Monday Color: Favorite Paintings

This week, instead of the usual images of interiors that I find as I lurk around on decor sites, I thought I'd feature some paintings. All in fabulous colors!

The first few are by one of my favorite artists, Liza Hirst. I love the colors and I LOVE the shoes:

I thought I wanted the pink ballet flats, but then she posted the green espadrilles. Can I have both? Don't answer that Chris.

The spring shades of pink and green remind me of the Lee ad I posted a while back.

I've also been loving the Luxe Fumes series from Anne Harwell.

She's only done two...and I'm waiting for a Jo Malone...but I think she's off to a spectacular start. The bold background colors set off the simple perfume bottles beautifully.

If you've been reading for a while, you'll know that I'm a huge Anne fan. She's also a lovely person and I hope that one these days when I'm in Florida again, we'll finally figure out a way to meet up.

Another artist whom I don't know well, but have been recently admiring is Yangyang Pan.

The amount of color used in these layered abstracts makes me want to sit and study them for hours. There is a joyful energy to them. You can find more of her work (and photography) on Flickr.

I think that art is one of the most important elements to personalizing your home decor. And there are so many affordable options with the giclées and prints (both Anne Harwell and Yangyang Pan offer these in their Etsy shops).

Have any other artists to add to my Monday Color collection today?

Caitlin McGauley Prints Now Available!

Where did the day go? It's almost 8:00 p.m. and I'm only now thinking about a post. It will have to be a quick one.

But I think this makes for a lovely start to the weekend...

How much do we all big-pink-fuzzy-heart Caitlin McGauley's watercolors? Well the above four are now on sale on her website as signed limited edition giclée prints.

I totally want one. The butterflies would be perfect for Eleanor's new big girl room (which she'll be moving into tomorrow - actually decorating will be an ongoing process). I'd really like it for my own room...but I don't think Chris would go for it. I already have one too many girly elements going on for his taste. A pink butterfly painting may be pushing it.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Breakfast Arrangements

Yesterday, when I was at Costco, I decided to pick up some cheerful flowers to put on our dining room table. Ever since we've started working on that room I feel like I have to keep fresh flowers in constant rotation.

Eleanor complimented my arrangement during her breakfast cereal. Last she had seen them, the irises were tightly furled. So to her, the bright white blooms seemed to have appeared by magic.

I personally, was a bit annoyed by their early arrival since the roses are still buds. The effect is a little FTD for my taste...but maybe that's what I get for mixing roses and irises. I thought the yellow filler flower I the bought at Harris Teeter (yes - just that much thought went into this posey) would tie the white/yellow and orange together.

I'm hoping it will look better when the roses open up. But by then the irises will probably be on their way out and I'll have to find a replacement for them. Not very efficient.

Florist - I am not.

What do you think? Fabulous or FTD? Please be honest - I try to learn from my mistakes...

Display Glass

A recent decorating job in Key West included a display of glass pieces - all in blue/green hues.

It's a lovely collection, and we're thinking of adding some to the shop. Do any of the above images appeal to you? Let me know and we'll look into buying some for the Style Key West online shop.

And speaking of collections... Do you have one? And if not, what would you like to collect?

I'll go first: Ever since I was a little girl, I've loved little boxes. I have quite a few (and have discarded quite a few over the years, as little girls often have rather dubious taste...) But I believe I have enough to qualify as a collection.

If I could choose to collect something now, it would definitely be chinoiserie porcelain. I have a few pieces...but would love to add more!

And you?

Monday Color: A Little Yellow...or A Lot...

I love yellow. I think it needs to be represented in every room. Whether it's a wall color, furniture upholstery, accent accessory...it's all good. I like it when it's used as a neutral, as a pop of color or as an over the top explosion of color.

It's my happiness color.

How about you. What color feeds your soul?





Images via: Brabourne Farm, Decorati, Firmdale Hotels, Kristen Buckingham, Living etc and Wide Open Spaces

It's all about presentation...

Can you believe this is a bottle of olive oil?!

I spotted it on Kelly Market the other day and I may have to drop by Dean & Deluca to pick some up.

Have you ever bought a product strictly for its packaging? I'm embarrassed to admit that I do it all the time...

Decorating After Baby

I just had a post published by In the Powder Room, "Decorating After Baby."

So much goes into preparing your home for a baby; selecting nursery colors, finding the perfect rocker and waddling through the mall three days past your due date because you HAVE to get a hamper for the baby's dirty clothes (okay - maybe that was just me). But as soon as baby arrives and the dust clears, those painstaking efforts are barely visible under all of the toys and piles of laundry.

Luckily, as time passes, so does that chaotic new parent phase. And one day you realize that you no longer feel like you're just camping in your house. That's when you know: it's time to reclaim your home.

Click here to read more...

What do you think of a follow up about walking the talk? I've been trying to do that, though like many others I'm working with very limited resources (not to mention skills - time to learn how to sew!)

It's hard to try to focus on home decorating projects when you have little personal time, expendable income  or the luxury of a handy husband (sorry honey - but you're just not). It certainly doesn't provide much personal material for my design blog!

But I'm definitely making some headway on my own list. And flowers always help:

What about you? any tips to add for those of us starting out?