{moving madness}

As I mentioned yesterday, we have a lot going on around here. Apart from the chaos of everyday family life, Wednesday morning we will close on our new house. We found this treasure over the summer after an extended search for "home." Believe it or not we bought this house before I ever saw it.

While spending the summer in Virginia with my family, we heard this house was coming on the market. We had already sold our previous home, as we had outgrown its charming little bones, and we were frantically looking for a home in which to settle come fall. I had driven by this lovely house before and had always admired it. A dear friend of mine, with whom I share similar taste went inside for me, and confirmed that this house was indeed "the one." By the next morning my husband (who was commuting between Nashville and Virginia all summer long) had seen the house and made an offer.

When I finally got back to Nashville to see the house, it was love at first site. It has elegant proportions and details both inside and out. The house has been loved for over 70 years and has a timeworn, simple comfort about it. Don't get me wrong, it needs a lot of work, a small portion of which we will be undertaking in the next few weeks. For me the fun is in the process and over the years we will slowly but surely make the necessary updates and changes needed to best suit our family's needs while remaining true to the house's history and style.

I promise this blog will not turn into a "renovation chronicle" but I will share updates from time to time. In the meantime, the next few weeks will be a bit hectic, overseeing contractors and moving our family in. Please forgive me if my blog posts are less frequent. I cannot wait until we are settled and I am able to get back to some sense of "normalacy," whatever that may be!

{top image: kate spade ad}

{pure joy}

Sorry for the lack of posts of late, we have a lot going on around here. Most importantly of which, our family welcomed my niece and nephew to the world last Thursday night when my sister gave birth to twins. I left my four children in my supportive husband's care and hopped on a plane to Virginia to meet them this weekend. They are the most beautiful, perfect, little babies I have ever seen (well maybe except for my own but it's a close call).

My sister is made it through her c-section like a champ and is handling this momentous transition with grace. Seeing my sister become a mother will be a moment I will always treasure. I am so proud of her.

Her husband has taken well to fatherhood and is completely smitten with these two little bundles.

My parents are the most loving, devoted, self-sacrificing, and fun grandparents. These babies have now idea how lucky they are to have them in their lives.

It was so hard for me to leave them last night but my husband needed me to get home as we have a busy week ahead. It was all I could do not to take one home with me. But which one would I choose?

I love you Jackson and Emma Kate and I can't wait for you to come meet your cousins in Nashville!!

{a pop of red}

Lately I have been hungering for the color red. Red is the color of intensity, passion and love. I rarely gravitate to the color but it has been an emotional few days, with births, deaths, hospital visits, and general emotional and physical exhaustion. How do you feel about red?

{images 1- kate spade via elle; 2- via loeffler randall; 3- via this is glamourous; 4- via david netto; 5- via jeffrey bilhuber}

{katherine's jewel box}

One of the fun things about blogging is being able to share real, unstaged interiors that have great style. Homes seen in magazines are enhanced by a team of paid stylists who are hired to make the space look impeccable. In addition, professional photographers take and edit photos until perfection is achieved. It takes great creativity, resourcefulness and personal flair to create beautiful interiors on a budget that meet the needs of everyday life.

Katherine Weeks, a jewelry designer in Charlotte, North Carolina, has what it takes to make a space look beautiful, inviting and unique. On a limited budget, she pulled together her lovely family home. Kat is a mother to three adorable boys and co-owner of the incredibly chic jewelry line, Turq Jewelry.

{dosty necklace}

Kat's home certainly has a Southern flair but it lacks any of the stuffy feel often associated with this style of decorating. She used soft neutrals with pops of aqua and yellow to create a jewel box of a home.

The walls of the entire first floor are painted in Farrow and Ball's Lime White which creates a unified, light filled backdrop for the space.

In her family room, Katherine upholstered french chairs she found at Scott Antique Market in Atlanta with a colorful Jim Thompson fabric that she snatched up while visiting the Jim Thompson House in Thailand. Her Alan Campbell zig-zag pillows add a fresh, modern flair to the otherwise traditional space. Above the sofa in the same room, she paired a convex bulls-eye mirror with softly colored bird-egg prints.

The first floor powder room wallpapered in a pretty beige and white wallpaper.

Family photographs in circular brass frames, antique books, and a porcelain chinoiserie figurine create a personal and stylish table-top.

Kat's well appointed bookshelves in her living room, showcase her collection of classic majolica pottery.

Below are more images of Kat's pretty living room. She found her aqua checked draperies on sale at Lewis and Sheron in Atlanta.

The settee is in upholstered in a tobacco and cream colored animal print.

Katherine's master bedroom is painted in Farrow and Ball's Pale Powder and her furnishings are varied shades of white. This little nook looks like a serene place to have morning coffee and read, although with three little ones underfoot, I bet she rarely has time to do so!

A white painted breakfront with blue inner shelves double functions as a bookshelf and dresser for extra storage.

A collection of white milk glass plates above a painted Swedish style cabinet.

When I asked Kat about her favorite sources for budget friendly finds, she said that she loves to scour Scott market in Atlanta for antiques. Lewis and Sheron is her favorite place to find ready-made drapes that are well made. And in Charlotte, she regularly visits Post & Gray to peruse their ever changing inventory of interesting and fresh furnishings, lighting and accessories. I look forward to seeing how her home evolves over time!

{happy first day of fall}

I hope you have a beautiful autumn filled will lovely harvest meals, giggling children hiding behind false faces, and thankful gatherings with friends and family...

{image via bonpoint}

{phillips collection}

This past summer, I took an enchanting trip to the Phillips Collection in Washington D.C. This jewel of a museum is tucked back in a residential area near Dupont Circle, away from the hustle and bustle of the Smithsonian. The museum was founded by Duncan Phillips who , with his family accumulated an extraordinary collection of modern art. In 1921 the doors to the Phillips Collection opened and our nation's first modern art museum was born.

The collection is housed in Duncan Phillips’ 1897 beautiful Georgian Revival home and two architecturally similar adjacent building. As you walk through the spaces you certainly still feel as though you are walking through someone's home. As Duncan Phillips once wrote of the museum, "there is a sense of art lived with, worked with and loved."

The Museum's best know work is Renoir's "Luncheon of the Boating Party." It truly is sensational in person, as the light and colors leap off the canvas from across the room. The painting captures an idlyllic scene of Renoir's friends enjoying food, drink and lively conversation on a balcony over looking the Seine River. To learn more about Renoir's famous work take a look at "Who's Who in the Boating Party" on the museum's website.

Another captivating work housed in the museum is this sculpture by Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti. Giacometti's sculptures are known for their exaggerated forms and intense gazes.

The museum has a significant collection of works by Edgar Degas. I have always loved Degas' subject matter of dance and Parisian life as well as his use of color and graceful forms. The "Dancers at the Bar" painting (see top image) is anchored visually above a mantle in a beautiful well lit sitting room within the museum adding to the intimate atmosphere.

In one of the museum's secondary buildings you can find several paintings by Helen Frankenthaler, an American abstract expressionist painter. While the painting looks like a watercolor, Frankenthaler utilized a technique called "soak staining" in which oil paints are diluted in turpentine so that the color soaks into the canvas.

In 1960 Phillips created a chapel-like Rothko Room to house four paintings by the American abstract painter and printmaker. The room was moved to a new location within the museum in 2006 but remains unchanged from its original size and style.

The Phillips collection includes several works by Piet Mondrian a dutch painter who is known for his "grid" paintings and his use of primary colors.

This piece was created by Gene Davis, an American Painter known for his painting of vertical stripes of color done in acrylic on large canvases. This photograph does not do the painting justice, as many of the stripes seem to jump off the canvas because of their placement amidst the other colors. When sitting in front of the painting you feel a rhythm and repetition within the work.

The museum contains nearly 3,000 works and includes many other wonderful pieces by famous artists such as Cézanne, O'Keeffe, Matisse, Gauguin, Picasso, and Van Gogh. Gallery talks are offered with admission but do require advance reservations. If you live in the D.C. area or are planning a trip anytime soon, make sure you put the Phillips Collection on the top of your sightseeing list. I cannot recommend it enough!

{golden girl}

Tory Burch has certainly come a long way since she launched her eponymous line five years ago. She has grown her small brand into a fashion empire that includes 18 free standing stores, and an amazing retail website. In addition, she has won numerous fashion and design awards.

Burch describes her style as, "classic with an eclectic edge," making they styles of the 50's 60's and 70's fresh and modern again. Her clothing and accessories also have a global feel that make them relevant to today's woman. In the past few months, Burch, and her distinctive style have received a lot well deserved positive press.

Burch was recently interviewed by the Wall Street Journal. The article explains how the designer has managed to keep her young brand growing during turbulent economic times. While the article's content was interesting from a business standpoint, it was this photograph that caught my attention. Having seen her Manhattan apartment featured in Vogue years ago, I was intrigued to see Burch in her light and fresh blue and white beach home.

Elle magazine featured photos of Burch's newly redecorated kitchen and breakfast area in their September issue. I love the unlikely mix of mint green, blue and white, and turquoise in her kitchen. I am extremely envious of her green lacquered kitchen floors.

Her sitting area is furnished with Knoll's Saarinen table and Tulip Chairs, and the space is covered in China Seas blue Abre Matisse Reverse.

The September issue of House Beautiful featured an article showcasing Tory's fashionably dressed table. Again, Burch chose a blue and white, turquoise and green color pallette. The Porthault table linens, bamboo flatware and turquoise pottery make a lovely ensemble. The potted herbs on the table are from New York's ZeZe.

Tory Burch was recently profiled on 1st Dibs' Style Compass series. Be sure to read the online article to learn more about Burch's fashionable upbringing and current design inspirtations.

As if all that recognition weren't enough to prove Burch's prominent place in the fashion and design world, this past Thursday, Tory Burch debuted her Spring/Summer 2010 line in a morning party presentation. The collection received rave reviews, a difficult feat to achieve amongst hard-nosed fashion critics. (I was pleased to hear that her signature T logo was seldom seen amidst the new collection.) I look forward to seeing these beautiful, wearable pieces in stores this spring!

{images 1- via tory burch; 2- photographed by brian harkin for the wall street journal; 3 and 4- photographed by paul costello for elle; 5- photographed by aimee herring for house beautiful; 6- via 1st dibs; 7- via style.com}

{traditional topiaries}

I have always loved topiaries. Their clean, simple forms adds a dash of lively elegance to any space. They work equally well in rustic county spaces as they do in modern streamlined ones. Alone, they are dainty and delicate and grouped together in mass they create a fabulous scene. I would love to have some around our new home to bring life indoors during the winter months. It would be lovely to grow and prune them myself, but my children are my garden these days so I think I will be buying some at the local flower shop.

{images: 1- via this is glamorous; 2- via eddie ross; 3- via veranda october 2009; 4- via veranda october 2009; 5- via nestegg; 6- via bluehydrangea}

{rain, rain go away}

It has been raining on and off here for days. The constant cloud cover and soggy surroundings have really affected my energy level and mood. The kids are going stir crazy too! The only good thing about all this wet weather is being able to wear these...

{images: 1- via deviantart; 2- via zappos.com}