Monday, November 29, 2010

words for the week

starting a new series today...
a weekly quote.

so, in honor of my last weekend of waitressing for the season:

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i am excited to dig into my "quote book" started in high school
and rediscover some old faves!



Sunday, November 28, 2010

rikshaw's gift guide

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catherine from rikshaw design
invited me back this year for her annual gift-guide round up...

for sprucing up our home for the holidays!

giving thanks

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what a wonderful, joyful weekend
stuffed full of
...
family
food
laughter
beach walks
friends
projects
and
love
...

so VERY much to be thankful for
and
thanks to YOU
i do so love sharing in this space.
xoxo

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

29 wishes

i cannot believe my 29th birthday is a little more than a week away...
i little scary to be entering my last year of my twenties, i have to say.
here is my list of wishes, needs and dreams.
many, not so glamourous, but as a new homeowner
with a to-do list a mile long
this is what is on my mind!
others are truly "in my dreams"
but that's allowed, right!?!
...
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canon 5d * my signature nude: sandy beach * kate's favorites * a couch!
organic king size mattress * gold toms * polka dot love * letterpress for 2011
a pantry full of glass jars * a perfect collection of classics * nellie for my charm bracelet * stylish hoodie
running shorts * livingroom rug * glam china * i'm over my ever-cracked screen
wallpaper for our entryway (3 rolls) * two sconces * yoga tank * first home charm
roller shades for the kitchen * easy eco ambiance * garbage disposal, installed

Monday, November 22, 2010

what a tangled web we weave

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OH, my...
hilarious!
reid and i thoroughly enjoyed this.

i so often crave the simplicity of a life
before the world wide web and social networking sites...


Wednesday, November 17, 2010

beautiful little fool

i was thrilled to hear that
was chosen to portray daisy
in baz luhrmann's
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without a doubt
my most favorite book
of my most favorite class

the memories are still
SO rich-
junior year of boarding school
ms. hannay's english

i would literally run down the walkways and into
the school building
in anticipation of our discussions
of the assigned reading...


what book made you fall deep in love with reading?

girl crush: gwyneth

i am the first to admit
i've totally had a girl crush on gwyneth since the early days
and i know, at times she come across as a total snob in interviews
and some films have been less than stellar...

but last night
on glee...
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she nailed it.
and my heart sang a little.

did you watch?

catch up - sewing class: halloween costumes

i'm a bit behind-the-ball
posting these halloween costumes
my sewing class girls
made
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but
i wanted to get them up before december!
...
the girls spent some time brainstorming
before we started drafting patterns and sewing
and i am blown away at how close to their original sketches the costumes turned out!

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the vampire

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

far far away

i started my
far far away quilt

i actually finished it in a respectable amount of time
but wanted to get a sham done before i took pictures
and that... took awhile.


i had bought a fat-quater set with each print from heather ross' far far away I
from which i cut the squares for the top.
for the back, i used anna maria horner's pastry line voile in water (just girly enough)
far far away quilt

i pieced a strip off-center on the back of the leftover bits from the top...
i included the "far far away" from the selvedges because i thought it added to the whimsy...
far far away quilt

at long last...
a peek at the corner of "tay's room"
(which is also my home sewing room)
far far away quilt
i am so pleased- the quilt reminds me of rainbow sherbet!

Monday, November 15, 2010

house guests

last week was crazy
and i LOVED every minute of it...
(ahhh... a house of our OWN to entertain in!)

amanda, my bff since high school
came for a visit
(we've been trying to make dates work for a very. long. time.)
she is ULTRA-busy with photographing gorgeous weddings and adorable kids

her yellow labbies came long to play with nellie (and the cats)

bernie loved tormenting the wimpy pups...
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finally!
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courage!

...my girl...
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snugglefest with strider and sage
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lloyd is very verbal
(especially at meal-time)
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ok, seriously mom(s)
is it walk-time yet?
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(please excuse the rug we messed while wrestling)

we met up with amy (another one of our high school "fab five")
and her chocolate lab, tiggy
for a gorgeous fall walk
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all the kids
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homecoming...
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SO. good.
seeing you both!

AH- THANKS for making the trek
AQ- until next time...

xoxo

all photos orchardcove

Saturday, November 13, 2010

before+after: GUEST ROOM

(wow! these house posts have been a loong time coming!)

one of the things i really loved about our house when we first took a walk through
was the 3rd floor
two(!) rooms with full-height ceilings, good closet space
and
it was pretty much a blank slate.
Guest Room
(original mls listing photo)
score.

i was anxious to get this space looking good right away-
especially as the larger room was to be the guest room
and my parents were visiting often to help with projects!
we bought paint the same day as our closing and my mom and i got to work...

Guest Room

nellie supervised.
Guest Room
although we had decent hardwood floors up there
they would have had to have been refinished
and it was cold.
i also wanted to be sure the space felt cozy and not that you were sleeping in the attic!
so we decided our major first-year expense would be to carpet the third floor and staircase.

Guest Room
remember those mid-century chairs?
my $10 score at our church fair a few years ago
i kept the green velvet upholstery and refinished the wood.
the chinoiserie lamp/table was my grama's.

Guest Room
bureau: craigslist
funky brass+ acrylic scalloped table lamp: goodwill

Guest Room
the trunk was my "hope chest" which my dad bought at brimfield in the 80's
lamp: homegoods
tissue box cover: design works

Guest Room Guest Room
a few more detail shots
crocheted rocks photo: etsy in ikea frame
high-low bedding mix- quilt: target, duvet: john robshaw

i still have a few more pictures to find frames for
but other than that, i love this cozy
(and a bit girly)
guest get-away!

happy weekend!

too cute not to post
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photo by orchard cove

Anything fun planned?


Friday, November 12, 2010

the big 3-0

i know, i know...
a very pathetic blogging-start to november
but, i promise, it was for good reason!

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reid turned 30!
last weekend
and i had been busy busy planning
a surprise party...
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i was pretty proud of the invite
seeing it had been quite a few years
since i truly tested my illustrator and photoshop skills!
...
i finally made pennant flags
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i did each word individually so that over the years (and when we have kids)
we can add new names or holidays ("easter" etc...)


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guests big
and small
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a peek at the dessert table
and trumpet cake
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(excuse the yet-to-be re-done granny wallpaper)
...
and the next night
we spent in boston
seeing AfroCubism
live
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my very handsome and happy
THIRTY year old husband.


Monday, November 8, 2010

sNOw

woke up to this
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and i'm trying not to let it ruin my week...

i was just at the height of my fall-lovin'-
leaves crunching underfoot
creative layering
maple and pumpkin
an extra hour to snooze
...
but then saturday
a local radio station played nothing but CHRISTMAS music
and the starbucks menu has replaced the pumpkin spice with eggnog and gingerbread
and now
snow.

not. quite. ready.

(melt quickly please, and we'll pretend this never happened)