Wordless Wednesday Inspiration {Benjamin Moore "Dark Harbor" Door}

The Project Girl 

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P.S. For more Dark Harbor inspiration visit here. 

Tuesday Ten 5.19.15

1.  Have you seen the laid-back yet incredibly chic Long Island Beach House of Jenna Bush Hager? I'm moving in.

2.  Optimizing your Cloud Strategy: 5 Insights into your Private Cloud. I didn't know I should have a CLOUD STATEGY.... this was a good read. 

3.  My favorite Outdoor String Lights are on sale!!! Get your patio ready for Summer with these cool patio lights that add so much character to your space. 

4.  8 Rooms that do oversized art right.  I'm not particularly in love with the art featured in this article, but oversized art is where it's at for me. And not just over the couch. I like it everywhere. Read this article for some inspiration to get your mind thinking about what I think is the next BIG thing in wall design...people will be moving away from Gallery Walls in predictable places and switching to large scale oversized art pieces. 

Jenna Sue

5. Suburban Bitches has a really great round up of their favorite One Room Challenge Designs. (including Jenna Sue's Bath, pictured above). Erin and Tricia have curated the best entries this time around on the ORC scene. Pop over to their blog to have instant design inspiration. 

6.  The Dowager House is for sale. Take a tour of Violet Crawley's estate home....in real life it's called Byfleet Manor...isn't that so charmingly Downton?!

7.  Life Hacks for a cleaner home. I loved this article because it actually gives you suggestions for a less cluttered appearing home. So many "Life Hacks" or "Cleaner Home" articles say the same things. This is more of a "DO THIS and you'll feel like your house isn't as messy" article. You're welcome. 

8.  Wes Anderson designed a Restaurant in Milan and IT.IS.AMAZING. Although I'm not sure if I always completely understand every nuance in a Wes Anderson movie...I bow down to his quirky and brilliant sense of design, creation of atmosphere, set as a character and vibe. I will be daydreaming of writing my own screenplay at one of the tables at Bar Luce in Milan for a decade or so.

9.  Take a peek at Sarah's Summer Living Room Dreams at Life on Virginia Street. The Queen of keeping things Fresh yet inviting, Sarah shares her swap outs (textiles, art, accessories) and what she'll be keeping an eye out for to complete her new look this Season. 

10.  5 Day Hair Recipe. Yes, Please. And THANK YOU, Cara!! If you're like me, there are other things I'd like to spend my time on, other than my hair. I have REALLY thick hair and it takes me forever to dry and style my hair. I've been on a 2-3 day schedule but seeing this tutorial from Cara Brook of Maskcara makes me think WHY NOT?! I'll be giving this a go this Summer! Her product reviews are always so helpful, too. So even if 5 Days seems a tad grody to you, check it for the product info anyway! 

Malachite Monday {Malachite Pen}

Via verytroubledchild o

Malachite Ball Point Pen

Recycled Barn Wood Tile

Recycled Wood Wall Tile is something that I've fallen for over the past year.

I was first introduced to E & S Tile and their recycled line of barnwood tile by my friend Erin of Suburban Bitches, when she used their tiles in her kitchen remodel.

Suburban Bitches

I was fascinated by the product and couldn't stop thinking of the endless applications that it could be used for.  So, how excited do you think I was when  E & S wanted to team up with me on a project using a recycled tile of my choice?  I was OVER THE MOON ECSTATIC!!!

I love getting my hands on a product to really feel the quality and integrity of it.

I selected MULBERRY NATURAL.

E & S Tile
Mulberry Natural

I opened the box and was seriously in love with the look of the wood. The tiles come in A and B patterns (marked on the back) so that you can easily link tiles to create the desired

herringbone pattern.

 

 

And then I was like,

 "I want this in my kitchen as a backsplash.

And I want this in the back of my bookshelves.

And I want this on my kitchen island.

And I want this on the walls of my mudroom.

And I want this on a feature wall in my guest bathroom.

And I want this as a coffee table top.

And I want this in my fireplace surround.

And I want this as a headboard.

And I want this as an art installation in my stairwell."

 

And so I pretty much ran around my house holding it all up in various places and was totally taken by the texture, color, character that is instantenous.

There was just one itty bitty thing that I had to keep in mind...

We're moving. Like in 3 weeks.

I knew that I would be using this in our new home in the Pacific North West at some point in the future. And I wanted to experiment with the product and see how it would lend itself to a DIY application or use on a smaller, less permanent scale, while still adding that character and texture that I love the barnwood for. With the size and scale of the tiles, it's easy to use it in a smaller project.

 

I decided that I would make a hanging Art Piece out of the tiles.
It was honestly the most fun DIY I've done in over a year and the tile was incredibly easy to use.
I pretty much just measured, cut and glued.

Here is my finished art piece hanging over my "Dovetail Gray" Beadboard.






I started with an old piece of scrap plywood that I measured, cut and roughly sanded.

I screwed in hanging hooks BEFORE I added the tile, just in case I biffed the drill or I had a split in the wood or really messed this step up, I wouldn't be damaging the finished product. Also, I knew that to hang this I would need some heavy duty hardware due to the weight of the wood tiles.

 

 

I played with the tiles, measured and cut them.

Then I glued them onto the backer board using Liquid Nails.

If you are using the tiles for a more permanent or kitchen/specific use, please consult E & S for technical application methods specific to your project. I used Liquid Nails for this DIY for simplicity and because my project was for decorative use only.

 

 

The Headboard started to take shape. And it was so much fun to put it together.

(You can see these are real pics of my messy garage...this was a real project, no fancy editing or filters so that you can see the real process and the real look of the tile).

 

 

   

 

  

I'll be sharing a Portfolio of E & S Tile installations as well as my own Reclaimed Wood application inspiration ideas.
Come back and see it on Monday!
 

***The recycled tile was provided to me by E & S Tile. As always, ideas and opinions are my own and uninfluenced.

Commona My Kitchen {Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble}

It's that time of year again!!! It's strawberry season in some parts of the U.S. and late Spring/ early Summer is right around the corner. 
I'm Throwing it back this Thursday to share my favorite Crumble recipe!
 

You all know that I'm a huge fan of Ina Garten {The Barefoot Contessa}. Not only is she a World Renowned Chef, but she hails from my neck of the woods. I love her North East sensibility and many of her recipes are similar to ones that I grew up with. 

I've made Ina's Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp before, but it was a tad too sweet for me, and there wasn't enough "crisp", in my opinion. 

So, I've adapted my own version of her original recipe.

Here is my take on Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp:

Ingredients

4 cups fresh rhubarb, 1-inch diced (4 to 5 stalks)

4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and halved

1 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 + 1/2 cup quick-cooking (not instant) oatmeal,

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the fruit, toss the rhubarb, strawberries, 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar and the orange zest 

together in a large bowl. In a measuring cup, dissolve the cornstarch in the orange juice and then mix 

it into the fruit. Pour the mixture into an 8-by-11-inch baking dish and place it on a sheet pan.

For the topping, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, 

the remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar, the brown sugar, salt and oatmeal. With the mixer on low 

speed, add the butter and mix until the dry ingredients are moist and the mixture is in crumbles. 

Sprinkle the topping over the fruit, covering it completely, and bake for 1 hour, until the fruit is 

bubbling and the topping is golden brown. Ina suggests serving with ice cream. I prefer serving with

home made whipped cream.

I've been intimidated by Rhubarb before, but it was easy to find and easy to use. 

I could live off of this!

Hope you give it a try, it's the perfect dessert (or even breakfast...) during Summertime.

XO,

NURSERY DESIGN {HRH Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, PRINCESS BUTTERCUP NURSERY}

I was totally in Royal Watching Heaven when little Princess Charlotte joined the Royal Family last week. To celebrate, I wanted to create a Nursery Design to commemorate the occasion. I was so inspired by the Traditional and clean, sort of Laura Ashley feel of the The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in their Hospital exit appearance.

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In 2013, before the birth of Prince George of Cambridge, The London Hotel, The Grosvenor House, created a Royal Nursery Suite. No detail was spared. It was simple, elegant and it was YELLOW. {Yellow, Gray and Ivory}.

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So, without further ado, here is my "HRH Princess Buttercup Nursery", inspired by Duchess Kate's Bespoke Jenny Packham Buttercup Dress and The Grosvenor House Nursery from 2013.  I had Buttercup sheets and a yellow room when I was a little girl...so this was really quite a sentimental design for me. Traditional, but with some more simple, modern updates for anyone's little Buttercup.

 

Behr "Lemon Souffle" | AKA French Flower Basket Layla Grayce Crib |  Floor Lamp |

Stark Tara Gray Diamond Rug | Schumacher Chenonceau
Buttercup Yellow Pillow | Gray Linen Chaise  | Handknit Alpaca Diamond Blankie | Garnet Hill Yellow Bud Flat Sheet |
The Velveteen Rabbit Page Art | Children's Gold Gilded Crown Rocking Chair

and Great Grandma will maybe send over her Royal Albert Yellow Rose Tea Set for when you take Tea in the Nursery.

Long Live Princess Buttercup!

XO,