Friday Crush

Decor and image by Ranger 911

This is genius on so many levels.

1) Vintage dollhouses are gorgeous

2) But you may not want your kid to actually rip one apart play with one

3) And the best place for one is usually the floor, but then no one can see how pretty it is

So why not put one on a wall shelf for all to see and enjoy? And yes, your precious child will likely ask over and over to play with it and you'll let them, but putting it back on the shelf will give it some prominence in their little mind/heart/soul that will hopefully make them think twice about decorating its walls with a black Sharpie.

(Sidenote: Did I tell y'all that Ana Claire took to our WHITE kitchen cabinets with a BLACK sharpie marker several months ago. Like ALL over our lower cabinets. And granite countertop. Let's continue...)

I love how the gorgeous colors of the dollhouse inspire the space here...eBay is a great place to look for dollhouses. I could definitely see myself doing this in our imaginary Mountain House.

Big C and I have an epic weekend ahead...a babysitting double header...adult plans both Friday AND Saturday night. This never happens and I'm pretty excited about it. Hope you have a great weekend! See you next week!

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2016: Year of Delight

We spent the holiday visiting my in-laws in South Carolina. Every morning, I put sugar in my coffee using the most delicate, lovely sugar spoon (per my mother-in-law's attention to detail). It was a daily delight.

I'm going into 2016 with that mindset. Make the little things delightful. The big stuff is hard to tackle. But can I pull out my pretty sugar spoon for morning coffee? Absolutely.

If you, like me, are in the roof-over-your-head-food-on-your-table demographic, we have a lot to be thankful for. And the big resolutions are important as we all want to make the most of this blessed life we are living. So I'm setting some lofty goals, but I also want to set some small goals to achieve this afternoon.

I'm looking for daily delight in 2016 for me and for my family. With an ever-present gratitude for what we have and what we can hope to have.

You're welcome for getting heavy with the first 2016 post. I had a nice little vacation over the holidays and feel refreshed and ready to enjoy 2016 and all of the design loveliness it will offer. Hope you are too!

p.s. Those darling spoons above are on Etsy here...

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Elephants Off to Bed

Look at this delightful vintage print (from 1914!) that I picked up for Mac's nursery on Etsy this week:

That grumpy elephant on the left is everything.

I've been struggling with art for the nursery's walls and decided to dive into a vintage print search on Etsy and was rewarded with these fellows, off to bed in their nightshirts and caps. It was love at first sight.

I'm having it matted in black and I think a black bamboo frame might be in order. It's shipping from the UK so it might be a while before I get it but I'm looking forward to its arrival!

More details about Mac's nursery are coming up...planning several posts. I think y'all are going to love it.

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Vintage Chinoiserie Chairs via Etsy

Looky what I found during my latest Etsy search - awesome, unique chairs for the Chinoiserie lover.

Etsy Listing »

Etsy Listing »

Now, we've all seen fretwork Chippendale chairs and rattan chairs, but can we agree that these are above average? Definite statement pieces. I would love to see the fretwork chairs used as head chairs at a dining table juxtaposed with slick modern side chairs. 

Didn't realize it as I was favoriting these items that they are from the same shop - AngelandIzzy - specializing in Palm Beach goodies. Definitely worth a look.

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Sweet Vintage Girly Shared Bedroom

I went down the Pinterest rabbit hold the other day (which, let's be honest, happens every day) and during this particular jaunt, I came across THE MOST adorable bedroom makeover to be shared by two little sisters...all thanks to their mama Cami of blog Tidbits.

Cami and her husband had the dilemma of a small, shared space that lacked sweetness and charm for their little ones. So they took matters into their hands and created what I think is a space straight from vintage fairyland and I would like to move in immediately.

That closet!!!

Let me repeat, this room was lovingly created by two parents with their own hands...like down to the beds and bedding. That is just a priceless gift for these little girls and what I think makes the room so incredibly lovely.

Here are some of the pictures during the makeover (that only took a month and half...what?) so you can see the kind of work that went into this:

And, of course, Cami did it all on a budget with thrift store finds and re-purposed items. And doesn't the 10x12 space now look large? This kind of creativity just really inspires me.

Y'all know I like my kid spaces with lots of pagodas and bright colors but this, THIS, is just beautiful as inspiration for Ana Claire's bedroom in that pretend mountain house that we don't own...where I vow that all walls will be white.

Do yourself a solid and visit Cami's blog post about this room with many more pictures of this heartwarming space.

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Vintage Hermes for Your Wall

Apparently my theme this week is see it, like it, let me tell you where to get it. Those are always fun posts.

Love everything about this vignette below, as photographed by Porter Hovey for the book Heirloom Modern, except for maybe the suitcase trunks (never really got on that train). But I especially love the look of the framed scarf. The feminine, vintage quality is stunning against the other quirky elements making up the arrangement.

Did a little digging and found that the scarf is the "Regina" pattern by Hermes. And you can find it on eBay like this one:

Framing scarves is nothing new but I think pairing a vintage scarf like this with modern elements is a really fresh take on the look. And your scarf need not be a $300 Hermes situation...vintage scarves are so easy to come by on Etsy and eBay in every pattern, color and price point available. And their large scale make for a great wall-filler.

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Vintage Palm Leaf Side Table

Do you want to stun someone with just about the most awesome Christmas gift ever? EVER. Check out this vintage palm leaf side table from High Street Market:

Amazing, right? I can't stop looking at it. And it's $395 which to me sounds very reasonable....and it's free shipping today! The site is running great deals all week long including some very cool free items depending on your purchase amount. We got our vintage fox door knocker from High Street Market a couple of years ago and got the blue agate coasters as a free gift and I must say that both are still two of my favorite items!

Back to the side table...if you are in the market, ask Santa to hook you up because this one is a winner!

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Chinoiserie Coffee Tables via Etsy

There are many vintage Chinoiserie coffee tables hanging out in my Etsy wishlist right now. Figured I should stop hoarding them and share them with you because one of you might want one.

Now, the shipping might get ya but the prices on most of these are pretty good. I can't decide which is my favorite:

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Ok, I picked one. The wood one in the second picture is my favorite. Boy would that look fetching in so many different scenarios. But they are all amazing, don't you think?? Please share if you purchase one of these beauties - would love to know how you'll use it.

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AO House Tour: Nursery Plans

I am thrilled to be talking about Ana Claire's nursery. It might be my favorite room in the house. It's one of those spaces that just came together. And if you remember this post, I was fretting over this room because my initial concept was a total #fail.

But I'm so glad I had to rethink the direction. Here's the design board which illustrates most pieces of the space:

I took the color palette from the star of the show, Brunschwig & Fils' Le Lac, which I used on the curtains:

Carter painted the walls the most PERFECT shade of jade green and then I used a combination of pink and red in her bedding and the rocking chair as well as red trim on the curtains.

If you recall my posts on this room, it is chock FULL of vintage pieces, all re-imagined for this space. Here's a parade of some of the items that got a makeover:

Many of these treasures I already had and just had not found the right spot for them. And some of these I picked up specifically for the nursery. I love that they all have a little history and Carter and I cleaned them up and made them super pretty for this space.

Tune in tomorrow for all of the "after" photos...

p.s. If you want to take a tour of nursery posts with more details on the planning, click here...

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Quilt as Headboard

I l-o-v-e quilts. Love them. Charming, cozy, graphic, geometric, colorful - they can have so many interesting qualities that can really liven up a space. And I'm slightly obsessed with how Phoebe Howard used this quilt as a headboard, really upping the sophistication factor.

Image via mrshowardpersonalshopper.com

They even used the leftover to make coordinating  pillows. That is some smart thinking.

If you found the right quilt - likely a vintage one - you could maybe try your hand at something like this for a bedroom. I especially love the idea of matching twin headboards using different quilts in the same color scheme.

This vintage quilt from Etsy might do the trick for a twin bed:

Or maybe this quilt if you like your quilts soft and monochromatic like the one Phoebe used:

If you are generally in to quilts like I am, check out my latest ideabook on Houzz where I put together some of my favorite colorful quilts out there on the internet:

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Vintage Chinese Storage Barrel

Were the Chinoiserie lovers out there eagerly awaiting the One Kings Lane Shops China sale like I was? I saw this image on Tuesday and boy did it peak my interest...

In particular that stool. THAT STOOL.

I diligently watched the clock to strike 11 am on Wednesday because I had to check out the stool. I was fully expecting it to cost more than Ana Claire's college education but I wanted to live the dream, if only for a moment.

I watched the page refresh at 11, scrolled to the stool, and clicked Add to Cart - before my brain even processed the price...a girl's gotta be frisky on OKL. So now that I had my 10 minutes to ponder, I realized that the stool was $169! A number within the realm of possibility for me. In fact, for the same price, I had recently bought some new clothes at Target so I vowed to return it all in exchange for the stool. WHO NEEDS CLOTHES?? Done and done.

And, it's not a stool...it's a storage barrel. Which I liked even more because it's functional. Thinking it might be a lovely house for my fabric rolls (without the top).

So, if you saw and loved this barrel and were wondering whose fingers were nimble enough to click their mouse first....mine were!!

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Yowza

Woah. This vintage dining set has caught my eye. It's suede and brass (he-llo) and it's available in the Aerin Lauder sale on OKL right now...

The set costs a cool $11,000. We can all dream...(or promptly do a search on Craigslist for "vintage brass suede dining chairs set")

If you bought this set of chairs...what kind of table would you pair them with???

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Kelly Wilson Monogrammed Antique China

Standing in the supermarket checkout line, I came across Kelly Wilson Antiques in a magazine. This savvy Texan lady has created a line of monogrammed china that brands your favorite initial on a beautiful antique piece of tableware. It's brilliant. It's the Leontine Linens of the china world.

I always come across lonesome plates whose pattern I love, but as a single plate, I don't really see the purpose of purchasing. But Kelly has adopted these loner pieces and given them new love with a GORGEOUS letter...instant personalized keepsakes. These plates make great heirloom baby or wedding gifts.

Kelly's site offers plates that are already monogrammed or you can pick the blank plate first and then get a custom letter done. I bet if you had a treasured plate in your home you could also ship it off to her and she'd work it out.

Check out Kelly's site here...

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