Tuesday, October 28, 2014

New Baby Gift Guide for the Eco-Conscious Mom! (Gender Neutral Too!)



Organic & Gender Neutral, you cant go wrong!  With Christmas around the corner, and Baby Showers too, thought this inspiration might come in handy.  These items are from my favorite Etsy shops, so don't forget to visit the shop where you can see more items along the same lines!  

Everything really speaks for itself here, but I just want to highlight a few things:  I have bought teether toys like the one in the top left before, but this one crinkles!!!  My son is 4 months old now and anything that crinkles is an instant hit!  Cute organic teether + crinkle = 1UP!  I included a fun "Hello Baby" card and Confetti too if you need inspiration for a special greeting.  Love recycled glass jars like this one - perfect for mom's who like organization: great for storing binky clips, snappis and other small baby items.  Last item I want to point out is the Organic Cotton Teething Necklace for Mom -- what a way to make her feel special thats also baby practical too!  With friends and family adding little ones, hope this gives an added kick of inspiration to your baby gift shopping list!

xo. m

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Thursday, October 16, 2014

The New Yorker | Nursery



LOVING this board today!!  So much to talk about here.  I got a request for a Custom Style Board from a reader, and I was just tickled!!  She wanted a design for a little girl, but didn't want things overly girly, with more neutral colors.  She has this awesome contemporary bear fine art original (not pictured) - I wanted to tie in the bear so I threw in a few different bears and other animals {5}, {9}, {11}, {15} and {23}.  I also pulled out a few things from her favorite boards, the pendant {1} from {this board}, the wood accents inspired from {this board}, and bright color pops and animals gleaned {here} & {here}.

Have a crush on {this} cloud mobile.  I want one for our son's room to hang above the changing table since he LOVES the mobile over his crib.  Isn't it darling??  

I am such a big fan of illustration, especially vintage illustration - and let's get real, this is a CITY people, so featuring the vintage "The New Yorker" cover BIG and LOUD as the center of attention over the crib was appropriate.  I was inspired by {this image} which has the same poster!  Just adore {these textiles}, any of them would go so well here, and they are all wonderfully neutral!  How about this brass A {8}, Art Deco anyone?  Great Pinterest board on Art Deco I follow {here}.  This one is an ornament - why not re-purpose as wall art?  Other great A's: Typography A {10} and Marquee Sign {12} are featured as well.  I find I can never get enough of sharing of baby's name and precious initials!

 For the aqua wall color I was envisioning it only being painted on 1/3 of either one or three of the walls.   See {this style board} for the same idea and  read the post for links to images examples of a partially painted wall.

How great is the giant Wall Mural of the Manhattan Skyline {18}?  If you've got a blank wall and don't know what to do, maybe a large photographic wall mural would be just the right touch!  I was inspired by the image below, from this blogger {here}.



Love the rustic brass tones captured in the industrial pendant, bed frame, and throw, as well as subtle teal undertones in the pillow and lamp.  The grey pillows really bring out the mural here!  Lots of texture going on too.

The Grey Star Pillow {22} on my board does the same thing, and had to throw in those neon colors against that gorgeous black and white!


This wall hanging is gorgeous and would also be a nice addition to the room {NYC 1958 Subway Tapestry} - it is on sale now for a great price and going fast.


One last touch that would be great for this space: why not try this easy DIY magazine rolling storage solution pictured {here}, & how about upgrading to {pink casters}!

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Just way to excited, collaborating is so much fun -- always love to hear from my readers!  

Thanks again for reaching out, you know who you are!  ;)

xo. m

More inspiration on my "The New Yorker" Pin Board {here}.



LINKS

17.  Gold Moccs

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

It's just a bunch of Hocus Pocus...


Just some haunting inspiration for this Halloween.  Don't forget to cozy up with some apple cider and watch Hocus Pocus (my Halloween favorite)!  Art fun-fact: one of my art professors was a Visual Development Artist behind the film and expertly painted some of it's most iconic moments!!! #JamesHegedus #VisDev #ArtGenius  I was astounded when he pulled out his original concept paintings for the film.  Simply grateful for the opportunity to study with him!  (more on my art blog)  Matt and I love house hunting and do so all year, every time we see a large estate or overly extravagant house, we always say "They'd probably make us drink cider and bob for apples."  

Happy Boo-ctober!

xo. m

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Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Shutterfly Personalized Address Labels







Have some fun non-board inspiration today!


Just ordered these gorgeous address labels, compliments of Shutterfly.  Can't wait to address envelopes with these!

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I took this picture of our son at 3 months, can't get over those curled up toes!  3 months is definitely my favorite so far - our son is so easy to entertain: he smiles at his and my reflection in every mirror, consistently grabs and plays with toys, and generally enjoys looking at everything!  The dogs have definitely become a focal point, especially when they wrestle!  Fetch is also completely mesmorizing, and not just for the dogs.  

Our son simply LOVES his organic scrappy dog from Under the Nile (pictured here), and so do I, what great colors -- thanks Lynn!

xo. m

Monday, October 6, 2014

A Mantle For Every Season


  This has been our mantle all summer.   If you're like me, you like things neat and tidy and don't like to store a lot of extra decor.  If something doesn't fit in your house, out to Goodwill it goes.   All of my mantle decor fits into one box labeled "mantle" that we keep in the garage.  I rotate my mantle decor by seasons; I have decorations for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.  But with only those holidays, it leaves nine months of the year undecorated.  Since I have limited space to store the rest of the decor, I need a mantle design that fits all seasons, a mantle that works for every non-holiday month of the year.


 This mantle, with it's subtle colors on top and a bright pop on bottom...spring flowers and simple frames, meets the bill and fits every season!   With a few changeable elements this mantle can keep you entertained all year.



 These glass flowers were made by my glass blowing professor from San Luis Obispo, George Jercich.  George works with glass for a living and we commissioned him to make these for our wedding cake topper.  I love the sentimentality it adds to the mantle!  There are so many 3D glass artworks that would be a gorgeous addition and add a personal touch to this mantle.  If you are from the bay area, artists from Bay Area Glass Institute often sell work at the Stanford Shopping Center.

The absolutely gorgeous glass hummingbird is by artist Shawn Tsai and was purchased at the Kings Mountain Art Festival, a fair that takes place annually out in nature, surrounded by gorgeous Redwood Trees in Woodside, CA.   It is a simply fantastic art festival one of the best I've been to and I definitely recommend going.   If you want a hummingbird or another fantastic glass piece, visit Shawn at one of his upcoming events.




I was gifted this desk calendar at Christmas.  It makes an easy decoration that's also practical.  The best part is it changes monthly, giving the whole mantle a new feeling so you never get bored.  Plus you can get a new one every year!  Perhaps one of {these} customizable desktop calendars from Shutterfly would be fun to try!

Also pictured are a glass block frame with my son's baby picture (you could also have photographs printed directly on an acrylic block like {this one}), and a clay keepsake craft with an impression of our son's baby foot print!  You can pick up similar kits at your local arts and craft store or online.  We used {this one}.  Some other gorgeous options: {here} and {here}.



Having framed pictures on the mantle enables you to switch out the pictures easily, a quick way to freshen up the whole design!  I buy all my prints at Shutterfly, I think they do a fabulous job with color and print quality (and I am very picky when it comes to my prints).  

Another way to liven up the mantle with fresh colors every month, is to change out the colors of the candles!  I keep a bag of candles stored in a handy place so I can easily switch them out if I need a different feeling.  I find a variety of colors will go well, since the felt pom-pom garland compliments almost every color.



Hope you enjoyed this versatile mantle decor inspiration!!

xo. m



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