Monday, November 29, 2010

Client update, sort of....

Again, this isn't really a client but my friend/neighbor (in that order: friend who happens to be my neighbor) has made some decisions regarding her bedding/Christmas present!  After considering these two options:

Sienna Paisley Duvet Cover, Twin, Blue
option #1


Alisa Embroidered Duvet Cover, Full/Queen
option #2


She's decided on option #1!  Personally, this is the one I would have picked too although the second one wouldn't have been a hard adjustment.  She's thinking about one of these quilts:

porcelain blue
                                           


soft green


And, after using the surprisingly convenient tool on the Pottery Barn website that allows you to design your own bed (really, it's good), I'm voting for the porcelain blue. Click this link to see what I'm talking about http://bit.ly/cB9mop.

Now the next question on everyone's mind is, "Will a paint job be required?" I'm thinking Scroll Beige from Glidden should anyone care what I think.....

Glidden's Scroll Beige via myperfectcolor.com


It's a color my mom and I have both used in our homes and we're always pleased with the outcome. It's just a nice taupe/beige that would warm some of the cool colors in the bedding.  Of course, we'd have to get our hands on the bedding first before making a final decision on paint.  The green in the bedding might make Scroll Beige a yawn so we'll just have to see.  Also, their bedroom furniture is beautiful dark wood so the paint and the furniture would need to compliment each other. And, while we're at it....we'd probably have to see if new paint's even necessary!

Isn't she such a champ for letting me use her bedroom update as discussion for my blog?  She may be changing her mind about now.

Happy Birthday to Nettie!

To one of the SAINTLYEST (word??) people I know!  Hope you have a great birthday, Nettie. We can't wait to see you and Big Daddy for Christmas!


Sunday, November 28, 2010

Fire Alarm, Shmire Alarm

More of God's glory!


So the Bread Winner, Jane and I pull up to the church this morning and there's no one there. Okay, there were people there but probably a quarter of the number of cars in the parking lot as there would normally be. First thought is: good parking, second thought: do this many people really go out of town for Thanksgiving? and third thought: maybe they should reconsider even having services the Sunday after Thanksgiving.   Well, turns out the fire alarm went off mid way through the 9am service and they had to clear the building.  As for those of us showing up for 11, game on and I'm glad it was. Andy spoke on gratitude and it was awesome. As soon as it's available online I'll pass it along. 

This week, I want to recommend "Traded" which is a message in the Game Plan series.  So good. I should actually listen to it again, which tends to be the case with all of these messages.  Don't forget, you can also tune in here for the full service at 6pm (eastern).  Hope you enjoy!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and is prepared for the next stop on this holiday train: Christmas!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Good Morning, etc.

Good Morning.....

 Good Night......

Good Friends......

Great Trip! 

Thanks, Mark and Suzanne for being such great travel companions. It was just the vacation we needed and it wouldn't have been the same without you!

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Coastal looks for your Thanksgiving table!

Being in a beach frame of mind, I couldn't stop myself. Thank you for humoring me.  Frankly, I like these looks with or without the beach vacation. Hope you do too....

The combination of this rustic table surface and the refined serving elements create a high-low decorating mix.
Silver accents sparkle when paired with dinnerware in watery hues.
Texture—from smooth mother-of-pearl to rough pebbles—adds interest to a soft, white setting.
The above images are provided by http://www.coastalliving.com/

Here's to a beautiful Thanksgiving, surrounded by people you love and who won't judge you when you disappear to take a nap not long after the final course is served.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Next stop: Caribbean

Image provided by me
By the time you read this, the Bread Winner and I (by all calculations) should be knee deep in some Caribbean relaxation. I know, it's not right. 

We have been coming to Swept Away in Negril, Jamaica for several years now. It's one of those, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" sort of situations.  I have several other destinations I'd love for us to visit but for the financial and logistical parts of the trip, we just can't beat Swept Away.

Because of the "parents' holiday" Plain Jane will be a little hit and possibly a lot of miss this week. If I can figure out how to post pics while we're here, don't be surprised if I do it. Yes, we travel with a computer. Don't judge. However, if I become lulled into a trance by the lapping waves of the sea against the white sandy beach, I'll be back after Thanksgiving for sure!

Happy Monday and I'm really trying not to be patronizing.


Friday, November 19, 2010

Stripes, please.

Informal and low-maintenance, linen slipcovers like these chocolate brown and striped versions are a great choice for a family-friendly home. You’ll rest easy knowing your furnishings are fully washable and get the added benefit of their beautifully relaxed look.

These rooms are all courtesy of www.coastalliving.com.  Love this magazine both online and in hand. I figure this magazine best represents the way I WANT to live/decorate and might be the most obtainable.  A striped rug seems to be the staple to this casual but pulled together way of living.  I know the Barrier Island Collection has a great assortment of colors with a somewhat wide stripe.  Dash and Albert is another all time favorite with a ton of color combinations to choose from at a price point that's hard to beat. Check here for Dash and here for more info on the Barrier Island Collection. Enjoy your browsing and have a great weekend, all.

Pump up the excitement in your den with a quirky print and lighthearted decorative touches. As long as you continue with neutrals and natural elements, the effect will still be relaxed. The accessories, such as the glass bottles and balls lining the shelf, have a just-washed-up-on-the-shore feel.

Compromise with the kids by creating an upscale bunkroom with the sophisticated colors and prints you love combined with the fun beds they’ll love. This modern update on the classic bunk bed style is more sculptural, yet sturdy and compact with plenty of room for sleepovers.
Green and white bedroom with matching bedskirt and window valances
Coastal Cottage Living Rooms with Patterned Chairs

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Bread Winner's home!

It's always good to welcome the Bread Winner home but it's extra nice to see him when he bares gifts:

For Jane:

What 3 year old doesn't want a butterfly balloon?

For Mom:
Click to show "Starbucks" result 3
What 36 year old mom doesn't want a mocha frappuccino light?

Good job, Bread Winner.  We're glad you're home, with or without the loot.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

So, I've got my first client...




Okay, so "client" may be a little misleading but in MY head, that's what this is.  My neighbor is asking for new bedding for their master bedroom as her Christmas gift.  First, this idea is genius.  Second, I think we all read between the lines and heard her clearly say, "Beth, it would be great if you could help me out."  Fortunately, we're good enough friends that she'll go along with this little masquerade but will feel free to make her own decisions when the time comes. She might even let me believe that something I said lead her in the right direction.  She's an attorney, she can be very convincing.  I'm okay with that. 
She mentioned this bedding from Pottery Barn. (what exactly did we do before PB?):

Painterly Paisley 400-Thread Count Sham, Euro, Sandalwood

However, upon further review, the only thing available in this pattern are Euro shams.  Trouble?  Not necessarily.  The euro shams could be used as our jumping off point and then find the right coverlet/quilt (white's always right in my book), duvet cover and maybe an accent that would tie the duvet and euros together...whamo, bedding done! If in doubt, purchase with the option of return.  Seriously, we could order these, decide if they're worth the trouble and then if so, take them to the streets to hunt for the right ensemble cast. Also, the price on these may be too good to pass up. Heck, I may need to buy them for her and then if she's not feeling it, keep them for myself.  No harm, no foul.

Have a good hump day and let me know if you've got any good bedding sites I can visit. You know, for my client and all.



Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Haven and Home: A Client's New/Old House.... For Sale

Haven and Home: A Client's New/Old House.... For Sale
Janet, you need to look at this. oh the power of some updated stained floors and paint! We can do this at your house ......heck, maybe we need to do it at mine, too!

I could live here (or at least spend the night): The Farmhouse Inn.

I LOVE this inn even though I've never been. (am I a poet and didn't...well, you know)  I'm not even sure how I came across it but I'm so glad I did. I would make a trip to the west coast just to enjoy this.  Joy, now that you're out there, could you and Chris check it out...all in the name of research, of course.

The Farmhouse Inn is located in Forestville, Ca. and is part of Sonoma Valley.  Again, never seen it in person but when I think about this farmhouse I wonder what it would take to transform my little "farmhouse" into something similiar. A good dose of white paint would seem to be the first obvious step.  Bread Winner, can we repaint??
Room 9
Main House room. Click here for more details.
Barn Room. Click here for more details.

This is one of the cottage rooms.  Click here for more details.

The above images were provided by http://www.farmhouseinn.com/.

Here's to Sonoma Valley!


Monday, November 15, 2010

Hey, Bread Winner.....



Happy Anniversary!  I wouldn't have wanted to do the last 13 years any other way. Love you.



Sunday, November 14, 2010

Guardrails for life

Just a little of God's glory for you this morning.

So this will be my Sunday drill, sharing a message I think is extremely helpful, relevant and worthy of a listen.  This week I want to introduce Guardrails to you. I'm recommending the message titled, "Me and the Mrs."  This is actually a message delivered by Andy and his wife, Sandra and they talk about the guardrails they've put in place in their lives in order to stay on the straight in narrow.  Really good stuff.

Also, if interested, the live service can be viewed here. It's live at 11:00a.m.and then replayed at 6pm Eastern.

Hope you all have a nice day of rest, that's what it's supposed to be, you know?  Nap, anyone?

Friday, November 12, 2010

"Where my Mother, Fathers at?"



I'm not shopping for a mini van but if I was, I'd get this one because of the commercial alone.
I know, a very scientific decision making process. Seems Jane and I knew a thing about "swagger" before swagger was cool.  This is cool....... isn't it?

Have a good weekend, all.  And Johnnie, thanks for being my 4th "J" follower. You're the best!

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Beachy keen







In late spring, the bread winner, Jane and I meet my family at Rosemary Beach for a pre-summer vacay. Did you know it's possible to have low humidity at the beach? As a girl with naturally curly hair, this is worth noting. The entire property is fantastic. Shaded boardwalks, mesmerizing architecture, the soft glow of gas lanterns at night and did I mention the beach?  Simply beautiful.

Outdoor dining area behind fountain
We have rented a couple of houses but our favorite is Villa Belize. It's on the beach side of 30A and its convenience to the beach and the pool (1 of 4, I think?) is perfect when vacationing with a little one.Master bedroom with queen bed

View toward water from balcony
images furnished by www.VRBO.com/32812
The entire property is full of well appointed homes and walking the grounds during the day is certainly fun, but the real thrill is at night when you occasionally get a peak at the beautiful interiors. Does that make me a boarder line stalker? 

This is another home, Sharp's cottage, that I think is lovely.



These images furnished by www.Rosemarybeach.com
I heart these white walls and ebony floors. The furnishings are beautiful. Dark wood accents and a mixture of white and sand colored upholstery. Of course, what beach home would be complete without a hit of blue somewhere? Love it, love it.  Oh, and how could I forget those lighting fixtures and  floor to ceiling doors/windows? Just lovely. I've never stayed in this home but maybe one day....That's the beauty of the rental, it's fun to pretend for a week and I would have a great time pretending in this house.

For more information on Sharp's cottage click here and if you book it, let me know how it lives.

Have a nice night, everyone.






















Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Cailou, we're going to have to start seeing other people.



Cailou,

I think it's time we start seeing other people.  I'm surprised to be saying this too but as of this morning, I've officially erased all your episodes and canceled your series on our DVR.  You see, Cailou, Jane is very impressionable at the age of 3 and some of your show's content becomes real life episodes for us.

Today she's been complaining that her tummy's hurting but aside from the random mention, there's nothing else that would seem to make this statment true. I can't help but question if this has something to do with YOUR stomach hurting as detailed on your show this past week.  She's also anxious for snow and asks often when this will happen. We live in Georgia. We'll be lucky to get snow once, if at all.  We've also had complaints of a sore throat and just yesterday she showed me her tooth, explaining it was loose.  These ideas would only come from you.

I know I'm not without fault. I often abused our relationship and allowed Jane to watch more times that any parent would recommend.  For this I apologize but I ultimately have to do what's right for my daughter. As for now, George and Clifford seem to be meeting her entertainment needs but trust that I will do better to limit her intake.  As we all know, everything in moderation.

Thank you for the hours of enjoyment and for understanding our situation. Take care of yourself and here's to looking at the sunnier side of life.

Beth Jacquin
Jane's Mom

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

I get by with a little help from my friends.....

I've got a peak of the room for you.  I am so happy with how it's turned out.  Jane told me tonight, "Momma, my room is great!" 









I wish I could say all this decorating insight was my own but that would be a lie. My neighbor, Patti, got involved a few days ago when I was needing reassurance on the paint and she hasn't backed up since. For that, I'm grateful.  Patti's one of these that knows how to take a room one step further. She's aware of the room's layout and how it needs to function, she balances visually weightly pieces with the light ones, she decorates age appropriately yet classically so that pieces used will transition with age and she appreciates the welcoming glow of a soft lamp and sees that the entire room is bathed in it.  Also, she doesn't put it in the room if it's just to "make do."  That's a hard one for me as I will convince myself  I'm being creative when actually I'm taking the room from the right track to the wrong one!   Remind me to tell you about some mirrors and a chair.....not too good.

Here is Jane doing her dance of joy. Go, Jane, go!



Thanks, Patti!  You went above and beyond in helping us piece this room back together and I couldn't be prouder of it.  Clearly, Jane's pretty stoked too!

As for now,  I'm waiting to welcome the bread winner home and looking forward to a good night's rest! 

Monday, November 8, 2010

Update on the Revamp

Well, Maddie, Victorian Pearl may be your room's new color! I think this going to look pretty good, if I do say so myself.  It's hard to believe I started this Thursday.  It feels like I've been working on this room for weeks! No worries though. The paint has dried and the blue tape pulled.


As for the paint situation, in the Bible, it talks about Jesus feeding like 5,000 people on a few fish and a couple of loaves of bread. Let's just say, although I used nearly every last drop, the job was completed on ONE gallon of paint! Modern day miracle, no doubt.



As you can see in these pictures the pink is subtle but I couldn't imagine doing it any other way.  Although it's taken a little getting adjusted to, it's grown on me.  I did realize though it seems very close to the color that Mary Kay is now doing its car prize. You know what I'm talking about. Victorian Pearl could also be called Mary Kay frost, in my opinion.  It's all good though.


With the walls DONE  (thank you, Lord) and the carpet vacuumed,  it was time for the fun stuff. I had originally thought it would be nice positioning the beds so they faced the windows.


The trouble with this was that it just ate up too much space. We don't have a basement and there's no playroom so taking up all this floor space/play space would have been a bad move. Jane and the bread winner spend a lot of time wrestling and playing in here so going back to the original placement felt like the right thing to do.


This is about the time things started getting interesting. For instance:

#1 MIA finials. After looking in both attics twice, searching outdoor storage I don't even know how many times and emptying drawers, cabinets and closets, the finials ended up here.

Yes, in the laundry room cabinet, behind the detergent I use weekly in a bag that I don't remember ever seeing until this weekend.  Either way, Xanadu!
#2 Mattress stress.  I was using the headboards of the beds as a gauge for the mattresses. My thought was the headboard needed to being showing at the top of the bed  With box spring and mattress it seemed extremely high and without the box spring, just about right. Does anyone see where this is going? Once I removed the box spring the height was better but as soon as I sat at the foot of the bed I fell through the bottom. Seems the box spring would be necessary.  After further review, the headboard didn't really need to be exposed like I thought.





As you can tell, Jane has taken to what we're referring to as her princess room but by this point, we had to take a break.  Jane had a birthday party to go to and I needed to scrub myself free of paint splatters and enjoy some time out of the house.  The acccesorizing of the room would have to wait.

One last thing, I have to share with you one of the ways Jane has busied herself while I've been working on her room. She's become pretty good with my camera. Although I don't normally let her "play" with it, she did manage to take a few shots with me in the background saying, "okay, that's enough."  While deleting some of the pics today, I came across these.  Made me laugh out loud.


Mr. Bear's foot, Jane's foot.

The close up.
There were about 4 more of these but I didn'think it was necessary to post them all. I think you get the idea. I do love that foot!

Have a good night, all.