Half Full???

Home with one healthy one and one sick one today.  I'm somewhere in the middle.  :)

I was thinking about happiness...  It's definitely something that I think we all want. 

There are days when it comes naturally and days when we have to work for it. 

Yesterday we had the most beautiful weather ever & I was on the way home from a meeting with the music blasting.  (= complete happiness)  ... And then I was running out of gas on 495 during rush hour with the nearest gas station on my GPS over 9 miles away.  On "E" my car is pretty much out of gas, and because of the blasting music & pretty day, I'd failed to notice the light when it first came on.  So not good.  (I'm an idiot).  I had to put the car in neutral when I was stopped and I was just praying I could make it to the gas station as I sat in dead-stop traffic  (= scared and totally wanting to kick my own xxx.)  But, I made it, and filling up a gas tank has never felt so good.  I walked in the door to our house after a more than 2 hour trip home and that green sofa was Heaven. 

Sometimes happiness is just not having the worst happen. 

For today, it's having only one home sick.

Enjoy yours!!




If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

Change & Patience

Spring is on its way and I am so excited!!!  It makes us busier at home and ready for projects.  (sorry husband.)  I've been craving changes around our house for a while now & one of the changes I've been wanting to make was to ditch our mantle and stenciling & to basically "undecorate" a bit:

{photo by Helen Norman}

I'll be the first to say that I love our mantle & the stenciling.  My husband, David, spent 3 days doing the stencil by hand during my last pregnancy.  (Don't you love how the biggest projects take place when you're 7 or 8 months pregnant??)    But I also love rearranging my living room.  (like a lot...  )  The sofa can go anywhere but on that mantle wall, and with 2 crazy boys- 4 and 2 yrs old-  I've been craving a more open arrangment and a more modern vibe.

So, a weekend or two ago... down came the mantle, and my (super patient) husband primed & painted over the stencil:

(with a smile....  I know most husbands would be filing at this point so I'm really thankful ;)

I would say the new look is much less "pretty" (and my photos definitely don't look as good as Helen's!) and feels more casual & relaxed, which is what I'm in the mood for.  I'm waiting on a lamp shade for my lamp & need to do some accessorizing so it feels a very bare on the sides/ corners for right now but I'll fix that later...  Here's a photo of it that I took just now & hope you enjoy the toy "styling" Justin worked so hard on this morning:

{Yes, this is how our living room really looks on a daily basis...  if you ever see it "clean" it means we're not home.}

I move stuff around all the time so I'm borrowing the tall glass floor lamp for my bedroom right now & I'll add in a glass table lamp we've had lying around.  I'll play around with end tables when I get some time (ha!) and then I'll probably rearrange again.  If I were to keep the sofa here permanently, I'd probably get a longer one, but I know it's not going to stay in one place  for very long.  I've realized that my house really only undergoes most of its changes during my 3rd trimester of pregnancy.  This "nesting" thing is no joke. 

{Thanks for the help Justin}

My dream plan is to do floor-to-ceiling windows all along the back wall of the living room & dining room with a small iron balcony across the back of the house so we're completely open to the trees behind us but that will have to wait a while. (maybe forever ;)

On another note, I did start planning our "dream" master bathroom & our contractor measured it yesterday for a quote, so who knows? 

Like I said, this nesting thing is no joke.

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

What is up?!

Things have been a little crazy lately although I now realize I don't think it'll ever be any other way. ;)  I wanted to share a picture taken by Helen a few weeks ago in my client's recently finished dining room and also just give you a quick update on where things are at with me.

{Photo by Helen Noman, flowers by Holly Chapple}

I am gaga for the thistle in this arrangement. 

And...  I can't get over how time is flying right now.  I'm pregnant with our 3rd baby and have about two more months to go and we've got so much to get done before then!!  The baby part will take its course but the work &getting-the-house-in-order-part doesn't.  I'm planning on finishing up the nursery before the baby arrives (unlike last time.) 

Things have been changing a lot at work. (One thing I've learned is that when you run your own company, things never stop changing.)   We have a new intern, Alexa, who is such a sweetheart & is really helping out a lot.  We've been busy with photographing projects and we really have an amazing group of clients that I feel so lucky to know.  I get more & more excited every day about our projects.  My design assistant, Meghan (who never lets me take her picture which is why you won't see her much on here!!) is doing an amazing job keeping projects running smoothly even though she has soooo much on her plate.  We run around like madwomen all day long and it seems there are never enough hours but that's the way it needs to be to get it all done.  (or try to ;) 

Keeping up with emails has been a challenge & I apologize if anyone emailed & I didn't respond.  Please just resend if it's been too long.  I am so sorry.

I found out a few weeks ago that we weren't selected to be in the DC Design House this year (bummer) but as my grandmother reminded me...  When I was 9 years old and didn't make it in the school talent show for dancing with my best friends (The Blondie Bunch) to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (apparently the song was too risque??) I said, "Everyone needs to get rejected every once in a while."  :)   hahahahah 

{image from here}

But I do think it's so true...  We don't get everything we go after and the rejections teach us things about ourselves & about situations.   I think they prepare us for our future victories & make us stronger.   And I know the showhouse will be a great one this year!

On another note...  My lovely kankles have started to arrive already on busy days.   They aren't awful yet but I know it's coming. I'm disappointed because this is waaaay sooner than I had swollen ankles during my last pregnancy (and I didn't even have them with my first) but I guess I'm running around way more now than I was then with 2 kids and a busier work schedule.  I can't wait to wear skirts & shorts this Spring to show off my new kankles!!  meoooooooow 

{safely hidden kankles but the belly is grooooowing}

My boys are so good to me & can't wait to meet the new baby.  Dave has been amazing and even 2 year old Justin rubs my back.  (Not really, it's like 3 seconds but it melts my heart.  When he's finished he says, "It's good?")

Other than that there are a few things brewing around here that I am CRAZY EXCITED about and will share as soon as I can.   I hope you had a great weekend and -ps- can you believe it's MARCH ALREADY?!!!!  unreal.  February flew by and that never seems to happen for me. 

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

#3 I'm Shopping for... A Range Hood

We're presenting a design to our clients for a kitchen redo in a couple of weeks & I'm really excited about it.  This kitchen needs to work with the other spaces we've already designed in the home so it will be sort of a relaxed natural-feeling space with a little graphic edge   It will have lots of textural elements that you just want to touch and a big mix of materials & finishes for a casual practical & warm vibe. I'm now getting down into the details of the kitchen design and an important one that truly affects the mood of the whole kitchen is the range hood. 

{Kitchen by Darryl Carter = looooove!}

When perusing through images of kitchens whose range hoods appeal to me, I noticed that many of them had range hoods that stood alone vs. ones that were flanked on both sides by cabinetry, which is what we'll need for the kitchen we're redesigning.  While I think stand alone range hoods are A-mazing (on my personal wishlist one day) they don't always fit into existing kitchens because of space & storage needs, so I've been on the hunt for a pretty yet practical solution for our range hood that will need to be flanked by cabinetry.

One of the things seen a lot in "real life" kitchens is the microwave with exahust fan below it over the range:

{image source here}

While this is completely functional & works for a lot of people (I've had it myself in the past & I think almost everyone in my family has it too) it doesn't create that gorgeous focal point we need for the kitchen & the vibe is totally different.  It doesn't have as much of that "working kitchen" feeling we're after. (And the small cabinet above the range hood isn't really adding a ton of storage space.)

Another thing seen a lot in typical kitchens is the mini vent hood above the range topped with small upper cabinets:

{image via pinterest}

Again, I think it's really functional, (and looks great here in the adorable kitchen above) but it still doesn't have the same impact as a full fange hood.

...Although I have to say that in the high-ceilinged kitchen below with the larger cabinets above the hood, it's making a pretty big statement but I think it's more due to the massive wall of cabinets & the impact they're making.

{image via houzz/ pinterest...  couldn't find original source}

...But anyway, in the kitchen we're working on, I'm really looking to do a full hood that will be flanked by upper cabinets.  I've been collecting inspiration images & thought I'd share.  The first group up is of angled metal hoods.   For this kitchen, because we want to mix a variety of finishes, I like the idea of doing a metal hood.

Below is a picture of a shorter hood mounted up at the ceiling.  This kitchen actually looks like it might be shorter than 8 feet to me...

{Image from bhg.com}

Here's a photo of a hood mounted at the ceiling again, but this one is longer.  I think for our clients' kitchen that the longer look will work better as I want the hood to make more of a statement.

{metalmastersnw.com}

 This curved copper hood flanked by glass cabinets is gorgeous: 

{Southern Living}

I also really love the curved sides of this hood (below) but our clients' kitchen isn't quite big enough to handle this:

{image via pinterest}

The next group of metal hoods swoop down in an arc & I think would work beautifully even in smaller kitchens.  Here's another copper one:

{From segretofinishes.com}

I love the look of this kitchen.  The hood is perfection to me.
 

{sooooo gorgeous by Jim Howard featured in House Beautiful}

Here's a shorter version...  SO beautiful, but again, I think we need a bit more length in ours:

{image via decorpad.com}

This hood (below) has a little stainless stell shelf below it which is so pretty, especially with the lights on:

{image via alifesdesign.blogspot.com}

This hood blends right in with the wall & I think it could work for a seamless look between cabinets:

{redonline.co.uk }

This angled wooden hood is really interesting:

{atlantahomesmag.com}

 Again, I love these massive  hoods (below).  They look particularly good when inset into the wall like this.  I love how they carried the hood over the countertops too instead of just the range.  Interesting trick to get some drama without the height.

{Hosue Beautiful}

Here's another inset beauty, except this time in wood:

{Better Homes & Gardens}

 The next few hoods are painted wood to match the surround cabinetry.  It's a classic look:

{image via houzz.com}

Looooove this curve:

{Kitchen by James Michael Howard}

...And don't pot fillers just make a kitchen look so perfectly practical?  "I want that!"

{image via decorpad.com}

I love all of these wooden hoods, but like I mentioned, for our clients' kitchen, I think we need a separate material for the hood.

{image via justinetaylor.tumblr.com}

The standard chimney hoods would work perfectly.  I think they look amazing between cabinets: 

{image via The Decorista}

This one (below) is narrow and I love how this style calls attention to the tile backsplash:

{Better Homes & Gardens}

Here's another one and I think they work beautifully for smaller kitchens:

{House and Home....  mm mm mm!}

..And one last one in black, which would work perfectly for us.

{Elle Decor...  We are including very similar wood tones in our clients' design & I looooove this!!}

Anyway, I think adding the right hood can really make a kitchen and take it to the next level so I want to be sure to get just the right one.  What do you think?  What's style of hood would you pick for your dream kitchen? 

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

ps-  If you are in the DC/ MD/ Northern Virginia area, our good friends Eddie Ross & Jaithan Kochar are coming this weekend for the DC Flea!!  They have a few spots left & I had the most amazing time when I went a few years back.  It's sooo worth it & they are so much fun.  They are some of our most supportive & loyal friends and if it weren't for my husband & I going on that flear market tour with our then-baby-Christian, we might never have connected with these amazing guys.  To read about the flea market tour & sign up, click here.