A new look!

Thank you Blogger, for finally making it easy to make some changes! I thought I was going to have to learn html. I may play around with it a bit here and there but for now I'm thinking this is pretty cool.

Let's shop West Elm.

West Elm is a unique blend of simple classic and modern furnishings, with a natural twist thrown in. As part of the William Sonoma Inc family, West Elm is like Pottery Barn's cool younger sister. Hip, chic and sophisticated, with a touch of ethnic urban funk. Pricing is also very reasonable, on all furniture and accessories. That includes the added cost of shipping, unless of course you are lucky enough to live near one of the 35 store locations nationwide.

I've picked up a few accessories here and there during my trips to New York, but no major purchases, yet. Here's a little preview of what I'm eyeing these days...



This Globe Pendant is at the top of my list. It lists at $99 for one or $269 for a trio, pretty reasonable as far as lighting is concerned. You could hang a few in a row, or in a cluster at varying heights. Clean and classic yet striking at the same time.








Seen here is a combination of the Butler Tray and Low Stand, found in the entertainment section of the site. For a total of $149, this pair, also available in Espresso, could serve as a side table or a pair could sit in for a traditional coffee table. They are quite low, at 14.5" they'd work best of course with an equally low couch or chair.






This bold Zigzag rug is priced between $39 and $649, depending on the size. It's available in two different colors patterns; Iron and Ivory, with a Fez Red band or Espresso and Ivory, with a Flax (their color names, not mine!) band at the ends. This could go either way, modern or tribal chic, either way it's definitely eye catching.







Love, love this Grid-Tufted Grasscloth Headboard. Prices range between $322 for a twin and $424 for a king, on sale now! Sigh. Sadly, as a cat owner, this is out of the question for me. With my luck it would be the first scratching post the little stinker decides to use. Anyway, this headboard puts a natural spin on a clean modern style. The grasscloth is actually a polyester weave so no need to worry about splinters.




Click the link on the right to do a little shopping yourself. Enjoy!

Another Marshall's find!

This is Maybe's new bed. I'm just in love with the print of this fabric. I still have the fabric to make her another one, but in the meantime she took to this one right away. She'll need a few around the house anyway right?

Hmmm....technical difficulties.

I've been in the process of making some adjustments to the formatting. Unfortunately some of them decided not to take effect until 2 days later, which is messing with my header a bit. Until I can figure this out there will be no cute picture of Maybe, at least not within the blog header. On the plus side I've been learning (read: teaching myself) a lot about working in Html.

10 things I can't live without.

I'm a list girl, always have been, it makes me feel organized. This list, the top then things I can't live without, is in no particular order.


#1 Embryolisse

This French creme is a must have for all make-up artists, which is where my addiction started. I then got my sister onto it. For a few years after I moved home from Paris we found it hard to come by, even asking friends and family visiting France to pick some up. Finally we found it online, and later at a pharmacy in Manhattan. Its increasing popularity has only made it easier to come by. It's quite greasy so be warned it's not for everyone. More for me!


#2 M4 Notebooks

I've been using these for a few years now and I always keep one nearby. Neatly lined with four sections, separated by a colored edge of the page. I use them for lists, notes, addresses, jotting down websites I want to check out, ideas. Usually I buy a new one to signify a new start, a new job or a new challenge. Always accompanied by a Pilot G2 pen, these handy little notebooks have become a timeline for the last few years.


#3 Cheese

Glorious cheese. Quite possibly the only thing that has kept me from becoming vegan all these years. Soy ice cream is great, I love soy milk in my morning tea, but soy cheese just does not cut it. Recently my love of cheese has expanded, evidenced by the overflowing drawer in the fridge. I think we must have at least 15 different cheeses in there right now.


#4 My iPod

Quite possibly the best invention ever. A personal play list to my life, always within reach. I think you can tell a lot about a person from his iPod. Mine is true to my Gemini roots, half hip hop, a quarter rock, and the rest pop love songs and break up anthems.




#5 Flat shoes

Perhaps it's sheer laziness, or maybe too many years teetering around Paris's cobblestone streets in high heels, either way, I'm all about flats. It's hard enough to find jeans that are long enough when you're 5'-9", let alone worry about needing a few extra inches to accommodate heels. Thanks to Target and a nearby Marshall's shoe mega store I've amassed quite a collection.


#6 My camera

I purchased this Canon Powershot a little over a year ago. For the money it takes a great picture, and with Maybe around I've been taking a lot of pictures lately. It's small enough to keep in my purse at all times. A bit more bulky is my 1980 Minolta X-70 SLR 35mm camera. I purchased this used for a photography class and had all intentions of selling it back to the used camera store at the end of the class. Instead I decided to keep it and shoot film from now to then. It has some great features, and when I remember how to use it properly, it takes some really great photos.


#7 Tarte Cheek Stain

On most days, especially in summer, this amounts to the extent of my make-up routine. At around $30 each these gel blushes are not cheap, but they last forever so really the only reason to need to buy a new one is to get another color. I recall a shocked Sephora employee when I told her my original one was nearly gone. She looked at me in awe and said, "Wow, you must you it, like, everyday". Yes, just about.


#8 Twinings Earl Grey Tea

I'm not a coffee drinker, but tea has become my morning addiction. Maybe it's the Brit in me, but I need a proper cup of tea to get me going, especially on cold winter mornings. This need is sometimes to my detriment, as I've sometimes found myself being late in order to make my cup of tea. A good splash of soy milk and a lump of sugar and I'm a happy girl.


#9 Burt's Bees Lip Balm

If you've ever used this you know what I'm talking about. I have them stashed all over the house so one is never too far out of reach.








#10 Down pillows

I thought about putting cheese twice, but decided against it in lieu of honoring the great down pillow. Good pillows are not just recommended, they are mandatory for a good nights sleep. Splurge on goose down, or go for a microfiber down alternative. It's like a little slice of heaven every time you go to bed.

Big weekend!

Oh I wish we could have three day weekends all the time. We were super productive, even kicking off Friday night with a few hours of work after dinner. We carried that into a busy Saturday, partied on Sunday, and picked up the work again Monday, albeit at a much slower pace. We crossed a good chunk off our weekend to-do list, not all, but definitely enough in my book. While we did have some set backs, we had way more successes.

Our completed tasks included:
-Re-arranging the built in shelves in the study (yes, we're calling it the study now as opposed to boring old office, this weekend's work earned it an upgraded title)
-Painting the study a lovely shade of green
-Putting together our new patio set (as seen above)
-Putting together the rod hockey table game (this is where the major set back occurred, it is missing several key pieces, we didn't discover this until halfway through)
-Planting some annuals in our cool new outdoor pots
-Locating, but didn't quite get around to hanging, bamboo shades for the master bathroom (sorry neighbors, shows over!)
-Weed whacking the entire yard, including the pachysandra, which looks much better with a bit or a trim
-Cleaning up the yard and put another 10 or so wheelbarrows full to the compost pile
-Finding blue upholstery weight velveteen fabric on clearance to be used on the little pair of chairs we found not too long ago on Craig's List.
-Choosing the paint color for the kitchen, which is next on the painting list

Pictures of the study will follow soon. I have to pick up a few new outlet and switch plate covers to replace the wallpaper covered ones. And yes, there was at some point some hideous plaid wallpaper in the study. Thankfully it was bad enough for someone before us to take it down. The color came out great, and it was faster and easier than I'd imagined. Good thing because we have a lot more to paint in this place.

Someone found a new favorite sunny spot. Mom don't make me come inside!

Big things to come!

At least I hope so! Here we are on the brink of a three day weekend, so much time, and so much to do. Our list of projects is all lined up. Hopefully we'll have plenty to show off come Monday evening. I'm bursting at the seams for these last few hours of work to be done. Just a quick trip to the Depot tonight and we'll be ready to roll.

Wish us luck! Have a great Memorial Day!

Aaaand an update...

I finally finished planting the front bed. All of the hostas, bleeding hearts, coral bells and astilbe are in the ground. The dirt is crap, all sand, so I'm hoping the addition of some potting soil is enough to sustain everything. It doesn't look like much now, although it is much improved from before. All of the landscaping cloth that was exposed all over the place has been fixed so that it is under the dirt. Hopefully if everything takes well, and the deer don't eat them all, it will look really nice next year once everything has a chance to fill in a bit.

I also planted one of the azalea in from of the light post. I have three more purple azaleas, one lilac and another bush I bought whose name is currently escaping me. It promises to be deer resistant with small pink blooms, I'll have to find a spot in the back yard for it.



As you can see we need to acquire a lawn mower after all. We were hoping to avoid that. (Maybe I'll win my case for the moss!)



Here's a closer shot. The bed still needs a finished edge. I'm thinking of stealing some rocks from the backyard. I covered everything with netting after I took this shot, to help keep the deer away. In the morning the netting was halfway pulled off, but the plants looked untouched. I'll be keeping my eye on them.

We have a minor problem.

Somehow the Allium, although battered and broken and trampled by Maybe, have managed to survive. I fear some of my new purchases may not be so lucky. The deer have decided to make snacks out of my new hostas and bleeding hearts. Not cool. Most of them aren't even in the ground yet, but the battle for survival has begun. I want to play nice, but please don't mess with my flowers.

For now they are covered by some netting we discovered while cleaning up the backyard. I'm hoping to try a deer repellent liquid. My neighbor's hostas are beautiful, why do they seem to prefer my snack size ones? I might be able to forgive them if they start leaving their babies on the deck, as promised by one of our neighbors. But I have yet to come home to sweet baby deer lounging out back, waiting for its mother to come back. If, and when that happens, all might be forgiven.

Bunnies! Bunnies! Bunnies!

Not too long ago I was complaining that we hadn't seen any little hippity hoppers around. But as the weather has warmed up we've seen quite a few bunnies bouncing around. Yesterday I took Maybe outside and she immediately went bounding off towards the garage after something. I came around the corner in time to see several small things scatter in all directions. Maybe started investigating one of the nearby wood piles, and then made her way back to the bush where all the bunnies had come from. In her haste she walked right by a teeny, tiny baby rabbit, frozen stiff in the middle of the pathway.

I carried Maybe to the other side of the yard to finish her business, and then whisked her inside with the lure of treats. Every time she's been out since she goes back sniffing around that bush. I'm praying she doesn't catch any of them, they're so cute!

On a rainy Saturday in May.

I found myself up early with the puppy this past Saturday morning, and then, just as soon as she was up, she was back asleep on my lap. I decided to do a little early morning Craig's list searching, since weekends are prime time for new posts. The cat soon joined Maybe and I in the office, curling up by my chair and falling off to sleep as well. As my 9am (on a Saturday!) pre-tea brain perused the new listings I happened upon what I thought might be a gold mine. A church rummage sale about half an hour away. They had listed two beautiful dining sets along with various other furniture items. I was really only interested in the chairs from one of the sets, but I thought it might be worth checking out. In the pictures I thought I saw what looked like a warehouse of furniture.

So off we go, to find some fabulous piece that we could someday joke about where we'd found it and boast over how cheap it was. Once we arrived I could tell from the parking lot that this was not going to be what I thought it was. There were only a few other cars, not quite the happening event I'd imagined it to be.

Once inside was even worse. What I thought was furniture for sale in the background of the pictures was just the church's own tables and chairs moved aside to make room for the sale. Both dining sets were long gone. It was like a really sad garage sale, only with nice, friendly people working, offering up the last little bits for pennies just to see them go.

I did scoop these up. I love hobnail, and we couldn't leave empty handed. The more I look at them the more I love them. And of course, you never can have too many candlesticks.

Good riddance!

Finally they are gone, well, not completely gone, but at least moved down the hall to a heap in an empty bedroom. Two weeks ago I bought new rods and drapes at the Christmas Tree Shops. They've been staring at me ever since, so yesterday we finally found a few hours to get them up.



Now they look really shiny in this picture due to the camera flash, but they actually only have a little bit of a sheen. They are a coffee color with just a hint of copper. They're faux silk, so they wash and iron easily, and they are fully lined. The best part is they were only $12 a panel. I bought the rods for $7 a piece. The pine cone finials match the details on our new nightstands.

While we were taking down the old hardware, we sort of accidentally might have pulled down the wallpaper border. Disclaimer: Please do not hot glue your hardware brackets to your walls. Also, 3" nails are also not necessary. So the border just happened to peel off really easily, and Dave got to work on that while I finished the curtains. The rest of that paper may be a challenge, but it already looks ten times better in there.

So my next thought is, will anyone else want the old drapes? There's a chance, right? Someone out there could think those terrible things are just lovely. Curtains aren't cheap either, this could be someone's fabulous find. I can see the Craig's list posting now: For Sale: Gorgeous, custom made window treatments. Four pair of extra long, fully lined drapes, complete with all hardware. Beautiful floral print. Matching throw pillows included.

An ode to Louis!

This is my next quest. I've always been a huge fan of classic French Louis style chairs, whether they are XV or XVI (as seen above). Perhaps I lived in Paris a bit too long, or I'm simply obsessed with chairs in general. (I'm leaning towards the latter)

According to Artquid.com "The basic difference between a Louis XV and a Louis XVI chair is that the former has not a single straight line, while the latter always has at least straight legs. " The Louis XV chairs are said to be much more feminine and full of curves, while the XVI is a bit more masculine. Now you might be thinking there isn't much masculinity in the chairs pictured above, but true to form, they do at least have straight legs.

There are many modern recreations of these styles. The Louis Ghost Chair, seen below in white and black, also comes in clear (hence the ghost) and a variety or tinted lucite colors.



Paint and upholstery has also given new life to these classic chairs. Their time-honored style allows for a modern revival, mixing bright colors, wild patterns and fresh metallics.



Now I'm sure I could check Craig's list a million times and never find myself one of these, but it sure is fun to try. This challenge, to find one great armchair, or a lovely pair of side chairs, may take a while. But as we all know, I've got plenty to do in the meantime. True I could probably go to BallardDesigns.com and find a selection of new ones there, in a variety of fabrics, but where is the fun in that? Plus I'd probably feel really badly spray painting a brand new chair black or gold, or a pale robin's egg blue.

Pittsford chainsaw massacre.

Ok, so I thought last weekend was productive but I think we officially blew that out of the water. I am still amazed every time I look out the back windows at the clearing that almost resembles a backyard. We (and by "we" I mean Dave and his dad, who were in charge of the chainsaw and its victims) cut down everything that was dead, half dead, or even just could be safely cut down without falling on the house. Above you can see a portion of the aftermath, and I do mean just a portion.

We also tackled a few hundred gallons of leaves. Funny thing to measure leaves by I know, but since we used 45 gallon trash bins to cart them down to the curb it's the best way to keep track. There is currently somewhere in the neighborhood of 800 gallons of leaves waiting to be picked up by the town. I'd say that's about 1/3 of the total in the yard. Many, many more to go.

After several trips to Home Depot and another huge nursery we managed to find some fun plants that will do well in all our shade. I even bought some Hostas, which I know is probably a cardinal sin, but at $2 each for some bright green pinstripe ones, I couldn't resist. I also went for some Bleeding Hearts, Coral Bells in a deep purple color, light pink Astilbe, a few Azalea and a white Lilac bush for the side of the house. Dave's mom helped me get a lot of these into the ground and hopefully I can get the rest into the front walk this week.



Above is a shot of a small bed under the family room window in the back of the house. There are a few steps from the deck down to the yard and this bed is on the landing a few steps down. There was a single Hyacinth, one bloom-less Daffodil, a small cluster of green and white striped Hosta and a few random Trillium and Jack in the Pulpit. We added some fuchsia Astilble and two of the bright green Hosta. I later split the striped Hosta to add some to the other end of the bed to even things out. It seems to have survived my surgery so far.

I also did some major pruning of a Creeping Juniper, violating I'm sure at least 50 bonsai rules. Oh well, if it survives great, if not then it's on to something new. Much like the rest of the yard, it looks better already.

I am still sore, and tired, but we've made more progress in the last two weekends than I ever could have imagined. A very special thank you to Dave's lovely parents, who worked so hard to help us out.