Bulletin Board Makin' Fool

I can't stop making bulletin boards! See the first one I made here. This one is for my client here in California:



No nailheads this time; too busy with the print.

Wrapped up all ready to go to it's new home...

Glossy Black

Saw this image today on Haven and Home.


[ Laura Resen ]

I want to paint the front and back of our front door at the new house HIGH gloss black.

I'm wondering if I should go with oil based paint, or latex + poly. Hmmmm.

Lema Initiative : Winners!

THANK YOU all so much for the kind comments and support of the Lema Initiative.





A big CONGRATS to our two winners!





[A fun little note - I love the number 11, and I especially love 11:11.. every time I see it on the clock I make a little wish. It's cool that Anna's comment was left on 11:11 and she won :) ]





To the winners: please email me (brynalexandra at gmail) with your selections and addresses. Anna - you get any bag or tote of your choice. Maggie Rose - you get any scarf or make up bag of your choice.

Thank you again to everyone else for entering! You can still get FREE SHIPPING through Lema Initiative just for supporting this blog and the cause.

CLICK HERE to order.

PB Teen

Usually I like to look to places like Pottery Barn teen for fun home accents - there's no rule saying its JUST for teens! In fact I've always felt their stuff feels a bit Jonathon Alder-esque for a fraction of the price.

One of my e-decorating clients emailed me this morning about this rug and I just love it:


There are a million black and white striped rugs out there, but I just adore the little tassels on this one. And the price is right at $169 for an 8 x 10.

Speaking of fringe, I love this pom pom throw:


I would get it in white and yes, I would leave it out in the family room!

I looove plaid (especially lately), and I think this duvet set would be great in a guest room:



I'd fold it at the bottom of the bed, with white blankets, in an otherwise neutral room. Sort of like this:

[Canadian House & Home]

Very cool chandelier - it has a dripping effect:



How cute is this? A mini vintage looking fan that plugs into your USB on your laptop. I think I need this for my new office this summer.



I LOVE this mirror. LOVE. Hmm, where could I put it?


Kind of crazy, but I like this replica shark's mouth:

It reminds me of something that would be in Lonny.


Stay tuned, I'll be posting the winners to my giveaway later today! :)

Bathroom Inspiration

I can't believe in two weeks and a couple days we'll be closing on our first home!

I've had this bathroom saved in my folder forever and it's become the inspiration for our master bathroom which already has beadboard installed.



We don't have an antique tub, but I do plan on painting the vanity black.

Want to see the current state (previous owners)?




The first thing to go in the house is the popcorn ceilings. We're having them removed before we move in.

Renovations will be slow and done by us.. paint first and then things like flooring later down the road. But I do have dreams of marble tile like in the inspiration image. Key word - dreams.

Here are some great marble deals if any of you out there are making dreams become reality:

Hexagon (like above) - $10.95

Herringbone - $10.95

Or a less expensive alternative, white penny tile:

Black and Blue and White

I was happy to see one of my blogger faves, Jessica, put this outfit together recently in a little series, seen here.



I'm sharing this image today because I'm heading up to my CA client's home to complete the finishing touches on their spaces. The living room color scheme consists of black and blue and white (and gray), just like Jessica's outfit.

A week from today I'll be snapping final pictures; cannot wait to share with you!

Another Giveaway

My friend Fe over at Layers of Meaning is giving away one of my design boards!




Check it out here :)

Thanks, Fe for the opportunity!

Giveaway: Close to my heart

I have a giveaway for you today that is very close to my heart.

My brother-in-law, Greg, has always been like a brother to me. I started dating Matt when Greg was 12 and I have watched him grow up. He's now a sophomore in college and such a well-rounded and smart student studying Economics at Duke.

Last year Greg spent most of his summer in Guatemala teaching Guatemalans the skills needed to build businesses and create entrepreneurships. Here is a little more about the initiative, taken from their website:

We [a group of Duke students] traversed the country helping women entrepreneurs and consulting for various small businesses and organizations. One weaving cooperative, Lema, stood out above the rest in terms of the quality of its goods and its dream for expansion. This group of women, above all others, helped inspire us to continue development and consulting work when we returned to school.

How amazing is that? These students (including my brother in law) dedicate their free time to help the women of Guatemala live their dream of growing their business.

Today's giveaway includes not one, but TWO gifts from this special initiative.

The grand prize winner can choose a handbag/tote of your choice from Lema Initiative. Here are some of my favorites:







The second giveaway winner can choose a scarf or cosmetic bag.





So many of my readers have supported me in my quest to live my dream and grow my business - I ask you to please support this worthy cause by assisting women doing the same in much less fortunate circumstances.

Even if you don't win, my brother-in-law and his Duke classmates have given my readers:



To get your free shipping, click this link:

www.lemainitiative.com/bryn

These bags are perfect for the upcoming summer season; I encourage you to support this cause!

To enter the giveaway: Leave a comment with which product(s) you like and how you would use it. Both prizes will be picked at random with random.org.

This contest will close Wednesday night at 11:59 am Pacific time. I will draw a winner on Thursday.

Thanks for reading and entering!

Lucky

Man, I'm lucky Charlotte likes her pet carrier. She hasn't really been in it since I moved here in January, so I put her in it next to my desk. She still loves it - thank god!



Good to know she's all ready to go tomorrow because I am not. Loads of laundry, here I come.

Misc.

I have some misc. things to share with you on this Friday morning :)

+ Tomorrow I'll be leaving for sunny Southern California to finish up a big decorating project there (and to see my in-laws!). I'm soooo excited; I'm loving how this project has turned out. It's very beach-chic (the home is right on the water). The plan is to finish up and take pictures for my portfolio - so I'm sure I'll share some soon!

In the mean time, here is a sneak peak:

This, my friends, is a closet believe it or not!

Even though I'll be in California, I'll still be working and blogging!

+ Last night the seller accepted all the inspection repairs, so things are moving along beautifully on our new home! We are set to close May 14th. After we close I'll take you on a full picture tour of the home.

+ Speaking of new home, we desperately need furniture. I'm thinking how we need a new couch, but the popcorn ceilings and new carpet take precedent. Whenever we are able to get one, I'm wanting this one:

Hurley Sofa - $699

In green velvet, inspired by one of my favorite rooms:

[ Domino ]

Happy Friday!

Design Board... in real life

Many of you have seen my e-decorating design boards here on the blog. If you haven't, you can click here to see some.

I thought it'd be fun to show you a "real life" design board I did for one of my Charlotte full service design clients.



As you can see, it's very similar to my e-decorating design boards. One thing I do is paint the corkboard the color of the room; I think it's much better to see the color painted than on a small swatch.

My clients loved the plan - I cannot wait to see it come to life!

[I literally just realized the colors in this room are very similar to my blog - haha! Totally unintentional.]

For The House : Feathergrain Bins

what: The Container Store Feathergrain Bins
where: my home office
why: These are beautiful. And functional. I plan on using them to store paint fan decks; since they don't have lids the decks will be easily accessible.
how much: $12.99 for small, $21.99 for medium, $29.99 for large (I'll probably get small to fit on an IKEA Billy bookshelf).

DIY Nailhead Corkboard

One of my local clients and new friend Sarah asked me if I could do something similar to Erika's fabulous inspiration board:



And I said, sure I can!

The process was actually much simpler than I thought and it turned out really nice.

The materials involved are:

Corkboard (we used a 3' x 4' from Staples)
Fabric (we used ivory linen)
Nailheads (we used these)
Hammer
Spray Adhesive
Staple gun
Iron

Steps:

1. Iron your fabric like crazy to get all the wrinkles out (especially if using linen)
2. Spray adhesive the fabric onto the cork section of the board only, leaving the moulding trim unglued.
3. Nail in the nailheads with the hammer- I measured the width between the nailheads with the width of my pinkie finger. This was easy and assured that everything was even :) Go along the line of the board's moulding trim and you will get a straight line.
4. Spray adhesive the fabric onto the moulding
5. Staple gun the fabric onto the back of the board and you're done!

I didn't take pictures of the entire process.. I grabbed my iPhone mid-way through to snap a few pictures. I'm really bad about taking pictures for my DIY projects... I know, I need to work on that. Bad blogger!





[It never fails. When you have a black dog, there will always be black dog hair in my pictures.]



The finished product!


Yes, I am aware of the terrible picture quality. But I got a promise from Sarah to get pictures of it hung :) I'll be sure to share with you when I get them!

Also, if you are local and want me to make one for you - shoot me an email.

Mixing Bedside Storage

You probably know by now I love mixing bedside storage, as seen in this guest bedroom I designed:



The reason I love to do this is because I believe that design should work with the way you live, and often men and women and husband and wives live differently.

I'm currently working on a bedroom design for my parents. It's so great designing for my parents because I really understand how they live. My mom always has stacks and stacks of magazines on her side of the bed (like mother like daughter!!!), and my dad has his computer, bills and a classical guitar on his side. I'm working on doing a desk on my dad's side and a three drawer dresser on my mom's.

But I'm not the only one who likes mixing bedside storage. Here are some other inspiration pictures of the same types of set up [you may have to look closely]:

via cote de texas

ginger brewton

Of course, I love a completely symmetrical bed, too.

via lonny mag

The key is to choosing what makes the most sense for you.