Happy Halloween {2012}

Just stopping by for a quick hello and to say Happy Halloween!

This year I have tried to make more of an effort to decorate our home and get into this spooky holiday.

My mother-in-law is particularly fond of Halloween as her birthday is the day before. We decided to have a small birthday get together for her tonight along with Joe (my father-in-law) and Adam's bother Daniel to celebrate Barbara.

 Yesterday I went to JoAnn’s to pick up some last minute decorations and today our living room has cheesecloth hanging from the corners of mirrors, draped across a lampshade, strewn atop our china cabinet and even whittled into a few nooks and crannies. It’s a happy spooky home without being creepy or gross. I’m not a fan of literal finger foods or eyeball-esque deserts. Don’t even get me started on fake blood...

Back to the point! I’m so excited to have some fun and greet our neighborhood kids with candy. Did I mention we bought a 5lb bag of tootsie rolls? Yeah…well…they take up a lot of space in a bowl for little money and I won’t be overly tempted to snack on them the whole night. I say it’s a win-win!

Have a happy Halloween everyone!

xoxo bd

Today we are talking about my home and the changes I hope to make! A few things to keep in mind are that we moved in a few months ago, we are renters and are not allowed to paint. We are still settling in and are trying not to make quick purchases just to satisfy an empty space. I would like to make quality purchases and grow our sense of style. With that said, I have edited my photos with ideas on what we I have in mind. Let's be honest, my husband doesn't care too much whether we having a gilded mirror or a plastic poster frame. Okay maybe he does...but that's besides the point. Moving on!

Today I will share the bottom floor (We live in a townhouse) and will save the bedroom spaces for next time.

Here's what it looks like as you walk in our front door. There is a large window to your left which brings in beautiful light at all hours of the day. I'm not content with our furniture as we have lots of mix and match pieces. This is what happens when you are newly or semi-newly married. You gather pieces from your aunt, parents, clearance section from TJ Maxx, strangers and your college dorm room. Lovely.

I'm thinking about an L-Shaped couch in the future but for now, it's in need of something on the walls.

If you turn to the right you will see this placement of furniture. I have arranged them in different orders about the room and this is what I came up with. Again, mix and match pieces from different times in our lives.

I absolutely love the flow of the downstairs area. If I'm in the kitchen cooking or doing dishes, I can still see what Adam has on the TV. I also love that there is so much light. This was taken at one of the dark times of day with not a single light on and it is still so bright. 

Welcome to the kitchen area. Definitely need to add some accessorizing in here! 

Now you are in the kitchen! It is perfect for two people and we have ample cabinet space that has yet to be filled. I like that the counter tops are dark, as well as the cabinets and floor. 

There's not much to show with this corner of the kitchen, just giving you an idea of the space. 

 If you turn yourself right around you will be met with this beauty of a wall. Not a whole lot that we can do  at this point, so I thought about a wall of plates on the right hand side.

I must add that I adore those two closets. You could easily fit 2-3 people in both closets with room to wiggle. 

That's it for the first floor, thank you for joining me at my home! I apologize for the lighting, I took the pictures with my phone on a whim yesterday as I was mopping  (thus the shiny kitchen floors). If you have any ideas, tips, or tricks, I would love to hear them!

I'll talk to you soon...

xoxo bd

The Cozy Guestroom

I was browsing through Pinterest {Big, whopping surprise of the century, I know} and I came upon that little ditty up there. I love to go on vacation. Period. I love to relax in a room with freshly fluffed pillows and carpets that were vacuumed by someone other than myself. Does that sound weird? Does anyone else feel that way?

So off with my rambling, I love the water-colored guestroom painting. 

It appeals to me in so many ways and I'm not sure why. Maybe it is all of the details put together for a perfectly relaxing stay. Maybe it's exactly what I would enjoy while staying over at someone else's home.

Maybe I need to invite more people over to stay and this is my inspiration.

Whatever I choose to like more, I have come to the conclusion that our guestroom needs a little more attention...guests and decor! Does this mean I have a legitimate excuse to buy beautiful flowers? I sure hope so...

Have a lovely {cozy} weekend, I'll talk to you soon!

xoxo bd

{Photo Credit: Pinterest via Small Shop and The Aestate}

Desk Envy

Monday thru Friday, for close to 40 hours a week, I am sitting at a desk. 

{First things first, thank you Jesus for consistent work and pay!}

 I enjoy my job and love the people I work with but there’s no doubt this desk starts to look a little drab day after day.  Sometimes you need inspiration even if you are editing a spread sheet. 

I have a pretty pencil cup and have posted a few inspirational quotes about my little space, but I have been thinking about making it a little more “me”. I understand this isn’t my living room so there isn't any picture hanging in order but you know…some zhuzhing. A little oomph if you will.

I now present you with desk envy!

The one piece I have seen throughout all of these photos is that every desk has flowers. Be it a couple of buds or a full blown bouquet, these desks have a little life on them. I do believe I will gather a few flowers for my desk this coming week. 

I hope your Thursday has been lovely! Ours started off quite stormy with a sudden downpour of rain and lightening but it has become so beautiful as the day has gone on.

I will talk to you tomorrow... TGIF.

xoxo bd

{Photos Courtesy of Pinterest}

Getting Crafty

Let me begin by saying that I love Christmas. Love. Love. Love.

When the season draws near and the weather turns cold, I revert to holiday mode.

If I'm being honest with you, I will tell you that I have been watching Christmas movies non stop. In fact I had a "for shame, Betsy!" moment when I realized I had never actually watched Miracle On 34th Street, the Mara Wilson version or the old one.

Want to know a fun fact? Miracle on 34th Street came out the year after "It's a Wonderful Life". At the time, It's a Wonderful Life bombed at the theaters which made everyone else making a holiday movie weary. In July of 1947 they released Miracle on 34th Street because they thought it wouldn't do so well. Little did they know it would become a classic as did It's A Wonderful Life. 

Who would have ever thought that those movies would disappoint anyone? 

All of that to say, I enjoyed so very much the newer version that I want to watch it every night before bed. That's right, it's like I'm 5. 

So on to being crafty. As I mentioned above, I love Christmas and I love to decorate. It's one thing to live with your family and always use what your mom picks out but it's another thing if you are on your own.

Over the last couple of years that we've been married I have gathered a few things here and there. Garlands, ornaments, a little tree, lights and nick-knacks were pretty much all we had. Nothing too fancy. But this year I decided to take my time. I even came up with a theme, Vintage French Christmas.

Etsy has proven to be a great source of inspiration, especially one shop, The French Nest Co.

I wanted to amp up our decor without having to amp up the budget and I also wanted to look around my home and say, "I made that!".

With a fire lit beneath me I headed to Hobby Lobby today after work and searched for an hour to find my first couple of projects. Let's just say I bought four bottles of glitter, clothes pins, blank canvas ornaments (cardboard and glass) so that I can get crafty up in their business and a few other items. 

I'm pumped and am ready to put things together. My mission is to even make our own Christmas cards. We'll see where that one actually takes us.

Tomorrow I will hopefully post my Birchbox video of all my November items...stay tuned and I'll talk to you soon!

xoxo. bd
{Photo Credits: The French Nest Co}