obsession of the month: home tours

Home tours are not a new thing in my world. I've enjoyed them for years. In fact, this year was my fifth White Rock Home Tour. It's become a bit of a tradition in my family because we are now joined by my mother (or "Mimi" to Harper), my dad (or "Deedak" to Harper -- don't ask, long story), my sister (Aunt Mallory), my brother (Uncle Jarred), and anyone else who wishes to join us.

April in Dallas is a month of home tours, in fact. Earlier this month, we also did the Park Cities Home Tour. Despite the rather large homes and beautiful landscaping, those homes were a bit too lavish for me with King Louis XVI drapes and wallpaper, rooms overflowing with hefty antiques, and guilded baths. I can appreciate the homes and the neighborhood (ooo-la-la!), but it's not me. White Rock Home Tour, on the other hand, is fantastic because: 1) It's my neighborhood. I'm so proud. 2) The homes are all modern, many of them mid-century modern, a style that I love and appreciate with marked jealousy. 3) There is often a "green" home on the tour, and I love sustainable materials. 4) Every home has modern interiors (not contemporary, but modern -- the two are strikingly different), a style I infuse into my own home.

I snapped the above shot in the backyard of a mid-century home (circa 1955) that had a 2010 addition on the back, which added a bedroom, bath, and living space. It is my dream home.

shelter mags, how i love thee

Once upon a time, I was an editor at a shelter magazine. I spent my days perusing design blogs, interviewing designers, choosing rooms shots, and writing about demask wallpaper, mid-century furniture, and other interior trends. Alas, the magazine did not make it, like so many other home and garden magazines (RIP Blueprint, Domino, and Cottage Living). While I've mourned the death of several shelter magazines during the last few years, I'm still able to peruse the design blogs, thank goodness.

Recently, I came across a new shelter magazine that's very much alive and kicking, Covet Garden. Clever name, eh? It's dedicated to inspiring rooms and interiors and spends less time ooo-ing and ah-ing over products (though it does include some).

I love magazines with artful covers, and Covet Garden does it well. Here's a link to past covers. The mag is short (less than 30 pages), but what it lacks in size it makes up for in style. It's simply beautiful to look through. I'm feeling inspired already...

tick-tock

In the spirit of my absence from the blogging world lately, I present these adorable clocks from Decoylab. Wouldn't one be lovely in Harper's room? I thought you'd agree. They are works of art with time-keeping functionality! Genius, I tell you.

just my style

Because I sometimes feel inclined to put a label on things (hey, so what?), I started thinking today about my own personal design style. This sometimes happens when I'm cleaning the house and looking around at how I've chosen to decorate my abode. If someone asked me to describe my design aesthetic, what would I tell them? I'm certainly not just "modern." I'm far from "traditional." No where near "classic." Anything "contemporary" is too new. I like retro pieces mixed with new. I came across the term "bohemian modern" recently, and that seems more like me. Then I thought "vintage modern" might do. Am I over-thinking this?

One of my favorite designers is Amy Butler. She designs mostly fabrics, but her home is divine. Just my style. The above photograph is an image of her dining room. What would you call this? Whatever it is, it's "me."

nursery revealed

The nursery is finally (mostly) finished, and I am so happy with the result. I chose a birdie theme, which begins with the wall colors by Martha Stewart. The accent wall is called Bird Nest while the other three are appropriately named Forest Lichen. While it took a lot of work and time, I'm really proud of my modern yet whimsical decor, most of which I found on sale or from cheap sources. (I'm not one to spend $500 on a sheet set, after all.) So I was patient and waited to find the perfect items. Both the crib and changing table were gifts, but they are from Wal-Mart's ModBaby line. The rug, lamp, side table, and frames are all Ikea. The retro 70s rocking chair was my mother's. In fact, she once rocked me in it! My grandfather built the beautiful bookshelf, which we painted and fastened tight to the wall. It almost looks built in, doesn't it? The bird prints were made by my sister, a graphic designer. I've found myself on occasion standing in the middle of this room and just staring at everything. Soon, there will be a baby living in there...

hello, birdie

The nursery is coming together! Slowly but surely, my initial vision for this room in distress is taking shape. The furniture, lighting, bedding, rug, and even some knickknacks are in place and ready for baby. The last few decorative items will be added in the coming days, and I will be able to take some photographs and post the finished room. All we need now are the baby essentials to fill the room. I never realized how many different items are needed to take care of a little one. Humidifiers, diaper contraptions, receiving blankets, and a smattering of other baby things are clogging my gift registry at Babies R Us and Land of Nod. Will I really need all this stuff? I did, however, manage to register for some adorable, swoon-worthy items, like this birdie mobile made of bamboo.

nursery triumph

Oh, the woes of finding the perfect crib bedding. It has just about killed me. Perhaps I put way too much thought into this, but I believe a nursery is an extension of your living space and should reflect the sensibilities and decor of the rest of your home. It should NOT be an homage to Winnie the Pooh or look like the circus has come to town. That's just my opinion (ahem). (If you're inclined, check out Oh Dee Doh, a fantastic website for parents and parents-to-be who refuse to give in to ridiculous kid spaces and prefer well-designed rooms.)

In the process of creating my modern yet feminine nursery, I noticed that crib bedding is either a) hideous or b) not hideous but too expensive. However, I discovered discount online shopping and (lo and behold) Nurseryworks' pea berry mocha crib set popped up on super sale at Overstock.com. I snatched it immediately, and it was delivered lickity split. Thank goodness for small miracles.

home-improvement mode

I am once again in home-improvement mode. After The Husband and I complete a project, I tend to sigh with relief (as does he) and take a breather. I avoid even thinking about the next venture. However, my mind now has a few more ideas in the hopper, including a closet organization in our second bedroom. It is a somewhat-massive closet, larger than the one in our master (thanks for nothing, mid-century architects), but it's awkwardly shaped with hideous sliding doors that swing back and forth when closed.

I've considered two options. One is an Elfa closet from The Container Store (pictured). The other would be cheaper but requires more ingenuity. Ikea has large wardrobes that fit inside closets. We would simply remove the doors and slide in the wardrobes (but "simply" never turns out to be as easy when it comes to Ikea). It will likely be a big expense, but I find it a necessary one at the moment. The new bamboo floors in the den will have to wait.

say it isn't so

First Blueprint, then Home & Garden, and now this. Another one of my favorite shelter magazines, Domino, is folding. Having recently worked for a home decor mag, I understand how the economy is affecting the industry, but this is seriously heartbreaking. There isn't going to be a shelter magazine left that suits my demographic and lifestyle. What's a girl to do?

before and after

AFTER (thoroughly modern):

The curvy, ugly light fixture in my dining room has finally been replaced with this drum shade from CB2. It really ties the decor together in the room. The previous light was way too ornate. When the new light arrived, we were somewhat shocked to realize that it was a plug-in light! After some wire-splitting and a trip to Home Depot, however, we had it all wired and done. It really makes a difference in the room.

BEFORE (curvy insanity!):

dust bunnies beware

I observed something interesting yesterday: I am much more inclined to dust my bedroom, put away my laundry, and Dyson the comforter if there is good music playing. It's just a fact. Yesterday I purchased Apple's iHome iP9 alarm clock. Once we had the thing plugged in and linked up to the iPod, I could listen to my favorite music without having the darn plugs in my ears. I proceeded to immediately clean my entire bedroom, a mission that migrated its way into the spare bedroom. There's something about hunting down dust bunnies to April March and Radiohead that makes hunting down dust bunnies so much more enjoyable.

modern and fabulous

EQ3 finally opened a store in Dallas. We made our way there this afternoon and (holy moly) it was fantastic. Several of their pieces are far too modern for me. But some are just right. The prices are similar to West Elm, which is a definite plus. (It's never okay to spend $10,000 on a coffee table, people. That's just madness.)

found!

I am head over heels for the Edison Chandelier from Pottery Barn. I'm not normally a Pottery Barn type (although I do own a few select pieces that I just adore), but this light fixture really caught my attention. It has that industrial vibe, does it not? At 400 big ones, I'm not sure if I'm willing to part with the cash to see it hanging like a beacon from my dining room ceiling. But wouldn't it be glorious? Sigh.

new curtains

Ikea has an impressive selection of unique curtains. It's a good thing, too, because I was just about to give up on my quest for living room curtains. At long last, I found these beauties. The Husband and I hung them this afternoon.

light the way

Next purchase? A new chandelier or pendant for the dining room. If anyone has an opinion about the selections below, I'd appreciate it, because I'm leaning toward the expensive ones right now. And I need to think cheap(er).

Round Shade from Restoration Hardware

George Nelson pendant from Design Within Reach

Eden pendant from CB2

Marcel Wanders from Design Within Reach

birds of a heather

In 1955, my grandmother (I call her "Nana") received a gift from her husband, Bobby. The two glass birds were imported from Italy, and the pricetag, she tells me, was quite high, even at the time. I'd always admired these mid-century birds, with their opaque, smokey finish and dense structure. They are really quite heavy. The birds mean a lot to Nana, as they are the only things she has left from Bobby, who died tragically in 1960.

Nana always promised that she'd leave the birds to me when she passed, a date I know to be far into the future, as Nana is still quite a sparkplug. But she recently surprised me when she showed up at my house carrying a very heavy bag. She instructed me to open it, and I was shocked to see the two birds inside, wrapped carefully in several coats of tissue paper. It was an early inheritance.

The birds now reside majestically on my living room credenza.

patterns in concrete

I mosied over to DesignSponge today and was delighted to see these images of concrete art from Transparent House. Patterns are applied to a polished concrete floor either while it is poured or after the concrete sets. I love how clean, simple and industrial it is, yet whimsical too. Just my style. I'm about ready to rip up the carpet in my den, and I am so torn with what to do with it. More carpet? Light-colored bamboo with a sisal rug? Dark-colored, wide-plank hardwood with a shaggy rug? Or perhaps, now that I'm inspired, concrete with etched-in artwork. It's hard to tell which is more frustrating... my many choices or lack of funds.

so many paint choices...

I've decided to paint an old farmhouse dining chair robin's egg blue. The problem is, there are so many gray-blues out there it is almost impossible to pick one! Sigh. The chair was meant to be a temporary solution when I got married. We had so little furniture, and this hand-me-down chair was the perfect perch for our almost-chairless living room. It's migrated to our bedroom now, and the ugly mahagony stain has annoyed me long enough. Stay tuned for the final color selection and results...

planter project

The Husband and I finally came up with a solution to fill the gaping hole next to our front porch steps, a precarious drop that my Dad affectionately calls "The Death Trap." It was an awkward space that we filled in partly with expanded shale. My wonderfully talented hubby then built a cedar box planter, which we coated with natural cedar weatherproof stain. We then planted some horsetail reed inside and used a gray river rock as groundcover. We are so very proud of the result. And I'm truly in love with the horsetail. It really is the perfect plant -- spikey, bright green, and tall. I kept seeing it at the White Rock Home Tour and just had to get my hands on some.

Before:

The wonderfully talented husband at work:

Tah-dah:

A closer look at the horsetail:

stuck on this

I'm way into wall decals lately. This one, from Ferm Living, is just so cute. They are made of vinyl and stick onto the wall like a sticker. If you get tired of it, it's easily removed. They look just like paint but are oh-so-much easier to deal with. There are many available on Etsy as well. I have one wall in my upstairs landing that's just begging for a decal. Right now, I have a lovely original oil painting by Sherri Marranca there, but I think a bright white decal of some sort would really brighten up the space.