Tag: Anthropologie

Making Beaded Necklaces

I recently helped a couple dozen ladies turn waxed cording and beads into necklaces at my Anthropologie craft event. I made one at home beforehand so I could pass it around as an example.

I went to Bead in Hand for our supplies, and chose beads that would mix and match and work with a variety of styles. Some of the attendees would be experienced crafters (I spotted one with a thimble that she’d brought with her! Hardcore.), and some had never even strung beads before, so I was going for a project that could be adaptable for different tastes and skill levels.

I explained a few options (like knotting the cord to suspend beads higher up, and adding beads to the trailing ends in the back), and then we ate fruit and pink macarons, drank mimosas, and got to crafting.

We were all working with the same “ingredients,” but there was a huge range in designs.

Thanks, Anthropologie, for hosting, and a big thank you to everyone that came out! It was a great time.

May 14, 2015
The One with the Red Console

Gem is moving to a new spot in town next month. I walked by the current location on my way back from class last week and spotted a sign that guaranteed a slight detour from heading straight home. (And look, the trees have exploded with spring flowers! Oak Park was just named an arboretum, you know.)

I fell a little bit in love with a ring while I was there, but it had diamonds and rubies and was priced accordingly. There were snakes on it though! Subtle snakes — the best kind. I can’t impulse-buy a $1000 ring, but I can snap up a red console with drawers for $200. Behold.

Have you seen the latest Anthropologie home catalog/lookbook? I’ve had this image from “the optimist’s house” in my head because I loved that lacquered blue bar in the corner.

It’s not that I wanted that exact piece. I was inspired more by the idea of something in a bright color to give a little oomph to a corner of our living room, and I made a mental note to keep a lookout for the right fit. Something with interesting lines, that either had gotten a paint job already or that could stand to benefit from one. I admired that red console when I spotted it at Gem, not sure where I would use it until I measured it and realized it would fit opposite the teal sofa! It came home with me later that day.

I might scoot that mirror up a bit now (the previous table it hung above was several inches lower), but I’m not mad at it. I’d shrink the console down by 10% if I could too — it fits, but it bumps up against the edge of the trim. Again though, I’m not mad at it.

Red! Pink! Mixed metals, wood, and black! This little corner is looking pretty fantastic. I had to buy a couple of nude ceramic figures while I was there too, as one does.

I snipped the lilacs for those vases from our backyard. Thank you, spring. Thank you, too, sidewalk placard at Gem! So glad I stopped in.

May 4, 2015
Mother’s Day Crafting at Anthropologie

I’ll be hosting another crafting event at Anthropologie soon! Last time, we made wooden Valentines, and this time we’ll be hosting a craft for Mother’s Day gifts the weekend before the big day. I’ll be gathering all of the supplies, and we’ll have snacks and drinks and everything we need to create a beaded statement necklace that you can give as a present (or keep for yourself — I won’t judge).

We have limited space for the event, so be sure to RSVP to grab your spot!

We’ve reached capacity for the event. Thanks!

April 17, 2015
Making it Yours 12C: Lincoln and Dhurrie Armchairs
All right, let’s finish up this edition of Making it Yours! (It’s been a while, I know.) We’re following two chairs with nearly identical shapes and very different upholstery, seeing how they each work in a variety of spaces. We’re also following Marie, the fictional owner of said chairs. We first saw the two chairs in her living room, and when we last checked in we saw them in a bedroom and an office. Marie was traveling a lot for work then, but she has since accepted a new position and is able to stay in one place. More time to spend with friends, and more impromptu get-togethers at her place! And speaking of her place, she had been happily living there alone all this time but has recently gotten a new roommate: a big, lovable, shaggy mutt from a local shelter. Woof!

So let’s see the final two looks for the Lincoln and Dhurrie armchair. Just as you would use and reuse items in your own home over time, we have some items from past looks showing up in these new designs. In the first, the mirror, rug, and brass hand have all been incorporated before in different ways. I’ve also added a matching Dhurrie chair, and I imagine this space to be similar to the landing/library in my first house. Just enough room for some bookshelves and a place to sit, but that doesn’t mean it can’t look great.
1. Knox Tall Storage Bookcases, Crate & Barrel
2. Clint Mini Red Task Lamp, West Elm
3. Dhurrie Chair, Anthropologie
4. Hanging Porthole Mirror, Wisteria
5. Stripe Inlay Coffee Table, West Elm
6. French Grey Paint, Glidden
7. And Still We Gather With Infinite Momentum 1, by Justin James King, 20×200
8. Bangle Box, CB2
9. Chunky Wool Throw, Jayson Home
10. In Bloom Portrait Pillows, Anthropologie
11. Brass Hand Ring Holder, Jonathan Adler
12. Secret Garden Planter, Leif
13. Diptyque Baies Candle, Nordstrom
14. Bleached Jute Rug, RugsUSA
Next, for the Lincoln armchair, I wanted to revisit the blue and orange accent colors from its first look in a way that feels like a natural evolution. Marie is a little older and her taste is more sophisticated, but she still has a fun sense of style and appreciates a bit of quirk! Here again, we see some of her older pieces making another appearance in this living room design, like the hamsa hand, blue vases, and whipstitched pillow.
1. Vogtsmith Single Arrow, Serena & Lily
2. Hamsa Hand, Furbish
3. Sisters of the Sun Blue Velvet Wallpaper, Juju Papers
4. Lincoln Upholstered Chair, Pottery Barn
5. Hombre Pillow, CB2
6. Aqua Round Cachepot, Jayson Home (shown with a ZZ Plant)
7. Savile Persimmon Side Table, Serena & Lily
8. Berlin Pink Café Photo by Sivan Askayo, Artfully Walls
9. Bernhardt Blanca Capiz-Painted Console, Horchow
10. Frosted Blue Vase Collection, Terrain
11. Novara Floor Lamp, Anthropologie
12. Hutton Sofa: Tatum Salt, Room & Board
13. Magical Thinking Neon Rag Pillow, Urban Outfitters
14. Hombre Pillow, CB2
15. Riad Wool Rug, West Elm
I loved the creative challenge of creating six looks around these chairs, and I hope you enjoyed following along! Here are all of the looks again, so you can see them together. Which was your favorite? I’m loving the very last one with that killer orange table.
October 23, 2014
Making it Yours 12B: Lincoln and Dhurrie Armchairs
We saw the first designs featuring the Lincoln and Dhurrie armchairs last week. I wanted to keep them very similar to show how one can get the same look by just changing a few things, but today the chairs are going their separate merry ways. Both feature the black, white, wood, and brass trend, but with more color than we may have been seeing on Pinterest lately. (Everything seems to be pretty minimal in my feed over there! Yours, too?)

I don’t think anyone would actually own two chairs that are essentially the same shape with different fabric, but my goal here is to show two designs that look like they belong in the same person’s home. Speaking of which, our fictional friend, Marie, has moved from her apartment into a place of her own! A two-bedroom condo with the extra room functioning as an office. She’s traveling a lot for her job and doesn’t work from home all that often, but she’s happy to have a dedicated spot for it when she is in town. She’s also happy to come home to a cheery, if perhaps a bit girly, space.
1. Dhurrie Chair, Anthropologie
2. Glitterati Mint Pillow, CB2
3. Scallop Gold Leaf Mirror, PB Teen
4. Two Tigers: Ping Zhu, Serena & Lily
5. Birch Cylinder Pot, Terrain
6. Brass Hand Ring Holder, Jonathan Adler
7. Stone White Paint, Glidden
8. Central Park Aerial Photo (Getty Images), One Kings Lane
9. Taylor Dresser, Horchow
10. Isaac Long Arm Brass Sconce, Schoolhouse Electric
11. Quincy Bed, Ethan Allen
12. Beverly Palm Pillow, Society Social
13. Colorblock Linen Pillow Emerald & Pool, Society Social
14. Antique Brass Metal Cube Side Table, West Elm
15. Vestige Lipstick Holder, Anthropologie
16. Silver Stitch Pleat Duvet, West Elm
17. Waverly Rug, Lulu & Georgia
1. Orb Chandelier, Lucent Lightshop
2. Hanging Porthole Mirror, Wisteria
3. Lincoln Upholstered Chair, Pottery Barn
4. Nävviva Pillow, IKEA
5. Aina Curtains, IKEA
6. Onyx Black Paint, Glidden
7. Nina Campbell Swan Lake Sylvana Wallpaper, Osborne & Little
8. Maison Bookcase, PB Teen
9. Printer’s Large Writing Desk, Pottery Barn
10. Brass Colored Pencil Set, Jayson Home
11. Rex Grey Task Lamp, Crate & Barrel
12. Hamsa Hand, Furbish
13. Dome Paperweights, Jayson Home
14. Rosie Table Lamp, CB2
15. Printer’s Drawer Filing Cabinet, Pottery Barn
16. Greyson Eco Black Bench, Arhaus
17. Coral Leaf Pillow, Serena & Lily
18. Vårgyllen Pillow, IKEA
19. Bleached Jute Rug, RugsUSA
And there they are, together. Each chair could be swapped for the other with a few accessory changes, and we’ll have just one more set of designs coming up soon to finish this edition of Making it Yours!
August 20, 2014
Making it Yours 12A: Lincoln and Dhurrie Armchairs
We have the first two of our designs up from this edition of Making it Yours today! I’m decorating around both the Lincoln and Dhurrie chairs, showing how each can be used throughout a person’s life, seeing them through different stages and different styles. Let’s meet our fictional friend, Marie.

Marie likes to sing. Loudly. She’s shy about it though, at first limiting her performances to coincide with her morning shower, and later when her roommate moved out, she’d perform encores throughout the day while doing chores or cooking dinner. She won’t get on stage for karaoke and isn’t into the whole bar scene, but she throws parties on a whim just about every month. She knows everything about astrology but doesn’t believe in it, loves big, goofy dogs, and always wears a crazy hat. She’s about to turn thirty, and has been working a lot of late nights but is starting to make decent money. She’s fun, happy, and bright, and wants her apartment to be too.
1. Dhurrie Chair, Anthropologie • Lincoln Chair, Pottery Barn
2. Block Print Ikat Lumbar Pillow, Furbish
3. Seachange Print, Jenny Vorwaller
4. Yes, Please Print: Martha Rich, 20×200
5. Paint: Flush Pink, Behr
6. Wood Pole Scholar Floor Lamp: Avalon Sea, Target
7. Perfect Throw: Mandarin, West Elm
8. Laguna Seagrass Baskets: Juice, Serena & Lily
9. Upton Faceted Leg Buffet, West Elm
10. Frosted Blue Vase Collection, Terrain
11. Rosie Table Lamp, CB2
12. Balloon Animal Bookend, The Land of Nod
13. Stockholm Nesting Tables, IKEA
14. Avec Apartment Sofa: Sea Salt, CB2 • Avec Apartment Sofa: Peacock, CB2
15. Colorblock Linen Pillow,: Emerald & Pool, Society Social • Magical Thinking Neon Rag Pillow, Urban Outfitters
16. Ojo de Dios Rug, Arro Home
For this first post, I kept the looks fairly similar, swapping out only a few things to achieve the same overall look. I’ll be taking a different approach next time though, which I’ll be sharing next week!
August 14, 2014