Home Tour on Design*Sponge

Hi, friends. It's been awhile. I have missed you, and I have missed this blog. I'm always trying to find a way back because I still crave this outlet and the chance to connect with you from time to time. I have been very busy during my absence, which I hope to be telling you all about in the very near future!

In the meantime, I am over the moon to share a peek inside my home over on Design*Sponge! I have been a longtime fan of Grace and the amazing work she has done with D*S, and it's such a thrill to be one of the gorgeous homes featured there. Please do go take a look if you're interested in seeing how we live.

Here are a few outtakes to give you a taste of what you'll see over there :)

Hop on over to see more!

 

All photos courtesy of the very talented Jane Kortright. I just love seeing our home from behind her lens!

Our House // Ava's Nursery on Style Me Pretty Living

hello! happy monday, friends. hope you are refreshed after a very fabulous weekend.

i won't mince words. i am completely thrilled to finally reveal ava's nursery today! i know this has been long overdue. you may recall that we did not find out whether we were having a boy or a girl, so the plan started out like this. well, it is such a thrill to send you over to one of the loveliest corners of the interwebs, style me pretty living, to see where we ended up.

ava is excited to share, too.

view the full tour here.

photos by the very talented and ever lovely emily hart of nina & b photography.

House Updates // Ava's closet + The Home Depot

Hey hey hey! I had to stop in today to let you kids know that Ava's closet is up on The Home Depot's blog. I would love for you to check out the before and after. It's quite the transformation.

Promise I'm going to show you the full room eventually. I'm just working on one last detail. In the interest of not holding out completely, here's one of my favorite parts, courtesy of super-talent Jenny.

Ava and I both get great joy out of those beauties when she's getting a fresh dipe.

Now kindly go check out her closet. Because I did a lot of work bossing Eric around to make it happen and that has to be for something :)

House Updates // The Nursery Version 1.0

Since today is Baby Reed's official due date, I thought I might give you guys just the tiniest peek into the nursery...Well, the original plan for the nursery. Things have evolved quite a bit since this moodboard and I'm really really happy with where we've landed. (But you'll have to wait to see the final!)

In the beginning, we were begging and borrowing from pieces we already had...which would have been just fine, but I got bored in the 11th hour and decided to switch it all up. Some of the elements remained the same, but I'm going to keep you in suspense on exactly which ones :)

walls BM Edgecomb Gray // lion night light // turquoise lamp // bucket list print // monkey print

vintage crib (similar) // crib sheet // black & white frame // geode lamp

vintage dresser (similar) // Moroccan trellis rug // pouf

*lion print is from an uber talented co-worker, pillow is Cynthia Rowley from TJMaxx.

New Mom Must Haves // Technology

Switching it up to baby talk today, mmkay?

Awhile back, I surveyed a few of my nearest and dearest new(ish) moms on their 5-10 absolute must haves for mommyhood. Now, I understand that a lot of these things are totally subjective and often depend on the nature of your own lifestyle and your babe's unique preferences, but I was fascinated to see a few of the same things popping up repeatedly. So I figure they're universally practical great-to-haves at the very least. I'm going to break them down by category starting with (refer to post title) technology.

And don't worry - these will not be super extensive lists. Many of my peeps are "minimalists" when it comes to baby.

Cloud B Sleep Sheep // Motorola Video Monitor // Soothe & Glow Seahorse // Galaxy Note Tablet

Would love for you mommies out there to weigh in and/or share your own recommendations. New and (ahem) expecting moms can never get enough reccos! Plus, I feel like this is a good reference for non-mom friends that have no clue what to gift. (I still fall into this category, too!)

Art Inspired // Jenny Andrews Anderson

I still remember the very first day one of my co-workers introduced me to My Favorite and My Best. I was hooked immediately. There was tons of decor porn, some spot on moodboards, much hilarity, and promises of dairy free eating equaling less cellulite. I think my first comment was something like "can we please be best friends???"

Fast forward several years and now the girl is blowing up the art scene. Well, my art scene at least. And now everyone's if you read a little known shelter mag called House Beautiful (check the June editor's letter). I was lucky enough to snag one of her first paintings (still need to frame it. major fail) and I swear she just keeps getting better and better. Her palettes are always nails. Color selection is truly a skill and she has it.

Jenny Instagrammed one of her latest paintings last night (it was snagged immediately) and suggested it would be perfect for a nursery. I agree. I love the idea of a super neutral space with the barely gray walls (or a super pale pink if decorating for a little miss) and a crazy soft white shag rug so her work is center stage.

art // pendant // lamp // crib // ceramic animals // baskets // dresser // pouf

You can see all of Jenny's work here. If you see one you love but it's sold, she takes commissions!

Decor // Nursery Inspired

Try as I might, I can't stop thinking about this nursery finally coming together. I mean, I have definitely been nesting these past few months but now that the room is painted, I want nothing more than to start getting things in place.

The walls are the same delicious soothing light gray as our family room (the name of the color escapes me now, but it's Ben Moore) and we've repurposed the old family room rug for this room. We'll probably also be repurposing the "Jimenez dresser" as it is affectionately named from the dining room to use as a dresser/changing table. I randomly snagged a giant stuffed giraffe (a la this guy) at a garage sale last summer (totally not even pregnant at the time -- holy psycho) for $5 so that will make its way in there as well. And the crib that I used as a baby will be code compliant once Eric makes a few adjustments, so Baby Reed will use the same crib that my brother and I did!

I know. So fun, right?

* And, seriously, I married a fire protection engineer so things will be compliant. I know what you other mommies are thinking about using an old crib. *

Anyway, just thought I'd round up a few fun bits and pieces I've seen on the internets and longed for...

1 leather hippo (similar) // 2 galaxy pillow // 3 tufted spots pouf

4 pagoda lamp // 5 lion night light // 6 tribal hamper

I'm learning that gender neutral is not that hard when it comes to decorating the room. Clothes, however, are a whole different story.

Also, mix in some vintage goodness up there. And apparently there will be an animal slant if my tendencies win out :)

Interiors // Neutral Nurseries

 Jamie Meares via Lonny magazine

Since Eric and I have our 20 week sonogram today (!!!!), it seemed appropriate to talk baby. In case you missed that, we are actually going to see our little nugget in there!! So amazing. I have been waiting for this day for ages. Things are definitely starting to get real around here. My belly is expanding enough that my current pants are just a wee too tight (for all of you other preggers ladies out there, Joe's maternity jeans are a dream), there's always something new happening with my body, we're looking at day care options and, frankly, I'm starting to freak out. Who decided that I should be responsible for a life?!

We've opted not to find out whether we have a Mini Me or Mini E on the way (I know. We're crazy like that.) which means nursery decor will need to remain pretty neutral. I'm not ready to divulge details just yet -- mostly because the room is still acting as a catchall -- but there are a few standout spaces that are seriously inspiring me lately.

Estee Stanley via Lonny magazine

I love the idea of staying pretty light and bright. Pure white may be out of the question as the room just doesn't get that kind of natural light and I don't want it feeling dingy, but I have some colorways in mind.

Design Crisis

Erin killed it in her little man's room. Kid friendly but keeps true to the rest of her amazing home's eclectic, vintage inspired style.

Laura Garcia via Lonny magazine

Per usual, part of me still leans in the exact opposite direction. Dark and moody.

The Cottage Mix

The Glow

Think dark vs light has any effect on a little one's psyche?

* Also, unless you guys tell me differently in the comments, yesterday was my one and only recipe post. Since I usually gauge post popularity by comments and other social media reactions, doesn't seem like that went over too well. Which is totally fine. I'm no food blogger. But speak now or forever hold your peace...

a little time away is awesome

hi, friends! sorry to leave you with nothing new these last few days. i've been hard at work on some projects. G's room is finished in all of its kalamata olive splendor. it was looking a little on the cool side at first (which is weird since it's the brownest purple ever), but i think once we get more furniture, art and proper lighting in there, it will be a real stunna. she was here this weekend and seemed really excited about the new diggs! if the kid's happy, i'm happy.

this week, i'm in the middle of addressing some very cool wedding invites (white ink on metallic gunmetal gray envelopes anyone?). they're looking good so far!

i've failed to mention some guest appearances that i've made in the last few weeks, so i'm sending you off this lovely wednesday to soak them up in all of their glory.

anna of canoe design asked me to participate in her favorite furniture friday series, and i was having a moment with fanciful headboards that might be worth a peek.

 lonny magazine, interior design by michelle adams

jessica of the eagle's nest had me by shortly after her little man was born, so i thought i'd discuss something i know absolutely nothing about; kid stuff and nurseries! how'd i do?

apartment therapy, (previous) home of erin from design crisis

and, as if that weren't enough, yesterday i was over at veranda interiors for melissa's new in ten series (while she is sunbathing on the beaches of hawaii, poor thing) talking dining rooms. something i also apparently know nothing about, as ours is still completely empty.

angie hranowsky

back tomorrow, ya'll.