Screened In Porch Inspiration & Decor

 

  One of my favorite things about our newish house is the screened in porch. Having an extra space that my family can expand to with the comforts of a living room, but all the glorious fresh air.  Especially at the beginning of the pandemic, it was such a fun escape for us. 
So moving into our second year in this house, I wanted to continue to spruce up this space to be special. My inspiration since the beginning, and with the furniture we already got, has been southern Italy. My husband and I took a trip in the Fall of 2019, and I just felt so inspired and in love by the old charm of southern Italy.
With some subtle takeaways from this inspiration board, I have a foundation to my screened in porch, to which I will continue to add to over time as I find things that make sense, are loved and useful. I'm trying to be PATIENT when decorating a room and allowing them to take shape overtime.
But I still wanted to share the space as it is today, the bones and foundation:

Furniture
We LOVE Polywood because it's made from recycled materials, super durable and will last us forever. We chose cushions in "Air Blue" to give us that vacation vibe. We got a 5-piece set to fill our space, but you can get many different variations to individual pieces.

Here is how it's coming together, and as it gets warmer/closer to Spring, I hope to add more Italian-vibe details (accessories, plants, blankets).

Patio Accessories & Decor:

More to come, but hopefully this inspires you to start thinking about your outdoor space(s) for the Spring and Summer that are coming (and I'm so looking forward to that!).

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Holiday Inspo: Colorful brights or Cozy neutrals?

 

  My friends and I were recently texting about Holiday decor and it got me thinking about this year's decorating plan. In the past I've gone for colorful brights, but living in our home 24/7 these days, I was thinking of switching it up to a theme more cozy and neutral. I need a new creative project for m home, and could be fun to re-think my holiday decor, implementing in a way that works for how we're using our home this year (vs. years pasts).
I won't put up my decor until week of Thanksgiving, but I'm starting to think about my (new) plan for this year, and splurging on a few new things!  So I'm sharing some inspiration both from the colorful and neutral side.
What's your holiday theme this year?

Colorful Brights 

Shop these cheerful items:

Cozy Neutrals

Shop these cozy items:

And regardless of which way you lean, a couple key ingredients for any style:
You much have a fresh cut Christmas tree or pine candle burning to set the mood. If you have a faux tree, no one would even know. My trick is to get the small the clean way (a candle, not the tree with pines falling to the ground). If you aren't a candle person, try this new room room diffuser starter kit with holiday scents.
And speaking of faux tress. We've had our classic, pre-lit one forever, but got a secondary, skinnier flocked tree to spread the joy to another room this season. With two different living room spaces, I wanted to see the tree. So if you are 
In addition to a new larger one, we also got smaller pre-lit trees for my kiddos' rooms.  This way they can decorate them however they want and fall asleep to the twinkle lights. I'm most excited about this for them!
Fill any bowl you have with peppermint puffs (a seasonal delicacy that can't be resisted)!
Offer hot cocoa all season long and switch it up with peppermint cocoa!

Cheers to a delightful season of joy!

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DIY Make Shift Work Space

  At the start of the pandemic, my company sent everyone home to work for two weeks. Two weeks turned into a month, turned into three, and now indefinitely.  So I've been making a work space do a bit more at a time. 
With my kids doing virtual school at home and my husband also working mostly from home, I'm lucky to have a spot to myself at all. I pretty much called our bedroom and have been evolving it a bit at a time.
I turned the little nook in my room that was my vanity into my working desk, but also had to keep all the other stuff that was there, too. So with some new storage and organization, it's a vanity and work space.
Items making my little nook a vanity + work space:
 

I was able to bring my work chair home - not the cutest - but after sitting my other one for many hours a day, it was a necessary evil. Otherwise, I spiced up the space with a fun rug (and cozy to my typically bare feet) and organized all the work/makeup & skin care items.
I also got an adjustable computer stand/lap desk so I can move about to different locations or stand to work. I've started also working in a new little space on the other side of my room in a more casual chair that is nice to mix things up.
As I work from home longer, I'm sure my habits and space will evolve further, but for now this is working for me.  How are you making working-from-home work for you?

How are you making your at-work-home space work?

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The Home Files: Must-Have Decor Books

  Home decor books are not the thing I dreamed of growing up and having my own space to decorate, they weren't the things I registered for when I got married, and the first time I got one as a gift, I wondered... what will I do with this?
But now? Now I can't get enough of them, and am thankful for those gifts in the past. Home decor books or coffee table books are so versatile in home decor, but also wonderfully useful, especially when you're stuck at home in a never-ending quarantine.  The only beach I'm visiting are the ones in this book, and I am reminiscing on last year's Italy trip (Rome and Amalfi Coast) through this book.
I use these beautiful and interesting books all over my home, also stopping to read them often (I use old regular books, too, especially favorites I can't part with).  They were a big part of my recent shelf re-decorating process (the reveal is here) and I stack them on my coffee table and side tables here and there.
Sharing some of my favorites and a few ways I use them below!

Shop my favorite books:

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The Home Edit: Double Bathroom Renovation Plans (& Pain Points)

 

  We have been talking (and talking, and talking) about remodeling two (of our three) bathrooms since the moment we moved in (9 years ago). We prioritized other things first, and had some other unplanned projects pop up, but this year - this is the year - we were ready to start. After tons of planning (inspiration, product selects and contractor research), I started making call after call - some emails and online forms, too - to local contractors and renovators, which I thought would be the quick part of the process. It isn't.
Not quick at all. In fact, I'm still in that phase.  We've had some visits to review our project with some contractors, but after some bids that were way to high (not just a matter of budget, but a matter of what feels right to pay for what we want) or some low, but lacked proper insurance - we are getting close on a solution of mixed vendors, homing in on what exactly what we need. Overall, it's really a painful process, but I hope we're getting closer to start (and now I want to go to become an apprentice to learn how to tile!).
But in the meantime, I'm tightening our plans for the bathrooms, and pulling product selects and dreaming of when this will all be over (and soon on to the next project... KITCHEN).  I'm sharing some of those plans below, and our inspiration above. We are actually remodeling each bathroom pretty similarly - same floor, tile, vanity counter tops and bath/shower backboards.  There are also no structural changes - just a pull in plug.
Bathroom #1 Our only full bathroom in our home, located in our upstairs hall and heavily used by the kids, a little bit by me, and guests! It's still pretty small (for a full bathroom) at about 5'11" wide and 8'6" deep and we're keeping it a one-sink bath to allow for the counter space.

This bathroom is currently covered in pink tile. Tile that is falling off the wall, so we have one section of the wall in the bath space that is covered in plastic - real classy. ;) 
We would ideally like to get a new vanity - however, our bathroom is so narrow, that nothing out there exists. So we'll either have to custom make something, or refurbish the current one (which is what we're leaning towards).  And, we'll likely move up and frame the current mirror to look like the one in the above plans.
Bathroom #2 Our "master" 3/4 bathroom (just a shower, no bath) in our bedroom with a single sink and small at about 7'11" wide by 3'10" deep.

This bathroom is tiny. It's the one located in our "master" bedroom, so heavily used by my husband and myself.  Keeping with the same black and white theme of the other bathroom, we plan to do a bit more work on our shower, that will involve cutting out some of the wall. :)  Right now, the shower if very enclosed and we want to replace some wall with glass to open it up.

We will be refacing this current vanity in this bathroom, too, as it's made for this small space. But the mirror we will replace with a round one.  Another fun thing about this bathroom is that we'll be replacing the traditional door with a barn door so we can avoid opening the door into the already small and confined space!

Shop both bathroom products, hardware and pieces here:

I will share before pics of the bathroom once we are in demo progress soon!  Until then, any tips, design advice or suggestions - I will gladly take them!

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Country Club Plaza x Chasing Davies: Home Decor Shopping & Inspiration

We have an entire house that still needs style refining, organizational tweaks and décor updates, and even some rooms (like all our bathrooms!) that need more intense work, but we've been made some progress on our 1950s home slowly over the last 6 years.  And kids can definitely slow that work down - but we're picking it back up and I'm turning to the Country Club Plaza for inspiration, professional design help and products! 
Ever since last August, when West Elm opened at 47th and Broadway I've gone to that store to walk around and soak in the beautifully mixed modern and classic décor, art installations (in the form of store displays) and color mixtures. I've craved transplanting their entire room set ups straight into my room and calling it a day.  But now that we're turning some focus onto our family room and working with only light gray walls, brown leather couches and a big TV - the world is our oyster.
And I can't wait to figure out what colors to add to our room - and super inspired by West Elm's current orange and pink combo crush.  It's so easy to add interesting elements with a pop of color in a throw or pillow, and West Elm has you covered there. Follow @WestElmKC on Instagram for further inspiration and did you know they have FREE design services if thinking about redoing your room is just too much? Even if it's not too much - it's always nice to have a professional opinion...

I love the variety that West Elm offers - yet how it all works together to marry the new and the old, the classic and the modern, the bright and the neutral, the simple and the bold.  They really have something for everyone (different price points, style aesthetics, product needs, etc). 

I'm crushing on these wooden pendant lights and the idea of mixing those with orange and pink pops of color makes me happy.  So I'm thinking through some of those pieces now.

And an easy couple blocks away lives the new Plaza addition, Coveted Home which is a Kansas City based home accessory, furniture and gift store with pieces sourced from all over the world - including within our own city.  They also offer interior design services!
This store is amazing - everything in there is super unique and has a feeling of originality that you know can really help shape a room and last for years to come in your own home.  Jaclyn, the owner, works with a lot of neutrals, but rich textures, bold patterns and prints, layers of different materials and perfectly incorporated details.

And the details this store has to offer was not lost on me. In fact, I tried to leave 10 times and kept seeing something else to keep me there lingering and imagining in my own space.  The entire store is just impeccably well crafted and stocked with items (including so many great gift ideas!) I've never seen before.  

I love how Coveted Home connects the customer to the makers - whether they're local or other small businesses across the country - they provide one of a kind pieces for your home and you really get a sense for what they are about.  You can get a glimpse into Coveted Home's offerings, design aesthetic and find inspiration all through their @Coveted Home Instagram channel!

{Samoan is Jaclyn's sweet little pup that comes to work with her and is often at the store.  She is the cutest little dog and I just couldn't get enough of her.}

And after spending some time in both of these stores, gathering design inspiration and making my to-buy list, if I've learned one thing, it's include a plant into my room!  Both stores had plants and succulents included into their decor - and I loved the texture, natural color pop and additional element it brought to the rooms/spaces.
The Plaza has several other great home decor shops to help you spruce up your own home: West Elm - 47th & Broadway Coveted Home - 610 W. 48th St. Restoration Hardware - 4701 Wyandotte Williams-Sonoma - 4764 Broadway Terrasi Living & Scandia Home - 501 Nichols Rd Anthropologie (they have home decor and furniture, too!) - 531 Nichols Rd. Urban Outfitters (also has some home items!) - 520 Nichols Rd.

And stay tuned to see what pieces I get and how I update my own family room into a place I love.  I'll share the transformation later in September! 

The Latest & Greatest Plaza News: One of my most favorite events of the year... The Plaza Art Fair is coming up: Sept 25-27th. Did you hear?  Vineyard Vines, Kendra Scott and Madewell are now open! Zocalo has bottomless brunch cocktails every Sunday from 11am-3pm! República, a Spanish restaurant, opened up earlier this month. Sephora and CorePower Yoga are coming in October! Warby Parker is opening in September!

For more news, follow the Plaza on Facebook and check out their August Newsletter for sales and deals!

This post is in partnership with the Country Club Plaza, but all opinions and topics discussed are my own! 

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A Personalized & Cozy Holiday Dinner with Friends

One of my most favorite parts of this season is excuses to step away from the craziness of life and get together with wonderful friends. And as I've gotten older, I appreciate the quiet, at home, yet beautifully and simply decorated moments vs. wild nights at the bar (though that's still ok sometimes).  A meal without kids, husbands, TV, phones (except for the quick Instagram pic... because, yum), etc... a meal with real conversation, announcements, adult food and drink, silence... and special surprises. 
I want to give my close friends the world. They are like my family. They ARE an extension of my family and I don't get to see them as much as I used to or wish I could these days. We're all running in a million different directions, but we make time for each other. And when we do, whether it's with our families or alone, we make it count. And no matter how much time has passed, we just pick up where we last left off. I think that's a sign of good friendship, ya? Nothing gets in the way, we make time for each other no matter how crazy life is and we treat each other like family.
Anyways, we made a get-together happen with a real meal to celebrate the joys of the season - like friendship - and I wanted to add something cozy to our table decor and in turn, a gift. I decided to drape my girlfriend's chairs in Tiny Print's new super soft, monogrammed herringbone throws, which went along wonderfully with our low-key night planned with stew, red wine and apple pie.  I think gift giving can happen in really creative ways and be incorporated into experiences that bring people together. It's not all about material things, but when there is that element, why not make it special and personalized?
What are some ways that you make time for your friends and maintaining those friendships? You can see some photos of our cozy night in over dinner below!

{My outfit: Sweater - on sale!, Pants (similar options!), Leopard Wedges - c/o DSW (similar in heels - 30% off!, similar wedges), Lips, Necklaces - Stella & Dot & gift from PopSugar Must Have Box (shop great gold necklaces for layering here), Blankets - c/o Tiny Prints}

P.S. I'll have a post on that perfect cheese tray my friend whipped up soon! It was too amazing not to share more. :)

This post is in partnership with Tiny Prints, one of my go-to sources for anything personalized!

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