A Quick-do Idea

Starting with Robert Capa's Untitled I...


trimmed in a nice brown frame for $159.00.


A pair of Daisy pillows in tangerine from Henry Road for $75.00 each.



Chocolate block wall shelves from West Elm for $44.00. (Ebay might have some for less)


This adorable Jasba vase from Hi and Lo Modern for $65.00. (Scroll down towards the bottom of their page)


And if you have some change left over, the Etch rug from CB2 for $299.00.



Enjoy and be inspired. :)

Reader Q & A - For Julian

Disclaimer: When preparing this post I did it under the assumption Julian was a she, but he's not. He is a he. He is currently away and I hope will have a chuckle at my expense when he returns. In the meantime, I will be working on putting together some suggestions for his kitchen from a male perspective. Feel free to use these ideas for your own if you have a kitchen with warm wooden floors and creamy yellow paint. My apologies to Julian. :)

Julian, who is a chef and has blog that will make you gain weight by just looking at it, wrote in with this query:

Alrighty, Ms. Grey -- my sister turned me on to your blog (which I, too, enjoy) and having seen the advice you gave Meetu, I'm submitting myself to your obvious good taste to suggest what will give my newly configured kitchen (I'm a Chef so I almost live in it!) that "Wow factor!, that "joie de vivre" it seems to be lacking. And yes, that white fridge has got to go! :)

Thanks in advance!
Julian

Julian, since you're a chef and your kitchen is your office I sort of splurged, working with the idea you can write it off on your taxes :) The total cost is still under $440.00, but I did include a budget option for under $240.00.

First up is Julian's lovely new kitchen. What a beautiful floor and such lovely cabinets. My theory is always to begin with the art and choose your colors from there. It's much easier to find colors to match a piece of art you love rather than trying to find a piece of art you love to match your colors. Did that make sense?



The work of art I chose for this room is Elesavet Lawson's owl series. They're actually 4 individual 8 x 10 paintings framed and priced at $250.00 each. Definitely a great investment.

If you'd like to choose the budget route you can buy this print in the form of a note card from Pretty Darn Swell. It is sold two per package with a package of other cards for $20.00. I would buy two packages, that would give you four prints to frame. I would hang them as a pair or in a trifecta, depending upon their actual size, down the wall to the right of the kitchen sink.

From there I think Crate & Barrel's Chalet Rug for $21.95 would warm up the floor even more and make a cushy spot to stand for the dishes.

A great working accessory is this ice blue colander for $16.00 from ebay seller retail4ullc. A nice pop of blue on top of the dark green counters.

I would bring the mustard color in via the canisters. Since she's a chef I felt a more heavy duty canister was required so I chose the Saffron Gold Kitchen Canisters from Accents of Salado - $89.00 for a set of 3.

Another great working accessory is the Infinity Pepper Grinder from Crate & Barrel for $24.95.

And last, two of these striped tea towels from QuelObjet.com for $18.00 each.

And that's pretty much what I would do. Your kitchen has great bones, it just needed some color. :) Feel free to offer your own suggestions in the comments below.

New Galbraith & Paul Pillows @ Room & Board

My favorites are Bamboo, Diamond, and Candy Stripe. Lovely patterns in fantastic colors. Enjoy!

Love these!

Reclaimed wood teak candles from Pottery Barn. Too pretty to burn. Small $12.00 - Large $19.00 - Extra-Large $29.00, Enjoy!

Sara Paloma is now on etsy too!

Remember this Restoration Hardware Cover? It's that Sara Paloma, now selling her beautiful vases on etsy as shown below. Enjoy!

Betsy Walton is now on etsy!

How adorable is this Bathing Beauties print? 8 x 10 for $30.00. Enjoy!

Great set of pillows...

that's two for the total price of $40.00. Great colors and pattern. From amodernhome. Enjoy!

Reader Q & A - For Meetu - "Revised"

Meetu wrote in looking for suggestions for a color scheme for her kitchen, pictured below. I'm really picky about wooden kitchen cabinets and making sure the color scheme is complimentary to the hue of the wood. From Meetu's photo I put together what I think is a fairly complimentary and totally affordable quick-do to make this kitchen come alive, all for under $110.00.



First up, Yellena's Bloom print at $20.00. Put it in a simple black frame and hang it on the end wall there by the refrigerator.



From there, I'd purchase Oggi's Red Canister Set (4 pieces) for $29.95. What a pop they'll bring to the kitchen counter tops. (Don't tell my husband, but I'm ordering the black set today. Te he.)



I'd also buy a couple of Rock Scissor Paper's teal or lime woodgrain tea towels at $14.00 each.



Ooops. Forgot the rug. Crate & Barrel's Chalet Rug 30" x 50" for $21.95




And last, but not least, a stainless steel canister like you already have filled with two sets of these Zac Designs tonal green salad servers at $5.99 each.




I hope this helps Meetu. Feel free to offer your own suggestions in the comments. Enjoy!

Sensory Overload

Someone is living in my house and it's not me! Linda Gregoriou's Sydney home is so beautiful it makes me want to weep with envy. Seriously. I came across these photos via Desire to Inspire. Straight out of Australian Vogue Living, these images have awakened my senses to aboriginal art. Being a lover of pattern and color, I think I've found my most absolute favorite art form of all.






There are lots of sources online to view and buy original aboriginal art and paintings. Click here and here to name a few. Continue to enjoy the images below, a small sample of the abundance of beautiful works that can be found over the web. Excuse the long post, but I just couldn't help myself. Enjoy and be inspired!


Judy Napangardi Watson


Freddie Timms


Lucy Yukenbarri


Pedro Wonaeamirri


Dhuwarrwarr Marika


Helicopter Tjungarrayi


Lucy Yukenbarri


Carmel Yukenbarri


Evelyn Malgil


Barney Ellaga


Bai Bai Napangarti


David Cox


Tossie Baadjo



And these last four are from my favorite, Emily Kame Kingawarreye.

Christina Romeo

I typically do not like art with defined people. I do not hang portraits on my walls and only put up a few in desk frames, reserving the albums for all of the faces. But for some reason I am attracted to the faces of Christina Romeo. It's quite odd. I love this Maisey small art quilt, 8" x 8", up for grabs on etsy. So interesting. Enjoy!