Faux Tortoise

Back from Thanksgiving after a nice break from realities of the real world.  We went down to Seaside, Florida and had a nice, relaxing time. We even caught some rays for a Thanksgiving tan and made it to the outlet mall in Destin for Black Friday.  J.Crew had some good deals and I'm kinda sad that I didn't stock up on more threads.

Turkey Day sunset with my turkey :) We have a lot to be thankful for! 

While I was away I caught up on some mags, blogs, and some website/etsy browsing.  Which is how I came up with today's post about tortoise shell.  I've been seeing it more and more lately.  It first started with jewelry, like this Michael Kors' watch, but then I noticed it in home design.

My friend "G" and I have seen multiple occasional tables like the one below at Scott's Antique in Tortoise Shell finish and it's really grown on us.

While I was watching Episode 1 of this season's Million Dollar Decorators I noticed Mary McDonald (who I love) used Tortoise Shell Furniture in 2 rooms she was designing.  Love these tables but when I saw the bedside table (far right) I knew I was hooked for the long run...

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I think I love Tortoise Shell Furniture because it's so versatile, it goes with black, browns, creams, color, basically everything! Almost like the perfect tan handbag that looks great with almost every outfit!

I started to do some diggin' and find rooms that incorporated this look and it wasn't an easy task.  Often times I think we see it more than we realize but we just do notice which makes me believe the tortoise look can be somewhat neutral similar to a good, calm/classic animal print.

I started to do good 'ole fashioned round up off all think turtle shell inspired, so here's a few:

Tortoise Serving Utensils, tossing that salad will look so much more stylish with this pair.

Eye Spy: Karen Walker Tortoise Sunnies:

Alexander McQueen, not only did he make Pipa Middleton's bum look good but he made this turtle of a clutch look pretty darn cute too! 

I'm drooling over these Old Fashioned Tortoiseshell glasses, they need to be in my cocktail cabinet (Santa). 

Believe it or not, these Bistro chairs are from Kirklands and they cost next to nothing, well done Kirklands, well done.

 Asian inspired accent table with a tortoise finish. 

Love this desk with a similar finish.

 Another faux tortoise table that could be used in many ways.

 This Bachelor's Chest end table is certainly handsome...

I love Campaign Chest but a tortoise campaign chest is even better!

How about this Hollywood Regency Bar Cart? 

As you can see faux tortoise is in more places than we realize and it gives such a classy, preppy look to things. Whether it's your tableware, accents, or furniture it's a nice addition that layers a new look or texture into the room.

I'm still here!

As I mentioned last time work has been nuts but crazy good.  Hopefully once 2013 rolls around things will slow a tad and I'll have more time for steady blogging. 

I've been trying to get some little things done around the house lately.  I haven't posted much from Scott's or Homegoods because I haven't seen a whole lot that's caught my eye. I did however hit up my church's local yardsale a couple weeks ago and let me tell y'all... buckhead yardsales are the bomb.com.

Le Creuset Dutch oven $10, silver sailing trophies $15, dessert/app depression era glass plates $2, silver serving piece $7, linen cocktail napkins s/o 10- $4, blue and white china shot glasses (???) $5.

This wedgewood cachepot looks perfect with our dining room color scheme.  I think I paid $5 for this, I love it with my new Fiddle Leaf Fig tree plant.

 

This was the first thing I bought that day, Mottahedeh cachepot, I paid $15 and it retails on ebay for $90+!!! It's currently holding my new meyer lemon tree (that's not doing so hot---already).

I kept walking by this booth and looking at this cute antique scale, my friend "G" talked me into it for $15.  They also had an antique juicer that I wish I had bought, it was super cute too.

The guy who sold me the antique scale also had these depression era glass plates that I bought for $2.  I kept looking at the spoon rest and so he threw it in for free. I'm not really sure what the blue and white shot glasses are for but they were cute and only $5.

Seriously, the Peachtree Road United Methodist Church Yardsale is no joke and I look forward to it every year.  The prices are so great that I always leave wishing I had scooped up more goodies.  The selection of cute kids clothes (smocked, traditional stuff) is unreal along with strollers and toys for next to nothing.

In the meantime, I finally broke my new bedding out of the bag.  I bought this bedding months ago from Gramercy in Peachtree Battle and after I picked it up I just let it sit there in the bag.  This room is clearly not anywhere near done. 

I'm planning to get the Euro Shams monogrammed with Gramercy's big, lovely monograms, as well as the matelasse /coverlet.  The walls need to be painted in all of the rooms upstairs, I'm thinking a simple white that has a touch of gray to it for our room.  My headboard is still a work in progress and once that's finished I guess I'll get around to new side tables and curtains.  

That Schumacher Imprerial Trellis fabric I snatched at Seaside Yardsale is also making an appearance on my bed in some accent pillows... :) 

Speaking of headboard, if this thing isn't finished soon then I'm jumping ship for something different (don't tell the Mister).  This was the first thing I bought and I still love the shape, just a bit, ummm, frustrated.

I've been collecting some little pieces of blue and white china for this room.  I think it compliments the bedding well.  This cachepot was another church yardsale find for $3, along with that sweet little dish 

Now that my new bedding is in use, I moved our old pottery barn to the guest room.  Hopefully a new upholstered headboard with nailheads is in the future.  I found the best greyish-tan houndstooth fabric by the yard at the Ballards Design Outlet the other day for that skirted table. New lamps, throw pillows, new side table, and a paint job are also in the immediate future, obvi.

BD Houndstooth:

Ryan's mom gave me this old church arch thing from her house in South Carolina (I'm sorry I don't know the correct name for it). I love it in all it's heavy glory.  I'm planning for this to go above the headboard, once I can find someone strong enough to hang it. 

Anyways, there's a few updates on our home.  I think I went through a slump this fall and wasn't feeling super motivated or inspired.  Lately I've seen a ton of things I'm loving for the home so bear with me while I share...

To start, this Anthropologie Brigantine mirror made an appearance in the Rosemary Beach Ultimate Beach House by Coastal Living and ever since I've had a love affair with it.  It needs to be in my powder room immediately.

 
Have you seen that new online shopping site OpenSky? I'm not so sure about their deal except celebs and designers endorse certain products (and they spam the crap out of your email inbox). However, I can deal for these sweet little wall pockets (endorsed by none other than the fab Emily Henderson). Perfection for my desk area.

I bought a couple United Thread Prints from the Urban Grace Interior's booth at the Seaside Yardsale and I've decided I need to expand on my collection with these lovelies...

 Joshua Tree

Alligators, Magnolias, and Humingbirds

I've been thinking a lot about art, maybe one gets tired of staring at blank walls?  One of my favorite artist Nancy at Cozamia (my living room picture) has some new prints that are nothing short of perfection. 

 Into the Wild---I'm kinda obsessed-- makes me want to join RHOA on an African Safari :)

 Audrey

The Dress

Another incredible artist that I'm super infatuated with is Lullie Wallace out of Charleston, SC. For real... why can't I paint like this?

Flowers for Diana

 I want one of everything...

 Flowers for Chloe

Super pumped for the new Lullie Wallace Textile Line, if it's anything like her paintings, then it will be lovely.

Flowers for Jacquelyn

With all of these Lullie Wallace paintings in my checkout cart, I'm going to really need this next item.  An Anthropologie Wishbone would definitely make me feel lucky sitting next to my bed. 

Whenever we have more than 2 people over I feel like I need another comfy chair for my living room (occasional french chairs aren't conducive to long hours of football watching- who knew?).   I've been eying these 2 Restoration Hardware beauts for a little while now.  The 20% friends and family discount last week almost made me press buy.  Nonetheless my willpower prevailed and I decided to wait for the next F+F sale so hubs and I could put some of that money aside for a trip this spring.

Lyon chair --- I'm coming for you soon...

Lorraine chair

With Christmas knocking at the door so have my annual Christmas cards.  I take these way too serious for my own good but I love a good Holiday greeting with my friend's faces on them.  A very talented friend from high school (with amazzzing handwriting) posted on her instagram/blog that she has calligraphy stamps for sale.  Within 2 secs I knew this was the icing on the cake for my holiday cheer.

Check out these hand-calligraphy address stamps over at Oh My Deer's blog and etsy store.

Speaking of the holiday, I need to revamp my holiday decor this year.  I'm planning to hit up the Hobby Lobby Friday after Thanksgiving but I might also wait and buy a bunch of stuff on clearance the week before Xmas and the week after. 

One idea for my mantle was this cotton ball garland.  I mean how pretty (and southern) would this be strung across with some fresh pine needles and red berries sprinkled in?

There you have it, some of the things I keep window shopping for my home. 

Ok, let's get real for a minute.  I just went on and on about things I'm pining over and don't need but just want.  It's important for me to remember how fortunate we are and that material things really aren't all that important in the scheme of things.  Last week I helped throw a Thanksgiving party for kids at a hospital in downtown Atlanta and it was a nice reminder as to how blessed I am.  With everything going on in Israel and the middle east we should all be very thankful that we live in a safe and protected country. 

I don't mean to be on a soapbox y'all, but I did feel a bit ridic to do a long post of things I want to buy when I already have so much.  With that being said I hope you all are ready for Thanksgiving with big plans to relax with your friends and family.   Enjoy your week because once it's over Christmas is here and let's be honest... people get all sorts of crazy during Christmas (especially near malls and shopping centers).

Pinterest Recipes + Fall Decor

Anyone who knows me well, I'm not a huge fan of cooking.  It's not that I'm not good at it, I think I'm pretty darn good when I try, I just don't love it.  Lately I have tried out some amazeball Pinterest Recipes and I can't stop talking about them, yummm!

Therefore, today I'm dedicating this post to new Pinterest recipes and some other various things I'm loving for fall right now.

1. S'mores Bars Pinterest Recipe *Everyone who's tried these is OBSESSED*
http://pinterest.com/pin/88805423873452878/

Ingredients: Bag of marshmellows, graham crackers, cookie dough (softened), a couple hersey bars (reg size candy bars, I just happened to have the snack size on hand)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

I start by tracing the bottom of my pan on wax paper.  I then press the softened cookie dough into the outline I just traced on the wax paper.

 Put a layer of graham crackers down in greased pan.

Now take your cookie dough that was laid out on the wax paper and transport it on top of the graham crackers. The reason you lay it out is so that you don't crush up the graham crackers. 

Then cook this at 350 for about 8-10 minutes (doesn't have to be all the way done)

 Once you take it out, this is the next step:

Drop pieces of the chocolate bars, then cover with marshmellows:

Pop in the over for another 8-10 minutes or until the marshmellows are golden brown on top.

Take out an enjoy! Great with Milk, coffee, or a cup of hot cocoa just to get the complete campfire feel going :)

2. Shredded Beef Taco Pinterest Recipe *Makes a lot*  *Could try brisket cut of meat*

In order to save lengthiness of this post here's my pinterest link.  However, I kinda combined these 2 recipes (I also didn't sear the meat before because well, I'm lazy). 

http://pinterest.com/pin/88805423873454604/
http://pinterest.com/pin/88805423873454601/

3. Slow Cooker Potato Soup Recipe *Tried and true recipe*

http://pinterest.com/pin/88805423873590320/
*I drop in some bacon pieces while its cooking and later as a topping.  Ryan mixes blue cheese into his soup and I must say it's pretty tasty like that too. 

4. Vegetable and Sausage Casserole Pinterest Recipe *Husband loved this!*

No picture here but this was soooo yummy!!! You won't regreat this decision, I served mine for dinner with biscuits.

http://pinterest.com/pin/88805423873338710/

With the weather cooling off I think this inspires me to cook more and get really into decorating our porch with pumpkins, mums, and kale.

Last year I was inspired by last year's 2011 Southern Living with all the pretty mums and kale on this front porch, love the garland around the door too.

I went to Pike's Nursery and made my husband balance about 8 pumpkins on his body for their $19.99 all you can carry pumpkins.  After I took this picture I think I went to Kroger and bought some large gourds.  Sadly, the woods near our house were fed about 20 pumpkins by the time Christmas rolled around.

  

This year Southern Living used boxwoods instead of kale... something I'd never thought of but might need to try.  I'd just make sure you keep the boxwoods and re-purpose them since they don't come cheap! :) 

This year I did a similar look like last year's Southern Living cover except maybe a few less pumpkins than my trial version the year before.

I even got a little festive inside the abode on my dining room table. These were all thanks to Publix, which by the way, has the best large size pumpkins for the cheapest ($6) at the beginning of the season.

There you have it, some of my favorite "F" words at the moment: food + fall.  Although I shouldn't leave out football and fun either because there has been tons of that going on too!