California Chic

In about five to seven years, we plan to redo our kitchen and add on a great room.  Therefore, I have a half decade to squirrel away inspiration images.  Luckily for Graham, I’ve been attracted to the, “when we win the lottery” type of looks.

Here’s what I’ve been eyeing…

 

 

Those steel accordion doors to our backyard are a must, aren’t they?  Come on Super Lotto!!

Taking a Risk

Aloha from Hawaii!  We are off enjoying vacation.  It’s so nice to have extra hands around so I have some time to blog.

Now lets chat about sconces.  We’ve got some ho hum sconces currently in the girls bath; they are so not my style and the spacing is off; they should be about two inches closer to the mirror.

They actually look better in this lousy pic then they do in person.  Every night when we give the girls a bath, I look at the lights in disgust.  It sounds dramatic, but I do.  Every single night.

Poking around One King’s Lane, I found a pair of cute palm beach vintage sconces and I went for them:

They are a bit of a risk but I like the drama that they should bring to the room.  I’m thinking  I’ll spray paint them black.  I’m just thrilled to get something unique in there – I’ll be taking cue from these beautiful bathrooms…

 

I do love the fact that I’m pushing myself here a bit on my choice of sconces because if I can’t push my own self in my own home, then I might as well throw in the towel now.  We shall see how it turns out.  I’ll post pics once I have them installed.

Cement Tiles for the Win

Speaking of friends, my best of friends, is in the process of building her home.  So, like any true best friend, I’ve butt my way into the decision making process.  Just me, my best friend, her husband, and the contractor.  Because when you have a ton of decisions to make, the first thing you want is another opinion in the mix.

They have a bathroom that will one day be a kids bathroom so ‘we’ can have a bit of fun when it comes to choosing the materials.

In my humble opinion, I think it would be fun to do patterned cement tiles on the floor.

Here are my inspo pics:

Amber Interiors

Amber Interiors

My brother and sister in law just remodeled and they put some fun cement tiles in their kid’s bathroom and it’s amazing!  I’ll see if I can get some pics to post.  Of course, cement tiles do not need to be relegated strictly to the children’s bathroom.  In fact, I’d love them in the powder bath of our own home.

A good spot to find fun tile is the Cement Tile Shop.

Paisley Love

First of all, thanks for all of the responses on my New Year’s resolution post.  It was scary putting something so honest and vulnerable out there and it was nice to know that I’m not the only one.

Now, lets chat about decor shall we?

While at the library with my girls, I was reading through an old Country Living when I came across a room I had loved but forgotten about (as so many things go by the wayside when you pin a million things a day).  This room…

It’s the wallpaper that does it for me.  The paper is Paisley Circles by Sanderson.  It’s the large scale that really gets me.  I’d love an entire room covered in this in my home, preferably my bedroom but I’d take Grace’s room.

 

Pretty, isn’t it?  Would you cover a room in this?

Making Friends

It finally feels time to dust off my computer.  Let the words flow to my finger tips, as they play their song vigorously on my keyboard.  Writing has always been my outlet.  My journey marker.  My favorite form of expression.  I hope to carve out time to let the joy of writing back into my life.

My previous post was all about looking back on 2014.  Today, I rise again and look to set a goal for the blossoming new year.  While there are a million things I’d love to improve, personal quirks that make me cringe or deeply formed habits that I’d love to wish away, I like to focus on just one thing in the hopes that perhaps I will meet the goal.

This year, in my mid thirties (cringe), it’s time to face something that I actually find quite challenging – making friends.  Yep, friends.

You see, I actually have a whole slew of friends…apparently, I feel I have to qualify myself so I don’t come off as a complete loser (see above to habits I’d like to wish away).

But, in the neighborhood I live in – I’ve got nothing.  In the city I live in, I’ve got one.  I love to say to my friends who live in SF, “come move to Burlingame, I’ll introduce you to my one friend”  And my one friend and I aren’t on BFF terms yet.  Although, I’m working on it.  We don’t text each other throughout the day with random thoughts.  We don’t laugh so hard we have a little tinkle from our lovely post baby bodies.  We’re both coming off of pregnancies and so we haven’t even hit a tequila bar together yet.  But, it’ll happen.  Because all those things are on my new years resolution list to do with her.  Little does she know.

This may be one of my toughest resolutions yet.  Because it’s a bit out of my control.  The only thing I can do is attempt to set up a play date and then wait as cooly as I possibly can for a response.  “oh what’s that?  you want to meet up?  no big deal at all” I wasn’t at home sweating over the whole thing.

Sweat I do, my dear “internet friends” (as my husband refers to you).  I’m horrible at making the first move; it makes me waaaay too nervous.  In fact, I’m lousy at picking the strand back up when people reach out to me.  I lose touch easily.  I kind of hate talking on the phone.  And I lose my phone at least once a day.

Making friends in your 30’s is tough.  Making friends with an initially shy demeanor is brutal.  But, I’m going for it.  Cause my god hanging out with friends, true friends, is ridiculously fun.  It’s time I build that community again.

So, here’s old me, someone whose pretty relaxed on parenting but really enjoys it and doesn’t feel like complaining about it all the time; someone who is pretty much down for a glass of wine if offered, no matter the time; someone who loves to talk design and all things gorgeous but could give a rats ass if your home is in disarray or not how you’d like it to look – I promise I won’t judge; someone who is always down for a good laugh and prefers not to take things too seriously.  Yes, this is my friend profile.

There it is.  It’s officially out there.  Time to start making some awkward phone calls and creeping other moms out at the park with my “hows it going?” icebreakers.  Good Lord, I hate this.  Wish me luck.

Photo fittingly taken by the first friend I ever made and a BFF for life when I ran into her on the streets of Palo Alto and it brightened my whole day.  Hi Jules!