Style & Skill Crush: ABCD
Amy is a woman of many talents but this place just blows me away. Those posters are making me swoon. I just love how she stacked them up the wall to really make the most of the high ceilings.
I love how her living room is accessorized enough to feel adorned but not so much it feels overwelmed with trinkets. I feel pretty confident about my own skills but I am seriously lacking when ti comes to finishing to a perfect polish as she has done.
Hello gorgeous, thy name is ABCD. Pop over her place to see all of her stylish musings.
More Brooklyn: Atlantic Antic
booth outside a vintage sign store - a big "S" came home with me
Some great items for browsing and buying.
Like these adorable robot organic tee's from Lunacy Design. I lusted after that antique embalming fluid bottle from a vendor selling glassware found in the ground but I was too cheap to spring for it. This pretty compact adorned with beautiful photography from Citybitz would make a great souvenir in my humble opinion. And these cool image transfer signs on wood - I wonder if there a simple way to DIY that?
Of course it wouldn't be a street fair without some stellar street food to feast on.
All in all, a winner. Big hand to whoever organizes this event. We'll be adding the Atlantic Antic one to our annual must do list.
Nate + Nest + Networking
Steal this Idea*: Punch Pop Art
I had somehow missed her beautiful blog in all my surfing. Thankfully she emailed me this simple, cheap but impactful decor idea that I think turned out just fabulous. The best part is - it requires almost no skill whatsoever - just a little bit of punching and glue and you're done.
Londen took a butterfly paper punch and some old magazines and made the most adorable wall art for her family. From this....
to this:
in just a few easy steps. Check out all the details at her blog.
What I really like about this project is that it can be reincarnated in a lot of different ways. This version is very cheery and kid friendly but with a different punch and some different ephmera, it could have a totally different vibe. It would also be a great way to reuse some sentimental scraps you've been keeping but don't need in their original form anymore like old cards or letters.
Has anyone done a similar project but with different results?
postscript:
*When I say steal, I really mean borrow nicely and give proper credit!
**If you have an idea/tutorial you would like me to consider for a feature, email me. I'd love to see!
Snap!
In case you are curious...it 'P' day but I haven't taken that photo just yet. Here is 'A' to 'O'. Click on any of the images to see them larger.
A is for Accident: B is for Blue; C is for Change You Can Believe in: D is for Diana Goddess of Who Knows What; E is for Empty (for now); F is for Fountains; G is for Gruesome; H is for Hands and Hurry Home; I is for Idea; J is for Johnny Pump; K is for Kansas; L is for Limes; M is for Monday Morning; N is for Naughty Chains & Leather; O is for Open
Now that I put these all up I realize I did H twice. Doh! You can probably also figure out which days I had more or less free time based on the quality of the photo. I'll let you be the judge. 11 more letters to go. Wish me luck!
Thanks to Miss B for creating and running Sovenir Foto School in the first place!
Shore files: Trunk Treat
So I added 'vintage trunk' to my list of things I hope to find in my junking travels. Back home in Brooklyn I went to the Meeker Ave Flea to see if I could score one. They had a ton of them but they were all a couple of hundred bucks. So imagine my excitement when I saw this bad boy at one of my Red Bank, NJ haunts, Monmouth Antique Shoppes.
Not perfect - the handles are missing and it stinks like mothballs inside. But the size and price was right. Hello little mister - you are coming home with me!
Of course it needs to be styled a little bit better but it fits the space perfectly and will serve as some very handy storage space for extra beach things. I love its worn look.
Of course now that its there, I feel like the ladder style photo display thingy looks all wrong. Might have to move that elsewhere.
Ahoy Natey!
Big thanks to the Moggit girls for getting us all invited, Camila for arranging an afterparty so I can actually talk to some of the people I've been stalking for the past 4 years and Chanee for putting together a photo guide so I can find them in the crowd. Awesome.
Check out my Nate love letter here.
Shore Files: Hang em High
If you need a refresher, check out my full on cry for help for improving this room here.
I was really torn about what to do with the windows. I was thinking of maybe sheers but I thought that might be a little bit too delicate for the look I had in mind. And then I found some grommet panels at Pottery Barn that I got fixated on. The problem is that it would have cost me about $500 for the drapes alone. Of course I wanted it to look right but I really didn't want to shell out a lot. So when I was pointed to some pretty similar looking grommet top sailcloth panels at a online store called Curtainworks, it was a done deal. I also ordered hanging rod from them as well.
excuse the weird color - sun was setting and I just wanted to get a few quick snaps off while hanging
Out came the drill and a kitchen chair in place of a ladder. The rod was very simple to hang - a couple of screws for each bracket and it was in. (Of course I can't manage any project that requires holes in the wall without making a mistake - I eyeballed the width the first time and made it a bit too far out and the rod wasn't long enough to reach. Doh! I'll just have to fix that later with some spackle.)
After the rod was hung, I pulled out the panels. So glad I went with the grommet tops. They seem a bit more beachy than pole pockets or clip rings, don't you think?Honestly, it was one the quickest windows I've ever dressed - I don't know why I was putting it off so long. Its such a small thing but makes all the difference. (Even if its not really finished yet, its something, right?) Just having the drapes there balances the window side of the room with the couch side so much better.
Now for the specifics: The drapes are 95 inches long. I put up two panels on each side (a total of 4) to give it a little bit more of a full look. And of course I hung them high. If you are wondering about the quality of the drapes themselves - I'm pretty happy with them. They aren't lined so as you can see some light comes through which I expected. Because the description said it was made of "sailcloth" I sort of expected a much heavier weight material but other than that, everything is exactly as I expected. They are 100% cotton so they can be washed (although I hope I never need to). They came really quicky too. Overall, I'd definitely recommend them because of their prices and their options in the longer lengths (which seem impossible to find affordably)
I'm also thinking of adding a little embellishment to the drapes themselves. Maybe dying them gray (anyone know anything about dying panels??)? Or adding some ribbon like I did with the roman shade in my guest bedroom? Thoughts?
You'll notice I still have those nasty mini blinds up. That's because I haven't quite figured out what to do in the middle. Should I leave it bare and just close the curtains when I want privacy? Should I get some bamboo shades to add some more texture in here? Maybe I should get those transparent roller shade thingies? Or make my own roman shades in an interesting fabric? Still undecided. What do you think?
Steal this Idea*: Linen Pinboard
You might remember her from her previous guest appearances here but I think this might be my fav.
Bethany started by recreating a pretty but pricey item from a store we all know and love - this linen pinboard. Not only did she she do that on the super cheap with minimal effort but she added her own little twist of personality to bring it to another level.
How can you not love that?? You can see the whole step by step on Bethany's blog here.
postscript:
*When I say steal, I really mean borrow nicely and give proper credit!
**If you have an idea/tutorial you would like me to consider for a feature, email me. I'd love to see!