girl meets glamour

1)What did you do 10 years ago?

Let's see 10 years ago...I was riding an Ojek in Bandung Indonesia (fastest taxi service), drinking lots of Chai Tea (before Starbucks new what it was), going to weird discotheques (sorry Dad, I was young and stupid) with poorly done American band covers, and sampling every other bit of their culture I could get my hands on...

2)Five items on your to-do list today?

1. Figure a way to get out of Jury Duty, some way...some how!!

2. Call mother to tell her to pick up her naughtily Jack Russell I've been babysitting for a week...

3. Buy treat's for the retired neighbor lady that so kindly volunteered to walk our dog daily...

4. Furniture budget for the house...what am I getting and how much is that going to drain our wallets..

5. Start painting the Living/Dining Room walls the new color I picked out...

3)Snacks I enjoy...

All...yes, I'll take that aisle to go thank you very much...I love popcorn especially, and manage to some how have a bag every night!!


4)What would you do if you were a billionaire?

Buy every house next door to Oprah's and be that annoying neighbor that brings over homemade baked goods, and has a knack at making her late for work (like my neighbor Jim does to me)...and I'd say things like: "Hey girl, you on your wait to work...I'll be watching!!" or "Tell Stedman I said hi, let me know when you want to get together"...


5)Places I would live...

Oprah's house...Well, I'd live anywhere, but places I'd like to live is a whole other story, but a...

So, every morning I go through my emails and click/delete for 10 minutes...but out of the corner of my eye today I saw one that said: "Entire Horchow site 20% off for 1 day only..."


And I caved, I caved like they were waving a chocolate cupcake in front of my face at a Weight Watchers meeting...and I bought the Porcupine Mirror I've been lusting after. I never really wanted to spend full price on it, and so that was that, and it should be at my house in a few weeks...


I'm going to put it above my fireplace, once I put the new paint color on the walls...and hopefully it's everything I've ever wanted and more!! Check out the sale though, before it ends...


I'm just getting the one, but a pair could work nicely too! In the home of John Dransfield and Geoffrey Ross (of Dansfield and Ross) they paired the two above like a work of art to balance nicely in the room...

Seashell Wreath at William Sonoma

It seems like you can't open up a magazine these days with out being swept half way across the world...to places full of color and life! Different cultures and their styles have great influence on today's designers...and this is why it's gracing the pages of your favorite reads almost every month...

Featured on the cover of House Beautiful back in Nov. '07, this bedroom designed by Robyn Bell, has a nice blend of light airy fabrics and rich woods, not to mention the "Moorish" inspired frieze on the walls...


Taking you from Florida to Morocco, this bathroom ties the client's favorite colors blue and white to a perfect fit with the rest of the home's design...


Browsing through Rooms to Inspire, this quaint outdoor escape (by Martyn Lawrence-Bullard) caught my attention...it seems very achievable even in the smallest of backyards. Featuring rich fabrics, lanterns and vintage Moroccan finds through out...


A 18th century Moroccan home of Caitlin and Samuel Dowe-Sandes gets a major makeover, including in handmade tiles by Popham Design, refinished furniture that contrasting nicely with the white walls...there's some fun symmetry going on here too!


And each room in the home, has the same unique mixture of modern and vintage finds, making this a perfect feature in this year's April issue of Elle Decor...


Katie Ridder who's been popping up in magazine after magazine, has distinct design influences from her many travels, here this girl's bedroom featured March of this year in Elle Decor showcases lively bold prints in unique cutouts...


A similar design approach was used, with her clients daughter's room, isn't so cute?? I wish my room had been like this growing up...





Care for a Moroccan bath...Sig Bergamin uses antique tiles on his terrace's whirlpool, inspired by his many trips to North Africa, featured in Elle Decor/So Chic book...


Notice anything similar to the bathroom featured above...well, it's the same Floridian home actually (I didn't catch that till I took another look at the exterior shots featured)...but a few years prior, with a different designer (Robert Couturier), and featured in Elle Decor ('05).


This room here designed by Stephen Di Renza (featured in Elle Decor/April '06), takes the bright colorful approach that I often envision in my head when I think "Morocco"...


Even subtle inspiration can turn into a big impact, I love this blue hand blown glass chandelier in Sarah Jessica Parker's weekend home, designed by Eric Hughes and featured in Elle Decor/October '05...

Everywhere you look these days you can find people and their trunks...showcasing a piece commonly thought for storing junk, as the focal point to a space. It can fit itself into many arrangements, from just another accessory to the perfect furniture piece. I'm quite fond of vintage trunks and luggage and their many applications, so here's a bit of inspiration I've found so far...


In Tommy Hilfiger 's home, a vintage Louis Vuitton trunk is used as a coffee table, designer Cindy Rinfret says: The trunks make the room feel well-traveled, as if things had been collected over time...."

At the end of the bed in another great option, I love the simplicity of the room that designer Nathan Egan has created, it contrasts nicely to detail in this vintage trunk...

And as a side table another great scenario here, designer Ray Both creates a rustic natural feel to his own living room with a vintage trunk combined with newer transitional pieces...



Luggage works great too as furniture, when I opened up the pages of this month's House Beautiful to find a lovely cottage designed by Ken Fulk...and then was even more pleased to see this creative bedside table made up of two vintage Louis's stacked atop wood blocks and with a serving tray...well I thought to myself, "now if only I could find someone on Craigslist selling them with out a clue..."

1st dibs of course has a great collection of vintage trunks of all styles, above is a leather Campaign trunk from Marianne Stikas, which has great detail in the nailhead design...
Donna Parker Antiques has done some of the work for you to make this Steel trunk into a side table by adding the wooden base...
This is a fun one with the wicker inlay, leather banding, and castors from Laurin Copen Antiques...would make a great lil coffee table!!

Retail furniture companies are hopping on the bandwagon too and producing their own vintage trunk inspired pieces...



Above is the Williams Trunk from William Sonoma Home, it's available in a couple colors and also a side table version called the Williams Cube...


Ralph Lauren Home put a nice twist on a classic piece by adding this brushed aluminum frame to their version, called the Mayfair Trunk...check out their site for additional trunk inspired pieces as well...


Casasugar was craving this Sundance Steamer's Coffee Table Trunk a while back, you have the option of a top grain leather or stainless steel inlay, and even includes canvas lined drawers for storage...


For a contemporary twist on this idea, check out Turquoise LA for this piece designed by Jordan Cappella, featuring a vintage Goyard inspired trunk under a lucite base...

See, not just for junk...these trunks have real character in a room setting. I've been searching for a vintage one myself and hitting up all the antique shops till I find the right one!!