holiday decor around the house

Above: My grandpa's camera that took all of my mother's photos growing up. Santa and donkey from Black Scottie Treasures.

This holiday season has been absolutely CRAZY!!! I had been doing craft shows almost every weekend and somehow had booked up all other weekends until today. Today I feel free! Work the past couple of weeks have been an absolute nightmare. I'd love to vent about it, but this is really not the place. Just know that I had to stay late a few times last week, didn't get any real sleep as a result of stress and I definitely broke out in tears 3 times.

But 6 days from today is Christmas, which really is the best time of the year. And I finally have a fabulous place to decorate. After a stress filled day at work and leaving the bustling shops, coming home to a peaceful holiday home really makes everything better.

Top of my IKEA shelves, I put faux glittered "snow" and arranged my vintage cameras and new figurines from Black Scottie Treasures.

It's a little difficult to see with my super awesome camera, but I made these little cone trees based on Daniel Thompson's tutorial. Hers are super stinkin' cute, but I decided to go with all white trees. Each fabric has a different texture, so that are really great in person.

never too much aqua...

As some of you may have read via twitter, I painted my living room two weekend's ago. Even though I have no idea how long I will live in this house, I thought it would be worth it to improve the "mood" in my house. It is now very bright and chipper.

My dad pointed out that it even makes the room feel cooler. It's all in our head, but the ice blue does remind me of non 100 degree temperatures.

in the kitchen with emilee: easy veggie chili

This is by far the easiest meal to create and it makes a TON, so it is also good to freeze and save for later. And you could use fresh ingredients, using the cans makes this super fast and easy.



Ingredients:
1 small can of corn
1 can of black beans
1 can of kidney beans
1 can of Rotel (I use the original, but you can choose any flavor that you like!)
1 bag of Morning Star Farms Grillers Crumbles (faux ground beef- the texture is just like ground beef--from what I remember--but it way more healthy!)
1 bottle of beer (I use Shiner, because that is what I like to keep in my fridge)
2 large carrots
2 tbs canola oil
1 tbs chili powder (or to your liking)
1 tsp cumin (or to your liking)

Directions:

Bring small pot of water to a boil to cook the carrots. Peel and slice the carrots and drop them in the pot to cook while you are preparing the rest.

Open and drain you beans and corn and put aside.

Drain carrots.

In a large pot (big enough for about 6 cups of chili) heat the canola oil. Pour in the Grillers Crumbles and cook them until they brown (just like ground beef). Once the Crumbles look done, dump in your beans, corn, carrots, Rotel, and bottle of beer. Stir. Add spices and let simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Just a note about the spices- the Rotel already has spices in it, but I prefer my chili to be nice and spicy! If you like a more mild flavor, you might cutting the extra spices in half.

And that's it! I like to eat my chili over crushed Saltines with a little dollop of sour cream and cheese.

Bon appetite!

pretty new chair

I LOVE my new chair...it is the perfect addition to my living room. I've been wanting to post a photo sooner, but I thought that it would be cuter if Tilly sat in it. And it is.



Checklist for being a successful designer:
Own a this Eames chair.

Check.

my new home in houston's historic heights!

I moved to the Heights at the very end of March and have been settling in quite nicely. In comparison to my last apartment (which I hated) this new apartment is AMAZING. It is a one bedroom, lower unit in a four-plex. The kitchen is quite large...and yellow! How perfect?

There is hardwood floors throughout the house, except the kitchen and bathroom have black and white checkered tiling.

I still have a lot that I want to do/buy/make in my new house, but for now, this is what I have come up with!

Living Room:


This mini-door in the living room leads to an enormous walk-in closet, with shelves lining two of the walls.



The best part of this house: the windows! They are huge and they are everywhere! Tilly has never been so happy to watch all of the birds and squirrels play outside.

Bedroom:



This dresser is one of my favorite pieces of furniture that I own. Surprisingly, all of my furniture that I have now was a part of my very first "big girl" bedroom. I just gave it a nice bright coat of turquoise paint to update the look.


A second dresser, part of my nursery! I refinished this a few years ago.

Bathroom:


Cutest bathtub ever.

Kitchen and Dining Room:


A detail of my bar. I love the grey laminate with the yellow walls!


My little dining area. Perfect for a couple of friends for brunch!

And that is a snapshot of my new place! I learned some new photoshop skills and am a little obsessed with "aging" my photos, so I hope that it's not too distracting!

You can visit my flickr to see a complete set of photographs around my house.

etsy finds: a wish list

I moved to my new house this past weekend. I. Am. In. Love.

Everything about it is super cute! Once I finish unpacking and putting everything in its correct place, I'll make sure to post pictures.

In the mean time, I can't help but day dream about decorating my cute new house. This house is larger than my other apartment, so I still need some more furniture pieces to complete "the look."

Here are some fun etsy finds that would be fabulous is my living room.



1. Apothecary Jar Moss Terrarium No. 6 from Blithe Gardens
2. Ceramic Owl Planter Vase Vintage Design Aqua Blue from Fruit Fly Pie
3. BLU RASPBERRY -- Keep Calm and Carry On 16 x 20 from Pressureless
4. Smile Handprinted Letterpress Poster from Roll & Tumble Press
5. VINTAGE TURQUOISE ROTARY TELEPHONE For Decoration Parts OR Repair from Sugar Lily Vintage

Friday's Fabulous Find

While I am not a home owner yet, this is my very first “grown-up” rental property. I decided that I would do everything possible to not live in a college-y looking appartment. I knew that I lived in a “grown-up” house when I decided to buy matching towels! Ooh lala!

Anyways, I needed a couch for my new home. I had always lucked out with oommates that supplied the couch. So when I moved last June, I found myself couch-less. On an excursion to the antique store I found this couch. This beautiful couch. The employee of Fox Search Light Gallery said that it was just droppped off to the store. It was in perfect condition as if the previous owner had kept in safe under a plastic covering. Thanks to the help of my mom, who also understood that I needed this couch, it became mine!

It is originally from the sixties and is upholstered in royal blue dupioni silk.



Keep in mind that is was in pristine condition until the lovely Tilly decided to add her own personal touch.

A Little More Decor!

I was so excited when these wrapping papers came in from Cavallini! I bought the vintage Chicago map and the vintage Paris map and framed them in a frame from IKEA. They add a little something-something to the hallway.