MoMA

Playing hookie to go see this in January. Apologies for the lack of posts recently. I've been a busy girl. Happy Friday!

Best Day Ever!

That's right... TBS just started from the beginning last night! Season 1 of The Office! I can't wait until next Tuesday! Apologies for the break from the norm, but I was just too excited.

Tiled Walls & Backsplashes

One of my most favorite decorative trends. Tile backsplashes in kitchens are one of the most beautiful design choices I have seen. Whether using patterned tiles to accent a wall color, or using a mosaic as the centerpiece to a room, the tiled backsplash is both stylish and practical (thanks J!). And if you're the kind of cook I am, a mess is bound to happen. So instead of staining any of your walls while cooking, all these backdrops need is a wipe down.


Just recently I ate at La Focaccia in the West Village (great place!) with my favorite people, and they have the most beautiful blue pattern tiled wall in their kitchen. It was really quite striking and gave the restaurant such a nice feel. I was so happy to see this picture on Apartment Therapy! I got this picture as well as a few others from Apartment Therapy and Bungalow Bliss.

Handmade Leather Phone Case

Reason enough to buy an iPhone! Too bad I don't own one. Do we think the Droid would fit in this? I hope so. Take a peak on etsy and pick out yours!

Gift Tags

'Tis the season... and what a cute way to "craft" up your gifts this year. These gift tags from the Sesame Letter Press Shop are such an adorable idea. The silhouetted tags add a lot of style to any wrapped gift. And if DIY is more your style, you can pick up these tags at any Office Depot or Staples to design and decorate yourself.

Servant Bells

My aunt and cousin's recent adventures in England were the inspiration for this post. While hopping around Stonehenge, Castle Combe and Bath, they were able to stop by the Cliveden House. Inside, my cousin snapped a gorgeous shot of these antique servant bells. They're so cool and authentic looking and I wanted to share. My aunt is a big antique buff, so I did a little research to see if I could find some vendors that supply similar bells. Take a look. It would be such an interesting piece for her collection.

Baroque Bookshelves

I love these interesting bookshelves. Whether they're installed into or onto your walls, they're a great way to utilize space without needing a big bulky bookshelf. I'm a fan. Click here to purchase.

Planted Ornament

An interesting spin on the traditional Christmas Tree ornament. Take little baby food or medicine jars and plant little sprouts inside. Punch holes in the seal top to water when necessary and fasten a pretty ribbon for it to hang from your tree. Really simple idea that has a lot of charm. If crafting is not your thing, here's an example on Etsy that you can purchase pre-made. This could also work with putting dry flowers or twigs inside as opposed to growing your own little plant.

Happy Tuesday

Just because they're cool.

Cornelia O'Donovan

I'm obsessed with her prints. Check out her new work available for purchase here.

Chalkboard Walls

Oh how I wish I had had one of these growing up! I have always been such a huge fan of this technique and wanted to share some examples. I love the contrast of the dark blackboard against the stark white walls of the kitchen. Such an awesome (and relatively inexpensive) way to utilize some wall space. Saw some examples of this on Style Files. Huge fan of this idea and I fully intend to install my own little version of this. Installing the chalkboard on the door is genius. Great idea.

Trunk Tables

My sister Jenna and her husband Antonio have the most beautiful piece of furniture in their Soho apartment - an old luggage trunk of Antonio's great grandfather that he used when immigrating to the United States from Italy. It's beautiful and is still in such amazing condition. Old trunks or luggage bags can really make beautiful furniture pieces, however buying trunks like these are usually quite expensive. If you are lucky enough to have one in the family like my sister and her husband did, TAKE IT! Otherwise, take advantage of any sidewalk sales or flee markets in your area that may have some for a steal. It's always so fun when you snatch a good find like these. I love the technique of stacking two suitcases and covering with a glass top or wooden surface to form the table.

Leaves

Saw these prints on The New York Times site the other day and fell in love. They're part of a collection by Christoph Niemann called Bio-Diversity. They're so clever! I'm putting the cloud/cars print on my Christmas list. Take a peak. Here's the link to more of Mr. Neimann's works and where you can order prints for yourself.

Tiny Letters

Wanted to share this "little" idea with you guys - Leafcutter Design's "World's Smallest Post Office". My friend and I had these made last year for our boyfriends... probably cheesy, but they enjoyed it. Good for when you run out of Valentine's Day ideas! Enjoy. Happy Friday!

Mr. Boddington

I have a new favorite to add to my ever growing list of stationary blogs/sites that I regularly follow. Mr. Boddington is a boutique studio located in the Kips Bay neighborhood of New York and their lookbook is quite extraordinary. I love their Walton Ford inspiration piece for a client's Thanksgiving invites. Really lovely. Check them out! A friend of mine out of Philadelphia is responsible for their web design. Go Zach! ...Now if only I could actually afford to shop here...

Plates on Walls

I've been seeing this trend a lot recently... from other design blogs, to Real Simple, to actual apartments I've been in. However, wherever I happen to see this technique, it always manages to look completely original and unique to its space. Saw some of these trends on Living Small and Design Shrine. I really love this idea of a "flock" of plates strewn across a wall. Apartment Therapy has a really beautiful example and shows you how you can create your own wall art.

Alex on Etsy

My amigo Mr. Alex Balcer, the budding photographer that he is, has just recently begun selling his amazing images on Etsy. Check them out. They're gorgeous. I'm quite partial to his New Orleans work, but they all rock. The picture above I'm still waiting to have matted and framed for me, so hopefully this shout-out will do the trick...

Magic Candle

By far, the BEST candle in the world. HUGE fan. I'm addicted.

Map Art

I have always been fascinated with maps. Growing up, my father always had this big vintage standing globe in his den and my sisters and I would take turns spinning it as fast as we could and wherever our fingers landed would be where we would live. (Needless to say, you got a "re-do" if you landed on Greenland). I love the look of maps and what they do to a room. Above are some examples of some map art I've found that I really love.

Headboards

I think beds look so sad and empty without headboards. They can add so much style to a room... especially when you consider alternatives to the typical headboard. Reusing old doors, fabric panels, picture frame arrangements, shelving units... you name it. I'm partial to the door idea. A neighbor of ours donated an old door of theirs to my headboard making cause. Can't wait to put this puppy together!

Reusing Wine Bottles

I always have a hard time throwing away wine bottles. I love the look of them and try to reuse them wherever I can. I found this idea on Instructables and wanted to share. Nice little accent for the holidays.

Robots

I have always been a huge fan of Robots... so when I found out through a coworker a few years back that there are artists who actually create robots as a form of art, I hit the ceiling. Bennett's robots are pretty much the coolest thing I've ever seen, so buying the poster was about the closest I was going to get to them. We found my robot, (named Bobot), at a Arts Festival in Philadelphia, and he sits perched in my bookshelf at home, and I absolutely adore him. Just recently, Anthropologie has brought robot buying to the forefront and collaborated with artist Amy Flynn to sell a line of "Fobots". Some of them are pretty cool. I'm a fan.