Back to December

Two weeks on the beach was bliss. It made coming back to reality today not so fun, but I am really looking forward to the holidays at home. I have started posting some gift guides and have a few more for next week. 

For now, just a few of my favorite pins that I am glad I found while I was away. 

How sweet are the color of these chairs? I have high hopes of making it a flea market soon to hunt down ones just like it and painting them. Convincing Matt to get new kitchen chairs, when the ones we have are perfectly fine is a stretch. So it will need to be a steal. 

I am obsessed with this photograph, but cannot locate the source. Does anyone know? 

Our mantels are very similar to this. I like the idea of hanging the garland high to the ceiling instead of draping it along the top. 

How cute is this little hair bow? And it is actually pretty easy to master. 

I love this idea. A story book of your parent's love story. 

Enjoy your weekend friends. 

xo

Erin 

Bringing Back the Photo Collage

Remember the good old days when you would take pictures, bring the film or disposable camera in to be processed and pick up the images with so much anticipation you could hardly contain yourself? I miss those days. I miss them more for the the fact that I had honest to goodness pictures around to frame and pin onto a photo collage. 

And though those days are long gone, there are some creative and chic ways to bring back the photo collage, just like the days of dorm room living. 

Check out this amazing piece by photographer, Annie McElwain. 

She simply pulled some of her favorite images and made a collage for her home. I love the scale, the different colors and I am sure she gets so much satisfaction seeing her work in this fun way. 

And though your work may not be professional, you certainly have some fun images to display. Not to mention this helps you decide how to display all the amazing photos you have from that trip to Europe, your three year old growing up or even wedding pictures. 

I found a couple of options to make this work for us that do not have access to a professional photo display designer and printer. Snapfish offers a 20 x 30 that you can make yourself. Choose the pictures you want and the background (skip through the cheesy themed versions) and simply order. 

If you are an Instagram user (If not, and an iPhone user, visit your app store and start playing), this service is perfect. Printstagram will make you a 20 x 40 poster with up to 400 images from your Instagram app. They also have some other fun printing concepts to check out. 

I need to seriously start using my Instagram, because I am obsessed with this homemade art. For sure an upgrade from my beloved college photo collages still hanging out in my basement (priceless). 

xo

Erin 

Bringing Home Some Upper East Side

I have been watching more television than I would like to admit. Between being sick and the colder weather, I am well caught up on my DVR and have embarrassingly got pulled into watching some really bad reality TV via VH1. You know who you are Basketball Wives. 

Luckily, there are new episodes of some of my favorite shows waiting in my DVR box each morning. One of which is Gossip Girl. 

I have been a loyal fan from the beginning. And while the story lines are getting a bit redundant and possibly cliche, I love tuning in to see what Blair and Serena will be wearing, what NYC spot they are hitting and how the set will be decorated. 

Truly, between the fashion and the decor, there is always a ton of fun inspiration each week. And let's not forget the life lessons we learn (ie: try not to hook up with your ex right before being proposed to by a prince). 

Take a look at this snippet of set and the beautiful painting. 

Gossip Girl lets us into a fantasy world, which is why we love it. My fantasy is that I own that painting and it sits above my four poster bed in my Manhatten penthouse, where I eat macaroons in bed and online shop all afternoon. 

While we can all dream, a piece of Manhattan's elite is probably not in the cards. What we can do is look to Etsy and see what artists that we can afford might be able to contribute to our own sets at home. 

I found some great paintings...

1. afiori $30

2. EmmaWalshDesign $25

3. AustinMScott $30

4. FreeArtStudio $80

And some beautiful photographs...

1. ParisPhotographer $27

2. GeorgiannaLane $25

3. ElleMoss $40

4. PettyPetalStudio $8

5. MetOperaShop $80 (LOVE)

And you can bet your Blackberry that these price tags are ions lower than anything Lily has on her fab walls. 

Can't wait for next week's episode and some more inspiration (ie: Is Blair having Chuck's baby?!). 

xoxo

Erin 

Weekend Wish: A Piece of Newport

While in Newport last weekend, I came across some beautiful abstract sailing photographs in a local restaurant. Being in a family that loves to sail and trying to keep the kitsch away from anything "themed" in my house, I am always on the look out for art I know my husband will like and I can see on our walls.

The photographer is Onne van der Wal, a dutch photographer who has been sailing and capturing moments on the water for over twenty years. I found his gallery in Newport and had a chance to see some of his work on a large scale and loved it. Vibrant, fun and reminding me of the everything I love about the ocean, I am currently shopping for a piece for our house.

You can order his prints online and the smaller sizes are very reasonable. I really loved the large scale stretched canvas prints, everything can be browsed, bought, framed and sent straight to your door. They have such an impact and seem like an investment I would not mind making.

While this art is not going to blow away the critics, I really love photos that capture something dynamic and resonate a memory. I will always remember my trip to Newport and my stumble across the Dutch sailor who loves to take photos. 

Happy Weekend!
xo
Erin

DIY Art

Something about this photo just calms me. The colors, the way the water is moving, the softness of the sand, just puts me in a place of peace. I took this recently on a trip to the Caribbean while casually snapping away and entertaining myself. I took about forty pictures and maybe four were worth keeping, since I am no master of photography. The act of trying to capture how perfect that time and place was is impossible. I just snapped away and let the images sit, until I was back in the cold and wishing I was still there.

Now looking at this one, I am. Breeze blowing in my hair, sand sprinkled on my legs, sun warm on my shoulders, and no sounds but the water crawling up the beach. The best part about the photo to me is that no one is in it. Don't get me wrong, I love pictures of smiling loved ones. But for some reason, this one is just better faceless.

When trying to fill empty walls and no budget for works of others, I found the best way to remember moments like this and turn it into art. For a couple of dollars Kodak Gallery will blow up your charming little picture to poster size and ship it to you. Then, you can either buy a ready to hang frame or bring to your local framer and make it your own personal Ansel Adams. The quality is unreal and you can hang in a place that it can be enjoyed.

I plan to blow this picture up and put it above my desk. It will create some inspiration and a great way to relax even in the darkest, coldest of days.

xo
Erin