Life seems to be moving at warp speed around here.  This is evidenced by the fact that I ran a pillow through the washer this week and our dry cleaning was delivered yesterday and one of my husband’s undershirts must have made it into the cleaning bag.  Kindof funny….my husband was just glad that his underwear hadn’t found their way into the bag!

In any case, I miss my regular blogging (and reading) and hope to be in a better position to sit down and get back to it next week.  In the meantime, two images over at Cote de Texas have caught my eye.  Joni is currently featuring the work of Julie Dodson, a Houston designer who works with her mother, Tricia Dodson.  I was so happy to browse through their portfolio here.  The images below are via Cote de Texas, with photography by Julie Soefer.

Love the grey cabinetry and the mix of pattern in this fabulous kitchen.  The cabinets on the right…LOVE!   This is definitely joining my inspiration file.

And in this gorgeous kitchen, I am loving the custom designed barstools.  So simple yet fun! 

In the design blogs we tend to see the same images and designers over and over.  I always love finding someone new (to me) to delight in!

One of the biggest downers these days is checking stock and hearing the dreaded words….”BACKORDER.”  It happens a lot these days…as I suspect companies are staying lean and printing on demand to weather the current economic environment.  I understand, but it still is not fun.

This leads me to this great paper from Hinson….the “Fireworks” design by Albert Hadley.  I have featured this paper (and its fabric counterpart) on my blog before (here and here)…..

Photo by Victoria Pearson for House Beautiful

I actually have plans to use this paper in Maddie’s room….above 5 ft high wainscoting that is to be installed.  In any case, I have a sweet customer who needs 3 rolls for a bathroom remodel and she is willing to wait it out.  She loves the paper so much she is going to paint the bathroom until the paper is in.

Here is the catch, the mill requires 25 firm orders in order to run the paper.  There are currently no other orders out there other than hers.  So, do you love this pattern?  Have you been waiting for a sign that this is the time to order?  If so, let us know.  The paper comes in 5 yard rolls (27″ wide) and is $79.20 per roll.

November 2011 update–While we did already purchase this wallpaper earlier this year, it is now available for purchase in smaller quantities….so if you are still wanting to place an order feel free to contact me.

Interested in how it works?  Contact me?

Sorry for the slow posts around here. My parents have been in visiting and we’ve been busy, busy! Just thought I would pop in today with a quick post.

Do you remember the rug Jay Jeffers designed for the Metropolitan Home Modern By Design Showhouse in 2009?

Photo by Matthew Millman. Design by Jay Jeffers

After the showhouse, the rug was relocated to his home.

image via Southeby’s

I actually had my own version made in a custom size for our old dining room.  (This photo was taken for our real estate listing…the room was never finished before we moved.) 

Both rugs were fabricated by Mark Nelson Designs.  Well, until tomorrow Jeffers’ rug is for sale on One Kings Lane for a really great price.  It is a great deal if you like the look.

My husband and I love nothing more than to load the kids up in the double stroller and get out and walk our neighborhood.  On Sunday afternoon we walked up to WholeFoods to get some goodies for dinner and took our camera with us.  We are trying to get ideas for what we might want to do to spruce up the exterior of our home.

Here it is in the real estate listing.

I have to say that since we moved in I’ve really not been a fan of the front of the house.  This past weekend, though, I said to my husband that it was growing on me.  He suspects it is because the leaves are returning to the trees and flowers are blooming again.  So, there are signs of life.  This was an interesting observation and makes me realize that perhaps good attention to all seasons when we landscape will go a long way in making me happy year round!  The above photo was taken in the summer when the leaves were on the trees, etc.

In any case, I’ve mentioned that a circular drive is on the wish list and we are considering painting.  Here are some photos we took on our walk that provided varying levels of inspiration.

In the above image, we noted the circular driveway.  I would like to do something other than plain concrete.  It is hard to see here but this driveway did add some stone to the concrete to make it a little more visually appealing than just plain concrete, while probably keeping it under control in the budget department. 

In this one, I liked how their path to the house was stone….and that the entrance was a bit more substantial than a simple straight shot out to the sidewalk and street.  With some decorative urns with flowers I think this could be quite an inviting look.  My husband and I both love the look of stone.

I have been looking at everyone’s painted brick…wondering what color(s) would look best if we decide to paint.  I am leaning towards grey with black shutters at the moment.  But, my mind changes often.  Interestingly, I’ve learned that previously (more than 2 owners previous) our house was painted.   If you investigate closely on various places of our house….you can tell.  It is like peeling an onion….and I do love the charm of our old house with its storied past.

In the image above, I also like the roof over the front door.  Is that tin or copper?  I don’t know but a lot of homes in our area have these.  I was wondering what one would look like over our front porch?  I love how they weather over time, gaining more character.

More painted brick above, probably a bit dark and brown for our home.  But still looks nice.

I actually love the stone and shingles on this house.  Probably not an option for ours….but I still took a photo.  Kindof reminds me of the house in the movie “Father of the Bride.”

Ok, while the above house is not of particular inspiration, we snapped this photo because of the arches on the porch.  One thing my husband and I want to do is create more arches inside our house to soften things up.  I wondered if something like this would be nice for the front or back porches.  My biggest concern is the whole light (or lack thereof) issue in the house.  Something like the above may exacerbate this.

This last image….we’ll we just had to snap it.  Who knew we were in Dallas and not the tropics?  This home, not terribly far from ours is proof that you can do whatever fits your lifestyle!  (Until you try to sell….)

And finally, to prove that the walk wasn’t all about houses….my husband snapped a photo of a WWII bomber that flew overhead.  He had wanted to make it to an airshow on Sunday but the kids all but napped through it.  At least he was able to get a small glimpse.  I have to say it was pretty spectacular in person….

So, there you have it.  Just a few inspirations from a short Sunday afternoon walk.  On the drive to school Monday, Maddie asked me to tell her a story.  I started my usual one about Glenda the good witch (she LOVES Wizard of Oz) coming down in her bubble to take her to the park.  She promptly stopped me and said “No Mommy, the story about what color is that house.”  Further proof that my almost 3 year old hears EVERYTHING Mommy and Daddy have to say!

What about you?  Painted brick in general.  Is it a yay or a ney?

We are starting to get serious about our remodel.  We’ve interviewed a number of architects and of course they have all mentioned that they need pictures, drawings, etc. to help them learn more about our wants, needs and style.  This I have….but not in one concise place.  It is going to take me some time to pull everything together.  So, over the coming weeks I am going to slowly start trying to do this.  I plan to post my inspiration on the blog and hope you don’t mind.  As always, feedback and suggestions are welcome!

image via here

The major parts of our renovation will include:

1) Kitchen Renovation – new floors, re-orient our kitchen island, expand out cabinetry making the kitchen function better, remove a door to the driveway and add windows.  I also plan to paint the cabinets and change the counter tops.

Windsor Smith

2) Butler’s Pantry- We are hoping to turn a hallway off the kitchen (adjacent to the dining room) into a butler’s pantry of sorts.  The challenge here will be that this hallway will still function as a pass through not only into the dining room but also to a powder room and the foyer.  So, it has to be attractive and not look like a totally utilitarian space!

Elizabeth Kimberly Design

3) Small Extension-  Ideally, I would love to connect our main house with the backhouse and garage.  But, current city code will not allow this and I am working under the assumption that we will not be able to get a variance to allow us to do this.  So, we are thinking of adding out from our kitchen as close as we can get to the backhouse and then creating a covered breezeway to allow us to get from the garage to the house.  The extension would ideally have a mudroom (place to keep shoes, book bags, etc.)  We would also like to work in a small half bath and a mother’s command central.  I am picturing a very small office space were I can put mail, pay bills, basically keep the family organized….all within close proximity to my little ones.  (My office space is up in our backhouse but this would be for family business!)

Suzanne Kasler (photo by Thibault Jeanson)

HGTV.com

4) Outdoor living area- We want to create a covered stone patio outside to extend our living space.  Nothing too fancy, but main objective is to allow easy and seamless flow from our interior living to our exterior living.  We’ve got a postage sized lot and would love to spend lots of time on the patio while the kids play in our little yard.  (The image below was my parents’ home in the NC mountains….my mom literally had the architect design the house over her vision for this porch which overlooked the golf course–I think our backyard could fit on this porch….almost).

5) Add light to the house- Our house was built in the 1920s and faces North/South.  Light is a problem.  One idea we have is to modify our stairway which is now very enclosed.  We are hoping to open it up and create two points of access to the stairwell.  We’d like to be able to access from the main living area, in addition to through the foyer.  This would also allow light from the back of the house to flow through to our foyer.

Cardine Studios

6) Change traffic pattern-  The butler’s pantry will alter the flow a bit as I won’t want this hallway to be the main access point to the living areas of our home.  Currently, you can get to the living areas either through an odd hallway to the kitchen or by walking through the formal living room, which is sunken….so it is not a natural flow.  We are planning to decrease the size of the living room to allow a flow from the front door to the family room that seems more natural.

7) Exterior- We want to spend wisely and not go over the top but we do want to enhance our curb appeal.  We are hoping to include a semi-circular driveway and work on landscaping as part of this project.  Our home has a front porch and we would like to actually enjoy using it when this is all said and done!

Of course, my husband and I have a budget range in mind….so we are going to have to be really careful and spend where we get the most bang for the buck.  So, how I am working within the budget will weave its way in as well.  After all, once the remodeling is done….the place has to be furnished and decorated with the kids college funds and our nest egg remaining in tact!  In any case, we are at the beginning…..but getting excited about all of the possibilities.

Stay tuned!

I am having the hardest time finding the right fabrics for Maddie’s new room.  The wallpaper I have chosen has an off white background and I was all set to use the Rubie Green chevron but the whites compete….sigh….

In any case, while searching yet again today for a fabric that really wows me, I ran across this new Trina Turk for Schumacher fabric.  It isn’t right for Maddie’s room…..but I now seriously want to find a project for this stunner. 

This indoor / outdoor fabric comes in a number of colorways.  But, the prep in me is really loving the pink and navy combo.  Add in the ever popular chevron and I just love it!