Tag: pink

Sending the Prettiest Flowers

I love having fresh flowers in the house and sometimes I luck out at the grocery store when they have pretty ones, but it’s really hit or miss. And I’ve not been all that impressed in the past with options for delivery when I want to send flowers. I mean, can’t a girl just send a big bunch of garden roses? Not long-stemmed roses — I’m not into those. I’m talking big, fluffy pink roses with lots and lots of petals. You know, like these!

Yep, those are my kind of roses.

The Bouqs Company is sponsoring today’s post, so before sharing them (and a discount offer) with you today, I ordered a couple of Bouqs to try them out for myself. The flowers above are their “Precious” pink garden roses.

Do you know about The Bouqs Company yet? I’ve heard stories, with other flower delivery services, of people getting substitutions in their order or that everything was already wilting. Ordering from Bouqs.com means you get flowers that are cut the day you order and shipped for free the next day right from the farms, so those flowers arrive fresh and stay looking good for longer. What you see is what you get and there are no random add-ons (cheap candy, ugly vases, teddy bears… you know). And their farms are sustainable, eco-friendly, and on the side of an active volcano. Yep.

(Their video explaining it all is actually pretty funny. Science project volcanoes for the win!)

The other Bouq I ordered was a mixed arrangement: “Porcupine” pincushion protea.

Pow! Protea is another one of those flowers that can be hard to find. There’s a florist around here that sometimes sells it for like $12 a stem, so getting a huge bunch of these delivered at a good price was awesome. They have flat, affordable pricing on all of their Bouqs — you just pick the size you want. No hidden costs, no delivery charges or fees. These were some of my favorites…

• 1. Marshmallow • 2. The Flamingo • 3. Infinity • 4. Energetic • 5. Ballerina • 6. Porcupine • 7. Whimsy • 8. Showstopper • 9. Adelaide • 10. Tiger • 11. Precious • 12. Abracadabra

My mother-in-law’s birthday is in April, Mother’s Day is in May, and then my mom’s birthday is in June, so every year, it’s like a little triathlon of monthly gift-giving for moms in the Balch household. I’m glad Bouqs.com has so many styles that I’d feel really good about sending because any of them would be a perfect gift for Mother’s Day! If you want to send flowers from The Bouqs Company, you can enter the code MDAY20 to receive 20% off your order. The code is good for one week, but you can place an order now and choose your delivery date.

You can even send some to yourself if you’re so inclined. Just saying.

This post was sponsored by The Bouqs Company.

April 26, 2016
A Pink and Green Easter Table

Thank you, Pier 1, for sponsoring this post. While this was a sponsored opportunity from Pier 1, all content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Easter is tied with Christmas as Eleanor’s favorite holiday. She likes the traditions surrounding the day — dyeing eggs, waking up to see what the Easter bunny brought, and spending time with family — so she was pretty excited about putting up these decorations.

My focus was mainly in the dining room, but the entryway got a spring update with a new pink champagne scented candle along with some speckled eggs and a vintage robin.

I used more speckled eggs in the dining room, along with plenty of bunnies.

The two standing moss bunnies came with raffia ribbon around their necks, but I removed it and added my own. I’ve also got a matching sitting moss bunny on the way that will get the same simple change.

Those green napkins on the table have proven their versatility. I bought them for Christmas, and you saw them last month too. Here, they tie in with the mossy green bunnies and the leaf plates, and the green is bold enough to stand up to the pastel pink of the plates and glasses.

The pink pressed-glass goblets are new. I spotted them in the store and wondered if it would be overkill to add them to my table settings since I already decorate with so much pink. Nope! They are excellent. They come in blue too, if pink isn’t your thing, and I also liked these clear hobnail glass goblets. And any of the three would pair well with either pressed-glass or these hobnail glass tumblers.

A jute runner was layered over a solid tablecloth, and the I set the table with our everyday dinner plates (of course ours are pink) and silverware. I alternated my leafy green plates that I’ve had for years with new cabbage leaf plates. I think those are going away soon, so if you’re as into them as I am, don’t wait.

Since I set my table up already to take photos and share them here, I’m leaving everything up through Easter. The kids have been pretty excited because we get to eat “at the pretty table” and I have to admit, I like it too. Far better than the medley of toys that otherwise find their way over to the room!

Pier 1 has a new feature on their site showing how people have decorated with their finds once they get them home — a gallery of their favorite Instagram pictures tagged with #Pier1Love. I always like to see different takes on the same item or idea, so it’s been fun checking out how other people might use the same things but in different ways. Lots of bunnies are making appearances right now! Check it out for some new ideas, and tag your own photos for a chance to be featured.

March 16, 2016
A Cute New Kids’ Line (& Scalloped Table!)

This post is brought to you by TargetStyle. Shop the new Home collection in stores and online.

I saw it in a magazine a couple of months ago: a round side table from Target with a scalloped edge along the top and brass legs. It was just a little thumbnail-sized image and the table wasn’t even available then, but I made a note to check back for it because whoa, it was cute. I imagined it next to a chair, with a small lamp on top and maybe some flowers. Basically, something like this…

I didn’t have a specific spot in mind for it though, and the table wasn’t even available at that point anyway. Fast forward a month or two and as I was browsing through a preview of Target’s new Pillowfort collection for kids, I spotted the table. I had no idea it was part of their new kids’ line! They were styling it as a play table in the ‘Marvelous Manor’ collection, but I still liked the idea of one next to a chair and I realized that I did actually have a good spot for it.

Our playroom had a couple of vintage chairs in it that I had rescued years ago from an alley. They were outside of a building that housed many doctors’ offices, and I’m pretty sure they were waiting room chairs. Kind of cool, but not actually all that comfortable for long periods of time, so I brought up my floral armchair a while back to have a nicer spot to sit while the kids played.

What better table to pair with my crazy-flower-print chair than an adorable scalloped one? It comes in white, gray, or pink; you can guess which color I went for. I even picked up a little glass lamp for it, along with a party giraffe (why not?).

That’s a happy spot for sipping imaginary tea and eating fake cookies with the kids.

When I’m looking for things for the kid spaces in our house, I choose things with them that they like, but I want to like them too. Calvin’s still so little that he doesn’t have strong opinions on how his room is decorated, but Eleanor and August do. Eleanor likes cute, girly things, but not in the typical girly pink. (Early form of rebellion against her mother? I chose aqua for the lamp in the play room because I knew E would like the color.) She also really likes cages, and anything that looks like it could be used as one. August is pretty into sharks and sea creatures right now, but above all right now, he wants everything to be red. I had been looking for a matching pair of lamps to go in his room, and I grabbed two ceramic column lamps in red for him and he was thrilled. We didn’t need anything else right now, but here’s what caught my eye for each kid.

I liked these for my girl

Floral sheets, but in blue! Shelving that looks like a cage, and then an actual cage as a light! (She would flip.) The lamp that I bought for the playroom with her in mind, and the cutest bear.
— cage pendant ceiling light • circle shelf • floral bear • glass table lamp • floral sheets

I liked these for my boy

He likes the red lamps (I bought a matching pair), and I’m pretty sure he’d be into a red bed with shark sheets and an octopus friend.
— upholstered headboard • octopus • column table lamp • great white shark sheets

I liked these for my toddler

Really cute furniture, a few forest friends, and black and white patterned blanket with trees. We aren’t ready to transition from nursery to big-kid-room yet, but I’m keeping these in mind.
— drum shade ceiling light • mid-century kids’ nightstand • bear • fox pillow • mint kids’ chairs • forest plush blanket

This post is brought to you by TargetStyle. Shop the new Home collection in stores and online.

March 1, 2016
Talking Rugs and Lighting (Aren’t I Always?)
The closet is looking good, and it’s so close to being done.

The couple of sneak peeks above are on Instagram, and if you follow me on Snapchat, you might have seen the design plan for the closet. I was thinking of using a pink rug and bench. Either something all pink like Pottery Barn’s Leila tufted rug, or in a pattern that features the color prominently like Caitlin Wilson’s Kismet rug. We had an antique/vintage (no details on how old it is) Tibetan meditation rug in the hallway though that’s mostly red with a little pink, and it looks great in the closet. Our hallway is a bit more naked now, but that hallway is in serious need of repair right now anyway after all of the rewiring work on the second floor (another story for another day).

I ordered a small tufted ottoman from Target in pink that hasn’t arrived yet. Then I saw the same ottoman in the store in a pretty grayish blue color that hadn’t been listed online. I brought it home yesterday and the other is due to arrive tomorrow, so I’ll keep whichever is better with the rug.

Which means there are only three more things to do, and then the closet is done!
1. Sew a sink skirt.
  Easy enough, I was just waiting on the rug so I can choose fabric. Moving ahead with that one.
2. Hem the curtains.
  Easy peasy.
3. Find a new light.
  Not so easy, but it needs to happen.
Yeah, so the light. I put up one of the fixtures from downstairs because why not? I’ll tell you why not: it’s way to low and I bump into it constantly. I knew that the scale was wrong, but I figured it would be fine and buy some time until I found something else. It wasn’t a visual assault on my eyes or anything, it just looked silly, being to big. I failed to take into account how annoying and potentially dangerous it would be — I’m worried I might break the glass.

I came across this image that I posted here in 2011, before I had ever set foot in our Victorian.

Beautiful, right? And I’ve been so drawn to that simple style of lighting lately. I want to replace our foyer pendant and was considering something similar, but now I’m also considering it in a smaller, semi-flush mount version for the closet. I’m still not 100%, but I think it could work.
January 28, 2016
The Best Pink Lighting
I bought a pair of pale pink ceramic lamps a decade ago. I loved them, and then one of my kids pushed one off a table two years ago in an act of defiance (he was shocked that it broke — what was he expecting?). I’m down to one now, but I still love it.

More recently, I bought and installed my pink tassel sconces in the library. They are amazing in part because of the shape, but also largely because they are the perfect shade of pink. The color makes everything better, I’m convinced of it.

If you’re looking to bring the perfect pink lighting fixture into your home, might I suggest these?
1. Vintage Bell Clip Light Hanging Lamp, Earth Sea Warrior, Etsy
  Only one! Everything about it is delightful, down to the pink cord.
2. Glass Carafe Pendant, Anthropologie
  A modern shape with the added detail of tiny bubbles in the glass.
3. Laura B Sconce, Stray Dog Designs
  Happy little berries and asymmetry in a surprisingly large scale.
4. Currey and Company Flamingo Chandelier, Candelabra
  Ombré beading in various shades of pink, done up in an empire silhouette.
5. Elsie Table Lamp, Kate Spade
  Simple geometry, refined to a delicate, feminine form.
6. Pink Glass Jug Pendant, ABC Home
  Two sizes to choose from, both in gorgeously thick pink glass (though other colors are available too).
7. The Tassel Sconce, Coleen and Company
  Best sconce ever. Not that I’m biased.
8. Robert Abbey Delta Schiaparelli Pink Lamp, Lamps Plus
  These faceted lamps come in a ton of colors, but the hot pink is so fun.
9. Totem I by Lindsey Adelman, The Future Perfect
  A work of art.
10. Pharos Collection Pendant, Niche Modern
  Plenty of shapes and colors to choose from, and they look amazing in groups.
11. Bebe Chandelier, Marjorie Skouras Design
  Slices of agate!
12. Alphabeta Pendant, Archiproducts
  Part of a customizable system with “10 billion possible combinations.”
13. The Tole Tent Semi Flush, Coleen and Company
  A lot of charming detail in a style of lighting (semi flush mounts) that is often lacking.
14. Ezra Blown Glass Pendant Light, Urban Outfitters
  You could choose clear too, but why?
15. Tea Caddy Lamp, Furbish
  Updated Chinoiserie.
16. Vintage Pink Porcelain Bathroom Sconces, City Lights Antique Lighting, Etsy
  A rare find in pink.
17. Serena Chandelier, Stray Dog Designs
  A mid-century Palm Springs vibe.
18. Candace Coral Table Lamp, Layla Grayce
  A lovely drop shape in an equally lovely shade of coral.
19. Token Pink Geo Pendant, ABC Home
  Mouth-blown recycled glass, and a rainbow cord.
20. Sally Pendant, Stray Dog Designs
  Pure fun and whimsy that calls to mind a Seuss asthetic.
21. Juliette Rose Table Lamp, One Kings Lane
  Great shape, and the gold band details are a nice touch.
22. Painted Loa Sconce in Blush and Brass, Sazerac Stitches, Etsy
  A modern sconce in a sweet color.
January 14, 2016
Lessons Learned from a Hot Pink Room

I was looking at my fan deck, eyeing the pinks and thinking about how many colors I’ve used over the years. Most of them have been a success, but there were some definite misses. Let me recount a lesson I learned in 2006, pre-blog.

Before we bought our first house, Brandon and I lived in an apartment with a very permissive landlord when it came to paint colors. It was great! We were in our early to mid-twenties with free reign to choose whatever colors we wanted to live with. The living and dining room were purple! The second bedroom was dark blue, and later as my office/studio, pink! Not every room was crazy — I painted the bedroom a creamy white, and left the kitchen and bathroom beige. But then there was the back room. It was kind of a mudroom that had been created when the house, formerly a single-family home, was split up into apartments with separate front and back entrances.

I had the great idea to paint that back room hot pink. It was a pass-through, not an everyday living space. Let’s have fun with it! Be bold! So I painted it, finishing up at night, and it wasn’t until the next day that I realized what an awful mistake it was. On a bright, sunny day, light flooded the room and the entire space glowed pink. It shone its bad-taste aura into the adjacent kitchen, making itself known anytime we so much as went to get a glass of water. I think we lived with the room like that for a week before I had my next brilliant idea: tone the hot pink down with stripes.

(more…)

January 13, 2016