my husband and i are on a quest to find, renovate, and decorate our first home, so I am constantly musing over various interior design mags, trying to find “me” in all of them. i know what i want in my head, but to actually see it played out in furniture and paint colors, its hard! i love to decorate and i really love what i love, but to actually furnish and decorate a whole home… that’s a challenge! and to think, i’ll be stuck with this stuff for a while (since money will be super tight with the brand spankin’ new mortgage!) so I want to make sure i love what i claim to love!

one of my recent finds… home decorators collection

it is super cute, tasteful, chic furniture, ikea style (assemble yourself)… but not often weird ikea swedish taste! (dont get me wrong, i have a special place in my heart for ikea, but sometimes, i dont get the “cuteness” of it, and i suppose thats the point…) anyways, i digress… Home Decorator Collection has various collections on their website (or subscribe to their fun catalog for free)… their French collection is my personal fav.

I really appreciate, cute, shabby chic, adorable furniture, for a reasonable cost… here are some of my favs…

finally a stylish filing cabinet!:

shabby chicness:

enjoy!

i was inspired by other blogs to do a little “11 Favorites” about me post…

me, on a recent cruise from vancouver

11 favorite facts…

1. Clothes Shop: forever 21 & banana republic & h&m

2. Furniture/Home Shop: kstylo & craigslist & anthropologie

3. Sweet: anything shortbread & skittles

4. City: New York & San Francisco

5. Drink: milk & starbucks sorbettos

6. Music: Caedmon’s Call & Enfield

7. TV-Series: The Office, American Idol, Biggest Loser, Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style, and of course… Project Runway!

8. Film: Legally Blonde 1&2

9. Workout: spin class

10. Pastries: sprinkles cupcakes

11. Coffee: nah! vanilla steamer (milk + vanilla + hot)

the end…

so, a few gals and i had the priveledge of celebrating our dear friends baby girl on the way!

i absolutly LOVE to host and plan showers! I just LOVE it!

Here are some pictures and some ideas for parties in general!

the food table!

GREEN DESIGN TIP…. use glass baby bottles as vases for the yummy flowers! BPA free of course! (and super cute polkadot tins from the dollar section at target full of sugar babies! delightful!)

i designed and printed these from my computer at home! adds such a personal touch!

the guests were greeted by some love… such an easy way to welcome your guests! just take down the wreath or door decoration and replace it for the evening with a framed piece of paper in your theme! i also used synonyms for cute and hung fun circles around the house! do you get the “dot” theme yet!??!

and for dessert… instead of having a buffet style dessert, we assembled each plate beforehard and just passed them out individually! everyone loved it and got a sample of all the desserts on the menu!

and of course, no party is complete without my signature WATER BOTTLE LABEL! So easy and chic and EVERYONE goes gaga over them! just tie a satin ribbon around the top and you are set!

we had a complete ball throwing this shower and i hope you enjoyed it as well!

i’m always on the look out for some cute gifts or just personal touches that make ordinary things stand out…

found these super~cute pencils at spoonsisters.com…

your run-of-the-mill plain pencils, bedazzled with a swarovski crystal topper! so cute!

how fun to use these at a baby shower or bridal shower for guests to use for playing games…

or, just a fun little addition to your office pencil jar…

all in all though you could buy them at spoonsisters.com and enjoy the finished product… BUT, they aren’t all that hard to make!

you’ll need some flat backed swarovski crystals… as found here at my fav: jewelrysupply.com

buy a few of these bad boys and use your hot glue gun and attach to any pencil that doesnt have an eraser… and voila! a pencil with a bit of pizazz!

and now for a baby boy find! i LOVE mom4life.com a fab website created by a christian woman who loves her kids and loves style!

i ordered this hat from BORN TO LOVE for my son last winter and LOVE it! we got so many positive comments and he looked just adorable in it

we ordered this one for our little man and loved it! i think for my next purchase, we’ll order something that matches other items of clothing a little better

ok, so they also have them for girls, which is equally as cute!

ok, so sometimes i wonder what it would be like if i had a baby girl (then i come to my senses and realize what a HUGE temptation all the adorable baby girl accessories would be!)… thankfully God gave me a baby boy!

a new website has caught my eye… HEELARIOUS

but these are the CUTEST thing ever!!! Who has heard of baby girl high heel pumps!?!?!?

from the super cute company heelarious… come these wonderfully sweet baby heels!!

i just can’t handle it!! all of them are SO adorable! dont worry pod-conscious mamas, these are for infants 0-6 months, so no walking will be done in them!

so, as a totally DIFFERENT gift for a super chic mama, pick up a pair of this heelarious foot candy!

another super cute baby find!

the website ittikid (ittikid.com) oozes with super cute modern baby gear. i especially like the animal themed onesies and pajamas… it is very hard to find cute, baby onesies that are simple and yet not ugly!

one of my favs… the owl:

love the hearts:

for the girly girl… pink fairytale:

and for the man in your life.. (a little more pricey than the rest, but super cute regardless!):

so, if you are in need of a supercute baby gift, any modern mama will go gaga over, ittikid is your shop!

just had to give a shout out to THEE best baby blanket.

The Ultimate Swaddling Blanket by SwaddleDesigns is the most fabulous baby must-have! it is a really big blanket that is perfect for swaddling and/or draping over a carseat or stroller… and finally, modern patterns and prints!!!

It even has the instructions printed on the attached tag

I own 3 personally and I love them! I have the blue mod circles, black polka dot, and red star styles.

I would HIGHLY recceomend this as a baby shower gift as the mom-to-be will go gaga over this amazing blanket! it also comes in the organic cotton style which is super soft…

There are also matching burp cloths and “lovey” blankets that will coordinate all the new mom’s baby must-haves!

I received my first blue mod dot blanket as a gift from babystyle..

babiesrus.com & nordstrom now carries them as well as good ol’ target

seriously, one of the best baby gifts i received!

so, a friend of mine told me about this site that sells everything for $1. its called ELF. EyesLipsFace.

It is a rad website and everything is $1. lipstick, nail polish, eye liner, shadows, even tinted moisturizers! now, i am a sucker for department store makeup and if a chanel saleswoman tells me i need $28 mascara and the fall eyeshadow pallet for $56, i usually deceive myself into thinking somehow that is a good deal. so, in the past, i have not been too thrilled with cheap makeup, but this stuff is good. really good.

i showed the website to my husband and he asked if it would turn my face green? (because the price is so low)… NO it won’t! it is really great stuff.

I especially like the Hyershine Lip Gloss:

Liquid Eyeliner (in coffee):

and the nailpolishes!

Use “Carolina” in the coupon code line and you can get 50% off orders up to $15 (which is 15 items!!)

Such a cute gift idea for a friend, or maybe a prize at a bridal shower! the possibilities are endless, not to mention a little something for your own collection

flowers can be an expensive part of any gathering… even silk flowers can be pretty pricey upfront…

well, paper-source (my fav paper, crafty, creative, store that i love love love…) has solved all of your flower woes! why not make your own flowers and just store them in between parties or guest visits!!! i have tried a flower kit before but just didn’t quite get how it all worked, but… thankfully, paper-source has started instructional videos on thier website… though the lady in the videos can be a little awkward at times, be patient and you will learn much!

Here is the paper flower demo :

with many colors and textures to choose from…

i especially like this unique take on an orchid:

with these flowers that dont need water, soil, or any tlc at all… you will be set for any shower, party, or even a wedding!?

be creative!!