Saturday, May 21, 2011

Etsy Giveaway!!!!

Hey folks, Im hosting my first giveaway from this beautiful shop. It would look pretty framed with a white matte, yes? This is the song my dad and I danced to at my wedding, so it holds a special place in my heart.
If you would like to be the owner of this pretty print, all you have to do is 1. Become a follower and leave a comment that you want to be entered 2. If you are already a follower then comment about where you plan on hanging this beauty in your home. The giveaway closes Wednesday at 9am Oklahoma time:) (central).
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Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Undecorate

My sister bought me this beautiful book for my birthday, and I devoured it in no time. Undecorate is written by Christiane Lemieux, the founder of DwellStudio, and in it she tours 20 different homes. The book is written around the idea that design is not necessarily about recreating the high end rooms found in magazines, but rather a home that is unique to you.
" It's about putting your philosophy first, putting you're personality first, and letting your signature style blossom naturally from the deicisions you make." (pg. 13-14)
Aren't these rooms beautiful? The bedroom is my favorite. I agree with this philosophy to a point........I mean that one room in the book with the huge collection of the Jolly Green Giant miniatures was a little much, even if it is original. My humble opinion- that's all. What do you think?
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Sunday, May 15, 2011

Blessed

Im so aware of God's blessings in my life. Yesterday was my birthday and like every special occasion this year I couldn't stop thinking about how happy I was that Red & I were together. A year a part will do that to you. We kept looking at each other and saying "Im so glad we're together" which sounds silly, but it's sincere. I love you babe!
Oh, and he also got me the above incredible camera. He has been scheming for the past few months (apparently) and lately has enjoyed making me super uncomfortable by asking me to guess what I thought my birthday gift was. For the record I hate that game. But I love this camera......we have talked about this baby for a couple years, and now we can better document our travels. Yay!
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Friday, May 13, 2011

Etsy Lovin

When I first discovered this shop on etsy, I was so intrigued by the wide variety of beautiful ikat & batik textiles. So, I read Ginette Pearson's profile only to discover that she was originally from New Zealand and now lives in Bali, where she finds these beautiful fabrics in the local Bali markets. I fell in love with New Zealand last fall when Red & I took a post-deployment trip (for military folks- block leave). So, I already love everything/everyone New Zealand and to top that, these fabrics are from the local Bali markets. I love all of it. Did I mention she also does tablecloths, napkins and has reasonable prices? Here are some of my favorites:
Oh, and Ginette is giving you a 10% discount if you become a follower of RestlessOasis and mention RestlessOasis at the time of purchase! Happy weekend!

As you've probably noticed, I got a new blog template. The other one was driving me crazy in terms of functionality. This one is more clean and crisp but I'm just not sure about all this pink. Well, I'm giving it a test round.
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Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Planning, Design, and the Army

I'm a planner, to a fault. You know how they say that your biggest strengths are also your biggest weaknesses? Well, it's true. I just like to be prepared (thanks mom:). My friends know this about me, and as a result Im the brunt of a lot of jokes. But I dont mind- at least Im prepared! Ha.
This came up recently because I've been wanting to finish pillow-ing my couch. BUT, I decided I need to wait until we buy my inspiration piece which is a rug (big-item). Then I started thinking, "Should we buy a rug?". "We don't know if there's going to be a hard-surface living area in our house in NY, or in our future home that we buy when we get out of the army". I told you, I'm a planner.....thank goodness Red and my friends think it's funny and not annoying.
My friend Caroline still teases me about the time I bought a frame for Red's promotion certificate (most likely not correct wording). I was worried if we stayed in for the next 20ys and didn't have matching frames for all his promotions. Thank you Caroline for stopping me, but I almost.......almost bought extra frames just in case he decided to be career military. That's crazy. Even I know that.
Benefits of planning when it comes to design is: it can save money because you make fewer mistakes (and by mistakes I mean, decide a year later that you really hate what you bought or it doesn't work with your other things) The negative of being a planner in design is that you could over-analyze WAY too much and never buy anything or go anywhere with design. Ok, just something to think about.
This is the rug I would like to be my inspiration piece:
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Monday, May 9, 2011

At Last

I want to take a moment to step away from design and talk about some things way more important. My dear friend Jess just welcomed home her husband Steve from a year deployment in Afghanistan. I couldn't be happier for them. Last July, Jess and I did a road trip, Steve had just left and Red was about to come home from his year long deployment. That road trip was probably the most refreshing time during the deployment for me (besides the obvious R&R). We talked and laughed and cried. Her friendship is a blessing from God, and Im so glad this heavy weight has been lifted from her shoulders. He's home and he's safe. These are words every military wife in a deployment daydreams about.
This pic was from Red's homecoming, before they were released. Best day of my life (and yes that includes wedding day- nothing like having your love taken away from you and then to have them back in your arms again!).
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Sunday, May 8, 2011

The Home Gym

Two things that are close to my heart: design and fitness. My friend Janel recently asked me for ideas for her and her husband's up and coming home gym, so here I am. There isn't a lot out there in terms of "beautiful home gyms", but there are elements of the three pictures below that I like.
1. First, let me say I love grey walls (or any neutral) for a home gym. This is pretty common. The problem is, people usually stop here. Don't be afraid to make your home gym pretty! I would love this wallpaper for an accent wall. Metallic reflects light, so this would be helpful for a gym in a dark basement. You could also add color & texture with curtains, accessories, and a seating area.
2. Lighting is important. Who wants to spend time sweating in a dimly lit room? It actually sounds kind of miserable. Though your home gym is probably in a basement and not a beautiful/high-ceiling room like this one, you can still have chandelier and pretty lighting.
3. Bring the outdoors into your gym. Plants and flowers make you feel fresh and healthy. This picture is not the best example, but if possible bring in as much natural light as you can.
4. Gallery Wall. The gym is a great place to hang any medals/awards from races (dont go too crazy), or things that inspire you. After the September 11 attacks, a newspaper printed a picture of the American flag as a symbol of patriotism. Red cut it out of the newspaper & saved it. As a welcome home gift from his deployment, I had it custom framed. It now graces our home gym & I love its inspiration.
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Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Decor And The Dog: West Elm Window Headboard Copy Cat How-To

I was browsing one of my favorite blogs (Remodelaholic) , and I came across this incredible tutorial by Michelle at Decor and the Dog. Wow. If this doesn't make you want to get in the car and head to Home Depot, I don't know what will.
Decor And The Dog: West Elm Window Headboard Copy Cat How-To: "Here is our tutorial on how we built a West Elm Window headboard copy cat (see post here for cost and time breakdown).   West Elm Wi..."
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Sunday, May 1, 2011

White Walls

Ok. White walls have been on my mind lately. There is a lot of frustration for military wives when it comes to painting in our homes. If we live on base/post, we are allowed to paint- but will have return the walls to white...... and only after giving the walls two coats of primer. Moves are stressful, painting makes them even more stressful. If you're stationed somewhere long enough and are up to the task at hand- I say go for it. However, I think we military spouses are oftentimes so aware of what we cannot do that we don't explore what we can do..... i.e. white walls. Here are some pictures to inspire you. I tried to find pictures of unimpressive house architecture, because let's face it- that's usually what we're dealing with. Get inspired, white walls can be BEAUTIFUL.
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