Suburbia...

blehhh...

I often find myself wandering along all of the decisions I've made in life, you know the big ones, the small ones... all of those decisions that have lead me to where I am... right now.

and where am I? suburbia... really?! I would have never guessed I would end up here.

I am not knocking it, I mean for being stuck in the suburbs, we have created an amazing life here...  it's just not what I would have ever "dreamed" of...

when I look at myself, my thoughts, my dreams... they just don't seem to match up with this suburban life.

I belong on the beach, an "ocean community" if you will (inside joke between Bill & I) or a big city... I know these two ideas seem worlds apart, but there is common pulse in there... a heartbeat that feels more like my own. 

maybe. someday. just maybe...

Today, I love this...

Sigh.

How long would it take you...

If a bird took a sh!t on your window, how long would it take you to clean it up? (btw, I figure there are only 2 real answers to this question, so I have eliminated any C or D answer options)

A. You would clean it the second you saw it.

B. You would clean it when it finally gnawed on you enough that you couldn't stand it anymore, like say a month or two or ten...

I seem to be of the group that would opt for the B category. 

19 things...

I was recently inspired to make a list of my all time favorite things, you know those items that make your house and a home. Just as Julie Andrews says.. "these are a few of my favorite things..."

1.   MY FAMILY (the obvious answer I know, but the absolute truth)
2.   Our Pets (I love my little furry friends! A house isn't a home without a little fuzz on the couch)
3.   Family photos (photography is a treasured hobby of mine, photos are the wall paper of our hallways)
4.   Hand-made quilts (made of course by all the grandmas of yesterday and today)
5.   Paintings by my kids (what could be better than one-of-a-kind art, made by the ones I love)
6.   Vintage whale hanging (my grandparents')
7.   Antique transom equipment (Bill's grandfathers'- he was a surveyor and actually used the equipment!)
8.   Colored glass bottles that my grandmother collected
9.   Hand-made furniture that Billy has custom created for our home
10. Hand-painted items that Billy has refinished.
11. Chalkboard in the kitchen (the craziness of family life gets semi-organized here)
12. Paint - you know the kind that you toss up on the walls and it transforms everything about a room with just a days work
13. Apron sink - the amazing farm house sink that absolutely completes my kitchen)
14. Antique washer/ringer that Billy gave me many moons ago (and a great reminder of just how much harder my detested chore of laundry could be)
15. Vintage ice-cream churner (an ode to a simpler life and my all time favorite dessert)
16. 200+ year old french window (I love to imagine the life that this window had before living in our home)
17. Dimmer switches (seriously, I am beyond in love with ambient lighting, and completely loath florescent lighting)
18. Fresh cut flowers (every room, everywhere)
19. Living plants (never, ever fake/faux/silk/plastic ones... NEVER)

Quasi-Traditional-Bohemian-Country-Artist-Loft

(Whewww, thats a mouth full, but that is kinda what I am...)

A long time ago I came across a magazine article that featured a loft owned by an artist in NY. He had such amazing style. Mixing all genres and decorating techniques, seeming to effortlessly mesh them together. That was such an inspiration to me...
Take what you love and make it work!

I have never liked conventional things. Often times I don't like "the rules" that we are supposed to play by. I like to mess with things, turn them on there head, change them up to suit me and my style... take something ordinary and make it original. I think a home should be a reflection of who you are and what you love, the bits and pieces that make you one of a kind.

 lil' bit lofty

 lil' bit bohemian

lil' bit traditional

 lil' bit country

... now mix it all together, sprinkle with lots of love and comfort and then you have... home.

Small change = Big difference

I have been making a list of my favorite things, those little things that make a house a home. I am sharing two of them today. The rest will be coming soon :)

(Favorite thing # 36 Vintage "Drafting Table Stool"
& Favorite thing # 18 Fresh flowers)

 Seriously, I am so stoked that I found these!!! I just happened to be in Cost Plus World Market when I spied my dream bar stools hiding in a corner...

 It seemed like destiny when I realized that I was also carrying a coupon that would allow me to by 3 and get one free... The gods had spoken, these bar stools were to be mine.

 I had admired these ones above at RH, but the insane pricing kept me at a distance (seriously who pays nearly 400 for ONE barstool?!)

These from Crate&Barrel are cool too (and priced a bit more friendly at 200 each) but they lacked the character and vintage charm that I was hoping for.