Archive for the ‘Family’ Category

Date: Aug 13 2013

Filed Under: Decor, Family

This post was originally shared on Land of Nod’s blog, Honest to Nod. But it was such an incredible happening, that I’d really like to share my experience here with y’all, too. I’ve included a few more details here…

 

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I’m a long time fan of the Land of Nod. Many of my kids’ toys and things come from them (what would we do without Lilly’s dollhouse and Fletcher’s workbench?!). So when I got to meet the Land of Nod team at Alt Summit in Salt Lake City this past January I was pretty stoked. We chatted briefly, there was a lot of glitter and one big giant swan around us, but I made a mental note to follow up with them when I got home. And I did. And boy am I glad that I did. We brainstormed for a little while about the ways we could work together when, suddenly, my dream collaboration presented itself – a playroom and bedroom makeover. Land of Nod designer Danielle Kurtz and I worked together to design two different spaces that worked with the flow of our home. I vividly remember squealing at my computer when Danielle would pin not yet released items to our secret shared pinboards.

 

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Fast forward a couple of months and it was time to turn our pinterest boards into my reality (if only that were true for all of my pinterest boards…I don’t suppose you could help me with that one could you, LON?). For a couple of days my home did sort of look like we just moved in. There were boxes and boxes of amazing new Land of Nod items that my kids were going crazy over. Lucky for me, the Land of Nod team flew down to my home in Charleston, SC and installed our vision for me. Just like a fairy tale. Lilly now refers to them as the Nod Fairies. I can’t say I disagree. Two new rooms and my girl landed the August cover? Pretty magical to me.

 

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We are really happy with our new rooms. I’d love to show you around… Let’s start in Lilly’s room. It was hiiiigh time that Lilly move out of her crib and into a big bed. She is 3 1/2 after all, but she loved that crib so much that we never felt the rush. Turns out, there is something she loves more though… her new upholstered marquee bed. We got the full size so that the whole family could pile on for bedtime stories and books. The headboard is quite cushy to lean up against.

 

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Lilly loves her tiny dancer duvet and polka dot sheets. The aqua quilt helps keep it all from being too girly.

 

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We also installed hanging closet storage & the coordinating drawer inserts to keep Lilly’s tiny closet organized. And by “installed” I mean we velcro strapped it on. Couldn’t have been easier. Plus the monarch nightstand next to the bed has two useful drawers that we use for pjs and socks and stuff.

 

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One of my favorite things in Lilly’s room is the district bookcases. We stacked two on top of each other (don’t worry, they bolt down) for Lilly to use as storage for her stuffed animals and current favorite books.

 

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Above the bookcases we arranged a small gallery wall of art that included a face painting by Sally Benedict, an abstract by Kate Merritt Davis, and a Marysia Swim suit that was named after my daughter, Lilly, that we had framed (to read more about the memento picture frame project read this post).

 

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One of Lilly’s favorite spots in her room is her framework coat rack corner. She’s constantly rearranging her necklaces and scarves and dress up items over here. She can hop up on one of her storage cube seats and peek at herself in the mirror. It’s the perfect dress up corner.

 

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Alright, let’s head downstairs to the playroom. I love the way this room turned out. We needed it to be eye pleasing since it’s on the main floor of the house.

 

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That yellow gold bars rug gives the room a grounded pattern which I love. And if you look closely you’ll spot two of Lilly’s favorites dolls, her BlaBla (an oldie but a goodie – it’s the little owl) and her new Finkelstein mermaid handmade by Charleston artist Michelle Jewell. They’re the most darling little plush creatures.

 

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If you look to the left of the picture you’ll see one of our most favorite items, the orange stripe teepee. The kids play in there all the time, especially Fletcher.

 

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I’m a big, big fan of our three leaning bookcases. All of the kids’ little toys and things have a happy home now that they can easily see and access. I really don’t know how we ever cleaned up the playroom without them. Truth be told I don’t think we did.

 

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The kids’ craft closet also got a fun makeover. I’ll admit, it was pretty lame before. But who cares because now it’s organized and beautiful. Most of the art supplies get stored in those colorful see through stackable boxes. The kids couldn’t be happier with their “office”. I regularly find Lilly plopped down in the cobalt iron chair making masterpieces to display on the cork-board rails.

 

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We put all of their favorite washi tapes on a paper roll holder – I love the look and simplicity of this. That aqua wall organizer also comes in handy for stashing more craft supplies.

 

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We also added a fun element to the craft closet door by putting colored tape on the interior trim. We used an x-acto knife to get it just right. I think it’s a fun, non-permanent detail to see when the door is open.

 

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One of my kids’ favorite things to play with is my collection of trolls that I collected when I was a child. I guess a love for creepy looking dolls runs in the family. But I’m glad they like them b/c it’s fun to revisit childhood memories. We found a spot for them in the playroom by hanging book ledges and organizing them all on there. It’s pretty funny, really. I wonder if LON ever envisioned their book ledges holding trolls?

 

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Oh, and I have to call out those amazing honeycomb shelves. They might just be my favorite detail. Perfect for visual interest and holding little objects. We decided to back ours with different patterned papers to bring a little more color to the room (to see more about how we did that read this post).

 

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See, the Land of Nod really is fairy like. We couldn’t be happier with our new rooms. A big, big thank you to The Land of Nod team for making all of this happen. You guys are the best.

Chassity

Comments: 50

Date: Aug 9 2013

Filed Under: Decor, Family

I’m so excited to share our Land of Nod experience with you all. It was a straight up fairy tale. I wrote all about it over on Land of Nod’s blog, Honest to Nod, today.

 

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Oh yeah, Lilly is officially a cover girl now. Guess we outta widen our doors for her big head.

Chassity

Comments: 43

Date: Aug 9 2013

Filed Under: Decor, Family

Earlier this week Lilly and I packed up for a short momma + daughter trip to Tybee Island, GA. We were invited down to stay at my friend Gray’s friend Meredith’s family beach house. Get that? Just some mommas and their babes having some old school beachy fun. We brought a sitter down with us so that we could relax a little – it was nice to have an extra hand when bellies started growling or when a baby needed to take a nap. And she came in extra handy at bedtime so we moms could get out and explore Tybee (it was my first visit).

 

Meredith’s beach house is seriously one of the coolest homes I’ve ever had the pleasure of being in. It’s 110 years old and is full of character. I kinda can’t even put it into words, but it was straight up dreamy. Plus, you could just throw open a porch door (there were countless porches that all wrapped around and connected to one another) and find yourself looking at the beach. Lilly and I were in Heaven.

 

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Anway, you know that Lilly and Farris are besties. So it was only natural that many photo opportunities presented themselves over the course of our stay. Gray managed to catch a few good moments…

 

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We’re so blessed to have these memories. I think Lilly and I need to take off more often… Thanks for having us down, Meredith!

All pictures of the girls captured by Gray Benko’s  iphone. More pictures from one of our beach days coming next week.

 

PS – while we’re talking about momma and daughters – I’d like to wish my Mom a happy birthday today!

Chassity

Comments: 16

Date: Aug 5 2013

Filed Under: Family, Fashion

J.Crew Crewcuts’ back to school collection is killer. I mean. It’s killer. Can I borrow that??

 

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peplum tee

polka dot ballet flats

embellished floral sweatshirt

stripe quilted vest

colorblock sequin heart tee

jeweled stripe sweater

neon colorblock backpack

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Back to school fashion has never been cooler. If Lilly wore a size kids 14 I’d buy it all up and share a closet with her. She’s more like a 4. Guess I could just buy for myself. It’s like, investing in her future wardrobe, right?

PS… Did you catch up on my posts from the weekend?

Chassity

Comments: 13

Date: Jul 31 2013

Filed Under: Decor, Family, Fashion

My dear friend Gaby has stolen my heart with her brand new floral photo series. I knew that she was a talented photographer, but she really blew me away with these images. I want to plaster a whole wall with them. I definitely need an “e” in blue violets.

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At first glance I wondered why she chose black as the background. I quickly realized it’s because she’s genius. The bright flowers just pop off the page, don’t you think? I love seeing them presented in this way. Go check out the rest of Gaby’s floral series in her shop.

 

Want more awesome art? I freaking love these snake prints by Sarah B. Martinez that are new at Furbish. I mean. This picture makes me want to replicate this whole look on my wall. Which one is your favorite?

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My friend Christine’s baby Jasper’s nursery was just featured in Style at Home magazine. Absolutely divine is all I have to say. Just lovely, Christine. So happy for you – beautiful family and a beautiful home.

 

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My numero uno blogger crush Nicole Warne (aka Gary Pepper) just made me fall in love with this triangle shift dress. It’s only $68 but do I dare even attempt it after seeing her rock it so well? She’s simply perfection.

 

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Lastly, I’m looking for an awesome wordpress user that can tell me the best way to control spam. I’m getting hit up the wazoo over here and am wondering what works best without spending a fortune every month??

Chassity

Comments: 29

Date: Jul 22 2013

Filed Under: Family

If you’ve been following my instagram then you caught a glimpse of the beautiful weekend I had. We headed 2 hours south to Bluffton, SC and stayed with my friend Gray’s family at her parent’s home. Now, saying that this part of the lowcountry is beautiful and amazing just doesn’t do it justice. The best way I can think to describe it is this – place yourself in the middle of your favorite Nicholas Sparks book. There you are. Lovely, isn’t it?

Gray’s parents, Joe & Mary (yes Gray is like Baby Jesus), have a dreamy home right on the May River. The views are incredible. We spent our time on the boat, anchoring at sandbars, waiting out rainstorms, fishing, porch swinging, and eating lowcountry boils. The kids had a blast. Here are some pics. Most were snapped by Gray, some by me.

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We stopped in at Palmetto Bluff for lunch. I have a deep love for that place.

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Guys had to get out and push when our boat hit bottom…

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But we still made it to Marshside Momma’s.

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It was a good weekend.

Chassity

Comments: 1

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