Monday Color: Halloween Edition

I must have uttered 'Happy Halloween!' 100 times on the trick-or-treating rounds I took with my son this evening. But deep down, Halloween is just not my thing. I don't know if it's a buried resentment since it regularly overshadows my birthday that falls just four days earlier. Or maybe I'm just not attracted to the idea of pretending to be anyone but me, even for a day or a few hours. Or maybe I'm just not creative enough to come up with a suitably clever costume. Whatever the reason, I'm a Halloween scrooge. And I'm perfectly OK with that.

But as is my usual practice with this blog, I am vowing to embrace those things in life that I resist. So I've gotten in the spirit and created a Halloween inspired Monday Color post, all Treats, no Tricks.....


































Images above:

1. This dining room looks perfectly spooky dressed up in goth, found on Old Fashioned Lemonade.

2. Black and orange are not an aesthetically pleasing color combination to me, but these plates with an array of pumpkins and gourds evoke Halloween without the gag factor.

3. A brilliant Halloween party idea from, of course, Martha Stewart.

4. Even I may have to give this etched technique from Martha Stewart a try next year.

5. Another beauty from Martha Stewart: lace-patterned pumpkins carved free-hand!!

6. I adore the less serious approach of this string of Candy Corn-esque flags and kitschy glitter pumpkins.

7. A mostly orange bedroom with pops of black found on Design Dilemma .

8. A Halloween-themed front porch that still looks appealing the other 11 months of the year, found on a blog called Inspiration for Home.

9. Designer Courtney Giles toned down the black by subbing in charcoal on the walls and added the softest pumpkin accents in this beautiful bedroom.

10. A modern orange and black bedroom found on Le Vie....J'aime.

11. This chair by Moroso M'Afrique from ABC Carpet & Home looks unmistakably like a giant Candy Corn.

12. P'Kolino Orange Chalk Table, exclusively at Giggle.

13. Ooga Booga fabric from Art Fire.

14. A set of handmade vases in Halloween hues from Blue Room Pottery on Etsy.

15. A pumpkin and black toiles pattern by Manuel Canovas (Tortuga in Safran)

16. These Psychedelic Floral Plates from Amazon.com marry bold hues of orange and black with a rainbow of other 60's eras favorites.

17. Detail of Handmade Orange and Black Wool Textile Blanket, a photographic print by CIndy Miller Hopkins from Art.com

Monday Color: Denim

Denim?!? "Is she running out of colors here?" you may be wondering. Sort of. But it's also my birthday week and I wanted to chose a color I love that is abundant in my own life, because from blog posts to birthday cake, this week is all about ME. :)

Anyone that knows me is aware that jeans are my daily uniform whether I'm working at home, fulfilling my multitude of mom duties, out for a night on the town, or meeting with clients (I was in fact once hired by a client to design his Soho loft because I was the only candidate that showed up in jeans). Aside from a pair of faded black jeans and a true gray stretchy pair, my jeans are all a medium to dark wash, the classic indigo that comes to my mind when I think of the original Levi's from the late 1800's (like the pair of 100 year old Levi's that were dug up from a California goldmine in the photo above).
































1. Denim blue walls and earthy oatmeal seating make this media room extra cozy (from House Beautiful).

2. A montage of two beautiful blue-walled rooms from She Moves the Furniture.

3. A room from www.westelm.com featuring their Recycled Denim Jute Rug.

4. A bedroom full of blues and neutrals found on Room Envy.

5. A room from a Southampton beach house designed by Kim Coleman and Michelle Green, featuring a nautical map mural by artist Lori Barnaby (found on House Beautiful).

6. Found on a blog called LeMieux Maison, the rustic wood coffee table and the denim sofa are a match made in Amanda Style Heaven!!!

7. Here's the how-to for these DIY recycled denim coasters (great for anyone who consistently hems their jeans).

8. Recycled Denim Sunburst Wall Art by Through Cat Eyes.

9. Legend Blues creates eco-friendly custom furniture, like this chair, using your old pairs of jeans!!

10. Another recycled denim furniture option: Puglia Dining Chair by dBodhi

11. Woven Recycled Denim Cot by Siddharth Hirwani, found on Inhabitat.

12. Not exactly home decor since it's hidden behind your walls, but recycled denim insulation, like this example from Bonded Logic is an eco-friendly, fiber-glass-free way to keep your home temperatures under control.

13. This Covington Katana Woven Jacquard is the perfect mix of denim blues in a tribal ikat pattern.

14. Now, I should have some of these!! Customizable pencils made from a minimum of 20% recycled denim from manufacturers waste, available from Green Earth Office Supply.

15. In a perfect shade of blue, the Spolarium two-drawer side table by Celestina Maynila New York is sheathed in denim-hued Java lizard skin and available at Barneys New York.

Etsy Love: Yellow Plum Blossom

This week's Etsy Love post highlights Yellow Plum Blossom, a South Dakota-based crafter's vision for unique, handmade baby gifts, many of which are fashioned from organic cotton or organic bamboo fleece. While not eco-friendly, I am especially delighted by the clever crayon rolls and adorable lunch bags.


The gift-ready Crayon Roll, includes 16 crayons and is currently available in 7 other equally adorable patterns.


Set of 3 Organic Baby Bibs with Polka Dots and Turtles


Organic Patchwork Blanket


Apples and Pears Children's Lunch Box


Organic Baby Gift Set features a 3-6 month onesie, a burp cloth, and a bib, both of which are backed with 100% certified organic bamboo fleece.

3 Sprouts Wall Organizers

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of meeting the owners of Our Learning Environment, a new eco-friendly daycare center in Island Park, NY. Not only do they have a stellar educational backgrounds between them and a beautiful philosophy for their center, they also have great shopping taste!! I recently featured a 3 Sprouts organizing bin, but didn't know they also made these adorable Wall Organizers until one of the women whipped one out, found just last weekend in a Cape Cod boutique. I am smitten by not only the cuteness of these, but also the organizational habits they impart and their organic and recycled material content. 4 stars for 3 Sprouts!!

Monday Color: Pink

With pink ribbons adorning everything from Tic Tac packages to NFL players this month, most everyone surely knows that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. So I thought it would be timely for today's Monday Color post to cover this awareness-raising, attention-grabbing pink hue. The issue surely hits home for me: my own mother courageously beat a case of breast cancer when I was a young girl. It is also estimated that 1 in 8 American woman will develop breast cancer in their lifetime, so this is hardly an issue to be ignored. But on a positive note, in 2010 there were more than 2.5 million breast cancer survivors, so it looks like the awareness, research, and abundant pink ribbons drawing attention to the cause is helping many of those affected to stay alive.

In interiors, pink is usually associated with little girls rooms and South Beach. But just as the color has made its way onto the uniforms of the burliest football players, I thought it was time to take a second look at pink's modern personality through the surprisingly pleasing and not-the-least tacky interiors and products below.

































Images above:

1. The rustic furnishings in this dining room balance out the sophisticated but feminine pink wall covering.

2. This splash of pink on this sideboard is bold but doesn't overwhelm in an otherwise neutral setting.

3. & 4. Two images from a Barcelona home featured on Home Design Decor Plan.

5. The pink lower cabinets reinforce the sweet country style of this kitchen found on Home Interior Gallery.

6. Another kitchen with pink as more of a secondary accent color.....a little easier to live with in my opinion.

7. This Upper East Side living room features assorted jewel tones across the color wheel, including pinks that range from pale pink in the rug to a bright raspberry on throw pillows.

8. Saturated pink statement walls in a bedroom featured in Domino Magazine via Decor Pad.

9. Designed by Maxwell Macdonald and Andrew Corrie, the living room in this Shelter Island house uses denim blue and soft pink to create a laid-back feeling perfect for beach living.

10. Silk/cotton Ikat PIllow Cover from Fabricadabra.

11. Greenwich Side Table from Oomph in Eros Pink.

12. 24" x 36" Indian Bride Print from water color fashion illustrator Cate Parr.

13. Pink Motion switch plate from www.switchhits.com

14. Round Metal Chair in Pink from Burke Decor.

15. Pink Deer Skull and Antlers from Halles House Etsy Shop.

16. Edie Velvet Chaise in Fuchsia from Urban Outfitters.