House & Garden Australia....take a look..

You better believe it, House & Garden Australia is one of my DAILY VISITS. I know I haven't blogged about them much, but today is great day to start. If you haven't checked out House & Garden AU, here's a sneak peek at one of my favorite galleries. The black wallpaper in the room and the David Bromely artwork are both super attractive...

images house & garden AU

Dwell Magazine Modern Home Renovation.....

Dwell Magazine is one of my 'must-buy' magazines! I have a ton of them! Dwell's website is quite a treat as well & you can be sure to catch some amazing (good sized) interior shots there.

Don't you hate when sites don't have good sized photos?? What do I mean by good sized?? Well, photos that you can actually see, where you don't have to squint every time you look at it.

Dwell has a section called 'HOMES' - which I am addicted to, seriously. This one home in particular caught my eye. It's a renovation put together in San Francisco. The house itself, was built in 1901 (5 years before the terrible 1906 earthquake). It was an old Victorian home measuring 1,040 square feet & after renovations it measured just over 2,170 square feet. Doubling in size, amazing! Here's the project in it's final state.

Below: Before Renovation


Below: After Renovation

For more renovations, visit Dwell.

Architecture by Studio Sarah Willmer

Our Holiday Tree.....out of inspiration.

After being inspired by a picture of a tree I liked, I decided to go ahead & try something different in my home this year. My fiance' & I figured instead of buying branches, we could use some of the ones from the tree in our front yard. We figured we could get even more creative by placing white rocks as well as a light into the vase to illuminate the tree from the bottom up. (Which then casts a shadow onto the ceiling at night). Soooo, no traditional tree this year, instead something a bit more creative & homemade. I love to be inspired, it challenges me to push myself & create new things!

Is there anything you saw that inspired you to try it in your own home??

Fabricadabra......

Fabricadabra, run by Donna Halloran, is now one of my favorite shops for throw cushions! The variety & the quality of the covers are fabulous! I am so happy with the Ikat covers I chose for my white french provincial sofa, looks great, don't you think? The ones I have are Silk/cotton ikat pillow covers from Uzbekistan. Handwoven, natural dyes. Zipper closure. 18" x 18". Charcoal grey & white. Check out more of her cushions on the Fabricadabra site. Enjoy the weekend everyone!

Photos below by Jen Ramos/MadebyGirl

And the coffee table I chose......

After posting this post below, I decided that the right coffee tale was a square one for this space. Thanks to all those who commented & sent their suggestions, I appreciate it! Remember I said $300 was my budget???

Well, I walked into West Elm on Friday night & was so enamored by this table , I just knew it was the one. I decided to ask the manager if he had any floor samples on sale (which is always a great way to score a deal, if they do) & to my surprise, he said " let me see, I think we may have one in the back that was put together, but never placed onto the floor, if it's still there, I will sell it as a floor model to you."

I kept my fingers crossed until he came out from the back of the store with good news for me. Well, he did! He said that he would sell the table to me for $350 (retail price $499)!!! I thought about my $300 budget, but it seemed like such a good deal to pass & it was in perfect condition, so it is now my new coffee table for the total price of $350!

Thanks again for all the great suggestions!

Kelly Wearstler Trellis cushions from Decorative Instincts

Michael Penney's home tour....

Style editor, Michael Penney's home was featured in House & Home Canada. My favorite part of his home was the bedroom with the bold brown & white striped wallpaper...& I love the side tables too!! I hear he scored those on Ebay. Enjoy!

My Family room re-design has begun........

I'm currently in the process of re-designing my family room. This time around, I'll be going in a totally different direction. My goal is: less patterns all over the place & a variety of items in yellow & gold to tie things together. Let me know what you think....... & if any of you know where I can purchase a solid yellow throw cushion (similar in color to my inspiration photo) please leave a link in the comments. Wish me luck, I've got 3 items so far, just a few more to go!

Prudent Baby Home Tour......

Jaime from Prudent Baby blog sent over some nice pics of her home! She wanted to share her DIY decor (which she got from my blog she says) with my readers! She runs the Prudent Baby blog with her friend Jacinda, where they feature lots of 'how-to' posts. Enjoy!

As for me, I'm heading on a road trip to Scottsdale, AZ tomorrow morning, see you all Monday!