enter if you dare!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

happy halloween hookers and lookers! i have something big planned for later if i can get my shit done. DAMN, little kids make halloween difficult!! so come on back for the big reveal!! in the mean time please do enjoy my haunted house tour...


welcome to my home. it smells like rotting corpses and boiled fat but some of the rooms are nice...i know i know...i need to get those windows fixed. don't worry there are plenty of fireplaces inside to keep you warm...



i hope you didn't bother with your cell phones because we are in the middle of fucking nowhere and your cell phone will do you no good in case something should happen...

whatever you do DO NOT go in that shed...

something truly awful lives in there....

don't be alarmed...they grow up somewhat normal...

breakfast will be served in the conservatory, if you make it through the night...

dinner will be served in here...

i will be serving my famous seafood 3 ways...

later a game of tiddlywinks...

you can choose to sleep in the meat hook room...

or the creepy vine room (be warned that vine might come to life and choke your ass)...

i will be sleeping in here, but you can join me later for a seance if you want...

the other bedroom belongs to my freak of a sister...
if you hear acoustic guitar in the middle of the night you will probably see her spider walking down the hall...

thanks for visiting...HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

images via grass doe, head over heels, google and DTI

shiny pretty

sorry for the lack of post today and also the lack of my eyeballs on your blogs today. i will be back at 'em soon. in the meantime please enjoy this oh so lovely room i spotted on AT yesterday. my heart thumps for the blue shiny walls, perfect coffee table, fantastic lighting, and yellow drum side table/garden stool thing.
go and look at the rest if you haven't already. it's worth it. CLICK ME

in the round circle

i know there is a radio show out there in blogland called 'the skirted roundtable'. for some reason when i have tried to listen, it's in warp speed and everyone sounds like a chipmunk. so i gave up. anyway...here is my skirted roundtable. it's called 'in the round circle'. others might call it a blog(brilliant isn't it?) it's where i discuss things that don't suck and things that do in the design world. let the discussion commence!!! (said with great passion and drama)

here we have a beautiful kitchen from airspaces. i love it's simplicity. i also love the mirror tiles and marble counters (notice how they go all the way down). but it would be on the edge of cold cliff without that wood island and mouth watering tile floor.
also from airspaces. can we talk about how ridiculous this chandelier is? and when i say ridiculous i mean awesome. also i am not sure what that gold thing is on the wall, but it appears to be some sort of sconce. if this is so, it is REALLY cool. if it's just art with some sunlight behind it then it's just pretty cool. either way this is some entry. like wilbur is sooooome pig!

truman capote=wierdly fabulous. notice the lemon tree..or is it a kumquat tree? also cat figurines.

is there a more perfect suitcase anywhere?

this is an overall very pretty color palette. could someone please tell me where i can make my own color palette?

my cool dad is going to make these side tables for me. i am very excited b/c they will a. be custom b. be from my dad and c. hold a lot of stuff.

also, my beautiful and sweet and talented neighbor alison is going to make me this piece of pottery. in your face kelly wearstler.

and a show of hands- who damn near had an orgasm when they saw this fabric wall at anna spiro's?
discuss in the round circle....

images airspaces, ffffound, houzz, domino, lonny, ABT

like plates only better

joslyn at simple lovely posted these yesterday. needless to say i was in love. i have no idea how much one is but aren't they spectacular? all of her work is, actually...which you can see here.

i would hang them up like one would plates. if anyone wonders what to get me for christmas these would do nicely.

i'll take movies that scared the ever lovin' shit out of me for 1,000 alex...

it's halloween week so i thought we should discuss some scary shit. i have a love/hate relationship with scary movies. in that i love them and i hate them. they can be a great let down or (if they are good or hit some kind of personal nerve) shake you to the core. or if you're me turn you into a hypochondriac-obsessed-with-the-devil-afraid-to-do-gymnastics-for-fear-of-floating-off-the-ground fun loving eleven year old!!!! let's talk about that for a moment...the movie of which i refer is 'the exorcist'. i was 11 (same age as linda blair's character) and very impressionable. i actually sat down with my parents in the living room to watch this movie. in their (parents) defense they did tell me that this was too scary for me. but me, being the stubborn gal that i am decided that i could handle it. everything started off innocent enough...
regan goes to the doctor cuz things just ain't right..doctor can find nothing wrong...(umm...cuz she's possessed by the devil!!!!)...

then this shit starts happening...the ole backwards crab walk down the stairs...

and this....

WHAT. THE. FUCK?!?!?!?!?! i mean that is an image that you'd be hard pressed to forget.

let's just say that at this point i was in my room immersed in paper dolls signing..tra la la la la laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!! although my thoughts were on this.....

and this...wondering when in the fuck was this going to happen to me? i was tormented for YEARS by this movie. truly. i lived in fear for the better part of 3 years that i was possessed by the devil. i have since seen it many times as a sort of rite of passage. i also paid a visit to the actual stairs in washington dc that they used in the movie. you know the stairs that father karras falls down? yeah..those. it was healing.


moving on...

another movie that scared the shit out of me as a youngster was this....

very well done. very well acted and well directed. i believe these are crucial elements to a successful scary movie.

i mean, THIS scene???

it fucked with me..hard. i couldn't watch a movie with john hurt in it for years. or linda blair for that matter, i mean let's face it linda blair didn't go on to a very successful career because she couldn't act. it was because NO ONE COULD GET THOSE FUCKING IMAGES OF HER OUT OF THEIR HEADS!!!!!

moving on to another 70's era brainmelter:
was there anyone out there after this that didn't look sideways at the ocean and say....hmmmmm...maybe i won't go for a swim today? or a lake? or a pool? or even put your bare ass on a toilet without fear of a shark swimming up through it??!! changed my view on such things FOR-EV-ER! i was convinced sharks could manage JUST FINE without saltwater.

so those 3 are the ones from the MFAMB formative years that stick out the hardest with shook me to the core status.

onto the adult years...now let it be known that i have seen quite a few scary movies...i am somewhat of an aficionado, but i also know that scary to me might not be scary to you and vice versa. for example my husband says he was really fucked up from 'when a stranger calls' (the original with carol kane not the remake with camilla belle-that movie sucked. if only for the fact that we all knew HE WAS IN THE DAMN HOUSE ALREADY!!) not so to me. it just didn't get me like the others. now there was 'the shining'...super scary i know, but it wasn't core shaking to me. also, 'the omen', 'halloween' (my brother was pretty fucked up by this one) and countless others that were really, truly scary. and they deserve an honorable mention for sure but the ones i speak of here are responsible for fear that lasted well outside the few hours that i endured watching them.

have any of you ever seen 'wolf creek'?
this is one of those movies that not too many people have ever heard of. i hadn't. we watched it one night and were pleasantly surprised. (although do you say "pleasantly" when referring to a movie that makes you shit your pants?) there are no monsters, no supernatural anything. just some crazy austrailian outback hillbilly motherfucker. this guy:

i called my mom (another fan of the scary movie) an told her to rent it. she did. she called me in a fuckyoufortellingmeaboutthis tone and told me she had to turn it off halfway through b/c the suspense was physically hurting her. she's right...it does. it physically hurts to watch this movie.

i highly recommend this one, unless you have a weak heart.

moving on to what might be the creepiest, scariest, most innovative movie SINCE the exorcist...

i saw this one in the theatre, the only one of this bunch that i have seen in the theatre. and i could barely watch it. you know, eyes half covered looking up at mike gaging his reaction to see it i could look. of course i had no idea those first few moments when the girl's face melts that that was going to happen. i had never seen anything like that before...not since the famous crab walk had an image frightened me so much. this is when i decided that this movie was best watched through my fingers. but besides the melting faces... there was the waterlogged samara crawling in a crazy crab walk fashion out of the tv and well....and that goddamn horse scene!! not to mention the music, if you could call it that. i couldn't get the "music" for this movie out of my head. it became my own personal hellish soundtrack. now, no longer an impressionable eleven year old girl but a grown ass woman i wasn't nearly as traumatized as i was way back in '71, but i was pretty fucked up for a few days.

so...i have yet to be as scared from a movie as i was from these. but then there's this....

has anyone seen? there is a lot of hype here which concerns me. kind of like the blair suck project? remember that? that movie just made me mad. maybe had i seen it long before the rest of the world started hyping it up i might have been sucked in..but i wasn't. i am going to see it this saturday so we'll see. i'll let you know. here's a preview.. (for some reason you have scroll way down)

so what about you? what movies scared the bejesus out of you??

i'll take things that are tufted for 200 alex..

you're welcome. and could someone please find me an affordable exact duplicate of the bed in pictures 7 and 16? king size. thank you.

images via airspace via maison boheme

sunday at my house

nicolas b.b. lounges...

fiona eats yogurt (coconut milk yogurt- like the ice cream!!)...

and watches the care bears....(that's some elephant care bear cousin thing)...

my house is kinda messy... that's a big ass pumpkin scooper for this week's pumpkin carving bonanza, my vitamins and what not, martha, and various cooking magazines, my blackberry and notebook.

my husband looks all at once like a pedophile and a 70's porn star. he thinks it's funny to have a gay cowboy mustache on his face. a small part of me does too....very small...

fiona's baby takes a dump on my sheepskin...

the buffet gets a couple coats of primer....


a bird she is a roastin' ...

my oven is filthy..martha says to clean it in november after thanksgiving...

what about you? what's it like in your house on a sunday?

no.

and at nearly 500 dollars...double no.

jizzing

if this were my little cupboard...
it would be my safeplace.
it would be what i would imagine in times of great pain...like childbirth.
it's where i would go to gather myself after a long day of reading nasty anon comments.
it's where i would go when i wanted to throttle my daughter.
or husband.
my happy place.

house of ill repute

well hello! welcome to the cougar den. at least that's what i call it...i've heard neighbors call it the whore house, but i pay them no mind...come in come in...let me get you a cocktail..
sit down here on my circular sofa while i go pour the drinks...warm your toes by the fire will you? don't mind my shoes and ombre robe..i was just getting comfortable.

i'm back..did you notice your reflection in the shiny, copper pendant light? that's on purpose...ha ha haaaaaaa ha haaaaa!!!

we can stay on the circular sofa or we can go in here and watch something on my flatscreen? do you like 70's porn? i do.

sometimes i'll sit here in the nude and tickle the ivories..

if you need to tinkle here's the bathroom. does the portrait turn you on?

here's the bedroom. i have a circular sofa in here too and a flatscreen. i love to come in here and watch jake gyllenhaal movies all day long. look! one's playing right now! do you wanna put on my high school band uniform?

what? my initials? CG? oh..haa...no...that stands for Cou-Gar. you can spend the night if you want. twilight is on on demand in HD.

in the morning i'll make donuts and coffee....

3 eating scenarios and a project

i love a good dining area. this is an important home location. this is the place we eat, break bread, chat, entertain with food and drink and sometimes even have serious discussions about homework and reality tv. a good dining room always catches my eye, not as much as a good living room, but close. anna spiro's dining room is amazing. so fresh, happy and inviting. not an ounce of pretense...except for the boobies...maybe a crumb of pretense there. and i love a good boob. in any case...i would be extremely pleased to eat here every day.

here's another that pleases me. it's small and cozy, modern and rustic with that crazy reclaimed wood table. and i am a H U G E fan of a metallic light fixture. and hello swan chair, would you like to make out? this area is small, eat in perfection.

and this space is just a big excuse for a party! i mean, the space itself seems like one of those basement kitchens in a giant english estate. the table looks like the biggest drafting table ever and paired with the loooooong bench and jacobsen chairs what's not to love. it's great and i want to have a long, leisurely lunch here and then go on a fox hunt. tally-ho!

and this next pic is what i want to do to my fireplace wall. and that is paper it.
this is my fireplace. yes, i KNOW it's dark as donkey balls in here. and the wall is gray. ralph lauren forde abbey to be precise. i struggle constantly to find that perfect piece of something special to hang above the fireplace. i went to the scott antique market and looked at giant gilt mirrors a la jenny lyons' fireplace mantle but there was nothing there under 1200 dollars that was the appropriate size. and that's what i really want. but i cannot afford such a thing. so i thought why not paper it like the photo above? what are your thoughts? any paper suggestions? i don't need a lot just enough to do this one wall. the tiles are kind of pinkish coral, a lot like puke actually. but this is a rental and i cannot control the tiles. but i will paper the hell out of this wall and never look back.

images anna spiro, ??, melanie acevedo, probably dti and then me

untitled

i love the layout of this house. it seems like a common enough house but made to look expensive and elegant. the room above is sparse and interesting. ill defined. i like that. i am also liking the white walls and creamy off white trim

i would cut off a finger for those shiny lamps up there..i really and seriously would.

and here is an oddly long room but the use of all the furniture on the outer edges of the room and the bench placed in the middle makes good use of the space. in a long room like this you can really change it up and do lots of little "areas" too. although placing the table smack dab in the middle is a little strange simply b/c it's so far away from any seating area. i think (i hope) this is for the sake of the photograph. in fact, the placement of everything in this room is probably due to the needs of the photographer. oh well, still pretty.

images nuevo estilo

rock the vote bitches!

go HERE and vote for valorie's southern colors...valorie hart is a champion for the small blog just starting out and she is cooler than most of us combined. you have until midnight to vote over at apartment therapy's color contest. valorie is in the lead but only marginally so please don't let marjorie's coconut cream pukefest beat valorie's bold new orleans shotgun coolness.

*sorry marjorie, i'm sure you're real nice but val's my girl.

country behemoth

i have never been a fan of these big, modern houses. they look sort of like a cold museum to me. don't get me wrong they are beautiful...just not home-y. i like home-y. but something about this one in this setting intrigues me. it's like country mouse and city mouse are having a party. and with windows and views like that....what's not to love?

images shelton, mindel and assoc.

did you see this?

i'll tell you what- that desire to inspire blog really has my number...they find the best shit for my eyes. can we just talk about the painted ceiling and gold trim? forget the fact that it looks like a thrift store (it might be for all i know) or an antique store. just look at the pretty. that red trim is stupendous as well. would you paint your trim gold? or red?

what about your doors? i am not crazy about the gray walls, and i love gray walls...but here they look kind of flat and muddy. but i DO love the painted doors. the painting of doors seems a little more doable to me.

and these darker green doors to match that heavenly green leather chesterfield. come to momma!

monday color combo on tuesday

as halloween approacheth i thought a black and orange combo would be too obvious. and probably hard to find tasteful black and orange decor that didn't look like the inside of a witch's ass. but black and purple while at times a little too victorian goth for my taste can be easier to achieve when you use soft lavenders and vibrant plums against the lacqueriest of black....



images via living etc, skona hem, chinese elle decor, desk of lola, flickr, lauduree, elle decor, a la parisienne, steve giralt

razzle dazzle

10 dollar ikea plant stand gets a coat of red sprizzle pizzle and some wipe-on poly for shine. now fiona's bath time is implicitly more enjoyable.

eat here and sleep there...

this is one helluva dining room...

and i am currently on the hunt for some d. porthault sheets at 3/4 off...or for free.

mexican tuxedo

i never would have guessed that a denim couch could look so good. but there you have it.

image dti

kids need better food in schools- this is a no brainer

my main man jamie oliver has used his celebrity and food knowledge over in europe to change the food in schools for the better and he is doing it here too. help him by signing THIS petition.
it is super quick. go! go! go!!

man shops boring

i finally watched man shops globe on the sundance channel yesterday. the highly anticipated man shops globe. i might take a lot of heat for this but i thought this show was a complete snooze fest. i mean there is no question this man has the most awesome job on the whole fucking planet. travel all over the world and pick out pretty stuff to sell at anthropologie. hello dream job. and the idea of a tv show presenting him travelling all over the world buying said pretty seems like a dream tv show for me..us...right? and when i started watching it i was very excited...(i missed the first episode so for all i know it could have been awesome) my heart started to race a bit and little beads of sweat started to appear on my forehead like the time i put too much russian dressing on my salad in 7th grade. what is it about russian dressing?? anyway...there was keith in south africa hunting down "that amazing find that's gonna blow me away". he found some beaded animals, pretty pottery, a few chairs blah blah blah...but not that great big amazeballs thing. then he goes into a shop where two guys make cool shit out of recycled garbage. he wasn't very impressed with most of it (I WAS!!!) until he saw a massive chandelier big enough for mmmm...say.....the white house? it was pretty amazing. and that is pretty much it. apart from a pleasantly scored background and looking at what to me might be the most beautiful place on earth, south africa, the whole show was pretty anti-climactic. and we don't need to see every meeting over breakfast in your snazzy hotel with your south african rep. i think we would have rather seen the rooms in the hotel thank you very much. and is it just me or is there always a smug look on his face? or is it a pa..pa...pa...pa..poker face? i can't tell. maybe it's just a gay face.

OHHH...don't get me wrong!!! i will continue to watch this show in the hopes it gets better and even if it doesn't i will still get some enjoyment out of it. but right now it plays like a segment (a long one) on 60 minutes. perhaps we will see interviews from the depths of this keith johnson home...

i am hopeful...

images via sundance channel and elle decor

for my ladies

"robbed" for her pleasure...

what the??!?!?

are you seriously telling me that this guy is jonathan berger??!?!....

as in the jonathan berger who gave us this.....

and this.....

not one of these guys?......

ok, update...susieq has informed me that THIS is jonathan berger the interior designer....

now that's more like it.

haircut 100

today was fiona's second ever haircut. as you can see it was incredibly long. the idea was mid chest length and heavy bangs....

the stylist reminded me that bangs probably wouldn't work...
so we went with a long-ish bang that could be side swept into a barrette....

pretty doggone cute.

as we walked to the car i noticed this car parked 2 cars over from mine:

somebody is clearly stalking me....

i'm not done yet

showing you more plaid handsomeness. it can create a masucline/feminine balance, it can soften a modern space and warm up a cold one..

kinda says, "fall is here so let's get cozy, light some candles, eat some popcorn and watch movies", doesn't it?

it looks good on too:

a bracelet:

a ring:

not all plaids are created equally, these blankets are from the scottish weaver:

ws home's cashmere 50billiondollar version: (thanks lilah from urbansardines!)

welsh plaid (personal fave):

lightweight wool specials:

canadian tartan:

irish plaids: (these are lovely, soft and heathered)

modern tartan: (these are a bit too collegiate for me)
so many choices, so many colors!! i think one blanket on a sofa, chair or the end of a bed is the way to go here. simple, comfy and soft..welcoming after a long, cold day.

just whatever you do- for fuck's sake don't go here:


or here:

oscar de la renta

is designing google home pages. this is what it looks like. if you want to be just like me (which i am pretty sure most of you do) just click on change theme and then click on artists and scroll til you find mr. de la renta's design. there are 4, so every time you open up your computer a new one is there. and they are all gorgeous. highly likely the only de la renta i will ever wear.

(and yes, i DO have the silly cat picture thingy on my home page)

halloween candy

i am missing the premiere issue, november '05, march '07, and september '08.

anyone want to do a domino library exchange? i have never seen those issues, i think september '08 got peed on so i had to throw it away...so i looked at it but only once..which is never enough. this would be a loan type of thing...i loan you one you loan me one...any takers?

enthusiastic

i suspect scads of interior gorgeousness.

monday color combo...sort of..

recently i read something that really hit home with me and that was, "your love of design doesn't always have to reflect your own home." i don't recall who said it and i guess that statement could mean different things to different people. but for me it was really kind of freeing. don't roll your eyes!!! it really was! i get kind of bugged out at times when i find i love EVERYTHING!! i mean how can you love everything??! and how can you incorporate EVERYTHING in your own home?? it would look ridiculous and all over the place and random and not focused and silly and contrived and like you were trying too hard..etc.. so instead i THINK ( i could change my mind tomorrow- or even later today) i will just love everything and leave it at that. and just let my own home serve as a sort of museum of stuff, trials and errors, works in progress...like and artist's studio. so what does this have to do with a monday color combo?...not a whole lot really. other than 2 days ago i was really into the work of abigail ahern and wanted my whole house painted dark gray and midnight blue with capricious looking lamps and furry ottomans. and today i am really into the whole english manor look. so this combo is not a combo so to speak but a look at mixing saturated color in general with big florals, stripes, small patterns and antiques and everything in between. i am not sure a person like me without any funds could actually do this look in my own home, this is a look for the rich or at the very least a look that is acquired over time. maybe less carlton varney or nancy lancaster and more rita konig. i think this time of year i am drawn to things that are comforting and cozy and seem to envelope you like a hug from your granny. whether it's balls out grand manor home or a more modern approach it's all beautiful to look at. so here you have it...squeeeeeze!

don't go changin'

as far as i can tell you either love rita konig or you don't. some say she is insipid..i say she's quite sipid. some say she is haughty, snobbish, a silver spooner. i think they would be right there. and i think that's part of her charm. but it's clear since her domino days her style hasn't wavered one bit. she is steadfast in her love of english delightfulness and girly glamour. and for that i am a bit envious, or at the very least curious. i mean my decorating fetishes are all over the map. i googled rita today b/c i actually miss her apartment, you know...the one that was always featured in domino. and for a while there i was so over that apartment i threw up a little every time i saw it. but i found these images from her newish blog over at the ny times and i have to say the little changes she has made have made me love it all over again, along with that quirky english hodge podge of treasures she does so well...

***update..ok, so it's not the same apartment, it's a new one. but the point is still the same.

want more of rita's blog?

enter

layers of goodness

not so much

as a mom your job never ends. no breaks, well...maybe short ones, but nothing like you need. which is hours, maybe days. especially when you feel like ass. as in flu ass, cold ass, swinesarsmalaria ass. back before i was a mom when i got sick i could stay in bed all day if i wanted and convalesce with the best of em. i could watch movies all day, never bathe, wipe boogers everywhere, not that i did but i COULD HAVE (ok maybe one or two) and order food in. see all that changes when you become a mom...i could look like this:

and i would still be expected to get up and make breakfast, lunch, dinner and everything inbetween. so even though i can't i would LIKE to pretend to take refuge in this room all weekend long:isn't it ambrosial? it looks like an angel's bedroom on a cloud. every 2 hours i would like my sweet little one to visit me and give me a hug and tell me what she was up to while mommy was busy resting. she would bring me a cup of tea and the latest paper issue of lonny, which michelle and pat made special just for me. then she would be on her way until i requested her presence again in two more hours this time bearing some luna and larry chocolate peanut butter coconut milk ice cream...i could go on and on. but i won't, in fact lest you think i am complaining please remember this- never ever in a fucking lightyearcoon'sage type of time frame would this happen which is why i have this blog so that i can pour my poor me heart into it every now and again. when in reality i still have to pick up a shitload of toys (little teeny tiny ones too, like hundreds of pennies teeny tiny), bathe a child, clean a kitchen and put said child to bed (which might sound delightful and easy but if you know my child this tends to be anything but the case) before this day is over. and so you know...these are things that on a normal every day basis i do without thinking twice but this week these chores and activities seem really really tedious. so sue me.

on another note...this guy is feeling pretty good right about now, huh?!!!

i still wouldn't trade places with him for the world. (except when he bangs michelle...YEAH I SAID THAT!)

blogcation

i have heard that paris is pretty spectacular in the fall, so let's go there...

pretty finds

ruthie sommers does stripes and candy colored chairs...ummm...yes please.

kishani perera does a trifecta of gorgeous lighting in an entry.

opium wallpaper by albany-i vote for it in a kitchen. i am CRAZY!!!!

a room by carolina irving. drapy, womanly, pretty patterned bonanza.

customized cupcake car

more like customized douchebag car.

"Put on your matching hat, slip under the muffin top of your Cupcake Car, and let the world figure itself out for awhile. Get (or give) the sheer, joyful chaos of a gift that is mind-blowing, triple-dog-dare, double-infinity forever cool. Make the kids or grandkids literally squeal with joy. Bring it to work and buzz the breakroom. Crash parades! Putter about the ‘hood. Ever had a crowd of kids chasing after you just for the crazy gleeful heck of it? (No worries, the top speed is a comfy-safe 7 mph.) What’s it made of? A 24-volt electric motor, a heavy-duty battery, sheet metal, wire, fabric, wood…and mad genius. Launched at Burning Man as a cooperative art car project, the Cupcake Car sprang from the fevered mind of Bay Area artist Lisa Pongrace and her less-rules-more-laughs posse of artists and techno geeks. Yours will be tricked out with your favorite topping, so start thinking flavors. "

"let the world figure itself out for awhile"? how about you figure out why you are retarded enough to drop 25k on a fucking car that looks like a cupcake?

"crash parades"? douche
"putter about the 'hood"? douche

"ever had a crowd of kids chasing after you just for the crazy gleeful heck of it?"? a.k.a. a mob chasing you down to kick your ass for driving around in a cupcake car. and at 7 mph they WILL catch you.

and neiman marcus you are swimming in a vinegar and water solution too for selling it.

thanks to whitney for the heads up.

doggy sculptures? toys?

not really sure what they are used for but they are ridiculously cute. artist domenica more gordon crafted these out of felt and they are pretty much sold out...BUT...

..you can buy a kit and make one yourself...

or you can buy these for this year's christmas card send out...

see all the doggy's here. perhaps she has fashioned one to look like YOUR dog.

lodgy

after monday's mad search for leopard and plaid and coming up short wouldn't you know ralph lauren would come to the rescue (2 days late-thanks ralph) with an email in my inbox showcasing his indian cove collection? now i am not one to go crazy for the lodge look in fact most of the time it makes me want to gouge my eyes out with a pair of secateurs. but ralph does it in a way that says, i am way cooler than the average person and i can pull this off and make you want to do it to your house too. the way only a super classy and chic eccentric person can do. here are some highlights: that buffalo plaid chair is pretty awesome especially sitting next to the chinese-y bamboo looking table (what would you design educated people call that type of table? chippendale? chinoiserie? chippenoiserie?). i'm not mad at the bird pictures either, or the copious amount of layered rugs. and honestly...i have to say never EVER has wood panelling looked so good.

is that emerald green velvet on the walls??!!!!!

hell yeah it is!!!!!

if the lodge thing still isn't for you, check out this philippe starck chair my mom sent me...

all it needs is a little red tartan plaid throw or throw pillow and you have the look without the lodge feel.

and here is the RL indian cove bedding collection. not sure if i would go all out with the plaid all over my bed but those buffalo plaid cases next to that leopard is working for me.

the green version is quite nice too...

how are we all feeling about this?

i aint even playin

seriously, this shit is DUMB! i am astounded that the glycemic index on it is like 5, which compared to sugar is really REALLY good. not to mention this particular flavor has not a lick of sugar...NOT A LICK!!!! or dairy. or anything artificial. and the fat content from coconut milk is GOOD FOR YOU! there are gooey ribbons of chocolate syrup running through it. i have created tunnels in mine just to get to it that would make a WWI vet proud. i have heard there is chocolate peanut butter too. i just haven't seen it. probably a good thing, because i would destroy it.

"alice in wonderland on acid"

several months ago living etc magazine did a spread on abigail ahern's place in london. i flipped out b/c i was just getting into that dark, brooding cozy space thing and of course flip flopping back to the all white, bright, light space (still am), but seeing this just made it palpable. in fact this space went from all white to this dark gray(farrow and ball down pipe). we were kindred spirits it seemed. she combines high end pieces with more affordable decor like changing an entire room's look with paint. her home will forever be one of great individuality for me. she stepped outside the box a bit and created a look for herself. she is the epitome of quirky eclecticism. and she has a great eye...

..and lucky for us she has a new book filled with yummy glossy photography and loads of tips for creating a fabulous space on a tight budget:

click here to buy the book. and click here to buy her accessories.

monday color combo

i have spent more time than is probably necessary trying to find rooms inspired by this combination. and to no avail, unfortunately. i saw this lovely lass on garance dore and thought the combination of plaid and leopard was fabulous. and that a room done up in a little plaid and leopard could be fabulous too. alas all i found (that was tasteful and pretty) was this plaid chair and leopard pillow....
also i realize it's not technically a color combo, but nothing was inspiring me this week but this combination. i got a little obsessed and therefore intensely let down when there just wasn't anything out there. it's kinda early90'sralphlaurenhuntclubcountrystupendous isn't it? i think it could be modernized a tad and made even better.


images via garance dore and m.a. belle

what we did today

took a picture of my new poster. it's enjoyable isn't it?


peach roses by my bed, they match my book- dragonfly in amber, the second in the outlander series. wanton lusty hot and heavy goodness.

pink roses and q-tips.

red roses in bad light.

nicolas bb your forces are too strong...

this is the firepit in our backyard that we will roast marshmallows at later...

fiona honey...

around the yard..

the last eggplant..

the last of the herbs...basil, chives, oregano, mint, lavender...

for dinner...grits...

roasted tomatoes with fresh basil and balsamic and garlic...

and a roasted sweet italian sausage...

fuller than hades...

circle of care bears...

after the feast we made our way outside again for the s'mores party..

first we had to get by these two...

this one is naggie...yes, she only has one eye.. sometimes we call her the dread pirate naggie...
got the fire going..
she's ready...this will be her first s'more...ever...she is pumped...

good looking fire mr. anderson...

marshmallows conflagrant..


gobbling...

hope you had a great weekend!

lonny lonny lonny get yer boner here!

for those mfamb readers who only read this blog bc they love me (hi mom! hi dad!) let me inform you on what in the high water in hades lonny is. a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away there was a magazine called domino-r.i.p. this was a beloved shelter magazine, probably the best...ever. it combined chic style with accessibility to the everywoman. unlike some of the other shelter mags out there that are beautiful to look at yet completely unachievable unless you are a bajillionaire, domino was something us normal folk could look at and say...i can do THAT! but alas, domino folded. big middle finger to that. a lot of us were really sad, devastated even. now all we had were the aforementioned mags that offered decorating for the super rich.
well, yesterday a magazine birthed itself thru the braingina of michelle adams and patrick cline. it's called lonny. as in LON-don/NY. a lot of us were waiting with baited breath to see if this ONLINE magazine could fill the much needed void that used to be domino. in my opinion, it does. in fact i thought i was looking at a new issue of domino. i imagine some folks will think that part annoying or lame. i don't. i think it kicks ass. as long as lonny brings me something entirely new each month they could call it lomino for all i care.
here is my experience:
first of all let me say i haven't been this excited for a release since lord of the rings 1, 2 and 3. in fact, i daresay i felt like a hobbit at fireworks display. pass the mead!
so i woke up yesterday and noticed a few blog posts already up. michelle's to be precise. she provided a ton of pics that had my heart racing...i wanted more and fast but i had to take my daughter to school and run errands before i would get the chance to really sit down and delve in.
but i must say that during that time i really WAS genuinely excited!! the way i would get when a domino arrived in the mail and sat waiting by my bed for me to caress it's pages for an hour or so. when that time finally did arrive at 2:30, i went into the kitchen, poured myself a glass of wine, sat fiona down with the care bears and went into my room on my bed, computer in lap and opened the first "page"...

these first 2 image captures show just how like domino (even cottage living) it was...

right on point with the affordable mixed with the unaffordable. i'm talking to you lack tables and jayson sofa.

another point of interest was the bar cart in just about every home featured. it was like a highlight's magazine puzzle. what does every home have in common? A BAR CART!! (very domino-esque)

here is carolina irving's bar cart:

here is ron marvin's bar cart:

there's eddie ross's bar cart...in the back left corner:

here's deborah needleman's bar cart:

i wonder if these people legitimately had bar carts already or if this is an homage to domino?


now on to some of my favorite images..

this one is of kate simpson's bathroom. dying over the wallpaper and monogrammed towels:

i know a lot of people out there just don't like ed ross. i fucking love him! what's not to love? he's so gay MY butt hurts. and while i was slightly disappointed that i had seen a lot of his house already on his blog there was enough that i hadn't seen that made up for it. say what you will about him, he does give good 'ed, as in editorial. he is a master stylist. i mean if you love martha, you love eddie. case closed. and i would give just about anything to be invited to this damn country house and sit down at his table. in fact i think i might be eddie ross for halloween.

this was the inspiration behind yesterday's house lonnification:

don't even get me started on this bathroom:

the porch all whited out and fabulous. i see you broom! you too painted terra cotta pots!

the fact that he hung these lithographs outside should be reason enough to love the ross:

moving on to caroline irving's place.

i loved this nook:

the layers and textures and colors were happy. elegant yet relaxed.

and her perfume collection...so pretty..so domino.

and design*sponge blogger, grace bonney's home..this pic was my favorite of her space:

and who knew something so small could bring such joy and bone? a suzani tray under a dish rack? why in the fuck didn't i think of that? totally stealing that idea.

ok, this next space..that of domino's own editor-in-chief deborah needleman was the one i think we all were waiting for. it did not disappoint. in fact these first 2 images about made me curl up into fetal position..

so. so. SO. good. no words really. that black apron sink? the black table with the plants in perfectly aged pots? huunh?..buh...whaa?? i can't even.


and this light filled girly nook? those floors, painted like that? so good:

oooh...dark, cozy space i love you too:

and the pool...

DUMB!!!!!

over all i was very pleased with this first issue. very pleased indeed. however....

a few things were not so good. one, the obvious one...it's still not a magazine that i can hold and smell and get my eyeballs really close to. and the fact that it's an online magazine also means that it could crash, or your computer might be too slow therefore causing great frustration and you to shut it down.

and while i like the fact that this is soooo similar to domino's last page, this particular one was kind of a snooze fest...really burts bees?

high fives lonny! keep up the good work.

have you had your lonnotomy yet?

that's what happens when you experience lonny magazine. you look thru the "pages" and your heart starts racing and your palms start sweating and you walk around your house and TRY TO MAKE SHIT LOOK BETTER!!!!!!!! here is my quickie attempt to lonnify my house....

BAM! empty, dusty dresser got a throw, some lamps and flowers...

BAM!! mantle got some quirky english country love...

and cheap ikea chair got expensive lambskin throw...KAPOW!!!

come back here tomorrow for full disclosure on my favorite bits and least favorite bits.

chair update

jen west of jen west design and the super awesome blog jentrified (coolest blog name ever) is my new bf. she sent me some of this brown sister parish fabric for the cushion on my now pale blue gray chair...for free. yes. she did. because she is awesome and my new bf. and it looks great!

i ghettoized it by wrapping the fabric around the cushion. (my mother in law will sew it for me later.) also need a bright, fun pillow...
i mean i'm no jenny from pearl street interiors...did you SEE that shit she did today?!?! but i am learning and getting better with each project.

also..up today...LONNY MAGAZINE! i can't wait to look thru and give a full mfamb review.