Personally, I am not the cubicle type; but for this office space I might change my mind. 
This incredible space is the office of Spanish architect Selgas Cano. I always feel inspired when sitting outside admiring nature. A work space like this probably overflows with creative ideas. Read more here.
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Recently a rather questionable "chandelier store" opened up near one of our favorite restaurants.
Mark and I quote lines from this SNL short all the time now.
If you are like me, you took a Monday off from blogland. If you did you may have missed the release ofRefueled magazine's third issue. If you haven't seen it, its a great collaborative effort by bloggers Chris Brown,
Cheryl Schulke, and Don Weir. I'm a big fan of their styles and love this magazine! Check out the
article featuring Courtney Barton's home...although it makes me a little sad that Courtney is so far away now:(
I also love the article these photos taken at the hotel Saint Cecilia. definitely need to put this on my list of
places to stay. It is the most recent venture of the creative minds who formed the Hotel San Jose. So fabulous!
places to stay. It is the most recent venture of the creative minds who formed the Hotel San Jose. So fabulous!
At this precise moment, I am obsessing over this dining room.More news later.
(Found via Deco-Inspiracion and Houzz)
A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Houston developer Carol Barden. It was an interesting series of events that got us in touch. Several weeks ago I posted photos of one of my favorite Houston homes that is on the market. The photos were picked up by several other sites which brought them to the attention of Carol. Why is this significant, you ask. Well, Carol is responsible for saving the home from the scrap heap several years ago. Swamplot wrote an interesting article breaking down the time line. So, we got in touch and I got the opportunity to visit with a fascinating woman with strong convictions on what makes a house a home. 
As the developer, Barden conceives of every new project and then infuses her personal touches throughout the space. Several details I like in her homes, are first, the importance of nature. When a new home is ready to be built, existing trees are left standing. This is not something that is done nearly enough in Houston. Also, windows are placed to allow the homeowners to actually enjoy the beautiful greenery. This doesn't sound like an Earth shattering idea and yet many builders never actually do that! Perhaps my favorite details are the natural feeling brought inside via natural materials and textures. For someone who loves texture and earthy colors as much as I do, these homes really entice me:)
Carol believes women have a natural advantage when it comes to building and designing homes because they can visualize all the small details that a home needs. For example, the idea of having natural light in a bathroom for applying makeup. Separate vanities in the master bath, so couples don't have to watch each other spitting into the sink every day. Hey, we gotta keep some of the romance alive somehow! Barden's company is especially known for their beautiful and well thought out kitchens. Of course, designed with real people who cook in mind.
The Wabi Sabi house is one of Barden's most recent projects that garnered a lot of attention. It was based on the ancient Japanese concept of essentially finding beauty in imperfection. Personally, I am a believer in this concept and I'm sure many readers would not be surprised to know that about me;) If you are unfamiliar with the concept of Wabi-sabi, I highly recommend studying it.
This beautiful home was completed so succesfully that Carol already has a second one in the works. It should be scheduled to finish in the fall of '09 and I can't wait to see it! Hope you find these photos as inspiring as I do and have a great weekend, everyone.
(Peek at my booth)Well, we did it! Over the weekend we showed at the Houston Urban Market for the first time.
I'm only now recovering enough to write about it. (I also had a kid who got sick on Monday).
It was quite an undertaking, I have to admit. Its funny that I never gave to much thought to the process of setting up a booth, whenever I was out shopping!
Both Paloma and I (and our handsome assistants) began setting up Saturday afternoon. Everyone was a little nervous because of some ominous looking skies, but we kept going. In fact, it did rain that evening, but
thankfully it mostly just cooled everything down. After that we returned early Sunday morning to finish preparing for the 9:00 opening.
My two favorite guys were very helpful. Liam even set up his first display w/ his own cars! Of course I wasn't allowed to actually sell his cars. If you're wondering, Liam didn't hang out all day, Mark was a very accommodating babysitter.
Some of our blogger friends also made an appearance. It was great to see them!Left: Lauren (Material Girls) and Paloma (La Dolce Vita) Center: Joni (Cote de Texas)
and her trustee Starbucks coffee. Right: Paloma and Courtney (Under a Paper Moon).
Unfortunately, I missed meeting Sarah of Jeune Marie. Sarah, I also missed meeting you at
Courtney's garage sale last month. Maybe we'll coordinate some day:)
I didn't have time to walk around very much, but I did find a couple interesting pieces I really loved. Including, what else; but a couple of amazing chairs!
I couldn't resist snapping shots of several interesting characters roaming around.What surprised me was how willing they were for me to photograph them.
By the end of the day everyone was pretty worn out and I was wishing that I could be magically transported home. I loved getting to meet several readers. I especially cracked up with a lady who called me by name to ask for a price and talked to me like we were old friends. That was fun! Thanks to everyone who stopped by and thanks to Paloma and Fabian for sharing a booth with me. Most especially I want to thank my wonderful husband for helping and supporting me. I had a great time and hope to do it again!
