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I am so behind the ball on this it’s embarrassing, BUT you have to forgive me because I have been working 7 to 9 the last few days at my “day job”, though it’s taking up way too much of my nights lately … the exciting news I have to share is … a new e-zine! High gloss! SO exciting (Erin Gates of Elements of Style – my favorite blog – is one of the creators). It launched on February 1st with it’s first issue, peruse it here.

Great interior design features …

And great shopping and style features …

Plus tons more! Please check it out. Love …

Now I’m going to fall asleep for five days …

One of my absolute favorite blogs … okay, okay, my FAVORITE blog is Elements of Style and I was just catching up with it when I came across her bedroom! WHAT? This is amazing. Blog owner Erin Gates, has shown tid bits along the way as she and hubby moved into this new apartment and have been decorating, but this is too much. It’s amazing. I love, love, love.

Check out these incredible images and a recent interview with her on Kelly Moore’s blog. I can see Erin’s experience styling her spaces for photo shoots coming to life in these, fantastic! It looks amazing Erin, I’m storing ideas in my mental file and I can’t wait to paint a wall black too!

The black feature wall in this room is to die for and the use of various patterns and textures in the bedding plus that beautiful bench is genius. Plus, a sunbeam mirror like that sets off the space perfectly – I’ve seen lots of good mirrors in this style at Home Goods.

Gorgeous Colette Bed from Crate & Barrel (I love anything with nail heads), Dwell Studio Peacock Duvet in Dove, with Ikat dot pillows from Fabricadabra … top it all off with a monogram and you’ve got my knees buckling!

A gourd lamp is always good, again if your looking for this style, try Home Goods, and I love the double pulls on each of the drawers! Hardware can be an inexpensive way to update pieces and make them unique like this nightstand.

PS – Yay for the book “Catching Fire”! If you haven’t read the Hunger Games series, go buy them NOW.

One of my absolute favorite places for inspiration is Lonny Mag, it’s an online magazine focusing on interior design along with some great tidbits on fashion, decorum and personal style. Love, love, love. The new issue came out yesterday, so here are some of my highlights!

Doesn’t this bed look like a dream? It looks so comfy and cozy and I love that it’s slipcovered in linen, this looks like laying in it must feel like vacation. You could accomplish a similar look with this bed from Ikea for $379.

I’m really into raw wood tables like this plank table below. I love how it brings the outside in. 

Funny, I picked this photo and started writing about what I like in it and then realized it was the same room on the cover, man, I must have good taste. Great use of art and a little zebra is always a good thing. This simple palette of black, white and  wood/sepia is so fresh and chic. 

Fantastic grey paisley wallpaper. Dare I say, I love grey?

Now what girl wouldn’t just die to have a closet like this? And I’m not even talking about all the things in it, just look at the organization! The little type A girl inside me is squealing!

Chalkboard paint feature on the the refrigerator doors – chic and cheap.

Loving this shade of blue, what a fantastic peacock blue color … it’s Calypso by Benjamin Moore. 

For more inspiration from Lonny, click here to view the full issue.

Sometimes, you’re having a rough day and you need a little therapy session. While we all can’t go knock down our shrinks door and unload, we can help ourselves with a little something in our décor to lighten the mood. This is just the thing!

I have this version in my office because it is so perfect for my job – it hangs above my door so only I see it, but when I look up and am thinking “Please God, these people are making me insane!” It makes me laugh and not be so serious.

See, here it is in the view from my desk …

What the heck … while I’m at it, I might as well give you the tour. I had been waiting until I got rid of that nasty bookshelf in the back, but it seems to be pretty content where it is and I can’t find it a new home. Believe me, if you saw the before pictures (I lost them when I got a new phone), this would take your breath away!

View from the doorway

Detail of desk and wall

Detail of console/file cabinet

The console/file cabinet is pretty genius and is from Ballard Designs for only $160 – the 3 drawers hold hanging files and can handle letter or legal size folders. The shelf below provides an inconspicuous place to put nasty ugly desktop printers. As for the other items in here, the frames are from Ikea and I just picked out some favorite album covers that I googled online and printed them on 11″ x 17″ paper. The yellow desk tray is CB2, the Moroccan tile rug is Pottery Barn, the lamp is Target and the chairs are West Elm and the pillows are a Home Goods find. The amazing piece of art above the console is from CB2 as well and is incredible – it’s from India, made of woven strips of newspapers and the center is strips of hand painted Bollywood movie poster canvases. You can find the coolest things written in the type and each one is unique: mine has a personal ad for a woman seeking “a man open to my education”, a lot of American political stories including “Obama’s Message” and a story about an execution in which “not to many were saddened by his death”. It’s a pretty crazy glimpse into another world and a moment in time.

I’m so happy about the way style is going right now, it is so me! … which makes it hard not to want to buy everything, but sure makes life pretty to look at. I’ve always had a thing for things with a touch of age, vintage things mixed with new, retro chic and the like. There is just something about a more innocent time that I love. Things were more feminine, more playful and more elegant. This is why I am so exited by the J.Crew Spring collection! I know it seems too early to even contemplate spring as Fall has just begin and here in SoCal it’s alternating between pouring rain and record-breaking 100+ degree days, but look at these color palettes!

I love the use of two shades of the same hue together – gold and citrine, red and rust, pink and coral, bronze and tan, denim and cobalt … love it! J.Crew just has the best way of styling, everything looks so perfectly unplanned. Wouldn’t it be great to have a stylist put your outfits together every day? A girl can dream …