sunshine and wine

We've Moved

2010-05-02T17:59:00.000-05:00

It is with great excitement that I announce the kick-off of my new blog/website Suburban Spunk!

Since I will be focusing mainly on design, decor, DIY and some event planning going forward, I thought a new site and new name was appropriate.

So, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE WITH A CHERRY ON TOP, come on over to http://www.suburbanspunkdesign.com/ and follow me there and update your blogrolls to the new site. I promise a better blog, with lots of fun additions (like a house tour coming soon!).

Thanks to all my faithful readers and those of you that took the time to read my lil' blog and comment. Your support as meant the world to me and I look forward to continuing to communicate with all of you.

love, Suzanne

Adult Pieces, Kid Prices

2010-04-29T14:35:00.000-05:00

Quick post before I dash off to start setting up for tomorrow's DIFFA event. Just wanted to share with you some of my favorite pieces of the moment. I often check out the kids section of stores for great, stylish pieces at about half the cost of the regular 'adult' section.

1. Amelia Headboard Cover from Pottery Barn Kids $64.99 for a full size cover

How perfect for a guest bedroom?!?

2. Letter Matts from Pottery Barn Kids for just $4.99

I'd get our initials and hang them above our bed.

3. Number Knobs $24 for a set of 4

How fun for a craft room, play area or tool workshop?

4. Fluted Lamp Base from PB Teen just $21.99

5. Media System from Land of Nod $149-399 (WAY less than it's adult counter-part Crate and Barrel)

6. Reversible Jute Rug from PB Teen $69

7. Tulips Toss Pillow from PB Teen $35

Have you found any great deals in the kids section? Share them!

It's Friday for me and I'm off for a full 3-day weekend. Hope everyone's having a great week.

love, S

DIFFA Dining by Design Prep

2010-04-27T23:04:00.000-05:00

With just 3 days until the 20th Anniversary DIFFA Dining by Design event, my design partner, George, and I are officially in a crazed state of mind. However, we couldn't be more excited.

The next 72 hours are going to be busy-busy with last minute preparations, but here is a sneak-peak of what we've been working on-

Our DIY mercury glass. It looks like solid gold here but once they are completly dry, it will have the variations of typical mercury glass.

Our great room is filled with boxes, fabric and supplies. Thank goodness J is out of town this week!

George hard at work.

Can't wait for Friday and to show you all the final result.

For those of you in KC, come see me Friday night!!! Details and online ticket ordering can be found at http://www.diffakc.org/

Wish us luck.

Have a great week.

love, S

How I beat kitchen clutter once and for all

2010-04-26T13:27:00.001-05:00

In the words of Louis Parrish,

"If you can organize your kitchen,

you can organize your life."

It seems that people struggle with organizing their kitchens more than any other room in the house. Perhaps it's those cute little gadgets that seem to call your name when you walk into Bed Bath & Beyond or maybe, in the sake of saving money, we talk ourselves into buying 4 gallon jars of tomato sauce and a case of creamed corn at Costco. Regardless of the reason, you can turn your kitchen into the organized, clutter-free space that you've probably been dreaming about for years (well, if you're like me and dream about decor and cleaning).

Here is my small but perfectly organized kitchen-

Here is how I got there-

1. De-clutter. Everything. That means every single drawer, cabinet, pantry shelf etc.

Throw out old, expired food and spices. Condense your four bags of flour into one large, sealed container. Set aside your avocado peeler (unless your a quacamole fanatic), extra sets of measuring cups, broken or chipped plates, mismatched pieces of silverware etc and take them to your local GoodWill or Salvation Army.

Helpful Hint- If you have several mismatched plates and serving pieces, you could create a plate wall, similar to the one I just did in our dining room-

Helpful Hint- Use an extra saucer as a soap holder in a bath or by the kitchen sink-

real simple

2. Put everything in it's proper place. What's the proper place, you ask? It's what makes the most sense to the function of the kitchen. Cups should be placed closest to the sink or fridge. Baking dishes, pots/pans are put closest to the oven. Serving pieces or utensials that are not used on a regular basis can be in high cabinets or low shelves that aren't as easily accessible. Plates should be stacked by size and type. All salad plates together, dinner plates together etc. This makes finding things and putting them away much easier.

We use our salad plates and bowls most frequently, so those are put on the easiest to reach bottom shelf. Dinner plates are above them, and our less frequently used pasta bowls and cups & saucers are on the highest shelf.

3. Utilize every square inch. Our new construction neighborhood has six models to choose from, we went with the floorplan that ~~was the cheapest~~ worked best for us. However, it also has the smallest kitchen. To compensate, I've made good use of every nook and cranny. One area that is often over-looked is under the sink.

I purchased 2 organizers from WalMart.com to install on the inside of either cabinet door. The ones I bought aren't available anymore but you can purchase similar ones HERE for just $4.99.

This roll-out bin from BB&B holds trash bags, detergent and extra dish soap.

Helpful Hint- Put rubber, shelf-liner below your kitchen sink to protect the wood if your kitchen sink ever leaks.

Our cookbooks and boardgames are kept in the cabinet of our attached island.

Our silverware is placed in the drawer closest to the dishwasher.

We have a silverware sorter similar to the one above, courtesy of Organize.com.

Helpful Hint- When loading the dishwasher, put all forks in one section, spoons in the other etc. When you go to unload, you can grab each section and put it away without having to sort them.

4. Bare down to the essentials. People survived for many generations without quesadilla makers, smores makers, hot dog cookers, seperate brownie pans etc. You can survive without them too. J and I are able to cook wonderful meals with just a toaster, microwave, oven and stove. We just recently purchased an electric can opener (yep, we have our moments of living large). Oh and a great wine opener or two IS an essential.

This is our gadget drawer, everything we need fits in here.

5. Limit what is left out on your counters. The less knick-knacks, canisters, boxes and baskets you have on your counter, the easier it is to keep clean and the larger your counterspace will appear. I learned the hard way. I have enough room in our drawers to store our serving utensials. However for those of you that don't have this space, a utensial holder set next to the stove is a great idea.

This keeps your utensials together and organized without taking up precious counter space. Found HERE.

Helpful Hint-DIY Magnetic Spice Cabinet Door Holder. We received 3 oversized spice holders as wedding gifts and to be honest, they all went back. They took up too much space on our countertop and didn't fit in our pantry. I'm in the process of completing a magnetic spice rack on the back of one of our cabinet doors, similar to Dusty's at AllThingsG&D

This containers can also be used on the side of the fridge as well.

6. Attack your pantry with abandon. Pantries, even small ones, are an excellent asset to any kitchen. After you have decluttered, you should be left with food and baking supplies that are fresh and that you will actually use. Now, sort according to your lifestyle. For those with children who can help themselves to snacks, place snacks on the bottom shelf where it is easier to reach. Remeber to keep cleaning supplies or chemicals out of their reach. For dieters, place your 'cheat' foods on the top shelf.

Our pantry is organized as such-

1st Shelf (bottom)-Holds barbeque tools, dog treats

2nd Shelf-Baking supplies, breakfast foods

3rd Shelf- Snacks, canned goods

4th Shelf-Cleaning supplies, paper goods

Top shelf- Tablecloths, extra serving pieces, formal china

Helpful Hint- Use a label maker to label each shelf inside your pantry (ex: breakfast, snacks, canned food etc) This makes it clear to any family member where everything goes and you can easily spot items that are not in their proper place.

You can double your pantry space with something like this-

for just $24. Found HERE.

Other good options for maximizing pantry or cabinet space are-

Plastic bag holder, found HERE.

We have one in our pantry and it helps keep all those plastic bags confined. We try to remember to bring our own reusable bags to the store but sometimes we forget:( This helps us reuse the plastic bags that we do bring home.

Bakeware/Lid Holder

I recently purchased something similar to the one above and no longer have to scrounge around trying to find my muffin pan or what lid goes to what pot. Keeps my cabinets organized and my sanity intact (for the most part). Found HERE.

Another great option for the back of a pantry door is this-

This mop and broom holder keeps the items off the floor and out of the way. Found HERE for just $9.99.

Helpful Hint-Avoid buying many things in bulk, if you don't have the space to store it all. It isn't saving yourself any money if you have to toss items you don't use or cram items into your pantry where they sit for months forgotten.

7. Clean out the fridge and pantry the day before your trash day. Every Monday night, I go through our fridge and throw out any to-go containers that didn't get eaten or any produce that's less than fresh. I also double check our pantry for bags of chips with only crumbs remaining. I then recycle/throw in the garbage can for Tuesday's morning's trash pick-up day.

8. Don't let mail/coupons/menus sit out on the kitchen counter. When we first moved into our house, I'd grab our mail, come inside and set it on our counter. It would inevitably sit there for days. In order to be more green and rid ourselves of all the extra paper piling up around us, we now have paperless billing for ALL of our bills. It was free to do this, easy and I'm still able to view, track bills online. This has cut down tremendously on the amount of mail we get. I also stop by our recycling bin on the way into the house and dump any advertisements/flyers that we don't want. This way no mail gets into our house that we don't need. I place cards/invites on the side of our fridge, write important dates on our chalkboard wall and don't have to worry about a mess on our counters.

9. Don't forget to have some fun. Cleaning may not be the most thrilling activity in the world but it doesn't have to be horrible either. The thing about organization is that if you do it right the first time, you won't have to do again. Let your kids help sort cookie tins or tupperware. Play some music and have your spouse help too.

When I completed our chalkboard wall in the kitchen, I didn't realize how fun it would be to write little notes to J and keep track of our grocery lists. Our neices and nephews (and the majority of our adult friends) have all enjoyed drawing on the kitchen wall too.

No room for a chalkboard wall, try this cute little chalkboard stand-

Write tonight's dinner recipe down or your grocery list. (This would be very easy to DIY and much cheaper too!)

Helpful Hint-Place this suction ring holder by the kitchen sink to hold your wedding ring while washing dishes or cleaning. No more worrying about your ring falling down the disposal.

Just $2.99 for piece of mind. Found HERE.

I'll leave you with my new favorite piece of art, that would be perfect in any cute, clean, cutter-free kitchen-

etsy Dear Collen

I hope these steps help some of you get organized! Do you have any helpful suggestions for keeping kitchen clutter at bay?

-S

Earth Day 2010

2010-04-22T11:52:00.000-05:00

I'm 'recycling' this post from last year's Earth Day.

Earth Day ~~2009~~ 2010

In honor of Earth Day, I thought I'd showcase some local 'green' Kansans.

1. Dan Rockhill, founder of Studio 804

Rockhill, a professor at my Alma Mater KU, and a group of 22 design students worked to build/design a completely green space in the tornado-ridden town of Greensburg, KS. The new building not only aided in rebuilding the entire town and community, but offered an amazing example of green design at it's best.

'Constructed in seven 12-foot sections using wood salvaged from a local ammunition factory, the entire structure is encased in a curtain of donated energy-efficient glass. A 38-foot-wide hydraulic airplane-hangar door folds up so that the gallery, which has already become an essential community meeting space, can spill out into the street. Powered by a geothermal-heat pump, wind turbines, and photovoltaic cells, the building dovetails with a city-council resolution last year that all publicly funded city buildings greater than 4,000 square feet meet LEED Platinum standards.' -Stephen Zacks of Metropolis Mag

*photo credit: Studio 804

For the full story, click here. For a direct link to Studio 804's website, click here.

For an article on a different but still amazing Studio 804 project, click here.

2. Cafe Seed

A cute cafe that features a 100% vegan menu. It's located at 29th & Cherry in Kansas City, MO. The staff continue to add to an already impressive menu, providing healthy, tasty and animal product-free dishes. FYI-My friend George was really impressed with their veggie burger.

* photo credit: The Pitch

3. Elements of Green, found here.

A local company/website that provides info on green design, materials and benefits. The info on the website is thorough, detailed and easy to follow. However for more detailed info or to schedule installation etc, you can make an appointment at their office at 19th & Wyandotte.

I love how so many local companies are jumping on the green bandwagon and are working towards a better world for us and future generations. The mid-west, especially Kansas, is not really known for our green lifestyle, however thanks to the folks listed above and a great deal of many others, Kansas City is on it's way to bettering the earth.

Hope you're enjoying the beautiful earth today. -S

Front Entry...One thing leads to another

2010-04-21T10:25:00.001-05:00

When we first made an offer on our house, it was about 75% complete. The good news was we were able to pick out a few interior finishes, the bad news was the exterior was already complete. We actually really like the colors of our house (main and trim), but the front door is another story.

Dark green for a front door?!?

And not a pretty, deep forest green but a dusty, medium, brown-based green.

Yuck! It looks like mold.

So, this began the first phase of our front door do-over plan.

I've been dying to paint the door black, like I recently did with the interior-side. The more I thought about it, the more I thought I should paint the window trim the same color as the regular trim , instead of black.

So, the final result would be similar to the interior side-

No big deal, just one more step.

Sounds easy enough.

Once I finally got J on board with completing another house project, we thought if we're going to go to the trouble of painting the door, we might as well get a storm door to protect it. Makes sense, right?

So on to Home Depot to order a new door we went!

We ordered one similar to the one above but without the brass trim. The brass was too shiny and looked cheap, not like the more posh polished brass that's all the rage right now.

I started collecting inspiration pics and really liked this one below. Which got me thinking about how much I love the big polished brass knocker...And how great one would look for our front door. How about a matching kickplate? Or new door handle?

credit HarveyInd

And if were going to go to all the trouble of a new paint color, new storm door and new door accessories, we should have some new fancy lights to show it all off! Obviously.

There's this cute one from Home Depot.

Or a more dramatic, oversized option. (credit Home Depot)

And then there's the subject of wreaths...

Yikes, I'm dangerous. My poor husband. Sadly, it's taken 3 whole weeks to get our storm door in, (apparently black=special order?!) The door is going in TODAY and I can't wait! I'll post pics of the transformation soon.

For your eye candy pleasure, here's some of my favorite front doors-

Anna Hansson Interior Design

BlackWhiteYellowBlog

Country Lines

Miles Redd's front door

Mid-Island Homes

My Deco

love, S

House Crashing with Hillary

2010-04-18T22:44:00.000-05:00

My girlfriend Hillary just recently got engaged and her and her new fiance have purchased a BEAUTIFUL home. They just moved in and are still getting settled but she was kind enough to let me snap some pictures.

Here's the happy couple-

and here's their new home-

Of course I didn't snap a pic when I first arrived and it was still light out :( Sorry for the dark picture.

The dramatic staircase entry.

Formal dining room with textured accent design on the walls.

Love the custom paint treatment on the walls of the half-bath.

Looking down to the 2-story formal living room.

Hillary has big plans for this room. Can't wait to see what she comes up with!

I know a lot of people struggle with window treatments for 2-story windows, so I thought this was a great example to show.

I love the look of the curtains puddling the floor in the office,

and I wish we had built-ins like these in our office. *sigh*

Check out the finished basment-

Media room offering the most comfortable recliners EVER! I could've easily stayed in this room all night.

This big, beautiful bar is begging for a party! (hint hint Hillary:)

Back upstairs in the kitchen-

Hearth room off kitchen.

My favorite part of the house has to be the Master Bedroom and Bathroom.

Sitting room off Master.

His vanity, complete with mini-fridge:)

Her vanity, look at that storage!

Isn't their new home just stunning?!? They've only been in a few weeks but it already looks great.

We had a wonderful evening checking out the new digs and catching up with all the girls.

We also got to enjoy one last night out with our dear friend Jessica before she welcomes her baby girl due this week-

Thank you Hillary and Chris for letting me crash your new house. Now the question remains, when do I get to move-in?

love, S

Mixing furniture styles/finishes

2010-04-14T21:46:00.001-05:00

*First, I want to say hello to those of you that found my blog courtesy of Eddie Ross. I'm a huge fan of Eddie's (and Jaithan's!) and am honored he shared a link to my blog on his recent post. I'm sure you can tell by the picture he posted of me laughing along side him, how much fun his workshops are. I posted some additional pics from the monogram hurricane workshop here. So, Welcome!

Back to my regularly scheduled blogging-

I see lots of questions about mixing furniture pieces on The Nest and other decor forums that I visit. It seems that people (myself included) struggle with creating a cohesive look with mismatched pieces. However with a few simple guidelines, mismatched furniture can create a beautiful, interesting space.

Houzz published a great article about this very topic. The article explains how to properly pull off this look.

Click HERE for the link to the article.

Here are some examples of beautiful rooms, incorporting mixed furniture pieces-

contemporary family room design by vancouver architect Portal Design Inc

traditional kitchen design

eclectic family room design by san francisco interior designer Niche Interiors

eclectic bedroom design

eclectic patio design by 2.bp.blogspot.com

eclectic kids design

eclectic living room design by new york architect Dufner Heighes Inc

eclectic family room design by boston architect LDa Architecture & Interiors

*All images courtesy of Houzz.

Aren't these rooms beautiful and much more interesting than picking out a matching set from a catalog?

I'd love to see some of your rooms and feature them on my blog. Send me some pics!
love, S

Book Page Wreath and Entry Reveal

2010-04-13T22:51:00.001-05:00

I've admired Living with Lindsay's book page wreath ever since she posted about it HERE.

Isn't that so cute!?!

Since I had some free time this weekend, I headed to the dollar store and picked up a book and a 10'' foam wreath form. Check out Lindsay's link above for step by step directions.

I was able to complete the whole wreath while watching New Moon. (I know, I know. I'm 26 years old and LOVE the Twilight series.)

Eventually, it turned into this-

While I was out picking up the wreath supplies, I stopped by World Market for their Friends & Family Sale, which was 25% of EVERY decor item. I picked up a rug that I've been eyeing for awhile. I had originally picked out this rug from Pottery Barn for our entry-

However, I hesitated at the $129 price tag. So, when I saw this one at World Market-

for $80, I was ecstatic. After the 25% discount, it came to just $60, less than half the price of the Pottery Barn one. I came right home and layed the rug down and hung my new wreath in our entry.

Just for fun, let's take one look at the entry BEFORE:

and AFTER:

I love the detail and variations of the colors in the rug.

I hung the book page wreath, a mirror left over from our dining room redo and a carved wood piece I found at a thrift store. I also used the newly painted table that I blogged about last week.

Another close-up of the wreath-

Here's a breakdown of everything-
Rug             World Market      $60
Table          Thrifted                 $20
Curtains       BB&B                 $10 on clearance
Scroll          Kirklands             $20
Mirror         Michaels              $10
Wreath        DIY                     $2 supplies from Dollar Tree
Wood Art   Thrifted                 $3 from Savers
Hurricane    Old Time Pottery  $15
Paint            Home Depot        $15 (used on front door and table)

Almost everything used, I already had on hand.

I'm really happy with the final look. It was certainly a challenge to bring style and art into such a small entry space, but I think I was able to achieve the look I was after.

Hope everyone's having a great week. love, S

Signs of Spring

2010-04-12T22:46:00.001-05:00

J was gone all weekend on a boys fishing trip, so I got caught up on some Spring cleaning and decor projects.

I'm LOVING the gorgeous Spring weather we've been having here and even planted some flowers-

Remember those DIY personalized planters from last summer. If not, find the tutorial HERE.

The planters still look great. I didn't even have to do any touch-ups.

You have no idea how happy I am to see sunny skies, green grass and pretty flowers.

I also spray painted our planters. After 2 summers, our planters were looking a little dull. All they needed was a fresh coat of paint to bring them back to life-

I think the black color looks so much more rich. Gotta love $0.96 spray paint from WalMart.

I was even able to enjoy some cocktails on the patio tonight with one of my best friends, Meryl.

We made grilled tilapia fish tacos, roasted potatoes, 3-bean salad and fresh quacamole. Oh, and some fresh limeade with a splash of a Grey Goose:) Definitely one of the best Monday nights I've had in awhile.

Did you plant any flowers this weekend or partake in any Spring-related fun?

love, S

Deep Thoughts #12

2010-04-09T12:29:00.000-05:00

I know I've been slacking with posts this week, just needed a little break from the internet. I'll be back in full force next week. I've got lots of things planned this weekend, which I can't wait to share with all of you. Happy Friday! I hope you can go out and enjoy the sunshine today.

Without further ado-

Deep Thoughts #12

True wealth is built from friends and family,

from experiences and relationships.

It is derived from a life filled with meaning.

Without these things, money means nothing.

J.D. Roth

*Personal photo from our wedding. Photography Credit Terri Voyles

A girl can dream...

2010-04-06T21:54:00.000-05:00

If my laundry room looked like this-

or this-

I swear I'd stop using my bathtub as a clothes hamper and do laundry at least twice a week.

Well I'd at least think about doing laundry more.

Probably. It would be nice to enjoy a gorgeous room while folding and ironing.

Please tell me I'm not the only one drowning in piles of dirty clothes.

love, S

Updating the Entry Phase 2

2010-04-05T21:27:00.001-05:00

It was a busy weekend, but I did get a few things done around the house, including redoing my first piece of furniture EVER! It's a very small table just painted black, but I love how it turned out.

This little table was bought at a furniture resale shop a few years ago for about $20. I was using it as a nightstand in a guest bedroom but the cherry finish always bugged me. It was a little too bright.

Since the weather was finally nice this weekend, I took the piece outside and started sanding. I used fine sand paper, which was enough since this antique table's finish was already pretty worn.

I used left over black paint from my recent front door makeover and did two coats.

It fits in the little spot next to our front door perfectly.

Now, I just need to find a new rug and figure out what to hang above the cute little table. The best part is this was totally free. My mom bought the table a couple years ago and gave it to me when she no longer had a space for it and the paint (as mentioned above) was left over.

Anyone else tackle any projects this past weekend?

love, S

Easter 2010

2010-04-04T13:06:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter Everyone!

Hoping that you're blessed with the same gorgeous weather as we are in Kansas City.

Charlie spent the morning watching over the neighborhood and I got ready for our Easter dinner with family.

I thought I'd share one of my Easter traditions, pineapple stuffing. This recipe has been made every Easter, starting with my great-grandmother. It's perfect with ham and super easy to make. Let's face it, I'm no Martha Stewart in the kitchen, so the easier; the better.

Pineapple Stuffing

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup butter

6-8 slices of bread, cubed

4 medium eggs

1 can of crushed pineapple

Cream sugar and butter together. Add in one egg at a time. Add in pineapple, do not drain.

Fold in bread cubes. Place in greased 1 1/2 quart casserole dish and bake at 350 degress for ane hour. Serve warm or cold.

Have a lovely Sunday. love, S

Spring Decor

2010-04-01T21:36:00.003-05:00

I'll admit that I'm not a huge fan of Spring/Easter decor. I appreciate the actual holiday and what it stands for, but the chintzy Easter eggs, plastic bunnies and pastel colors make me nauseous.

But after a horrific Winter, I'm ready to bring Spring inside. Since we had a snow storm just 2 weeks ago, you can imagine how happy I was to put on a t-shirt, open the windows and pack away the sweaters this week.

Back to the important stuff, eye candy! Here's some Spring inspiration pics that I've collected-

country living

martha stewart

national geographic

martha stewart

williams sonoma

hgtv

Although, I posted this before I can't forget Eddies Ross' Spring table for the DIFFA Tables by Design at Halls-

eddie ross

Sometimes all you need is a fresh coat of paint to make it feel like Spring all year round-

country living

Or some pretty accents-

diy chat room

west elm

inhabitat

And sometimes, all you need is pretty flowers.

Yay for Friday and sunny skies! -S

Word Up

2010-03-31T22:24:00.000-05:00

Looking for some fun, free art? Check out wordle You can create your own personalized word blurbs, which you can print and frame.

I put this one together in about a minute-

don't know why it's showing up so small:(

I used names of places that were significant to J and I and general words to describe us. It's so simple and fun. You can customize the layout, color and font. Perfect for artwork in a child's room or as a wedding gift.

I admit that I found this website as I was trying to figure out how to copy this project from the hilarious Katie at BowerPower-

Aren't those cute!?! I can't wait to play around on the website more and print my new piece of personalized art. And of course, I'll be printing this free art on cheap scrapbook paper and framing in a DollarTree frame:)

-S

Dish Display

2010-03-29T21:25:00.001-05:00

In the spirit of today's earlier Thrifty Treasures post, I thought I'd share my favorite thrift store purchase to date.

After new lighting, new curtains and new wainscoting something was still missing in our dining room. I absolutly love my Crate and Barrel Dubois mirror knock-offs that were hung over our bar cabinet, but they weren't in scale with the room.

See what I mean? Just to small for that huge, blank wall.

So, I headed back to Savers and walked out with 4 full bags-

which contained a whole bunch of these-

The best part was that the whole pile cost just $8!

I ran all the dishes through the dishwasher and then laid them out on the floor to find an arrangement that I liked.

(Charlie likes to check everything out first :)

I grabbed a whole bunch of 3M Picture Hangers-

and got started-

I started with the middle plates and then just eyed it. It's not perfectly symmetrical, but I think that adds to the charm.

A close up of the plates-

Since they were all purchased at a thrift store, they do not match. I just choose plates in similar shades of whites and cremes.

I'm loving the mix of old and new in our dining room. It's finally starting to look like a finished room.

Hope everyone has a lovely week! -Suzanne

Thrifty Treasures

2010-03-29T09:17:00.031-05:00

It's my pleasure to introduce the first of my Thrifty Treasures series. Thanks to all of you who contacted me about your thrift stores/cheap finds. I hope to continue showcasing your projects and items, so please keep sending them my way.

On to the good stuff!!!

My first item is courtesy of Roeshel from The DIY Showoff blog, which features amazing DIY projects daily. If you haven't checked out her blog, check it out now. It's one of my very favorites!

Roeshel wrote, "It's not exactly thrift store find because it was something previous owners left hanging on the wall for keys or coats but it is a thrifty find because it was 'free'. It's been in the basement collecting dust for a few years. You can't tell but they left it there when painting the wall because there is sloppy white paint on the sides. The screw holes aren't level either but it adds to the charm, right? lol

I saw THIS at the Pottery Barn site and I wanted it for hanging towels on in our bathroom:

I almost used my gift card to buy it but then that little light bulb in my brain went off and I ventured down to the basement to look for the one we had (which led to cleaning the basement which was an added bonus - a little spring cleaning too.)

I found it and gave it a little coat of left over white paint and distressing and it's just nearly exact, but better because it was free!"

Doesn't that look great!?! Looks just as great as the Pottery Barn version and it was free! Thanks for sharing with us Roeshel.

Our second thrifty find is from NatiGirl of the Living in the 513 blog. This fabulous mother of three has found lots of GoodWill goodies, like this metal candle holder-

that just needed a fresh coat of spray paint for a whole new look-

She also scored this sweet carrara marble cheese cutter that looks like it came straight from Williams Sonoma-

Lucky girl! Great finds. Check out her BLOG for more.

For those of you that love milk glass, check out these pics from The Cat Said Quack's recent thrift store excursion. She hit the milk glass motherload!

For just $15, she was able to take enough milk glass pieces home to fill 2 shelves and decorate a cabinet.

Awesome! I love milk glass and like seeing it mixed in with modern decor, as The Cat Said Quack did above.

My next contributor is Jenny from JennyFreeStyle. Jenny is as sweet as pie and also resides in Kansas City! She found these great pieces at a local thrift store-

This green vase was just $0.99! Too bad she got to it first, this would look perfect in my green Great Room :)

Check out these old books from the same store-

The hardcovers are lovely hues and the "How to Keep Slender and Fit After Thirty' title makes me laugh!

She also revamped a set of these chairs-

(before)

(after)

Click HERE if you're interested in purchasing them.

If you haven't checked out Spearmint Decor before, you are missing out on a truly great blog. It features awesome DIY projects, decor and inspiration pics.

Check out this GoodWill frame redo. This frame was purchased for a measly $2.99-

and turned into this cool piece of art-

Isn't that seriously tres chic!?!

Our last thrifty treasure submission is courtesy of The Metamorphasis of Me. I see a ton of old (usually brass) lamps that are in great condition but look dated at thrift stores. I usually pass them by. After seeing her lamp transformation, I think I may have to pick one up.

She took this-

Used my favorite decor trick (spray paint) and turned it into this-

Doesn't that look like something you'd see at HomeGoods? LOVE it. It looks so fresh and modern. No one would ever guess that it used to be brass.

Did this inspire anyone to head to their local thrift store and find some of their own Thrifty Treasures?

Although I frequent antique shops and thrift stores, thanks to the girls above, I'm going to check out items that I usually pass over, like lamps and old books. Please keep sharing your thrifty treasures with me! I hope to encourage everyone to revamp items that they may already have in hand but aren't using. I love to bring new life to discarded items. It's cheap, fun and best of all, environment friendly.

Thanks to the sweet bloggers that shared their finds with us! You're the reason I love blogging so much.

-Suzanne

Deep Thoughts #11

2010-03-26T15:19:00.000-05:00

The way I see it,

if you want the rainbow,

you gotta put up with the rain.

-Dolly Parton

*credit Flickr Melissa Toledo

I realized that I forgot last week's Deep Thoughts segment. Sorry about that! Hope everyone has a lovely weekend. love, S

Eddie Ross Monogrammed Hurricane

2010-03-25T22:05:00.001-05:00

I know, I know, I'd be jealous of me too. I got to hang with Eddie Ross and partner Jaithan TWICE last week. First at the this-is-so-chic-and-posh-I-can't-believe-this-is-taking-place-in-Kansas City event at Halls that I blogged about HERE and HERE. Then just 2 days later, I attended Eddie's workshop at Creative Candles.

I've been following Eddie's blog ever since I started blogging (january 2009) and was thrilled for the opportunity to attend one of his workshops. There's not many people or events that I would drive across town through freezing rain and snow for but Eddie's one of them. To give you an idea of the weather that day, check out pics from the only 2 beings in Kansas City that are still excited about snow after the longest Winter on record-

Yikes! Back to the fun stuff. Here are some snapshots of the workshop.

This-

Turned into this-

A bit blurry but still cute

Inspired by Eddie, I grabbed a vintage cake stand that had belonged to my mom-

a smaller dollar store candle holder and some wine corks-

but the soft green color didn't work in our dining room, so I swapped out a candle from our great room -

I can't wait to play around with some more looks. I absolutly love my monogrammed hurricane and look forward to apply the etching technique that Eddie taught me on many more future glasses/vases/candleholders.

Has anyone attended one of Eddie's workshops? What did you learn? Has anyone used the etching creme and created your own personalized item? Please share with us.

TGIAF! love, S

Don't judge a magazine by it's name

2010-03-24T21:53:00.000-05:00

Would I describe my style as traditonal? Probably not. Country? Heck no. Coastal? I wish!

So, I was surprised when I started noticing that some of my favorite inspiration pics are from magazines that I normally pass over when I'm browsing down the aisle at the grocery store. Think Country Living isn't your scene? Think again.

Check out these gorgeous pics from magazines that you might not expect-

Above 5 images from Country Living magazine. Yep, I said Country Living.

Above 2 images from Traditional Home.

3 images above courtesy of Coastal Living.

3 images above from Southern Living.

Any magazines that you love that are technically a different style than your own? Share your favorite magazine with me. love, S

Thrifty Finds

2010-03-23T22:42:00.003-05:00

I'm back with some more thrift store treasures. I headed back to my new favorite store Savers, that I first posted about here. (For my KC girls, it's the one out South. The one in OP is not nearly as big.)

My first find was this silver-plated small serving platter-

I polished it up and placed it on our dining room table with a few mini-candle holders from Crate & Barrel.

The second steal was this sweet vintage table runner-

Which I set on our bar cabinet-

And finally, I picked this little chair up-

It was marked $7.99 but I got it 25% off as it was their 'household items' sale day. Sweet! It was in good condition but the microsuede was pretty dirty and needed to be replaced.

I picked up some burlap fabric for $2.99/yard (ignore Charlie's paw)-

and got to work-

I doubled up the burlap for complete coverage.

Less than $10 and 20 minutes, I had a perfect new chair for my new desk (part of a larger reveal coming soon).

*********Attention bloggers/readers*********

Have you found any great thrifty finds recently? I'd love to hear about them. It can be items that you have completely revamped or left as-is but proudly display in your home. Leave me a comment or shoot me an email linking your blog post about your thrifty treasure or for any non-bloggers send me pictures of the item(s) and I'll upload them on here:) I'll be featuring your great finds on Monday 3/29, so I need to hear from you by Sunday afternoon (3/28).
Can't wait to see everyone's great finds. love, S

My name is Suzanne and I'm a magazine/catalog/bookaholic

2010-03-22T19:20:00.000-05:00

I feel like a pre-adolescent boy stashing his stolen Playboys in every nook of his room. I even tell my husband when he sees a new stash of glossy goodness not to worry... I only read them for the articles, not to actually order the $3000 sofa from Restoration Hardware that I've been fantasizing about for weeks on end.

This is the pile currently sitting next to my bed ~~patiently waiting~~ begging to be read.

I may even have a few more stashed under the bed.

And maybe a couple under the couch too. Shhh.

Updating the Entryway

2010-03-21T20:58:00.001-05:00

I love my house. I mean, I really LOVE it. Before I go to bed every night, I think about all that I am grateful for and my house always makes the list.

With that said, nothing and nobody is perfect. I wish that our house had a more impressive entry way. I long for an entry table, a place to hang coats and display great art. But, there's no excuse for any entry, no matter how small, to lack in style. Here's an easy way to update your entry...

Check out my before and after:

I adore the final result. It makes the trim surrounding really pop. The best thing is I only spent $15 and about an hour to get this look.

This is very easy. First, lightly sand the door. This is absolutely necessary or else your paint won't stick very well. I used fine sandpaper. You just need to sand enough so that the paint isn't the least bit shiny anymore.

Second, tape around the door frame, hinges and door knob.You may remove the door but it's not necessary.

Third, ready to paint! I used Behr's Premium Plus Ultra Paint and Primer in One colormatched to Glidden's Onyx Black. I wanted to try this paint anyways and I figured since I was painting black over white, primer was necessary. This paint was great. It made the job very easy. The quart of paint was $15 and well worth every cent. I also strongly recommend this paint color. It's rich and velvety in color, with no red or green undertones (which is common in many black paints).

It took 2 coats for full coverage. I used a small brush to get into the crevices and a foam roller for the majority of the door.

I know a lot of people have these narrow windows on either side of their front door. While I enjoy the sunlight that shines through, the lack of privacy is a bit bothersome. We decided to hang sheer curtains (folded in half), so that light can still shine through but no one can see in. The sheer curtains work perfectly for us, as our dogs love to sit by our door staring out and we can pull the curtains back when we want the sun to shine in. Just an idea if someone was looking for an alternative to blinds or privacy film.

Hope everyone had a lovely Sunday. love, S

I must be dreaming...

2010-03-18T21:38:00.000-05:00

Guess who I got to hang out with tonight...

the one and only EDDIE ROSS!!!!!!!!

I am happy to say that he was as sweet and gracious as could be. His partner, Jaithan, was equally as wonderful. After meeting both of them I am even more smitten, if that's even possible.

Here's a picture of Eddie's table taken quickly at tonight's event-

His was by far the most interesting tablescape. I love his attention to detail.

Wow, what a day! The sun finally came out, my husband's evening meeting got cancelled at the last minute and we got to enjoy some wine in the company of so many great designers. Hope everyone had as lovely of a day as I.
love, s

Signs of Spring and a Thank You

2010-03-16T21:05:00.001-05:00

My dear 80+ year old great aunt was sweet enough to bring me some flowers. I love how they bring such cheery color to our kitchen and serve as a reminder that Spring is indeed on it's way, FINALLY.

So, please enjoy these virtual flowers-

I also want to thank the kind, inspirational Le of Home Front Inspiration for the lovely giveaway gift. I was lucky enough to win a set of beautiful notecards (see post here) designed by Jac Coats.

Yesterday was a more-hectic-than-usual-Monday and I was feeling very overwhelmed and stressed. Imagine my surprise when J said that I received a parcel all the way from Australia...

I opened it to find not only a set of gorgeous notecards but a sweet, personalized note from Le.

I apologize for the crappy cell phone pics. The notecards are little works of art and these photos do not do them justice.

I think they're too pretty to send;) I already have plans to frame 2 and set on our nightstands.

So, thank you again Le for the lovely gift and for brightening my day! This is one of my favorite aspects of blogging (not the free stuff, although that's pretty sweet too but), connecting with people that I wouldn't normally come in contact with. I'm now proud to say that I have a friend in Australia.

Le, I hope you know you have a friend all the way in Kansas City!

Cheers everyone and Happy Spring!!!

love, S

Diffa Tables by Design

2010-03-16T10:26:00.000-05:00

A friendly reminder-

If you are in Kansas City this Thursday evening, please come to Diffa's (Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS) Tables by Design event at Halls in the Kansas City Plaza.

I will be there ~~freaking out~~ trying to remain cool and collected as I meet my favorite blogger/designer, Eddie Ross. Check out his post about the event here. I'm so thankful for the chance to meet him and see his talented work up-close.

Credit eddieross.com

Yep, he's as talented as he is adorable.

I'd love some company, so come on down! love, S

Rock Chalk

2010-03-15T21:19:00.000-05:00

We had an awesome weekend celebrating J's birthday and KU's Big 12 Championship win.

But, we're paying the price now. We're both under the weather and exhausted. However, I'll be back with a fun little project to share soon. Hope everyone's staying warm on this cool Monday night.

Happy Spring everyone! love, S

Deep Thoughts #10

2010-03-12T15:22:00.000-06:00

This week's Deep Thoughts post is in honor of my husband, who will be celebrating his birthday tomorrow. Happy Birthday to the man that knows me better than I know myself and is my very best friend. May you have many, many more great years to come.

A birthday is just the first day

of another 365-day journey

around the sun.

Enjoy the trip.

~Author Unknown

Stairway to...

2010-03-11T22:20:00.000-06:00

This post is going to be short and sweet because I am exhausted.

I finally got sick of staring at the blank wall in our stairway-

(that's Charlie's favorite place to hang out by the way)

I didn't want to do a photo display, since I already have one in our great room and really, how many pictures does a couple need to display of themselves (and their family and friends)?. And artwork can add up fast. So, I did whatever a girl on a budget does to add some interest. I framed $0.20 scrapbook paper. Instant art.

(please ignore J. He just got home from a soccer game and was admiring my work)

Close-up

In case you were wondering about the texture of the frames, I spray painted a thin coat of Rustoleum Metallic spray paint that I had left over from my light fixture redo. I couldn't find any frames to match the wood stain of our railing and plain espresso colored frames just didn't look right. I'm really happy with how it turned out.

The boys and I hope everyone's doing well. TGIF!

Love, S

Chandelier Switcheroo

2010-03-09T20:58:00.000-06:00

I'm sure by now most of you have seen the new chandelier in our dining room. We replaced the builder-grade chandelier with something a bit more fitting for the formal space. Well I hate anything to go to waste, so I took the old light fixture from in there and installed it in our breakfast room.

Before: One-light fixture that didn't offer nearly enough light

After: chandelier switch

And a few other pictures of the space for good measure:

You can read about by easy DIY valances here

Oh and the original light fixture from the breakfast room will be going to a relatives' home. No waste, perfect!

Hope everyone's having a great week. Love, S

Dining by Design

2010-03-08T21:38:00.000-06:00

I am excited to announce that my fabulous friend George and I will be designing a table at this year's Dining by Design Diffa Event.

If you will be in Kansas City the weekend of April 30th, COME SEE ME! There is a cocktail party open to everyone on Friday, April 30th. It's $25, you can purchase tickets here or at the door. Come enjoy a cocktail with George and I. You can walk around and check out the tables on Saturday morning as well. There is also a gala banquet dinner Saturday evening. All proceeds go to support Diffa. The event will be held at the Crown Center Hyatt Hotel, near downtown Kansas City.

I can't begin to tell you how excited I am. Here's some pictures from previous Diffa Dining by Design Events:

I'm also excited to tell you that there will be a celebrity designer 'Table by Design' event at Halls in the Kansas City Plaza. Click here for details. This free event lets you check out tables decorated by such talented designers as my blog-crush Eddie Ross (I seriously love that man), Marc Blackwell and Sam & Dan McMillen (2nd place winners of Amazing Race), as well as many great local talents. It starts March 18th.

I hope to see you all on 4/30. Seriously, come down and hang out with us!

Love, S

sunday steals

2010-03-07T20:14:00.000-06:00

I woke up early today and ran a ton of errands while J slept in. I decided to check out Savers (a thrift store) that recently opened by us. I read about other bloggers good luck at finding buried treasures at GoodWill or Salvation Army (such as Holly at LifeInTheFunLane and the genius behind SpearmintDecor) but have not been so lucky myself. I've been on a hunt for months for an old dresser to redo to no avail. So, my expectations for Savers was pretty low.

However, I was instantly smitten as soon as I walked in the door. It was the cleanest, most well-organized thrift store I have ever seen. I walked out with several great deals-

I grabbed this up for just $1.99

and this

I knew all they needed was a fresh coat of glossy spray paint.

Here they are now-

Amazing what $5 and 10 minutes can do.

Hope everyone has a great week! love, S

Deep Thoughts #9

2010-03-05T14:16:00.001-06:00

*credit Annalisa Barelli of advent20ten

Finish each day and be done with it.

You have done what you could.

Some blunders and absurdities have crept in;

forget them as soon as you can.

Tomorrow is a new day.

You shall begin in serenely

and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

*I wanted to share with you the beautiful creations of my dearest friend, Annalisa. She is my soul-sister and I am constantly amazed at her talent. She recently had her first show, which I know is the first of many successes to come her way. Check out her website annalisabarelli for more beautiful, inspiring images.

love, S

AllModern.com Giveaway Winner

2010-03-04T09:12:00.001-06:00

Congrats to MandeeFoFandee of TheBearNakedTruth. You have won these 2 gorgeous pillows courtesy of www.allmodern.com.

I tried to copy the full image from Random.org that selected the winner but all I could get to paste was this-

True Random Number Generator Min: 1 Max: 28 Result: 1 Powered by RANDOM.ORG

* I did 1-28 becasue I didn't count the 3 comments that I had left on the original giveaway post:)

I'm hoping to do more fun giveaways in the future. Thanks to everyone for participating and a huge thanks to AllModern.com for the free swag.

Have a lovely Thursday! love, S

PS:Madee will have 48 hours to respond, if she doesn't respond a new winner will be selected.

Houzz Rules

2010-03-03T09:57:00.000-06:00

Just discovered the website Houzz and have been drooling over the thousands of gorgeous inspiration pics. It's very user-friendly and you can search by spaces, styles and even metro areas (sadly but no suprise KC does not make the list). You can save your favorite pics into your own ideabook for quick future references.

Check out a few pics-

traditional staircase design

contemporary dining room design

contemporary staircase design by san francisco architect Dumican Mosey Architects

traditional family room design by los angeles interior designer Brooke Giannetti

Enjoy!

*A reminder that my giveaway ends today at 2pm, so if you haven't signed up yet do so now. All you need to do is leave a comment on this post for you chance to win.

love, S

Dining Room Reveal and a Review

2010-02-28T19:27:00.003-06:00

Before I show my (*90% complete) dining room redo, let's look back to how the room looked when we moved in.

Before:

Boring, builder-grade chandelier: check!

no artwork on boring beige walls: check!

no window treatments: check!

After:

Details:

Our biggest change was adding the wainscotting trim. Our dear friend Dave installed this for us, a huge thank you to him! I had planned on painting the entire section white but really liked how the trim popped against the wall color, so we kept it like this.

I framed doilies that my great-grandmother made and hung then on either side of the doorway.

The frames are from Michael's.

They took 2 coats of paint for complete coverage.

You can read about the new chandelier and window treatments here and here.

Review:

The trim that we used was already primed but needed to be painted. Our builder left us tons of paint (exterior main and trim, interior wall color, stain etc) but NO trim paint!?! Luckily, I was able to contact him and find out the name and sheen of our trim. (white umber and glossy) I headed to ~~my home away from home~~ Home Depot and had the color matched to the new Martha Stewart line.

I must say that I really enjoyed this paint and would recommend it. It's low-VOC, offers great coverage and very easy to clean up. I'd definitely use again.

Good food, good friends, good wine, good life:

Our dining room redo finished just in time, as it was our turn to host the dinner party rotation that we have going on with our friends. We hosted 17 people, whew! Everyone brought sides, dessert, wine etc, and we tackled the main course.

What a great night! I'm blessed to have such wonderful friends.

Hope everyone had a lovely weekend. love, S

*I say the dining room is 90% done because I have one more project to add that I'm still working on. Pics soon:)

Deep Thoughts #8

2010-02-26T09:21:00.000-06:00

I’m all about exuberance.

We only have one short life to live,
and we shouldn’t waste it
being tasteful.

—Fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi, March 05

Everybody Loves Free:AllModern.com Giveaway!!! *Giveaway Has Ended 3/3/10

2010-02-24T13:37:00.002-06:00

Before I share the details about my very first giveaway (yay!), I wanted to share with you a great site for kids bedding. Ever since I completed a nursery mood board for my expecting friend, Megan, I find myself still visiting baby/kid sites and lusting over the sweet decor. I'll also admit that even though J and I aren't quite ready for our own bundle of joy yet, it doesn't stop me from dreaming about our future kids' rooms.

I'm loving this-

and this-

and also these-

Yikes, I got a little carried away! Back to the main reason for this post,

my first giveaway, which means free stuff for you!

A huge thanks to ALLMODERN.com for giving away these 2 lovely accent pillows to 1 lucky reader.

How to Enter: Become a follower of this blog and leave a comment on this post. Please include an email address, so I can reach you if you win.

Details: The giveaway will end on March 3rd at 2pm CST. A winner will be selected by Random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be selected.

good luck and good day! -S

*disclaimer: I received no compensation for posting this. I was contacted about the opportunity to provide a giveaway for my readers and I couldn't deny one of you of some fabulous pillows:)

Gorgeous Tablescapes

2010-02-22T21:16:00.000-06:00

Now that my dining room is almost complete, I've been looking for a fabulous tablescape to complete the look. Here are some of my favorite designs-

Oh and I'm also collecting inspiration pics for an upcoming event. More on that soon:)

love, S

Deep Thoughts #7

2010-02-19T08:46:00.002-06:00

flickr: walt s

You have brains in your head.

You have feet in your shoes.

You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.

You're on your own.

And you know what you know.

You are the guy who'll decide where to go.

-Dr. Seuss

Let's Get Organized

2010-02-17T22:12:00.001-06:00

Ever had one of those ~~days~~ ~~weeks~~ months that feel like you'll never get caught up and you're just running around in circles,

but all you want to do is slow down, breathe and relax?

It's been one of those months, not bad just BUSY. I have my dining room final reveal to show you all but need to get batteries for my camera and simply have not had time to get any . Ugh. They're coming soon, I promise.

I dream of one day having an organized office that looks less like this-

and more like these-

apartment therapy

bhg

my home ideas

A girl can dream, right? Hope you are having a fabulous week! love, S

Happy 101 Award

2010-02-15T11:49:00.002-06:00

Hello and Happy Monday! I'd like to thank Ashley from Decorating Obsessed for giving me the Happy 101 Award. Ashely happens to be an old friend from high school that's become my new blog buddy. Her house is super adorable by the way.

So, here we go...The Top 10 Things that Make Me Happy:

1. The hubster, J. We've known each other our entire lives, been together almost 6 years, married for almost 3. I'm not one to usually give marriage/relationship advice, as I think every relationship is different. However, I will say that the best recommendation I can give is to be with someone that makes you laugh.

2. My wonderful group of friends. I finally know what it feels like to have an amazing, supportive, fun extended group of friends. I felt like I never really belonged in high school. I just hated the drama, gossip, jealousy etc that seems so prevalent in high schools and middle schools. I always had friends of course, but I finally know the feeling of belonging to the group and knowing that I'll be supported no matter what life throws my way.

This was taken this past New Years Eve.

3. Summer, which feels like it will never come after the winter we've been having. Even though my days of Summer vacation are sadly over (since graduating and working full time), the sunshine, long days and warm nights make me happy. Is there anything better than spending a sunny afternoon floating down the river with friends? I think not.

4. My hometown, Kansas City. So, I realize that I've never techinally lived anywhere else nor has J, but we love our city. The mid-western values, friendly faces and history make KC a great place to live. We happen to love that if we drive 15 minutes North, we'll be in the heart of Downtown with great bars, restaurants and nightlife and if we drive 15 minutes South, we can drive around empty roads and see trees for miles.

This is a view of Kansas City's Plaza lights taken from the rooftop ballroom at the Intercontinental Hotel on NYE. This is an outdoor upscale shopping area, with lots of great restaurants which decorates with thousands of Christmas lights every year.

5. Our House. We closed 7/3/09 and have been very busy making our new-construction house feel like a comfortable, well-designed, full of character (the #1 complaint of new construction) home. We still have a ways to go, but I think we're getting there. It thrills me to have a space to call my own and decorate however I wish.

6. Wine (as if you had to ask!) To enjoy on a snowed night in, sitting by the fire or at a summer bar-b-que with friends, wine's been a good friend to me.

credit: flickr Andreas Gissl

7. Our dogs, which anyone that knows me even slightly could've guessed. We've had Charlie (the cockapoo) since he was 12 weeks (he's now 4) and got Zorro (the German Shepherd-Husky mix) about 18 months ago, after my grandmother passed away. I never grow tired of watching them play in the snow or playing catch with them in the backyard. They are the sweetest, most loving creatures I have ever encountered.

8. Fashion/Shopping, what can I say? I'm a girly-girl at heart.

credit: Ann Taylor

9. Blogs/Bloggers. I've said this before and I'll say it again, I am profoundly inspired and awe-struck at the talent that I find on various blogs every day. There are so many blogs that help keep me motivated when I grow tired of house projects or inspire me to try something new. I've learned how to paint stripes, how to properly apply makeup, how to create a photo wall on a budget just to name a few.

10. Interior Design/Decorating. My very passion, what gives me a complete sense of joy and fulfillment. It's important for everyone to have their own space, even if it's a crowded dorm room, apartment or huge McMansion. We all need a place that reflects our personality and who we are, where we can feel comfortable and content. I believe we thrive on having a comfortable home, a place where you can't wait to return to. Some examples of design-

credit Elle Decor

credit House Beautiful

credit Elle Decor

I'm now going to share the love and link 10 blogs that make me happy:

1. Megan @SunflowersandClovers a blog friend, as well a friend in real life

2. Leslie @LeslieG very talented in graphic design and has the cutuest little boy to boot!

3. Jackie @Jackie'sEverExcitingLife a true sweetheart whose blog is so honest and inspiring

4. Kelly @I Dream of Decor check out the Rosette Felt Wreath she made...incredible!!!

5. Le @HomeFrontInspiration the name says it all. gorgeous photos!

6. Mandee @TheBearNakedTruth Hilarious, seriously funny! I laugh out loud reading all of her posts.

7. Krystle @TheHarringtonHerald Love her receipes and personal photos

8. Mrs.McB @LivingHappilyEverAfter great receipes, stories and photos

9. AWeddingStory don't let the name fool you, there's plenty of great non-wedding posts. Her baked goods look to die for!

10. Amy @TheMistressOfOxford Soon to be a mom. Check out her cute nursery and fun baby posts.

I got a lot accomplished this weekend and will be blogging about several fun little projects this week. Can't wait to share with all of you! love, S

Deep Thoughts #6

2010-02-12T09:12:00.002-06:00

Because Valentine's Day is a mere 2 days away, I thought it only appropriate to have a love-themed Deep Thoughts post today. I featured this poem in our wedding programs 2.5 years ago. I have always loved it, and the longer I am married, the more true these words become. Enjoy.

Why Marriage

by Mari Nichols-Haining

Because to the depths of me, I long to love one person,

With all my heart, my soul, my mind, my body...

Because I need a forever friend to trust with the intimacies of me,

Who won't hold them against me,

Who loves me when I'm unlikable,

Who sees the small child in me, and

Who looks for the divine potential of me...

Because I need to cuddle in the warmth of the night

With someone who thanks God for me,

With someone I feel blessed to hold...

Because marriage means opportunity

To grow in love in friendship...

Because marriage is a discipline

To be added to a list of achievements...

Because marriages do not fail, people fail

When they enter into marriage

Expecting another to make them whole...

Because, knowing this,

I promise myself to take full responsibility

For my spiritual, mental and physical wholeness

I create me,

I take half of the responsibility for my marriage

Together we create our marriage...

Because with this understanding

The possibilities are limitless.

You may check out last year's Valentine's post here, which features those that I love the most.
Happy Friday! LOVE, S

Stripes and Sheens and Polkadots...Oh My!

2010-02-11T13:16:00.000-06:00

I'm trying to become more daring in my personal design choices and incorporating some bolder colors and patterns into our spaces.

Here's some rooms with bright colors, fun prints and otherwise funky style.

HomeLinkDesign

Elle Decor

roomremix.blogspot

Decor Pad

Domino

eleganceandsimplicity blog

RoomLust blog

housetohome

TGIAF! -S

Everybody Loves a Good Knockoff

2010-02-09T21:20:00.000-06:00

Recessionistas everywhere are looking for deals and just because we are spending less, doesn't mean we'll settle for boring decor, dated items or lack of style. Here are some great budget options of some of my favorite pieces-

Budget Buster #1: West Elm Bronze Ceramic Table Lamp $149, can be found here

Knockoff #1: HomeTrends Asher Lamp base in Bronze $25, found here

Budget Buster #2: Cb2 Boxes Wall Sconce $49.95, found here

Knockoff #2: HomeTrends Asher Votive Sconce $12, found here

Budget Buster #3: Pottery Barn Hamilton Lamp $139, found here

Knockoff #3: Canopy Pharmacy Lamp $27, found here

Budget Buster #4: Pottery Barn Emerson Rug $99-$699, found here

Knockoff #4: Target Fieldcret Luxury Jacobean $34.99-$379.99, found here (This is a bit darker but simialr print/style and it's half the price.)

Budget Buster #5: West Elm Organic Cotton Pin-Tuck Duvet $99 Queen, found here

Knockoff #5: Target Home Kissing Pleat Bedding $79 Queen, found here

I'd love to hear about other people's good deals! Have you found a good knockoff of something you love?

Have a great week. -S

It's a Boy!

2010-02-08T11:32:00.001-06:00

(Let me start by saying that no, I'm not pregnant.)

My lovely friend Megan (of Sunflowers&Clovers) is expecting a little boy this summer. I'm beyond excited for her and her husband and know that they will be incredible parents. She asked me ~~or actually I sort of demanded~~ to make some idea boards for their little bundle of joy. Although J and I are still a ways away before we're ready to become parents ourselves, I adore nurseries and was happy to have an excuse to look over adorable baby decor the past few days.

Megan knew she wanted a khaki wall color and a wood crib (not white/black etc). Other than that, she was open to ideas.

Idea Board #1

Neutral wall color and furniture but pops of color in the accesories. I love the fun mix of bright green and navy. I wanted to offer a room that would be easily adaptable for when baby M grows. This color scheme and general decor would work just as well for a 4 year old, as a new born.

Idea Board #2

Soft shades of blue, green and creme. This option is gender neutral, so the room could be used again for a little sister.

What do you think? Which one do your prefer?

I also wanted to share my favorite nurseries-

This is one of my all-time favorites and I think is great inspiration for Megan as well-

A close-up of the organized closet

credit RMS JnT

Great khaki wall color. I also like how clean and simple it is.

credit meg-meg

Love these colors!

Credit RMS funkygirl627

credit RMS obxgirl

I adore this! I inherited my love of turqouise from my mom and plan on using this as my main inspiration for our (very) future nursery.

credit Land of Nod

This look is easy to recreate. Just tape off the criss-cross lines with painter's tape, seal the edges and paint over with any paint color.

credit project nursery

Last but not least, the wall of stripes. How fun!

credit RMS sjdoh

Congratulations again Megan! Can't wait to see the final reveal.

Moms/Moms-to-be: Any advice for Megan or other first-time moms?

Deep Thoughts #5

2010-02-05T09:00:00.000-06:00

Life is like a box of crayons. Most people are the 8-color boxes, but what you're really looking for are the 64-color boxes with the sharpeners on the back. I fancy myself to be a 64-color box, though I've got a few missing. It's ok though, because I've got some more vibrant colors like periwinkle at my disposal. I have a bit of a problem though in that I can only meet the 8-color boxes. Does anyone else have that problem? I mean there are so many different colors of life, of feeling, of articulation.. so when I meet someone who's an 8-color type.. I'm like, "hey girl, magenta!" and she's like, "oh, you mean purple!" and she goes off on her purple thing, and I'm like, "no - I want magenta!"

-john mayer

*photo credit aka creativity (flickr)

Give a girl the right pair of shoes...

2010-02-03T09:12:00.001-06:00

I want to share my new favorite shoes, found here

Aren't they divine? I'd been searching for a pair of dark blue heels for awhile now and was thrilled to find these at an awesome price of...

$29.99!!!

Yep, less than thirty bucks! They look way more expensive than that and fit great. In fact the entire Lela Rose Collection at Payless is pretty fantastic. They look just as great with a pair of dark skinny jeans, as they do with dress pants.

Love!

'Give a girl the right pair of shoes, and she can conquer the world.'

-Bette Midler

Happy Wednesday and Happy Shopping! -S

I think I'm in love

2010-02-01T21:19:00.000-06:00

I am constantly amazed at the talent and creativity of my fellow bloggers. I find new blogs every day that are chuck full of awe inspiring design. My new fave is Design Dump. I literally spent about 2 hours studying her blog and detailed work when I stumbled upon it yesterday.

Check out these before and afters:

Umm, are you kidding me?!? A-MA-ZING. Look at that floor, the black walls, the coffered ceilings!

Aren't those incredible transformations!?! Check out her blog for even more room makeovers.

love, S

Deep Thoughts #4

2010-01-29T09:57:00.000-06:00

The real voyage of discovery

consists not in seeking new lands

but seeing with new eyes.

—Marcel Proust

Dining Room Redo: Phase 2

2010-01-27T20:54:00.003-06:00

I mentioned in my last post that I had gotten the West Elm capiz chandelier during their local going out of business sale, well I also picked up some window treatments.

I've loved these medallion curtains since I first saw them and knew they were the perfect way to add some interest to our otherwise boring dining room. I was happy to see that they had been marked down and were an additional 40% off, so they ended up being a great deal.

Here's our boring windows before-

And after-

I've used oil rubbed bronze hardware for our other window treatments but decided to go with an off-white rod as to not compete with the busy medallion pattern. I also wanted to match our trim because I had planned on hanging the rod above the window, just below the crown molding to make the window look even larger. I looked everywhere for the right color and ended up finding the perfect rod at WalMart of all places and for a mere $16.

What a difference the new chandelier and curtains make! We still have a ways to go in this room but it's finally starting to have some personality. Phase 3 will be coming soon.

On a side note, is it Friday yet?!?

love, S

Capiz Please

2010-01-26T21:27:00.001-06:00

Remember when I posted this?

Well, it sat in our dining room for a few weeks. I'd been been lusting over the West Elm Capiz Chandelier for quite some time but didn't want to pay the $259 price tag. After several unsuccesful Ebay searches, I had given up. Then I got an email saying that our local West Elm was closing and everything was marked down. I went in and as luck would have it, I got the last capiz chandelier (and for cheap too).

Sunday, I finally took the contents out and got to work.

I've never changed a light fixture out before but thanks to the greatness of YouTube tutorials, I was confident I could handle it. I turned off the power in our dining room-

removed our original chandelier-

and got the new one hooked up. It was actually really easy. The most tedious part of the entire process was unwrapping every strand of chapiz shells, which took nearly an hour.

Finally, let there be light-

It's very dramatic and the shells really glisten when it's turned on.

This is phase 1 of our dining room redo. I'll post pics of phase 2 tomorrow.

Have a lovely week. love, S

Deep Thoughts #3

2010-01-22T09:26:00.000-06:00

Perfection is achieved,

not when there's nothing more to add,

but when there is nothing left to take away.

-Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Clean House

2010-01-20T20:47:00.002-06:00

I have to admit January and February are my least favorite months of the year. The holidays are over, the Christmas tree is put away and the weather is still cold and dreary. So, I use these months to focus on major cleaning, decluttering and preparing for Spring! I originally shared my seasonal cleaning list here. I've done some tweeking and here is the updated list for 2010.

Seasonal Cleaning List

Kitchen:

__Empty and scrub down the inside of the fridge and freezer

__Empty and clean inside of the utensil drawers

__Scrub down the cupboard exteriors

__Clean the stove hood filter and fridge condenser coil

__Replace water filters in fridge, sink, coffeemaker, etc

__Clean drain (baking soda, vinegar, cover, sit, then add boiling water to wash it

down)

__Shine sink (Bon Ami, then Windex)

__Polish appliances and clean coffeemaker

__Scrub tile grout

__Clean out pantry and reorganize

__Clean oven (use self-clean feature)

__Clean microwave

__Discard expired food

Bathroom:

__Launder shower curtain

__Empty, weed, clean out and reorganize medicine cabinet

__Shine sink

__Scrub tile grout

__Go through and discard old makeup and beauty supplies

__Clean and wipe down walls next to sink

__Use Draino on all sinks

Bedrooms:

__Strip the bed, flip the mattress, and vacuum

__Launder mattress pad and dust ruffle

__Launder pillows

__Sort through wardrobe to donate unused clothes/accessories

__Clean out from under the bed

__Organize and purge from night table

Living/All Areas:

__Wash inside of windows

__Change HVAC filter

__Flip sofa and chair cushions

__Clean and scrub down baseboards and moulding

__Wax floors if needed

__Clean light switch covers

__Disinfect all door handles

__Launder/dry clean window treatments

__Shampoo wall to wall carpeting and air-out area rugs

__Dust and clean all light fixtures and ceiling fans

__Clean fireplace and flu if necessary

__Test/replace batteries in smoke alarms

Outdoor:

__Wash outside of windows with water and vinegar solution

__Clean screens

__Power wash porch areas

__Clean out grill

__Clean and store/bring out outdoor furniture and accessories

Hope that helps! I completed this entire list over 2 weekends and am trying to train J to keep it clean. So far, so good:)
Hope you're having a fabulous week. love, S

Spray Paint Satisfaction

2010-01-18T22:20:00.001-06:00

This is the first weekend in ages that we were home both Friday and Saturday night. I needed some time to relax after a killer work week and had lots of things on my to-do list.

Finally got around to a project that I've wanted to do for awhile. I hate the white plastic outlet covers and light switches in our house. However, I did not want to pay $7.95 each to replace them with oil rubbed bronze metal covers. We have 24 outlets/light switches on our 1st floor alone, so that would've been a lot of dough that could be better spent ~~on a fabulous pair of shoes~~ saving towards our basement finish.

Instead...
I bought this-

and got to work.

Here's the before shot:

I was a little unsure how spray painting plactic would turn out. So, I just did the covers in the kitchen area to try it out.

Here are the plain covers-

Here they are with 1 coat of paint (it took 2 coats for full coverage)-

and viola...

the finished look-

They turned out beautifully. No one would ever guess that they were in fact plastic. The spray paint was $6 a can and is enough for me to do all the covers on our first floor. So, for less than the price to buy ONE oil rubbed bronze cover at Home Depot, I'm able to get the look for TWENTY-FOUR!

Gotta love that. Here's to a great week for everyone! love, s

Deep Thoughts #2

2010-01-15T14:40:00.002-06:00

You can do anything,

but not everything.

-David Allen

Happy Friday! love, S

*photo credit: Flickr timwillis

2010 Dream House

2010-01-14T14:15:00.001-06:00

Back with this year's HGTV 2010 Dream House. I like this house so much more than last year's home. It's modern, streamlined and simple. I also enjoy the industrial influence. The designers allowed the gorgeous views to be the main focus and selected colors and accents that enhance the views, rather than compete for your eyes' attention.

Here are my favorite rooms in the house:

1. The kitchen/great room area. The warm colors and wall full of windows are perfection.

Look at that view!

Love how the glass tile backsplash goes all the way up the 16ft. tall ceilings.

Close up of tile

2. The Master Bedroom. The bed looks a bit small for a master but I love the light, breezy window treatments, the earthy colors and mix of textures.

Simple sliding glass doors seperate the bath and bedroom.

3. Little nook perfect for reading and relaxing. The light spa blue glass tile is gorge.

4. Media Room. Designers are finally getting away from severe, dark media rooms. Thank goodness!

5. Office

Overall, this house is much more style that previous years. It also very liveable and comfortable. What are your thoughts?

Don't forget you can enter daily through February to win.

On an unrelated note, THANK GOODNESS IT'S THURSDAY. Just one more day til the weekend.

love, S

Impromptu Project

2010-01-12T21:29:00.004-06:00

Came home from work to find my closet like this-

Looks like the left side gave out under all the weight of my clothes.

Argh! You can guess how I'll be spending my weekend. Hoping J agrees to a closet re-do. We'll see...

sunshine and wine

****We've Moved****

Adult Pieces, Kid Prices

DIFFA Dining by Design Prep

How I beat kitchen clutter once and for all

Earth Day 2010

Front Entry...One thing leads to another

House Crashing with Hillary

Mixing furniture styles/finishes

Book Page Wreath and Entry Reveal

Signs of Spring

Deep Thoughts #12

A girl can dream...

Updating the Entry Phase 2

Easter 2010

Spring Decor

Word Up

Dish Display

Thrifty Treasures

Deep Thoughts #11

Eddie Ross Monogrammed Hurricane

Don't judge a magazine by it's name

Thrifty Finds

My name is Suzanne and I'm a magazine/catalog/bookaholic

Updating the Entryway

I must be dreaming...

Signs of Spring and a Thank You

Diffa Tables by Design

Rock Chalk

Deep Thoughts #10

Stairway to...

Chandelier Switcheroo

Dining by Design

sunday steals

Deep Thoughts #9

AllModern.com Giveaway Winner

Houzz Rules

Dining Room Reveal and a Review

Deep Thoughts #8

Everybody Loves Free:AllModern.com Giveaway!!! *Giveaway Has Ended 3/3/10

Gorgeous Tablescapes

Deep Thoughts #7

Let's Get Organized

Happy 101 Award

Deep Thoughts #6

Stripes and Sheens and Polkadots...Oh My!

Everybody Loves a Good Knockoff

It's a Boy!

Deep Thoughts #5

Give a girl the right pair of shoes...

I think I'm in love

Deep Thoughts #4

Dining Room Redo: Phase 2

Capiz Please

Deep Thoughts #3

Clean House

Spray Paint Satisfaction

Deep Thoughts #2

2010 Dream House

Impromptu Project

We've Moved