Monday Morning Happy - Gratitude

Morning Friends! Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday of the year, with the focus on family, gratitude and a dinner table full of yummy food it is so much more enjoyable than others! Isn't it nice not to have to run around looking for a the perfect present like we do birthdays and other holidays? This week I am pausing from my chaotic design schedule to be grateful for all the friends I have met through Social Media and the wonderful events I have attended this year! When you have a small company it is these events that provide inspiration and even more importantly time to catch up creative friends!

First up was a great event between Circle Furniture and Social Interiors! Rachel Reider, Kristen Rivoli and Greg Premru have always been such wonderful supporters of the Boston Design Community!

These 3 ladies are not only amazing creatives but also the most genuine you will find in the business. The Brimfield Tent was a great excuse for us to catch up and show off our flea market finds! Raina, Elizabeth, Me and Michelle.


 
The LOOK event at the Boston Design Center was a day full of inspiration, learning new techniques and networking.With our hectic schedules it is a challenge to coordinate a morning with 2 of my favorite ladies, but this day gave us the perfect excuse to catch up. Stacey Kunstel and Gretchen Aubuchon are each taking the design world by storm with their new companies, check out their websites Dunes & Duchess and Fashion & Decor.



 
It is always so fun when people who have known each other only through Social Media meet for the first time in real life. This was the case with the west coaster Cassandra of Coco + Kelley and the east coaster Stephanie of Sabbe Spot!




Next up was a trip to North Carolina and High Point Market to view the new introductions from furniture companies all over the United States! Caitlin of Sacrament Street and Cassandra of Coco + Kelley are 2 of my very first friends I met through Social Media and I cherish any time I get to see them in person! Here we are meeting the incredible designer Barry Dixon.



 
Last but not least is my wonderful friend Erika of Radiant Republic. This picture is so special because it was the last one taken of us before each of our lives changed. We both got married this year to the men of our dreams who are each super supportive of our blogging life and the crazy world of social media! We certainly are the luckiest of girls!

Next years calendar is already filling up with design events but for now I am going to take a minute to enjoy each one of the above blogs and catch up with my favorite Social Media friends on Twitter!

Enjoy this new week,

Jul

Happy Thanksgiving!

(Tree card image from Little Brown Pen)

A few more thankful accents

Some additional finds which would spruce up a Thanksgiving Table
* The fun leaf trivets are from notNeutral,
* This fantastic modern brown runner can be found at Plum Party
* I adore the simplicity of the twig plates also from notNeutral
* The orange bubble vases add a bit of whimsy and can be found at Hudson Boston

The most important is a stylish place to store the leftovers! The storage containers above are from, French Bull, very FUN!

Inspiration in the Dining Room

For the most part Thanksgiving revolves around the Dining Table so I compiled a few of my favorite rooms to share with you. As you can see my style ranges from casual, to regal to comfy modern! I hope you enjoy a peek inside my Dining Room Inspiration Folder!

fun twist on the traditional style with the bold fabric on the chairs

a serene and calm setting

this Georgian Style Dining Room feels regal but relaxed, I think I was drawn to it for the orange

I am positively, absolutely in LOVE with these dramatic chairs and table!

this picture is similar to my personal style, great clean lines but still dramatic. I might just switch out the chandelier and the rug to something a bit more modern.

(images from Domino Mag, Point Click Home and House to Home)

Visually Pleasing - Styled Food

Wow, its really all about the food this week isn't it? They say you eat with your eyes first and for me that statement could not be any more true. For instance, look at this picture I just came across. A gorgeous, styled bowl of orange - cranberry compote and now I have the urge to run up to the store and recreate it! The recipe is really easy and can be found here.

(image from Redbook)

How to Thursday - Shake it up, the new Colors

(ohhh I just adore the small tumbler with the purple tulips!!)

How about we mix up the color scheme for Thanksgiving a bit? We will keep the orange but lets try mixing in a bit of purple and chocolate to the scheme. We all know how trendy purple is at the moment so it should be easy to find a few accent pieces. Below is a great example photo!

Here are some of my quick finds! This is how I would set a table with the pieces below. First I would use the "Nubby Table Runner", add the brown charger (nice contrast with the runner) next the orange napkin and lastly the glass purple dinner plate. I chose the glass plate (which introduces a new element) since the orange cloth will look nice against the purple which is not too dark. Than we have the vintage wine glasses, which I adore. I like to add a different texture to the table which is why I chose the wooden serving pieces, it is a nice element and this is more of a casual table so we can get away with it! Mix in a few of your favorite short vases or glass tumblers with greens from the garden and you are ready for guests! Don't forget the pumpkins seat tags they will pull in the napkin color!

If you are looking to create a different table from the norm, flip through magazines find a table you like and recreate it for yourself!! It's easy and you might already have some of the pieces in your home!!



(images from southern accents, southern living, crate and barrel. william sonoma, fishs eddy, pottery barn)

Thankful Cards

In place of the Holiday card (but usually in addition to depending on the amount of time I have) I like to send Thanksgiving cards. It's the perfect way to say thank you to all the special people in my life. It also tends to be a unique idea because it is completely unexpected and who doesn't love getting a good ol' piece of snail mail? Especially cards as pretty as these! Though I must admit the selection is limited, isn't there anyone out there who appreciates a good Thanksgiving card as much as me? Did you purchase Thanksgiving cards this year? If so please fill me in with a comment below.

(images from Little Brown Pen, Stamper By Night and Pink Lily Press)

That’s What Friends Are For

About this time every year I start thinking about everything I have to be thankful for. Despite the economic downturn and other circumstances beyond my control, I am so extremely blessed. I’m perfectly healthy, have a loving family and so many friends that I can’t even keep up with them all. They’ve all been so amazing through the last year and I thought the perfect way to thank them, would be to introduce some of them to all of you!

Erica is one of my good friends here in Boston is one of the most amazing photographers I’ve ever met. Seriously. She has traveled the world for work and pleasure, taking pictures of new places and people and has recently started her own photography business. She does weddings and portraits and she’s so extremely talented. She has captured so many amazing moments and any of her photos would be an amazing addition to any home.

You can find her on her own blog here and here are some of my favorite shots:

Another friend that I think you should meet is Arian. Arian and I are very new friends, but I think she’s extremely talented too. She does these amazing illustrations and is amazingly creative. Any of her illustrations would look great in a kid’s room. I can especially see this sweet one in a little girl’s room.

Below are a few of my other favorites. You can visit both of Arian’s Etsy shops here & here:

My friends Elijah and Rhonda who recently moved from the North Shore to Asheville are another couple of my extremely talented friends. They work together and create eco-friendly metal smith designs inspired by forests. Actually, before I even met Rhonda and Elijah I had a ring with one of their earlier designs and it’s still one of my favorite pieces. You can find them here and here are a couple of my new favorites:

Last but certainly not least are Tabitha and Larry. Tab and Larry have been friends for actually quite a while. They are photographers as well and have a totally different style than Erica’s, but still do gorgeous work. Tab and Larry actually photographed my wedding about 5 years ago and did an amazing job. Here is Tab and Larry’s website and a few great pics:

You’d think this would be the extent of my talented, creative friends and family but there are about two dozen more that are each talented in their own way. In fact, a large number of my friends are also amazing musicians. I’m so fortunate to have such amazing friends and am so thankful for each one of them. So, my friends, if you’re reading this, I hope you know how much I love you all and how thankful I am that you’re a part of my life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

**Bets**