Yesterday morning I sprung up out of bed way before my alarm with tons of ideas brewing in my head. Does this ever happen to you? My best creative thoughts come when I’d least like them to (i.e. when I’m asleep). One was for an idea I’m brewing up for a christmas gift (which will be revealed at a later date, if all goes well) and the other was for curtains for our home office. Now, why 5:00 am and striped curtains seem to be a winning combo, I’ll never know. But I’ve been saving some images of striped curtains recently and think these just might be the ticket for our office curtain dilemma.
These striped curtains from Little Green Notebook started my striped obsession, and the search for further curtains of the same.


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It wasn’t until I found these curtains and a super helpful tutorial that I really started to ponder the idea of stripes in our office. I love a good, graphic print and what’s better than a bold stripe? Oh, and horizontal and thick stripes for this girl – I’d like to avoid any traditional vertical stripes in this office because, frankly, it’s just not my style. I have a hard time finding the right fabric most of the time, so I’m seriously considering a DIY approach for these puppies. Now’s where my lovely readers come in to play.
Here is a very rough sketch of some ideas I’m considering for the office window treatments. I’d love to bring in the mustardy yellow that’s in the lamp shade and reupholstered chair, but I’m not sure if that would be too drastic on two windows (4 panels). I love the tone on tone of a light gray and a white, but maybe I need Option 3 to bring a little bit of both colors into the room. Option 3 may be a bit more traditional, so I’m a bit hesitant about that one. Just to refresh your memory, the curtains would be going in this lovely hole that we call the office:
Care to share your thoughts on the curtain options? I’m not 100% on the striped look (when am I ever 100% on anything house related?) but I’d love to hear what the blog world thinks and hopefully help in my decision-making. Poll time – go!
Un-tagged images yoinked from Apartment Therapy and Smitten Design.
It amazes me that I’m a designer sometimes – a profession that relies so heavily on little details – because, goodness, I’m a basket case sometimes. Take today, for instance. I came home during the day to let Charlie out for a few minutes between meetings. He was his usual, boisterous self, so I was preoccupied with trying to clean his muddy feet and forgot to lock the door. AND CLOSE IT. I actually left my house with a door cracked and not locked. Hey robbers, come on in, the house is open for business. I also ran some errands and picked up some vitamins that we were out of. Said vitamins were the ones that Scott and I decided to buy from Trader Joe’s since they were half the price. And where did I buy them from? Not Trader Joe’s. Naturally. Oh, and I went to the store to pick up dog food and forgot that I had bought anything when I got home and waltzed right in the door – sans dog food.

Oh, the horror. Yes internet, you have now gotten a glimpse into our sad little office that we close the door to when guests come over. The old school table I
The other side of the office is even more sad, if you can believe it. We have some wall space that isn’t being utilized to its full potential, and some hand-me-down storage that just isn’t making the cut. So what to do? Enter, our winter project idea collage.
Scott and I love the rich browns we have rocking in this space, but this room needs some colors to brighten things up a bit. Also, Scott works from home about 3 days a week and spends all day in this room, so the organization needs to be pumped up. I’m not completely sold on this collage, but it’s at least a good starting point while we work our way to a more functional and pleasing home office.
My first attempt at a photo shoot worked out just about perfectly. It was an overcast day, so I wasn’t trying to figure out how to avoid blaring sunlight at 4:00 in the afternoon. I shot everything manually to really try and challenge myself, though (yay me!). That meant about 60 good images out of 200 something, but hey, I’m a newbie. Oh, and all of us were pretty nervous since we were in a totally new situation – but luckily, nervous laughter looks like real laughter. :)

Aren’t they photogenic? I honestly don’t know how photographers get people to look fantastic in pictures, since I am guilty of closing my eyes in 90% of pictures taken of me. Luckily, these two were naturals so I didn’t have to prompt them to look awesome. Score.
Some things I learned in my first photo shoot: posing people is hard, overcast days rule, I love my 50mm 1.8, and I really want a wide-angle lens to get some different perspectives. I also made them a little custom CD for all of the images I took. I’m such a nerd, but I love doing stuff like this, especially when it’s a little humourous with their butts on the back of the case.
The highlight of our trip was eating at
We also made an after dinner stop at a favorite ATL spot,
I fulfilled a little secret fantasy of mine when we stayed at the Westin in downtown. This John Portman structure has always had me drooling, so I was pleased as punch to actually be a guest here. The exterior glass elevator and revolving restaurant were closed for repairs (boo) but the soaring lobby had me at hello. ::close your ears now if you don’t want to hear a bit of gushing:: I had a wonderful time with my hubby and I just want to tell him how much I love and appreciate him everyday. Happy anniversary, Scottie. :) Here’s to many more years (and fun trips) in the future!
If anything, it made for a good photo op. Hope everyone has a wonderful and safe Halloween!
Even one of my
There are even tutorials online to create your very own
… or creating a chevron 
1. Transform a Corner. First off, I have to address the new look to my beloved Real Simple. In the editor’s note, that I’ve featured
2. Money Conversations Everyone Should Have. I lean more toward dunce than doyen when it comes to finances, but Real Simple is always there to lead me in the right direction. This article lists some awkward, but necessary, conversations that we should all think about having when it comes to our finances. Talking with your spouse about who pays what and where your investments are allocated are just some of the issues this article brings up. It also touches on approaching your parents on their nest eggs (and if it’s enough to keep them afloat in the future) and sharing the responsibility with your children on saving for college. Each scenario is broken out by why it’s important, when to talk about it and how – a perfect little list to guide me through the uncharted territory of financial land.
3. The Hectic Holiday Handbook. Nevermind the incredible Thanksgiving recipes that are in this issue (seriously, there is drool all over my issue; not a pretty site) RS also included this handy dandy guide to the holiday season. One of the things I love about Real Simple is their vast array of seemingly useless knowledge that they throw at you, and this article is no exception. Did you know that miniature quiches are one of the worst things you can eat at a buffet spread? And that an opened can of cranberry sauce is good for up to two weeks? Or that you should splurge on club soda and bourbon, and but can skimp on gin and vodka when stocking a bar? Now that RS has given me tons of knowledge like this, I can keep this in the bank and pull them out at any time to sound like a smarty. And what’s better than sounding like a smarty pants? Not much else in my book. Thanks Real Simple, for making me look good.
The rules:
6. I never in a thousand years thought I would be a designer. I always enjoyed crafts and such, but I was a big time math and science geek. I actually enjoyed calculus class, for goodness sake. That’s until I took a drafting class my junior year of high school and fell in love with drafting. I’ve even won an award for my impeccable drafting skills (shared too much? you betcha). That love of drafting, my history of drawing floorplans in sidewalk chalk as a little girl, and the yearn the do something different from my doctor filled family led me to design.





