holly's plate

elementary, my dear

2008-09-29T09:37:00.005-04:00

i've been searching high and low for some new coasters for the coffee table and i think i've found some! from green chair press i present the sherlock holmes letterpress printed coasters. watson would be so pleased!

it's friday, baby!

2008-09-26T09:27:00.005-04:00

i thought i'd still do baby products on fridays, since that's all i seem to be looking at these days. there's some really fantastic stuff out there!

this is the latest piece i've been drooling over. it's called the abc sampler quilt by sferra. it's gorgeous in person—so soft and crisp at the same time. the letters are embroidered and have a great illustration-like quality to them. i really, really want one. or two? not sure so i'm still thinking about it!

a glutton for cute

2008-09-22T12:09:00.004-04:00

i spotted these sinfully wonderful mugs by trixiedelicious over my maternity leave (while on bedrest, actually) and thought they were so, so clever. if i worked in an office, i'd totally get these—one for every day of the week (if you work weekends, too).

anyway, i'm back now—a happy new mum of two. i probably won't be posting quite as often as i learn to juggle the boys and my job. i'm hoping for two times per week—baby steps, right?? if you miss me, you can always find me over at the shooting allens.

first fourth

2008-07-04T22:26:00.003-04:00

we live in a high rise, as i'm sure most of you know, and every year on july 4 we have the best view in town. the windows in the living room and the nursery look over lenox square mall, which is where they shoot off the fireworks each year.

here are the boys enjoying their first fourth from the safety of the living room floor. two minutes after this photo we decided to wake them up to show them the fireworks. that was, um, how do you say—a total mistake. note to self: never wake a sleeping baby. not even for the grand finale. they do not ooh and aah. they shriek and scream. for a long time.

ps—if you'd like to follow the twinks, check out my other blog. it may be some time before holly's plate is back up and running again, but i'm still blogging daily about the boys.

we're parents!!

2008-06-22T12:59:00.001-04:00

aren't they just beautiful?!?

alexander george (alex)
born: june 9, 2008 at 3:55 pm
weight: 5 lbs., 14 oz.
length: 19 3/4"

maxwell murphy (max)
born: june 9, 2008 at 3:56 pm
weight: 5 lbs., 3 oz.
length: 18"

maternity leave

2008-05-20T13:53:00.004-04:00

sorry guys!! not to get into too much detail, but i've been in the hospital trying to help those twinkies bake for a while longer. i finally was released after 10 days and am on strict bedrest until the babies come, which hopefully will be at least another week or two. other than that, all is well.

i'll miss you!

it's friday, baby!

2008-05-02T07:47:00.002-04:00

first, apologies for not posting in between fridays. i've actually been put on bedrest for the rest of my pregnancy and it's quite tough to type with my big old whale belly in the way. so, i'm guessing things will pretty much slow to a crawling pace here at holly's plate. i will try, but no promises!!

second, the shelves!!

my parents made the drive again last saturday and my dad helped tripper hang the shelves in the nursery. i don't have all the right do-dads up there yet, but was so excited i wanted to put something on them. the alternating chocolate and white really do make all the pieces—white cribs, chocolate dresser—tie in together. yay!

it's friday, baby!

2008-04-25T09:25:00.003-04:00

so for this next post, you're going to have to use your imagination a little bit. tripper and i have big ideas for the nursery walls, but i wanted to fake them in photoshop before we did any purchasing. your feedback is greatly appreciated!!

here are our ideas:

1. a wall of photos. (above)
what do you think about this grid? we're planning to take black and white photos of all the twins' stuffed animal friends (not just the duck) and i'll have green mats cut to fit each frame.

2. airplane. (still above)
we like the idea of something hanging from the ceiling above the rocker. what do you think of this airplane? would it look better with two of something instead?

3. shelves.
we want to center the monkey painting and put up four shelves—two on each side—to display some of the cute things we've gotten and some family pictures. the shelves will extend out past the dresser, but i think that'll be ok.

thoughts?

hey bud

2008-04-23T10:12:00.003-04:00

just look at this gorgeous set of five hand-blown bud vases. so very pretty! i was surprised to find these at plum party of all places. this is the time of year i usually look for fun jockeys and jillys® party stuff. even though we aren't having our party this year (for a couple of reasons ;) ), habit made me look. glad i did!

it's friday, baby!

2008-04-18T09:42:00.002-04:00

sorry i wasn't able to post very much last week. we had a ton going on here and work has been crazy busy!! here's a nursery post that will hopefully make it up to you!!

our sleepytime rocker from nurseryworks came!! and tripper put it together. and it is beautiful!! i love the punch of spring green. it looks so fresh with the white and the chocolate.

also, we ordered a little white bench from the land of nod and that came, too! tripper put that together in the same night and voila!—it's starting to look like a nursery in there! i also ordered some fun storage bins to go in the cubbies. hopefully they'll make it here in time for next week's update!

happy hopscotch!

2008-04-15T08:01:00.005-04:00

i've been saving this post especially for april 15—and as luck would have it, the super cute shop that sells it, shades of violet, is having a special 30% off tax-day sale!!! yay!

so, why does hopscotch make me think of tax day you ask? well, tax day also happens to be tripper's birthday (happy birthday, tripper!!). and tripper's parents actually met long ago at a hopscotch tournament. (they were like 10 years old!!) so, thank you hopscotch for introducing tripper's parents. you started a whole string of events that ultimately brought me every happiness in the world :)

ps—enter TAXDAY at checkout all day to receive your discount at shades of violet.

it's friday, baby!

2008-04-11T07:23:00.000-04:00

time again for baby stuff! last sunday, my mum and dad came over so my dad could help tripper build the cribs. take a look!

and of course, ed just had to get in on the action ...

success! two happy builders at the end of a hard day.

voila! isn't the bedding just lovely?

and finally, my mum and me. we got in the way more than we helped, but it was fun!

thanks so much tripper and dad! the cribs look beautiful!! two cribs in one room = doubly cute!! now if we could just get the rest of the room in order!! until next week ...

green chair press

2008-04-10T09:02:00.004-04:00

i discovered green chair press over on etsy while doing my daily dooce browse. the letterpress prints are just brilliant and i love looking at all of them. oh to own an old letterpress printer!!

work, sweet work

2008-04-09T21:52:00.000-04:00

just wanted to post a picture of my new home office space. it's much smaller than before, but it's sweet and cute and functional, so weeeeeeee for me! we got the desk—called the jay desk—at west elm and it fits on the wall perfectly. it has a hide-a-way desk that rolls out from underneath so it nearly doubles in size when i'm using it. we also had to get a new desk chair (in chocolate leather) without arms so it could tuck under. it's very similar to my old one, so that makes me a happy little worker bee. also, i had to downsize my computer set up. no more cinema display for me! before you go feeling too sorry for me about that, don't!! i got to get a brand new iMac and it is lovely!!

the space isn't quite finished yet, but it's coming along. i'll be sure to post pics again when it's all done!!

it's friday, baby!

2008-04-04T09:28:00.003-04:00

i ordered this amazingly cute "dick and jane" baby blanket from superfly lullabies (super swank blankets for your super swank babe) and it came earlier this week. you have no idea how hard it was to wait until friday to post about it!! i love it!!

the printed side totally reminds me of when i was a kid—yes, i actually did read about sally, dick and jane (and spot!) when i was in grade school. the flip side is the softest minky you've ever felt. not only is this blanket just darling, the craftsmanship is superb (and creator julie is the nicest person ever)!! i can't wait to toss it over the rocker (if it ever gets here) and snuggle up with the twinks.

see holly smile.

love candy

2008-04-03T07:33:00.002-04:00

i'm adoring these super cute made by love "love candy" poster prints! they come in all kinds of candy colors—bright blue, cotton-candy pink, light grape, deep lemony yellow. they look lickable, don't they? or at least scented, right?!? available on etsy.

white hot

2008-04-02T10:50:00.003-04:00

i'm totally into white on white these days—it's so clean and inviting—plus i may as well enjoy it while i can, right? soon there will be splotches of mashed peas and carrots all around me. anyway, i was just alerted to this gorgeous site out of australia that completely feeds my new obsession. it's called whiteport and most everything in it—from fine linens to kitchen essentials to little unnecessaries—is a lovely shade of white! everything is so classic and elegant. you must check it out!!

nice shoes

2008-03-31T09:37:00.003-04:00

tripper had to go to kentucky on business last week and brought home two very lucky horseshoes from churchill downs. both were actually used on the track! i wonder if barbaro may have worn them?

ps—happy birthday, karen!

it's friday, baby!!

2008-03-28T08:57:00.003-04:00

a lot of you have been so sweet to email asking me all about the nursery for the twinkies. i was thinking, instead of making this an all-about-baby blog—which it's bound to turn into since that's all i'm really thinking about these days—i'll just write about baby stuff on fridays. i'll call it "it's friday, baby!!" and that way you can follow along if you'd like. sound good?! great! this is going to be a long post while i catch you up, so settle on in ...

so, first things first. i showed you the cribs we picked (thanks again, mum and dad!). they are so lovely and ... they are here! they're still in boxes, so no photos yet. and we got our mattresses this week (thanks, papa ger' and mama lin'!)!! and i finally picked out our bedding—i mean their bedding—which should be here any day now!!

isn't it beautiful? it's called rory from serena and lily. i love how sweet and clean and sophisticated it looks. plus i think having two sets of mostly white will help make the room feel bigger. the brown teddy i photoshopped in to make sure i like the white and green with dark brown. i do. which is good because i'm thinking we'll keep the brown sideboard that's in the room now for storage.

i also ordered the sleepytime glider in lime green microterry from nurseryworks. it matches the green accents in the rory bedding just perfectly!! hopefully it will arrive before the babies do!!

you've seen the fabulous giraffe tripper bought me, but what you haven't seen is all the amazing presents from our friends and family. my dear friend/little sister/soon-to-be-auntie jenny threw me a lovely little girly shower over easter weekend. it was small and intimate—just what i wanted. take a look ...

she made all the food herself, including those adorable lamb cupcakes!! everything was done in shades of white—down to the drinks (white grape juice, sprite and white grapefruit juice). we had avocado sushi, bow tie pasta, cheese, finger sandwiches, white chocolates, lemon cake—it was heavenly!!

and here are all the presents!

we really have amazing friends and family!! i can't believe how very generous they all are. i feel very blessed.

we also started a new blog—a virtual garage sale called making room for babies. since we don't have a garage or a yard and we do have internet access, we thought this would be a great way to get rid of the old stuff to make room for the new. if you know of anyone in the atlanta area looking for odds and ends, send them our way!! we add items as we come across them. all proceeds will go to the twins' diaper fund!

that's it for this week! another baby update next friday!! xoxox.

campfire girl

2008-03-27T08:42:00.004-04:00

camping season is just around the corner—though you won't catch me in a sleeping bag in the woods! i'm more of a camp at the ritz kinda girl where gazing at the stars means spotting a celebrity—not the big dipper—so this porcelain campfire tealight candle holder is right up my alley. pass the mini marshmallows—and the room service menu—please!

available at kikkerland.

tall order

2008-03-23T11:51:00.000-04:00

i've always dreamed of having a 5-foot-tall giraffe in the nursery. i must have seen it in a movie or something. anyway, on saturday that dream came true! we went to cute-as-ever baby shop b. braithwaite and found the perfect one! and, tripper bought it for me!! well, for the twinkies, really!! it adds some great height to the room, which is finally starting to come together in my mind. when it comes together in real life, i'll be sure to post some pictures!

so, i'm trying to think of a cute name for him/her. any ideas?

rub-a-dub-dub

2008-03-19T07:34:00.007-04:00

you know those cute, galvanized party tubs that make everything from izzy sodas to plain old beer bottles look fabulous? well, check this out—

isn't it adorable?!? it totally makes me want to throw a party! the chocolate dot party tub from the merry martini is bound to generate a chocolate-y high at your next shindig—you'll likely hear whispers of "isn't she so clever?"

on the site, which is oh-so-cute and owned by kelly owens, they say this also makes for great storage. hmmmmmm. i wonder if it would look cute holding lots of little towels ... or burpies ... or diaper supplies ...

ps—enter promotion code HOLLY to get 20% off your order!! offer expires on 7/31/08.

bunnies and peeps

2008-03-18T14:25:00.004-04:00

oh. my. goodness. look how incredibly cute! one of my very favorite artists—marisa haedike of creative thursday—just posted an adorable easter lineup of clay bunnies and peeps at her etsy shop! go get one!!

(i am the proud owner of a little clay panda bear and love it!)

for sale

2008-03-17T13:24:00.002-04:00

as we make room for babies, we're going to have to do a lot of selling. here's the first piece we have for sale! my new home office is now in its spot—yes my whole home office now fits in the spot this took up—so it has to go. :(

if you know of anyone looking for an armoire, or pretty much anything else, please send them our way!! we'll have lots in the coming days.

here's a link to our posting on craigslist. there is some damage to the back and top—pictures of the wounds are on the listing—i don't like ugly things on holly's plate!

thanks!

crystal light

2008-03-17T08:30:00.001-04:00

my dad bought this gorgeous chandelier from pottery barn for my mum to hang above their kitchen table. it was delivered and they hung it this weekend. my mum says it's absolutely perfect!! i can't wait to see it.

of course they had no idea we had an order in for it too—for my mum's birthday (which we are terribly late for—it was back in february)!! with all the crystals (there are 69 of them!!), i knew she'd love it. ah well, back to the drawing board!!

image from pottery barn

lovely lamp

2008-03-12T12:26:00.002-04:00

i'm loving this piccola lamp from veer. it's so simple and reminds me of a punching bag, which for some reason pleases me right now.

just like daddy

2008-03-08T08:20:00.005-05:00

we received these adorable, heart-melting duck boots in the mail yesterday from tripper's cousin kevin and his girlfriend, sarah. aren't they just precious?!? tripper has the exact same pair, so i had to snap a picture—getting our duck boots all in a row! ;)

thank you so much, kevin and sarah! we love them!!

crib notes

2008-03-02T08:16:00.001-05:00

looking for cribs for the twinkies has been quite a daunting ordeal. since i've been on bedrest and restricted activity, we *thought* we had found the perfect crib by looking online. it was the right dose of modern and simplicity and we loved it! well, thursday night, tripper had to run over to lenox to get something for his mac. while he was there, he popped into a store that had cribs (not the crib) of similar dimensions—58 long x 30 wide x 47 high. he said the crib was HUGE—much taller than he ever expected—and to have two of them in a small room might be a mistake. needless to say, i spent friday scouring online for shorter cribs. i found one that looked good—great actually— but it was only 35 inches high. that's like up to your belly button. that seemed awfully low, right? so there we were on friday night, stuck in the middle of two sizes and feeling very much like goldilocks.

saturday morning i woke up super early. i started my quest again and stumbled upon a store called b. braithwaite that carried a lot of the modern brands i'd been pondering over online. and *bonus* it wasn't very far from our house! so when tripper woke up, we decided to take a ride over. the store, from what we could tell, wasn't a huge super store so we thought it would be ok for me to go. i am so glad we did!! the store was gorgeous! and chaffee, the owner, was brilliant! we looked at lots of cribs and found the perfect one for our twinkies!

it's called the loom crib by nurseryworks and we picked "snow on snow" which is all white. it was designed by an architect and has perfectly simple lines. it's sweet and modern and perfect. the dimensions are spot on—53.5(l) x 31(w) x 39.5(h). not too short, not too tall. just right for our space. (goldilocks, see?) we ordered two and they should be in in a few weeks!

now here comes the best part. i was so excited we'd found the perfect crib that i called my parents on the way home. i was describing everything and my mom surprised us by saying that she and my dad wanted to buy them for us. can you believe it??? MY PARENTS ARE BUYING THE CRIBS!!! we are so excited!! we told them of course they didn't have to do that, but they really wanted to—and who are we to argue, right? so to celebrate, i splurged and ordered the way-too-expensive glider i've had my eye on—the nurseryworks sleepytime rocker—in lime green. yay!

thank you so much mom and dad. we know the twinkies will love your gift as much as we do!

the hootie coo card company

2008-02-26T08:48:00.004-05:00

my friend amy just forwarded me a fabulous new find—the hootie coo card company. all cards are designed by kelli davidson and her two helpers (aged 5 and 6) to bring the magic of a child's perspective to the art of paper products. adorable! greeting cards, fill-ins, gift tags, and custom notecards are all available, plus there's a super cute downloads section that lets you print out and color the cast of characters! be sure to check it out! also check out the etsy store—you'll be glad you did!!

new desk?

2008-02-25T22:17:00.002-05:00

since the little twinks will be taking over my home office soon, i need to figure out a new work-at-home situation. (we weren't able to sell our condo, so we're staying put for now. that lovely townhouse will have to wait!) i'm thinking the best option is to try to squeeze my home office into our bedroom. the best spot for it is in a corner that happens to be all window. i'm thinking a glass and metal corner desk would be ideal—it would match the windows and not add a heaviness/crowded feel to the room. what do you think of this one from west elm—the cadman workstation? it configures into a corner desk with all the right pieces.

anybody else know of a great resource for corner desks made of glass?

ps—not sure if it's hard to tell by this photo, but this is the corner. we'd move the chair and the short armoire out and replace with the desk. thoughts?

the other way we could go is to replace that armoire with a computer armoire instead. anyone know where to get a simple, modern one of those???

white elephant

2008-02-18T08:55:00.003-05:00

i'm loving this cute elephant bank from pottery barn kids—and i'm not even a republican! the giraffe is cute, too, but the elephant has stolen my heart. the smooth lines are so lovely. and the trunk is up for luck. it's a nice departure from the traditional piggy bank, don't you think?

still alive!

2008-02-12T17:42:00.000-05:00

hello! i'm so sorry for not posting in such a long time. i was on bedrest for quite a while and now have advanced to limited activity. hopefully i'll be back up and running in no time.

ps—we found out our little twinkies are boys!

giddyup

2008-01-15T08:56:00.000-05:00

scott and ashley, my brother- and sister-in-law, gave us this great equestrian bottle opener from red envelope as one of our christmas gifts. isn't it lovely?!? they thought it would be great to use during our annual derby party and i couldn't agree more. it's so nicely made and really solid. we're trying to figure out the perfect place to display it for the other 364 days in the year!

townhouse

2008-01-11T18:49:00.001-05:00

we are contemplating moving again—no matter how we slice it, it seems we are going to need more room. we found these great townhouses a few weekends ago. now if we could just sell our condo!

cheers!

2008-01-07T11:02:00.003-05:00

so much better than a bud light, don't you think? i spotted this michael anthony marra chandelier last month in departures magazine and haven't stopped thinking about it since. it's created out of six dozen martini glasses! at $2,750 it's a little champagne taste for my beer bottle budget, but a girl can dream! i found more works by marra at michael and nora. gorgeous!

image from departures magazine.

i scream you scream

2008-01-04T11:16:00.000-05:00

how fabulous is this cuisipro ice cream scoop and stack? it's so fun! i love the ice cream cylinders this scooper makes. the possibilities are endless! now, where are the pickles? ;)

image from wrapables.

the cat is out of the diaper bag

2008-01-03T13:15:00.000-05:00

i hope everyone had a happy holiday and new year! once again, please forgive me for the lack of posts lately. if you haven't guessed by the title or the picture, the sickness that's been keping me from posting has been morning sickness!!! it's really gotten the best of me, but i'm starting to feel more like myself these past few days. tripper and i are thrilled to say the least—we're expecting our twins in early july! yay! or should i say double yay?!?

now that i'm feeling a little bit better, i hope to get back to regular posting. thanks for hanging in there with me! you may see a bit more baby stuff make its way on here as i try to figure out furniture and nursery decorations, too.

ps—above is my favorite christmas present ... a kate spade diaper bag from tripper. isn't it so cute?!?!

i'm ok!

2007-12-17T10:00:00.000-05:00

i'm sincerely sorry for the lack of posts lately. i've been feeling really sick. i'm hoping to pick up where i left off with some cute ornaments and other christmas ideas soon.

xoxo,
holly

buri bunnies

2007-11-27T12:51:00.001-05:00

these cute-as-a-button buri bunny ornaments from crate and barrel add a touch of rustic charm to your tree. also available in squirrel (so cute) and mice!

ornament week

2007-11-26T12:12:00.000-05:00

now that thanksgiving has come and gone, i thought we'd kick off the holiday season with a week full of cute ornaments. usually, tripper and i pick out a tree and decorate it the weekend after thanksgiving. but this year, we're having a sort of conundrum. i think, since it's been so dry here, that a cut tree might go up in flames the minute we turn on the lights. i'm pushing for a live pine in a pot instead. anyway, until we make up our minds, i thought it would at least be fun to decorate ye olde blog.

this first ornament from kookoo bear is a favorite of mine. i was lucky to get an "h" one last year from my friend, cristi. what are your favorite ornaments? send links!!

calling all cooks

2007-11-20T08:36:00.000-05:00

i need your help. tripper and i have been assigned to bring a vegetable dish to this year's thanksgiving dinner. this is totally an unfair request. nobody in tripper's family even likes vegetables. i want to make something that people will actually eat. should i do just a fancy salad? some kind of vegetable dip? any ideas are much appreciated. i know it's late notice, but we just found out yesterday. the recipe will need to feed about 20 people. thanks!

images from william-sonoma.

caterer's plates

2007-11-19T12:33:00.000-05:00

i love these! pretty and cheap caterer's plates from pottery barn. if you break one, who cares? it won't break the bank to replace it! so i have this confession—we have everyday plates from crate and barrel and i'm kind of tired of them. they're pretty with a blue band and chocolate stripe, but lately i've been longing for a clean, white plate. i'm glad i haven't purchased any so far! i may have to sneak a trip over to the mall to see these!!

image from pottery barn.

helvetica

2007-11-12T08:59:00.000-05:00

remember way back when when i posted about that helvetica poster? well, thursday night i got one! tripper and i went to see the film "helvetica" and picked up a poster on the way out. we got to meet the director as well as a type designer—the one who invented verdana! fun! tripper had the great idea to get their autographs. funny how two people so involved with fonts can have such bad handwriting!

une belle année

2007-11-09T09:01:00.000-05:00

these adorable letter-pressed cards from basic french online are perfect for setting the mood of the upcoming year. une belle année, which means a beautiful year, is a really unique substitution for happy holidays, don't you think? i'm not sure what to make of the wooden pin hanger they're showing with it. it has two suction cups so i guess you could hang your cards from a window? anyway, cute as a button and super thoughtful. i like!

image from basic french online.

candy-coated cushions

2007-11-06T10:34:00.000-05:00

candy script font, that is! aren't these throw pillows from veer just great? as the site says, they're perfect "to spec type or have a well-designed pillow fight." available with butterscotch and black licorice lettering on a taupe background.

image from veer.

gobble til you wobble

2007-11-05T22:17:00.000-05:00

this year, we are doing thanksgiving with tripper's family. it's a big family—uncles, aunts, grandmothers, cousins, dogs—and his parents are hosting everyone this year down in americus. last week, i was out and about and found these funny thanksgiving cups at swoozies. i had to snap them up! they say, "gobble til you wobble," and are too cute! i also got a bunch that say, "it's more fun at the kids table." ain't that the truth?

image from swoozies.

happy halloween!

2007-10-31T21:15:00.000-04:00

i hope you all get treats and not tricked!

creepcake cupcake image from marthastewart.com.

while she naps

2007-10-30T09:55:00.001-04:00

last night, tripper and i grabbed a bite to eat and some coffee at cafe intermezzo. when we were getting back into the car, we noticed the cutest shop—beehive co-op—right next door. it was late, so it was closed, but boy were the things in the window cute! i fell in love with this while she naps elephant. according to my friend cristi, who collects elephants, when the trunk is up it means good luck! anyway, this one is designed and handmade by abby glassenberg—check out all her items, they're fantastic—and on its way to me! i think i'll be stopping by beehive co-op sometime on saturday. see you there?

image from beehive co-op.

good luck!

2007-10-26T12:52:00.000-04:00

i love this lucky horseshoe paperweight from the good luck boutique. they have everything there. next time you're in need of a little luck, go check them out!

image from the good luck boutique.

let's go red sox!

2007-10-24T18:12:00.000-04:00

look! cute as a button beantown bottle cap magnets from rippascustomsilver's etsy shop. time to start biting our nails, dad!

let's go red sox!

image from rippascustomsilver's etsy shop.

what a treat!

2007-10-23T11:38:00.000-04:00

ok, i know i just posted about this a week ago, but i'm so excited i have to post again!! imagine my surprise yesterday when my dad showed up out of the blue with a big anniversary present from him and my mom. and imagine how giddy i got when i opened it to see this krinkles frog candy dish—the very same one i said i loved only a few days before! thank you so much mom and dad! it's adorable—even tripper thought so! xoxox

happy anniversary!

2007-10-21T08:42:00.000-04:00

hard to believe it's been three years! it seems like just yesterday that we were all in las vegas for the big day. those lucky in love t-shirts proved to be true—i really hit the jackpot! i couldn't be more lucky or more in love. happy anniversary, tripper!

girly galoshes

2007-10-19T09:18:00.000-04:00

you could totally make a splash in these! the mary jane boots from uncommon goods are so cute they quite possibly could make the most miserable rainy day happy! too bad they're just for kids. drat!

we desperately need rain (and rain puddles) here in atlanta. it looks overcast today. i hope by posting these cute wellies, the rain falls down in buckets!

image from uncommon goods.

canine pillow!

2007-10-17T08:37:00.000-04:00

"canine pillow!" is what tripper always yells out when he fluffs up ed and uses his flank as a headrest while lying on the floor. so, when i saw these cute pillow pups from pillow pillow pillow, i was totally tickled! the top dog—scooter—is my very favorite. kind of like a bolster with a little bark to it. the one underneath—blue—looks most like my big love, ed. there's about 20 different pups to choose from, cats too, on the pillow3 site. which is your pick of the litter?

images from pillow pillow pillow.

birds of a feather

2007-10-16T12:49:00.001-04:00

if i had a cat, i'd most definitely get and hang this birds-of-a-feather mobile from elsewares. isn't it so cute? the naturally oiled pieces are laser cut from a sheet of walnut veneer wood—and the best part? the best part is they pop out of said sheet which can then be used for stencils and other great art projects. nifty!

image from elsewares.

lucky

2007-10-12T07:10:00.000-04:00

this good luck calendar egg from viva terra is believed to bring a year of good luck! the sculpted ceramic eggs originate on the indonesian island of kalimantan. they're hand-inscribed with symbols of time on the exterior and have a moving magic center you can hear rattle when you shake it. neat!

image from viva terra.

halloween krinkles

2007-10-11T09:35:00.000-04:00

patience brewster's halloween krinkles collection is so cute it's scary! ok, not really scary, but so very clever and creative. i think the frog candy dish is my favorite. that or the witchy shoe salt and pepper shakers. and i think my mum would just love those floaty leaf people. they're totally her colors! check out the whole collection at department 56 and click the link to find stores that stock krinkles in your area. oh, and a special thanks to kit for hunting these down for me. you're the best!

images from department 56.

where is she?

2007-10-09T13:02:00.000-04:00

i'm sorry to say i'm going to be a sporadic poster again this week. i've got some stuff going on and it's draining me! i'll try to get back this afternoon with a proper post! maybe some fall/halloween things? stay tuned!

pink wellies

2007-10-04T09:54:00.000-04:00

aren't they great? pink wellies with laces from j crew. love them! on an off-and-on rainy day like today, they'd look fantastic on your feet. they'd look fantastic off your feet, too, propped up just so in a mud room. love that idea. if i only had a mudroom ...

image from j crew.

hot pink

2007-10-03T10:02:00.000-04:00

i was chatting on the phone with my mum this morning—i caught her just as she was getting out of the shower. about 20 minutes into the conversation, she said she'd have to let me go to dry her hair, otherwise it would be "sticking up like a pound of candles." lol! i'd never heard that expression before, but i love it! i love it so much, it inspired today's pink post ...

pink party candles from swoozies! these candles are gorgeous—so slender and tall and sleek—and i'm covinced they're the best candles for aging adults. why? because the more of them on the cake, the better the cake looks!

image from swoozies.

pink punch

2007-10-02T09:01:00.000-04:00

how'd you like to throw your arms around this?!? the pink octy wool felt applique pillow from hable construction adds just the right punch of pink and would look fantastic anywhere—especially anywhere at my house!

image from hable construction.

post pink!

2007-10-01T20:44:00.000-04:00

in honor of breast cancer awareness, this week i'll only be posting pink things—like this strawberry pink ribbon cupcake from sprinkles. from october 1-14, sprinkles cupcakes will be donating the proceeds from its strawberry cupcakes to the entertainment industry foundation's women's cancer research fund. give in to your sweet tooth and give back to women everywhere!

image from sprinkles.

spreading the word

2007-09-28T11:05:00.000-04:00

here are a couple of things i've been wanting to tell you ...

there's a survey going on over at the home rejuvenation blog to find out who are the 10 most influential bloggers (blogs) in our design community. go vote!

dooce, the fantastic blog i read every morning with my coffee, is going to launch a new section on "design and beautiful, everyday things (like clothes, home decor, office supplies, packaging, etc.)." hooray! i love her style and wit, so this truly should be a treat!

there's a great fall book swap going on over at dachsies and design. go join in the swapping fun!

... and now you know :) have a great weekend!

what's black and white and green all over?

2007-09-28T09:48:00.000-04:00

reusable grocery bags! a couple of days ago, my friend ellen emailed about wanting to buy a stylish reusable grocery bag. i was all over it! take a look at the cute bags we found! ps—they have all sorts of colored bags, too, but i was drawn to the graphic black and white ...

aren't they great? these come as singles but also in a 5-pack from envirosax. (we found more great bags elsewhere, but i want to save that for another post.) they would have been absolutely perfect for me when i lived in dc and had to walk to the grocery store—the secret safeway in the cool townhouse. ahh, the memories. hey, would it make me a hypocrite if i loaded these up in the back of my suv? (yes, i have one. but i work from home and hardly ever drive it!) or, does every little bit count?

please forgive me

2007-09-26T11:32:00.000-04:00

i know my posts have been sporadic over the past few weeks. i'm so sorry! i've been working on a rather large project at work and sometimes when the day is done i just have to get away from the computer. i hope you understand! things should be back to normal soon! xox

i heart helvetica

2007-09-26T11:24:00.000-04:00

my friend staci says every room should have a little red in it. i couldn't agree more! i think this helvetica film poster would be the perfect way to add a kiss of red to my home office. i think i'll get one!

image from helvetica film.

i do

2007-09-24T09:36:00.001-04:00

next month tripper and i are going to a wedding. it's a traditional indian wedding and one of the customs is no boxed gifts. i've been poking around trying to find something cute for the bride and groom to either tie onto their card or send them a little bit early. i think this "i do" cake server from swoozies is perfect! (it even plays music—though it doesn't say what. any guesses?) i wish they'd had this when we got married! so cute! i can't believe next month will be three years for us. and speaking of being married for years, today is my mom and dad's anniversary! i won't say which one, but it's a big milestone! congratulations mom and dad! we love you! xoxox

keys to happiness

2007-09-19T12:56:00.000-04:00

tripper brought home a new keyboard for my mac! it's so sleek and flat and modern and lovely. i can't wait to put it to use! you'll have to let me know if my next blog entry looks any different!

mix and match

2007-09-18T09:44:00.000-04:00

black. white. spots. stripes. it doesn't get much better than this! the black and white prep bowl set from bright and bold mixes the perfect amount of cuteness with your cuisine! stir me up some of that.

image from bright and bold.

if the jeep fits ...

2007-09-17T08:39:00.000-04:00

buy it! that's exactly what tripper and i did on sunday afternoon. after losing miserably at my doubles tennis match, we decided to go check out the new 4-door jeeps. we ended up driving home in one! isn't it great?!? truth be told, i'm so grateful to have him out of that tiny little two-seater and into something bigger. plus it's so fun having a jeep again. i didn't realize how much i missed having all the people wave at you! double plus, i get to start a new cute hat collection! triple plus, ed's gonna love it!

cookie monsters

2007-09-14T09:48:00.000-04:00

is it too soon to blog about halloween? it is? i don't care! these halloween critters cookie presses from wrapables are too cute—plus, since you have to add in some time for delivery and (if you're like me) you may need a few "practice" rounds of baking—i think today is the perfect day to bring them up. also comes in a holiday set with a snowman, snowflake and gingerbread man. they should make some with mongrams! wouldn't that be nifty? c is for cookie!

image from wrapables.

simply limeade

2007-09-12T15:58:00.001-04:00

this stuff is good!

pumpkin head

2007-09-12T15:44:00.000-04:00

my cute-as-a-button friend nikki recently launched her very own etsy shop called ecoknits. yay, nikki! she makes the cutest handcrafted, earth-friendly hats ever, like this adorable pumpkin—just in time for fall, y'all! she also does custom orders. a portion of all proceeds goes to benefit carbonfund.org and americanforests.org, so not only will you feel really cute in your purchase, you'll feel really good about it, too. go take a peek!

images from ecoknits.

pick me up (one of these, please)

2007-09-10T08:10:00.000-04:00

how great is this? it's totally perfect for the coffee-drinking typoholic, like me! the helvetica coffee mug, available at veer, "features four weights of the timeless font—in corresponding caffeinated shades." so very clever!

image from veer.

sunday morning bloody mary

2007-09-06T18:36:00.000-04:00

look at this! i just discovered a new etsy shop—caroline grace designs. the handmade necklaces are beautiful! and with witty names like weekend clam bake, 3 pm sugar fix and saturday night bunco, i love them even more! pictured above—my very favorite—sunday morning bloody mary. very fairly priced at $18. go get one!

image from caroline grace designs.

housing update

2007-09-06T10:37:00.000-04:00

well, the good news is we really do like our condo!! the bad news is we lost the house. nobody else has purchased it, so we haven't totally lost it, but it's no longer under contract. (our contingency time frame ran out.) surprisingly, i'm not feeling as sad as i thought i would. i do love that house, but there is so much exciting stuff going on in our neighborhood, it's kind of fun to stay. anyway, we're keeping our place on the market for now. we'll see what happens.

the mean eds

2007-09-06T10:27:00.000-04:00

i have a fantasy football team called the mean eddies—have had for years. (did i mention i love fantasy football? surprised? well, i do!) anyway, i did a photoshoot with ed this morning trying to get him to look mean so i could use the picture as my logo. this is the best i got. maybe i should change the team name. any ideas?

love notes

2007-09-06T10:07:00.000-04:00

i was recently the recipient of the most fantastic gift—boatman geller personalized notepads! thank you so much, kelly, i love them! the super cute yellow and white stripes are going to take my list making to a whole new level. i've just started one for target tonight. i can't wait to show it off. meet me there after tennis!

lights on

2007-09-04T09:14:00.000-04:00

i'm back! for a few days i was totally in the dark. well, our lights were working but our internet was out. apparently one of the pop-up thunderstorms hit the disc router for our building and fried the whole thing. it was a long few days. anyway, i'm happy to be back. i had fun working from tripper's office and an even funner holiday weekend. we saw a concert with the connicks at chastain on friday night in the pouring down rain. i think the rain made it even more fun. we slept in. we ate great food. we watched college football (go dawgs!). we goofed off. and monday i went out to my parents house up in north georgia. my mum and i went shopping, which was so nice! i can't show you what i bought because it's a present. for christmas! yes, i started my christmas shopping. what i can show you is the awesome new chandelier my parents found. it's incredible—perfect for the space—and did i mention it's incredible? dazzling, really. take a look!

gorgeous, no? it's full of amber and clear crystals. i love it! i'm not sure if you can make out the mirrors in the background, but they were a new find since i'd been there last as well. there are four of them total and they absolutely make the house sparkle. you can see the chandelier reflected in them all. so very lovely!

primary poufs

2007-08-28T14:08:00.000-04:00

tripper sent me an email about these primary poufs because he thought i would like them. like them? i love them! i also love the name. pouf. pouf. pouf. it's fun to say. try it. you know you want to! ;) the poufs come in lots of colors like orange and berry, but this combo is my very favorite. primary poufs from dwr. love them!

image from design within reach.

missing tripper

2007-08-24T14:09:00.000-04:00

ed told me today that he really misses tripper. not in words, exactly, but with a big sigh, a floppy body and some pretty expressive eyebrow movement. i miss tripper, too, especially after getting used to being by his side 24/7 last week. since ed can't take my picture, you'll just have to take my word for it.

hurry home, t!

thanks, girls!

2007-08-24T13:40:00.000-04:00

since i was traveling on my real birthday, my friends cristi and jenny took me to season's 52 to celebrate last night!! the food was great, the service was fantastic, the desserts were so cute, the conversation was just ok (kidding!!), and the presents! well, the presents were the best part! take a peek ...

this is a fantastic joom pillow, a gift from jenny! you'll have to ask her about the funny story that goes with (maybe she'll comment). it's a sort of pewtery, charcoal gray and i just love it to pieces. i've put it on the black leather chair in the living room and it looks beautiful! thanks, bella!!

from cristi, i got this "who wouldn't want to be us" silver frame. it's adorable!! (so was the gift bag!) i put a picture of me and tripper from his brother's wedding in there. (i miss you, tripper!) i love it! she also put some seriously cute cards and a hilarious notepad in there as well.

the cards say "loved it" on them, which is totally true in this case for sure. and the pad says, "when life hands you lemons, make lemonade. but when life hands you a load of crap, don't make anything." good advice.

thanks again, girls! i had a lovely, lovely time. xoxox.

dishing up some cuteness

2007-08-22T13:23:00.000-04:00

isn't this serving dish the cutest? and how about those spreaders? i love them! when tripper and i met his mom to pick up ed after our trip, she gave this to me. it was wrapped in beautiful green paper and came from my favorite americus store, the maze. i can't wait to use it. sounds like a perfect excuse to throw a party, no? i want to fill it with only green things—i'm in love with black, white and kelly green right now. think you can use spreaders on green m&ms?

thank you so much mom a and papa ger! i love it!

we're back!

2007-08-21T07:51:00.000-04:00

before i dive in with vacation stories, i wanted to first thank mom a and papa ger' for taking such good care of eddie while we were gone. he had a wonderful time at "camp americus" and misses you very much already.

second, i wanted to thank tripper for taking me on another trip of a lifetime! i had so much fun traveling with you, t! thank you, thank you!

now on to the trip!

we spent sunday, monday, tuesday and half of wednesday in paris! so fantastic! we walked all over town, saw all the sights, stayed at two great hotels (the hotel raphael and the k+k hotel cayré), ate all kinds of cheeses, drank wine (and fanta citron—yum) and had the best pizza (???) ever! we also discovered a little street on ille st. louis where every shop was open. we bought a little stuffed duck wearing a bathing suit in one of the shops.

we thought it was funny. a duck. wearing a bathing suit. lol. on wednesday afternoon we hopped a train to london. i loved london! we did it all there! we stayed at the savoy, which was totally a treat, albeit a little stuffy. the piano bar there was so much fun. we footed it all over town, ate fish and chips at an authentic chippery called the rock and sole, and drank our way from pub to pub. we loved the pubs, especially the nell gwynne and the grenadier. i could totally live there. in london, not in the grenadier. (it's haunted.)

pictures? you bet, but all the good ones are on tripper's camera. here are some snapshots from my point and shoot.

tripper taking a picture of the eiffel tower:

a beautiful blue door somewhere in paris:

inside the nell gwynne, one of our favorite london pubs:

tripper sitting in charles dickens' seat at ye olde cheshire cheese pub:

my plate of fish and chips from the rock and sole:

us outside westminster abbey:

i had such a wonderful time! i'll be sure to post a link to tripper's photos once he uploads them. au revoir and cheerio!

ps—my lisbon luggage loved the trip, too, and got quite a few compliments. oooh la la!

happy birthday and away we go!

2007-08-10T09:06:00.001-04:00

last night when i walked into our bedroom, there was a big present on the bed. for me. from tripper. i was a bit confused because my birthday isn't until next week. anyway, i knew i would like it immediately because it was in one of those great green and white striped kate spade shopping bags!! i opened it up and inside was this ...

omg!!! the lisbon triangular duffle! i'm not sure if you remember, but i blogged about it ages ago. i can't believe tripper remembered! i also can't believe i have my very first piece of lisbon luggage. wow. now if i only had a place to go ... oh wait! i do! tripper and i are taking off for europe tomorrow. we aren't quite sure where we're going yet, but i'm sure wherever we land will be fabulous. so, if you happen to be at the atlanta airport tomorrow, look for me. i'll be the girl with the super cute luggage!

thank you, tripper! i love it ... like the notebook!

ps—i'll be back a week from tuesday. enjoy your week!

trix

2007-08-09T09:02:00.000-04:00

i just bought three of these mini fishbowl-shaped trix tealight holders at crate and barrel and i must say, they are lovely. three is the perfect number to cluster together to create just the right mood light.

bholu bubalahs

2007-08-07T09:11:00.000-04:00

i was just alerted to one of neatest sites i've seen in a long time. australian designer jodie fried's bholu (boah-loooo/adj.)—which means descriptive of naive and free artistic expression—creates beautiful, hand-made felted items. i'm particularly taken by the children's line. all designs come from drawings made by underprivileged kids aged 3 to 7. these drawings are then brought to life by traditional gujarati women artisans in remote areas of india. the philosophy behind bholu is "creating products that we love and live with while benefiting people we work with along the way." part of the proceeds go back to these women and their communities and also funds educational facilities for the underprivileged children.

wonderful.

canvas anne

2007-08-03T12:13:00.000-04:00

this canvas anne personal from kate spade is perfection when it comes to organizers. it's cute as a button in black and kelly green. it includes a weekly and monthly calendar, ruler, storage pouch, tabbed sections for addresses, notes, restaurants and birthdays and a place for credit cards. it's not so expensive you feel the need to plan on ways to pay it off. and, best part, it's striped on the inside! i love it! i also love the cute striped notepads, too.

swizzle blog

2007-08-01T12:22:00.001-04:00

remember those oh-so-cute coasters from swizzle factory i posted about way back when? well, swizzle factory owner, sherry b., has decided to start her own blog! fantastic! she's just getting started, so go take a peek and say hello at ...things that tickle me pink. i love her post on self serve art.

wishing & hoping: the stairwell

2007-08-01T11:50:00.000-04:00

so this month, domino magazine did a spread on the home of windsor smith. i love, love, love what she did in her stairwell. the massive oversized Jacques-Henri Lartigue shot, which she found at a flea market (!) is divine, especially when surrounded by all the smaller black and whites. so, on to the wishing and hoping part—

if we get that house i've been going on and on about, i would love to do something like this. the stairs are not quite situated in the same way, but there is a landing area that could be treated in a similar fashion (you can even see it from the front door). instead of the large glamour shot i'd like to use the photo tripper took below. i love it dearly. we had a large print of it made as a trial run and it's fabulous!!

egg and soldiers

2007-07-31T11:54:00.000-04:00

this so makes me think of my mum. when i was a little girl, still little enough to eat in a high chair, she used to make egg and soldiers (soft-boiled egg served with strips of toast for dunking) for me and i would go bananas! i'm sure we didn't use anything as fancy as this set from polly george, but my memories are just as lovely!

image from polly george.

wishing & hoping: chandelier

2007-07-30T09:20:00.000-04:00

it's perfect, isn't it? i first saw this cellula chandelier on one of those home and garden shows about five years ago and knew one day it would be mine. of course, it's not "one day" quite yet and so it is not mine, but a girl can dream. right? if we get the new house i would love to replace the chandelier in the dining room with this lovely piece. oh, and find the perfect dining room table and chairs to go with!

image from dwr.

ed update

2007-07-25T14:56:00.000-04:00

it's been brought to my attention (thanks, k!) that i never posted about ed's latest appointment. i'm so sorry! i have no excuse other than i've not been myself lately. so, the news is good and bad, mostly good. the biopsy of the healthy margin areas they took revealed no mast cells, so at the moment, ed is cancer free! yay! the bad news is that the tumor was a grade 2, meaning the cancer will likely come back. fingers crossed it doesn't. ed has a follow up appointment in a month. stay away cancer! anyway, for now i've decided to focus on the fact that he's cancer-free. also, his t-shirt comes off today! thanks again for all your well wishes! xox

wishing & hoping: master bed

2007-07-25T09:34:00.000-04:00

so if we get the new house (fingers crossed), we'll definitely need a bigger bed. our current bed, which i love, will look great in the new guest bedroom, but i think the scale is all wrong for the new master. i'm thinking we should definitely upgrade to a king size and really am liking the look of an upholstered bed. i know i'll have to sell tripper on this idea. he likes wood. i'm thinking upholstered is just a softer look. anyway, i realize the trend right now is the low, platform, but i prefer to sleep on a really high bed—not one so high you need a step stool—but high like the beds you see in restoration hardware.

wish list

2007-07-25T09:14:00.001-04:00

a little over a month ago, tripper and i stumbled upon a great house. we liked it so much, we put our condo on the market to see what would happen. well, our condo is still for sale, so right now living in that house is only just a dream—a dream i think about a lot. the house is much bigger than our current address, so i've been putting together a list of items we'll need to purchase if (oh please let it be) we get to move in. the list is quite long—which makes me totally excited! here it is:

new master bed (our current bed and bedroom furniture will look beautiful in the new guest room—yay!).
new master bedroom furniture (dressers, chairs) plus fun lamps, pictures, etc.
dining room table and chairs.
tall bistro table to fit our barstools.
shorter barstools to fit the new counter height.
either two or four upholstered chairs to arrange conversation style.
a small coffee table to go between said chairs.
stand up piano.
new plasma tv—we'll likely leave ours at the condo.
deck furniture (and lots of it!)

well, that's a start! i know i totally shouldn't do this, but i'm going to start looking for these things now. i won't buy, of course (we don't have the room here), but at least if we do get the house i'll have a nice record of my ideas!

take note

2007-07-24T09:38:00.001-04:00

i'm sure i've said before, but i work out of my house. my home office is lovely, but it's not exactly like working in a real office—there's no water cooler, no need to dress up and no state-of-the-art-super-slick printer. each day i'm given a budget on what is going to appear in the magazine. i'm responsible for letting everyone know what type of art is going to go with each story. if i worked at the office, i'd simply print that list each day and work straight from it. but, since i do not—and i do not have said nice printer—i instead write out that list each day on paper. i actually quite like my little system. it feels good in an age where typing is king to write something out by hand. i typically use one sheet each day, so i'm forever looking for cute notepads to make me happy. these notepads from boatman geller (at see jane work) do just that. my favorites are the alligator and the madras plaid. so cute!

image from see jane work.

king of beer glasses

2007-07-18T13:34:00.000-04:00

wow. this is a pilsner glass. that's right. pilsner. as in for beer. can't you just picture a bunch of rowdy guys sitting on a shabby old couch watching football and chugging bud light of out these? ha! anyway, they're gorgeous. from juliska.

go green

2007-07-17T10:27:00.001-04:00

on sunday, tripper gave me such a nice surprise: a get out of jail—erm the house—free pass for a few hours. i went over to jenny's, where "craft day" was in full effect. i painted a penguin on a blue background that turned out ok, and i also started this green painting. i mixed the color to match perfectly the green in our monkey painting and the lampshade. now, what should i paint on it? what do you think would be fun next to mr. monkey? it's eight inches square. keep in mind i have no idea how to paint.

wisteria

2007-07-16T10:07:00.000-04:00

thank you for all the emails regarding ed—he's doing much better, thank you. he is now aware of his scary, frankenstein incision, so it's getting a little more difficult to keep him from licking/scratching his side. we've got his t-shirt on (tied in the back hooters-style) and a sock on his right foot. he looks awesome! anyway, being on lockdown with him all weekend has afforded me some great internet browsing time. i found a great set of blown glass fountain vases at wisteria—a nice touch for the get well soon thing we've got going on here!

image from wisteria.

ed update

2007-07-12T11:41:00.001-04:00

here is ed snoozing on the bed right before we left for his surgery. he's supposed to go under between noon and 12:30 and i should have an update around 2 o'clock. i'll keep you posted. i thank you and ed thanks you for all the well wishes.

**update** (2pm)
i just heard from the vet's office. they said eddie did great! his incision is really big, but looks good. right now he's sleeping. bless his heart.

**update 2** (7pm)
eddie's home! he's totally dopey, but i'm so happy he's here. thanks again for all the well wishes!