It's been a good summer.  Full of family, little outings, keeping cool by the pool & a week in Sounthern California with cousins.  & to top it off Travis {my sweetheart} and I got to enjoy a staycation downtown at a cool joint.  We stayed at the KIMBER MODERN.  It's sleek and beautifully modern but it was the idea of it that sent it to another level for me.  Newly built, a seven room hotel with no front desk, just a serene courtyard, main common room with all the goodies, happy hour and delicious snacks at our disposal. Come and go as you please with your "secret code" to get you in and out {fabulous! idea} No one to casually hello to (even though our hostess was divine).  We stayed in the red suite.. and we loved all the frills and comforts the Kimber had to offer.  I even have some of there lotions and potions on my to buy list.. have you ever tried MALIN+GOETZ?  It's quite refreshing.  I'm convinced. It's in the details of life that inspire the design I bring home.. that's another fun thing.. I'm helping someone design their living and dinning area.  I feel the fire within {design fire}.. & I'm just warming up.

Here's a few instagram photos of my favoroite summer fun..

{my oldest built the London bridge, how appropriate with the Olympic games in swing} GO USA!

The industrial side of things

There's a well known fact that the kitchen is the heart of the home.  No doubt you have a cozy sofa there in the other room but you and your guests stay and talk for hours near the sink, sitting/leaning against the counter.  Well in this heart of the home I have desires, let me clarify.  I have wishes to fulfill.  I desire great industrial appliances that function superbly as well as look pretty darn sweet.

There is the well know Wolf range which I was sold on this weekend as we perused a showroom with full to scale kitchens and heard all the fabulous facts.  But I have had the BLUE STAR range on my mind ever since I read an article in dwell magazine some years ago about a San Fransisco family who built their dream kitchen with all the bells and whistles covered & it included the BLUE STAR range.. they had a list of all the wonderful pros.  I cannot recall many of their sweet deatils since it was "years" ago but I remember being completely convinced that was what I wanted.. and since the search is on again I find myself smitten with this product.  Maybe this week we will check out the BLUE STAR first hand at a show room here in Dripping Springs, TX.  That my friends will be the tale tale of which range I might enjoy the pleasure of cooking from.

I love shopping for the home and this past weekend was testament to the fun I will have ahead assembling a home to our liking.

Here is some industrial eye candy. {wolf, sub zero & blue star}

Oh!  & my sweet family on the 4th.. We ate breakfast before a parade at the Monument cafe in Georgetown.  Oh what we do in the summertime!

new finds!

For means for better living and health.. and by example of friends.. I have been leaning towards glass water bottles, and recently discovered these great watter bottles that could be our next H2O container.  They look the part and now all I need to do is put its function to the test!  I had considered waiting until October to purchase one {since we'll be in their hometown city} but I may jump that gun and bow down to a few..  a savvy investment since they run $28 bones.

{discovered here}

For a classy sunshade to lay under this summer..

{discovered on pinterest, buy here}

And my latest obsession of swimwear, it is a comfortable suit that is made well, covers all the right places (no adjusting ladies) so it fits like a glove.. 

{SEAFOLLY}

Ying or Yang

It's always a choice between the two and it will be half the fun learning which we love as we live with our ying or yang (dark or light) for the next few years.. White doors vs. dark stain or painted black (interior) doors?  Here's a few that give me thought..

 {picture via cote de texas.. she's insightful & here in tx!}

{via pinterest}

{Nate Berkus}

Also a recent discovery.. a fun new magazine I need to subscribe to.. Modern Luxury Interiors Texas, see if there is one in your area!

{see it here}

Preparing my cocoon

In the near furture we are going to build a home of our own (excitement and glee sounds streaming through my mind!).  And the one place I want to begin my design nucleous is in the kitchen.  I think I have narrowed down much of my design choices..

• Dark large plank wood floors
• Black pane windows (as big as the builder will allow)
• White walls (until we are bold enough to try other options)
• Paint grade doors (black I think)
• White moldings

Sound boring?  I know, as I read it I feel the same way, but it's how I use it, as a base to show off the things that will really matter in our home.  I want it to be timeless & with all my many moods of home decor a constant background will make it beautiful.

Where I am perplexed though is the bathroom floors.  Should I keep the wood floors flowing into them or be more savvy with a slate or other natural stone?  I prefer natural surfaces versus a man made but there are so many great & affordable options these days to be to quick to rule that out.. in my findings thus far a smooth slate is what excites me the most, plus with a young family and wear and tear it will recieve it may be the better choice.

Back to the kitchen.. I think I like a white kitchen, you want it to feel clean and sanitary and white is that classic clean look.  I would like to include a butcher block, carrerra marble {as long as I'm brave to the stains etc..}, and unique {possibly brass} hardware most likley a stainless steel again sanitary finish.

Here are some pictures I've collected on pinterest that are apart of my happy place.

{I love the windows and overall simplicity this room has. 

It gives my white kitchen a run for the money..stainless steel cupboards is another great idea}

{rustic yet modern and organized..}

{I have admired countertops that continue down the side}

{a great show off and use of space to have the bakers rack to the ceiling}

I am on the hunt and still gathering ideas..

What is on your homes dream list?

time to come around for a little hello..

hello.
So life has taken coarse and some fun is in the midst of all things creative.. pinterest sure keeps everyone now up and in the know but it's still comes down to personal taste and putting it all together.  Definitely anyone can copy a room.. I mimic rooms all the time.. but.. designing was born in me and if you have a talent, you should share it so I am on the endevor of building my own design business.  Starting small with a name first then with your help and the few I have spent time redeigning I can grow up, in design terms naturally.. 


So here goes to the up and coming the new and the now, with a a bit of history mingled in.. Happy 2012 one and all.

It's the weekend!

{DL & Company}

Thoughts like this should be running through my head.. happy spooking and halloween preparations..


We are trying to get costumes together.. and enjoying the crisp weather outside..

{MARTHA}

Enjoy your weekend..

k