{the blog}

all dolled up and movie review

 

One of the things that most excites about having a little girl, is that I will soon have a legit reason to go into Crewcuts (other than trying to squeeze myself into a girls XXL).  This arrived in my inbox this morning - and I'm sorry, but if my daughter had those baubles Mommy would borrow them often.

In other (totally unrelated) news...

Movie review: Julie & Julia was wonderful!  I don't want to tell you much, because I don't want to ruin it... but I did not want the movie to come to an end!  It was good folks!  Chance's response "that was a way better movie than I thought it was going to be"... we both loved it.  The set decoration is enough to make you want to watch it over and over again.  Set decoration intrigues me deeply.  The movie is rolling so fast I always wish I had a remote to pause it and take it all in -right there on the big screen in the theater.  Mrs.Blandings (Patricia Shakelford) interviewed Susan Bode Tyson (the set decorator) regarding the set of Julie & Julia... I'm headed off to reread her article now.  You can read it too:  RIGHT HERE. 

And... now I'm tempted to start collecting copper pots, and I never really thought of peg board as a design element for a kitchen, but it sure is useful!  My husband will be glad there are no blank walls in our little bitty kitchen.   Here's a wonderful article from NPR on Julia Child's kitchen and the exhibit at the Smithsonian.  It's a must read!   

 

Happy Saturday!

Wheat stalk

TGIF blogger friends!!!!!!!!  Long week anyone?  My baby bump is big, making work (and climbing stairs) ever more difficult with each new day.  That's okay, as my sister says "that baby is easier to care for in the belly than she is when she comes out"... so I'm hanging in there!  

It's not new news, but in my opinion the best thing in blogland today... Joni's post on Sally Wheat.  Yes, round 2 stalking.  It's gotten even better than it was last time.

 

 

 

 

I'm sure a lot of you read Cote de Texas, but for those of you who don't... you are missing out.  Joni has the most in-depth and informative design-related posts in all of blogland.  Thank you Joni for always inspiring, and thank you Sally for sharing your world with us!  

PS: I also thoroughly enjoyed Joni's post on Seagrass Rugs last week. 

another one bites the dust

  

That was the subject line of an email from an inside source... Southern Accents September/October issue will be the last.  The website will remain in operation.  This is really devastating.  Thanks for the many years of inspiration SA... you will be missed!!!   

date night

 

My husband doesn't know it (yet), but tomorrow evening I will be taking him on a date.  We haven't been to a movie in a long time, and someone suggested "go the movies before your baby comes, that is one of those luxuries that gets put on the back burner with a new infant"... so off to the theater we will go.

And we will see Julie & Julia.  Because Mrs.Blandings has been killing me with her posts about it: here and here and here.  And while I wish I could say I have read the books (Julie's and Julia's), I have not.  Usually I do so before I watch a movie... but time just hasn't allowed for much reading lately.

Here's the trailer if you are interested:

Image from Mrs.Blandings; via Sony Pictures; photography by Jonathan Wenk.

Video from You Tube.

i love a skirted table

 

Jenny paid $5.99/yard for the fabric and her mom whipped this up for her... sounds too good to be true, but it is not.  See for yourself here.

image from Little Green Notebook

The Nursery Diaries :: Chapter 6

 I went to work an hour early yesterday, just so I could work on this post.  My computer at home is dead, despite the fact that I paid to have it repaired last week.  After I finished a very long and informative post on the window treatments, Typepad freaked out and I lost the whole thing.  Ahhhhh... the joys of blogging.  Maybe I will have success in finishing this post... and won't have to scream, stomp, and throw things at my computer in the process.

In case you missed Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, and Chapter 5.

This is Chapter 6 :: Window Treatments

Queue the Rolling Stones You Can't Always Get What You Want

I've failed to show you a floor plan of the nursery.  It is a little bitty room.  Perfect for a little bitty girl.  It does have the largest closet in the house, which concerns my husband (it was his closet, until I kicked him out to the other guest room)... he says "why does the smallest person in the house need the largest closet?" When he meets her he'll understand why she needs the big closet... the durn thing is almost full already.

 

I have a great handyman husband.  He hung the draperies in about 15 minutes flat.  My Stud hit a stud on all three of the brackets, which made the job go faster... and made him happy because he likes to complain about the weight of black-out lined draperies (which are my favorite).  I would like to mention... that is my drill.  Back when I started this business I used to install my own draperies and window treatments.  It was a nightmare, but I didn't have someone to help me, so I just did it myself. 

 

The natural woven shades came from Home Depot clearence rack and they cost.... drumroll please... $10.99 each.  I love the warmth and natural element they bring to the room.  And their color is quite nice with the gold crib.  I may have them lined, but for now they are up.

I believe that I already explained that the window treatments were an ivory cotton/linen blend with a 4" border on the leading edges of the coral and ivory stripe on the bias.  My seamstress did mention "it wasn't fun to sew that band on" when she dropped them off... but she did a darn good job! 

The drapery style is what I call: Two-Finger Euro Pleat (tacked at top of pleat), Black-Out Lined.  You may recall this is the same pleat/style I used on the cafe curtains in my design studio.

You may recall I was considering a valance/drapery combo for these windows, but as I mentioned before - the ceiling height in this room is only 8'-0" and it was just not gonna work for me.  So I reverted to a standard rod and ring system. 

Now in regard to the music you should have queued already... I wanted a skinny solid black iron rod - continuous (not expandable), with turned corner returns.  When I priced it however, I decided I can't always get what I want.  It was going to be $355.00.  I despise expandable (extension) drapery rods.  The rings don't ride smoothly on the rod and I find it very irritating.  But again, you can't always get what you want.  I found the rod below at the Restoration Hardware outlet for $45.  And I keep telling myself "the $310 you saved will buy a lot of diapers".

 

I am reminding myself in the grand scheme of things, an expansion rod isn't the end of the world... although I was tempted to spend 4 hours in Photoshop attempting to make the rod look solid in the photo below, and not tell you otherwise.  But... I'm keeping it real.   

 

I just ordered the rings to match the rod, they had one box at the outlet, but I needed 4 more.

My seamstress tucks drapery pins in each pleat, so they are very simple to just hook on the rings and hang... need a visual? click here.  

 

So there you have it.  Those are the only 2 windows in the nursery... and I am pleased with the results.  The draperies, like the crib skirt, kiss the ground.  They will likely grow a little, considering the linen blend fabric and the weight of the black-out lining.  This will be okay... when they have grown a little instead of "kissing the floor" I will say "I designed them to have a subtle break".

 

The chair is in- I'll show you in the next chapter.  When I'm not working, I've been washing tiny little pink clothes, blankets, burp cloths and bibs.  It's really still a little unbelievable that she will be here so soon! 

Gambrel @ Balustrade & Bitters

All the shelter magazines may be folding right before our eyes... but this article/interview with Steven Gambrel more than makes up for the lack of eyecandy in my mailbox these days.  Just when I was feeling good about my design studio... they had to go and feature Gambrel's.  The man has serious talent, he deserves the coolest design studio every known to man...

 

 

 

 

 

The design studio is darker than I would have expected, but somehow it's still so perfect.  He's updated his portfolio since I last visited his site... be sure to check it out.  It is guaranteed to inspire (or make you feel really bad about your own space)).

All photos from Balustrade & Bitters.

design giving husbands

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from Philip.  [Husband of a blog reader.]  He's not the first husband to email me... Zack and Michael (other blog reader husbands) have blazed trails before him. 

His email went like this:

Hi Erika,
 
You don't know me, but I feel like I know a lot about you from reading your blog.  More accurately, I know a lot about you because my wife Anne reads your blog and regularly gives me updates (I got your email address from your reply to one of my wife's blog comments).  Recently Anne informed me that "Erika thinks book shelves should only contain books."  By the following day, she had removed all the extraneous decor pieces from our living room book shelf and filled it with old tomes from our basement that we've never had the time nor the inclination to read.  I think she originally found your blog after a friend here in Richmond, VA sent her a link to Darby's blog.  She has become a devoted follower of both, even recently announcing that she can "totally" tell you and Darby apart.  So I guess you get the idea - she's a big fan.  I try to act sort of aloof and disapproving, but only enough to prevent her from driving to Santa Rosa Beach and setting up a lawn chair on your front lawn.  The truth is that we both love your designs and enjoy looking at all your work.  Anne's dream is to hire you to decorate our home one day when I finish dental school and we have positive cash flow, but that seems a long way off. 
 
The reason that I am writing you today is because Anne's birthday is next week and I thought that the gift she would treasure most would be to receive your input on her most pressing design dilemma: picking a rug for our living room.  This has been her primary mission for as long as I can remember.  She has scoured auctions, websites and retails stores for inspiration, but no epiphany has come.  Sometimes in the quiet of the evening while we sit on the couch, she'll look at me with a longing expression.  I will think that she is about to initiate a conversation on the complex character of God or the future of our family, only to have her sigh, "so where are we going to find a rug?"  I, of course, have no idea, but I fear her soul will know no rest until she finds an answer.
 
I don't know if you usually do this kind of work, but I was wondering if you might consider giving her some guidance.  I could send you some pictures of our space and our price range, and perhaps you could just spend a few minutes online and send her some links.  I don't know how you usually structure your fees, but I could certainly pay an hourly rate for your help if that's how it works.  I know Anne would be thrilled with the surprise.
 
So please let me know if you might be able to help.  Thank you for your consideration, and keep up the great work on your blog.  It really is fun to read and the images are beautiful.
 
Thanks again,
Philip

After a couple of emails back and forth, Anne's gift certificate was in the mail.  She opened it on her birthday and I received these pictures in an email from Philip to let me know Anne loved her gift.

  

They are fellow bloggers and blogged about Anne's birthday right HERE, feel free to tell Anne she's got a keeper!  Anne, I look forward to helping you with your rug!

     

happy birthday dad

I don't have anything creative to share, and as a result I probably should step away from the blog.  I've worked approximately 80 hours this week, my car is in the shop, and let's see it's 9:00 on a Friday night and I'm back at the office working (well taking a break from working).  Penelope has been really bad this week- acting like a racoon she tore apart left over party favors from the shower last weekend... ate a lot of chocolate and scattered a huge mess in the house.  I'm wondering if she knows there is a baby on the way and she will soon take a major backseat?  The chocolate won't hurt her... she has done this before - she ate a whole bag of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups back when Chance was in the hospital.  She doesn't like being left alone (and she has a sweet tooth)... and if I don't take her to work with me for one afternoon she turns into satan-dog. 

Isn't this a delightful blog post?  I am healthy and I have a job and I have a baby kicking my ribs... so on to brighter things.

You guys crack me up asking if that's my kitchen in the earlier post this week... I am flattered and would like to pretend like that's my kitchen, but it definitely is not.  That was a client's kitchen.  I was just there taking pictures for the ole portfolio.  My kitchen is teeny tiny, and there is a lot I would have done different had I designed it.  Want to see it?

 

Darby made Hash Brown Casserole when she visited this weekend.  She had her wonderful assistant (my mother) with her in my kitchen as she worked her magic.

Tomorrow is my dad's birthday... HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY BOY!!  I didn't send a card nor buy a gift... yet.  Sorry dad.  I love you!  Here's a picture of Darby and my dad in my kitchen from last weekend...

 

You like how the spatula handle sticking out of the hash brown casserole is in focus, but Darby and Dad are not?  Oops.

Let's see... in other news- I am very pregnant.  We are skipping the 4-D ultrasound... don't have time in the schedule to drive the 45 minutes each way to the ultrasound place, nor am I interested in the $100 pricetag, plus I think seeing her on her birthday will be a nice surprise.   

Alright, I gotta get back to work... I hope everyone has a great weekend!  Especially my DAD!!  Wish I was in Chicago with you celebrating your birthday!!!!!! 

[PS: I am way behind on responding to emails, so sorry.]

no time to brew?

 

If you see this for sale somewhere, buy a bottle.  You will thank me.

Republic of Tea's Ginger Peach has always been my all time favorite... iced of course. Now it comes in a bottle.  I was leery at first, but it is delicious!