Friday, August 5, 2011

Bye, bye new... hello 1991!

Well, we bit the bullet and made what should be our final move for at least 10-15 years. I know I said that last time, but this time I really, really mean it.

In a few weeks I'm going to return to blogging as we finish unpacking and commence on the many fun projects that this wonderful house presents.

Adios Issaquah!


Velkommen Edmonds!

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

A (brief) hiatus

Dear reader(s), I apologize for the brief hiatus that has already occurred, but I think it might be extended a bit longer. The hubs and I are pursuing another crazy housing adventure and preparing to sell our new house.  Life with two under 5, a husband who travels for work, and the usual demands of life are stretching me a bit too much to keep up with this on a regular basis until we wrap up the hard labor of staging a home.  It should be sorted out in a month or so.


Thankfully, this past weekend I found a bit of "Serenity Now!!" at the beach house once the kids were asleep and the sun was setting over the bay.  Sigh...   Life is good; just need to know when to cry "uncle" every now and then.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Royal Tea Party Details

The Royal Wedding of the Century was lovely, sweet, low-key (as much as it could be by royal standards), reflecting the age and personalities of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.  I admit that I teared up a few times, though the singing of "Jerusalem" did provide the most shivers.




Wrapping paper with British themes, used as posters, helped to fill the blank walls (and front door) with cheerful colors.  I was thrilled with this discovery at Paper Source in the 11th Hour.


Handmade Union Jack banner combining navy blue damask and red & gold "glitter" paper



Crisp white vases on the mantle and serving tables filled with red roses, red tulips, hypericum berries, and red alstromeria.  The tea pot (above) is part of the Rosanna Kings Road collection.  Rather than using it in its traditional manner, I decided to fill it with flowers. 



Red wooden beads hanging from our new chandelier (from Ballard Designs).  The two huge holes in the ceiling from the old can lights are finally gone!


A friend and  fellow Anglophile brought along the cream to make clotted cream with our orange-current scones.  I love the jar!  It'll make a terrific vase.

My simple accessories to match my green party dress.  Not exactly a huge, dramatic British fascinator, it definitely did the trick here in the casual Pacific NW.

**Per my usual m.o., I didn't have a chance to take photos of everything set up, including the food table, but I'm going to harass a friend who did to pass along some shots from when the tea party was in full swing.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Dreaming of Summer at the Beach

The infamous beach house is in the final stage of completion before we can actually stay there overnight. Movers are emptying storage units and various vendors are tweaking this and that.

In the spirit of the beach, sand, and tons of sunshine, here are a few things that recently caught my eye :



Fun artwork seen at the Waikiki outpost of the fantastic, Sand People.  I wish I could've got the full list of "Rules" in this shot, but these will have to do.


Adorable bags in various sizes by Bungalow 360.  This Jellyfish pattern is so whimsical, but with a preppy twist.  Some of the other patterns are heavier on the prep. 


Yesterday I swung by my favorite store on the Eastside and spied these gorgeous hor d'oeuvres picks by Two's Company.  I imagine these will make a terrific (and thematic) housewarming gift once the beach house is up and running this next week.


And what about the coordinating wine cork?  A lighthouse, life-ring, sand-dollar and shell are also available.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Return of the Prodigal

We had an outstanding holiday in Hawaii earlier this month, relishing in the constant warm weather (80s every day) and mostly sunny skies.  Being from Seattle, March is a trying month around here.  One can handle only so much gray, drizzle, and mold before going a little bonkers.

My post-holiday return to blogging was also impacted a bit by the horrific earthquake and tsunami in Japan. My heart, like many, has been heavy with the tragic news flowing in every day. We were very fortunate to have little impact on our actual vacation (and safety), besides closed beaches the morning after the earthquake. 


On a trivial note, yesterday I received a little package from Hey Yo Yo that I've been impatiently waiting for since last week - a few more items to add to my party-planning supplies for the Royal Wedding tea party in a month. 

Fabulous red and white striped paper straws and the most adorable cupcake wrappers and toppers made by Meri Meri.  I can't stand how cute they are!! 


The sweet little business card tucked in with the purchase



Now onto my project of making Union Jack Bunting.  I already hit up my favorite craft store for paper products, and now just need to carve time in my schedule to wield my x-acto  knife safely away from the small fry.

Monday, February 21, 2011

A great birthday weekend & a great meal

What a lovely birthday weekend! The husband and I did get a chance to celebrate by ourselves Sunday afternoon at one of my favorite restaurants, Bastille. Brunch was fantastic: French 75, Croque Madame, Lavendar scented french toast with hazelnuts, and topped off with Caffe Fiore coffee. Sigh...



Friday, February 18, 2011

What I'm looking at...

My poor little laptop is about to blow from the numerous tabs open on Firefox.  So, to "keep tabs" on what I'm checking out in the cyber-world, here is a rundown:

Fantastic nautical inspired bags by Banyon Hippo on A Room Somewhere:


 Gorgeous cake-toppers and other treasures at Over the Top Studios:


Chic and affordable mommy calling cards at Pinwheelpress.  Which one do I get?






Flipping through Adore Home Magazine - Vivienne Westwood's Union Jack rug for the Rug Company from and center on the cover of February/March 2011. 



Wishing I had a moment this weekend to pop into this fantastic show by Come Junk with Us - "Ruffles and Rust" at the Monroe State Fairgrounds.  Had a blast there in the fall and felt so inspired.


Looking forward to a birthday brunch here with my hubs on Sunday while the kids run wild with my parents.  A stroll in the wonderful farmer's market to follow.  C'est magnifique!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Made in England

Here are a few of my latest obsessions that stem from my love of England.  With the royal wedding of Will & Kate coming up soon, my brain has turned to these nostalgic designs:

First, the fantastic hand screen printed wallpaper by Lizzie Allen.  We have yet to paint or paper any of our walls in the new house, even though we just passed the year mark since our move.  However, if I had a spare chunk of change hanging around, I would instantly place my order for one of the following prints to grace at least one room in my house. 

Lizzie Allen's Changing of the Guards
My gut tells me that I would go with this "Red Buses, Black Cabs" print for our powder room

Lizzie Allen's Red Buses, Black Cabs Wallpaper
     Another item that I happened upon are these adorable mugs by Repeat Repeat in the UK. 

Really get into the spirit of the spring royal wedding with this version of the Made in England mugs. 

Perhaps a nice addition to the other many chic and fun items available both in the UK and stateside for late-night (or will it be early morning?) wedding viewing on TV.  Thank goodness for the DVR.

Valentine's Day

Munchkins at the Preschool Party
We love Valentine's Day around here.  In fact, we love any holiday that has an emphasis on hugs, kisses and chocolate.  While zipping around the Internet, checking out my list of favorite blogs, I saw this adorable (and most importantly easy) dessert at You Are My Fav

Photo from You Are My Fav
I made the chocolate shells yesterday with tiny Reynolds Wrap heart cake tins that I bought last year and (typically) forgot about.  We'll see if I have the time to make a few Valentine Flags like these... if I dare get up from typing and watching re-runs of Sex and the City while kids are napping.

The kids are going to love this dessert!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

A small addition to the kids' bath

I mentioned recently that I found the best shower curtain in the land for the kids bathroom at our house.  Not long after that I happened upon this fantastic painting at a favorite children's store/ toy store in the area called Common Folk for Kids.  Took all of 3 minutes to convince myself it'd be a great addition to our bathroom.  Voila!


ps - the main store, Common Folk, Co. is one of my favorite stores in the whole greater-Seattle area.

Another Banner - for Valentine's Day

I love making holiday banners for the kids. In an instant, our home goes from everyday to a "big" celebration.  This time I chose some little less than traditional colored papers from my favorite craft store, and then added a few die-cut letters and hearts to add lots of love to our home.  Happy Valentine's Day!!!





Wednesday, January 26, 2011

The Round of Life

I apologize for not having more gripping and frequent postings on this blog. Life has taken over in the past week and thus blogging gets pushed way to the back burner.

But, life is good. Just yesterday I put a party in a bag and lugged it to my son's last day of speech therapy: graduation day after 10 months of hard work. I'm so proud of him.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

I Spy An Amazing Shower Curtain!

We're finally ready to tackle paint colors in our house (it's only been a year, really).  There is definitely an order of priorities:  Living room/Kitchen first, Master Bedroom & bath second, kids rooms, etc.  The one room I haven't put one ounce of brainpower into is the kids' bath.  They don't care, no one else cares, so why should I care?!

Anyhow, while clicking around Apartment Therapy last week, I spied an adorable shower curtain:

Photo from Apartment Therapy
I was pleasantly surprised to find that this super-fun shower curtain was found at Target and still available.  A few clicks later, and it was on its way. 
Photo from Target website
The kids love the little squirrels and owls in the charming forest, and it adds just the right amount of life and color to the drab, albeit brand new, kids bath.  Who needs paint in there now?  At least not for another year...