Slightly Smitten

Perfect simplicity... The New General Store

Glam Lighting

Loving these light fixtures. They are oh so L.Alden. I can see each really making your room sparkle and giving your space a warm feeling; perfect for cozy evenings reading by the fire, entertaining in the dining room, or dimly lit console tables.

Thinking about Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, as its all about food, family, and friends. There are few expectations about presents (unlike Christmas), and everyone is in the mood to make a delicious treat to bring to the host's home for dinner. Pumpkin pies, roasted root vegetables and stuffing are some of my favorites. Mmmmm...

While searching for some new Thanksgiving recipes, I saw this video on Food Network. It makes me want to spend Thanksgiving with Ina (okay, or every day! I can't imagine ever eating boring leftovers at her house). What a delicious party she hosts! And her home... If I were there I'd be inspecting all the details of her lovely kitchen. I'm sure you saw that her kitchen was House Beautiful's 2009 Kitchen of the Year. What a wonderful food and interior inspiration for the upcoming holiday!

Glass Bead Magnets

This is not a new idea. I know. But they're really cute and no matter how many times I do this little project, I'm always amazed at how different the magnets turn out. Endless fun, and its easy enough to do while watching tv. These seem to have that John Derian look, don't they? I used Caspari wrapping paper. What a fun excuse to browse through that store!

{The photos above were some of my last before my camera died. Its a bit fuzzy and the camera refused to focus. I should have taken the hint then... my camera has gone to glory}

White Flower Farmhouse

Garden Urns
Large $18, Small $9

I'm such a computer head! Just one more post for you readers tonight. You people must think I'm some crazy consumer... this is partially true... I do like to spend some money on cool stuff. I mean really though, who doesn't??? Bills suck. Wouldn't you rather have tons of fun spending money to buy everything you ever dreamed of? Thanks to the internet barrier ( i.e. I'm impatient and hate to pay for shipping... basically means I don't order much online) and my budget, I find a lot of cool items that go unpurchased. That being said, I still feel like they need their proper reveal online, so I'll share them with you readers! Without further adieu... behold White Flower Farmhouse. Vintage-y goodness that's all cleaned up and affordable! Yippee. Enjoy these finds. :)

Topiaries
$32 (large), $26 (small)

Vintage Terra Cotta Seed Pots
$7

Aqua Whale
$39

Aqua Swimgirl
$65

Farm Table
$359

Note: I really do have more to do with my life than shop online (work, gym, cook, hang out with friends and family, etc). I am just amazed at how many cool things people make and find, and I have to share these with you! One day soon I'll post some homemade stuff.

Autumn is Here

Its Thursday evening and I'm ready for the weekend. I spent some time this evening relaxing and catching up on blogs, plus some brainstorming. I made a mental checklist of the things I want to do this weekend. The weather should be nice, so I'm hoping to go to the downtown farmer's market on Saturday morning, and a country drive later in the day.

I also need to go pick some apples at Carter's Mountain so I can make applesauce (my Mom's applesauce mill has been sitting unused on my kitchen countertop too long!), but I don't want to have to battle the weekend apple picking crowds. Too many people for me! I might go early or right before they close.

I picked up some molasses chew cookies made by Mission Home Bakeshop today when I was at the grocery. They were the perfect addition to my chicken salad sandwich lunch. The cookies were definitely were an impulse buy thanks to the crisp cool weather we've been so lucky to have. Go pick some up and celebrate Autumn. Its here!


I'm hoping to do a little cooking this weekend as well. Last weekend I made Barefoot Contessa's Lentil Sausage Soup. Delicious. I give the recipe 5 stars! Go make it yourself if you want a great afternoon activity that will leave your home smelling scrumptious all day! This weekend I'm looking forward to trying L'Etoile's Pumpkin Soup recipe that they sampled at the Farmer's Market last weekend. Served with some crusty bread, a fresh salad, and a glass of wine... perfect Saturday evening dinner.

While Fall is fresh on the mind, be sure to take a look at this lovely guest bedroom from The Newlywed Diaries. The colors are beautiful and the simplicity of the space is just what a guest is looking for. Someplace to feel welcome and cozy, but without the clutter of their own home. Wouldn't you love to be a guest in their guestroom?

My Mama Made It

Take a look at what Alexis of My Mama Made It threw together recently. This woman can sew! I am impressed with the creative use to hide a stain on a perfectly good tee shirt. I'm inspired to create a few of these for myself. A few new Old Navy tees and some cute fabric in my stash from Les Fabriques, and a few hours and voila! I see a few extra sassy tees in my new chest of drawers. They'll be perfect in the fall with jeans, a cardigan and my faux Frye's.

Napkin Decorating

Budget decorating is a little different than the decorating I was doing at my internship in Richmond, VA. Oh how I miss unlimited funds to redesign bedrooms, bathrooms, and beach cottages. I was exposed to so many beautiful lines of textiles, home accessories, and other products. The knowledge of these products makes it tricky to be satisfied with Target's home decorating section. Even Pottery Barn seems like a let down (not that I have the budget for that stuff anyways!). I want, want, want Oly Studio, Aidan Gray, Designers Guild, O&L, Brunschwig & Fils, etc. Once I went to pick up a few things from Niermann Weeks at the Washington Design Center. I nearly fell head over heels, the place is loaded with the most fashionable design. Its like a shopping mall for Interior Designers. They say knowledge is power, but in this case, design product knowledge is enough to break the bank!

All of that is besides the point though. This recession/ reality check for me as a designer is making me become more savvy with my design and decorating choices for my home. I was at World Market on Monday and saw some beautiful table linens. I thought about how the textile would compliment our living room furniture choices. I picked up 2 cloth napkins from that line for the low low price of $3.oo each and have plans to make them into pillow covers. I need to rummage through my fabric scraps/ samples and find enough for the back of the pillows. That shouldn't be too hard. I made pillows like this in the Spring, but think that the space could use some Autumnal inspiration. So in the next week or so I should be assembling new pillow covers. I found directions here for all you sewing bloggers. I usually add a zipper and always use a down pillow insert (Ikea sells a good inexpensive one) to create a cleaner and more professional look for the pillows, but the envelope method on the above link will work as well. After all is said and done, both pillow covers will cost less than $20. I think its an affordable solution to custom pillows. I'll be sure to photograph the final results.


For now, you will have to settle with the temporary solution... its pretty cheesy, but atleast you get an idea of the print and colors. (I will just be covering the pillows covered with the green fabric; the purple pillow will stay). Does anyone have any affordable trim ideas in mind for these pillows? Also, I found a few from Crate and Barrel that could be accents on the sofa. Here they are: