Mom Cave {My Office}

Over the weekend the dining room became my new office.  Our living room is now a living/dining room since we never sat at the table when it was in the dining room and it basically was a waste of space (like most dining rooms are).  My OCD kicked into high gear and I spent all day yesterday cleaning out, rearranging, and organizing.  After a trip to IKEA to pick up some supplies I dove head first into this project.  (I apologize if the pics look grainy, I took them with my new iphone that I love!)  

Here is the room before:  

 I love to collect books so I forced myself to toss the paperbacks (i.e. all the chick lit books I read in my 20s) to make room to store my office supplies.

 I save birthday cards, thank you notes, love letters, and invitations to weddings, which I keep in my old shoe boxes...yes, I am sentimental like that and I just can't bring myself to toss them, which I probably should, but won't. 

I did manage to toss all my old fashion mags a few months ago, so what is left are my beloved Dominos, Elle Decor (I found one from '99 with Lulu DK's pad on the cover!), and House and Garden.    

 Here is the office now!!!  I absolutely love it!  I decided my desk needed to be moved because I wanted a conversation area to hang out in and now I can look out the window.

I purchased the Kassett organizers in white from IKEA which I am madly in love with!  They are cheap, look great, and totally do the job when it comes to organizing all your stuff neatly.  The bottom row looks all black because that's where all my photo albums are stored.  

It's crazy to me how much storage the Expedit offers.  It's seriously one of the best things I have purchased to keep everything in it's place.  I really think every new mom should own one of these for their kid's room because of all the organization it offers - it's the perfect place to store books, diapers, wipes, toys, clothes, etc.  Little Barron is getting one in white when we move!

Notice the swatches of fabric on my Louis Chair (purchased for $50 on Craigslist - it's practically brand new)???  I've been saying for months I'm going to get it reupholstered and I'm finally going to pull the trigger.  I'm painting the frame glossy white and using black ostrich leather for the fabric.  I can't wait to see the finished product!  

Seriously loving my 27" iMac and all of Apple's products for that matter.  They're just really insanely cool! 

I am so in love with my new office aka Mom Cave!

Thirsty Thursdays: Happy St. Pat's!

What the heck, make mine an Irish Car Bomb please, because they're just too much fun!  

Cheers!

Bag of the Day: Givenchy

Zoe Saldana

Bag: Givenchy Antigona Duffle Bag

Image via Vogue Diaries

Beach Pad Project: White Desk

I've been working on sourcing white desks for my client in Manhattan Beach and have found the perfect piece that I thought I would share with all of you.  Her inspiration is the Jett Desk above from Z Gallerie, although stunning and so cool, it doesn't fit within the redecorating budget.  

I stumbled upon this little number (The Josephine Desk) while shopping for wine and chocolates at Cost Plus in El Segundo this past weekend!!!!  My client absolutely loves it and I was stoked that it was on sale for $179.99!  Stay tuned for more fabulous finds and I can't wait to show you the finished product!

Bag of the Day: Celine

Nicole Richie in Paris.  

Bag: Celine

Images via The Vogue Diaries

Saturday with 'Ze Strokes

Fabulous Find: Furniture from Maison 140!!!

The other day I received an email from one of my favorite vendors in the valley, Hotel Surplus, that they just received a shipment of furniture from the Beverly Hills boutique hotel Maison 140.  The hotel, like many of Kor Group's other Los Angeles properties, is currently undergoing a makeover by Kelly Wearstler.  

I was so excited to see what had come in that I rushed to take a look for myself - here are some of my favorite pieces.

These headboards were totally plush!  I purchased the yellow one for my latest client project in Manhattan Beach.  It's the perfect headboard for a sunny and bright beach pad!

I loved this Oriental style headboard - seriously contemplating it for my room, but have also had a tufted one on my wish list.  

This tufted bench is perfect for the foot of a bed or as extra seating in a large living room.  There were a lot of nix and dings and of course the fabric needs to be recovered, but overall it was in good condition.

I loved these mirrors, especially the one above!

There were a couple of these that I would love to use as panels in a dining room, above a buffet, or on either end of bedside tables.

These bed side tables I'm using with the yellow tufted headboard.  The handles are a really cool acrylic and have a light airy vibe to them.

Loved all the French antiques and these little bedside tables were adorable.

This little number used to sit in the Bar Noir at Maison 140.  It wasn't in the best condition, oh well...

This little Macau chair will be used for the desk area of the beach pad.  It's either going to be painted white or turquoise blue.  Definitely needs some recovering - notice the rip in the leather???

So in love with this Greek Key cocktail table!!!  I'm debating grabbing this one for myself!

This is the perfect piece to house jewelry.  The hardware was really nice in person and overall in great shape!

I'm seriously tempted to purchase this dresser and use it in a foyer.  Again, it was in great condition and really beautiful.

More bedside tables - I loved the style of these ones.  Each room in the hotel had it's own furniture, so there are a lot of bedside tables, which is great if you are buying for one room, but makes it hard if you are doing many because no two rooms were alike.

A Louis Chair, needs some work, but love a great Louis.

This little marble and black cocktail table is very glam and there's 2 of them.  I'm thinking of using both as coffee tables grouped together.

Lamps, lamps, and more lamps!!!  The 2 yellow ones with white bamboo on them are being used for the beach pad.  I'm going to grab a white one for myself.  They are all quite large so you definitely need the space for them.

They also have all the artwork from the property.  Could be interesting used in the right room.

Here's a peek at the pieces in their original setting....

Black + White Furniture

I never get tired of the dramatic contrast of black and white.  Maybe it's because I have a background rooted in graphic design and studio art that I love this combo so much.  When I redesigned this blog, black and white was my first choice. So naturally, I would be drawn to furniture pieces with this design.  I absolutely LOVE the graphic impact this bathroom has with punches of citron yellow and of course a white cabinet trimmed in black!!!

The concierge desk at Maison 140 is the perfect prototype of what I'm talking about.  I've had my eye on a media cabinet (that came from the Chamberlain Hotel in West Hollywood, Maison's sister property) that is gray with the same lines as the piece above.  My idea is to refinish it in black and white, float a flat screen on the wall above it, and use it as a dresser in my master bedroom once we move.  (Yes, we are in the process of possibly moving, so I will keep you posted of all the redecorating projects to come)!

I love the aqua walls as a back drop in this room.  I think my favorite accent colors to black and white are: aqua, yellow, pink, and kelly green.

Rebirth of Cool: Blair Eadie

I love the feeling when I discover a new blog.  I recently found Blair Eadie's Atlantic-Pacific and have been enamored ever since.  First, the girl has a certain style that really speaks to me.  I love taking a peek at the ensembles she creates and I especially love her up-dos!  Reminds me of when I was in my 20s, hanging out in San Francisco having the same kind of fearless fun with fashion (my best friend lived on Jones St. and I've even noticed some of these shots are taken around Russian Hill and Shanghai Kelly's).  

Here are some of my favorite looks:    

I am loving this Ralph Lauren blouse, canary yellow cardi, and red flats.  This is totally country club chic that reminds me of something my friend Elizabeth would wear.  Adorable!

Seriously, the dose of purple is perfection!  

As you all know, nude, camels, tans, and black are my favorites!!!  This is probably on my top choice for #1 outfit to covet!

Accessories galore!  I've been collecting since high school and I adore the way Blair pulls all her accessories together.

Simply amazing!  I'm hunting for the perfect white blazer as we speak, this one is just killing it for me!  By the way, Blair's boyfriend is on the other side of the camera lens, snapping all these gorgeous shots!

Where can I find that black and white DVF chevron stripe dress???  I want it pronto!  So gorgeous and the purple faux fur vest and oxford = perfection!  Ok, I'm inspired now to have fun with fashion!

What's on your list to buy for spring???