not so cookie cutter

Hallway upgrade!

2011-05-19T11:24:00.000-05:00

My kitchen nook is getting closer to coziness! Here it is in its drab before - 2.5 years of being in limbo.

First year:
(nevermind - I can't find any pics from the first year)

Second year after painting the walls:

Boring, weird colors and completely out of scale - go ahead and say it cuz I know it! Sadly it remained this way until about 2 months ago. Inside my green stands, I kept all my photo prints, random knickknacks, tools, ribbon, and worm feed & compost teabags - yup, a huge smorsgasbord! (ok, it's really bugging me that I can't spell that word! I am an AWESOME speller!) I was starting to outgrow the drawers, plus the stands were way too small and green for that space.

Now, here it is with things a bit more IN scale and I couldn't be happier. It started with just the yellow dresser. Then I found the mirror, but the mirror was left on the floor for THE LONGEST TIME! Hanging the mirror has kept me giddy for about 2 weeks now! :D

Want to know how much it cost me to upgrade this tiny section of the house? :D I'm pretty excited! Ok, here it goes:

Yellow dresser - $25
Gold framed mirror - $7.99
Everything else - already had! I especially love my iron pineapple for $9.99!
TOTAL upgrade: $32.99

Yay!

xoxo, isabel

The Olivers

2011-01-09T10:30:00.000-06:00

love the chandelier, headboard, and touches of glam

D Home Magazine recently featured the lovely home of Jamie Laubhan-Oliver and Larry Oliver located in the historic Cedars neighborhood of Dallas. To read the whole story go here! All photography–the amazing Manny Rodriguez.

black ceiling??! YES!

i SO want a wood-planked wall!

there's something about pretty metal wastebaskets

Thanks to Rue magazine Issue 2 for showcasing the home of Dallas blogger, Atlantis Home, whose way eccentric home deserves a post of its own! Perusing her site, led me to uncover how un-cookie-cutter DHome really is! I've always admired their covers, but felt it was too uppity for me to ever buy, but it really is a great resource for getting to know a little more about how suburban areas can throw caution to the wind and thrive on uniqueness and local shops.

I'm looking forward to getting to know my area better! A budding "designer" has got to have her little black book of resources and here's an easy, risk-free start. I even looked at their job opening/internships to see if they could use a photographer =). They have a listing, but they don't recommend full-timers to go for it. Maybe I'll try for it in the summer! (I have GOT to stop making excuses and just GO for it, sacrifices and all!)

xoxo, isabel

Jocelyn's Mama Pics!

2010-09-01T18:26:00.000-05:00

My friend, Jocelyn, was so nice to let me take her maternity photos! I emailed her back in July with "I'm still not very good, but..." She looks SO GREAT for 7+ months - I hope I look as good as her whenever I have a bun in the oven!

At the session, I found myself doing a LOT of poses, which I wanted to stay away from. I wanted more creative, in-the-moment, unique shots, but for my first time around I got some beautiful images. I always leave shoots feeling really disappointed. "I was so nervous. I gave horrible directions. I wasn't as funny and fun as I wanted to be. I did a lot of boring poses. I take too long." Then I start seeing my images opened up nice and big on my computer and R walks through them with me. He always helps me pick out the standout ones and tells me why they're good or how they can be improved. His artistic eye is soooo wonderful to have! I feel a tad better after that =). My pictures are typical for now, but more practice and I'll get more creative once I stop thinking so much about the technicalities of everything!

I can't wait to do more! Here's Jocelyn!

xoxo, isabel

Jon's Boston Retreat

2010-08-19T21:36:00.000-05:00

My cousin Jon just got his teaching degree (YIPPEE!) and is onto a bigger and better rental house! I'm so jealous that he lives in Boston :D

He wanted help designing his room and who did he call on? ME!!! It's been a little slow and more challenging since we're doing everything virtually - but he's been amazing even with his insane schedule! He says, "Overall, I don’t want something too modern and sterile. I want something that’s very homey with a lot of warm colors that will be relaxing to be in." Add in some dark furniture and no painting, and we got ourselves started!

Here's what I sent him before I left for Hawaii. It's been about 4 weeks now and I need to check back in with him to see how its coming along! The first couple are his inspiration "moodboard" (i kinda hate that word; need to find a new term) and the rest are layout options. Can you tell which one I like best? haha!

I am loooving google sketchup! Sometimes, it's very difficult to use as I know nothing about CAD drawings and axes and uploading (which it isn't), but I made it work for me :). I ESPECIALLY love the ability to rotate to any angle - amazing. Nice little touch to add the person in for scale, huh?

Well, first design project part 1 done! Now it's time to make him some pillows and make it homey after a long day of outrageous 15 year old physicists.

Much thanks, Jon!
xoxo, isabel

going baking crazy!

2010-07-09T11:40:00.000-05:00

This week I've been busy! First, I started my photo-styling project with some food, because naturally, I was hungry! Craving a little protein, but not wanting to bust out meat, I boiled some eggs and decided to photograph them shoddily :D

See, I told you. No, really, you can say it! It's ridiculously stupid.

Then I started on my zig zag pillow because I realllllly wanted to knock-off some expensive-ass pillows for super cheap and my living room needed a new color scheme. Pictures and post to come!

Twinkle Living

All of a sudden, I went baking crazy. Dad's birthday is on July 4th and I was really craving brownies, so Congos ensued. They are a little chocolate chip cookie in a brownie consistency - delish! My lil bro helpfully played styling assistant, but that quickly led to "I want to see how high I can stack them!" and getting his almost-black-tan hands all over them. Oh high school boys :) Dad also on a whim stuck his face in the shot -silly.

I made some OFF THE HOOK banana-berry muffins last weekend for the other family. Sooo perfectly baked, they were moist, dense, lots of flavor without overpowering yummyness! Gone in 1.5 days means make another batch! And this time, style them :) They weren't as perfect as the first batch, but still down-right good and GREAT for my lil project. I didn't even get laughed at by R.!

Finished the pillow - learned a lot of mistakes and wrote them down to prevent the next one from being too shabby. And then, had a strong desire to make puffy pastry dough by hand :) What goes well with that? Hmm...apple turnovers, neopalitans, maybe cream puffs?!

look at all the layers I created!!! 'Scuse the nasty picture.

Lastly, I went on a mock trash the dress photoshoot last night. Took some horrible horrible pictures, made some more friends, and heavily doctored up some images to see if they were salvageable. Downtown Dallas looks GREAT at night! I want to go back for more, especially in the walkway where Campisi's is. Molly - you know you want to come with!

That's a wrap! I just contacted a friend to see if she wanted maternity pics and am going to email a coworker about her 6 month old. I need to get more practice and I need to get myself out there! Scary!

xoxo, isabel

heart skips for: cannelle et vanille

2010-07-06T16:00:00.001-05:00

Ok, dumb-butt (myself), why have I not favorited anything on flickr??!! Whilst checking my flickr stats, I clicked on Elaine's favorites and found this amazing pasty chef who self-taught her food styling and takes amazing photographs. She started with a Canon Rebel XT (which I embarrassingly still have) then upgraded to a 50D and now uses a 5D. Seeing as how I just bought a new film slr, I guess I'll need to wait a bit for a new dslr =D.

See, here I go again - back and forth on this film vs. digital pov! How do I want to distinguish myself as a photographer? We'll see as I keep playing around.

Anywaz, Aran's photographs are lovely! She is amazing; check her out here!
Aran @ cannelle-vanille
*Aran, I'm sorry if you found this by accident! I tried emailing you to ask for permission on your photos, but it bounced back! I love your work!!!*

and please check out my own right here - I had so much nerdy fun! :) I realized today that it's time to look for some linens and distressed wood surfaces to add to my accessories store! :)

ok, now I really want to take my photos down after a quick up-scroll, down-scroll to compare pics with Aran...bleh

xoxo, isabel

heart skips for:

2010-07-05T17:04:00.000-05:00

ok. I WANT TO BE A PHOTOGRAPHER and stylist. It doesn't matter what I'm looking at - food, interiors, products, babies, weddings, animals...it all comes down to the photography and styling for me.

here

[emersonmade, prettygoodmary, emyah, ohhellofriend, joylicious]

I love all the tiny details that others regard as silly but can actually *make* the shot. Get off my back if I want my cupcake wrapper folded neatly down as a doily for my cupcake! Save your comment if you're about to tell me that the blanket I'm about to drape over this chair is pointless. Forget rolling your eyes at me as I position my favorite bowl in the background. Stand back yee negativitors! yes, i know that's not a word, spell check.

I NEED to make use of my cameras better. Yes, I have more than one great camera. But what is there to take pictures of?! Bah, humbug - NOTHING! Seriously!!! I want to photograph things of mine, but I don't make/design/do anything. I spend 95% my summer days browsing the blog-o-sphere, falling in love with what other people do. Quite depressing. So I'm starting a list; an A-Z list which I often use in my 3rd grade classroom :) The theme is: "style-able". Leaving it open to interpretation. We'll see how that goes...with that big, broad theme...check back in a few days when I start shooting!

An easy "style-able" is food. I love food styling as mentioned here. I don't cook a lot though I enjoy it; I have been known to make something, just so I can style it and photograph it!

[ hummingbird cake by yourstruly-100% film]

the print is STUNNING; ignore the scanned res. & too thin icing layer in the middle

It's the most accessible thing to me! Food changes daily, has many components to it, it's colorful, straight from nature, and makes people salivate even if the photography isn't great. Sharing a meal together is beautiful! Preparing it - fun, a labor of love. I do feel wonderful when someone says, "oh-my-god, this is soo good; the best you ever made". Cooking is soo much easier to not mess up than decorating a room. :)

I love the feeling of giving something that I made, to somebody and bringing them some sort of happy sustenance.

If it's cooking, a gift, decorating, a wow picture of them, whatever!

Food, is not my passion though; however I think that if I had more friends and threw more get-togethers as well as my $ out the window, it could possibly get high up there. Anybody in?

Back to photography, I would REALLy like to stick with film because I want to KNOW the technicalities of a camera and know them well. It will distinguish me from my friends who, are obviously great, but are editing their photos. I want to not edit :D Film slows me down to think about the shot instead of taking 100 nasty digital pictures to get one that's decent and manipulatable (sp:?). However, I can't get past the convenience , free-ness (so easy to just delete), and speediness of a digital file...

[film master: Jonathan Canlas]

Thoughts, anybody?

Sorry for the semi-giddy with excitement yet debbie-downer post. In the meantime, check out a friend from college who is working that camera! I have quite a few photo talented friends like Jason Huang of Table4Photography and my bestie, Elaine :) Joy though, she's something! Check her out and bring a napkin to dab away your drool!

http://joylicious.net/

xoxo, isabel

photo of the day series

2010-07-05T08:00:00.001-05:00

Dear 25 year old Isabel,

Today, it is Saturday, July 3, 2010 around 10:43 pm. You just spent your 8th day in a row on your computer from rise-time to bed-time. You were inspired, you liked a lot of things you perused, your heart strings got pulled on. You pissed off your boyfriend by saying "coming from you who slept all day" when really you're just pissed at your own valiant efforts at wasting time and life. Then you decided to vacuum cat fur off couches while revisiting a quote that said "A clean house is a sign of a wasted life", and said, "Damn it, I'm going to finish covering my kitchen chairs" to come back from buying staples to realize the staple gun's jammed and no efforts of will cure it. So you got back on your lovely Macbook Pro and again were inspired, tugged on, decided to go comment crazy on Facebook to feel like you had a life and friends, found Joy "Jangles" Zhang doing awesome things and then you got majorly defeated.

Well, you have 28 days before your summer ends with a trip to Hawaii! You just made an A-Z list of things you'd like to style and photograph until that glorious trip to paradise. Put the "non.cookie.cutter" interiors stuff on hold and pick up that camera. You've got a daily project to wake up to now :) Make paper flowers, pick up pretty tea cups and towels, order b/w film, wake up early to use daylight - you've got a photoshoot to style!

Don't forget to post your pictures to ffffound, tastespotting, http://foodgawker.com/, craftgawker, and weddinggawker

And then later, if you're REALLY conceptual, you can try a 365 self-portrait project like this amazing girl 7 years YOUNGER and better than you! You really like her outfits and find her to be extremely gorge

xoxo, isabel

Curtains are IN

2010-07-02T08:51:00.001-05:00

Well, at least in this household. I've always been scared of window treatments for the price they cost and for all the different styles, patterns, colors - I just can't choose!!

We've been living without them since we moved in. The first thing we did was take down the previous owners ugly green and burgundy curtains. We moved the green to the dining room and it was unbelievable how much of a green hue it gave the living room. With it gone, the living room breathed fresh! So now, I'm looking for new curtains to keep the fresh, airy, bright look, but I need it for two purposes:

* Add style of course! (This is gonna be a toughie =/ I have no direction)

* Reduce glare on the TV

Here's the room that I'm working with. I wish the windows had finished casings, but that's another story or project :). The top windows are the problem ones; I'm not too worried about the blinds.

I don't think sheer white will take out the glare, so maybe a darker fabric on top and white on the bottom? Not a fan of color blocking, but...eh? Might be ok?

here

then I thought maybe just some roman shades on the top and sheer curtains on the sides?

other eye candy from Meg Ryan's home

ok, no window treatments here, but love the ottoman and pineapple table :)

plain white?

same couch color as mine 'cept the walls are white! Now I want to repaint :)

My walls are a sandy color and while I love it, I don't love it with the couch or with the kitchen table.

i like this loft :) and its colors like the orange rug :)

or something CRAZY?!

i'm tired of searching and not particularly loving any of my choices sooo - i'm out!

xoxo, isabel

Lonny - June/July 2010

2010-07-01T10:12:00.000-05:00

Lonny is a relatively new magazine designed out of necessity from all the shelter mags folding (aka Domino). Instead of being a glossy, it's a screeny published online beautifully! Michelle Adams and Patrick Cline (can I be your FRIEND?!) founded it together and it is AMAZING! Every product in the magazine is provided with DIRECT links to their source - you can't do THAT with print! What a lot of work and love they put into that. Patrick does all the photography - sigh - I'll work for you! Plus he shoots film! Michelle is an inspiring organic textile designer who started her own line, Rubie Green, before starting Lonny. WOW, WOW, WOW. I had been following her blog, MA Belle, for some time now, and LOVED her apartment featured in Real Living. I wish I could be that talented and successful as her and him! I think they are a couple now after he shot her place for Real Living?

I read the first issue and waited in anticipation for it to come out and then unfortunately didn't keep up with the next couple issues. But I'm back and determined not to miss a single issue after learning my mistake with Domino!! (I only have maybe 2 issues of D?) Here's what I loved!

beautiful photographs, yummy creations

Dominique Browning, ex-editor in chief of House and Garden Mag

GREAT article on her!

great outdoor seating! comfy yet stylish!

Jayson Home and Garden

so true, Bunny Williams!

hey, we have that art book!

love the punchy flowers, interesting table

the Iconic Bunny Williams

i gotta have that mirror with wall color and floor combo!

keep an eye out for those chairs at thrift stores!

Lee Kleinhelter, owner of Pieces

what a BEAUTIFUL, classy, unique changing table!!! I love the grasscloth wallpaper and the paneling on the piece! sigh-natural textures + white = one happy girl!

Lee Kleinhelter, owner of Pieces

um, yes, I agree 1000% with that statement!

(i want a LIL more color though in this room)

Lee Kleinhelter, owner of Pieces

not entirely a fan of this, but I've been seeing this table everywhere from magazines to stores to thrifting...

Elizabeth Bauer

wowzers, patterns and graphics all pulled together in one small studio!

I'm debating on shades like these or curtains for my living room...

love the wallpaper, the mirror, the pink touches, and the sea of white :)

couldn't live too long with that wall though =/

Elizabeth Bauer's Grammercy studio

yes, i need this how-to badly. thank you, Liz

oh, crisp color palette how i adore you!

i'll take the greek key towels with the green drum and the b/w beach photos

I also needed this! Thanks Ethan and Ari!

taped wallpaper in a rental - clever! go Editorial Assistant to Lonny, Ellie Somerville!

i want the closet curtains!

Ellie Somerville

*gasp* stunning against the white wainscoting!

Dolby and Frist Hamptons House

I was thinking of going navy curtains after seeing this...

this screams "jump on me and chill!" and totally reflects the above quote about walking into a space and feeling comfortable.

Dolby and Frist

hmm, good use of crazy ceiling angles! I like the grayblue paneling, the lighting ON the mirror, and the seemingly easy to DIY mirror framing. I've had "frame mirrors" on my project list for awhile now and was looking at all this ornate molding at Lowes, but now I think I just want flat like this for the time being! That is, until I find some awesome mirrors with character at some beautiful parisian market.

p.s. i really like the balled tree that i can't remember the name of...

i started writing a bunch about this kitchen, but decided it was meant to have only one response:

*sigh*

Dolby and Frist, designer: Cafiero

tufted ottoman in my fave color! Here's an example of how Lonny LINKS to EVERYTHING!!!!

Deborah Lloyd's home - co pres. of Kate Spade

I would move here in a heartbeat with friends living around the corner. I love coastal houses that utilize shingles!!!!!

Dolby and Frist

pretty styling. i love the left side more. How about the RANGE?!! and the beadboard paneled doors with the very black granite. yummy! I'd cook all-day in here!

Deborah Lloyd

Now, go check out the full issue yourself, here!

Other features i liked:

* Rickshaw Designs has a spread!

*Jayson Home and Garden

* Bunny Williams' beachy Boys' Room

* Lee Kleinhelter's spaces

* ikea shelves as a closet

* Deborah Lloyd's Highland Lake house - this house is perfectly not.so.cookie.cutter!

i need a project!

2010-06-29T16:08:00.000-05:00

i need a project - i'm so freakin bored outta my mind!!!

xoxo, isabel

i heart EmersonMade.

2010-06-29T14:40:00.000-05:00

sigh, i heaaaaart emersonmade! I love the clothes, i love the styling, i love the photography, i love their font and colors, i love the blog style, i love their farm, i love how the two of them look together! my heart literally skips a beat every time i visit! even years later - i've been following for awhile. did i mention that i love the clothes? and you have got to check out their house. i want to be as creative and handy as they are! what a power couple!

i want.

all images via emersonmade.com

xoxo, isabel

Choosing Paint - Elaine's House

2010-06-28T10:53:00.001-05:00

So I'm finally back from my favorite Texas city - Austin! I went down to help my friend paint her new house and do some shopping with her! I must say, I was very impressed with how quickly she chose her paint colors and how spot on we loved them! Probably because I failed when I was trying to choose gray for my house - boo. Paint testers were very much our friends, although the $3 price tag for each was a bit saddening.

Sharky Gray

Elaine started with Martha Stewart's Sharky Gray as her main color. She realized that she wanted something lighter and more of a true gray than the warm sharky that looked beige in certain rooms. So we went back to Home Depot and while I shopped for other things, I told her to go back to the chips and find a shade 1-2 shades lighter than her sharky. She came back with nimbus cloud - beautiful! Very light, true gray! I was so impressed with it that I wanted it for myself!

Shadows and diff lighting make the gray very versatile and actually is cooler than warmer. I suggested she bring the gray all the way to the arch in the kitchen and maybe paint the backyard wall in the living room a semi dark color to give a receding effect. The problem is that the room was already naturally dark and she wanted to lighten it as much as possible. We ended up doing two walls in her gray and will do the other walls in a shade lighter. In the dining room she wanted a wow factor on the first wall you see walking in. So she had some great modern canvas art picked out that was really colorful, as well as some bw photographs. We switched out the bw from the focal wall with the colorful pieces and pulled colors from it for paint ideas. She also wanted to make sure the color would make the existing curtains complementary. She ended up choosing Behr's Saffron Strands for her focal wall. I LOVE the rich color and it does so much for the artwork, her dining table/chairs, and other aspects of her room. Such a modern, happy, energetic and comfortable color!

nimbus cloud and saffron strands

The last color she chose was for an accent wall in her bedroom. She went with Martha's Artesian Well which was a softly bright light blue. It was a bit bright and blue for her so she toned it down with some primer (hehe). Ultimately, she wishes it had a bit more pale green in it like a sea glass blue (we saw a house that had the color she wanted), but it'll do for now! And if she ends up wanting to change it later, she now knows how to do it herself!

Some tips when choosing paint:
* go with testers and test in areas where there are different lighting/shadows
* live with the testers and see it in daylight, nighttime, with lighting, etc.
* walls are best painted in an eggshell or flat finish; it gives richness and depth. Any other finish will appear too shiny and make your house look like you didn't know what you were doing, and not to mention shiny can sometimes look cheap :)
* ceilings are always painted with a flat finish. Different builders use different "white paint" for ceilings so hopefully you have a can leftover in the garage that you can try to color match, or like Elaine just paint over it all with a beautiful brighter white!
* label your paint cans with what room you used them in for both yourself and any other owners that come after you. (I can't remember what my paint color is now and it's driving me nuts!!!) Or you can write the brand and paint name on a piece of tape and place it behind your light switches.

Elaine's paint wishes:
- airy, brighter feel, neutral, gray, pops of color

Before

You can see the gray in the kitchen
can you spot saffron strands on the wall?

After

amazing what a deeper shade will do!

sigh, this color makes me happy - she gets GREAT morning light... for about an hour :)

How do you think she did? I would say stop by her blog and drop her a comment, but she doesn't have one so comment here! We've been talking about blogging together with a focus on interiors, styling, and food, so you just might see her on here soon! In fact, I'm going to call her right now to get on that! :) Nothing like working with someone you love on something you both looooove!

Mini Office

2010-06-16T20:30:00.000-05:00

Here's my "normal" office that I really do not use very often. I cheated and put in a nicer chair just for the picture - don't judge :) My green desk makeover sits happily here, but I'm tempted to boot it over to the window once the couch leaves.

Most days though, my "office" is in the living room! (the joys of owning a laptop!) Today, it looked like this:

My lovely assistant, Miss Springsteen

Happily blogging now! See?

* I'm off to Austin tomorrow to help my bestie with her new house! I'm pretending it's like my first design job! We're only painting, but still! I hope to do lots more while I'm there!

xoxo,
Isabel

Stealing Headboards

2010-06-15T08:54:00.000-05:00

ok, not really stealing them, but stealing the look and construction of headboards because I want to make my own! I'm not willing to shell out $400+ for headboard and another $400+ for the rest of the frame. No thanks.

I used to think I would go for an ornate, loopy shape like these:

all via Beach Bungalow 8

* I really like the naked one! Hmmm...plus the J.Adler and Nate Berkus'...sigh!

Design*Sponge

*Grace, you are amazing, can I be you?

*sigh, i adore this room every time!

House Beautiful

Apartment Therapy

Room Service

Drapery Design blog

Nate Berkus found @ So Haute

I also like rectangular frames - but not as much.

one headboard, three bedding styles

Country Bed Shop

*Good templates to try yourself!

But then I found THIS - yeah, take a moment - and I LOVE!

Drapery Showcase

: tufting : check!
: shapely : check!
: plushy : check!
: stylish : check!
: feminine : check!
: unique : check!
: neutral : check!
: flexible : check!:
: and a major dose of masculine for the man : check!
: diy-able? : chhhheck?

How would you even make this?!? I'm thinking do the border and tufting portion first as one piece and have it stapled where the scrollwork is. I would take out foam/batting where the scrollwork is. Add buttons for tufting, then place the scrollwork on to cover the staples and use the nailheads to cover scrollwork messiness. Corners will take some work!

I still love those ornate headboard shapes - I can't decide!

Where to Begin?!

2010-06-14T15:00:00.002-05:00

Rickshaw Design by Catherine Fitzsimmons.

I want all three to be my color palette for my house! I really adore all of them, but I think the last one is too pink for interiors, so I'll go with the first! This is when I wish our couch was white, light, or gray instead of dark tan - bleh.

After reading Julie's post on where to begin when designing, let's talk about why I like them!
* COLORFUL but not overwhelming
* classy, a bit of that country/coastal/beachy but can easily be glamourized
* graphic prints and patterns that are refreshing yet somewhat timeless
* breezy, effortless, comfortable but packed with style
* lots of white!
* it screams happy to me too :)
* playful, modern, bright, grounded
* alright...the more I look at it, the more country it's getting and I'm not liking that look for my interiors...

2. figure out your foundation colors and your pops

3. find pieces that have one adjective and one color. So I'm thinking lots of white - it really shouldn't be a pop, it should be a foundation color so maybe white sheer curtains with one of the tops as a window shade or side stripe on the curtain. definitely patterned pillows in these colors, and a navy tufted ottoman that will serve as a coffee table.

Rickshaw by hydrangea on Polyvore.com

what do you think? too much? too childish? not elegant enough?

Finding Treasure

2010-06-14T06:00:00.001-05:00

I went to my local resale store to see if I could find some new projects. The bathroom and living room design is overwhelming me, I realized I was no good with designing with fabrics while at Joanns, but I'm still itching for some creativity, so I turned to furniture! Here's what I found!

{ Cute organizer for a desk! Picture it painted glossy with a cute pattern/color lining the inside.}

{These would look great sprayed silver or oil rubbed bronze and installed as vanity mirrors. Add iron tilting hardware and bea-ut!}

{I picture this glossy red. or turquoise. maybe yellow with glass knobs. I would also paint the recessed panels a darker shade. Not for $180 though.}

{blurry and sold. not bad. hate the hardware...}

{ Potential vanity. Replace the fan drawer with a plainer front, change out the hardware, paint, add a carrera marble top and done!}

{I put a sold sign on this one - for $80 why not? Then I was told no when I got home...Dining room china cab? Bedroom dresser? Take off the doors and there are 3 sliding drawers. GREAT top surface!}

{Decent nightstand I thought! But I didn't want to pay $35 for it}

{I thought about upholstering this in velvet and tufting it :). It's too small for my giant couch though}

{West Elm Parsons look-a-likes right?? RIGHT! Add some wood to make the legs taller, screw them together, lacquer it, and you got yourself a double parsons fit for an office!}

{Not so bad looking}

{Someone is using these somewhere - sold}

{Take off the doors to reveal shelves, change the hardware to Anthro knobs or horizontal pulls, restain it, what do you think?}

{What a great kitchen island!! Or craft table! This piece is SOLID and beautiful!}

Is the design world tricking me into thinking these are great pieces? Cuz sometimes, I don't trust what I'm imagining...maybe they are just straight up U-G-L-Y? Anybody? Well, I walked out with none of them, but some of these! :)

{an iron pineapple that I turned into an accessory/card stand $5}

{a beautiful iron cookbook stand, adjustable, with weights! $10}

{glass textured bowl $0.50}

{a new tool tin $0.50}

{vases/new sponge holder $0.50 each}

{urns - will change the color - $0.50-$1.00}

Two

2010-06-12T16:30:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday Springsteen! You're 2! Who would've thought this fuzzball would turn into the best looking cat ever?! or a tinsel tree attacker? I love your orange ears, your orange raccoon tail and your orange freckles!

Serena and Lily

2010-06-12T10:12:00.002-05:00

Charlotte Crib Bumper

I love this color combination!

Elaine's House - Kitchen

2010-06-10T14:23:00.000-05:00

My bff just bought a house and she let me play around with the kitchen! Can't wait to do more and get my design savvy on! It's not the best, but what do you think? :)

before

after

* I learned a lot of cool photoshop things on accident during this! *

Light Bathrooms

2010-06-08T13:58:00.003-05:00

Our project this summer is the master bath! I'm surprised too seeing as how there is absolutely NO style anywhere else in the house! But, it's because our shower tile has mold that just won't go away so R. wants to replace. Sorry for the grossness! He says we could replace the floors too! So I've gathered some inspiration photos. Stay tuned for my moodboard!

here

I love the dark floors and accents in this bath. Gotta love me some black trim and natural light streaming through! That mirror!

here

David Jimenez

I like the cleanliness of this bathroom, the white subway tile, marble and the enclosed glass shower!

Garden - Days 2 and 3

2010-04-02T11:42:00.004-05:00

Day 2:
1. We removed 3 trees and transferred to R's parental's yard. They're yard is looking like paradise now!
2. We weeded; man do I hate weeds!
3. We shoveled and dug the ground out so that the beds would sit level.
4. Then dug out the ground on the inside so that it would be level.

Day 3:
1. Finished digging out the ground with a tiller - MUCH easier!
2. We took the dirt and used it to fill in the site for our rain barrel, plus to fill in the gaping holes where the trees used to be. We'll use those places for butterfly and bee attracting plants as well as some berry bushes. YUM!
3. I planted all my above ground seeds in random things to get them started: 2 kinds of cucs, 2 kinds of tomatoes, 2 kinds of green beans, peas, limas, cilantro, green onions, broccoli and cauliflower. I saved the root plants and lettuce plants for when the beds are finished.

R is really wanting to grow some watermelons and canteloupe :) That should be exciting!

My only thing now is to figure out a way to cheaply reproduce these plants so that I don't need to keep buying more seeds/plants. Check out this lady, Sharon Tregaskis, who's been producing lots just from a budget of $75! I've already spent way more than that! I read about her in my Organic Gardening magazine...I'll try to find a link later...

Garden - Day 1

2010-03-28T19:31:00.000-05:00

So I've been planning and researching for this backyard garden for awhile now; even have a whole document to maintain my resources (lame!)

After a few days of phoning businesses for the best prices - with a mid day break of frustration crying - we got some supplies to get us started on the frames; knowing that the rest of the supplies would be picked up soon.

Supplies:
- 10 pieces of 2x10x8 lumber
- 32 really long nails (maybe 2 inches?)
- 4 packs of L-brackets with screws included (4 in a pack)

1. We cut 4 pieces of wood into 4 ft. long pieces
2. Predrilled holes, then hammered nails in to attach the frame
3. Then attached L-brackets to the insides. Easy peasy!

Here they are being positioned in the byard.

Mid-2o's Crisis!

2010-03-26T23:54:00.005-05:00

Welcome to my blog! I'm Isabel, a teacher by day and a couch potato dreamer by night.

So I've been doing some soul-searching for awhile now, feeling really lost as to who I am and what I want to accomplish with my life. How and when will I feel successful with the life that I'm living? I know "success" is different for everybody, so I guess success to me means being wanted for something only i can give. Or recognized for a specific talent that I can share to other people. Sometimes, I measure success as simply having more than one strong friendship or really connecting with my students. Ultimately, it comes down to my heart feeling like its missing some sort of connection. Like my whole mind and body is off because something is missing. I'm just lost. And I strongly believe that I am keeping myself in this lost state.

Over the years, I have realized that I...
1) dream big
2) rarely follow through
3) have too many interests so I lack focus
4) talk myself out of too many things

Here's a good example: I asked R. today if he was tired of me talking about photography all day. He replied, "No. <pause> You'll just be talking about something else tomorrow." And he is so right! See what I mean?

madebygirl
If I listed all the things I wanted to dapple in, it would look like this: (in no particular order)
- wedding photography
- lifestyle photography
- photo styling
- gardening
- cooking & baking
- interior designing
- graphic design
- magazines
- hosting

Funny enough, these are relatively the same thoughts I had when I was 8. I used to say I would one day own a huge warehouse where it was split off into different sections and floors - one part for each of my loves. The sad part - I'm still dreaming about them, and not doing anything to get any results. I read and know of so many people who are around my age or YOUNGER who have achieved creativity and are already successful. I won't lie - jealousy strikes me hard while at the same time I get SO inspired and encouraged to just get off my ass and to go for it! It's really strange; I feel rejuvenated yet dread. There's like a pit in my stomach that tells me, "What's the point? You don't have the personality to be successful in photographing people. You don't have the "eye" for pulling rooms together. Who is going to care about your straight-out-of-the-camera shots when everyone is going digital?" It's quite a battle within. I am keeping myself from living my life to the fullest!!! ICK!!!

So, I'm blogging and sharing my likes in hopes that one or two will turn into LOVES and will give me some clarity and passion. Passionate things still take WORK, so here I am - working it :) I would love for you to join me in the process!

Blog Design

2010-02-21T18:35:00.002-06:00

I think I like my new header?

More designing to come...

...man, I don't like it. It just sounds...LAME.