GIFT GUIDE// For the boys

Well seeing as the first of December is less than a day away, I think I better start my Christmas shopping before it's the 24th and I'm wondering where all the time went. So I'm starting with my man because I don't know about you guys, but I always have the hardest time gifting the ones closest to me. Though I know the homemade sentimental gifts are the ones that really matter, it's always fun to give extra goodies that they don't necessarily need...

iphone dock / ipad case / blocks / watch / shoes / wallet / bookman / hat / headphones / headphone amplifier / pine soap / jacket

Ok, I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't happily borrow any of these items for myself too, but I know my man will be happy with any accessory made out of wood or garnished with a touch of Pendleton flaire. And let's be honest, what man doesn't feel a little manlier with the scent of fresh pine? Enjoy! 

p.s. have you entered the giveaway yet? It could be the perfect gift for the gold and feather loving friend in your life [hint, hint]

Art + Interiors: Lise Temple

Today I'm inspired by the abstract landscapes of Australian artist Lise Temple. Needless to say I love her choice of palette, but I also love the juxtaposition between broad and brash brush strokes and the tiny and intricate spacial detailing. It makes for a depth in the work that goes beyond the landscape or the page....

pendants / table / rug / glass / vintage vase / pillow / end table / pillow

I would never have thought to mix in terracotta with this palette but I think it brings in a beautifully warm contrast to the grey, green and blue that dominates each composition. And there is no better way to bring a color whole heartily into a room than to paint it on the walls. I've been wanting to use this green (#440B-6 Barnyard Grass by BEHR) somewhere in my home for months now, and I think it's time to finally pull the trigger. Hope your week is off to a wonderful start...Enjoy!

Jewelry=Art : &c.

This weekend I attended a geniusly curated event, the preview party for BLANC, a design pop-up shop that featured local designers and a range of their well crafted goods all in Winter white. One item that caught my eye and hasn't left my mind since is this stunning statement necklace from Etcetera Jewelry...

images via Etcetera Jewelry

And all of their pieces are just as unique. So while I usually post artwork and jewelry, these pieces of are so gorgeously composed that they are truly works of art themselves...Enjoy!

A Copper Affair

Happy Friday everyone! I have a confession to make...as you know, gold is my one true love, but I've been having a little affair lately with bronze and copper and I can't get enough of it. I want to wear it for the holidays, accessorize and decorate with it, and put it around my dining table...

images via knight cat, Garance Dore

pendants / chair / clutch / pillow / cords / skirt / ring

images via Desire to Inspire, Little Blue Deer

Oh yes, and I'd love a copper bathtub to replace the extraordinarily ordinary white one we have currently, is that so much to ask? Hope you have a wonderful weekend, Enjoy!!

Love it / Live it: Beautiful Mud

While I was very much enjoying the unusually dry Fall we were having, as always, the rain has arrived, daylight savings has come and gone, and the leaves of red and orange are turning to a deep dark auburn and mixing on the ground to create mud. But this year I'm trying a whole new outlook and finding the beauty in even the shortest and darkest of days....

art / bracelet

This painting by artist Dan Gualdoni captures the dark brown beauty perfectly. I love the way the shadow lines drip in and out of each other creating the sense of a late November day on a deserted shore. And I just can't get enough of architect Frank Gehry's new collection for Tiffany & Co., now I too have something to swoon at in most of my girlfriends' favorite store. With these two pieces looking so gorgeous, it's a lot easier to appreciate the mud collecting outside my window..Enjoy!

Colored Daylight 11.15.11

Happy Tuesday my friends! Lately I've been gravitating towards teal and kelly green. [And when I say lately I mean this entire year] In fact it happens to be the main palette in my home and having painted a center wall in this deep teal, I'm thinking I need a bright green door to complete the transformation. It feels rich and decadent without feeling too feminine...

Yves Saint Laurent 1971 / Vogue UK

  coasters / shoes / pillow / earrings / clutch / bracelet / rain boots /chair

And always on the lookout, here are a few of my current favorites from around the web for dressing and living in this gorgeous color combo...Enjoy!

Love it / Live it: Serenity NOW

Happy Friday everyone! I've had quite a bit on my plate lately and some new endeavors in the works and while it is all exhilerating, there is a lot of anxiety and anticipation that goes along with it. So before I loose any more sleep wondering about the what-ifs of every situation, I'm going to take a moment to put the breaks on a little bit and find some serenity ASAP...

This dreamy painting by Alison Yip is just what the doctored ordered today. Soft ocean blues in sky blending into horizon with just a touch of movement, and of course a chair to match...enjoy!

My Daylight: A Hole in the Room

Hello readers! I'm in a constant design process with my own home, always reworking spaces, re-finishing furniture and pushing the limitations that a rental and a budget sets forth. Currently my focus is on our bedroom. It has a little nook in the back corner lined with windows and built-in shelves, just big enough for a bed and a nightstand. And while it is the space that the fewest people see, it is one of the most important because it is where we get our much needed shut-eye.  So here is the look we have going so far...

elephant / pillow / chest / rug / lamp / pillow / bed

Things finally began to come together when we found this amazing Indian platform bed at our local Good Will and I painted this chest and now I'm just one major step away from creating a cozy and calming nook that also has enough interest to inspire me to rise and shine at the crack of dawn each day. No, an empty frame is not my design solution to a blank wall, rather a placeholder for my next project, just as soon as I decide what that is going to be....

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Maybe some vintage mapping? Both these spaces have the same relaxed, white-washed vibe of our bedroom and I love the way earth tones of vintage maps play into that. And the pieced together framing is a brilliant touch. 

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Or maybe something geometric and sculptural? This wood design could even double as shelving and I love the modern sensibility it brings.

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Or maybe a little writing on the wall. I love the idea of waking up to one of my favorite quotes or starting the day off with a positive mantra and there is something about handwritten text on a wall that makes a space feel like it's really yours. Something that can be hard to achieve in a rental home. Now I just have to decide which one to do...what is your favorite? Enjoy!

Love it / Live it: Making Sunshine

Though Fall is one of my favorite seasons, it doesn't beat the warm carefree spirit of Summer. In a place like Seattle, where a lot of the year can be quite grey, it is important for me to find ways to keep a little bit of Summer year round. Having this painting hanging on my wall would be the perfect fix, the palette and movement seems to exemplify the energy of late Summer turning to Fall...

art / sideboard

And a shockingly yellow sideboard? Why not? This would be like a bright ray of sun bolting through a room no matter what time of year it is. Add in some good friends, good music and sangria nights, and you've got Summer around the clock. That's my recipe for sunshine, what's yours??

Love it / Live it: Crystallized Moment

Happy Monday readers! I hope you all had a restful weekend. I'm sure I don't even need to explain why I love this print so much, having had such a long standing love for crystals and agates, but set vertically in this blush background there is an incredibly meditative quality to it that I can't quite put my finger on...

image/jewelry

I'm having a reflective morning and these crystals just seemed to fit the bill. I'm thinking a lot about where I've been, the things that have happened in my life, both the good and the bad, and what may lie ahead. It feels like I'm on the precipice of a whole new kind of chapter and I'm both anxious and excited to turn the page. But before I do that, I'm taking a moment to consider the present, and finding peace and calm in today...Enjoy

Friday Favorites: Kate Shaw + Ikat Accents

Mountains, cobalt and ikat, these are a few of my favorite things...

pillow / pillow

These brilliant paintings by artist Kate Shaw capture my love for snow-capped mountaintops and fluid painterly layers. And these ikat pillows would make any otherwise drab sofa [such as our painfully plain grey one] a work of art. Happy Friday everyone, Enjoy!

p.s. look out for today's Artful Interiors over on Design For Mankind!

Love it / Live it: Fields of Blue [Frank Wimberley]

Known as the universal color, blue is calm and collected in every setting. I love this painting by abstract expressionist painter Frank Wimberley for that very reason, it would fit seamlessly into any room style and bring you a sense of calm and stability every time you looked at it...

An over dyed vintage rug in the same hue would be a heavenly way to bring color to any space, modern or traditional, without being too overbearing. I love the way the vintage patterns get washed out by the saturation of color in the whole Color Reform collection from Abc Carpet. And I'm thinking of how beautifully this rug would anchor a space in layers of white and grey...Enjoy!