Bopril

Decorative

I don't think it is wise to underestimate the power of a few artfully placed accessories to really make a place feel like home. We spent a couple of hours last night hanging photos and various pieces of "art" (I use the term loosely as the majority of ours comes from embarrassing stores or flea markets), and instantly, our "comfy home" meter swung heavily to the right. 

Patience isn't my best quality, and I'm inclined to want every single aspect of a place to come together in perfect harmony right from the start. I simply don't understand the ability to move in and unpack boxes slowly over time. I honestly can't live another minute until my things are neatly put away and order is restored to my surroundings. We were essentially fully moved in by the beginning of day 3. Why yes, it IS a total blast to live with and be married to me! Why do you ask?

To that end, a long adored activity which I refer to as "online decorating" has become a treasured guilty pleasure.

I trolled around on a few of my favorite sites to drum up a few "essentials" that I think Casa Carretta really needs.

First, let's discuss rugs, shall we? I adore rugs. You can't have too many, really. And these days, the rugs are getting more and more unique and (mostly) cool. Our bedroom is done in grays and whites and browns, and I think these contenders would fit right in:

We are soon to be the very excited owners of a brand new, quite fabulous couch for the main living room. We ordered it back in the beginning of June, and expect it to be delivered some time around the end of August. I'll have to wait to see it to fully determine what decor will be essential to complement our new staple piece of furniture. It's a grayish brown color (are you sensing a theme here?), so who knows? Perhaps a new rug will be in order along these lines?

I also stumbled upon these adorable framed images which I think would be a perfect fit for our master bedroom:

And while we're on the accessories kick...

I'm pretty much in love with these lamps:

And these vases:

You know what accessory is absolutely essential, but also quite difficult to find? A MIRROR! I think this beauty would work really well in our upstairs half bath:

It's sort of fancy and yet, not really at all. I quite like that quality in a mirror.

I'm having fun conjuring up something like this for the main wall of our downstairs den:

It's quite different from my typical style, but there is something whimsical about it that keeps drawing me back. These lovely oars are having a similar effect (and would work perfectly in our guest room, I think):

I love having something in the house that evokes the water---it's the reason you'll never visit without seeing seashells on display in at least one room. It's my small way of keeping the coastal life central to our daily experience. And no, it's not even close to a replacement for the real thing.

Speaking of the real thing, I honestly can't piece together the right words to describe my delight at this:

I want this on our office wall, immediately. I think I'd spend forever in there, just marveling at the awesome organization.

Bit by bit, we'll make it our own and ever so slowly, the masterpiece in my mind will meet the walls and floors and shelves of our home. That will be a beautiful day.              

Mansions and Boats and Sun -- Yep, I Think I Will

I love homes. I guess I always have -- I can remember noticing them, taking in their details, even as a kid. I've spent a lot of time over the years putting together the various features of my "dream home," changing them often as new trends pop up and new surfaces and designs and schemes pique my interest.

I notice houses everywhere -- I love to walk the fur-babes along my favorite neighborhood streets and gaze at the houses I love, imagining the families inside -- the life they've built in the comfort of a gorgeous brick house or a third floor walk-up or a mid-unit condo. I can get lost in this activity, and I never tire of seeking out new neighborhoods, finding houses to tour, gazing at homes built from scratch and with love.

HGTV is a favorite indulgence -- I love "Design to Sell," and "House Hunters," and any other show that provides the opportunity to peek in the windows of the myriad places people call home.

Needless to say, traveling to new cities dials this up a notch and checking out a place's architectural style is one of my favorite vacation past times.

On our recent trip to Florida, my house-seeing hobby got a most strenuous workout. To say the homes in Ft. Lauderdale and Boca Raton are gorgeous doesn't skim the surface. They are sprawling, opulent, amazing, fascinating, awe-inducing testaments to affluence and architecture -- good taste and top-notch design. Our mouths were gaping open for much of the time that we toured the "neighborhoods" by boat. Lucky for you, we were armed with our camera. Please to enjoy the tour from your front row seat!

There were spanish-tile roofs and palm tree lined corner lots whose backyard was quite literally the water:

 

There were sprawling, modern structures with floor-to-ceiling windows that you can imagine provide a stunning panoramic view from every room in the house:

 

There were behemoths that I thought just might require a zip code of their own:

 

There were intricate details and impressive design:

 

There was impressive landscape design and outdoor space aplenty:

 

And there were unique structures that I wanted to immediately claim as my own:

 

I could go on forever, but I'm not going to, because you guys -- don't even get me started on the boats. Care to come over and ride around on my mini cruise ship anyone?? Behold:

See what I mean? Those are what I believe my brother would refer to as sick. Amazing. I just kept wondering to myself: what do these people do?! (And do they need my help?!)

In case you're wondering though, we did do more on our trip than lust after homes and boats. 

We enjoyed the amazing and much-missed company of good friends:

 

We talked. And talked, and talked and talked:

We imbibed while cruising the open sea (don't worry, with a driver):

We lounged in the sun, read books, ate good food, unplugged for a couple of days -- long story short, we had a hell of a time. And we're ready to go back. Can you blame us?

Thanks Beck & Jason - it was a blast. Pretty please can we have an encore quite soon? xoxo    

 
 

 
 

Keeping it Warm

We just returned from a very brisk walk to Starbucks. In fact, the temps were definitely the coolest we've felt so far this year. The boys shivered the entire way, but we aren't quite yet ready to pull out the coats - not just yet.

I'm still enjoying the weather immensely, but this morning's walk had me thinking that we are probably going to go very quickly (all too quickly) from this:

To this:

 

I am appropriately excited, I assure you.

In any case, the weather has me thinking about all things that signal warmth. In particular (because my brain is hard wired for fashion), I am obsessing over yummy wraps, hoodies, military jackets, blazers, coats, etc.

Here are a few items that might lessen the chill factor as we head straight for snow and ice and frigid temps (pardon the blurriness - grabbing straight from their sites, but you can still get the idea):

Isn't this yummy? Warm belted cardigan from Banana Republic - worn over leggings, skinny jeans, or even sweats. I like...I really like.

How chic is this little guy? Another Banana Republic find. Worn with a soft long sleeved tee layered underneath with jeans and a fabulous pair of boots? Score!   

Classic, sexy and now, thanks to wool lining - warm! Banana Republic does it again - dressing the part is easy with a piece like this.

Classy cardigan from Tory Burch? Yes, please.

Can you even stand it? Dear Tory Burch, I LOVE YOU. That is all.

Makes me want to curl up in front of a fire with a good book and a chai latte. Do you shop at victoriassecret.com? If not, please begin immediately. It's the right thing to do.

I could go on and on, but I will stop for now. I'm feeling better about this winter thing already.

 

These Boots Were Made for Walking (Right into My Closet)

One of my favorite things about fall is the opportunity to pull out the boot collection - and of course, to add to it! I'm knee-deep (pun intended) in research to see what beauties I'll add to my closet this season and I thought I'd share a few of my favorites. Take a look:

 

These beauties are from J Crew and they come in varying calf sizes which comes in handy when you're looking to wear them over skinny jeans.

 

These are from Coach - I love the sleek look and the fun details. In case you can't tell, I'm on the prowl for flat boots this year.

 

Love these classic kickers from Frye. I can see them pulled over leggings, tights and skinny jeans alike. Come to Mama!

 

I like the slouch look too - these are fun and actually quite reasonably priced from the folks at Kenneth Cole.

 

I love everything about these booties from Coach. Look at that hardware detail - I die.

And of course, I'd be remiss not to mention the genius that is the entire collection of fall foot ware at Tory Burch. For some reason, the site won't allow you to grab images, so I suggest you click on over and take a look around for yourself. I promise, you won't be disappointed.

If you need me, I'll be rearranging my closet to make room for new additions. :) What foot wear is making your heart flutter this season?