What's Up With The House

A week away from home makes me see the house in a new light. All those familiar things are suddenly beautiful again. Happy home, you are my cocoon and I'm glad to be back! The air is tranquil and the there's a sense of well being, despite the not-so-much-order in the rooms. The graceful coconut is the newest addition, I just got it as a birthday present from my best friend and her husband. So where's the lime, Mr. Coconut? Or are you too busy supervising what goes over on the kitchen shelf? 

There are new books waiting for me in the bedroom, right on the nightstand. Fiction books, a British sci-fi compilation and a beautifully illustrated children's book, here I come! My orange cat Junior is quite confused, as usual. I must come back to "action" mode and do something with that gallery wall. Autumn will be here soon and it would be a shame not to honor it properly, changing the art with glowing golden tones and rich crimson hues.

On The Road Again

I'm back, dear friends, and let me start by thanking you for all your good thoughts. I had a wonderful time! The weather was great, the company was awesome, we went swimming every day and I totally slipped into "vacation" mode. So much so, that I was too lazy to take any pics, after the first few hours on the road. But we crossed the beautiful Carpathian Mountains, so it would be a shame not to post the pics from when I was still in "action" mode.

                  

The evening sun sets over the river Mures, doubling the daily dose of clouds in the water.

As you can see, the trees were larger than life. They would make wonderful Christmas trees, wouldn't they?

And the little yellow tractor is working like a busy bee over the water. The colors were great together and the heavy architectural bridge was the perfect frame for it. Back to civilization!

PS: And the best part of this trip was on the road back home, as the interior design addict in me couldn't resist and bought a splendid traditional rug in Fall colors. Awesome :)

A Little Road Trip

I'm packing again for a little road trip. Yay! People should be forbidden to work at all during summer months. I mean, there should be a law making everyone take a looooong happy vacation :) Anyway, I am not at all at peace with having to work  for a living. Call me childish and immature and spoiled but this is the way I feel. So back to my road trip, it's just an extended weekend and I guess I will be back on Monday evening. Until then, big hugs, dear friends!

Organization: Hallway storage

Nothing like a little storage to brighten up my day! It's no news to anyone that things have a constant (annoying) tendency to pile up everywhere in the house. You turn around and there are tons of stuff on the kitchen counter, on the coffee table, in the entryway and basically on every chair in the house. But in a small home like mine, there is one rule: Edit, edit, edit! And put stuff away. Use the height on the walls. Improvise.

As I was wondering around my favorite supermarket, I spotted these cardboard storage units in the school supplies department. I just bought them because they were... well... extra-cheap! But when I assembled them back home, I saw great potential in them. Cardboard can be extremely sturdy. No wonder that they make furniture out of it! Anyway, I just installed the four units on the hallway wall and threw a bunch of accessories in earthy colors. After all, it's gonna be Fall soon enough :((

Actually, I like this Burberry style catch-all. Who new that all my wondering stuff could fit in there? Scarves, keys, chargers (I hate you, little friends with endless electrical cords), instant glue, cloths and stray pens, you've got a new home now!

Monday Booster: Vitamin Colors!

Nothing better than this vitamin cocktail from the talented photographer Siren Lauvdal to boost my energy! The pairing of blonde wood with happy pinks and oranges is genius. And the composition features so many clever ideas: a super minimalist single light bulb paired with a cluster of vintage art, another cluster of white pottery next to the multicolored blooms and my personal favorite - the juxtaposed rugs in geometric designs.

I hate Mondays worse than Garfield, but tomorrow is a new day and I am ready to tackle some fall projects in juicy hues. After all, Halloween is just around the corner...

Jungle Kids Art

I am a hopeless thrifter - I admit, so shoot me now! I rarely buy something new, but every once in a while the thrifting fever hits me and I go running around town, hitting every second hand shop that I know of. My storage is full of old lamps in need of some serious TLC, queer tableware, crooked stools and little boxes (which I am gonna restore - someday soon). This time, I went out there and got back with a set of four jungle scenes. There's the giraffe, the puma, the elephant and the black and white zebra.

Until they will get a new use, they are sitting pretty in my craft room. I don't actually like the designs - well, except the elephant family at the water pond, they are darlings and I also love the turbulent reddish color and the composition. Anyway, my grand plan is to use those square canvases for a higher purpose. Maybe a stencil project? Maybe a neon craze? Some mixed media 3D art? We'll see about that.

Meanwhile, I've paired the jungle art with a pink Lucite coffee table and some nesting art albums in complementary colors. Please notice Chagall, my favorite visual artist since childhood <3.... The kids theme works great next to the faux wallpaper. There's something charming about bicycles and giraffes together, I must draw them someday :) And for a complete mix and match, I added a 3D puzzle of the London Bridge (thank you, Roxy!) and a crochet wooden stool made by yours truly. Long live the eclectic decor style!

First Butterflies

I confess I bought my first camera this year, because of the blog. Before that, I took pics with my phone, which was OK. Except that it NEVER worked on birds or insects... So now I am singing with joy because these are my fist butterfly photographs ever :) We were near the forest and those little guys were so hungry that they didn't seem to mind my presence. They were too occupied drinking the nectar, I suppose. I took a gazillion pictures, come take a look:

Washi Tape Mood Board

This super-easy project was completed in less than 30 minutes. So easy and such great satisfaction! I keep telling myself "Why didn't I do this earlier?!" I remember the mood board in my old room, back at my parents' house. A constant source of dreams and untold stories. So why should we be afraid to have a mood  board in our adult home? I think that everybody should have one. Like I do now, in the home office. 

I didn't have time to take any pics for a tutorial, but this is basically what I did:

1. Cut a wide circle in a foam sheet. I used a hula-hoop to trace the outline and an Exacto knife to  make the cut. 2. Spread the prints onto the circle randomly. 3. Use washi tape to attach each print on the mood board. For a final touch, I also covered the circle outline in washi tape.

The mood board puts a smile on my face, every time I go to my desk area. If you haven't got one already, get your washi tape and make one right now!

Monday Booster: That Stone Wall!

Just like Garfield, I hate Mondays. I hate them. Because I have to go to work, to my real job. So I thought I should use my blog in a productive way. I will post each Monday an inspirational pic which will lift up my spirits. Today I fell in love with the stone wall in this chic French dining room from Cote Maison. Of course, it had to be French!  

I love everything in this photo: the black background wall against the earthy stone color and the beautiful gray tones of the aqua table runner. The tall sloped ceiling with those strong wooden beams, painted white. The genius mix of texture, from different woods to stone, linen and metal. Even the cluster of plain plastic water bottles works here. Oh, and those black industrial suspensions? Ikea :)

And God Created Spirals

Hope

I've got goosebumps.

March 11th 2011, Lionel Hun dancer/ choreographer was performing in Tokyo during the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Four days after he evacuated to Macau where he decided to express his love for Japan by making this dance video « Hope ».

Free Printable: Summer Gift Tags

Hello, everyone! My trip to the seaside keeps inspiring me to do little summery projects. I've been playing with watercolors for a while and I came up with an entire gift tag line. My designs celebrate sweet memories from the summer vacation. I went with indigo straw umbrellas on turquoise and red lollipops on a light aqua background. After a while, I also drew a yellow tag for each of the designs.

I'm offering these little summery gift tags, hoping that they will bring you joy. You may choose the one you desire: the folded card, the round tag or the classical shape. Each of these have got plenty of space to write down the name of the happy recipient (well, maybe except the blue round ones, which are just for show).

Feel free to get it from here. Click on the "arrow" icon from the bottom right corner in order to download the .pdf file. Be patient, the file is quite big and it may take a few minutes to download completely! If for any reason it doesn't work, click here: https://www.box.com/s/063af59a6fadffcd4fd6  

If you have any questions, just let me know. This printable is provided for personal, non-commercial use only. Enjoy!

A million thanks to Christina's Adventures and Petite Hermine for featuring the free printable summer gift tags!