chalkboard paint + thank you notes

We painted a swoosh across the top of card stock cut into note cards leaving enough room for a short, sweet note of thanks.

 our thank you notes are in the mail  . . .

Preppy Post - Take 2

A while back I did a post on the topic of preppy fashion and apparently I incorrectly linked something and it made by blog disappear.  But with the help of fellow bloggers, I figured it out.  In the 1980s I was as preppy as it gets.  Living in Denver there were stores like Aspen Leaf and the Buccanneer and it was all about prep.  Today I found another copy of the original Preppy Handbook for $1 at a thrift store in Laguna Beach.  It will make a great gift...that is if I can ever let go of any of my thrift store finds.  I become very attached.

Preppy feet...Patrick wearing Sperry Top-Siders and Madeline loves her  Jack Rogers...

Kind of love the Jack Rogers box and I think the Sperry box has the same look as it did in the 80's.

Another come back from the 80's...The original Clark desert boots.  Right out of the box they are so comfortable.....just like they were back then.  I think Patrick will need a pair of these too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We love Kiel James Patrick!  We discovered these bracelets last spring and she's been wearing it ever since.  I think it's about time we look into a fall colored bracelet.  And I'm pretty sure she'll find a pair of these in her stocking...check out their new earrings...clip-ons, if you can believe it!  Everything is made in the USA and most of it in Rhode Island...even the piece of fabric and the string they use to tie it up...it arrives looking like a little gift.  If you haven't already read the interview with Kiel James Patrick and Sarah Vickers in Matchbook Magazine...go...it makes me want to trade in my Volvo for a Ford. 

 

pink and green + happy birthday

To celebrate Madeline's 17th birthday we decided on a pink and green theme and just went from there.  Invitations were made using card stock cut into the shape of a tag.  I got the idea of using different fonts from invitations I've seen on Pinterest.

Madeline chose 10 of her favorite quotes and we put them in inexpensive and a few re-purposed frames.  I wrapped them in gingham fabric from Walmart and they played the game of exchanging much like the rules of an ornament exchange.  I found the rules here.

Madeline insisted no candles, no singing happy birthday...so we went with flags made from Lilly Pulitzer gift wrap.  Thank you dear Elizabeth for finding LP paper!

That moment of waiting for her guests to arrive...

Shirley Temples and pink Lemonade. Photo by Bailey.

Twistbands, garden roses and miniature latte bowls from Anthropologie, frames wrapped in gingham fabric and ribbon from Walmart.  I generally wrap everything in Kraft paper, but I was imagining a lot of brown paper covering the table and decided a little piece of fabric would work well. 

Details - The place cards incorporated pink and green twistbands that the girls all love to wear.  I ordered pink stripe straws from Shop Sweet Lulu.  They arrived looking like a little gift...love that.  I made Madeleine's and put them in small cellophane bags sealed with an M sticker.  I used this recipe and they were absolutely delicious!

Brown bags for each girl to take all of her goodies home.

a sweet suite

This is our daughter, Madeline's room.  It's actually a suite combining two little rooms, a bathroom and a walk-in closet.  Her friends call it her "doll house" and my husband refers to it as her NYC apartment, only in California.

This sitting room is using space above the garage.  It has three windows on the side and three windows in front which is her closet.  You can see the space here on House Exterior - Before and After.

This little corner of her room is a great spot to keep her magazines.  She loves magazines as much as I do! 

Looking into her sitting room from her bedroom.  There are two steps down which provides extra seating for her friends.

This little hutch is from Room and Board.  It's great for storage, but she never liked that you could see what was inside before we added the fabric on the inside of the doors.  We have yet to make pillows with all the beautiful fabrics we found at http://maisonnetteoceanside.com/.  We cut two pieces of fabric and attached them inside with bright pink tape.  No sewing involved, but problem solved!

Her desk is from West Elm, chair is from IKEA.  When I started to photograph her room I took a look around and hardly changed a thing.  This is how her room looks most of the time...she's amazingly neat for a teenager.

She loves her inspiration board and keeps finding little spots for new things she finds.

Her bed is tucked into the corner.  I had given measurements to our contractor, but when the furniture was moved in we had a bit of a problem.  The bed did not fit the space.  We tried to move the furniture around, but there was no place large enough for the bed.   The contractor had to add wheels to the bed so that it can be pulled out to make.  There is a little cubby that holds a small lamp, book and glass of water.

My husband built this piece when we were first married.  It has been painted a creamy white distressed finish in the shabby chic days.  Then it was in our living room painted black as a bar for years.  Now it has found its way into Madeline's room and holds her books, perfume bottles and inside the drawer, her jewelry.

We lined the drawer with pink construction paper and placed all her little bowls and plates to keep her jewelry safe and free from tangles.  Each has a story of where it's from and why it's special.  The blue stripe one is from her 8th grade Latin trip to Rome, the one next to it with the pink rose is from Melissa's adorable shop, Bixby & Ball.

Her bathroom is tiny too...so impossible to photograph.  We added white painted brick on one wall to give it an old feeling.    She has some storage to the left of the toilet with pullout drawers.  The tub/shower is all white subway tile.

I designed board and batten walls for each room in the house.  I love the texture and warmth it adds.  The photo was taken with a cheap underwater camera when Madeline, age 10 was snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef.  I almost didn't process the film thinking it would not be worth it!  I was so surprised!

Some day I will have a painting made like this by Jane Mount for each of my kids.  I know Madeline's list of favorites will include a few of these.

add-a-pearl + madewell and brandy melville

We recently came across my add-a-pearl necklace that I had as a baby.  I hadn't even thought about giving it to Madeline.  As soon as she opened the box, she put it on and said she gets compliments every day.  It really does look so sweet on her.  She's wearing it with a denim shirt from Madewell.  We both LOVE this store!  We started shopping at the first one in SoHo and then Greenwich, CT.  When we moved west we used to have to drive to LA, but now there's one at South Coast Plaza.  She paired it with a stripe tee from Brandy Melville.  We came across this store in Santa Monica last summer and now there's one in Fashion Island, Newport Beach.  The price point seems to be around $28 for tops and surprisingly everything holds up well.  Have you shopped at Madewell or Brandy Melville?

I found out after a google search that add-a-pearl is a Chicago based company since 1854.