ebay find

vintage letterpress drawer only $35. thinking above little one's bed. for her little things.

favorite girly bits and other things which make me happy

so i really have quite a long list of things i swear by but i am also a major experimenter. in other words i could never use the same shampoo, face cream, face cleanser, cleaning products, candles, perfume, make-up etc...forever. no. no way. i love to try new things as i am obsessed with good packaging and other people's favorite things lists. guaranteed i will try at LEAST one thing on YOUR favorite things list. so here are just a few things i do swear by. in no particular order:

first up is bareMinerals well rested. i am a fan of bareMinerals period. mineral makeup has changed my skin for the better. its great for every day coverage. now granted, when i have an audition or a night out where i will surely be photographed (which is virtually never) i will pull out the giorgio armani luminous silk foundation. it rocks too. anyway, this stuff is great at helping you look like you got 8 hours of sleep instead of the 4-6 that you usually get when you have kids. don't be afraid of the powder aspect going around your eyes. it truly melts into your skin like a magical veil of love.

this is the best smelling candle for spring. it really and truly and absolutely smells EXACTLY like the name suggests...lilacs in rain. i got mine at anthropologie. and i keep it in my bedroom.

this is a great website for all your organic herbs, oils, salts, containers for making your own bath and beauty concoctions, and teas. GREAT teas. teas for everything. all wildcrafted and sustainable. the best of the best. below are a few of my favorite teas.

here are some excerpts from a few of my favorite teas:

Evening Repose Tea :

When the sun sets over the mountains and the new moon dips her silvery softness in to the clouds. Enjoy the harmony and dance of light across the twilight sky as you savour the tranquility in our Evening Repose. It is a perfect toast to the moon. A beautiful infusion blend with a robust flavor of flowers & mint. Contains: Organic Rose petals, organic Lavender flowers, organic Lemon Verbena leaf, organic Chamomile flowers, organic Peppermint, organic Spearmint, organic Cornflowers and a pinch of Stevia.

Dream Tea :

This infusion blend is based on an ancient formula said to evoke powerful and colourful dreams. It is especially blended for the dreamer, stimulating vivid and easily recalled dreams. A light, minty yet, rich flavor. Very enjoyable after a rich or large dinner. Contains: Organic Peppermint, organic Mugwort, organic Damiana leaf, organic Chamomile flower, organic Gotu Kola leaf, organic Rosemary, organic Rose petals and a pinch of organic Stevia.

the dream tea DOES work too. just so ya' know. all available at mountain rose herbs

another one of my favorites (which you can get at mountain rose herbs but i usually get mine at whole foods) is lavender essential oil. i am usually never without it. i use it for everything. mosquito bites, burns, facial toners, and i rub it on my temples before bed every single night without fail. my daughter loves it too and whenever she falls or gets a boo-boo or even a leg cramp in the middle of the night she asks for it. plus the smell is probably my favorite smell in the whole wide world.

these little blue bottles. beautiful, yes. but useful too. i get the atomizer attachment and make my own facial toner spray. i just take distilled water and fill the bottle to the top then add 10-15 drops of any essential oil. in the summer i use lavender and tea tree and in the colder/dryer months (which is umm..almost never in atlanta) i use rose absolut. but you could use any oil you choose. you can use it as a room spray, for which i would add a lot more essential oil or a body spray in which i would use the same amount as a facial toner. definitely use distilled water though, believe it or not regular water CAN spoil and get yucky. i also get these at mountain rose herbs. they are inexpensive.

some friends came into town last weekend for the party that never happened and the female half of these friends pulled out this stuff and rolled it on her skin and i about lost my cool it smelled so good. in case you haven't figured out by now i am BIG on smells. the one she wore was arabian rose and it smells REAL good. i went to whole foods the next day and got one for myself. only 9 bucks. it smells like pure, clean rose with a slight hint of muskiness. good.

the brand is called kuumba made.

this is the best natural sleep aid i have ever encountered. and i have tried them all. it helps when you wake up in the middle of the night and can't get back to sleep. i get mine at whole foods but you can order it here.

this show. as reality shows go this one is far and away the best. yes, project runway and top chef are among the best of the best. but this one is for me, like how i felt when i watched fame as a kid. i wanted to be right there with those dancers sweating out the raw emotion that is dance. it is inspirational.

nigella's snow flecked brownies. best brownies ever. chocolatey hands down. get good chocolate. i use callebaut bittersweet.

peonies. i have been buying them like mad at the grocery store lately bc i know they will be gone soon not to appear until next season. they are truly the la perla of the flower world.

dior show mascara. i have posted on this before. i have gifted this before bc i believe in its power. AND it smells like roses. i have tried a lot of mascaras like any other 39 year old. 39 years = a lot of mascaras. this one does it all, lengthens, curls, separates all without the smudging and smearing. AND it smells like roses, sorry...but i am BIG on smells.

this stuff is pretty awesome. its does EXACTLY what it claims. which is reason enough to buy it. don't you think? a little goes a long way too. and again...it smells delicious.

now if you're like me you will buy at least ONE of these things.

i love you urban outfitters

and i love you too jamie meares! ms. meares over at i suwannee, a super duper cool blog, told us about this rug this morning. 40 bucks at urban outfitters. since 40 bucks for a 5 x 7 rug is cheap i investigated and found that with shipping and handling it would cost upwards around 60. so i drove down to the store on ponce here in atlanta and could not find the EXACT rug (they had the choc brown version though- i just wanted black and white) so i settled on this art deco looking one. not a bad substitute, eh meares? OH! and did i mention that it was not 40 bucks but TWENTY!?!?!? in yer face shipping and handling!!!

as a gift to you my dear ms. meares...a bookcase of the day.
good bloggin makes the world go 'round.

some day

i'd like to get this kind of color and fabric craziness into my house.

via elle decor

because i care....

go here if you want to see a video/picture sort of thing from the set of new moon.

oh- and those aren't moles on his face they're registration points for the sparkly animation for when his skin sees the sun.

groan...

oh no...not another self indulgent non design related post. sorry. ffffound has found me again. i just love browsing this site and gathering images that speak to me. my inner photographer is growing stronger these days and i get frustrated when i can't find the images i am searching for. it's like i see them in my head and they don't exist, or at least i can't find similar. so it's nice to find such evocative images. here are a few new ones that....captured me....again, like last time-please stop reading if you hate such self indulgent nonsense. i won't mind.
1. i don't know where this is, or even if it's real, but i would give just about anything if i could make this my "happy place". it's like an airplane it's so freakin' high. and mountains, misty windows and a lake below, a desk, fresh flowers, rising sun...happiness indeed.



2. doesn't happen very often, but when it does it's nice to share it. you know, humans doing selfless acts. althoooough....if it were REALLY selfless, i imagine he just should have turned them off and went on his way. come to think of it, it's almost like he's angry. angry that this person left their lights on AND their door unlocked...oh and by the way...i didn't STEAL anything!!! what an asshole!


3. it's ok, she's just in the bathroom taking a much needed pee break.

4. sweet and innocent. brings me a sense of calm.

5. NOT a stroller. jokes on you rich person when you try to fold that thing up in the trunk of your car. HA! stupid rich people.

6. yummy.

7. HA!!HAHAHAHA!!!!


8. pretty color combo. lavender and wood and brown tones. hey! maybe this is the downstairs of my happy place!!!

9. it's his face.


10. one-two punch. seriously- this could also be my happy place. right there inbetween their little scruffs, all soft and warm and smelling like freshly laundered love.

11. nice ass. GREAT photo.

12. great wall of butterflies. that robin's egg blue wash is speaking to me.



13. where do i begin?

14. who needs a closet? lovely.





15. indeed.

well fartknockin' butts

so today when i woke up i did the usual...coffee, breakfast for me and the littlest, turn on computer, sit down with coffee and raisin ezekial toast and check emails and blog. no emails, no blog. no nuthin'. fried computer. i am posting from a temporary loaner computer. all my pictures..gone. hopefully....HOPEFULLY i can get said pictures and other important documents by replacing the hard drives. whatever that means. luckily i have a husband who can help me with that. thank god for that! seriously. i am soo not self sufficient at these things. so anyway..i will try to keep up the good post.

image via ffffound

**update..husband is computer genius. computer salvaged. still...need new computer at some point. the glitches aren't so few and far between.

monday color combo

happy memorial day monday!! today's combo of pink and yellow (gold too!!) has been on trend for a while now -haven't they all really? i mean i am not inventing these combinations of colors am i? no, i'm not. although the thought of going out with a really nice camera and coming up with my own combinations sounds like a heap of fun. b/c frankly there aren't a lot of 'em left in the world of interiors that i haven't covered. i mean there ARE but they are not a'plenty, so if someone out there wants to philanthrop-ize me with a nice camera i would gladly get out there and photograph some new combos like...lavender and orange, lavender and red, more black and emerald, ochre and purple, dusty pink and wood tones..i got lots!! and you can find a few out there but not enough to make one of these here posts. so anyway...pink and yellow is such a good combo. so warm and glowy, girly and ethereal. check out this moth...it's called a rosy maple moth and it really is pink and yellow!! and i must have that rug (#15) for my bedroom. if any of my loyal readers want to see a color combo come to life please let me know. i love a challenge and i will do my best to bring you the beauty!!!
images via absolutely beautiful things, city sage, flickr, house beautiful, the domino archives, living etc., so chic, flea market style, the web.

no GD party today...

thanks atlanta weather...i oughta bitch slap brad nitz, like this...nope. no party today b/c it is going to rain on and off all day. so i cancelled. DAMNIT!!! it sucks to cancel. so many people involved...babysitters, out of towners...blah blah blah. so we are shooting for next weekend. SUPPOSED to be sunny. HA!! we'll see...NITZ!!!!!!!!!
anyway...what are we doing for my husband's birthday? i'm making dinner for an out of towner and then out for drinks.

in other news...
this is how i want to cut my hair. what'cha think? very 60's sexy, no? or is it a t-shirt and sweatpant away from soccer mom?

grrrrrrrrrrr.....

the above + evening outdoor party= big, fucking mess.

barthelona

i UH-DORE this space! i found it on one of my favorite blogs, delikatissen. the site she got it from is in spanish and i couldn't seem to find anything out about it, like...are those brick faces or tiles on the ceiling? drool. are you swooning yet? i can't stop staring at all the lovely details and styling of this place.

via delikatissen

you know you care

you're welcome

i feel like a monkey with 4 asses

not familiar with that phrase? it just means i feel like shit. you know, run down, tired, over worked and under payed and all of that. burning the candle at both ends comes to mind too. this weekend is the big 40th birthday party i am throwing for my husband here at our house. i am trying to get everything together and organized so that when saturday comes around i just have to set it all up and then relax with a bellini. of course it's supposed to rain and that's just not good news for a backyard BBQ. not good at all. but- what can u do? hope for the best? visualize sunshine and everything going smoothly? pray? punch someone?
my daughter's first ballet recital was last night and it was the best thing i have seen in ages. it put a much needed smile on my face. seriously, nuthin' cuter than a bunch of 4 and 5 year olds plie-ing and releve-ing.
she's farthest right, seated. duh...the cutest one!
anyhoo, sorry for the boring ass post. will be back to myself soon, with pictures of the party and for sure the best ballet recital video that you ever did saw.

monday color combo

today's combo is graphic, bold, happy and (pardon the pun) bursting with energy. it evokes every season- it can conjur images of bowls of citrus or crunchy, curled leaves against a winter sky. orange and white is popular these days and for good reason. the orange offers just enough pop to make white seem whiter. crisper. a little orange can go a long way or a lot of orange can go a long way.

images via my notting hill, bijoux kaleidescope, flickr, country living, etsy, veranda, pieces, atlanta homes and lifestyles, house beautiful, living etc

saturday house tour

i had seen this house, owned by raji radhakrishnan in met home magazine several months ago and loved it. but true to form i never read the article. well surfing through the internet i happened upon it again and this time i read it. turns out this raji is a self taught interior designer (business degree and motherhood on her resume) and quite a popular one in dc where she lives. i have heard of late of several bloggers out there (myself included) who have been asked, or are thinking about venturing into the interior design business without any formal training either. i thought...PAH! NO WAY!!! this is a fun hobby and i AM learing a lot but...someone PAYING me to do this? that's just crazytalk! now, i'm not so sure... now i know there are several design bloggers out there that are pro's and several that aren't even close (that would be me), so what are your thoughts on this? would you? could you? DID you? also if you are thinking about it i recommend you read the article through the link below.
Raji Radhakrishnan

curiouser and curiouser

'member when alice fell down the rabbit hole and she said those words? i believe she may have just stumbled into this store...bell'occhio. it is filled with things that have no rhyme or reason and i love that to pieces. here are a few things that did not go unnoticed by me..

for your next party or when you just want to seem slightly eccentric...mouches! or moles...



and a fox pin...hey, if the pin fits....

three cool hats. worn on your head (see mouches) or displayed just like this somewhere in your home where you need a punch of graphic coolness.

lovely pink boxes trimmed in gold in 4 different sizes. i want these in a big bad way for my closet. i would never close the door.

a raspberry box. for the raspberry lover in your life that needs a box that looks like a raspberry.
a cocoon. no...a beehive...no an alien pod.....no a turd...oh wait!!! that's a morel mushroom box just like the raspberry box only a morel mushroom. whew!!

faux bois oilcloth edging for a shelf. cute.

faux bois oilcloth by the yard. for the farmhouse table you've always wanted but feel you might change your mind down the road. that's easy to clean.

black and white string is ALWAYS better than plain!

and marcel whom they are apparently selling for $16.30. sold!!!

bell'occhio

serenbe

for those unfamiliar, serenbe is a village in georgia just south of atlanta, in fact about 30 minutes from my house. lucky me. it's set in the midst of hundreds of acres of farmland and forest. i believe that there are now governed laws that state only a certain amount of building can happen...ever...and it all has to be sustainably built. serenbe includes enclaves of cottage-y homes, modern homes, and farmhouses, plus an inn and surrounding guesthouses, a huge barn home to many horses, plus an actual working farm where you can volunteer during the growing season and learn all about organic farming (you stay for free and eat for free for the season), and a main square kind of thing with all sorts of shops from an art gallery to a salon/spa, a bakery and several restaurants, a home goods store and several new ones in the making. its a pretty magical place. it's peaceful and quiet and it smells good there. like healthy dirt and fresh air. great for weddings and if you can afford it, to rent one of their guest houses for the summer to enjoy the pool, farm, horseback riding, canoeing etc...it aint cheap though!! for this place is very well appointed and gorge! here are some of the houses in the area. most of them are weekend homes. kind of like a southern hamptons, minus the beach.

modern too!!

remember this?
this is the giant barn as you enter serenbe.

this is the main part of town, the strip if you will..most of the upper levels of the store fronts are either flats or some of the inn's guest suites.

this is the sidewalk seating of the bakery 'the blue eyed daisy'. my husband, daughter and i go there sometimes for breakfast on the weekends. most recently on mother's day..i had the best biscuit of my life with homemade organic strawberry jam. it was heavenly.

this is the main house and surrounding guest houses of serenbe inn.

the pool (off season obvi!)

not sure where this is...but it sure is pretty.
a misty morning on the farm.

if you live in the atlanta area it is definitely worth a visit. check out the website.

ffffaking it

you know when you have nothing to blog about? well that is/was me this morning. usually i have SOMETHING to post about based on some prettiness i have found on the internets. and truthfully i DO have something i am working on but it's not ready yet. and while i could have had it ready for you this morning instead of working on it last night i was locked up looking through all 32875283572302833thousandbillion pages of ffffound. if you are not familiar, ffffound is just another photo sharing website but the photos are waaaaaaaaaay cool and evocative. so pardon me while i share with you some favorites and why i like them. you can stop reading now, i won't be offended. self indulgence annoys me too. so...off you go...if you must.


1. what??!! for reals??!!! who? what? where? are they grinding their own corn? welling their own water?


2. just honest and free. sexy and awkward.

3. good room.

4. horse love.

5. probably what most parents of teenagers think.

6. it took me a while...but then i got it.

7. whoever she is waiting for is most likely deserving.

8. the bed pan, the shoes, the dress, the mattress turned up...it's just sinister and sad.

9. bunnies. make. me. go. coo-coo. and this one is about to hug me.

10. creepy. but art directed so well.

11. this script is just beautiful. look at it!! i have...for several minutes. if i were getting married i would make someone do this for me.

12. mini stars. good polaroid photography.

13. truer words were never spoken.

monday color combo

believe it or not i am actually learning quite a bit design wise by doing these weekly posts. i never would have imagined certain combinations would work but when you see it a million times (as i do in research for these posts) you start to believe or not believe as the case may be.
this combination is very summery and beachy...coral sand and blue skies sort of thing. but this duo has many flavors. not just coral but peach and salmon and orange too...and all the different blues out there. they all work magnificently. i am partial to this navy and peach...but the baby aqua and corally coral is very pretty too.

the usual suspects: flickr, etsy, house beautiful, coco + kelley, the web

being a mommy is the frog's pajamas...

that's my girl!
happy mother's day mommies of the world!!

saturday house tour

YOW-ZA!! this house knocked my socks off when i saw it. its very minimalist in approach but it OOOZES with atmosphere. gorgeous photography helps...i can hear the birds echoing in the arches. this house is in cartagena, colombia and is old as hell, restored by a frenchie and a belgian. you can read about their endeavors here.

a party

my husband is turning 40 in a couple of weeks and i want to throw a big backyard fete for him, with a band and everything!! granted it will be a friend's band but STILL....a band?!?! come on that's cool. i wish i could say however that i had a lot of money for this party and a great grassy flat yard with gorgeous landscaping, but i don't. no, i have about 500 bucks and lots of red clay, rocks and weeds. no matter though, i have gathered some photos for inspiration and with an ikea and a dollar store nearby i think i can make it happen!!
i love the tuxes with rubber boots and the whole fancy/humble feel to this. too hot in georgia for tuxes though. and i don't think any of our friends would be caught dead in tuxes with rubber boots. although in our backyard they might need them.

fancy silver in shitty cans!!! love it!

what a setting..
so anyway..i am thinking lots of tables with mixmatched tablecloths, fairy lights in the trees and candle lanters, buckets of beer, belini's and BBQ....any other thoughts talented blogger friends?? send me photos if you have them!!

images via country living

yellow peeony mural

i love this more than you can imagine. via living etc.

found!

some wedding photos!!
that's me and my husband on our big day- 9 years ago today.

my veil ROCKED!!! it was so pretty. it layered all around my face. and my bouquet was giant white cabbage roses and blue hydrangeas. melissa sweet made my dress for me.

nine years ago today

i married michael anderson here.... this is the ruins of what was once a house called barnsley house. my husband (then boyfriend) had shot a few commercials here and suggested it as the location of our wedding. we drove the hour outside of atlanta to adairsville, ga. i took one look. it was perfect. gorgeous grounds and gardens, hundred year old boxwood partiere's (vicki archer, did i spell that right?), a spa, horses, wild buffalo (leftover from the original owners penchant for hunting wild game), well appointed ammenities, etc etc etc...

this is the actual spot where we got hitched. no, this is not my wedding (would never do the cheesey updo with the mafia bride veil), but this is pretty much what it looked like. the spot is through the ruins and to the left.

and this is the restaurant where the rehearsal dinner took place. fabulous food and service.
in fact that was one thing everyone to this day tells us, the food was the best wedding food they had ever had.
sadly none of these photos are our wedding photos, just snagged off the barnsley gardens website. unfortunately our wedding took place before everyone was doing digital. i have a vhs of our wedding which was done by a very talented friend who set it all to jeff buckley. and all the photos are in an album and i have no scanner.
anyhoo, reminiscing about that day makes me smile. it was lovely, even if parts are a blur. and if you are engaged to be married or hope to be may i offer some advice to you? take every moment you can to stop and look at your partner and your surroundings, its such a whirlwind of a day and most likely you will not have slept much the night before so you will be a little out of it. just make sure you record the moments in your head, especially the ceremony. its a bit scary up there and you can easily forget it all. the words, the looks, the sentiment, the actual purpose of the day!
ok then thanks for indulging me my lovely readers.
and to my husband- happy anniversary babe! here's to 9 more. i love you.

a purpose to re-purpose

i have a friend in new york who turned me on to these two very cool ladies with their own design business, called NIGHTWOOD. in a nutshell they take broken down furniture and textiles and make them into one of a kind original pieces. here is an excerpt from their website.
"Nightwood is a Brooklyn based home décor business specializing in its own reconstructed furniture and textiles. With a down to earth yet airy aesthetic and sensibility, Nightwood conveys a modern rusticity that emphasizes hand crafted one-of-a-kind products. The two halves of Nightwood are Myriah Scruggs and Nadia Yaron."
it reminds me a lot of what mark and sally bailey do. some of you design nuts will know of them and their book, Restoration Home.

check them out. NIGHTWOOD.

have you seen?

the new anthropologie catalog?

pretty, no? it reminds me of memorial day spent at the lake with good friends and lots of silliness.

monday color combo

today's color combo is one that i have been "working" on for a while. mostly b/c it's been difficult to find images of interiors that i love. although that said i don't always LOVE the color combos i do. for example the black and yellow wasn't a fave even though i liked it quite a bit. maybe just not for me. this one though i really really love. there is something magical and mysterious about this combination of colors. together they remind me of my cool grandmother (granny franny- we called her) who was very un-granny in her choices. she was slick and stylish, ahead of the curve. i think this color combination is ahead of the curve too. i say this b/c as you will see there are many different shades of green out there to be combined with black; lime, olive, kelly, forest, and my favorite and the slickest of all...emerald. this is the green i have in mind when i am thinking of this combo. the one i like best. and it. was. almost. impossible. to. find. in any case, they all work (greens) and are lovely.

images via flickr, house beautiful, living etc, apartment therapy, etsy and web.

cuchini

you might think me crazy and i pretty much am, but i am not the person who came up with this one. would you really buy this? don't know what it is yet? it is called a cuchini and it is to help you disguise your camel toe. according to the folks at cuchini what with all the brazilian waxes and landing strips out there there is no "cush for the bush" so every one's privates are on display. tell me...are your lips sealed?and no joke, this video is on their website. enjoy.



my thanks to the comments page over at Scented Glossy Magazines for the 'heads' up.

saturday house tour

kay douglass is the owner of interiors store South Of Market here in atlanta and charleston. this is her GORGEOUS house in atlanta. lookie looks:

those sofa's are dreamy. love the yellow. it really IS the color of the year.

that thing above the sofa is an old farming tool she found on a trip to belgium.

yellow and gray is delicious. look at the ceiling...

to me this home is a perfect neutral shell. you could make little changes so easily for a new and different look. i love that.

images and article at atlanta homes and lifestyles magazine

monstrously beautiful

when i was a kid my mother grew bearded irises, just off the front porch of our house in wentzville, mo. loads of them. they were so pretty and they smelled soooo good. there have been a lot of posts in blogland about spring and summer's most loved and coveted flowers, mainly i hear about roses, peonies, lily of the valley, lilacs...but i have not heard one mention of this crazy looking beast of a flower. i'm not sure why, it's so beautiful..albeit a bit predator looking from the movie of the same name. but the smell? heavenly. anyway...whenever i smell one it takes me back to my childhood. and i love that. also in my iris research i found out that this flower is the inspiration behind the fleur-de-lys symbol. cool.

this is the actual 'beard' of an iris.

flickr images