I Married Adventure (Not Literally)

Good morning, design friends and fanatics. I'm sure quite a few of you understand the name of my title, but I have a good understanding on the demographics of my readers, so I know I also have quite a few readers who don't. *The marketer in me is coming out, I know! 

SO- for those who aren't quite following, Christopher is a very entertaining husband, but this post has nothing to do with him or our marriage!!! I'm actually referring to a book by Osa Johnson, written in 1940: 

So for readers that haven't seen this book before, keep your eyes peeled when you're near a shelter magazine; you're sure to see it sooner or later (sooner most likely). Naturally, designers are drawn to this book for it's gorgeous cover! 

via here

Eddie Ross via Lonny 

via here

via here 

Again, for those readers who want to know where to find a copy: EBAY! At any given time there's at least a handful of auctions. Be patient, and you'll find a good deal - supply and demand, you know? *Now the economist in me is coming out. I think that just leaves the art historian, which reminds me of a valid point: Make sure you're paying attention to the cover art. It changed later down the line, and books published later on have an UGLY cover!!! To be clear, it's a great read, too! Johnson chronicles her adventures while traveling and exploring areas like Asia and Africa. Pretty cool gig, right? Osa (and Martin) have a museum in Kansas (where they're from) dedicated to them. 

Here's my book (again, purchased off ebay): 

Lastly, I'm still scouring ebay for Johsnon's other book, Four Years in Paradise. It's even harder to find, but the cover is just as (if not more) beautiful!!! 

I hope I've provided a basic overview of Johnson's books and why I love them (without boring design folks to death). If you're like I am, you never tire of seeing either of these books!! 

Find of the Century????

Ok, readers, I need your help. Yes, I know it's Friday night. I'm sorry, but that's just too bad. I need to know something. Is this brass bar cart worth a six hour round trip and $50? Yes, $50! I've wanted one for SO long. I search Craigslist and ebay everyday (multiple times a day). This is the first time I've ever seen one in my area. It doesn't have a handle like I'd hoped for, but beggars can't be choosers I suppose. 

SO- is it worth it??? I'm only asking because once I decide to get it, I'll become paranoid that someone else will buy it, so I'll likely leave early tomorrow morning to pick it up! HELP! Is it a stylish brass faux bamboo bar cart, or I am just overzealous to have finally found one?! 

Jewelry Source

I love (i.e. am obsessed with) vintage costume jewelry. Ebay and etsy are great sources for affordable vintage jewelry. 

My collection:

All of them (minus the bottom right) are from ebay, and I spent $10 (or less) for each of them! 

I have to be careful, though, and fight the urge not to leave the house wearing all of them at once and looking like this:

via here

or this:

via here

Now personally, I have no problem dressing like this. In fact, I would enjoy it thoroughly. I need to find a way to create (and live in) a Kate Spade World- full of bright colors, sparkles, polka dots, stripes, and metallics. Who wants to join me??? Anyone?

XOXO,

Kelly 

Faux Bamboo Night Stands Part 2

My holiday break of nearly three weeks is officially over. Sigh. It's so much fun being a stay-at-home-person! I didn't get our bedroom painted like I hoped, but I'll have plenty of snowy weekends over the next few months to paint I suppose. I did, however, end up changing the hardware on my faux bamboo night stands: 

As they appeared when they were first delivered: 

Painted with original hardware:

Current state:

Initially I wanted to use pulls from Restoration Hardware, but I think they were $13 each. I found nearly identical ones from Martha Stewart available at Home Depot for $4.49 each:

Have a great week!!! 

XOXO,

Kelly 

Dear Ebay

You've been so very good to me. By offering a marketplace where I (the bidder) have a say in the price I want to pay, you've allowed me to become the proud owner of a FABIENNE JOUVIN canister.  It's not the tea jar that I wanted to make a lamp with, but it'll do, EBAY, it'll do!!!

I'm sure you're wondering two things right now: 1.) Why does she care so much about a canister? 2.) Why does she have a rubber dinosaur in her living room?

The answers to your questions are as follows: 1.) I'm a strange bird. 2.) You'll just have to wait and see! 

XOXO,

Kelly 

Christmas Bedding on a Budget

I haven't really started decorating for Christmas yet, except for our bedroom. I changed out the bedding that we normally have and hung a magnolia wreath. I love having a magnolia wreath above the bed because the lemony scent is still pretty strong! Because we are on a tight budget right now, I am not buying any new decorations for the holidays except (Christopher hates that word) our Christmas bedding and fresh greenery, all of which are already purchased. The euro shams are from Pottery Barn , normally $49 each, but I found them both on ebay a few months ago for $40 total with shipping. The green velvet comforter and shams are from Target and were purchased when they were on a weekly special.

I'm thinking of hanging some ornaments from the headboard, something like this maybe:

Image via Apartment Therapy

I'm not really sure if (or when) I'm putting up our trees, so I might just hang some of our mercury glass ornaments on the headboard instead!

Now if I could just get the walls painted and nightstands completed, I'd be one happy girl!

XOXO,

Kelly

Gold-Plated Flatware!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I spent the morning and afternoon at my grandmother's, and then Christopher and I headed to our friends' house for some killer leftovers and wine. All in all, it was a wonderful Thanksgiving!

It's interesting because I have been going to my grandparents' house for as long as I can remember for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and yesterday I noticed something for the first time: my grandmother's gold-plated flatware. Whenever I am in close proximity to something sparkly or shiny my attention span is similar to that of an ADHD child. Completely fixated on the flatware, I was practically crossing my eyes trying to stare at it every time I went to take a bite of turkey. My grandfather purchased it for my grandmother a long time ago because of all the holiday entertaining they did together. I didn't take a picture of it or anything, but when I got home last night I started doing google searches for gold-plated flatware. Apparently, I'm a little late to the "trend". Back in 2008 Crate and Barrel came out with there "Meret flatware" (no longer available)

This looks fairly similar to my grandmother's

via here

And then I came across these:

Image via Ruby Lane. They've been reduced to $1600; no big deal....

Once again, as if the billion times I've said it isn't enough, I LOVE FAUX BAMBOO!!! I already have this set from Target:

Can you imagine how beautiful a set of gold-plated bamboo flatware would be on a table setting? I CAN!!!! Naturally, I'm on the hunt to find the most beautiful, inexpensive set of gold bamboo flatware. I've found some listings already and will be calling today, but it will most likely take me awhile to find exactly what I want!

For anyone interested, more reasonably priced options can be found via Craigslist, ebay, and iClassifieds:

Image via iClassifieds

XOXO,

Kelly

Faux Bamboo Nightstands

It's no secret that I love (i.e. am obsessed with)bamboo furniture. I've mentioned it here, here, and here. Tonight my "collection" of bamboo furniture got a little bit bigger. Using a Visa gift card that I got through work, I was able to purchase a set of faux bamboo night stands via ebay. They're in great condition, but they'll need to be painted (glossy white most likely) and possibly some new hardware.

Please excuse my two-tone wall. I'm in the middle of painting!!

via Williams-Sonoma Home. Beautiful!!

I'm not certain if I'll change the hardware or not. Here's a pull from Restoration Hardware that I love though!

Depending on my mood and how much painting I have left to do in the living room and entryway I might start sanding and priming these guys!!

XOXO,

Kelly

Foo Dogs

I'm in the market for a pair of foo dogs. I love them because they're a little bit ugly/awkward, they meet my requirement for having one piece of asian decor in every room (*I just made that rule up, but it does sound like a good one to enact), and you can find them for reasonable prices at many locations:

Home Goods: *Usually $7.99 each

Ebay: $35.00 for this vintage pair

CB2: $49.95 for the pair

If anyone reading this is thinking about getting a pet, particularly a dog, consider buying one of the foo variety first. After careful research on the "foo breed", I can almost guarantee that a foo dog will never: need to be taken out, have to be groomed, or eat pumpkins, pens, or razor blades (*all of which Miss Luca has eaten in the last two weeks).

A foo dog, however, will never look this cute or be this cuddly:

*It's a very tough call, but I still recommend starting with the foo dog and working your way up to something like a razor-blade-eating Wheaten later.

XOXO,

Kelly

A Little Hollywood Regency Never Hurt Anyone....

I LOVE faux bamboo furniture! I think it's so beautiful and classic, and I often search for pieces on Craigslist, Ebay, and Etsy. A lot of the faux bamboo pieces that I find are classified as "Hollywood Regency". This style of decor is all about glitz and glamor. It's defined by bright, lacquered pieces of furniture, lush fabrics (velvet and silk), crystal chandeliers, pagoda lanterns, and chinoiserie pieces. Hollywood Regency is focused on entertaining. This all sounds great to me!! I'd like to incorporate a few of these elements into our home over time.

Here's a few pieces on Ebay right now. I've also noticed that Florida is the mecca for faux bamboo furniture. All of the items that I want would have to ship from Ft. Myers and Clearwater, which would be costly, so if anyone wants to rent a U-Haul and head to Florida over Christmas, I'm game. ;)

A credenza for our bedroom would be great, but what I really want are matching night stands that I could paint...

Definitely a must-have. Begging to be spray painted.

I have an unhealthy obsession with Chippendale chairs.

Most of these items actually will ship via Greyhound or a moving company, but based on the research I've done to get night stands or a chair to Ohio would cost anywhere from $60 to $100, so it would have to be a REALLY good deal for me to bite the bullet on these.

Happy Ebay-ing!

XOXO,

Kelly

I won!!

A while back, I wrote a post about a house I loved at the 2010 BIA parade of homes in New Albany. I especially loved a lot of the artwork and light fixtures.

You can see one such piece of artwork behind Christopher in this photo. It is a HUGE poster by Jean Rouille, "La Crevet" (or "tie"). It's an art deco poster and I don't know why, but I just fell in love with it.

I started searching for it on google and found it on a few different auction sites... most of which were showing it priced anywhere from $400-$600. I know a lot about art history, but very little about posters, so I'm not sure why I was able to buy it on ebay for $29.99!!!!!!!!! Maybe mine is on a less desirable paper grade. Who cares!!!??? I can't wait for it to arrive on my doorstep. I have a few spots in mind for it after I save up enough money to frame that big boy....

XOXO,

Kelly