Friday Find: Thanks!

I've added another one to the list, as if I needed anymore.  I recently discovered the blog, THX THX THX.  She's a girl after my mother's own heart, and has dedicated her blog to thank you  notes...."her daily excercise in gratitude."  Genious.

Some of them are pretty damn great.  Like this one: 

And then some are just witty:

Happy Weekend!



Inspired by the Star

Did you guys watch the latest season of Design Star on HGTV?  Emily Henderson, the winner, is awesome, but some of those designers just flat out sucked.  And I normally love that show, but this one was super frustrating to watch.  I was literally yelling at the tv on sunday nights.  Now I see why Will yells during football. 

Emily has a wonderful blog and a great portfolio.  Her very own living room inspired me to put together a look for my brother-in-law Chip, and his partner, Noel.  I thought it would be fun to design a room for 2 guys without being overly masculine.  They are looking at a similar sofa from restoration hardware which is a classic.  The vintage Red Cross flag is a great alternative to an expensive piece of art, and after searching online, I found that you can purchase them for as little as $20!  I personally love the cowhide rug, but apparently Chip isn't a big fan.  And to think you know someone.

What do you think? 

  

Coop the Snoop (aka Pooper)

We had to say goodbye to our sweet bulldog Cooper this week after a short and tough battle with Reactive Histiocytosis-Cytoma.  It was the hardest thing we have ever had to do. 

He was diagnosed with this rare disease earlier this year.  Our wonderful vet, Dr. Ory, warned us that it was going to be a hard battle to fight.  Because the disease was so rare, and because of Cooper's history and breed, we were experimenting with different medications but couldn't do a full-on treatment.  She was afraid that the side effects would be worse than the disease.  In the end, it was more than his body could handle.

Cooper lived a full and wonderful life. He loved sleeping in the bed, and when he was moved to the floor, he went for the first pile of clean laundry he could find. He loved taking walks around the neighborhood and going to the vet. He was a big fat baby except when it came to protecting his mother, and then he would go for the throat. He loved lying in the sun on the concrete, drooling all over the furniture, and sneaking up on the couch in the middle of the night. He would put himself to bed early every night and would sleep until noon if you let him. He had a wimper that sounded like a little girl and a bark as ferocious as a pittbull. Cooper was famous for melting hearts the minute you laid eyes on him. He touched more lives than he will ever know.

Coop enjoyed getting ice cream from Sonic on his birthday. On November 22nd, he would have been 10 years old. We’ll be at Sonic eating a cup of vanilla ice cream and celebrating his life if you want to join us.

 Cooper Burleson

November 22, 2000 - October 3, 2010

Living Room Redo

I just received my school lessons in the mail.  Time to stick my head in the books....something I haven't done in 10 years.  At the end of the program, I'll have developed a portfolio of 6 rooms.  They ask that you design real-life rooms, either your own or friends.  First up is a living room, so Supawn, you're in luck! 

The only problem I see with this is that real-life redecorating equals real-life money.  I'd like to design plans for friends that would actually implement my designs.  So, if you are thinking about making a few changes in your house, let me know.  You could be the lucky recipient of almost-free decorating plans.  Almost-free only because I charge in red wine right now.  Red wine and a promise that you'll tell all of your friends about me. 

I've been redecorating my own living room in my head now for about a year.  And I think it would be considered cheating if I turned in my plans for school since I put them together before I even started the course.  Here's my design plan that I'm starting to implement. 

I finally put a stake in the ground and ordered the sofa last week. I already own the leather chair (2 of them) and the coffee table that Will made me for Christmas last year.  We are also having built-ins installed next week, so the room is getting a total rehaul.  Slowly but surely, my ideas are becoming reality.  I'll post before and after pictures once I'm done!

Friday Find

I recently signed up for Snooth emails.  Ever heard of them?  I guess I have high hopes that one day I'll become a smarter wine drinker.  Yeah right.   As long as it's red, has a cute label, and is less than $10, it's my kind of wine! 

Most of their articles are okay.  And then last week I got this one.  Now you're talking! 

Six Wines for a Cheap Drunk:  What to pour when you just want to drink

Happy weekend...and happy wine drinking!

Friday Find

I am the type of girl that doesn't have many secrets in my life.  As my boss would say, "I'm very transparent."  Not me, her.  But it applies to me as well.  If you compliment my shirt, I'm likely to tell you that it was only $7.99 on the clearance rack at the Gap.  I'm working on that....I should just accept the compliment, say thank you, and move on.  I just love to share my sweet finds.

And peeps, I HAVE HIT THE JACKPOT on this one!!

As I've mentioned before, I'm redecorating my living room and I've been drooling over the Keaton sofa from Mitchell Gold.  The problem:  It's $2,875, which means the drool quickly dries up and the reality of a toddler and two dogs sets in. 

However, I was reading Little Green Notebook and found a company based out of Nevada called Designer Sofas Direct that makes custom sofas that are almost identical to the big names but for a fraction of the price.  FRACTION PEOPLE.  So, I placed my order this week.  The only catch is that you can't see what you are buying, so I put my trust Launa, the owner, that it's going to be fabulous.

My final price?  $1,324 + shipping.  Yep, I just saved $1,551.  Lori will be so proud!

Back to School

I'm going back to school.  EEK!  This is something that I've been thinking about for awhile and when I found Sheffield School for Interior Design, it was too good to pass up.  So, I registered today.  It's an 18 month course that I can do in my own home.  Think about how much more fun school would have been in our pjs while drinking wine.  Oh wait, I probably did that once or twice in college.  What's great is that I can take up to 3 years to complete it, which will probably be my plan of action considering I have a 2 year old and a full time corporate job.

No, this is not a career change.  Just for fun and maybe some projects on the side (hint, hint).  I do this in my spare time anyway, so why not become more educated on it and possibly make some money along the way.   I put together mood boards just for fun for my make-believe clients.  Sad isn't it?

On another exciting note, my good friends down the street have hired me to do redecorate their master bedroom!!  I'm getting paid in wine, which is as good as gold!  I'll keep you updated on the design process when we get going.  Should be fun!