf draft there one year...I asked him all about the place and he vaguely remembered the interiors, how "man" is that? I am sure the golf course is great, I mean the The Greenbrier Classic will be a new tournament in 2010 which will replace the Buick Open so that is cool right?

I have been online and I find enough pics to know I want to go, I also realize it was remodeled back in 2007, to not rid itself of the Draper style but to freshen it up and preserve it.

My birthday is in December, I think I will start dropping hints to my hubby starting....Now! :)

Let me know if you have been yourself and if so what you thought, I would LOVE to hear all about it.

Mirror Mirror 2.0

-Tiny green sea urchin shapes line this mirror. (Don't worry no sea urchins were hurt in the making of this mirror.)

I know I seem to blog quite a bit on mirrors but to me they just add so much to rooms in the house and there are sooo many unique variations I feel like one or two blog postings just isn't enough.

I have had my eye on Made Goods for awhile now and every time I go to their site or I get a postcard from them I drool!

All of their mirrors are so beautiful! Here are just SOME of my favorites...I urge you to check out their website or better yet see them in person.

-Here is there seasonal statement piece, can you see why?! I love these large shells with cream, gold and brown patterns arranged as petals.
-Artfully reproduced lettuce coral, each leaf is hand painted fora truly lifelike effect and yes this is blue, isn't it unexpected and fun?
-This was inspired by a serving platter, what a great idea. This is made of ruffled tin.

-Barnacles!
-This bronze mirror has almost 400 pieces of hand cut metal. It has a snaky feel about it doesn't it?
-Leaf coral was the inspiration for this beautiful mirror. A thin silver or gold tip is applied to the end of each "leaf" for a more sophisticated appearance, or you can just request them to leave it off too.
-The delicate floral latticework is covered by hand in a mosaic of capis shell then the entire piece is antiqued.
-So simple, but not....I love the wood grain frame with those little sparrows perched on top.
-Anyone got a light? Just kidding...This is however rows and rows of matchsticks, I love the dimension and depth of this mirror.

-Reuse and Repurpose: This wood came from India and was originally used as a mold for cast marble window screens....Aren't the geometrical shapes great?

-This is a modern interpretation of Beaux Art with sculptural decoration around a more traditional, classic shape. This is a molded black tin with oversized proportions, very dramatic right?

Do you have a favorite?

Not a Bad Place to "Age in Place"

Kohler just recently posted a fully remodeled home called the Green Mountain Ranch in Fort Collins, Colorado. The homeowner, Cynthia Leibrock was the designer of her own "living laboratory"/home.

It's not only a beautiful home but she truly has thought of everything when it comes to aging-in-place.

This video is just one of many videos on her home featured on the Kohler site. All of the videos were chocked full of great information and you can tell she is passionate and has done thorough research on what the needs of older people may be.

I think my biggest takeaway from this is the fact that your home can still be beautiful and stylish with devices to help you age in place without advertising to others your age and disabilities.

I think there were some really great ideas in here for others to retrofit their own homes.

I hope her and her husband continue to stay healthy and don't need these amazing features. But if not, they are going to be just fine too and will be able to age in place without ever having to go to the dreaded nursing home.

Dog Days of Summer

I think we are officially in the "dog days of summer"....You know on a side note when I use that term I always feel bad, like I am insulting my dog, so you know what, I am going to look it up on trusty Wikipedia right now and share....

"The term "Dog Days" was used by the Greeks as well as the ancient Romans (who called these days caniculares dies (days of the dogs)) after Sirius (the "Dog Star", in Latin Cancula), the brightest star in the heavens besides the Sun. The dog days of summer are also called the canicular days". I did not know this did you?

"The Dog Days originally were the days when Sirius, the Dog Star, rose just before or at the same time as sunrise, which is no longer true. The ancients sacrificed a brown dog (ooohhhh that is horrible) at the beginning of the Dog Days to appease the rage of Sirius, believing that the star was the cause of the hot, sultry weather.

"Casual survey will usually find that many people believe the phrase is in reference to the conspicuous laziness of domesticated dogs during the hottest days of summer. When speaking of "dog days" there seems to be a connotation of lying or "dogging" around or being "dog tired" on these hot and humid days. Although these meanings have nothing to do with the original source of the phrase they may have been attached to the phrase in recent years due to common usage or misunderstanding of the original phrase."

To prove to you that my dog isn't lazy in summer I have complied some photos of a normal summer for him, oh and yes he is an only child...

*Calvin received his "rock star" status by attending a lot of outdoor concerts and attracting people of all sorts because of the howling he does after each performance.

*He had just won the Mighty Texas Dog Walk and was being interviewed with his Dad.

*He loves a nice restaurant right on the water, who wouldn't?

*He is really into golfing, he loves the cart!

*When it gets really hot though, there is nothing quite like a dip in his pool with his beloved pooch tube.

*He stretches to 6', believe me now?

*Running at the beach, favorite pastime.

*He loves to ride in the convertible, isn't this picture hysterical, it actually looks like he is driving.

*I was napping with him on the sofa and look what I awoke too, how sweet are those feet?

*He loves the lake and the boat too for that matter.

"Okay Mom enough of the pictures", time for a nap and to enjoy my "dog day of summer".