DC Blogger Party for Eddie & Jaithan!

Michele of My Notting Hill had a DC-area blogger party this past weekend & it was just so much fun!!! Check out Michele's pics & post on the party here. (Unfortunately I was a bad blogger & didn't remember to get pics until the very end when lots of people had already left!!! Some of these pics are Michele's!) here's Michele with Eddie:

She & her husband were such gracious hosts. Everyone went nutty over the Cuban pork he made!!! WOW. And the gorgeous addition to the home in the back. The whole thing was windows/ doors and looked out over the beautiful patio & pool. (jealous!!! :) Michele filled it with an awesome mix of new & thrift finds. Her coffee table that she found for $8 and had a new piece of glass made for ($60) was a show-stopper. Bob from Homer's Odd Isn't He who works for the Kellog Collection said it retails for around $3,000!!!! Go Michele!!!! (i wish I had a pic!!!)

When Eddie & Jaithan arrived with their friend Caroline, everyone was just so excited. They both have thisgreat contagious energy & sense of fun. Below is a photo of Eddie & Terri from WindLost, two of my favorite people!!!!

Anf here's the gang that was left when I finally broke out the camera at the very end: Michele, Eddie, Jaithan, Anne Hardock, me ( + baby 2), and Gretchen Ginnerty. Anne gave me the warmest welcome at the party & just made my night!

Here's a good one of Terri & me that I got from Michele. I will definitely post more pics when she sends them to me because her camera was "magic" and gave you the nicest tan when the flash went off. (yes please!! ) Terri is just as sweet & insightful & real in person as she is on her blog. I was thrilled to finally meet her in person!! (And our husbands even got along! haha)

I met so many awesome local bloggers & it was just so much fun seeing them in person. I wish I had pics!!!! arggggg Terri Sapienza, our hero from the Washington Post, was there too & she is just gorgeous!!!!! The time flew by so quickly & the night was over & I realized there were so many I didn't get the chance to talk with!!! arrggg but I guess that's how a good party goes, right??

And finally, here I am with the lovely hostess. Michele is just one of the coolest, kindest, most gracious people ever. She made us all feel right at home and make entertaining for 40+ look effortless!

Thank you Michele!!!!! I'll post more in a bit on the rest of the weekend with Eddie & Jaithan. We had a blast!!!

xoxo,

lauren

This Weekend!!!

Well, the weekend's finally here & I'm just so excited!!! Eddie & Jaithan are in town & I can't wait to meet some of you tomorrow at the flea market!!!! Tonight, Michele from My Notting Hill is having a cocktail party for E & J and I just can't wait to actually meet some of my blogging friends!!! Tomorrow, Eddie & Jaithan are spending the night & I've got some yummy food planned so we'll be sure to do a fun / pretty post. This poor man below (my hero) is OUT!!!! He did such a great job these past few weeks and it's time for some rest --AFTER this weekend of fun that is ;)




Got most of my living room put together & my chairs arrived- yay!!! Here's a quick peek & I promise to post more next week... For now I just put up some flea market paintings on the mantle wall & an old peely mirror I had... The antique crystal chandelier next to the chair is for reading (but isn't hardwired in yet!!!) and we get gorgeous rainbows all over the walls every day.. Christian loves that. The fabric on the chairs is a linen-cotten fabric on the reverse and the rug is a custom wool one that looks so much like sisal but is soft for the little ones...

Anyway, I'll take lots of pictures this weekend & will post next week!!! big hug & I really wish I could meet you all this weekend...

xoxo,

lauren

**UPDATE/ Reader Questions.. I had the rug custom made & bound with a 3 inch linen/ cotton. There are lots of brands that offer this look in wool. I went with one that was 2-toned & ribbed because I really love the look of sisal but wanted the softness of wool for kids!

I Hear the Crows!!! : Fall Houses & Inspiration

This morning when I woke up, my bedroom window was open & it was dark & dreary outside & I could hear the crows cawing. THIS is Fall to me. I love the dark days as much as the bright crisp & brisk ones. Fall just wakes up something inside of me & I love it!!!


I thought I'd share a bunch of my favorite "Fall" images with you... And the list is long. (I have more but got tired of scanning.) These are homes & spaces that remind me of Fall whether they're fall-related or not. Sometimes it's just a simple pumkin on a table... but that's enough to do it for me. The dining room below (and image above) is from Oct's Country Living & the mix of vintage chairs is perfectly eclectic.

I can't remember where this pic below came from but I just love the drop-leaf table as a console...All of the warm wood tones remind me of Fall...

This Country Living (I think??) dining room below would be perfect for a Fall lunch!! Love that torn-down wallpaper aged look.

Below, Annie Selke's home is full of oranges.

Below, so cozy:

The CL dining room below would be beautiful in any season but the warmth of it feels liek Fall to me...

The bedroom in the same home... how amazing is that brick wall?!!

I've always been crazy over this Pottery Barn bedroom below... I just love that cuckoo look on the walls!!

A perfect Fall entry... This makes me want to line the entire sidewalk up to our house in pumkins & gourds: (And then I'd have to put a sign out for highschoolers saying "You touch, you die.")

More from Martha Stewart:

How simple & pretty?!!! Urns with potted mums are elegant & festive:

This space (CL) has the feel mixed with some metallic glam:

Ohhhhhh (martha) How perfect is this spread?? Some wine & cheese & apples anyone??

Even with all the crisp white , i still feel "Fall" in here: (CL)

Such perfect age !! (martha's house)

I ALWAYS think of this house when I think of Fall. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this dining room!!!! WOW I just can't get over all the mirrors & the chandlier and the pumkin in the urn on the round table... (So doing that this year)

And just had to share her bedroom. (The owner is Kirby Ellis) ... how beautiful is this antique mirror as a headboard? She's got such a feminine, over-the-top yet still simple style in here.. LOVE it!!

The next series of images is from another favorite "Fall House" of mine. It was featured in Country Living and belongs to Monique Keegan. I've shown it before but must show again... Gorgeous soapstone coffee table:

Here's the study:

LOVE: PERFECTION: Just so warm & collected. Her use of industrial pieces is awesome...

She uses lots of vintage medical equipment throughout the house. Love the charts below. (FOund some at Lucketts a while back but -even there- couldn't get over the price!!!)

And here's the outside.. Is that a perfect Halloween house or what?!!! The parties I would have!!!!

I know they've got tulips in the (House Beautiful) living room below but the room itself feels very Fall to me... Picture some branches instead....

Such a simple Fall tablesetting (martha):

More from Country Living.. How inviting is that green chair with the orange throw?

I'm CRAZY over this photo below.... I want that. enough said...

A smashed-full book shelf from Country Home is so warm & cozy for Fall... Just pick a book & sit down by the fire!!!! (Oh what heaven!!!)

Another Country Home... I love the look of using red & orange leaves for arrangements...

Oh, and we can't forget how good soup tastes in the Fall.... (CL)\

This pic below makes me happy (CL)... It's a lake in Wisconsin and reminds me so much of my dad's lake in Antioch...

And hay rides!!!! I can't wait to take Christian on his first one this year!!!!!

This (CL) house before is light & airy (it's the same house with that touch of glam from above) but you can see how all the autumnal accents just work:

COZY FIRE:

Great chair fabric:

See how easy it is??? They just plunked some pumpkins and a vase of leaves from the yard down.... It's so simple & I love the price!!!

Another awesome orange space (below) in Annie Selke's home... WOW

How great is this orange tub??? Not sure I'd want it all year-round but you can always paint over it!!!! So much fun.. I take that back.. maybe in a kids' bath...

A cozy stuffed table setting.. just so cheerful:

Just LOVE the arrangement below (martha)... Again that round table & antique Chinese urn are what do it for me.. Piled with books?!!!! perfect!!!!! Just putting out thigns with lots of age & character in the Fall can really warm up your home...

And finally, one last pic of a "murder" of crows from here. So spooky & I just love crows.. Maybe I shouldn't be telling you this, but I can call the crows. No joke. Yes, I did it in high school (hahahah I was/ still am weird!!!) one day and so many came in the courtyard that girls got freaked out & ran inside... Another time I did it in the summer while lifegaurding and they started going to the bathroom all over the guests at the pool and the ladies yelled at me to stop! I don't know when it started (at a really young age) but it's actually very easy to caw just like a crow & they really do start coming from all directions to you. It's crazy. Ok, please come back to my blog & don't be scared.

hahahaha xoxo,

lauren

This Model is Costing Me Money

Must give a pregnancy rant for a moment. I'm about 6 months along and, though the occasion is rare, sometimes I want to look stylish. (sadly, i'm a sweats wearer on most weekdays when I'm at the house) BUT when I'm going out, I figure I should make a good attempt. Anyway, everything I see this Maternal America model in, I just LOVE!!



I ordered the dress above and thought it would be perfect for a party & a rehearsal dinner I have in the near future. Well, well, well. It arrived in the mail (I don't know of any good maternity shops around--- Motherhood is "meh" at best --don't get me wrong, i have lots of stuff from there-- and A Pea in A Pod induces a guilt in me just from walking in the door!) and it was ok in person but nothing compared to the picture. (It's actually a fairly flimsey jersey knit- not happy with the material for the price) But, really...it's not the dress.. haha it's me. Or should I say THE model. I ordered a few other things & realized they were all from HER. Like this yellow one below:

Just love it in the picture... but my "bump" is 3 times as big and my shoulders are much broader and it just doesn't look right on me! It's like ordering from Victoria's Secret for pregnant ladies!!! I want to ask them to get some bigger models so I can at least have an idea of what it will look like on me!! Here she is again! (below) Wouldn't this dress be perfect for the wedding I have coming up??? I so want to do it but I'm NOT falling for it (or should I say HER) again!!!!

Ok, rant over. But she sure is costing me a lot in shipping!! ;)

ah vell!

xoxo,

lauren

will get a design-related post up- I promise!!! :)