I'll let you in on a secret...

So, I love secret pin boards on Pinterest. It is where I store all the great ideas that I want to interpret into my own style. I am working on my Halloween shop design, as I type, and I thought I would share a couple of ideas I plan to interpret in my shop in Interiors and Antiques in Vestavia Hills.

The first comes from Sagebrush Ridge and is a pumpkin from a book. I am interpreting into different shaped pumpkins and I think I will be doing silver wood stems and silver pages with silver vintage German glitter.


This item is actually for sale on Etsy from The Dusty Raven, love the shop name. I love the concept of the corner spider web. I'm thinking silver, not barbed wire,  less Tim Burton-ish and probably a wire spider that hangs low from the web.



A few years ago, when I was a corporate librarian, I decorated a library space for Halloween with waves of bats circling the main reading room. The image below reminded me of that space. (It is actually Martha Stewart's bat mobile) I will definitely be doing the walls in wave of bats in the shop. I'm thinking the look will be like the Bat Cave in the Devil's Sinkhole State Natural in Texas where the bats emerge from at dusk most of the year.



What are you storing, secretly, on Pinterest?

My hot pin on Pinterest this week- Hello!

Occasionally... people are brilliant! This is one of those times- funny, kitchy, 1980's-y, and many of the "-y's". It is the joyous memories of teenagers singing in the car, being touched by a bittersweet music videos, and chuckling at wordplay. Sometimes, you can also have this chuckle on a regular basis. My hot pin on Pinterest this week is just one of the opportunities to laugh daily... with your morning cup of Joe... or Lionel in this case. Hello! Is it tea you're looking for? I can see it in your eyes... I can see it in your smile....

Hello, it is tea you're looking for? by LennyMud on Etsy.

DIY: Valentine's Doily tags

Doily tags are a steady seller in my Etsy store. They work well for gift tags on brown paper packages as well as place cards and wedding decor! They would be so cute as a garland mixed with doilies for a wedding or baby shower! Though I am happy to make them for you, you can make them yourself. Here's how!

Start with shipping gift tags, English 4 inch doilies, a bone folder, and envelope glue (or your preferred general purpose glue, Elmer's works too. It is just a bit runny). Optional equipment includes very clean slightly stiff paint brush and heavy items like bottles of glue, staplers, steel scissors, pattern weights, etc.

Begin by separating your doilies and removing any "chads" still stuck in the filigree  I like to use the stiff paint brush to remove the chads by pushing the bristles into the shads and brushing them off from the back. Once the doilies are separated, place the doily on the tag as shown below and fold the doily around the tag.

Using your bone folder, press a crease into the doily from the back. Use the flat part of the bone folder, so you will not tear the doily. I have shown my Martha Stewart bone folder, which has a sharp beveled edge. Other bone folders have a smooth bevel, which I prefer. However, this was the one close at hand!

From the back of the tag, you now have fairly solid spots to glue from. Place the sponge tip on the inside of the solid piece of the doily and then press the glued side to the tag. Repeat on the other flap. I like to lay the doily face down on my work table and weight the glued edges until they dry.

Now you are ready to use your tags for gifts, wedding notes, place cards, table number tags... you name it!

Want to pin these Instructions to Pinterest? Here's a quick step-by-step perfect for pinning!

Layered rugs

I have always loved the look of layered rugs. It always brings me back to this image from art history class of the Ottoman/Turkish king sitting, high above people, on stacks of red rugs. I am bringing this concept to a client project I am working on by using with Flor carpet tiles for a contemporary twist on an old concept.

Here are some great inspired images of layered rugs!

My foyer with a mix of weaves, patterns and styles.

from Design Sponge layered rugs in New Orleans

From Web-stagram by Kim Childs- great use for small rugs you love... but are just too small!

From Ella and Louise

From Pinterest- it was pinned off an Urban Outfitters website.

Popular on Pinterest this week

This was my most popular pin this week!

I'm not a food pinner, but this was too cute!  Enjoy my new favorite heels! These are the cutest cupcakes!

popular on Pinterest this week

I never know what I am going to pin on Pinterest that will be a repin blow-up. This week it is an image of a group of Moroccan tea glasses on a mirrored tray. They are pretty colors with light gold filigree detailing on the glasses. Moroccan tea is served hot and is either green tea or a mint and is served all day. These pretty glasses would be great showing off the desired foam that forms on the top of the tea from the distinct pouring method, as well as a sweet boutique or a single stem of hydrangea.


I love using my Moroccan tea glasses for flowers! But they are not just for tea and flowers, these are great with tea lights in them! They would be a great addition to wedding decor for the bridal couple that wants to add some ethnic patterns and colors to the reception.

popular on pinterest this week

My most popular post on Pinterest this week is a calender of vintage cameras. 

2013 vintage camera calendar from Etsy. Click me to purchase!

I think vintage cameras not only express the up to the moment style of the time they were made, but they are an inexpensive item to collect! I have a great collection of old cameras on my mantle- most under $20. And you can find them everywhere from thrift shops to online.

Here are some things to be on the look out for when collecting cameras.
1. decide on the type you want to collect- little box cameras, ones with bellows, ones with color, etc.
2. look for the best condition
3. decide if you want the accouterments or not and buy accordingly.

With these three rules in mind, you will be on the road to buying what you want with intentional blinders on to what you do not want.

I choose to mix it up. I picked mostly for the front of the camera- I love the 1920's art deco patterns on the brownies (like the camera for the month of September). Additionally, I love the vintage-y look of a bellow (like the camera for the month of May), so I picked up a couple of them as well.

Want to see more of my pins? Click on the red "follow me on Pinterest" button on the right!

Work room re-do

I have been working on reworking my work space... which is a lot of work! Once you realize that you use the dining room a hand full of times a year for dining, but daily as a work space, you know it is time to quite dancing around all those chairs and get some storage in there! Here are a few inspiring work spaces for you!

I would love to go to work in a space like this one to the left that I found on pinterest! Organized, pretty, vintage-y, and with a large window.  I need a window in every space I work in because I need the view, I like the air flow and I think hearing the birds twitter calms the mind!














Fantastic sewing/crafting room. Black white and some color!

What makes this space work is the amount of white, which allows the eyes to rest from the pattern and color. Another great part about this space is the photographs of plants at eye level. Attention restoration theory teaches us that allowing a view of nature, even it is a photograph can rewire the brain to refocus on the task at hand faster then looking at something not from nature. This fabulous image came from the blog HouseofTurquoise.com.

Smart use of space with many recycled items!

Organization is the key to keeping your craft room as a space you will want to work in. Since I run my online business from a craft room, I have to remember to keep it neat, otherwise I will only go in to fulfill and order and stop designing new item! I like this space because it look like a building on a campgrounds. By reusing furniture pieces, you not only cut down on the cost of outfitting your space, you are doing a service to the environment by avoiding cheaply made "craft room" furniture and plastic products. Storing items in plastic is great for many reasons, buy using them judiciously and thoughtfully, is the best use of that resource.



My favorite color is plaid...

When I was in college I found these red plaid silk pants on the clearance rack at my favorite department store. They were dressy and punk at the same time, I loved the dichotomy, especially since I had maintained for a few years that my favorite color was plaid. Why plaid? The philosopher would answer why not, but the real reason is I did not like to be pigeon holed. I do not want to be a purple person who is considered artsy, a blue person who prefers mainstream/blending in, a red person who is fiery, a pink person who is saccharine sweet, etc. Not that any of these are tried and true, but they are often assumed. I am not one of those people, but I sometimes any and all of those people, so plaid suits who I am. And really, who all of us are.

As a designer, I run into the same problem question as the one from childhood, "what is your favorite color," except now it is "what is your favorite style," or "what is your style." How do I explain that my design style is plaid, without sounding like I design in Scottish Highland style or that I am am secret Jacobite. However, it is still true, I like many styles for many different reasons. I love looking at those clean contemporary spaces with floor to ceiling windows. Conversely, I love looking at a cacophony of patterns from designers that really understand scale. Additionally, I like finding those Wabi Sabi pieces that celebrate the imperfections of design. People most likely want a short answer, but is it a cop-out to say that I like an eclectic style? Should I tell them I like Directoire style, which I do, but as it only lasted from 1795 to 1799, and it is over shadowed by it's popular cousin Empire... few are into it, or even aware of it.


It's all about scale!

What it really comes down to is I like "good design," and what is that? It is different for everyone! However, as a designer my job is to find what your "good design" is and help you make it the best good design it can be by find the best pieces and finishes, consider scale and space planning, and make sure it is the healthiest and safest it can be. A designer's job is not to impose a style on you. So to answer the question, what is your style? My style, personally, is typically the most recent thing I have seen and loved. My style professionally, is what ever style is your... from High Victorian to Cave dwelling. You name it, I can enhance it. I've got mad cave painting skills!
Like to see more of my style? follow me on Pinterest!





Ultimate desk

I found this desk on One King's Lane and it had so much function and style, I just had to show it. It has all the function of a Hoosier Cabinet from the 1920's and 30's with the sixe for the modern laptop type office. I love the pull out desk feature- another very Hoosier feature. See other small office solutions on my pinterest page! Need help with you small office, let me know about it!


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leopard love

Source: onekingslane.com via Laurl on Pinterest

Leopard can be a difficult pattern to work with- too much is looks tacky, too little and it has no impact. This is a good example of a room that used leopard and pattern, without going over the top. Barclay Butera designed this space presented in Luxe Interiors and Design's Greystone Glamour and photography by Grey Crawford. The keys to this room is to keep the space neutral, add other patterns and place your leopard pieces as the support cast, not the lead role. The lead in this room is the large leather wing back chairs, which are modernized with the striped rug. The leopard chairs, flanking the windows, act as a pattern in the room, like the stripes and the damask.
This room also plays with scale. The landscape paintings are not only large, they fill the walls from floor to ceiling. They appear to visually dwarf the windows and in doing so, make this room about the room, not about the view.
Interested in seeing more leopard I love? Check it out here!

pinterest and the kitchen

I am newly discovering pinterest. As a visual person, I find it a great way to create cohesive imagery and make new observations. For me it has the elements of Dumbledore's pensive, I can add images that I find anywhere and look at the all together to find the pattern, trend or commonality.

Additionally, I am interested in statistical nature of the medium. What to know if other people like something, just pin and wait to see how much it gets re-pinned! To the left is an image from countryliving.com that I pinned for a work project. We were looking at a variety of white kitchens with dark countertops. This image, out of 12 images on the board received twice as many pins as most others. Not that it is not a nice kitchen, but what about this image is so pin-able? The flooring, the green door, the view outside, the homy-ness of the dark wood, maybe the chandalier? I'm still deciding... your thoughts?