Confessions from a Carbaholic

For Lent this year, I gave up all breads and sweets which encompasses pizza, chips and salsa, most breakfast food, and pretty much everything delicious and that I would prefer to eat every day.  So we're a little over two weeks in and I had been so good!  I turned down the breadbaskets at both Bordino's AND Bonefish!!  I turned down ALL THREE salsa's at La Hacienda!!  I put up with waiters making fun of me, friends taunting me with FRENCH FRIES AT THEO's.  I even turned down the mother of all evilness in carb-loading, STACY'S PITA CHIPS!  Seriously.  But all of this Lent do-gooding crashed last night when I caved at Cold Stone.  It was the best ice cream I've ever had in my life.  I remember two things growing up during Lent.  The first is that we had to give up something other than scuba diving and the second was that we were having box mac & cheese, fish sticks, and peas from a can for dinner every Friday night.  Oh yum!   No wonder I'm the only un-American that can't stand box mac & cheese.  I really hope my mother isn't reading this...  It's true though, mom!  Just don't comment and no one will know who you are.  

So now you know one of my weaknesses, or several for that matter.  I leave tomorrow and will be in New York for a week and will do my pretty darn best to stay away from Magnolia Bakery and Grimaldi's Pizza.  I've only been lusting after both for months.  And this trip was supposed to be in January.  Not during Lent. 

Are you ready for some gorgeous interiors?  Viola.

It's amazing how much artwork can impact the overall look and feel of a room.   And that mirrored console?  Love.  I'm into mirrors lately too.  Along with pink.

Have a great Thursday and enjoy those fish sticks tomorrow!

Betsy

Photos: 1) Lonny Mag 2) Jeffers Design Group 3) Drake Design 4) The Nero Chronicles

French-Inspired Guest Bath in Texas

Bon matin, chers lecteurs! (Good morning dear readers!)

I found this stunning French-inspired bathroom the other day on the House Beautiful site and thought I would share it with you.  It's just too tres magnifique to keep to myself!  I can't get over that hand-burnished cast iron tub, or the large antique mirror, the pharmacy chest WITH PINK TOWELS, or all of that Carrara marble!!  

And this is just the guest bath:

Love the Monsieur and Madame inlaid "rugs"

Just gorgeous.  And if you're like me, I was a little curious to know what the rest of the house looked like.  So I peeped it:

This incredible home is in Texas and was designed by Betty Lou Phillips.  You can see the rest of the home by visiting her site here.  So many beautiful details..  I think the homeowners have a thing for really expensive bathrooms..  What do you think?  

Avoir un fabuleux mercredi!

Betsy

Barbie's Dream Suite

Well jolly good mornings to you all!
Boy, do I have a surprise for you today!  First, you need to make sure your husbands aren't looking over your shoulders.  Because I'm pretty sure they're not going to be happy with me by the end of this post.  You see, I'm obsessed with pink.  And obsessed with beautiful closets.  The beautiful closet thing came after this weekend where I realized mine is so small, I have to rotate my clothes through twice per season, unlike most people who rotate them once per season.  It has to be that my closet is too small because I refuse to believe that I have an over-abundance of clothes.  Or shoes.  And this pink obsession has gotten so out of hand that I suggested to The Fiance that we paint his dining room pink and he looked at me (before I could even complete the sentence) and said "YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME".  Well?..  No :)  Bunny Williams says that pink is a very flattering color to everyone and why not have it in a room where you're most likely to entertain guests?  So we settled and I now get to paint one out of the five bathrooms..  That happens to be the smallest one..  In his utility room..  The man apparently is not in touch with his feminine side.  Just wait 'til I tell him he's wearing a pink tie in our wedding!!  So before I jump out of this Barbie-pink phase of my life, check out my dream master suite below!

Did you notice the silk wall coverings??!

This is what heaven looks like.

It's all girly and feminine.

With lacquered walls and gold accents.

But wait....

It gets even better...

I hope you're sitting down.....

Even if you don't like pink....

Your husbands are going to hate me...

TA-DA!!!! (The clouds parted and I hear Angels singing)

Shut..  The front door.

It's like having a Barney's in your own home!!!

Designed by Drake Design Associates and featured at the 2007 Kips Bay Showhouse

And there you have it, ladies.  I'm completely drunk in pink right now.  

Enjoy your Tuesday,

Betsy

English Elegance with a twist

Good morning and welcome back!
I wish I could say that all of you Spring Breaker's brought back amazing weather but unfortunately, Old Man Winter decided to revisit us this past weekend.  Never fear though, Mother Nature will soon sprinkle us with her yellow pixie dust (aka Pollen) in the coming weeks.  Spring will soon be here.

This past week I had a chance to sit down with my favorite monthlies and wouldn't you know!  The owners of my absolute FAVORITE boutique hotel in New York were featured in this month's Elle Decor! I blogged about the hotel here if you'd like to see pics and a review.  This couple, Tim and Kit Kemp, live in London and own 6 boutique hotels, which they design and decorate themselves.  I admire her bold choices in mixing unexpected fabric patterns with antique pieces she's been collecting for decades.  This is right up my alley!  Take a look below:

I'm usually not a fan of floral in bedrooms but I love how they mixed antique pieces with a bold chair and kept the door more contemporary.

Can you imagine taking your tea and biscuits here everyday?

And here are a few pics of the Crosby Street Hotel as well.  I'm going to New York next week and just wanted to see what the room rates were, you know, just in case..  Apparently they never go on sale.  Dang!!

I'm going to try and pull a few tricks out of my hat to see if I can negotiate a better rate.  $495/nt is just a teensy bit steep.  Or a lot steep.  Wish me luck.

Have a fabulous Monday!
Betsy

Pretty Spring Blooms

Hello lovelies,
It is shaping up to be another extraordinarily beautiful Spring day outside..  Ahhh..  Not a cloud in the sky!  I was thinking about Spring blooms this morning when I was spying on a neighbor letting her dog take a dump in my yard and looked up to see the most gorgeous pear trees in full bloom.  I'd take a picture but then you might put the pieces together to know who the dog-crapping culprit was..  On a more pleasant note, don't you just love this time of year when all of the plants and trees and well, humans too, begin to come out of their winter slumber and begin to stretch out their limbs again?  Allergies withstanding, there is so much beauty in Spring.  I love the way the light pours into various rooms in my house throughout the day and the sound of the fountain on my patio coming in through the open French doors.  My friends look forward to coming over for the weekly dinner party where we enjoy dinner and drinks in the courtyard for the first time in months.  This also happens to be the time of year when my favorite flower is in season, the Peony.  Pink of course.  So in celebration of this beautiful day and this beautiful time of year, here are pics of various pretty Spring blooms to inspire you.  Enjoy!

images via Style At Home

We have so many interesting containers and pots as well as really fun and quirky florals to fill them with.  Ashley, our Store Manager, has a special gift for arranging florals in whatever container you wish.  So if you're looking to add a few more beautiful blooms to your home, stop by and see her!  She'd be happy to help you create the perfect arrangement.

Be blessed!

Betsy

Fashion Friday: Proenza Schouler's Graphic Prints

Happy Friday!

It's the one day of the week that I get to take my focus off of showcasing beautiful homes (tough job, but somebody's gotta do it), to blogging about my second favorite subject--fashion!  Today, I'm spotlighting one of my favorite New York design teams, Proenza Schouler, who's only been on the fashion scene for less than a decade but has already left their mark with graphic prints, modern silhouettes in dark neutrals, and gravity-defying heels.  They also have a famous "it" bag, the PS1, which is no more than a satchel but costs $16 double-zero and of which I can get a very similar bag from Urban Outfitters for double the $16 without the zero's.  Whoa, that was a lot of math..  I think I might've lost myself.  In any case, here's a pic of this infamous satchel:

But the "he's" (there's two of them) do whip up the most amazing graphic print tee's that I've currently been lusting over.  However, these beautiful tee's are also $375.  Ya.  Now this is the part where I admit that I almost paid $375 for a T-shirt.  But then I thought, wait?  Aren't I known the world over to my friends as the fashion huntress that can hunt down any deal, on any item, anywhere?  So alas!  I used my internet searching skills to come up with several graphic printed T-shirts at a fraction of the $375.  So let's play a little game here.  Can you tell me (without using Google!!!) which T's are $375 and which ones are $14.99-$19.99?  Take a guess and scroll to the bottom to see if you're right!

Left side: Kohl's Simply Vera Wang collection for $14.99-$19.99

Right side: Proenza Schouler Tissue T's $375

Here are two more that I snagged from the same SVW collection:

 I love mixing prints and plan to wear them with these:

Dolce Vita shorts from Shopbop

So for $150, I now have 4 graphic tee's and a really cute pair of shorts coming my way!  You can either stop by our local Kohl's or if you're busy and don't want to gamble not having your size, you can buy them online and they ship for free!  Here's a link to Kohl's and just type in Vera Wang.  So there, I hope I see tons of you fashionistas sporting these shirts around town.  We'll just give each other a little wink, wink as we pass by to acknowledge our exemplary skills in saving money :)

Have a great weekend!
Betsy

California Cottage with Serious Style

{Yaaaaawn......}

I still haven't adequately adjusted to daylight losers time, considering that I can't remember the last time my alarm went off and it was still dark outside.  Note to self, reset alarm.  Anyhoots, I have quite the lovely abode to show you in today's post!  Created by Jennifer Dyer of Jeneration Interiors, this adorable bungalow is the quintessential Hollywood Hills cottage just dripping in sophistication.  I'm amazed at how cozy and comfortable the rooms appear without feeling small and cramped.  I have a cottage-style house myself and only wish it had a tenth of this style!  Without further ado, check out pics below:

Don't you just LOVE that patio?!  Having large open doors leading to beautiful patios are one of my favorite features of California homes, especially since there are only a few weeks a year that we can enjoy open doors without a serious BUG AMBUSH.  And how about the sunroom?!  But especially the bedroom!  I'd love to have a wall of mirrors reflecting all of that natural light and amazing city views.

Happy St. Pat's and have a lovely day!
Betsy