Monday Color: Corn

Have I mentioned that Fall is my favorite season and how excited I am for Thanksgiving? OK, maybe just about in every post. But what can I say? This is my time of year! I sort of ignore the historical origins of the Thanksgiving holiday and embrace the fact that it's the one annual tradition for which we don't give Hallmark cards or a slue of presents.....we just come together with family and friends to enjoy life and eat great food. And when I think of Thanksgiving, I immediately think of my mother's corn pudding, specifically the slightly crispy burned corner piece I always manage to snag from the pan. It's pure edible heaven.

For today's Monday Color post, I thought I'd take corn out of my mother's Pyrex dish and into the home, exploring how the warm honey-toned yellow color of Corn can make a room more delicious too.



































Images above:

1. I love the many golden hues in this room from Better Homes and Gardens (India) via Once Upon A Time.

2. A cornucopia of warm yellow accessories found on Decor Pad.

3. The corn-colored upholstery against these charcoal walls is a daring yet brilliant combination (via Hammers and High Heels).

4. No art required!!! These harvest-hued painted vintage frames bring enough character to any wall (found on Somthings).

5. A corn-colored room vignette found on Apt 528.

6. The vintage charm of a corn-colored sofa from Velvet Palette.

7. I adore the warm array of pillows, natural textures and the sunshine-infused rug in this Umbrian cottage found on The Style Files.

8. Corn, white and plenty of pattern make this bedroom feel inviting and sweet.

9. Just one serving of corn is plenty (like on this bed found on Involving Color).....wish I could remember that before heading back for 2nd and 3rd helpings next week!

10. These are going on my Christmas Wish List for sure!! Owl Measuring Cups in Yellow from West Elm.

11. Les Indiennes' eco-friendly Papillon fabric in Gold.

12. Combining the colors of earth and corn, the Akina Vase from Crate & Barrel would be a great way to introduce this color to any room.

13. Urban Outfitters Ziggy Chair in Yellow.

14. Coyuchi's organic cotton Bath Sheets in Mustard and 10 other sumptuous colors.

15. A great Thanksgiving decoration idea from good ole Martha: Glittered Corn!! For the how-to, click here.

16. These fingerless gloves aren't a home decor item per se, but the color is delicious and I'm very likely to wear them indoors with the drafts my little beach shack suffers from (from Etsy).

17. Schoolhouse Electric's Hamilton Bed in Industrial Yellow

Etsy Love: Gray Works

With holiday entertaining season just around the corner, I wanted to share the beautiful platters, trays and cutting boards from Gray Works on today's Etsy Love post. Since 2006, the craftspeople at Gray Works have been using only locally and sustainably harvested or salvaged hardwoods for their designs, which are then lovingly hand-rubbed with organic olive oil for a product that is as ecologically friendly as it is lust-worthy. Feast your eyes on these (pun intended!):


Olive Platter


Spalted Maple Cutting Board


Little Garlic Chopping Block


Extra Large Walnut Serving Platter


Three-legged Salvaged Wood Milking Stools (various sizes available). Accommodate extra diners in style!!


And this is extra sweet: for $15, Gray Works will engrave your platter with any initials and date of your choice. For more details, click here.

A Worthy Cause.....

Today is Veteran's Day here in the United States and even though I'm as anti-war as they come, I still have a deep respect for the courageous men and women who have fought in our armed forces throughout decades of wars. I was glued to the The History Channel's Vietnam in HD series last night for several hours (sobbing like a child through about half of it!) and learned that the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is trying to raise money for an Education Center at the heart wrenchingly beautiful Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington DC (pictured above), collecting photographs of all the 58,000 men and women who died in this futile war, represented now in name only. All gifts to this fund pledged TODAY will be matched. Click here for more information.

To give aid to disabled veterans of all our history's wars, visit the site for the Disabled American Veteran Charitable Service Trust (given a high rating by Charity Navigator for appropriating funds directly to their cause).

Monday Color: Russet

The leaves are changing colors rapidly, making me long to hit the open country road (in a Russet Brown MG Midget like the one above preferably!). Crisp Autumn air accompanies every nightfall. And the delights of Thanksgiving are just around the corner.

Fall, my favorite season, is most certainly in full swing!! And Russet, one of my favorite colors, is beginning to tinge everything around me, from holiday decor to the seasonal bounty at the Farmers Market to the Fall wardrobe staples I just unearthed in my closet. Feast your eyes on the many ways that Russet can warm up a whole room or just a table setting in my weekly color tribute below.




























Images above:

1. A top-to-bottom Russet guest room for a model apartment I designed in Manhattan.

2. A living room designed by Vincente Wolf pairs warm Russet with cool slate blue.

3. The warm yellow walls of this bedroom are the perfect compliment to the Russet rug and abundant wood tones in this bedroom found on Martha Stewart.

4. Regal golds and Russet walls in a traditionally styled show house living room found on The Enchanted Home.

5. Coral and Russet abound in this bedroom found on Home Decor Walls.

6. The warm wood covering every surface of this sleeping quarters have a Russet glow (from Coastal Living).

7. An inspiring tablescape featuring Russet roses and pumpkin tea light holders, found on www.dreamweddingreceptions.com.

8. Available in 8x10, 11x14 or 16x20, this photograph called Russet and Peach Patched Building found on Etsy delivers a full spectrum of warm Russet hues.

9. Mikasa's Desert Breeze 4 Piece Place Setting from Bed Bath & Beyond.

10. Luster Russet Tones Rug by Calvin Klein (available at Macy's)

11. Criss Cross Glazed Garden Stool from Clayton Gray Home.

12. Solid Silk Hand Loomed Pillow Cover in Canteloupe (and 3 other neutral hues) from West Elm.

13. Antique Red Wuchow Three-Drawer File Console from Home Decorators.

Etsy Love: Yellow Bird Yellow Beard

With the holidays quickly approaching, my mouth has already began watering for Thanksgiving feasts and Christmas cookies, but at the same time I can't help but feel my stomach churn over the upcoming season's wasteful decorations. In my house, we achieve a festively decorated look each year with found and recycled items, and use the same garland of LED Christmas lights that we've had for years. Plenty of Etsy shop crafters have the same notion, making gorgeous decorations out of recycled materials. So with this in mind, I plan on spotlighting eco-friendly holiday alternatives for the next few weeks, starting with the recycled paper and lovingly handmade creations I found on Yellow Bird Yellow Beard.


An earth-friendly decorative garland made from recycled take-out bags is the perfect accent for a Thanksgiving day with an earthy, vintage feel (I'm seeing a mantel place full of vintage glass bottles filled with grains and kernels of corn, lots of warm unscented soy candles burning and burlap placemats.....but that's just me!).


Although not made from recycled paper, this red and green garland puts me in the Christmas spirit in a way no plastic decoration ever will.


Plush Heart HO HO HO Christmas Tree Ornament.


For those local to the Southern California location of shop owner Janee Lookerse, this Recycled Book Pages Wreath is a modern alternative to a store-bought pine branch version that will simply be tossed in the trash come New Years Day.


And for handmade babies toys better than anything you would find in the sea of big box baby stores - like this adorable fabric giraffe - please check out Janee's second Etsy venture YBYB Toy Shop.

The White House and my white house.....

A strange query entered my thoughts today, so I ran with it. What do The White House and my little humble white shack in Long Beach, NY have in common? Surprisingly, more than I thought.

1. Of course, they're both white.

2. They are both located on Pennsylvania Avenue.

3. They both need protection: sophisticated security systems, the Secret Service and the FBI protect The White House from myriad threats; blue painters tape protected my house during Irene (as shown in the image below).


4. The White House has a bowling alley and my long narrow living room has often doubled as a bowling alley for my 6 year old's enjoyment.

5. The White House's inhabitants have lived in the midwest and so have I.

6. Construction for The White House began in October and I was born in October (OK, that one is a stretch given the 200 or so years gap).

7. The White House has a movie theatre and an equally steady stream of NetFlix DVD's are viewed in the borrowed TV in my house (yes, another stretch).

8. Prone to monochromatic decorating, my house has a predominantly green room too (images below: the front room in my house and the historic Green Room at The White House in 1986).



9. Here's the final similarity.....drum roll please.....I use Shaklee's nontoxic, biodegradable Get Clean Basic H2 Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate in my house and so does The White House cleaning staff!! (Basic H2 is also used in the Vice President's residence, the only product endorsed by the Official Earth Day Committee and one of Oprah's "favorite things", as if Presidential usage wasn't accolade enough.)