Paris Party

Well, we didn't actually have a party IN Paris but we did have a birthday party for Paris.  Remember the all white party I did here?  Well, here sister, Paris, recently had a birthday so we decided to do a party for her. I can't take credit for most of the elements of this party.  I thought of a few ideas and helped pull everything together, but their stepmom, Ashley, was the brains behind the operation.  Paris' favorite color right now just so happens to be yellow so that gave us a great jumping off point.  

So onto the fun part, the pictures...

First, we have one of our favorite guests, Scarlett.  She is always dressed appropriately for parties and plans her wardrobe around the color scheme of the event.

if you remember, she wore this adorable little white frock for the previous party we threw...

The centerpiece for the table was a wooden "Paris" sign that Ashley spraypainted white to match the decor.  And check out those adorable cake pops!  They were hit for sure.  She used donut holes instead of cake (so much easier and just as good) and the "faces" came from Hobby Lobby.

and since my cake was such a hit for my sister's birthday I decided to make one for this party too, in the birthday girl's favorite color of course.  By the way, I promise a tutorial on this cake is coming soon...

Don't you love the tablecloth?  It's actually a sheet (washed of course) from a thrift store

Just for fun I decided to make the inside of the cake three shades of yellow, gradually getting darker as you go up

this picture shows the color best

Overall we had a grand 'ol time but I think we are about partied out.  We both agreed we might wait a few years before we do parties like this again.  So glad tomorrow's Friday!!

Model Home Crashing

Don't you love looking in other people's homes?  My mom and I stopped into a model home the other day in a neighborhood they are looking to purchase a home in.  There were definitely things I would have done differently, but that's just my opinion.  I've noticed that a lot of times model homes are overdone or a little over the top.  I guess maybe that's the intention?  Nonetheless, it was fun to look around and find some cute ideas.  Pardon the cell phone pictures, this was an impromptu visit so I didn't have my "real" camera with me.

Love the chairs in this dining room and the placement of the three wicker balls, the wall treatment is a little much for me.

I've always loved the look of these ceilings, adds so much to a room...

Nothing really special about this room, I think the walls would have been better left solid, minus the swirls.

and this one, I just wasn't feeling the spots, reminds me of a petri dish or something.  Overall the room had a nice beachy feel to it but I feel like that just ruined it.

I thought this was a pretty assortment of mirrors

loved this ceiling...

I loved the idea of this lantern as a bathroom light, especially in a nautical bathroom

So what do you think?  Do you like wandering in model homes for inspiration?



You can eat cake!

When I first saw this cake in the blog world, I was immediately inspired.  So pretty and delicious looking.  Add a few tiers and it could even be used as a wedding cake.

source

So, I thought I would give it a whirl and make one for my sister's birthday.  And here she is, can you really go wrong with cream cheese buttercream?  I think not.

Mini Lamp Makeover

I've had this lamp in the garage for the longest time, just waiting for it's makeover.  I've put myself on a thrifting/spending hold until I can finish all the projects in the garage.  That will be quite the feat but all the "stuff" in there is driving me and my husband nuts.

Anyway, onto the lamp!  It started out pretty worn and old looking.  I love the hobnail milk glass and wanted the whole thing to have a cohesive look.  I thought it would be cool to paint the wooden parts white to give the appearance that the whole thing is milk glass.    

so I taped it off and sprayed it white...I also added a drum shade to make it feel more updated.  I think it would be the perfect addition to any room.  It's in the booth now just waiting for a new home!

Official Launch

Today marks the official launch of my e-design services.  I have been creating design boards for clients for quite some time but have never mentioned that I offered this service on my blog.  In honor of this launch I'm offering a giveaway for a design board for one room in your home.  All you have to do is leave a comment with the room you would choose to have me redesign.  Blog about it or post it on facebook and go ahead and leave another comment for an additional entry.  For more info on these services, check out the "services" tab at the top of the page.  

Here's an example of a masculine design board I created for a recent client:

I will pick a winner this Friday at 8:00 am.

Bamboo

I stumbled upon these bamboo chairs at Salvation Army when I was out thrifting with my friend Meghan.  I haggled the guy down to $20 for the pair.  

So here they are before....

I removed the small decorative piece at the top, it was just a little too much for me...

and here they are in the office, painted a nice gray.  

I would love to eventually fill this space with a bench or settee but these will work for the moment.  I still need to accessorize and add some sort of end table/lamp.

I'm not sure that this will be the permanent placement of the chairs or the permanent color (things change daily around here) because I have to admit, from the moment I saw them I envisioned them painted something like this fabulous color from natty by design, a lotta bold a little funky but I think in the right space it could be perfect.

Magenta Madness

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I'm adding touches of magenta to the office.  Small, subtle touches.  I decided to DIY my artwork for the office that way I could customize it to be exactly what I wanted it to be and it's a whole lot cheaper than anything you can buy.  I found these canvases on clearance for $5 at Homegoods a while back and bought them knowing I could paint over the existing design.  I primed them with spray primer to block out the existing design.

Here's what they looked like before...

and here they are now in the office!

Can you believe it's July already?!?  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!