splendor & folly

How adorable are these numbered bottles from the Letter Box Co? I am a big sucker for the number 2, but they can be customized with any number.  This could also be an easy DIY project or cute table numbers for a wedding!

Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Click here to see more pieces from the artist Dalton Ghetti who creates sculptures from pencils.

Kids (and adults) may be back in school, but summer is not over yet! I’ve pulled together some water-hued fashion finds for enjoying the warmth, wherever you might be spending the last days of summer.

Like most people, I have a soft spot in my heart for animals;  and as I have made very clear here, baby animals especially. This is why it is very very tragic and sad to see photos of baby elephants being trained for the Ringling Brother’s Circus. I was brought to tears by the harsh treatment, terrible conditions and lack of respect for these wild creatures.

After seeing these photos I will never attend a circus with animals and I urge you to do the same. There are plenty of shows like Cirque Du Soleil where the entertainment is provided by people who love to perform, rather than animals that have no other choice.

Click here to see the photos but please be warned that it is very sad. But I feel it is important enough to share so no one else supports this practice.

On a lighter note, here is a cute video of a baby elephant that looks much happier and playful, like baby elephants are supposed to be!

I realize there is also a lot of animal cruelty involved with mass food production, and that is one of the reasons why many people choose to become vegetarian or vegan. Obviously that issue deserves attention as well and is something that has been on my mind lately.

What stands have you taken for the sake of innocent animals or your own personal peace of mind?

Capturing your pet on film can be pretty difficult, especially when your pet is known as ‘The Crazy One’ and tends to think the camera is just another treat you are offering him.

Well on the day I was taking photos of the new room, stars aligned and I was able to capture some good shots of Raleigh.

A while ago, I showed you guys the paintings I created (along with Jake’s help) for our living room. You can view again here.

For our bedroom, instead of three smaller canvases, we wanted one large one. Staring at a huge blank canvas can be super intimidating.

The key is to have a plan but to also be flexible, because you never know what you might end up with after experimenting with various techniques. I always like to play with mixtures of paint and water because it creates neat layering effects.

We used different shades of purple to create this painting that now hangs in our bedroom:

My favorite part is on the top right of the painting, how watered-down brush strokes stained the canvas to look like a city skyline. Definitely didn’t plan that!

Another project I did recently ended up hanging in our bathroom until it came crashing down…the glue I used to hold the canvases to the ribbon was not strong enough…any suggestions??

Anyway, the first thing I did was cover the three small canvases in wall spackle (the stuff you use to fill in small holes on your wall) to create some texture. Then when that was dry enough (about 12 hours) I sanded the surface so it wasn’t as rough.

Then I glopped some green, yellow and brown paint  on there and used a rubber leaf stamp. I really didn’t like the final outcome so I decided I would try to start over and rinse off all the paint in the sink . Once I did this, I actually really liked them! The paint stayed where I had used the stamp and in the grooves from the spackle, but was very muted in all of the other areas.

Creating your own art for your walls is both inexpensive and rewarding because you get to look at your own accomplishment everyday!

I stumbled upon something at the grocery store and am currently pretty obsessed – Chai Green Tea

You always hear about the amazing health benefits of Green Tea and this one is delicious! With the addition of the Chai spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and clove) this tea seems like such an indulgence.

I take mine with a touch of milk (that is why the color is a little weird in the picture).

I have it at work in the morning as a pick-me-up or at home in the evenings instead of an extra snack or dessert.

Love it!

Hi Everyone!! So remember a million years ago when I promised to show you our bedroom re-do? I finally took some photos of our new space!

First Up – Before Pictures:

This is how the space looked when I moved in. It was nice, but definitely more of a boy’s room (and note how my bedside table used to be a TV dinner tray)

And here is how our bedroom looks now:

Of course Raleigh snuck into some of the pics:

Close up of the wall paper:

Potted orchids are from Home Goods:

Our bedside lamps are also from Home Goods:

We picked up this little candle holder in China Town in San Francisco:

I got this mirrored jewelry box at Target. This is where I store my engagement ring when I go to bed:

And there you have it! I cannot take full credit for any of it, it was 100% a team effort. We painted the walls (‘agreeable gray’ from Sherwin Williams) and wallpapered the wall behind the headboard as an accent. Neither of us had put up wallpaper before, but the process went pretty smoothly. I actually prefer wallpapering to paiting, but I’m sure it is more difficult to do a whole room vs. one wall.

All of the accesories came from Target, TJ Maxx or Home Goods. We also did some DIY artwork for the wall. Above the dresser are three framed black & white photos. One of a California beach, one of the St. Louis arch and finally a scene of New York City. I also did another painting for a wall across from the bed.  Stay tuned for pictures of the painting and more of the Raleigh photo-shoot!

We don’t know the EXACT date, but based on getting him around 9 weeks old, we estimated Raleigh’s  birthday to be May 15th. He blew out the candle on his doggie cupcake (with yogurt frosting) and got a new toy which is now known as his ‘Birthday Buddy’.

If you have a dog that rips through stuffed toys in 20 minutes, I highly recommend the “Go Dog” brand of toys. Yes, they are more expensive, but they have a chew guard technology that makes it a lot more difficult to rip open the seems, and provides hours of entertainment!

You can find where they are sold near you here.

We just love him so much!! Here’s to another great year!

I have been reading a lot lately. Well when I say a lot, I mean reading two books in two months, which  is a huge accomplishment for me.

Usually I can never get through books because I end up reading them a few pages at a time before falling asleep and then I give up halfway through the book. 

When I have long plane rides though, I can breeze through them in a few days. Here are my two most recent reads, I recommend them both!!

And here is the next batch I picked up at the library yesterday…interesting mix! I have heard good things about the first two. The wedding book I just saw and picked up.

I want to remember to focus more on the meaning of our wedding than the style of our wedding. Even though I love planning the visual and style aspects, that is not the part that REALLY matters!

What are you reading??