Memorial Day

As you celebrate Memorial Day today with your friends and families please remember what this day is all about. Take a moment to say thanks and if you fancy - a prayer, for all those Soldiers who have lost their lives fighting for our rights.

This photograph is by Todd Heisler. The article which it came from can be found here and the rest of his collection of these photos can be found here.

Hello Carrie's Closet

What would SATC be without Carrie's clothes and her closets to keep them.

Here is the closet from their apartment in SATC 2. Love how they did Big's side in the dark wood, much more masculine than Carrie's light and feminine side.

Beautiful shelving and drawers. And there is that pretty blue hat box again!

And the shoes. I can't even fathom having a space like this to keep my shoes! I can't even having this many unbelievably beautiful and ridiculously expensive pairs of shoes! On the right column in the bottom left corner you will see the blue Manolo Blahnik's from the first movie.

A closer shot and a little peek into the bathroom.

Carrie's clothes taking over Big's side of the closet.

A close up of some of the closet's items. Love the color palette here.

One final look at the whole thing.

I just love this space. It's great it leads right through to the bathroom. And I love that it has a nice little seating area - a great place to sit down to put your Manolo's on!

Hello Mitchell Gold & Bob Williams

You should probably run over to Rue La La this morning.

They have a Mitchell Gold & Bob Williams sale going on. I love this company and I own their design book. They have so many classic pieces of furniture and upholstery that I feel look so current but are still very timeless and I think that is a really important thing when you are investing a lot of money in a sofa or coffee table, etc. But they have some major discounts on their stuff today. Here's a look at some of it.

I debated for a while between a sleeper sofa and a daybed for our guest room/office and finally decided on a daybed. But for this price I think I may have to go for the sleeper sofa. The only problem I'm having now is I like to dwell over big purchases and sales like this don't allow much dwelling time. (I'll apologize now, the images have a lot of blank space on top).

I think this green settee (also available in a few other colors and patterns) would look amazing in an entryway or at a dining table.

Nice herringbone rug.

This chair looks pretty comfy!

I like the lines of this dining table, I think it would look pretty great paired with some patterned upholstered dining chairs.

Love the legs on this coffee table. Reminds me of Brocade home.

There's also some great accessories . Like these wicker baskets which would be great in a laundry/mud room or in a fresh white kitchen.

Love all three of these white jars.

I think these mirrors would look amazing on a chalkboard wall or a really dark gray. Love the different shapes.

If you aren't already using Rue La La and need an invite here you go:

http://www.ruelala.com/invite/hellolover

Now go, quickly, before it's all sold out!

Hello Sex and the City 2

So, I am obsessed with Sex and the City. I own every season on DVD along with the first movie. My husband is taking me to see SATC 2 tonight and I am more than excited. I love the characters and possibly even more than them I love the fashion and the interior design. I have seen little sneak peeks of Big and Carrie's apartment via the trailer and the internet and I cannot wait to see it on the big screen. The interiors were designed by Lydia Marks of Marks and Frantz in NY. This design group also did sets for Sex and the City (the original movie) and The Devil Wears Prada. Remember the wonderful office equipped with Dorothy Draper dressers? That was them. Here is what I've got so far from SATC 2.

What better place to start than the entryway. Here it is in all its glory. Wallpaper is Oiseau by Katie Ridder

Here is another view of the paper - I believe it is the same colorway, but looks darker due to lighting - I'm not 100% on this though.

Love this view of the entryway and wallpaper. The mirror and lamps are gorgeous and I'm pretty sure I need to find myself a pretty blue hat box like this one.

On to the dining room.

Love that chandelier and the fabric on those chairs is beautiful, it is Belgravia by Lee Jofa. The dining table is a Mid Century Rosewood.

Here is a smaller dining area (It has the tile you can see behind the larger dining room). I'm assuming this is part of their kitchen which I was unable to find any images of. The rug here is Starflower Blue by Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby for The Rug Company.

Now - the bedroom of Carrie and Big. There is the Halling's Secretary from Hickory Chair. I have been lusting over that piece of furniture for a year now. I adore it, and I love the contrast of the dark inside against the white outside.

Here it is from a different view. The wallpaper is Rococo Damask by Cole & Son

And what would a bedroom be without a bed.

Closeup of that headboard which is upholstered in Velvet Gate by Kravet in the tuxedo colorway. Pretty fabulous, yes?

Here you can see the side of the room opposite that secretary. The rug beneath the bed is Harem by Tamsin De Roemer for The Rug Company and the one in the sitting area is Peony by Helen Amy Murray also for (surprise surprise ) The Rug Company.

Here is the only image I could find of a bathroom. You can get a little glimpse of it through their closet as well. I've got the closet saved for a whole other post!

Here is their sitting area. Sadly the only source I can find for this space is the Stupa Silver rug by Suzanne Sharp for The Rug Company.

A different view of the sitting area that shows you a part of the living room and gives you an idea of the layout.

And last but certainly not least - the living room. Love the Navy sofa and I love the giant artwork above it.

I love that you can really see the gorgeous ruffles on that ottoman in this image and the one above. I also really enjoy that coffee table that is like a massive tray. It's great the way they set the books standing up as if on a bookshelf, complete with Fu Dogs. You can find a list of some of the books over here at Habitually Chic.

A view of the living room via The Rug Company website. The pillow is Birdie Blossom by Paul Smith for The Rug Company. The rug is Marni or The Rug Company

Hope you enjoyed the tour. I plan on being back later with a little SATC 2 fashion and the closet of all closets!

All images and sources found via Habitually Chic, Elements of Style, The Rug Company, Marks and Frantz, The Huffington Post, and Architectural Digest.

Hello Nate Berkus

Today was Nate's last day with Oprah. He is saying goodbye to the Oprah show and hello to his own show: "The Nate Show".

Last night I got this email:

Now at first I thought I was finally going to get to see the Oprah Show (the email comes from the Oprah reservation email address). I started throwing my hands up in the air and making this awful high pitched shrieking noise. My husband looked a little nervous. And then I read on. No, I was not - finally - getting Oprah Show tickets which I have been attempting to get for years. However, as you can see, I did get tickets to a test taping for Nate's new show at Harpo Studios. It may not be Oprah but I am still ecstatic! I have loved his work for a long time (hence me buying his furniture off HSN), and I cannot wait to go see him with my mom and sister in tow.

He has created lots of great spaces both on Oprah as well as for real clients. But my absolute favorite space by Nate is his sisters apartment.

One of my inspiration vignettes - love the blue of that dresser.

My favorite thing about this space is the way he mixed different finishes. He has both golds and silvers for his metals and both dark and light wood for his furniture pieces. The basis of this room is neutrals, lots of grays and creams in the furniture, bedding, walls, and pillows. But by adding metallics, as well as bright colors via throw pillows and florals the room does not look bland at all. It looks so classic and I'm sure by just mixing up the accessories that this is a room that can be reinvented over time without spending a fortune. This is what I love about all his work and why I am so excited to attend this test taping and see what he has to share!

Hello Happiness

This makes me happy.

Via La La Lovely via Rickshaw designs.

Yesterday was Good to me

I have been wanting the Nate Berkus Glass Top Tree Table for sometime. Last week I noticed it was on clearance. I told myself that if I passed this test I had to take for work (which would give me a $400 bonus on my next check) that I would allow myself to buy two of them to place on either side of the sofa. I love this table and I think it's definitely something that if I get sick of in my living room some day it is versatile enough to move to our bedroom or the guest room/office.

So on Saturday I got my letter in the mail that I had passed my test. I jumped on to HSN and low and behold - tables were gone. I called there twice to see if they had any that they could find to no avail. I checked back each day numerous times and yesterday morning I got lucky. It was in stock! Granted, there was only 1 left, my hope is that my continued stalking will help me come up with one more. I also purchased the little silver moroccan style table - also on clearance. Then I spent the day running errands and managed to order our bathroom vanity and laundry cabinets yesterday (slightly over my budget), and got our marble counters/shower pieces priced out - well under budget! So all in all it was a good day. I'll have some bathroom updates this weekend. Now that the tile is all completed and grouted - I cannot wait for you all to see it. In the mean time enjoy these beauties.

Hello Eddie Ross

He is coming! I was so excited to see that Eddie Ross will be making his way to the Chicago area this June. I have already RSVP'd for both events. The first event he will be talking about presentation of food/drink/etc for entertaining, and the second event is one of his infamous flea market trips where you walk around with him and see what he would pick out and what his creative mind would do with it. The first event Eddie is having is with the owner of Scentimental Gardens in Geneva. Eddie seems to be impressed with her party throwing skills so I can only imagine what she does must be pretty amazing. The stores website also makes the shop look pretty great, lots of antiques, garden furniture, and decor accessories - definitely a place I am going to have to check out.

I love interior design (clearly) but I also love event design - anything from weddings to birthday parties to holidays in your own home. I just don't think it gets much better than being surrounded by people you love in a beautiful environment you've created. Eddie Ross is a superstar in all design areas. His floral design, table settings, and home projects have me completely obsessed. So to say I'm excited is definitely an understatement. Here are some of my favorite presentations of Eddie's.

Peonies and ranunculus are my absolute favorite and I adore how they look on black here.

Who wouldn't enjoy a table like this for Christmas Dinner

You can never go wrong with flowering branches. I love the way they look and they add so much height to a space visually.

Closet turned beautiful bar - why not?!

I love this wreath - this project is on my to do list for next Holiday season.

The infamous secretary makeover.

If you are in the Chicago area I'd look into signing up, I really don't think you'll be sorry!