oh christmas tree

As I mentioned in my last post, we're usually traveling around the holidays. This year, however, we'll be home in Massachusetts and to commemorate June's first Christmas, we're getting a tree.

I'm partial to this look - retro and a little rustic. With white lights, of course.

country living

Growing up with my grandparents in their house, we did a very retro tree each year. Mainly because our ornaments were all from the 1950's and we used those old-fashioned "icicles." Which my grandma made us save each year so they could impart the same realism to our tree next Christmas. That meant putting them on one-by-one, removing them ever so carefully, and placing them in a 50 year old shoebox. You're all probably envisioning me just throwing the icicles at the tree. Not far off.

This chump's grandma had her doing the same thing...

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Here's some love for our coniferous allies....

country living

I'm obsessed with the woven basket this tree is sitting in!

cottage living

Is this J Lo's tree?

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And of course, Martha Stewart never disappoints. Just imagine taking the icicles off her tree.

to sleep: perchance to dream

clearly, I am teaching hamlet right now. love that soliloquy.

I want a well put together bed that also looks deliciously cozy and warm (and a gorgeous, charming, colorful bedroom).

house and home

adrian grenier has the headboard I want!

flickr: domino magazine files

country living

rug-ged

erin, ever since your post about june's play area I cannot get that ikea rug out of my head. I want it in green for our home office/guest room makeover. we painted the room a deep chocolate brown, like melted hersheys, (I can't remember the actual color name, I suck), and I want that green rug in there too. Might look wonkey with yellow and white striped bedding though...?

ikea

me

but maybe, magically, it could look like this?? (except as a home office/guest room, not play room - zoinks, probably just gave my mom the hiccups)

from the desk of annie

Windy City Christmas

This will be the first Christmas we haven't gone home to Chicago in quite a while. For the last 5 years (!!!) we would stay with Bridget at her apartment in the city. Now she's moved to gorgeous and relatively warm San Francisco. Usually we're freezing our butts off in the Ukrainian Village. Last year, Nick and I drove out from Massachusetts, and on our first morning back home, the temp was a HIGH of -3 degrees. Without the wind chill. Welcome home, bitches. Our car was frozen into the slush and we never made it to Cemitas Puebla in Humboldt Park. Yummy cemitas....

Here are some Chicago Christmas images to soothe my longing for home.

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donna knows

speaking of my stocking ... I want donna karen's paradise home on parrot cay, in the turks and caicos islands. every since our decadent, lazy and tropical zihuatanejo honeymoon, i want more. architectural digest featured her gorgeous family retreat in this month's edition. reminds me, erin, of your vision of a lake house full of cousins and rug-rats - but our own compound, and a yoga pavilion, and not in wisconsin. ha, yeah. the story of building the "house" (or resort) is sweet and touching, a last wish from her husband.

i love infinity pools!images: architectural digest

Bridget's stocking

Since we share this blog, nothing I write is a secret from her, but...


pssst (*whisper*) - don't these Penguin Classic books scream Bridget? They would look fabulous on her new peacock-colored bookcase.

I may have to start an imaginery Christmas list for Beyonce (her new nickname...as of two minutes ago).

june's play area

My little Junebug will soon be needing a play area of her own. We were in Brooklyn this past weekend and I watched her go nuts over a friend's play area. While our living room isn't big, there is some wasted space that could be converted over for her. Nick and I aren't huge fans of the in-home toy store mentality of today's parenthood, but there are a few things I want to get for our Bug Pie. Here's a rough draft of the play area, along with some over-the-top ideas too.

First, a train table - these things are all over Craigslist for around $50.

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A couple practical play mats (hand me downs from a friend)

On top of this Ikea rug, which we already have...

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Maybe a couple toy bins

An Ikea Mammut chair..

Now, on to the "if money was no object" playroom items...

An Anna Maria Horner rug...



This is actually a pint-sized chair for your stylish little one - from Target, no less!
A few Hable Construction totes strewn about...

An Eco Tots play table...

Here are a few gorgeous play rooms - for those celebrity play dates.
Suri's not allowed though.

from the desk of annie

Kitchen of the Day

I've had this kitchen in my inspiration file for years. There is so much to love about it!

this old house

so cute...I couldn't help myself

Big girl in a messy dining room.

Kitchen of the Day

Leah from House Obsession (great blog!) pulled off an amazing kitchen transformation at her house. I love the simplicity and retro vibe. It's soon to be featured in Country Living magazine.

shower me with bathrooms

As Nick and I gear up to renovate our tub and shower this Christmas, I thought I throw some shower porn your way. No, not that kind.

Well, sort of...I do hear that "bewh-chica-bewh-bewh" music when I see a tiled, frameless, steam shower.

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house of turquoise



house of turquoise

supermarket centerpiece

Bridget and I are gearing up for Thanksgiving in Brooklyn - I haven't seen her since her wedding in August, her parents haven't met June yet, AND....we will all be meeting Missy's baby for the first time!!! She should arrive any minute now.

Found this beautiful, rustic, and simple centerpiece idea on Design Sponge. Great idea with items you can pick up at the grocery store. Or at any of the corner markets in BKL. I actually have that oatmeal container, which I use as a flower vase.

nursery decor

Abby from Feathered Nest re-posted her tutorial on this felt monogram - yippee!

there's a monster under my bed and it's drooling

I spoke with my super duper uber pregnant sister tonight and asked her what it is she wants/needs now that she only has a few days until my niece arrives. her response, wall art for the nursery. well, well. that's right up our alley. my sister and her husband are literature fiends, mostly russian, but really anything classic (I hesitate to use that term, but, alas, it fits). they have a wild appreciation for words and have spent many a car ride, saturday night and sunday morning reading out loud to each other from their latest epic of choice. we knew then that we wanted to find her something word, alphabet, literature based. with this in mind and based some of the things she specified, I went straight to etsy to find some cheap, yet unique nursery art options.

barkdecor

bad bird

wall envy art

strawberry luna


barking bird art


magicpug

like every other male in his 30s-40s, missy's husband adores where the wild things are. (okay, we all love it, how can we not?)

buddha taxi

love the idea of the quote on the stairs, or maybe inside a closet door?

new age audrey

the best part is I am only just warming up. this is just from about fifteen minutes on etsy. love that site.

wingback....back

This design is a wallet-friendly option for my wingback chair - using a solid fabric on the back and sides. I found this chair on Gorgeous Shiny Things.

If you're in love with a pricey patterned fabric, this is a good way to keep costs down. And I love the nailhead trim. I think I'll do that to my chair!

(Did anyone notice the Kelly Wearstler Imperials Trellis fabric?)