Category: Honor Roll

I’m in that change-of-seasons mood where I want to clean and organize everything. I also have the kind of cold that lingers and isn’t serious enough to do much about, but that annoys and makes me want to stay in my pjs all day and not move. The two are not super compatible but I shall push through! #brave

• I’m cheering the return of maximalism. And what’s the over/under on how long @theoldhousebeautiful will be able to stay up? (House Beautiful, we all loved you so much before you went clickbait.)
• I found out that aircraft graveyards are a thing. Fascinating!
• I also started wondering why there are so many mattress stores. Turns out, I wasn’t the only one curious! This was a satisfying answer, and this podcast on the topic is great too.
• The kids needed some new shoes, and Target has some really cute options right now. My little guy is way into the dinosaur spikes on the back of these, and these faux-leather high-tops make my kid look kind of hipster-cute. The lower version with red laces are awesome too. We weren’t as into the girls’ shoes, but did pick up these subtly shiny low boots.
• So into the eye motifs in Jonathan Adler’s more affordable line for Amazon.
• Pups and pup-owner perfectly paired portraits.
• “Nicecore” is the trend we need right now.
  Last time I posted about my adorable little ACPC campsite in my Instagram Stories, people thought I was either joking or hacked. Um, whoops. Big Animal Crossing fan here, guys.

IMAGES: All highlighted by @theoldhousebeautiful on Instagram from original features by House Beautiful
• Pink Home of Katie Ukrop, Designed by Suellen Gregory
• Colorful Living Room with Chinoiserie Wallpaper, Designed by Ashley Whittaker
• Home Library Designed by Jeannette Whitson, Photographed by Simon Watson
• Martyn Lawrence Bullard’s Kitchen of the Year 2018

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen that I finally did the grid of frames I had been thinking about! Obviously they’re empty right now, which is because the art (oversized Tarot cards) is not a standard size. I don’t have a go-to source for custom mats. I’ve found the same online places you can by searching, and the price is probably half of what I’ll pay at my local framing shop, but I’d rather see my options in person (there are so many whites, off-whites, and ivories) and the turnaround will be fairly quick.

I’ll show you as soon as it’s ready. You’re in for a bigger living room update anyway!

• The 9 new Farrow & Ball colors (photos below) are beautiful. When I said I’m drawn to “the ugly colors” this is what I mean.
• This house tour was great, but it was something the woman who lives there, LaTonya Yvette, said in the interview that stuck with me. I love the idea of being free for people to just stop by whenever.
  “We do ‘Open House Sundays.’ I’ll tell people my doors will be open from this time to this time so just come! I love having a space for people to have fun and throw it down.”
• The tone of this post about high-rise jeans had some people taking it a little too seriously, but I’m in agreement with the basic premise.
  “Low-rise denim is so depraved it isn’t worth attacking: It knows what it did—it just doesn’t care.”
• These sconces look just like cute pink pearl earrings! Gah, too cute.
• I bought a few things from LOFT (dangerous, because there’s one within walking distance and it’s too easy to stop in) and now I need the weather to comply so I can wear my polka dot blouse and wool skirt. Will likely pair them with my favorite under $30 shoes.
• I tried the red/pink eyeshadow trend and I looked like I was suffering from terrible seasonal allergies. Thinking I might give it another try after watching this Lisa Eldridge tutorial. After years and years of not caring, I’m having fun with makeup again.

IMAGES: Farrow & Ball

My bike was ready. Then it turns out it was maybe a little broken (because a nut wasn’t tightened enough)? And now it’s ready again. I think. I’m heading over later today to pick it up and hopefully all is well. I can’t put a rack on the back of it, but I did get a removable black mesh basket with a handle (to take it in with you!) that should serve me well. I shall ride to the bookstore, hooray! It’s a little bit of fun to look forward to, because otherwise there are lots of chores and projects staring me in the face. Oof.

• New York, how lucky are you to have the new Color Factory experience popping up!? I’m seriously wishing I could come out for a day just to see it. (Tickets here!)

• Arby’s! It’s kind of fantastic now?
  I know the jokes. We all know the jokes. But for real those curly fries were always so tasty.

• The collab between The House That Lars Built and Winter Water Factory is the cutest. Mushrooms and plants and bugs!

• We still want to replace our wooden fence this year. I’ve gotten the estimates and thought we had chosen a company, but I can’t get them to call me back and schedule the work! At this point, I’m like, maybe we should do like the Brinsons and DIY it! (But then I remember that I would like to finish the other projects I’ve already started first and we have two dogs that would benefit from a better fence ASAP).

• For when you need something more extra than a little letter board.

• Enamel book pins!

Color Factory co-creators Erin Jang, Jordan Ferney and Leah Rosenberg

IMAGES: Christine Han for Cup of Jo

Working on the laundry room. What day is it? What time is it? I pretty much live in there now, emerging only to eat or to pick up more materials. SOS (Send Over Snacks).

Honor Roll, shall we?

• My favorite spaces are the ones that have come together over time.* Brittany of The House That Lars Built has upgraded her apartment’s kitchen bit by bit over time and shared all of the details (photos above and below). It’s inspiring to see how smaller changes add up, as most of us can’t renovate a whole kitchen at once.
  * Which reminds me, I left my last Making it Yours edition unfinished. Whoops. Look for that soonish.

• The Tilton Fenwick for Hygge & West wallpaper collection is here! I thought the one with snakes (Soldo) would be my favorite, but Angelina might have it beat.

• Hello, color blocked hallway and wallpapered ceiling. Looking so very good.

• My pixie has finally grown out enough for me to do the only updo I know: the Gibson tuck/roll! Bobby pins work, but Goody Spin Pins make it super easy.

• I’ve been on a beauty kick lately. I picked up Urban Decay’s Naked Palette last week, joking as I paid that it had better make me look beautiful because I didn’t really plan on buying $50 worth of eyeshadow that day. Um, it kind of did. I learned how to do eye makeup! In my late thirties! What a thrill.

• Danish artist Thomas Dambo has finished his trolls installation at Morton Arboretum! Looking forward to checking them out in person with the kids.

All right. I’m taking the boys for haircuts today and then, you guessed it, back to working on the laundry room for me! Have a great weekend.

IMAGES: The House That Lars Built