New Home Dreaming

It's incredible to me how much my style has changed over the course of the five years that the hubs and I have been homeowners together. Thankfully, it's changed for the better, with a newfound love for neutrals with pops of pattern, color and texture... instead of where I started with an overwhelming love for color, color and more color.

As we dream about a new house, I'm quickly getting excited about a clean slate for decorating. (Not to mention getting excited about having all kinds of fun things to blog about again!) I find myself more and more drawn to a palette full of gray, navy, white and gold, and cannot wait for the chance to transform our new living spaces into a home we can see ourselves in for decades to come.

Here's a roundup of some things I'd love to incorporate if the spaces are right -

I've honestly never put a whole lot of time, effort or money into lighting, but I am totally in love with these capiz orbs for over a dining room table or in an entryway, and the industrial pendants are perfect for over a kitchen breakfast bar!   //  We've never needed a media cabinet in our current house, but I'm hoping for a new house where I don't have to mount the TV over the fireplace.  //  These Ikea shelving units have been hacked a million times with gold spray paint, so I'm sure it's no surprise I want one.  //  I've also never put much thought into seating, because our teeny living room houses one small couch and the hubby's recliner, and that's all we have space for. How neat would it be to have a pair of chairs in a family room or one in a bedroom somewhere?? And how about with a funky gold ottoman to kick your feet up on?  //  And oh, that bed. We all know how much I love that bed. 

Daydreams

Every year, I try to talk the hubs into a real Christmas tree just like the ones that mesmerized me in my childhood. My dad and my uncle used to take us kids way up north to a Christmas tree farm where we would bundle up, truck through the snow, pick out our own tree, cut it down and then drag it back to the car on a hayride with hot apple cider. Let me tell you, cutting down my own Christmas tree is one of very few times in the winter that I find it totally worth it to be outside in the freezing cold. And I miss it.

The boy has some serious allergies. And then there's Buddy Louie, who's a curious little thing and also suffers from some pretty bad seasonal allergies himself. So bringing a live TREE into the house might not be our smartest move. That being said, we have no idea if either of them is actually allergic to pine, and we'll never know unless we try, right? :)

This year, I'm thinking the holidays might be a little crazy considering we're busy trying to get our house ready to sell, trying to save extra and looking at things like storage units and moving companies... so I might push my yearly petition for a real tree to next year, when we will hopefully be in a beautiful new home with lots more space and the perfect little fireplace to put a real live tree next to. If I could have majored in daydreaming in college, I would have been the star of the class.

Oh and speaking of moving, we made the amateur mistake of going to look at a couple of houses last night, despite the fact that our current house isn't listed yet, and just as I expected, we fell head over heels in love with one. I didn't think I would like it as much as I did because it's *just* short of a bunch of the things I want - technically 4 bedrooms... but one is on the first floor, the potential for a finished basement... but not finished yet, a garage that's attached to the house... but you still have to go outside through a little alcove to get to it, the perfect side yard for a dog run for the Buddy... but not fenced in yet. But I fell in love. Hard. I realized how exciting that "almost but not quite" actually is to me. This house COULD be everything that Dan and I have ever wanted. We would raise our family there - no question, and it would be a beautiful thing to watch how we grow with a house like this over the years. I thought I wanted a house that I could just move into, paint a few rooms and call it a day. Who was I kidding? I want a house that is beautiful and amazing and perfect for us, with boatloads of charm and tons of potential for projects and lots of love down the line. 

And did I mention that we met the owner, who was nothing short of absolutely amazing? She alone makes me want to buy the house just so we can have her over for dinner in the years to come. She spent nearly a half hour talking to Dan and I, asking about our jobs, telling stories about her grandchildren and showing us around her lovely home talking about how she raised five kids there. To say we were both smitten with her AND her house would be the understatement of the century.

So while I watch my email like a hawk just waiting for the dreaded day that this dream house sells and it's not to us, I'll picture Dan and I, with Louie and our freshly chopped down Christmas tree, walking into our new home excited to decorate it for the holidays.  

Here's to Wednesday and lots of daydreaming!

Falling for Fall

I mentioned to the hubs this weekend that I feel like this is the most "real" Fall we've had in Chicago in ages. We've had WEEKS, not days, of weather that calls for sweaters and vests, a latte and a lightweight blanket. Generally, I'm not a huge fan of Fall, but I've decided that's because I can't really remember a time when we had one that was long enough to really enjoy before the frigid temperatures hit and there's a foot of snow on the ground. I'm kind of loving it this year.

Here's a little recap of how we've been enjoying the last few weeks.

Clockwise from top left -
We spent an early morning cuddling on the beach when we had our photos taken for Christmas cards by the ever-talented Caili Helsper. I've seen a few sneak peeks and cannot WAIT to see more!   //  We hosted the 2nd annual Friendsgiving with our nearest and dearest - I painted mini pumpkins gold for place cards and made my 2nd successful turkey, lots and lots of wine was consumed, and we played an entire game of pictionary without any heated arguments (guys against girls can get pretty intense you know). Success!  //  My mom and I spent Saturday evening in the city with a rave-worthy dinner at Frasca (definitely a new favorite!) and sundaes at Jeni's on Southport. To. Die. For.  //  We took Buddy Louie to Thatcher Woods for a nice long walk with lots of colorful leaves. I think we missed the REALLY pretty colors by about a week, but it was still beautiful and a nice change of pace from our usual Saturday mornings.  //  I got a bar cart! Finally! And I promptly styled it only to be told by our realtor about 2 weeks later that any decorative object larger than a bowling ball needs to go before pictures and showings of our house happen. I'm leaving it until the very last possible minute, but then this beautiful guy will be headed to storage until I have a shiny new house to display it in.

Happy Monday!

Tufted and Navy and Beautiful, oh my

Emily Henderson's ridiculous, amazing, incredible sense of design just slays me. Every. Single. Time. I adore her. And she recently posted a master bedroom makeover that literally had me drooling when I laid eyes on it. Major MAJOR inspiration for my next bedroom here folks. And by "inspiration" I obviously mean "totally knocking this off as closely as possible the second I have a new bedroom".

I have to have that bed. I mean, I HAVE to. I have daydreams about a curling up in a beautiful tufted kingsize bed on a regular basis, and the fact that this one is a stunning navy AND HAILS FROM TARGET is seriously just absolute perfection. And can't you just picture my awesome new faux fur throw at the foot of the bed? I can't get over it. And the campaign nightstands with those gold geometric lamps?? I'm obsessed. 

In other news, as long as I can work out the timing, I will soon be the proud owner of this adorable little settee for a whopping $20 -

Tell me that wouldn't look stunning reupholstered in a funky pattern or a gray linen for a sweet little sitting area in that dream master bedroom?!? It's meant to be.

Anyone want to buy a charming little 3 bedroom house in a fantastic location?? I'm ready for a blank slate.

Cuddle Time

The other day, I got an email from my Upshot friend Gail (who's wedding invitations were designed by yours truly) that said "I know you want one of these. It's part of our thank you to you. Pick a color. Just do it." The email included a link to the infamous West Elm faux fur throws, and Gail was spot on in knowing that I really really really wanted one. I also appreciated her "just do it" because she knows me well enough to know that without that, I likely would have written her back and said no :). Have I mentioned lately that I miss my Upshot pals?

So after a LOT of going back and forth and asking Bridget for her opinion, I settled on the ombre mocha color, and a few hours later I had a confirmation from Gail that this gorgeous throw is on it's way to me next week.

People. I cannot WAIT to cuddle up with this thing.

Good luck getting me off the couch when this baby arrives, hubby. 

Happy Friday friends! Here's to the weekend where I swear I'm getting back into a gym routine. Wish me luck.

Words of Wisdom

Ever since my time with The Everygirl didn't really work out, I've been struggling with thinking that I should have done more to remain a part of it. I have to remind myself that I have written the girls with a few different submission ideas over the last year and not gotten a response, and that overall, it just wasn't meant to be. I love the site and am eager to see what's coming in the future from it, but it just wasn't, and isn't, my dream. It's someone else's - and I'm thrilled that it's working out for them! - but again, it's not mine. I have so many other dreams and ideas and opportunities of my own, and one of them is becoming a bit more real this week thanks to a new online pal, Pinterest, and this little blog of mine. Get this people - I am going to design someone's wedding invitations that is NOT a friend or family member! A total stranger, who saw a pin of Bridget's invitations (now lovingly named "The Alexander Suite) and took the time to send me a note saying she loved them. A few emails later and here we are going over pricing and design so we can get started. She's halfway across the country which is a total bummer because we can't meet and chat in person about her big day, but STILL. This is exciting stuff for me, and I can't wait to get started.

Now don't get me wrong - I have loved every single invitation, program, menu, save the date and thank you card that I've designed for friends and family members, and I have no intentions of not helping others in the future. But to be honest, I haven't put a whole ton of time into trying to actually get any kind of design or wedding "business" off the ground, and this project has given me a whole new sense of motivation to finally start making this dream of wedding planning more of a priority, and hopefully eventually, a reality. 

Here's to beginnings. Happy hump day!

A little bit of Leopard

I'll just go ahead and let you guess which trendy little pumps I bought this weekend.

If you're looking to spend an insane amount of money on a pair of shoes, look no further than here, here or here... OR you can do what I did and snag a pair of fun kicks up at Target for a whopping $20 or so. They're online for $29.99 and currently on clearance in store. I found mine for $20 but saw the same ones at another store (though not in my size) for just $14!

Baby Jax

I realized last night that I never blogged about something super exciting that happened recently - I got a brand new nephew! And I'll be darned, he looks SO much like my baby brother it's crazy. They're in Florida so I haven't met the little guy yet, but I am smitten. A belated blog Welcome to the World to you, Baby Jaxson!

Yesterday, my sister-in-law posted this picture of Jax and I burst out laughing at my desk when I saw it. Her "why so serious?" caption made it even funnier, and I immediately printed it out, cut it out and put it up at my desk for a smile whenever I need it.

Just LOOK at him. Good gosh, that face! I cannot wait until this kid can talk.

In other news, I suckered the hubs into our annual apple picking trip last weekend and we've been baking up a storm with our bounty. Recipes to come!

Words of Wisdom

I had what can only be described as a complete and total meltdown last night, and poor Dan was stuck not knowing WHAT to do with me besides trying to calm me down enough that I wouldn't make myself sick from crying. I guess sometimes you just need a good cry, and last night was one of those times for me. I was emotionally and physically exhausted, and my body and my brain had just had enough. This also came after we polished off a big homemade apple dessert without bothering to eat dinner, so I imagine the sugar rush - and then impending crash - didn't do a whole lot to help me out.

I've been overwhelmed in general lately, and I suppose it finally took it's toll on me. I'm in one of those places where I'm realizing just how many big decisions come with being a real full-fledged adult, and it's freaking me out. I realize that about 85% of this stress comes from just THINKING about selling our house, and when I get this overwhelmed, I tend to crash and burn before I pick up the pieces, push forward and find the positive in everything that's going on. I could barely convince myself to do a load of laundry for the past couple of weeks, much less write a blog post, cook something decent for dinner or drag myself to the gym. I realized last night in my fit of tears that I need those things - I am hardwired to create, to write, to organize, to DO. Without those outlets, I am not myself, and I am in turn a big giant mess.

And so begins my latest endeavor - finding a little quote (probably on Pinterest) as inspirational words of wisdom for the week. I'm a visual person, so while having something moving written in a pretty font is simple, it is powerful for me. I've joked before about getting the word "blessed" tattooed on my wrist as a constant reminder to myself, and I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about it a lot again lately.

Happy Monday friends. Here's what I'm working hard to remember this week -

Yep

I feel like my picture should be next to this definition in the dictionary.

#amiright

Also, because of said excessive desire to stay in bed all. the. time. I am looking to invest in one of those snazzy alarm clocks that simulates the sun rising and gradually brightens your room. Currently, we sleep with one of the curtains open so it's not totally pitch black for me in the mornings, but that's super annoying when we're trying to go to sleep at night and there's a streetlight glaring through the window. I also tend to get a good dose of S.A.D. when good old winter rolls around and it is dark something like 18 hours out of the day, so I'm thinking something more "natural" than an obnoxious beeping or my song choice at the time would be nice to wake up to. Anyone tried one of these before?