A Taste of My Posh and Transitional Design

So...as you all know, I have been down in Orange County, madly working on designing a fabulous, contemporary high-rise loft. I even had to extend my stay because two days just wasn't enough! I am so thrilled to show everyone what I have been doing, but won't be showing the "Reveal" for a little bit longer.
I did, however, want to provide a brief glimpse of this project I have been so passionate about. This loft actually happens to be my absolute favorite style of design, and I'm ecstatic to be involved with something with so much flair and personality. The artistic license these clients have given me has allowed my full vision to unfold. It has been an absolute pleasure for me to work on this project.
The "Reveal" will be coming soon!

Blogs I Adore!

Hey everyone! I am sitting here at the Sacramento Airport getting ready to fly to Long Beach for some design work! I wanted to take a moment to share a couple blogs with you that I love love love!

Check out Kristin's blog, she is incredibly talented and has fabulous tutorials for anyone who is interested in starting a blog themselves. In fact, that's how I learned to set up my blog. She also has great remodeling tutorials and a tour of her gorgeous home! Head on over to My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia to see all of her beautiful work!

Kristin from My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia 

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You can also find my cousin's stunning wedding that took place this summer at Elizabeth Anne Designs Blog. She has a ton of wedding DIY projects and features some absolutely fabulous real weddings. Be sure to check out the rest of Matt and Kara's wedding and other incredible weddings for ideas at her amazing blog!

Wedding Pictures above taken by Jen Stewart Photography

I am going to run and catch my flight now, but will be sure to keep you posted on the all of my design adventures in Southern California!

Signing off!

Honey, Horses and Hospitality

I've had the pleasure of meeting really awesome and inspiring people...ordinary people that do the extra-ordinary in their spare time.  I want my readers and friends to benefit from these folks' experiences and wisdom, as I have.

My very first installment features the fabulous Kathy and Jim Foster. They are an inspirational couple that lead a blessed and beautiful life. Their story will demonstrate that you can follow your dreams and have the lifestyle you want.

"What fulfills me is providing a warm and wonderful environment in my home, and serving food. Food for me is an expression of my love." Kathy (above right) is well known for the exquisite presentations of her tables and fine cooking and and her warm way of entertaining.  Everything she touches looks like something out of a Williams-Sonoma Cookbook.

She currently manages the Village Bakery in Calistoga, California, at the top of the World-Famous Napa Valley.  Stop in for a delicious sandwich, a scoop of gelato or fresh baked breads and desserts.

In addition to managing one of Napa Valley's finest bakeries, Kathy and Jim market gourmet honey, artisan chocolates bursting with their gooooooey honeys (available Christmas 2011) and raise some of the world's best Arabian horses.

Jim and his baby, Mozart

Jim has been breeding these beautiful horses for over 40 years. "I want to improve the quality of the horses that I'm raising. Having started out over 40 yeas ago, and still having the same blood in many of the mares that we have, gives us an opportunity to see generational improvement.....there is satisfaction in that." Jim says.

I asked them how in the heck they got into these diverse hobbies and businesses (in addition to their full-time jobs and over a dozen grandkids).  When they found themselves at the mercy of the economy, they decided to look back to their roots. "We decided to do what we know and what we do best...which is honey, horses and hospitality." Jim explained. What is now today's Meadowmont Farm Honey started five generations back. Jim grew up in a family that bred (yes, bred) queens and raised zillions of bees.

After talking to Jim at length about bees, I learned how complex these awesome creatures are. You HAVE to do some study of bees to see what flying little miracles they are!

Another inspiration for getting back into the honey business is to expose their grandchildren to their family history. They wanted to have their family legacy live on.

In their first year, they have used all their spare time to secure bottles, design packaging and market their honey to dozens of local wineries, boutique gift shops, specialty grocery stores and online.

Unlike cheaper table honey that we are all used to, the Fosters offer the finest, purest organic honeys available, such as their premium "Legacy Honey" (Montana Clover), Coastal Sage, Orange Blossom and Star Thistle.

Each honey has a unique look and flavor.  When I tried it I thought.."this doesn't taste like honey...it tastes like golden heaven in my mouth!!"...whatever that means.

Something they said really inspired me.  "It's not about overnight success, it's about the journey and about enjoying every step of the process and blessing others along the way. It can take years and years to get to where you want to be in life but its about enjoying the creation of your dreams."

BONUS TIPS FROM KATHY!
I wanted to share a few very simple and inexpensive ways that Kathy styles her food and entertains others. She re-uses old, fancy vinegar bottles from the Grocery Outlet, fills them with water and a long sprig of Rosemary and always has one on hand, chilled for guests. The rosemary lightly sweetens the water and doesn't compete with other flavors on the table.

Instead of throwing a sandwich in a plastic ziploc bag, Kathy wraps her husband's sandwiches in parchment paper and twine to make even a simple sack lunch a special, loving treat.

She says that it is so important to do the small things to show the people you love how much you care.

To order honey, write to: meadowmontfarm@earthlink.net or call 707-291-9815.

Now...go live YOUR dream!

More Shower and Party Ideas.

Tis the season to have babies! At this point in my life it seems as though everyone I know is having babies...YAY!! I have been working on a few showers this month and wanted to share a couple more with you all. These last two happened to be on the same day! You can take any of these ideas and change them to fit the needs of your party.

 

 

The first party I am showing you is for the beautiful mom, Elissia Copeland. She and her husband Meguel are some of the most wonderful people I have met and both have an incredible design sense. We had a blast setting up this sunny yellow, grey, black and white themed shower!

 

Her very sweet friend Jen, bought two dozen roses from Costco for 15 dollars and we spilt the bouquet up and made five arrangements out of them. She had some fake yellow flowers that we mixed in to save some money. When mixed together, the eye has a hard time picking out the fake ones.

 

 

Short on space? We cleared off her books and utilized her bookshelves to set up the favors, an ice cream bar, game prizes and baby photos. I love using shelves, fruit crates and old desks to create beautiful and functional vignettes.
Elissia served homemade chamomile-chardonnay ice cream and lemon-berry swirled frozen yogurt made by Kelsy Ralston, from her new business, Orange Blossom Ice Cream. Her flavors are totally unique and taste incredible. I will be featuring her soon so you can get some for yourself!

 

Elissia found this gorgeous pitcher (along with another one in a slightly different shape) at the local thrift shop for just a few bucks. They add a sophisticated vintage charm to these very contemporary shelves. 

We placed some of the roses in mason jars to add some character. The second shelf is displaying all of the beautiful game prizes and the bottom shelf has adorable bee hive shaped honey jars that her friend Jen picked out. I stacked them on a simple white tray, added a tin sticker that says "baby" that looks very shabby chic, a big grey bow and some bright yellow flowers to add a pop of color and jazz it all up.

 

Elissia also found this bulletin board for a couple bucks at the thrift shop. I added some flowers to the frame and wrote a quote from her favorite childhood book.

We added some pictures of the mom and dad-to-be to personalize the table. We used my chalkboard ice bucket for beverages. Elissia served sparkling lemonade in sealed mason jars which was inspired by Robyn Bittle (who is an amazing entertainer as well).

 

Elissia made these beautiful paper poms and attached them to her light. Click here for tutorial.

 

I added a little grey bird to the edge of the pedestal to make it look a little like a bird bath.

The next shower I am going to show you was a small family shower for my wonderful cousins, Jenny and Ryan Williams.
We had a fantastic lunch at our favorite Chinese restaurant Yen King.  
I made little wooden hanging signs that said "mom-to-be" and "dad-to-be" on the back of the chairs, to make it extra special.

My extremely talented cousin, Kara McGuire, made adorable place cards and we arranged some mixed bouquets into little vases at each place setting.

I set up an ice cream buffet after lunch filled with sweet delights to top the ice cream. I used vintage platters and glass bowls to serve the treats in.

 

 
Glancing around my grandmother's house, we discovered a collection of vintage white pitchers that we used as vases. To create height, one of the pitchers was placed on a white pedestal. Antique crystal oil cruets were also used as vases to add texture and a different material.

Kara and I found these fantastic wooden blocks at Michaels for only $.99! She had the brilliant idea to use the blocks as Rosemary planters. To make them functional, she drilled holes in the bottom for draining. Not only did they serve as cute decorations, but they also made adorable party favors. She did a beautiful job! I used the fruit crate night stand to creatively display the favors. You might be suprised what you get when you juxtapose rustic and refined elements.
I Hope you were able to get some ideas!!