Tag: Inspiration

Awesome Find: Crate & Barrel BestBuys

~ Amanda ~ Leave a comment

Today, I got Crate & Barrel’s BestBuys catalog in the mail, and I was excited to find a lot of pieces that I love. Generally, I don’t like CB’s mod style, but it seems like they’ve been offering  a broader range of styles as of late. Here are some of the pieces that I absolutely fell in love with:

Optic Sea Glass Table Lamp – I love the cool natural look of the sea glass in this lamp. This seems like something I’d find on YHL or something I’d like to give to my mother-in-law for her Florida house. The different shapes of the base and the shade make it interesting.

Sedona Totes – the natural look and feel of these totes just makes me want to have all my belongings out to share with the world. They look so soft and touchable, and would be nice to make a space feel more approachable.

Again, I love the natural look of these woven rugs. They come in great colors so they can be neutral or add a pop to a room, and they are indoor/outdoor rugs, which means that they will be more durable than a traditional rug, especially if you have kiddos spilling stuff or pets running around.

Troy Twin Sleeper – This oversized chair is a perfect addition to a kid’s room, office, or even a living room because it converts to a twin sleeper bed. Can you imagine how much better sleepovers would have been as a kid if you had one of these to sleep on? Plus this chair is big enough to curl up in on its own and read a great book. This could quickly become my favorite chair ever.

Marimekko Madison Bed Linens – While they are available in many colors, I love this fun pop of yellow that can help bring spring into any house. They also have similar shower curtains, and I think this would be a fun way to go to make any bathroom brighter.

Glass Canisters with Lids – We have some canisters similar to these in our kitchen (except ours are that thick poly plastic) and we love them! At  first, Jason was skeptical of having everything out in the open, but it really does bring a cool texture to the room. Plus, the contents are always a conversation starter – especially the whole wheat flour!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this quick overview of some of the wonderful things that Crate & Barrel has to offer. What are some of your favorite pieces from the BestBuys catalog?

Advertisement

Inspiration: Bower Power = Awesome Centerpieces

~ Amanda ~ Leave a comment

There aren’t too many blogs that I read religiously (read: every single day if possible), but one I’ve recently begun coveting is All Bower Power. My love of YHL has introduced me to Katie and Jeremy Bower, who tackle all kinds of projects related to decorating and remodeling their home.

ABP recently ran a post about their old and new Christmas decorations, and I had to admit that I’ve never thought about using ornament anywhere but on the tree! Here are some inspiration pics that I loved:

And thus, a centerpiece was born! I had some oversized cognac vases left from the wedding that I wanted to use for a holiday centerpiece, but wasn’t sure how to incorporate. After seeing Katie’s post, I ran out to my local Hobby Lobby (well, I was already going for another project that will be posted shortly) and bought some foam vase filler in champagne and some sparkly shatterproof ornaments. So for less than $7, I was able to create a pretty centerpiece for all my holiday entertaining this year!

What kind of interesting centerpieces have you created for your holiday gatherings?

(NOTE: Foam vase filler is extremely flammable and the manufacturer recommends that all candles placed near/in the filler be in votive cups or jars, hence the jar candle in the middle instead of a pillar candle.)

Inspiration: Dining Duds Part 1

~ Amanda ~ Leave a comment

We have a small house right now, so it’s hard to find furniture that is adequate for our needs yet small enough to fit in our house. I’ve been looking for some time for a dining room sideboard to help store my table linens, appliances we don’t use very often, and other items. I would also like the ability to have a place to set out my antique record player to use for dinner parties and get-togethers.

I’ve been searching for possibilities for quite some time: new, old, pieces that would need a lot of work, pieces that would just need to be moved in. I’ve found through this research the type of sideboard that I like, and the types that I don’t. I don’t want a glass front or something with no doors, because I don’t want to have to keep everything looking perfect all the time in my storage space. I don’t want something higher than countertop height because I want to use the piece for my record player and occasionally for laying out food such as appetizers.

Here are some of the sideboards I’ve liked:This one is nice because I like the unique use of aluminum ceiling tiles to hide the spaces on an old bookcase. It is a little narrow and tall, however, and would need a fresh coat of paint as well as some new drawer pulls.

I’d love something like this piece from Pottery Barn, but it is way out of my price range.

This piece from Target is much more affordable (albeit still expensive at $299) and is very close to the size that I would want. I don’t particularly care for the color (everything in our house is dark wood, so I’d probably distress it and stain those parts a bit lighter or repaint it).

Overall, I think that I am going to either build a piece myself or repurpose something from Craigslist since I can’t find anything that fits my tastes and budget. With no pantry, I need something to store all the things that can’t fit into the kitchen cabinets.