iPhone Recap

First I'd like to say - thank you all for the great Anniversary wishes! They were so sweet :)

Second - thank god for iPhones. If I didn't have one, nothing in my life would be documented with pictures. (I just wish I had the new iPhone.. have you seen it's camera? it's insane).

I'd like to preface by saying in our marriage we live by VERY low key anniversaries, birthdays and holidays. If you treat them like any other day, you never will be disappointed. I think many women hype them up too much and then end up upset that their husband didn't do this or that. We never exchange gifts or cards, and do things very simple. And I always end up having a great day :)

And yesterday was no exception - we had an awesome anniversary! Even though we never exchange gifts, my husband did bring home flowers which was very sweet and very unexpected (when you don't expect anything a surprise is even better).

We didn't go out but cooked our favorite fall meal - Chicken and Dumplings. We had a lovely dinner.. it was dark and raining, so I lit some candles. It was very nice!



Nothing says romance like my big glasses and comfort food ;)




We'll use any excuse to have dessert. My favorite - red velvet cupcakes!!



And chocolate cake for the husband:


And that was our very low key and awesome anniversary!

Earlier in the day, I installed some throw pillows and a new rug in one of my client's home (same client with red bar stools). I really like how things are turning out!





This home leans towards the traditional side, so it's been fun throwing in some transitional patterns and silhouettes. We're almost done with the first room pictured, so I'll be sure to share the before and after.

3 Years.

Dear Matt,

There are a million reasons why I love you, but here are just a couple for today...

- You support me in every possible way. But most importantly, you support me and my crazy dreams, and you even encourage me to dream bigger.

- You make me laugh.. especially when we end our day with something totally random and hilarious (like last night with Charlotte haha!)

- You are the.best.cook.ever. Especially when it comes to BBQ. You're making me fat!

- You know me better than I know myself (like when I move a piece of furniture and you say.. you aren't going to like it. You are always right but you still help me move it, and move it back, anyway).

- Your smile. It's the first thing I ever noticed about you.

- You make coffee for me every morning.

- You read my blog even though it's not interesting at all to you. Which is why I had to post this for you today :)

I LOVE YOU! Happy 3rd Anniversary!!

Love,
your wife

It's Here, It's Here!

This week it's cool and rainy and it feels soo much like fall. As much as I think it's crazy how fast this year is flying by, I love fall and I am excited it's here!

(And our three year anniversary is coming up tomorrow which is even crazier).

Some fall pictures and things...

[ via High Street Market ]

Antique Kilim Pillow

Leather & Gold Bangles

Jenny's latest project (it's amazing):

This beautiful Cognac velvet upholstery fabric

This leaf arrangement:

[ via HGTV.com ]

This coffee table (which is only $279! I'd take the feet off).

Contrast

Oh, contrast. How I love you.

Check out these ah-mazing rooms that feature the perfect blend of light and dark.

[ all pictures found via Full House.. a great blog for inspiration ]

And speaking of contrast, I tried a cowhide in our living room yesterday. I had originally bought it for my office, but it didn't work in there and wondered what it'd look like in here. I actually really like the organic shape, but it's wayy too dark for the space.



I think I may exchange it for one with more variation. (& for those curious, there will be an ottoman on top of it)

(ps- do you like how ADD I am?? I was in the middle of cleaning - see vacuum cords - and decided to try out the rug.)

Room, Recreated

I stumbled upon this picture and I really love it. I found it here. EDIT - I found out whose living room it is. It belongs to Karen from The Art of Doing Stuff. She is sooo talented and is now a new favorite of mine! Check out her entire house here.

I thought it'd be fun to recreate the room for you folks at home.



Here is my budget friendly version:

Sources:

Wall color - Sherwin Williams "Creamy"
Sofa - West Elm - $1449
Rug - IKEA - $179
Coffee Table - CB2 - $199
Gold Mirror - Lamps Plus - $250
Wood Side Table - Room & Board - $299
Drapes - West Elm - $59 each
Console - West Elm - $349
Lamps - IKEA - $59.99 each
Lambswool - IKEA - $24.99
Silver & White pillow - Etsy - $55
Mirrored Pillow - Etsy - $27.95

Nothing but this.

This week has been insane. And unfortunately my blog has kinda sucked because of it.

I got nothing for you today except for this wallpaper... which I really love and am considering for our powder room.

Schumacher Moonpennies

24 Hour Whirlwind Re-Cap

I'm sorry for the late post guys.. I definitely slept in after getting in at midnight last night from my whirlwind trip to NYC to see The Nate Berkus Show!

So what did I think? The actual show was disappointing (and described perfectly here), but I am still so glad I went so I could experience Design Blogger Convention of the Decade. Yes, I just made that up, but seriously, it was so amazing to have so many talented designers and bloggers all in one room. I was able to meet some of my very favorites and also some new bloggers that I'm sure will become my favorites.

I have to shout to some amazing bloggers who made my trip so memorable. Definitely Traci Zeller, who was my partner in crime.. I'm so thankful that she kicked my butt into gear to go! If you don't read her blog, you must - she has impeccable style that reminds me of Sarah Richardson. My two other partners in crime where Kirsten from 6th Street Design and Jenny from Little Green Notebook. I'm sooo glad I got to meet and hang out with these amazing women, I felt like we were fast friends. And of course Jamie from I Suwanee and Nick Olsen, I adore those two. I think they need a TV show together, seriously.

And a big shout out to The Nest for putting together a great after party, where I got to meet even more of my favorite girls!

I brought my nice camera and had planned on taking TONS of great pictures. Welll... I did take some but none of them came out (bad saturation). But many others took pictures so as they start coming in, I'll definitely share with you. I do have this one for you, taken with my iPhone:



I'm not sure when the show will air, but I was in the front row on the side, so I'm thinking there may be a glimpse of me... ack!

Overall it was a GREAT trip!

EDIT- As expected, more pictures are trickling in.

Here you can see me in the front row on the side with the bright lime green scarf and long curly hair. And my mom would surely yell at me to sit up. But in my defense, this was after the show stopped taping.

[ photo credit: High-Heeled Foot In The Door ]

You can see me again (and Kirsten next to me!).. I think I was getting ready to take the pictures I posted above.

[ photo credit: Little Green Notebook ]

Love these girls! From left to right: Jenny, Kirsten, me, Traci

[ photo credit: Little Green Notebook ]

hello, splendor Blog Crawl!

I'm so excited to be a part of Beth Dotolo of hello, splendor's Blog Crawl.

Check out her post yesterday. And here is mine!

"My Life is an Open Book"

The Author:

Bryn Dunn, blogger and interior decorator

The Setting:

University of Oklahoma - Norman, Oklahoma


Bryn's 9 to 5 Day Job Which Shall Remain Nameless - Orange County, California


Interior Decorating and Blogging - Charlotte, North Carolina

The Characters:

Bryn & Matt - husband and wife, best friends, support systems, complete opposites


Charlotte The Dog - sweet, old, black with a white chest. Overcame a near fatal back injury, loves her people parents, kind to all humans but sometimes bitchy to other dogs. Has pretty bad teeth but is okay with it.

The Plot:

Bryn, Matt and Charlotte thought they knew exactly what they wanted out of life. They had just graduated college from OU and both nailed great jobs. Bryn in Advertising and Matt in Insurance. They knew where they wanted to live, what they wanted to do, and who they wanted to marry (each other). So off they went to Orange County, California to live the dream.

However, happily ever after was not exactly how it turned out. Shortly after they got married, Bryn had gone through a handful of jobs but was never truly happy with her career choice. She knew what she wanted to be, but unfortunately was heading in the wrong direction. Around the same time, Charlotte was living life to the fullest until one day she jumped off the bed and broke her back. She had extensive surgery, was paralyzed and could not control her bladder. Matt was happy with his career, but dreamed of one day owning property... a single family home, not a condo. And wanted his family to be happy.

The Twist:

Matt got a call about a possible transfer to Charlotte, North Carolina. Oh what an opportunity this was! Bryn would be able to leave her 9 to 5 to pursue her passions. Charlotte could have a mommy that worked from home, which meant companionship and many walks during the day! And Matt could finally see his family completely happy.

And that's where the story ends begins :)

Next up is Laura @ Something Legit! Go check her out!

I'm one CRAZY lady!

Well, here it goes.. I just booked tickets to NYC for a flight going out TONIGHT. I luckily secured two tickets (the day before!) to the Nate Berkus blogger show!

Yes, I know I said I wasn't going to go... but I felt such regret. After all, this has pretty much turned into such a big industry event. My pal Traci came to the rescue and we're going to share a cab and hotel room and I'm doing it!!

So tell me - are you going? If so I want to meet you! I am truthfully more excited about meeting all my blogger girlfriends than actually going to the show :)

Now wtf am I going to wear?

Inspiration For Home

I have several pretty much empty rooms in our house and it's time I start filling them. No, I don't mean with kids.. I mean with furniture. I can see how that can be misread. But the kids will come someday, too. But furniture will come first.

I feel like I need some inspiration to jump start myself with this house of ours.

I love the graphic print on such a traditional chair. I think I need something like this in our home.

[ domino ]

I know you've seen this imagine a million times, but I just love how lived in it looks:

[ lonny mag ]

Gorgeous vignette. As much as I love painted furniture, I love an immaculate antique more.

[ lonny mag ]

Our family room is screaming for a huge piece of art. I think I may paint one myself..

[ lonny mag ]

I just love everything about this room by Brittany Stiles:

[ Brittany Stiles ]

Pretty:

Nice & Simple:


I just love this:

[ Violet Marsh Photography via Apartment Therapy ]

I've been thinking about gray + orange for our master bedroom and when I saw this scene on Mad Men, it pretty much secured it:

Jewelry Love on a Friday

Currently saved in my favorites on Etsy...

Orbit Purple Bead Necklace


Slate Blue and Gray Earrings


Crochet Bangle Bracelet


Dignity Initial Necklace


Blue Apatite Hoops

You can really tell I'm really drawn to dainty, organic shapes, eh?

And this isn't on Etsy, but I also love this beautiful necklace from Emerson Made: