Live Blogging?

Post Script:

Just when I thought this day could not get any sweeter, I witnessed a seemingly impromptu PARADE just now on Magazine Street.  While attempting to work from my new office (aka PJ's Coffee on Magazine), I was happily disrupted by the sound of three high school marching bands and the clickety clack of dance team boots. 

Here are my bad snaps from less than five minutes ago. 

Sorry to be clogging up your google reader with all of this mayhem, but I figured you "needed" to know what was going on down here!

Cheers II,

JSH

P.S. to the P.S.  Lizzie and I are headed to buy as many Times Pics as possible from the Howard St. location of the TP.  Call me if you need one!  They are going to be collectors' items, of course! 

Big Faith, Little Restraint

Well.  How can I summarize for you the childlike joy and utter euphoria of Who Dat Nation right now?  The streets are empty (except for Bourbon), hangovers are being nursed, and plans for the best parade of all time are being made.  It is sixty and sunny.  New Orleans is proud. Triumphant.  Alive (again). 

Beau and I have restrained our stalking fandom ever since we moved into our new house.  You see, Drew is our neighbor a couple blocks down.  We pass his house on the way home from work each day.  We see his family (and him) walking the track in the Park on the weekends.  We have so many times wanted to ring the bell or leave a good luck note or some PJ's coffee on his front stoop.  A gesture, something to say thank you-our-broken-hearts-have-started-healing-since-you-came-along.  (Beau has also considered prominently displaying his IU flag in front of our house in hopes that Drew will be curious..."Wow.  Is there a person on my street who has stepped foot in the Hoosier state?  Is there someone 'round these parts who remembers my Boilermaker days because he was there!?") 

Needless to say, we have controlled ourselves and acted like Y'allywood/Hollywood South people are supposed to act...nonchalant.  New Orleans people pride themselves on giving super celebs some room to breathe.  "Oh, hey, Sandy (BULLOCK!), what's up?"  or "Oh, I didn't even notice that Kim and Reggie are next to me at the movies...(OMG OMG OMG)"  or "Brangie, you dropped that toy (IN PIPPEN LANE!), let me help you pick that up."  You get the picture. 

However, today is different.  We were called by the higher gris gris powers to pay homage to Saint Drew.  Along with a slew of other flowers, cards, notes, posters, stuffed animals, we taped this sentiment to Drew's fence. 

Front of card. 

If you haven't seen this, it is Baby Beau in Terre Haute, Indiana, 1976.  Tiniest Who Dat fan north of the Mason Dixon. 

Back of card. 

I hope he receives it. 

Cheers and lots of Who Dat love,

JSH

Au Naturale Lighting

                                                         

Well, twelve readers.  Thus far, you guys have reacted most positively to my "Fab or Fug?" post.  Accordingly, I shall not deprive you of the pleasure of weighing in on the crucial issues of health care, peace in the Middle East, whether vintage swans and designer chandeliers are inherently ugly.  In fact, one of you loyal readers has volunteered to be on the Fab or Fug chopping block. 

My friend, Jenny, and her new fiance!!, Charlie, are closing on an incredible house today.  Congrats again!  Needless to say, there has been feverish emailing between Jenny and me regarding selections for her new casa.  Although we do not have the exact same style, I totally "get" Jenny's look, even though she thinks that it is "weird."  I believe the quote was, "You know I like weird stuff."  Jenny loves to decorate with "feathers and blue glass."  Those were her guidelines to my helping her.  I don't like to call her style "weird." I prefer "eclectic hippie boho chic fabulousness." 

Now, here were are to the Fab or Fug question of the week. 

In looking for a new chandy, Jenny sent me a picture similar to the one below for input last week.  This picture is from Dick Idol (repulsive and AWFUL company name).  I snagged it from http://www.amazon.com/ for illustrative purposes. 

 

What do you think?

Now, again, I totally "get" it.   I appreciate the look.  I like antler chandeliers when placed in super modern and sleek environments.  I think they can do a great job of warming up an otherwise modern space with a found natural element.  They were wildly popular in design rags a few years ago and I gave my enthusiastic blessing then. 

That being said, I believe a dear Texas friend of Jenny and me (hi, Tiff!) shrieked and said that she could find one of those "puppies in any ranch house in Texas."  I agree.  Antleriers (I just made that up) can go very very wrong if placed in a Lincoln Log cabin with Kuntry wooden geese with paint penned names on them...

I have compiled some other antlery options for Jenny.  Let's check them out. 

http://www.castantlers.com/ $1089.00

It is huge.  Everything is bigger in Texas.  Just go with it?  Work it, own it.  I HAVE A BIG ASS ANTLER CHANDELIER.  YOU WANNA MAKE SOMETHIN' OF IT!? 

Or...

Um.  Gorj.  Dying.  Love.  Time for me to start writing in coherent sentences again.  I think the above could satisfy Jenny's craving for antlers while successfully avoiding any inference of hunting lodge.   This piece can be found at http://www.millerstudio.us/ along with many other smaller and larger options. 

BUT, I have also pulled some lighting options that aren't just Cabela's chic. (Did you know that Cabela's sells lighting? They do.)   I expanded my search to include options that suit Jenny's love of all things au naturale/earthy/comfortable/unique. 

What about these?  I will not even allow you to call these fug.  They are FAB!

 http://www.tonichome.com/

I think two or three these would be really cool over a kitchen island...

  http://www.tonichome.com/  Oly. 

If you know my particular obsessions (Courtney), the above Oly option is an old standard love of mine. I have had a torrid love affair with this beauty replete with her shell flowers for years.  I am faithful to her forever. 

 http://www.tonichome.com/  Oly. 

Who doesn't love capiz?  Honestly, I think it is here to stay.  Capiz is continually reinvented and this baby is verging on a classic now. 

http://www.claytongrayhome.com/

Okay, the birds in birdcage have been known to freak people out.  However, I LOVE this light fixture.  I think it would be fabu in a child's room and the price point is perfection, especially if you don't want to make the huge investment for something kind of fun and whimsical.

http://www.deannawish.com/

Sticks. Nature.  Duh.

http://www.velocityartanddesign.com/

Roost.

This baby had me at hello two years ago when I originally spied it at Hazelnut. 

Roost.

I cannot find a link that still sells these.  I have loved them for a long time as well.  There was a PERFECT knock off from http://www.zgallerie.com/, but I can't seem to find it.  I bet it could be ebayed.  If you spy it, send me an email!

http://www.shopcandelabra.com/.  Oly. 

This is modeled after coal.  Edgy and gothic. 

Hello, I love you.  Won't you tell me your name? 

http://www.stantonhomefurnishings.com/

Driftwood Chandelier. 

http://www.shopcandelabra.com/.  Currey and Company

I think this simple twig would be a nice option for those who don't want as an overtly "nature" themed light fixture.  Very pretty in a small powder room or maybe even your enormous well stocked walk in closet. 

http://www.shopcandelabra.com/  Currey and Company.

Love me, love oyster shells. 

Pottery Barn

Very affordable and, again, a good "naturey" option for someone who is a little gun shy about throwing sticks or oyster shells up on his/her ceiling. 

Pottery Barn

Another affordable option.  Unique.  I was sort of pleasantly surprised that PB produced this.  This nest would also be cute for a nursery or child's room, in my humble opinion. 

Restoration Hardware

This is for those of you who don't camp.  You want a natural element that is not a natural element.  Wood is a natural element.  Understand the equation?  This option may satisfy Jenny's love of natural elements without scaring Charlie too much (although, I know that it is conservative, Jenny!)

Okay, peanut gallery.  Post your comments or shoot me an email letting me know if you are on Team Jenny and want her to pull the trigger on the antlerier.  Is it fab or fug?  I think it is fab if done correctly in her new showstopper home.

Cheers,

JSH

P.S. 

Have a wonderful weekend...I may be unable to blog for the next couple of days.  I will be too busy celebrating Who Dat Nation's domination in the black and gold Superbowl, catching some beads with tutu-clad Cate and Lucy, and snuggling my tiny visitors. 

Affordable (non cheesy) Art

Two of our most stylish friends, Paola and Jose, are a wealth of fresh design information.  We spend much of our time together discussing new home finds, great hotels and restaurants, travel and, recently, our 5:30 a.m. fitness routine.   They are a wonderful resource to me for travel tips and great design finds both online and in New Orleans. 

Their post-Katrina Uptown home is a complete showstopper.  I don't think I have ever been in a home that so aptly reflects the owners' collective style as theirs.  Paola and Jose's first home in Lakeview (RIP) was a precious bungalowy sight to be seen.  It was replete with an entire bar room.  Yep, I said it.  A chic and fabulous bar ROOM.   However, after Katrina's devastation, these two uber stylish weekend warriors were somehow inexplicably able to top the awesome Lakeview cottage.  I could hardly believe my eyes when I first saw their new post-K home, which they freshed up and infused with their signature look.   They outdid themselves.  Loss for words.

I admire their style so much because it is very unique for the more traditional tastes that dominate New Orleans.  Their home is absolutely ripped from the pages of Dwell Magazine or Design Within Reach.   I am still in awe that they were able to locate one of the ONLY non-traditional Victorian cottages in the entire 70115!

Now that I have gotten you all hot and bothered about these tastemakers' digs, I am not yet going to take you on a house tour.  Because they are some of the most meticulous and gracious hosts I know, Paola asked that she be given fair warning to clean the casa and get it prepped for your eyes.

Don't fret, though.  I am going to share with you one of Paola and Jose's genius finds.   Have you ever been to this website? 

http://www.md-canvas.com/

Paola and Jose have this great piece in their kitchen...I believe that it has been discontinued as it is no longer on the md-canvas site.   I spotted it immediately and asked them where they found it.  I was shocked when they let me into this lil secret.  Hanging amidst tons of really great original paintings from galleries all over the city, their digital canvas does not come across as mass produced or schlocky! 

Although I believe that art that you love does not have to be expensive, I also think that you should own and display art that expresses your personal style.  Sometimes art that you love does not come with a price tag that you can afford.  I think that this site provides the perfect solution to the "do I wait for 20 years until I can buy the PERFECT piece or do I slap up something to fill the space?" conundrum!

There are some potentially cheesy options, but there are also some quite lovely pieces on md-canvas...and for "big art," the canvases are affordable.  I can also vouch that they. look. good.  I PROMISE that Paola and Jose have not a tacky bone in their bodies!

Here are some of my faves...they could be your own statement piece for a song!

  Moody and sexy indigo

Love that yellow, of course...esp. up against that gray. 

A little industrial vibe....

Fun/Thought Provoking.

Duh.  Of course I had to pick an orange one.

Now, kids...the one I suggest you don't purchase is this one.  It reminds me of one of those office posters that says things like, "Inspiration: Pass It On." or "Team...there is no 'I' in Team." 

Happy Hunting...let me know if you select anything great. 

Cheers,

JSH

P.S.  I am going to Me-ah-me.  Not for the Superbowl...a couple of weeks from now.  If you have good restaurant, shopping or fun-stuff-to-do suggestions, please send them to me! 

Turn on your Porchlight

We bought our new home in astoundingly good condition, especially for a one hundred year old house. It was meticulously renovated and maintained with exacting care. Most people don't even realize that it was, in fact, a double at some point because the architect's conversion was so seamless. We even have this kooky novelty called "closets" and a "pantry." Needless to say, because of the house being in mint condition and requiring very little "work," if any at all, my hot little decorating hands have had mostly twiddling thumbs. (Of course, this design boredom does not apply to furnishing, paint, wallpaper...)

There are only a couple of real improvements, per se, that we think should be done. These changes/improvements are certainly not pressing and include things like putting in an undermount kitchen sink. Overall, this is a house of automatic sprinkler systems and labeled walk-in closet drawers. (Not by me, obviously!)

Weirdly, however, when we moved in, the house did not have a mailbox. And, it had old beaten up house numbers. Naturally, in chicken or egg style, once we bought a new shiny stainless mailbox, we "needed" new house numbers and now that we have new house numbers, we need new exterior lights. I think that we will then "need" a wrought iron fence across the front, and then maybe a driveway, and then maybe a ....but we can chat about that later...

Here she is...sans mailbox on the MLS listing.

This tiny pic was the best I could do...Kristen graciously dug it up for me! 

In the meantime, behold the new AWESOME numbers which hail from a Home Depot in Orlando. Who knew it would be so hard to find floating house numbers (that are not from Design Within Reach)? I was beginning to think that they only existed IN MY MIND...which is not an uncommon experience for me.

Thank you, Courtney!

I think that the mid-century style numbers (very Palm Springs/Eichler-y) give our hybrid Craftman-ish/cottage/bungalow a bit of a interest. They were a concession by Beau in exchange for no orange door. :(

A rule of thumb I rely upon is that house numbers and exterior lights are like eyebrows. They can be "fine" and you don't even realize that they are up there or notice them UNTIL you get them waxed by a genius like Silvana at Bamboo Apothecary. Then, all of the sudden, you look 10 (errr 5) years younger, more awake, fresher, brighter and more interesting! After we put up the new mailbox and numbers, I noticed an influx of comments on how fresh and unique our house was for the block, despite its fairly straightforward traditional style.

Note in the really bad above picture that the lights are kind of rusty and definitely just ho-hum because their patina blends in with the paint. They are teeny and certainly do not enhance the "face" nor do they stand up to the shiny new mailbox and cool numbers. So, tis time to start the hunt for exterior sconces.

We both originally thought that the option was clear...of course we must go for the gold -- gas lights! But, after some serious searching, I was unable to find anything that is even remotely in the "style" of our house OR anything that would really even be a neat juxtaposition of styles (See floating numbers on Craftsman-ish/cottage/bungalow). I love mixing it up..I think that eclecticism is the hallmark of good and interesting design. However, not sure what French

Without further boring ado, here are my ideas for our two exterior lights. They flank this door....wouldn't it be delightful painted in an earthy (but super poly'ed) orange??

Okay, eye on the ball....here are some lighting options.

Lowe's. A deal at $49.98!

Lowe's. $103.92

Circa Lighting. $525.00

Shades of Light. $99.00 to $149.00, depending on size

Shades of Light. $165.00...This farmhouse-style sconce is very similar to our current lights.

www.exteriorlightinguniverse.com $115.23

www.exteriorlightinguniverse.com $138.24

And, now for some ELP, Extraneous Lighting Porn. Look at this fine piece!! Please, someone out there. Build a house around this light.

http://www.frenchquarterlanterns.com/

I will post the final lighting decision and outcome as soon as we have a winner. I also plan to hit Lighting, Inc. to do a final sweep before placing some orders (after checking out return policies!)

Cheers,

JSH

P.S. A couple of y'all asked about the web addresses for the aforementioned mid-morning shopping crack.

www.ruelala.com

www.giltgroup.com

www.onekingslane.com

Again, if you need an invite, I will happily send you one.

P.P.S. Someone asked about the trunk that is under the lucite table (shown in the prior post). I found it at Agora Galleries on Magazine Street. It is a vintage 40s military trunk. $10.00. Hmmm...I will have to take you on a tour of Agora soon. There are some great finds there....

Guilt Free Gilty Pleasure

Nothing delights the girls (wow, that sounds very Mad Men of me) in our office more than the mid-morning adrenaline rush that comes with the daily arrival of the rue la la, one kings lane and gilt group sales in our in boxes. It usually involves a flurry of interoffice phone calls and emails seeking advice on whether to "pull the trigger." If you are not a working stiff, you will think that statement is sad/pitiful/depressing. Well, you're right. I agree, it is. That being said, don't be judgy and let the drones have their materialistic fun!

I know that giltgroup.com is nothing new to those who read and use the interwebs, particularly those of you who are savvy shoppers. There have been countless bloggers who have volunteered to "invite" readers to be "members" of giltgroup and thank god for 'em! That being said, who knew they had a "home section!?" (My friend Jenny and I raising hands) Needless to say, clicking on that "secret" tab for me opened up yet a whole new world of mid-morning impulse internet shopping. I couldn't believe that this wonder had existed for so long without me knowing about it and, therefore, abusing it. Hi, Beau!

After a 2.2 second consult with Courtney "Opinions" S. (to allay any potential gilt), I promptly snatched up these fab and fine Thomas Paul beauts.

I like them placed horizontally instead of vertically. That could change.

Just an up close shot of my foo dogs. I have loved foos for a long time...I had a pair of bigger red ones that were Katrina-ed. These were the perfect tiny metallic replacement.

Don't the new snags look delightful paired with the orange West Elm finds? And, the greeny/turq perfectly mirrors the flecks of bluish/turq in our Amanda Talley painting located directly across from the pillows. AND, they really pick up the great minty green of the Bible Domino Book of Decorating.

If one of my 10 readers has any questions about sources, shoot me an email. I bet you can guess where most of the furni is from my best friend, Mr. Craig List. There is also a whole lot of Hable Construction going on.

Oh, and it must be noted that I purchased these two bad boys for under the regular price of one Thomas Paul pillow.

As an aside (sorry, these "asides" seem to be common place on this blog...with its whole four posts!)...Unfortunately, I was unable to use any gilt group credit towards the pillows. I stupidly thought that I wouldn't be able to find anything I loved, gilt-wise, and too-smart-for-my-own-britches thought that I could sell a Tory Burch tunic I bought from gilt on ebay instead of returning it for credit. Joke was on me. The tunic simply had to be returned or sold or burned because it was so fug it looked like a Mardi Gras float rider's costume (accurate observation, per Julie) AND it was so unflattering that it couldn't even be rehabilitated for my anticipated solid gold dancer Mardi Gras costume. I can email you a pic of it if you must see it, but I am actually too embarrassed to post a pic of it.

The long and short of this whole post is this....check out the home section on le giltgroup.com. It is "hidden" along the top bar on the left side. The sales seem to be posted weekly (from what I gather) and there are some deals and steals to be had. For example, right now Assouline is on there. If I had some mad money, I would want to buy this:

And this...

Gotta love a lil piece of Real Housewives NY literature...the author is Kelly Bensimmon.

If you need an invite to giltgroup, let me know, and I will send you one!

Cheers,

JSH

P.S. I saw Kate Hudson and Ryder at Earth Savers on Magazine Sunday. I chatted with Ryder, thinking the whole time, "Is this someone-that-I-know's kid?" I figured it out when I heard, "Ryder...come over here" and then a manicurist ran in to alert the spa area that Kate was RIGHT.OUTSIDE.THE.MANI.ROOM. I got up mid-mani to check her out, natch. She, of course, has a hot body and is beautiful....even in her enormous flannel shirt and ZERO makeup. Her hair was not did either. She also sounded super sweet...I heard her very very nicely thank the makeup counter lady who was helping her. xoxo, Gossip Girl

A Good Thing

If I were Martha, I would call this lil can o' spray paint "a good thing." Then, everyone would buy it and Krylon would be richer than it likely already is. If I were Oprah, I would call it "one of my favorite things" because now it is! (I don't think the guest audience would be too excited about mini spray paint cans compared to Kindles and Spanx, but nonetheless...)

How handy is this guy? It is a half can of spray paint...perfect for all of the little projects around the house. If I had seen these "Short Cuts" years ago, two entire cabinets of our office would be free of spray paint cans in a rainbow of colors. I was also pleasantly surprised that there was a decent amount of color options, too. No metallics yet for the magpies like myself, but here's to hoping.

To avoid waste, I bought one regular can and a "Short Cut" can to finish painting a chair for the guestroom. Krylon's Short Cuts are definitely going to be filed away for projects like painting frames or small parts and pieces of furniture.

I must say, however, that the "great thing" is what I found next at the Ace Hardware. A wall of Zapp's in more flavors than at the regular grocery store. At a hardware store. Personal experience dictates that Creole Tomato is hard to find! (I controlled myself and didn't "stock up" only because I had already stocked up in preparation for our guests this upcoming weekend...)

www.zapps.com

Cheers!

JSH