Home Office....

I don't know why I start thinking about another project before I've even completed the last one!! (let alone STARTED the last one!!).  Anyone else have this problem??  I think I need to stop watching HGTV, as Peter Fallico's latest episode of Home To Keep had me thinking about my office....

My husband recently started working from home more often.  And in an effort to improve productivity, we've also combined our home offices into one. It's really opened up the spare room, but it's seemed to have cramped the other.  With two monitors, two mice (I like my thumb trackball mouse!), and two computer stations, the entire office has become a disaster. And I can't stand it! (I'm not sure how he's working in there so frequently and still OK with it!!).

Let me explain a little....although we've combined into one office, we have not, by any means, combined into one computer (or accessories - we still have two computer stations, as I have my PC and he has his work lap top).  Instead of just working off the laptop though, he plugs it in to this base thingy so he can use a standard monitor, mouse and keyboard.  And since I use two monitors at work, he thought we could both use two monitors at home now...only problem is, we don't have a "switch" to easily switch the monitors back and forth between the computers (instead, we have to physically unplug from his computer and plug them into mine)...so now my PC sits ON the desk (instead of on the floor), the printer now sits on the floor, and the two monitors are on individual stands (to be closer to eye level).

We also have a tall filing cabinet that we rarely use. We purchased it at an auction awhile back, and since it had been through a lot in its days, 3 of the 5 drawers do not open (or are EXTREMELY hard to open).  I've been thinking lately that we could do without this filing cabinet (or maybe move it to the basement for long-term storage needs), and keep the daily files on a bookshelf. I originally thought I could do something like this, with shelves flanking either side of the desk:

And we currently have 2 unused bookshelves sitting in the basement that look something like this (they're not hideous, but they're OAK - bleh!!). With a little love, paint, and maybe a feature paint on the backwall, they could be fantastic...

So I've been playing around with some different layouts...(yes, that angled closet is our linen closet... if you think our 7'6"x9'6" office is small, that linen closet is RIDICULOUS!), but the tight space makes things a little difficult (especially since our office also doubles as my Make Up Room, since the bathroom lacks the storage space necessary for getting ready in the morning)



Option #2 would feel quite cramped walking into the room...so I think Option #3 leaves the most room...but is it really that much different from how it is now?! The use of the bookshelves would help remove knick-knacks from the desk itself...and the bottom shelves could have boxes that house current filing that would be easily accessible...  What do you think?  Maybe I should start on my other projects first though.....??? (although they're just for looks...this would actually CLEAN UP a space AND make it look good) Hmmm

A Good Day of Golf...

Last Thursday, I spent the day at a Charity Golf Tournament (for Kids With Cancer), put on by Gienow Windows  & Doors (one of our suppliers at work).  With all the rain we've been getting lately, I was surprised when it turned out to be a beautfiul day (chance of thundershowers in the afternoon, but they held off 'til late evening!).  My father in law always says "A bad day of golf is better than a good day of work!"  (so true!), but you know what's even better? A GOOD day of golf!!

A coworker and I were paired up with 2 (older) men.  They made the (wrong) assumption that neither of us were golfers.  We got to our starting hole before the shotgun start, and they wanted to give us a few tips before we tee'd off.  First, that the men tee off from the blue tees, and the women tee off from the reds.  Second, that we were playing "Texas Scramble", meaning that we had to use a minimum of 4 tee-off's from each player, and then everyone hit from best ball.  They went on to give us a few more tips, and we just listened.  Then, finally, I tee'd up my ball and just whacked it.  The ball flew straight and far.  My coworker tee'd up, and she hit straight and far as well.  That shut them up! haha... We ended up not using one of their tee off's until the 4th or 5th hole!

What made the day even better, was winning "Ladies Longest Drive".  Luckily, it was around hole #15 or so for us, so we had a lot of warm up time!  Sometimes my drives can veer off and have a slice to them, and other times (that I like), they go long and straight.  Luckily, it went long and straight. Probably one of the longest I've hit (around 215 yards!). I out-drove everyone on my team, and even hit PAST the end of the fairway!  I won a Kodak Playsport Zx5 Portable Video Camera. It's about the size of a cell phone, but I think we'll get a lot of use out of it! (it's even waterproof up to 10ft!).  Can't wait to use it!  Not a bad day of golf, huh?

{image via Kodak}

Eee & Bee Photographers

I just wanted to share with you a few pics from my brother's FIRST EVER wedding shoot for their new company, Eee + Bee Photography.  I think the pics turned out AMAZING! Congrats Brant & Liz on some gorgeous photos! Keep up the good work!

{all images via Eee+Bee}

Wedding Decor

As I mentioned yesterday, I've been strumming through some old photos... I came across our wedding pics and thought I'd share a little wedding decor with you, since it's wedding season and all. 

(pssst....Georgie, these are the bows we have for the pews...simple, translucent white with an iridescent trim)

Sorry, not much "decor" in this one, but I just had to throw this one in here...it just seems so serene and dramatic at the same time. And to think, I didn't want to wear a veil!!! But I'm glad I did, because I LOVED them in pictures!!! (my Mom even made it, since I didn't want to pay $150+ for something I didnt' want to wear in the first place....and she made it for $15 or less!!!)

I knew I wanted black, for the simplicity and timelessness that black offers, but I also knew I wanted to throw in a splash of color.  Each of the girls had a different color jewel-toned sash, and the guys had matching ties (sorry, I blurred their faces incase any of them didn't want their pictures posted)

These are some of my favorite photos...but they just weren't good for blowing up in our room...sigh.  I loved our photographers own wedding pictures so much, that I wanted to recreate it.  We had to use a different alley/escape ladder downtown, but they turned out gorgeous just the same!  (the scummiest of places can often make beautiful pictures!!)

It's amazing what some branches and white christmas lights can do for a room!!

This was our guest book table.  Those presents served as both our center pieces and our favors...inside were two bags of candy (Reese Pieces and Cabbage Patch Kids [some form of sour candy] - my hubby's favorite, and my favorite)  The picture doesn't show it well, but the black paper is also a damask print (I STILL have rolls of this gorgeous paper left 2 years later!! It's come in handy, especially since it's double-sided: grey & pink, and black & copper)  The centerpieces were time consuming, but well worth it!

I fell in love with this image, as it had two of my colors as well as a damask-ish pattern to it. It became the theme for all our invitations, ceremony programs, and menus.

Our wedding reception was held at an Italian hall, so it was only fitting to have some ice cream for dessert!



I also fell in love with the clean lines of my photographers own wedding cake, and asked for a similar interpretation



{images by Leah Rae Photography}

Some oldies....

As I was trying to write a few blog posts to stay ahead of things, I came across some old photos: our engagement photos!! Ok, so they're not THAT old (fall 2008?), but I thought I'd share a few  (I tried to find ones where my hubby's face isn't fully showing, as he has a hesitation of having his face posted on the internet...)

Can you believe we're sitting in a garbage dugout in an alley?? Yup....it was gross, but gave some good pictures!

{photos by Leah Rae Photography}

Kentucky Derby

Last Friday, we had my mother-in-law's 50th birthday party.  Since she loves themed parties, we decided to throw her a Kentucky Derby themed event at the racetracks.  It was quite the event, with everyone dressed in their Derby attire, from floppy hats to feathers and fedoras.  I had a blast designing the invitation for the party, and started with this as my inspiration:

Then, to avoid confusion, I also included "suggested attire", and found pictures for everyone's inspiration:

{images above via KentuckyDerby.com}

Happy Birthday!

It's my 29th birthday today. We're (I'm hoping!!) having a quiet evening with family coming over for cake later, as it was a VERY busy weekend!  Instead of a random cake, I thought I'd share with you a cake that my brother recently made for my nephew's 2nd birthday that was at the end of May (he loves cars, trucks, and especially DIGGERS!!)

Happy (belated) birthday, Dexter!!!

Oh, and I definitely did NOT get around to making THIS cake last week (sad, I know!), but I'm hoping I'll have a chance to for my hubby's birthday (July 9th!).   On a side note, I did receive an early birthday gift last Friday!!! My hubby got me the foyer light I wanted!!! I think it looks fantastic! (directly below is a pic from Bouclair Home website. Below that is a [poor] picture of it in my house, taken with my iPhone)

Our Master Bedroom

Last week I mentioned that our bedroom had changed slightly since my previous pictures were posted. It's by no means "done" (will it ever be, as my style seems to change as I am inspired by new images everyday??), but here's what we have so far....



You can see how YELLOW those lamp shades actually look....(see here for before the base was painted, and here with the first color I tried...I thought this color pulled out more of the color in the canvas across from the bed)  I thought they looked yellow before, but the teal certainly brings it out even more!!

 

Ignore the mess of papers in the left corner...My hubby's not very good at putting his "pocket junk" in the garbage when he gets ready for bed...so I move the miscellaneous items from the nightstand into this old candle holder for him to go through later...."later" then turns into months and months turn into...you get my point... ;) Any suggestions on where to store it? It apparently contains lottery tickets & receipts that he may need in the future or to expense....



Our dresser is directly across from the end of the bed (yes, it's THAT small of a room...maybe 3ft between the end of the bed and the dresser....) And that the lily canvas I found at Homesense a few months ago, and pulled the smoky teal from it for the lamps....

I also recently saw this canvas at Homesense, and am wishing I had it instead of the lily painting...it even has my colors!! But I have nowhere to move the lily painting, and this is probably gone already...things move fast at Homesense!!

   

When I finally hung my baroque mirror above my make up desk, this full length mirror moved to the bedroom. I love having a place to see what your WHOLE outfit looks like! (do NOT get me started on that hideous ceiling fan...I love having the fan, but I HATE those glass flowers!!)




This mirror used to hang above our dresser, but has since moved the left of our bed, over the laundry basket/hamper.  My grandparents got it as a wedding gift when they got married...in 1955ish. If you look closely, you can see it has a few scratches in the silver.  They're basically unrepairable (it would cost more than the mirror is worth to fix them due to how they were made back then), but the beauty of the mirror itself overpowers the imperfections

 Obviously, in Blue Ribbon fashion, I couldn't have my pictures QUITE up-to-date now, could I? I've since purchased this 100% cotton (breathable!!!) "Cyrus" duvet cover from Bouclair Home. 

I've been searching for something VERY light (so the duvet can breath and let us not sweat to death in the summer, and still keep us warm in the winter!), clean lines, and that actually fits the duvet (my previous attempts, even though a "queen" size, were WAY too baggy and made the bed look sloppy and the duvet oversized for the mattress...). This one is the PERFECT size (no extra material! The duvet fits right inside it!).  The material itself is a little stiff, but for $49.99 it certainly fits all my needs!!  I still need some throw pillows, new lamp shades, and I'm working up the courage to start my stencil wall.

3rd Annual Lobsterfest

In celebration of my birthday (the 21st) and my mom's 50th birthday (the 12th), we're having a joint event by having our family's 3rd Annual Lobsterfest tomorrow.  And I can't wait for this deliciousness......Mmmmm....I'm drooling already!!

It should be EXTRA delicious, since we bought my mom this Frozen Concoction Margaritaville Machine for her birthday:

I also have all intentions of making this cake today (ok, I'm HOPING I made the cake last night -- just a plain cake, the intricate vertical layered cake will have to wait 'til another time...when I have more time - since this post was written ahead of time anyways...). This morning (if I made a cake), I have all intentions of decorating it like this:



{image via I Am Baker}

My time is limited today though, as we also have to go set up for my mother-in-law's 50th birthday party that's tonight, so morning is my only free time.... hoping I had the energy last night to make a cake and the energy again this morning to decorate it....otherwise, a special cake will have to wait 'til maybe my hubby's birthday in July.... (does anyone else call May to July "birthday season"?? Between May 21st and July 14th, we have 9 birthdays in our immediate families alone...Thank goodness we've past the recent hump of "wedding season" amongst our friends!! Summer is a busy time for us!!)

Couldn't you just stare at this cake all day??? Mmmmmmm

Dream Home Tour (via House of Turquoise)

If you haven't already, you must check out the Dream Home Tour (see here here here and here) that Erin from House of Turquoise has been featuring the last few days (and probably again today!!). 

I don't know if it's just a phase, but I am absolutely LOVING the seaside/beachy theme right now. This house (and Beach House in the City's house) are my inspirations right now...I. Want. This. Style!

Here is a sample of the house (the owner is also a brilliant photographer: Hiya Papaya).  Isn't it TO DIE FOR?!?!



{all images via House of Turquoise}

 http://www.houseofturquoise.com/2011/06/day-one-dream-home-tour.html