We have a Breakfast Area

Some furniture is finally trickling in, and here's the first of it – our breakfast table & chairs. The walls and table look at little "naked," but over time it will definitely feel cozier.


It just turns out that everything in our breakfast area happens to be from Crate & Barrel. Featured is the Monroe 48" round dining table, the Epoch chair in Cocoa Tweed and the Finley round, white pendant lamp. I bought all these items at different times having in mind, the central focus will be the dining table.

Originally, I wanted this glass table below in a 48" thick glass with a dark wenge oak base. Not to my luck when I went to purchase it, it was discontinued. :( I liked the base a lot, because it had some angle and design to it.

This other glass dining table is from Design Within Reach, and I just loved the base too, but the price tag was a bit over the budget I wanted to spend for a breakfast table.

However, the Monroe table from Crate & Barrel did the job. No solid glass top which was fine, but the base had some of the interest that I was going for. The construction is actually pretty cool; it utilizes ancient Chinese joinery to hold all the solid chestnut wood pieces together. So this should hopefully last for awhile thanks to the Chinese.

Not Just A Clothing Store

In all my hunts for unique decor for my home, I discovered cool finds in your not-so-typical stores for home goods. These select stores are essentially known for their fun, stylish clothing, but they also carry a "home decor" section that will catch your eyes too. So the next time you want to find something pretty different for your home, definitely check out one of these stores online or in-person.

Urban Outfitters
I am still searching for the perfect accent chair to go with our main sofa, and I have to say Urban Outfitters has some cool ones. They have a great selection of retro, modern accent tables too.


This branch-like jewelry stand is 19" tall and it can be seen as a sculptural piece of art along with being functional. I got one for myself in white, and it looks pretty darn cool!


Anthropologie


They have very stylish, ethnic shower curtains. I got my sister the blue & green bohemian shower curtain on the left-side. I am quite fond of the black and white cherry blossom curtain on the right-side with the colorful accent birds too.


Also, I just love their collection of vintage door knobs! I wish I would've used in them my house, but it's a little too late. I already got all my hardware pulls installed on our cabinets. I like to contrast new and modern furniture with vintage accents such as these ones. Oh well, another time.


H&M
We all love H&M for their very stylish clothes and affordable prices. And now, coming soon in 2009, they are going to inject their fashion sense into textiles and accessories for the home! I can't wait to see what they offer, but we will have to wait and see since they are not yet available to us.

Mix'n Match Pillow & Textures

I am in the process of picking decor for our new future bedroom & living room. And what helps me in the process of designing a look for a room are pillows!! Find a pillow, or several pillows, that carry the essence that you want through color, character and texture. Pillows are always a good starting point to help people design their own rooms.

Here are some color combos that I have montaged together through several pillows. As you can see, I am all about mixing patterns & texture, and the element that unifies all these pillows together is the color.

The color blocks on the left is the working color palette for the rest of the room. Maybe the main wall behind the bed headboard is yellow and the grey hue can come through long, dramatic heavy fabric curtains. This is a great clean and fresh color combo that is very modern.


Black and white I think can sometimes be boring, but how about throwing some hip patterns and geometric shapes into it. Mix'n match, I say!

{Images from allmodern.com}

I didn't put this last board together, but I do love the color combination going on here. The indigo and orange hues have a contemporary Moroccan feel to them.

If you love these pillows, I found them all on allmodern.com. They have a huge selection of pillows, bedding and furniture that is all modern! I think I found my throw pillows for my bed and couch already. Oh, and they have "Hassle free shipping and free returns." (A minimum order is required.)

INSIGHT & IDEAS: These color combos and patterns can easily be transformed into a wedding color palette for your invites, florals, accessories and reception linens.

Jonathan Adler for the Home

Jonathan Adler's manifesto "believe[s] that your home should make you happy." If I had some of his designs in my home, it surely would make me happy. All of his work have a great retro-chic and modern look to them.

And I am truly in love with his quirky pottery. The fish salt & pepper shakers, the darjeeling teapot, and whale butter dish are too adorable. They are pieces of art too that make a simple little statement on your tabletop.

His lighting fixtures are so bold & clean. I want them in my home!

His textile designs are also very bold. These green and blue colors are so crisp & clean that it will definitely add that extra pop of color in your living room.

{Images from www.jonathanadler.com}

Dwell for the Boudoir

I am not sure if you all know, but Hemal and I are in the process of buying our very first home. We don't have the closing date yet, however when it is done and official, I will debut a picture of our new place when that day comes. :)

As everyone knows with a new home comes new furniture and new linens! And some of my favorite bed designs are from Dwell Studio. They have clean, funky designs merged with sophistication. Dwell has come out with some new bedding for 2009. Coming from a design background, I certainly gravitate towards these bold and graphic linens.




{Images from dwellshop.com}

If you do check out their site, also look at the Dwell baby bedding designs. Super adorable!

Decor for all the Baby Frenzy...

I am surrounded by babies – don't get me wrong, it's a good thing. Quite a few of my friends have babies, and if they don't, they are about to have one, or are thinking about it! So this post is for all the people who need inspiration for a child's room. I know this topic is veering away from wedding planning, but it still includes design and what inspires me.

I was recently browsing on my friend Annie's blog, Just Lovely, and she helped inspire this post today. (A side note. She inspired me to start my blog. Thanks AO!) On one of her older posts, I just fell in love with one of her featured prints from sproutdesign, an Australian company that produces hand screened child focused prints.

{Images from sproutdesign.net.au}

Sproutdesign uses a minimal color palette with fun, cute animals. Now imagine taking either the giraffe or hippo color design and graphically splashing it into a child's room with 2-3 colors. How bold and cool would that be?

I don't have an example for you of that, but take a look at the room designs below that utilize a simple color palette with graphic, animal shapes to really make a child's room come to life.

{Left image from becoming-home.com}

How adorable is the monkey mural overlooking the crib, or the whimsical butterflies flying out of the crib. Also, why not wallpaper a kid's room with a playful, animal design.

{Bottom left image from oxygen.com}

Simply what makes any room come to life is a strong color palette and a design concept applied throughout.

INSIGHT & IDEAS: A strong color palette & a design concept applies to wedding invites and receptions, too. By maintaining color and design consistency from invite to reception decor makes a powerful statement about a wedding.

Don't forget to visit Annie's blog, Just Lovely, in case you want to see the latest, unique textile designs that may inspire your child's bedroom or any room.

I say "Wallpaper Everything!"

My fiance, Hemal, thinks I am crazy for liking wallpaper. Of course when he thinks of wallpaper, it reminds him of being ugly, dated and full of tacky patterns that you usually see at grandma's house. Simply, he is clueless to what is out there so I am going to clue him in by posting about it.

Wallpaper design has gone through a revolution. It is bigger, better and more modern than ever. It can add a beautiful, elegant touch to your home...


or it can make a grand statement. It's fashion on the wall. Can't forget that yellow; it's my obsession.

{Images from Graham & Brown}

Graham & Brown feature an array of designer collections that will suit any room. All I can say is that I love them all and would add it to every room in my house if I could. Check them out! – Graham & Brown Wallpaper for your home.

INSIGHT & IDEAS: These graphic patterns can also inspire your wedding invite and influence your wedding reception decor.

Sunny Ideas For Your Home

Besides yellow being the main focal color in my wedding, I think it can be a fun, inviting color for your home too. It's so easy to incorporate whether through a small accent piece such as a throw pillow, or to even reupholster an old chair with a funky design.

1. Yellow Striped Pillow from West Elm
   
2. Dijon Le Creuset 6-Piece Set Cookware from Cookware.com
3. Organic Yellow Leaf Pillow from Pillow Decor
   
4. Yellow Platters or Tins for Wall Art
   
5. Marimekko Tamara Bed Linen from Crate & Barrel
   
6. Yellow Paint on Wall

Don't be surprised if you see some of these visual elements in my home in the near future.