life unstyled

As seen on the Nate Berkus show...

2012-03-09T02:03:00.002-08:00

Ages ago, before I even moved to London, I was asked to give permission to Nate Berkus to use images from my portfolio on his show. They were doing a segment on how to display TV's and they used this shot as an example of how to do it with style.

As thrilling as that was, I forgot about it since I wasn't going to see it anyway (it doesn't air in the UK).

But I got an excited email from my mum-in-law the other day saying she turned on the telly and there was a picture of my living room on Nate's show! It's always exciting seeing your work on the tv or in the press. It never gets old.

To any Brits who don't know - Nate is Oprah's favourite designer and used to feature regularly as a design expert on her show until she does what she does to those she loves - she gave him his own show.

Anyway, Nate is adorable - if I wasn't happily married and if he wasn't, um gay, I'd stalk him with love letters. Here are some images from his portfolio. It's more traditional than what I'm usually drawn to (let's be honest, it's much more upmarket that what I like!), but he mixes vintage and modern so elegantly and with lots of style. He makes homes look natural, as if they're a true extension of the homeowner's personality.

The humble shipping pallet

2012-03-05T02:12:00.002-08:00

This isn't a new idea but it's one I still love and plan to use in my next house/garden. It's also inspiration for a new and very exciting (and secret) project I'm researching...

The pallet. A million uses.

via designsponge

via trulysimple

via daddytype

via designsquish

Modern Eclectic done to perfection

2012-02-08T02:26:00.000-08:00

These images from Commune Design in LA are the perfect example of Modern Eclectic, my signature style. I rarely feel this way about a space I didn't personally design, but there is almost nothing I would change about this room.

The custom built sofa, the wall collage, the yellow curtain, and most of all the rug! It's so, so good and shows how you can take what appears to be a pretty plain white box of a loft and give it an eclectic, modern and bohemian feel.

It makes me ache for my own place to decorate again. Not long now I hope...

Drapes that drag

2012-02-01T00:00:00.000-08:00

I wasn't always a fan of this type of curtain - it seemed a bit precious, all that silk and taffeta and hand gathering. I was always more of a seventies vintage sheet hung with fraying ribbon kind of gal. But as my taste evolves I find myself attracted to new things all the time. That's the great thing about interior design really - you can always change your mind and layer new styles as you go along. You never have to get stuck in one particular look nor do you have to follow the rules about mixing styles.

Anyway, what I love in particular is the way these all puddle on the floor. There's nothing worse than curtains that are too short (now some may argue these are too long...), it looks as though you ran out of material. There is something really luxurious and extravagant about all that extra fabric pooling on the floor.

The mum in me says, ugh, they're going to get filthy dragging on the floor like that, but the stylist in me says yeah but who cares when they look so good?

via decorology

the home of marianne cotterill

via thisisadesignblog

via you are my fave

Fill the (fireplace) void

2012-01-30T04:30:00.000-08:00

In our flat we've got this brick wall built around a non-working fireplace in the living room. It's one of those really awkward spaces to fill. Because there's no fire in it, it's just an empty space that looks sad and lonely and like it's missing something (it is - a fire!)

I've always felt like empty fireplaces need something substantial in them, nothing bitty and small that gets lost in the gaping hole. Of course, a real fire in it would be my number one preference, but if not there's always books and logs and logs and books...

David Carter

Apartment Therapy

Australia Vogue Living Oct '05

Ryan Corban

Unknown source

Domino Dec/Jan '08

Logs with a coat of insane paint

Home of Jenna Lyons, J Crew Creative Director

Fireplace for stylish toy storage

Sixx Design via Casa Sugar

I love what these guys have done with this, their country house (in upstate New York I think?)

The books and logs en masse thing is not a new idea by any means, but I still think it's one of the best. The trick is to really cram them in there - not 10 or 20, but 100 or whatever fills the void completely or mostly. Same goes for anything else, candles etc.

Do as they do at Anthropologie - notice how their displays are always OTT when it comes to quantities? If 10 glasses displayed on a table look nice, 110 look better - seems to be their motto. Same approach works here.

VOLT ink

2012-01-24T08:03:00.000-08:00

Remember when I posted this pic showing my house as we packed up for our Transatlantic move from LA to London? Well, all those plates weren't actually ours. As well as moving I was in the middle of a few prop styling jobs. I like a little chaos to keep me on my toes.

One of them was the last cookbook I styled, VOLT ink by the Voltaggio Brothers (the brothers were winner and runner up of Top Chef's sixth season). This beautiful book was produced by Weldon Owen and came out not too long ago.

With some cleaning and some gorgeous photography by Ed Anderson some of those plates ended up looking like this:

It was the first time I'd ever had to not provide cutlery for a shoot. It was simple and sort of modern and rustic with some really nice moody, dark tones as well. It certainly makes the food pop.

And it's making me hungry.

Prints Charming!

2012-01-20T07:00:00.000-08:00

I've been so immersed in ancient looking historic fabrics lately for my current project, that I'm starting to quite like them. Watts of Westminster, Morris & Co, Claremont all do incredible historic fabrics. Of course I wouldn't use any of them in an old house. It would only work for me if everything else was modern and eclectic. Otherwise it can be stuffy and traditional, which I don't do.

I do love the contrast between a modern or industrial room and a floral covered chair. There are definitely ways of using antique inspired prints for a more modern eclectic vibe.

These images from Sanderson are very cool, aren't they?

And these from William Morris are amazing. Put these chairs in a concrete box loft with sheepskin rugs, lots of white and walls lined with piles of books and they'd be far from stuffy.

Rugs Reinvented

2012-01-11T02:04:00.000-08:00

For my current interior design project I've been doing some research on rugs and runners. I came across this first image and even though it's not right for this project, I'm desperate to do it in my own house. A collection of carpet scraps sewn into a stair runner. Pretty fabulous.

There's been a huge trend in the past few seasons for rugs that are reworked, patch-worked, over-dyed, and generally pretty bohemian and funky. Mixed with a more modern space that's not too busy, I think it can be a great look. I personally tend to shy away from trends - I never let myself buy a pair of Uggs, comfy though they are, simply because everyone had them! BUT, if I sourced the carpet scraps myself and chose how they were pieced together, I'd feel like it was actually mine. Would I sew it myself? Umm...maybe. Is that taking it too far?

However, for those not as obsessed (it's an illness, I admit) with making everything themselves, there are loads of companies making nice ones. The following images are from the website of Golran and feature their Carpet Reloaded collections. I checked them out at Decorex in London last Autumn - they were one of only a few booths there I actually liked. The rest was a bit blah.

What do you think? Too trendy?

Kettner's

2011-12-20T07:28:00.000-08:00

The clients with whom I'm currently working dropped a magazine tear on my desk recently. On the other side of the tear was the image below and I was unable to get it out of my head for days. Upon further investigation I discovered it was a room in Kettner's in London's Soho, literally a 30 second walk from my office. When I went out for drinks for my birthday a few days later I decided to go there, mainly to check out the interiors. I didn't get to see this particular room in the end since it's one that they hire out, but I'm obsessed with it! The contrast of the old and new and the dark and moody with the bright and poppy is spot on.

Below pic - a great idea for a bar, big chunky table painted a brilliant hue.

The powder room, below is a bit muted for me, but what I love is that neither the chair, nor the lamps, nor the mirrors are matching pairs.

It turns out the design was by the brilliant Ilse Crawford whose portfolio image below has been in my inspiration binder for years. Image below is not Kettner's but it is a public place, a hotel I think (can't remember which) and I think that's what makes it so unexpected. It looks like someone's home doesn't it? You don't often see such a haphazard collage in a hotel room. That's why I love her.

The Dark Side

2011-11-11T04:33:00.000-08:00

For years now I've been a fan of bright interiors - light walls, light floors, lots of pops of colour and print - perhaps because I was living in Los Angeles where it's hot and sunny all the time. Lately I've been shifting ever so slightly towards the darker side. Maybe it's because now I'm back in London where it's a bit dark and gloomy for much of the year. Whatever the reason, the rooms I'm drawn to these days make me want to light a fire and curl up with boozy hot cocoa and a big stack of magazines.

The first and last images are from the portfolio of Abigail Ahern who has perfected the art of creating a dark and cosy room. I have a feeling when we move into our new house next summer, there will be some dark, chalky paints going up.

Inspired Lighting

2011-11-08T00:26:00.000-08:00

This is the picture that started me off. I've had it in my files for ages and I absolutely love it. It's all about that light, isn't it? It looks handmade and I don't mind admitting that I am totally going to make my own version. I'm lighting obsessed right now, mainly because I sold all my lamps when we moved to London thinking there was no point in bringing them since the plugs were different anyway. I'm a bit sad about a few of them I left behind - there are adapter plugs after all - and now I have to start from scratch.

In a really modern space, white floors, big windows, worn out vintage leather sofa, sheepskin rug - these patterned shades would be great, hung alone or in clusters. You could easily make your own by wrapping a plain white drum shade with patterned paper, easily found at one of those fancy paper shops.

A bare shade is a great thing - if you ever find them at junk shops, don't pass them up. It's such a simple idea, but who knew how good a bit of string could look.

Here's my version, done last year for my home in LA. I wrapped the frame in lengths of shredded fabric and hot-glued in place. Add a nicely shaped bulb that's not too bright and you're done.

More patterned drum shades. Love these so much, I think I've written about them before.

This doily shade is bit on the country cottage side (which makes my skin crawl, no offence any country/shabby chic people out there). But put this doily lamp in the right setting - i.e. a cool modern rustic room - and it works for me.

Our old LA kitchen. Bare frame sprayed red (if I were doing it again I might not do red...) and hung with little scraps of vintage fabric sewn together.

And a bit of fun...

Curtain Road Studios Revealed

2011-10-13T05:10:00.000-07:00

I've on this great new project working on a spectacular house in Hampstead. Very different from anything I've done before - think Gothic Revival, crowns and dragons and embroidered velvet drapes, with some really modern pieces thrown in to the mix.

Anyway, it's eating up all my time and that's my lame excuse for not blogging often.

Here are some images from the shoot mentioned in my previous post with James Gardiner at Curtain Road Studios in Shoreditch. I added them to my online portfolio blog (which is meant to be just for work contacts, but some people have decided to follow!), but just realized I'd forgotten to update here.

All these props are my own, lugged over from the States. If you look through my portfolio which includes my own house in LA you'll see a lot of these props in other shots. It's always fun to re-work things for a new look.

This first one is my favourite. I want a corner like that in my own living room, flakey wall included.

empty studio = blank canvas

2011-09-05T07:00:00.000-07:00

It's been ages since I've posted anything. I've been so, so busy. Next week I start an exciting new job working with an interior designer on an enormous property in London, so it's about to get even more hectic.

Just a quick post. A few weeks ago I did a test shoot with a great photographer James Gardiner. His friend owns Curtain Road Studios in Shoreditch and let us play around there for a day to get some new pics for our portfolios.

I love a big empty white studio.

So many possibilities.

I don't have the finished images yet but here are some snapshots I took of the works in progress:

My favourite is this next one. (Sorry about the screenshot).

Finished pics coming soon.

perfectly mismatched

2011-07-29T13:58:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about kids' rooms lately. My two are back to sharing again, at least for the next year until we find somewhere bigger. The boy-girl share is always a bit tricky, especially when they get a bit older, like my twelve and nine year old. Luckily, my son is very artistic and really appreciates the handmade, somewhat feminine touches. Not that I'd do a room all pink and flowery, but it can certainly have some artsy flourishes and be ok in his book. And my daughter is at that age - she's the twelve year old - where she doesn't want anything too young and girly. So it's a good balance.

I've taken the route of not going too planned and overly decorated. After all, this is a rental and I don't know how long we'll be here. We're going for that eclectic mish-mash of patterns and colours - using a lot of my vintage textiles that I brought over and a lot of the kids' art for the walls. To me these are the perfect rooms for children because they are meant to look sort of messy, like most kids tend to be. Rooms like these encourage children to tack up on the wall their latest painting or a colourful leaf they found on a walk and it all works together.

This first one is the odd one out, a bit too neutral for me, but I added it because I like that the beds don't match. Most people would think they have to be a matching pair, but how great that they don't?

Another mismatched bed set. In fact, mismatched everything.

Amazing colours.

My fave. In this case the beds do match, but the bedding doesn't. Great idea for a boy-girl set-up.

Chalkboard wall taken to the extreme. And that great black and white Ikea rug that shows up in even the fanciest of houses.

I LOVE these rooms.

Image credits: Living Etc, paperscissorsoranges, Milk Magazine, Domino, Westbrook Interiors

Front doors that charm

2011-07-12T02:51:00.000-07:00

If you've seen my Los Angeles home, then you know how I feel about colourful doors on a house...

Since being back in London I've been completely charmed by all the lovely colours people paint their front doors. None quite as crazy as my pinky-purple ones above, but lots of really nice soft greys and blues as well as the odd bright pop.

I took most of these as I rode my bike home from dropping off my son at school (one of the added bonuses of leaving LA and selling the cars, we're all cycling again).

My favourite - it looks more lilac-y in person:

A storefront turned house:

These look like the homeowners conspired to pick just the right paint colors to look good side by side:

Glossy black looks so good on these old houses, especially with all that greenery:

And primary colours! This cracks me up, three houses side by side - mix up those paints and you can get any colour in the rainbow:

The joys of renting

2011-07-01T10:03:00.000-07:00

After weeks of craziness - finding schools, setting up boring and annoying things like phones, internet, electric - I'm finally getting around to thinking a little bit about our new home. It's just a rental so I'm reluctant to do too much to it but it definitely needs some decorating love.

Here's what's inspiring me as we go into the weekend:

Sadly we don't have our bright green sofa anymore, but I love how the lights are hung off to the side.

Emily Chalmers' new book...

She's always good. Nice mix of vintage and pops of color.

This one's a bit odd but I like it. None of these pieces should work together but they do.

Obviously I can never do the all white thing (even though I like it in theory, I love color too much), but I really love the art wall. I've done clusters of art before but never floor to ceiling like this.

Let's be clear. The flat we're renting doesn't have any of the charm of these places - except tall windows. It's got all those things landlords seem to love - beige carpet, cheap Ikea laminate flooring, ugly brass knobs on cupboards - why do they do that? I'm renting my house back in LA and we made it look good for our tenants!!

In future posts I might have some ideas to share for renters. Tricks to personalize your space without spending too much or changing all those lovely things your landlord left you - embossed beige wallpaper circa 1982 anyone?

CH+D

2011-06-23T14:43:00.000-07:00

As I sit here in a not very summery London - today was sunny, cloudy, rainy, hot, windy, cold, then sunny again - I'm flicking through the online edition of California Home + Design magazine that came out today. Remember back when I was in California, only a month or so ago, and it was warm and sunny ALL the time?

Well the last shoot I styled in LA before heading to the UK was for California Home + Design (or CH+D as they like to be called). I hadn't worked for them before nor had I read the magazine, but they wanted to feature the home of a food blogger and Teri Lyn Fisher and I happened to know one. In fact it was Teri who introduced me to the lovely Matt Armendariz of the very popular Mattbites blog. And his equally lovely husband Adam Pearson, an amazing food stylist.

The shoot was at Matt and Adam's loft in Long Beach that they share with three adorable dogs - a sparse and modern space with cool grey concrete, layered cowhide rugs, and lots of white. The kind of place I fantasize about having but never will - I like me some clutter.

On a sunny day (did I mention that I used to live somewhere sunny?) they had some friends over and made some cocktails and grub. I styled, Teri shot the pics, and that's that. I took some snapshots with my iPhone in between sips of the St.Germain laced sangria and, oh yeah, working.

Here's Adam working his food styling magic on the shoot:

And here's a not very flattering picture of me with one of their gorgeous, tiny Chihuahuas:

Working with a food stylist always makes me feel like such a slacker. Check out this cheese platter Adam put together:

Apparently a chunk of cheddar and some Jacob's crackers eaten whilst standing up in the kitchen doesn't cut it.

What can I say? I do rooms, not food.

P.S. Check me out on the contributors page. I've never been asked to do that before so it was kind of fun. Except for the part where they asked me to describe my dream kitchen in five words and I agonized over what FIVE words could possibly do that?? Try it. It's really hard. Five paragraphs is more my style.

Anthology!

2011-05-31T07:54:00.000-07:00

The new issue of Anthology Magazine is finally out and it's gorgeous. It's the kind of magazine that you handle with care, turning each page with delicate fingers. I'm notorious for trashing magazines when I read them, folding down pages and eventually tearing out ones I like and putting them in folders for inspiration. But not this one. This one remains pristine after being read cover to cover.

I also happen to be in this issue. They did a feature on our house which was shot just days before the movers came. Even though I was anxious to begin sorting things out and getting rid of stuff, I had to keep it nice until the shoot was over. I'm so pleased to have these lovely pictures of my house as it was just before we left for London. It's a sweet reminder of the wonderful times my family and I spent there.

I also styled two other pieces for the issue: the apartment of Joy Cho (Oh Joy blog) and the house of celebrity hairstylist Davy Newkirk.

As soon as I have images to share from the shoots, I will. In the meantime, you can order the magazine online and buy it in select stores including Anthropologie.

Who's panicking??

2011-05-23T11:14:00.000-07:00

Not me. I'm still in the Honeymoon phase. Talk to me in another week or so and it might be a different story. After a full week in London, the jet lag is gone, we have become pros at using the underground and buses, and we've walked at least 100 miles. Looking for a flat by foot is not easy, especially with an 8 and 11 year old in tow. The kids have been truly amazing, traipsing all over London, so we rewarded them by going to Hamleys toy shop then the Science Museum. London is amazing and it's been really fun for me remembering things from my childhood here. Everything brings back memories.

I'm very happy to be here. Now I just have to find a job. On Wednesday I met with the lovely people at Living Etc magazine, my favourite interiors magazine, so you may be seeing my work in there in the future. Fingers crossed...

I'm not very technically connected right now otherwise I'd post some pictures. Cables for cameras are goodness knows where in one of our 8 suitcases, spread out around this tiny temporary flat. But I'm looking forward to posting some interesting stuff over the coming weeks. Hopefully it won't be too long before I'm styling again.

London, I love you!

2011-05-20T07:18:00.000-07:00

After months of talking and planning and saving, we are finally here in gorgeous London.

Slowly recovering from jet-lag - that's a hard trip - and trying to settle in. Lots to do. We have to hit the ground running, no time to spare. Must find a great flat by the end of the month, great local schools for the kids and, oh yeah, those important things called jobs. I've had my fair share of moments of panic, but we just keep lifting our heads and moving forward, chipping away one thing at a time, so it's not so overwhelming. If I didn't do that, it would be hard to face the day. In the next month my husband and I have to make magic happen. Here comes the fairy dust...

Easter Eggs on Acid

2011-05-03T18:42:00.000-07:00

I forgot to post these last week. A friend of a friend of a friend, Elisa, decorates these really beautiful eggs every year for Easter. This year, she let Teri and I style and photograph them and Oh Joy posted something about them on her blog. Aren't they gorgeous?

The last shot is a line up of some eggs and the tools she uses to create them. We shot these a week or so before Easter and I swore I would give them a shot, but alas, I did not. Maybe next year.

kids + spring break = cheap labor

2011-04-21T14:31:00.000-07:00

In our family we like to put our kids to work. Sometimes they like it, sometimes they don't.

My daughter used to model for me when I had Spike & Ella, my kids' clothing line years ago. My son acted in my brother-in-law's short film recently. Remember that?

And most recently I had both of them helping with some crafty shoot preparation. I was styling some amazing baby furniture in a gorgeous mansion in Pasadena. One of the sets involved origami - oversize and small - so I got the pro himself, my eight year old, to help out. Here is working on an enormous crane.

And later, a whole family of little swans.

All those deflated balls in the background had to be pumped up too. For that I thank my eleven year old. She wasn't thrilled, let me tell you. She thought she'd be spending her spring break eating ice-cream and going to theme parks.

Until the final images are published by the client I can't show them here, not even a sneak peek. Boo hoo. They came out really beautifully, thanks to the very talented Teri Lyn Fisher. Here she is looking cool as usual.

Unfortunately, the origami idea was axed for the final shot. It's a shame because they looked really good, but that's how it goes. Sshhh, don't tell my son.

In case you think I'm an awful child labor enforcer, we did take our kids to Six Flags as a reward. But clearly we have a mean streak because we couldn't just tell them that. Instead we told a little fib and said we had to drive really far to the desert to scout a location for one of my husband's commercials. They were very annoyed until we showed up in Valencia and they saw the roller-coasters.

Painted floors - Update

2011-04-06T03:00:00.000-07:00

Remember back when I painted my floors for a second time? Well as I got ready to rent out my house last month, the final thing I did was paint my floors again. That's three times in just over a year. You might say I'm obsessed.

I've had a few e-mails and even a phone call from readers interested in knowing how the Breakthrough paint held up. Well the truth is, it held up ok. Much better than the paint job before, but still not amazingly well. The problem is not the paint but the color choice. I think when you paint floors lighter shades, it needs to be re-done frequently.

We're also quite hard on our floors. No-one takes off their shoes (except me!), furniture gets dragged, dogs run laps. And with our big move coming up, there's been an unusual amount of wear and tear as we did repairs on the house, showed it to potential tenants, and had movers traipsing through, like this...

After all that there were some small scratches that revealed the white paint underneath and there were darker scuffs from all the shuffling of feet and furniture. But if I hadn't been moving out and handing over the place to renters I still wouldn't have re-painted them so soon. They weren't that bad.

This time I used yet another paint. I'm starting to think they're all the same. I had wanted to buy porch and floor paint in semi gloss but they were out of the neutral base so the guy at OSH told me the exterior wood and trim is just the same with a different label. Huh?

This time I went with a light grey-green. I wish I'd gone a bit darker, but because of having ebony-stained floors before all this paint business, I'm scared to go too dark. It makes the place seem tiny and gloomy.

That's me in my favorite painting pants again. They're actually staring to fall apart.

The following photos should illustrate why my floors don't stay nice for long.

Box dog maze.

Box dog tunnel.

The living room just before the movers came.

(I was also preparing for a cookbook shoot - that's what all the plates are for.)

As you can see we don't just walk on our floors. We live on our floors.

To anyone thinking of painting theirs, don't be discouraged. Regardless of the frequent re-painting needed, they still make me happy. It's a quick and cheap way to change a room dramatically and I have never regretted doing it. Best of luck!

Happily Homeless

2011-03-30T22:38:00.000-07:00

For at least the next 3 months we will be homeless. Our house has been rented to some (fingers crossed) nice tenants and we are staying with family in LA until we leave in May. When we get to London we still have to find a place to rent so I imagine there will be more couch surfing with family. Not so easy when it's a family of four.

All this in the name of adventure. Anything is better than a boring life, I keep telling my kids. Then I go to the bathroom and cry and think, holy s*** what have I done?? We sold all our stuff, we're pulling them out of school, leaving careers that are going quite well...

As my eleven year old might say (and I only ever say in jest) - OMG.

Despite our current feeling of nervousness, it is nice to temporarily be living simply. All our belongings are on their way to London, we have limited amounts of clothing and none of the usual stuff that clutters up our lives. As a result I've been able to spend less time cleaning and organizing said stuff and more time actually doing things. In the past couple of days we had a trip to the Getty Center Museum, the Science Museum, and the Farmer's Market in Highland Park.

Anyway, how's this for unstyled?

Aaaahh. Nothing like an empty house to make my kids want to skate around with just their socks on. I think they had the best time in that house in those last few weeks - when it was empty.

Mental note: don't clutter up with a bunch of junk in London. (Oh, but it's so hard sometimes when the junk is so pretty).

Coming soon:

Blog posts that are not about my personal life. I promise. Interesting styling stuff coming up.

Loft Revamp

2011-03-17T12:02:00.000-07:00

Here's a sneak peek of a new space I've recently designed.

It's a loft room that overlooks the living room of a house in Mount Washington - you climb 45 stairs (I counted) to get to the home so it's like a little treehouse.

The homeowner is an older woman with a great collection of vintage and new pieces that just needed to be tied together. It's a bonus room in the home, with french doors opening onto a nice balcony, and no real designated purpose. To reach it you have to climb a set of stairs that are almost vertical so getting large items up is tricky (no wonder the homeowner stays so fit with all this stair climbing).

Before:

In the bottom left of the picture above, you can see the opening where you climb up from the room below.

I thought I was going to paper the wall behind the bed with a patchwork of wallpaper scraps. It ended up not working out. Instead I did this.

After:

Chalkboard paint up to where the ceiling starts. I added a fifth floral "painting" by drawing one in chalk. I like odd numbers of things and four paintings wasn't looking right.

On the opposite wall, I re-painted her white dressing table, made a little patchwork wall covering and hung a handmade pennant.

It's a very cool space, and lovely when the french doors are open.

I'm eventually doing the rest of this house - those yellow walls are going...

Moving on

2011-03-07T10:38:00.000-08:00

We've been planning it for months, but finally the time has come for us to move out of our lovely house.

We're moving to London in a few months, but we're renting out our house early and staying with family until we leave. I've had the hardest month of my life: showing my house to potential tenants - and keeping it immaculate at all times, doing repairs on the house, selling everything - we're not taking any big pieces except a couple of very special things, compiling heaps of paperwork for my husband's UK visa, and on and on and on...

Here are some images from the past couple of weeks:

We ended up having two consecutive weekends of yard-sales.

Red TV console - sold!

These cardboard boxes meant for packing have been played in, drawn on, and built into towers.

My son packing things to go in his "sootcase".

My daughter giving me a yoga/ballet lesson the other day. I was the most stressed I've ever been and it felt like my head was going to explode.

Only a few more days of madness.

Flower Bargain

2011-02-15T13:27:00.000-08:00

One of the great things about Los Angeles is it's flower district. It's so cheap, it's silly. It's my go-to place when shopping for shoots and since it's right next to the garment district I usually shop for flowers and fabric in one trip.

For about $50 I bought 9 different bunches, including a large bundle of cherry blossom branches. At Whole Foods $50 will get you 2 or 3 mixed bunches. And Teleflora? You're lucky if they'll deliver a single rose for $50.

i love how these have their only little mesh hoods to protect them.

Somewhere there are miles of cherry blossom trees dutifully growing only to have their branches hacked off for people like me. Because I think they're pretty. It's a bit sad really. Sniff.

Then again, not all flowers get to be in magazine shoots do they? Really they should count themselves lucky.

Idle hands...make crazy pillows

2011-02-03T12:42:00.000-08:00

Being a freelance stylist and decorator definitely has it's benefits. I get to set my own schedule and work only on projects that interest me. And when I'm working, I really love what I do. But it also has it's downside. Mainly, the dreaded "Will I ever work again" syndrome that hits between jobs. I can go from working on quite big projects and feeling pretty good about myself to twidling my thumbs and wondering, really wondering, will anyone ever hire me again?! Am I actually really bad at my job? Do I smell funny?

It's true that idle hands can sometimes be the devil's tools (not that I believe in the devil, b/c I don't), but today I am trying to prove that old saying wrong. So January's been a slow month, big whoop! I'm not going to sit on my bum and cry about it. Well, maybe for about 15 minutes.

But then I'm going to sew. It's always a good way to keep me inspired and out of trouble. (Back off, devil!)

I found this amazing shirt the other day. I'm a big fan of sixties prints and I've been lucky lately at thrift shops. This one is a nice heavy, but soft broadcloth.

I've recently dressed my daughter's room in a mix of sixties prints and I thought this would make a nice addition as a throw pillow. It already has buttons so I hardly had to do anything.

15 minutes later:

For any vintage purists out there, I know, I know, don't hate me - it's considered very bad juju to cut up nice pieces like this. But really when am I ever going to wear a Hawaiian shirt like that? Is anyone? My husband actually might have worn it, so even more reason to cut it up. I could throw in some embarrassing pictures here of when we met 15 years ago and he had a thing for vintage hawaiian shirts, but I'm not that cruel.

Here are some of my favorite vintage finds similar to the Hawaiian shirt. These will never see scissors while they're in my hands. I love them so.

And yes, at one time or another, I have worn all of these.

You'll be able to see my daughter's bedroom (and probably that pillow) and in fact, my whole house in an upcoming issue of the lovely Anthology Magazine.

Reality vs Fantasy: The Kitchen Edition

2011-01-29T06:00:00.000-08:00

When I started this blog I wanted to show a lot of behind the scenes, real-life stuff. I wanted to show images of homes both styled and un-styled (hence, the blog's title), homes with signs of actual life. Well it's harder than you think to get people to agree to having their mess photographed, so for now it's just my mess you'll be seeing again.

Fantasy:

Reality:

Yes, people live here.

New Rue

2011-01-28T13:37:00.000-08:00

Rue Magazine's Jan/Feb 2011 issue came out yesterday so go and have a look at the gorgeous home of Tamara Kaye Honey that I styled a few weeks back with Teri Lyn Fisher.

Here are a few of my favorites from the shoot:

Rue didn't include this one in their issue, but it's one of my favorites. Teri and I grouped together all the ship paintings that were spread throughout Tamara's son's bedroom. I love the haphazard arrangement next to the massive ship.

Next time:

I think it's time to share another reality versus fantasy. i.e. what my house really looks like when it's not professionally styled.

Lo Bjurulf makes me want to change careers

2011-01-24T09:35:00.000-08:00

I know I'm supposed to be inspired by the work of other people, but once in a while I see the portfolio of another stylist and it makes me want to just stop trying. Swedish stylist Lo Bjurulf is one of those people. I look at her portfolio and I want to get into bed, pull the sheets over my head and think of a new career because I feel like I'll NEVER be that good! She's so, so good it makes me want to cry.

Some of these images were for Ikea (the white wedding setting and the moody mix and match tables and chairs), but you'd never know - they're so un-Ikea. Take some time and look at Lo's entire portfolio. It's really inspiring (unless you're me and then it's just depressing).

Since we're talking about Ikea... I was there a few months back and found a pretty good book they've put together called Love for Textiles. I know it's a bit lame to like a book from Ikea, but it's really quite good. They have very cleverly mixed Ikea product with vintage pieces and craftiness. At the end of the day they're trying to sell, sell, sell, but at least they've made an effort to be creative. For example, there is a how-to on making a mobile from an old lampshade frame and strips of fabric - of course the fabric pictured is from Ikea.

The styling reminds me a bit of stuff we used to do at Anthropologie: upholstered chairs hanging by rope from trees, dining chair legs wrapped in strips of fabric, coffee tables with 'legs' made out of stacks of magazines. And the thing is, the book is only $9.99 which is a total bargain compared to the $60 I paid recently for another home/design/art book. Strangely, there aren't any credits in the book so I can't see if Lo Brjurulf styled it, but it certainly has the same feel as some of the images above.

(P.S. I'm trying to make an effort to blog more often - have you noticed? Only if I've got something interesting to share - I don't like to blog for the sake of blogging. You don't want me doing that either. Before you know it, I'll be sharing pictures of my cats in halloween costumes.)

'twas the night before christmas

2011-01-20T06:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, so obviously Christmas has passed. Decorations have been taken down (except for that house down the road where they keep their xmas lights up all year long - Ugh) and the shopping madness has ended, thank goodness. But as I was looking through some photos just now I had a good chuckle about what I was doing two days before Christmas.

Knitting new stockings for my nearest and dearest? I hear you ask. Baking Christmas cookies to give to all the neighbors? Stringing popcorn and cranberries to hang on the tree? No, actually none of the above. (Let's be realistic - I never have and probably never will do any of those things).

On December 22nd and 23rd my house was filled - all 700 square feet of it, I might add - with a student film crew. My brother-in-law, Garette (he might kill me for putting in that link) is an incredibly talented guy currently working on his masters in film at New York's Columbia University.

He wrote a short film that happened to be set in my house and also happened to star my eight year old as the leading role. How could I possibly say no? My house and my son were going to be stars. It also happened to be two days before Christmas, like I said, so we had to sort of work around the tree and the lights. There were probably ten people in the house at it's fullest, along with dollies and cameras and all that good stuff.

It ended up being a really fun experience and the film is very, very good. It turns out the leading (eight year old) man takes after his uncle (see Garette's link...) in the acting department. Maybe I'll throw in the towel with this whole styling business and become a pushy stage mum. Make this kid earn his keep!

Here are some shots from the shoot:

Garette directing his star

And that's a wrap. When the star hides under the bed, you know it's time to turn the cameras off.

Check out those floors! Clearly, they did not get the Breakthrough paint treatment like the living room. It's on my list. My very, very long list.

House of Honey

2011-01-19T10:47:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share with you the portfolio of a really, really great interior designer, Tamara Kaye-Honey. She's based near me in South Pasadena and last year opened a store/showroom on Mission Street called House of Honey. She sells fantastic vintage furniture, art and knick-knacks, a lot of it from the '60's (one of my favorite eras), as well as offering her design services in her gorgeous office at the back of the store.

If you live in the area it's well worth the trip. There's really nothing like it on the East side. It's filled to the brim with incredible pieces found at local flea markets and auctions and is curated beautifully. Walking in I felt a bit like I was in the home of a wealthy and eccentric great-aunt with eclectic but impeccable taste. I half expected to see said great-aunt come sailing out in a floor length Pucci caftan and offer me a dry martini.

I had the pleasure of styling Tamara's gorgeous Altadena home last week for the upcoming issue of Rue Magazine, coming out on January 27th I believe. My friend Teri Lyn Fisher, the most fantastic interiors and food photographer, shot it with me and as always we had a blast. The images are stunning. Teri, you clever girl! (Side note: check out Teri's meat ship on her website. I have no words for it.)

The following images are some of my favorites from Tamara's portfolio. This South Pasadena home belongs to Traci Fleming, founder of the modern kids' furniture line, Nurseryworks. Incidentally, Tamara is designing a line of furniture with Nurseryworks, debuting later this year.

Tamara has a lot of positive buzz around her right now, and rightly so. She's really good at what she does.

THX THX THX

2010-12-11T18:48:00.000-08:00

There are so many great blogs out there that I wish I had an extra day in every week just to sit with my laptop and fill my brain with pretty pictures and random information. Since there are only 7 days in a week - at least 5 for working and 2 for all the other stuff you do with a family, a home, some pets (and a crapload of laundry) - I don't get to browse as much as I'd like.

The few that I check regularly are Design*Sponge, The Sartorialist, and Oh Joy. They fulfill my diy, fashion/cool people in cool places, and random good stuff needs, respectively.

However, there is one I had forgotten about and plan on checking on more regularly. It's concept is so simple and brilliant and funny. I literally cry a bit (with laughter) every time I read one of her posts. It's called thx thx thx and is written by Leah Dieterich. She writes thank you notes. To random stuff.

They all start "Dear _____," For example, 'Dear random white hairs growing in strange places on her body", "Dear Vicodin", "Dear old ladies who have a sense of humor".

And my most favorite recent one: 'Dear pine tree growing in the sidewalk next to where I parallel parked".

Or:

I'm obviously not an early adopter of this blog since she's got over 7000 "likes" on Facebook. All the same, check it out if you feel like a giggle and a cry.

Time to paint the floors again

2010-11-23T16:19:00.000-08:00

What I should be doing: Perfecting my recipe for Thanksgiving stuffing.

What I am actually doing: Painting my wood floors.

Less than a year ago I painted my very scratched, ebony-stained wood floors...white. I'd wanted to do it for ages and they looked amazing.

For a few weeks.

Then I let my kids roller-skate on them and that was that. They never looked the same. Once the seal is broken - the first scratch seal, that is - there's no turning back. Before you know it, you're carelessly dragging chairs and coffee tables, and this is what you get:

It wasn't pretty. It got to the point where it never looked clean. The dirt was ingrained in it.

The thing is, I've seen painted wood floors that resisted dirt much better than mine did, so I felt like I'd done something wrong. Originally I used porch and floor paint with polyurethane over it. When I rolled on the poly, there were little bubbles in it that popped and looked like lots of mini craters all over the floor. Over time they became little dirt catchers.

(What did I do with all my furniture while I did this, I hear you ask?)

This, of course:

So this time around I did some more research and came across this paint I hadn't seen before called Breakthrough! (the exclamation point ! is part of the name, although I am excited to tell you about it!!) It's supposed to be more resistant to scratching and scuffs. I had a gallon of the glossy kind tinted with Benjamin Moore half silver dollar. (I chose a light blue-grey this time). I got it from Jill's Paint, a specialty paint store in LA. It cost about $40.

It rolled on so smoothly I couldn't believe it.

I thought I'd need to buy a second gallon, but I only used half a gallon in the end. Two coats did it. And it dried really fast. I highly recommend it and no-one paid me to say that. I did not put polyurethane on this time. I don't think it needs it with this paint.

Doesn't it look nice?

Of course, the proof will be in the pudding. I will keep you posted as time passes and it gets walked on and lived in. However, I am definitely not letting anyone roller-skate in here.

If you're interested in seeing a full home tour of my place, it will be featured tomorrow Wednesday November 24th on Apartment Therapy.

OK, back to making that stuffing. Happy Thanksgiving!

Bloody hell, this bathroom was ugly!

2010-10-21T12:56:00.000-07:00

A week ago the lovely girls over at Design*Sponge featured my bathroom in their Before and After segment. They only included one before shot so I thought I'd show you a few more today so you can see just how awful it was.

We've lived in our house for five years and the bathroom was the last thing to be fixed up. Looking at these pictures, I don't know how we lived with it for so long. It's nasty. But it was the one room that needed a bit of cash thrown at it and some professional help instead of our usual DIY attempt. So we had to wait.

I'm too embarrassed to post the picture I have with the shower door open. It was so disgusting that it never looked clean.

A bit blurry, but you get the idea. There are no redeeming features to this sink in my opinion. It's just ugly and dull. Sorry, sink.

Ugh. I'm breaking into a cold sweat looking at this one. So much mismatched junk. And nowhere to put anything except overstuffed baskets. Kitschy art on the walls was a nice try but, no.

With the help of said professional, my friend Josh, demolition began:

Once Josh got the tile and tub in, I had him put up wainscoting all around the room. It's dirt cheap, at about $20 per 4' piece and it really adds character to an otherwise featureless space. Then I agonized over what shade of grey-lavender to use.

I bought an old sink at Habitat for Humanity ReStore for about $50. I wanted an old one with utilitarian faucets - nothing fancy. And it had to be wall mounted (you can't see in the pics but there's no pedestal) because I like to see the raw plumbing underneath. I like the mix of raw and pretty. I went with dark grey grout to make the penny tile and subway tile pop. Both tiles were cheap, cheap.

The wood cabinet above the toilet was given to me and I left it raw and added a curtain. It sat in my driveway for ages - one day it fell over and the glass broke, otherwise I would have put some cool window film on it perhaps.

The bathroom is very small and is between both bedrooms so we lose two walls to doors. I looked for months for a mini clawfoot tub and finally found one on craigslist. It had to be 4' to fit along the wall where the shower had been. Most common size is 5'. Anything longer than 4' would have meant moving the toilet/plumbing which = more $$$. This tub is adorable, but a bit silly for grown ups! My kids fit in it perfectly.

The only missing piece yet to be finished is the shower curtain rod. You can't see here but there is still a shower-head, but I have to install a round or oval rod.

At our house things usually get about 95% complete. There's always that last bit that takes a while to finish. Anyway, after five years without a tub it's all about long, steamy baths right now.

Next time: Any ideas? What do you want to know?

Eclectic Little Girl's Room

2010-10-15T10:40:00.000-07:00

I'm currently working on a little girl's room in a really cool modern house near the beach. The owner has amazing taste and is, like me, a Brit who has lived in the States for many years. She wants to mix the clean modern lines of her gorgeous Southern California home with some eclectic, slightly off-kilter, colorful messiness often found in British homes.

Here's what's inspiring me:

I love all the mix of color and print grounded by the white wall and beds. It doesn't match and that's why it works.

The bed itself is amazing, must be custom-made. But it's all that white with pops of vintage looking print and color that I love. Really modern.

I never tire of flag garland. I'll be making some similar to this for this project.

Here's some I made for my office:

Remember: the office doesn't look like this anymore. Scroll back a few posts if you don't believe me. Sigh. How I wish it did.

I want a couple of shades like this scattered around the room.

By Folly and Glee.

And a wall like this, but with more stuff. And with chalkboard paint behind it.

Via alltheprettythings.

And maybe one of these from West Elm. On a desk or a bedside table for late night reading.

Next up:

My bathroom, before and after.

Apartamento

2010-10-12T09:58:00.001-07:00

It's been exactly two months since I started this blog. And I've only posted three times, during that first week. Clearly, I'm a bad, bad blogger. I should be sent to blogger jail or wherever neglectful bloggers go. And to think that I imagined posting three times a week. Ha! More likely it will be whenever I can find a spare half an hour. I'm impressed by these design bloggers who post daily and have all sorts of interesting images to share and witty comments. Maybe I need to drink less wine and stay up later.

September was really busy for me. I spent a week in Toronto - my first time there and I loved it - as Production Designer for these really cool stop motion commercials for W Network (A Canadian lifestyle channel). As soon as I'm allowed to, I'll put them in my portfolio/reel. Then I spent a week in beautiful Carpenteria, CA styling Target's new Smith and Hawken garden furniture range. I'm really enjoying traveling more for work. Who doesn't like staying in hotels and ordering room service and having someone make your bed?? Especially when you're usually the one cooking and cleaning. More please.

Today I wanted to share this magazine I discovered a while ago called Apartamento. It's based in Milan and only comes out twice a year I think. So since 2008 there have only been 5 or 6 issues. It's tag-line is "An everyday life interiors magazine" so you can guess why I like it. Creative people living in interesting but often messy flats and houses. It's right up my alley. I'm sure it's really expensive and hard to find - although I hear Urban Outfitters and surprisingly Barnes and Noble sometimes carry it.

Maybe the pile of magazines is taking it to the extreme - borderline hoarder? But I still like it.

I love this room. Doesn't it look like someone actually does meaningful work there?

The red stove is lovely of course. Something about images like this makes me feel better about my self. Silly I know, but seeing someone else's space looking disheveled makes me not be such a stickler about clutter at home. I'm not saying I could handle books piled on my stove, but you know what I mean.

Unmade bed, drawers left open, nice. This still reads "styled" to me, but maybe it's not. Maybe the drawer stuffed with clothes really was open when they got ready to take the shot. Or maybe they opened it and pulled out some clothes. Who knows? Who cares? It's pretty either way.

I promise it won't be so long until next time.

The Office: Part Two

2010-08-18T13:55:00.000-07:00

I work at home and as you'll see from my previous post I'm lucky enough to have a great office space behind my house. When I'm not on a shoot I am almost certainly glued to my desk - researching upcoming projects, replying to endless e-mails, scouring design blogs for inspiration, or doing more mundane things like paying bills and creating schedules for the weeks ahead. My desk serves both my professional and my personal worlds. Work stuff, life stuff, kid stuff, it all gets done there.

Here's how it looked once upon a time...

I really like this shot because it's not too far off from how it usually looks. I always have design books close at hand, just not stacked right there. I generally have some sort of caffeinated beverage within reach, just not necessarily in a dainty teacup with strawberries and powdered cookies on the side. And that memento board really looks that way - that's where I put the pretty things that inspire me. Behind me on the other wall is a large cork board plastered with other things in a less artful way.

Here's how it looked a few weeks back when I was actually working in there, not shooting pretty pictures:

Not quite as pretty right? At this angle you can see all the other horrors in the room, like the unfinished drywall around the doors, the overflowing wastebasket and the stacks of paint cans for a job I was working on at the time. It also happens to be nighttime so the lighting is horrible. This is where all the magic happens. My bum sits on that pretty chair (found in an alley by the way) and taps away at that computer, feeling very important, until I suddenly realize it's dark outside, I haven't made dinner and my kids are starving. That's when I lock up, take my 4 step commute to my kitchen door and leave work behind for the night.

Next time: Scenes from a real kitchen. Mine.

The Office: Part One

2010-08-16T12:23:00.000-07:00

Last year we finally had enough cash to turn our dingy garage into a home office/art studio. Living in a tiny house, we always dreamed of adding just one more room. Somewhere to work and create and just escape from the confines of the little house - a corner of our living room had been our office up to that point.

We hired a friend to do most of the work which was a total treat since we'd done everything else ourselves since buying the house in 2005. Case in point: check out this picture of the garage before the renovation - that's me wielding the jackhammer. We were building a fence and gate at the top of our driveway in preparation for getting a dog and to make the back yard a bit private. (Side note: Do you know how I found this photo as I scrolled through thousands in iPhoto? It was all about the hair. I scrolled back until I found a section where my hair was short and dark - somehow I remembered that's how it had been at the time. I'm glad I remember the important things in life.)

I love seeing old pictures of our house and noticing the changes. All the plants here are now massive compared to this shot back in March 2007.

Anyway back to the office. We replaced the weird garage door - yes, that's a Hobbit door cut out of it - with some inexpensive french doors that I painted pinky-purple.

Fixing up this garage changed our lives - ooh, doesn't that sound dramatic? But it's true. We had a whole extra 150 square feet! Now we lived in 850, not 700 sf. Woo hoo! My husband and I each had a desk, I had a sewing table set up full time. I had space to store my boxes of fabric and all my props for work. It was amazing.

Here's how it looked when you opened those doors:

Isn't it lovely? If I say so myself. My husband built that sofa-like thingy at the back - he designed it so that exactly 8 big plastic tubs could fit under it and store my fabric and props and our family memorabilia, but you'd never know all the junk it hides. It just looks like a nice place to lay down with a book and a beer, doesn't it?

Can't you picture us lounging there, sipping daintily from Moroccan tea glasses and playing the teeny tiny red guitar by candlelight?

We did spend some time enjoying that lovely lounge area. The kids would hang out and play board games there while I worked. I've got some pictures of my sweet son sitting there and hand-sewing a spaceship onto a piece of muslin. (He's since moved onto mastering the art of origami and my house is littered with tiny bits of folded paper.)

But before long, real life stepped in and threw a whole bunch of crap on that gorgeous space. I found myself with a handful of jobs all happening simultaneously. I was re-designing a couple of rooms at a spa/salon, preparing for a dining room re-design as well as an upcoming shoot. Where else am I going to dump all the stuff it takes to do those things?

It starts off small. A lamp I'm going to spray paint, a chair I'm picking fabric for, a windowpane I found on the sidewalk that might make a nice piece of wall decor down the line. Oh and did I mention, we also bike and surf, so let's chuck those things in there too. But it gets worse.

Disclaimer: I am not a slob. It just looks that way.

Just a couple of days later and here's how it looked. More shopping for my clients added to the mix. Another chair to paint and reupholster, some curtains being sewn for the salon job.

Where the heck am I going to sit now and sip Bellini's while thinking about how great my life is?? You can't even see the sofa let alone sit on it.

Now I don't want to leave you thinking this is how I always live? I much prefer the glow-y, gorgeously styled, well-lit way of life. And I really do get annoyed by mess. Neither choice is ideal. Really, who can maintain tidy all the time without it being a full-time job? Throw in a couple of kids and suddenly you've got other people's stuff to worry about too. But messes like these happen once in a while and I've learned to live with it for that moment in time, knowing that it's real life. And that, quite frankly, these aren't bad problems to have. Life could be worse, right?

And if I just can't take it anymore, I can always plant myself on the piles of junk, open up my laptop and gaze longingly at the before pictures, remembering a fantasy land that existed for about half a day.

Next time: my desk.

I've got to start somewhere

2010-08-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

It's funny writing the first entry on a new blog, wondering if anyone will ever read this. Well if you've found life unstyled today or more likely, sometime in the future and you're curious enough that you've scrolled back through ALL past entries, then well done! Here it is, day one.

The purpose of this blog is simple. I style for a living and I love to make things look pretty. However, I also lead a normal, busy, messy life with kids and pets and work and play. I definitely don't have the time to keep my home as perfectly styled as it looks in photos of it that have been published on some design blogs. It would literally take up all my time. So in between tidying sessions it gets sort of messy. Clutter piles up on every free surface, legos scatter the floor, baseball bats rest in every corner. Don't get me wrong, our house is lovely but at 700 square feet, two adults, two kids and three pets accumulate a lot of stuff and make a lot of mess.

A few weeks back I was sitting in my (untidy) living room, looking at the piles of sporting equipment by my front door (everyone but me plays baseball/softball). It struck me how different my entryway looked compared to when I recently styled it for my portfolio. I took a picture. I looked around the rest of my house and took more pictures without styling any of them. And I don't mean that I styled them to look messy. I just didn't style them at all. I love, love, love looking at gorgeous homes, but once in a while, isn't it nice to see a home that's lovely but lived-in? I think so too.

So that's where we'll start. The first few posts will feature my own home - side-by-side images of it looking gorgeous, well-lit, sparklingly clean and let's face it, unrealistic and one of it looking like people actually live there. Down the line, I'd like to share photos of other people's homes in their styled and unstyled states as well.

So here's number one. Our entryway, also known as "part of our living room". When I said entryway, were you picturing something grand?? I should have said foyer, that would have really thrown you off. You step in the front door and there you are, in the living room. I set up this little shelf for keys and sunglasses, dog leashes etc, stuff we need as we're heading out the door. Don't my Frye boots look lovely there, all lined up nicely? And the single dog leash dangling from it's hook. Nice. And of course I always have fresh flowers and a candle by my front door. Don't you? I sewed those bags to store all the usual junk that accumulates by front doors. I think one was meant for doggie stuff and one for things like flashlights and bicycle pumps. (My house really is very small, so storage for things like this is non-existent. Oh, to have a closet dedicated to just this stuff!)

And here we have the grand foyer in it's current state. The pretty hand-sewn bags are gone. Apparently their contents were emptied out and scattered all over the shelf. The lovely flowers are gone, they've been replaced by Netflix to be returned, sunscreen to be applied, a jump rope, more dog leashes. How many do we need? There's only one little dog. And then there's the mountain of baseball paraphernalia. What can I say? If there was a hall closet, I would put it in there. But since there's no hall, there's definitely no closet. So that's where it shall sit all summer long, making me crazy. I suppose if we hadn't turned our garage into our office we could store stuff in there. But as you'll see in my next post, our office is lovely. After I show you how lovely it is I will show you how it really is. Next time.