Sharing: Dreams, Intentions and the Power of YOU

[completely unrelated image
but one of my favorite paintings.. by Whistler]

I'm stopping in during my short blog hiatus to share one of my favorite What I Wore posts ever. And no, it's not about fashion.

Please go check it out here, it's a short post about the power of positive thinking and intentions and dreams.

A little excerpt:

"WhatIWore: People who know me in real life know that I love to quote The Secret and truly believe in good things happening to me, and think about life with a lot of joy and positivity. Its the only way! One of my favorite parts of the Secret is “You can have, do or be anything you want”"

One thing I learned from Jessica, other than shopping thrift, is the power of positive thinking. I now do the same thing, write down my intentions (usually here on the blog), think about how to make my dreams come true, etc.

I encourage you to read Jessica's post and do the same.

And remember people..... life is good, have a great weekend and please be safe!

:)

space of the day

As promised, a pretty picture for today.



This one is especially pretty (from House Beautiful)

asjkgljsdklgasj;dgksadgj

My husband and I have this little thing that we do when we are shocked/upset/stressed.... it goes something like this:

asgkasjgklasd;gjasklgjaklsjgakersljgakdsjgadksgjaskgl;jasdgkljdasg;kasjdgas;ldgkjsd

This pretty much describes the next 9 days for me. My day job + side job + personal life all need my attention right now so unfortunately the blog is getting the back burner.

With that said, I will still try to post some pretty pictures for you to look at. Here is one in particular that I am loving right now:

{domino mag}

initial

Thanks to Jenny who introduced me to this. Here are my letters:

mad for plaid

I'm so in love with plaid this fall.

Check out this great space from Domino:



Do you love plaid as much as I do?

I've toyed with the idea of creating custom "plaid series" Holiday cards and selling them here on my blog.. keep your eye out for that sometime after Halloween!

This post is VERY random.

Okay, those of you who are my age... did you ever read The Boxcar Children? For some strange reason I just thought of this book today.

I loooooooved this book series as a kid. Probably one of my all time favorites.



I remember, even as a kid, my favorite parts were how the children managed to make their boxcar into a little home, cooking and cleaning and decorating. How little has changed!

I was so obsessed that my mom got me the Boxcar Children COOKBOOK. And oh how I loved it. After a handy google search, I found the book:



Mom - is this book still around the house? If not, I'm adding it to my Christmas list. :)

I also think I may re-read the first Boxcar children book someday, just because.

white space

Instead of your one space of the day, I'm going to share many spaces today. In my college graphic/advertising design classes they always taught us the value of white space. I think the same applies in interior decorating.

Tonight I'm sending a design plan over to a new client, and I'm suggesting white walls. I hope she loves it as much as I do :)

Laura, if you're reading this, check out these great inspiration spaces!!

Right now I'm loving....

I am in love with these fall Etsy finds...


Nomad Cowl in ash


Trio of Maple Log Tea Light Holders

I just wish it were a bit cooler here in Southern Cal...



Look at Friday... "sunshine and summerlike"? No thanks! I guess it could be worse.... it's snowing in Minnesota.

Bright Side Project

I'm sure you all know about the Bright Side Project, yes? It's a fabulous website with daily give-aways... set to bring you a bit of daily cheer.

Well, I decided to offer up my e-decorating services, thinking it wouldn't be worthy for such a great site. Well they didn't agree, and I'm up today! Yay!

So if you've been wanting to take advantage of my services, this is a great opportunity. Head on over here, and check it out!

space of the day

Oh, how I love modern chairs with antique tables. Love love love. Do you think this is a fad that will go away? I love it so much, it's hard to tell.

space of the day

I love when I find new-to-me designers that I can drool over and look up to. Today I discovered Ellen Hanson, who brings us today's space of the day:



I love her choice of artwork. As I've mentioned in the past, that's the hardest part, ya know.

the lips

Sure, these clothes are great, but out of my price range. However, it's the lips I can't stop staring at.

Are these not the best fall/winter lip colors ever?







It makes me want to go to the Chanel makeup counter and spend a good fortune... something tells me these colors aren't in the Loreal aisle.

tales from the weekend

Most of you who regularly read this blog know I have curly hair. What you probably don't know is that I have a very bad habit of picking one or two curls everyday, always on my left side, and I twirl them all day long. I don't really realize when I'm doing it... it's just a bad habit of mine (even after years of my mom saying "Stop playing with your hair!"). This constant twirling creates a couple perfect corkscrew curls.




Although my husband has noticed this since dating (sometimes he asks if I found my favorite curl of the day yet), I guess it wasn't until this weekend that he really noticed it.

We were in Ikea and all the sudden he was laughing so hard and said "your hair looks so silly!" I had a regular head of curly waves and then three perfect corkscrew curls on the left side. We laughed hard about it in the aisles of the big Ikea boxes.

I love being married to that guy :)

mine!

Thank you all so much for all your comments and suggestions about my coat hunt. I went ahead and decided on this coat. My reasoning: I could still wear great colorful and big scarves with it without being too much (like it would have been with ruffles). Also, it was the thickest of the three so I could wear it for fall and winter and trips to visit my family in cold climates.



When I saw there was ONE available, I sent it to the husband and he said... you have been APPROVED! (a la Suze Orman). I am crossing my fingers that the small fits!

space of the day

Today's space of the day is a reflection of how I feel right now...



A lot going on.

Isn't the space kind of cool though? I found it via google images while searching "cluttered spaces". Apparently it's "an exhibit showing a small and incredibly cluttered room belonging to reclusive Chicago writer-artist Henry Darger".

I can't say I'm familiar with his work, but I love his dark walls, artwork and marble fireplace.

Okay, back to my insanely busy life!

space of the day

I'm giddy like a school girl while begging a client of mine to do a jewel-toned velvet tufted sofa (plum to be exact), which has inspired today's space of the day.

Check out this lovely emerald velvet sofa:

[room by pure style home]

made for me

Have you ever found a little shop or online store that feels like it was made for you? I found mine. Maybe you've seen it before, it's called Ruche. Seriously though, I feel like every single item on this site was picked just for me, it's insane.

My husband and I have talked about someday soon having "allowances".. where each month we'll each get $50 to spend on whatever we want. We can choose to save it or spend it, it's totally up to us. Right now all our extra money goes to our shared savings for important adult things.. boo hoo ;) But someday we will get our allowance. When that day comes, I am pretty sure I'll be spending my monthly allowance on one item from this shop a month. Even the prices are reasonable!!! Seriously, I'm in love.

Enough with the chit chat... let's get on to the beauties:

modern victorian sweater dress - $54.99

This dress is so me. Seriously, if you squint your eyes just a bit, doesn't it even look like me wearing it? Ha! I wish.

white marching band vest - $26.99

This vest is just simply f-ing cool. It'd wear it with a turtleneck, some bright tights and high heels to a client meeting.

miss poppins charcoal car coat - $79.99

This coat!!!! No words!!

amelie ivory roses striped dress - $36.99

bryn = stripes. Seriously, I find myself unconciously incorporating them in every design I ever do.

aspen lodge hooded sweater dress - $54.99

This says it's a dress, but I would wear it as a coat all season long with jeans and casual tops.


military studded suede tall boots - $49.99

Again, I'm speechless... those boots!!!!!!! I'd prob order them allowance or not, but they are out of my size :(

Anyway, I pretty much love everything on that site.. I could go on and on and on.

[BTW, this site is not paying me to say this and I'm pretty positive they have no idea who I am or that this blog exists. Although if they are reading this, and want to send me free clothes for me to advertise the heck out of them, I would not be opposed hehe]

space of the day

In honor of my black design board in the previous post, I present to you a beautiful black room by Windsor Smith:

Inspiration: Pattern Play

As I've blogged many times before, I just adore Jessica @ What I Wore's style. Well today her outfit "spoke" to me. I was completely inspired by the black, gold and ivory and the numerous textures and patterns. I knew I had to design a room around it the second I saw it...

inspiration:


my interpretation:


details:
I've wanted to paint a room black for a looonnng time. So I made this imaginary room's walls black. The couch is a ivory velvet and in my head the chair would be gold silk. The curtains are black with big bold florals. The throw pillows bring in even more texture.. and you can't forget the white flower to mimic Jessica's necklace. The layered rugs duplicate Jess's layered look. Any my favorite part... a shiny red lamp to stand in for Jessica's shiny red nails.

sources:
Fabrics: here, here and here
Sofa: Lee
Chair: Lee
Pillow: Etsy
Lamp: Shades of Light
Striped rug: Children's Furniture
Jute rug: google images
Tables: Restoration Hardware
Pendant: Upscale Lighting

This is an expensive, make believe room that's for sure!

One Kings Lane

I'm a bozo and only recently signed up for One Kings Lane. Well today they have tons of goodies that I would snatch up in a heartbeat:

Olive Acanthus Platter - PERFECT for Thanksgiving! I would design an entire tablescape around these two platters.


Archipelago Lindenwood Extra Large Candle - beautiful design, and I imagine it smells rich and earthy.. $55 instead of the usual $125

Areaware Herringbone Bear - soooo cute!

Saltbox Nantucket Basketweave Travel Bag - This chic travel bag is a steal at $79! And it looks as though it's a perfect size for a carry on.


You can sign up for free here. Please enter my email address (brynalexandra@gmail.com) when you sign up!

five years

I know the next five years are probably going to be the most exciting in my entire life. So when I saw this journal on ModCloth, I knew I had to add it to my Christmas List!




I can just image the things that would be written in this journal... buying our first house, building my business, having a baby....

The Hardest Part

Confession: the hardest part of being a decorator is..... artwork.

See, artwork is such a personal thing. One person's favorite piece can be another person's least favorite. Another reason why it's hard for me: I hate manufactured art. That includes art you see at Pottery Barn, Ikea, Ballard Designs, Art.com, etc. I don't know why... I'm not an art snob or anything, I just feel like it lacks that emotional connection.

This sure is a dilemma because not everyone can afford to purchase straight from artists and galleries, me being one of them. But thank god we live in the time of the Internet... and Etsy.com. Every piece of art in my home came from either a.) my grandmother and great grandmother (both artists) b.) Salvation Army or Rose Bowl Flea Market or c.) Etsy.

Back to decorating... as I mentioned I don't often like to pick art for clients because it is so personal, so I usually put mirrors in place of art. That's the beauty of mirrors, they are like artwork themselves, reflecting the most beautiful things in your life: you and your family! :) And sunshine of course.

I don't have any great prints or pieces to share with you right now, I'm currently searching for two perfect prints or one huge modern canvas piece to hang on a client's fireplace. But for now, I can offer some inspiration photos that have great art in them!

















artwork in our home: