Effortless Style Blog

22 Apr

Scenes from my weekend…

Posted on April 22, 2013 by effortless

I don’t know about you guys, but with all of the madness that was occurring in Boston last week I was a ball of stress. I had Boston my mind 24/7 and was glued to the TV trying to get updates on the situation. By the time Friday came around I told Jon I need to simply veg all weekend and try and relax a bit.

Here is what we were up to!

We attended a wedding Friday night. I must say I have a heard time leaving Hudson so I was a bit sad on the way out the door, but we had a lovely time and got to get all dolled up!

{How handsome is my hubby?!}

On Saturday I sported one of my favorite striped trench coats that was an amazing find from a trip to Florence a million years ago.

I added some fun florals and fretwork to my striped coat:

I was all dressed, but had no place to go because Jon decided to build the framework for a new shed we purchased so while he did this:

I did a whole lot of this:

{Hudson is obsessed with his swing. Once he is in it there is no taking him out of it. You just have to keeping pushing him.}

In between that I did get to go out in my cute outfit, but sadly it was only to Lowes to pick up more supplies for the shed. Hudson loved his outing and didn’t tire of multiple trips to Lowes. We went back 3 separate times for more supplies!

I got to have some fun checking out all of the colors available for decking! Hopefully our back deck/patio plans will be happening in the next couple of weeks.

I did finally get to relax a bit that evening when I watched 10 YEARS a totally cute movie with a Mr. Channing Tatum.

On Sunday we finally decided to get Hudson’s haircut. We loved it long, but these last couple of weeks it got extra crazy long and we were using our battle with hair gel so it was time for a trim.

Here is his cute before:

I was pretty sure either I was going to cry or Hudson would or let’s be honest we both would, but I’m happy to report no one cried. Hudson was great during his cut. It didn’t bother him one bit!

{I love how they are holding hands. So sweet.}

Here is his after. We still kept it on the long side, but it’s a great improvement. Of course now he looks like 20 years old and I tear up just looking at him and how fast everything is going.

After our fun hair outing it was back to work at the house where Jon was able to get more progress done on the shed with his little helper.

What were up to? Did you head off to High Point? It’s an interior designers playground and I was lucky enough to go two years ago. I was toying to with going this year, but decided to pass and totally regretted it after my instagram feed was full of everyone’s new finds from market and showroom pics!!!! Totally missing my blog besties Marianne and Lauren! Ah next time I won’t second guess, but simply book my airfare. Miss you girls!

Don’t forget to enter the Belquist Give-away plus get 20% off with code ESLOVE.

Posted in about me, weekend recap | 5 Comments

19 Apr

IN HER SHOES: Classically B

Posted on April 19, 2013 by effortless

This week’s IN HER SHOESis the lovely lady behind this week’s Treat yo self post.When I fell in love with Brittany’s pillow line I knew I needed to learn more about her and what a typical day is for her while she balances interior design clients and a shop. Truth be told I have something product/shop related in the works so I was eager to see how she does it all.

I hope you enjoy a peak into the life of Brittany from Classically Band Belquist.

Please read to the very end where you will get a little surprise!

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Hi Effortless style readers, Brittany here from Classically B and Belquist Interior Decor. I am so excited that Camila invited me to participate in her fabulous ‘In Her Shoes’ feature since it is one of my faves!

I just launched an interior decor boutique and I also do freelance interior design so each day is very different from the next. I hope you enjoy a little glimpse into my life

7:45AM: My alarm goes off, and while I would normally press snooze, I just got back from Boston the other day so I am still running on east coast time. I work from home so I hop out of bed and throw on my workout clothes in anticipation of my morning hike a little later on.

8 AM: Time to make breakfast which is usually something hearty like a power smoothie or oatmeal since I never know when I will get around to having lunch. While my oatmeal is cooking I scoot to the backyard to grab a lemon and admire the roses that have just started to bloom. I realize it is already close to 70 which means I am definitely going to eat breakfast and do my morning work outside.

8:10AM: I Spend the next two hours checking emails, organizing orders, catching up on blogs and tweaking a few designs I have been working on. I like taking care of all my emails in the morning because I am 3 hours behind the east coast and want to catch up with everyone who is already well into their day! I also juggle 3 email accounts (personal, Belquist, and my interior design/buying business) so if I don’t tackle them early then I just get frazzled checking emails when I am out running around all day.

10AM: I’ve taken care of the morning computer tasks so I print out the orders that need to be sent out today. I love packaging my pillows and I get excited thinking about each piece in its new home! Fed Ex doesn’t pick up until 6pm but I like to take care of orders in the morning so I don’t have to rush the process at 5pm (although that sometimes still happens).

10:45 AM: Time to take a hike! Living in Los Angeles means I am lucky enough to be able to spend lots of time outdoors all year round. These days I am hitting the hiking trails instead of the gym. Working for myself allows me to create my own schedule and I take this time hiking to plan the rest of my day, brainstorm new ideas and soak in a little sun

11:30 AM: I’m back from my hike so I pop in the shower and then get ready to go out for the rest of the day. Even on days when I stay in my ‘home office’ to do work I still make sure I put on a cute outfit and throw on a little make-up; it makes me feel put-together and ready to take on any task. Today I am wearing my favorite wedges, mint pants (colored pants are a staple in my wardrobe) and a flowy top.

12:15 PM: I quickly eat lunch and then it is time to start checking things off my ‘To Do’ list that I made earlier! First stop is Downtown Los Angeles to pick out some trim samples for product development, as well as scope out fabric for a couple of interior design projects. I am a bit obsessed with trim and pick out a few cords, pom-pom fringe and ball trim to play around with for some potential pillow designs. I also check out a pretty velvet fabric that I want to use for drapery or possibly use to upholster a settee.

2:45PM: Before I know it I have spent 2 hours picking out trim and fabric samples. I always spend more time than anticipated when I shop downtown but I can’t help myself; its like designer Disneyland! On my way back to the car I wander through the flower district and look at all the gorgeous blooms. I am a sucker for fresh flowers and pick up some pretties to take home.

3:20 PM: On my way home I stop and peruse the aisles of Home Goods to look for props for an upcoming photo shoot. I love shopping here as well as at thrift stores/Craigslist/Estate sales and pretty much any place I might find a great deal or anything vintage. I came across this beauty by Ralph Lauren (it was under $100) but sadly I don’t have any need for it.

4:30 PM: Finally make it home (LA traffic drives me nuts!) and I hop on the computer to take care of emails that came in while I was out. I also make sure to jot down product ideas that I thought of while downtown and want to sketch out later.

5 pm: Time to have some fun playing around with fabrics and trim samples while I enjoy a little snack of cheese and crackers. I love product development and have so many pillows and other other home decor pieces I am designing and sourcing for Belquist (think blankets, barware, trays, rugs, and much more!)

6:15 PM: Time for the best part of my day, a Skype date with my boyfriend who lives in Boston. It’s nice to step away from the boutique and design world for a little while and just talk about anything and everything.

7:30 PM: Time for dinner with a friend! I Make a quick outfit change and head over to Old Town Pasadena to have dinner and drinks with a good friend. Nothing beats a glass of white wine (yes I put ice in my wine), fried calamari and some girl talk to unwind after a busy day.

10:15 PM: When I get home I get ready for bed, put on my pj’s, and then its time to relax! I like to unwind at the end of the day watching a tv show while checking random things like real estate listings in Alabama & Texas or searching Craigslist in hopes of finding something amazing, My last score was an adorable chrome vanity with a matching art deco seat! I also write tomorrow’s blog post and make sure it is all ready to go off in the morning.

12 AM: Time for lights out!

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A big thanks to Brittany for sharing her day. As a special treat she is offering one of her stylish pillows for a give-away! Take a peek at what you could win:

In order to enter use the Rafflecopter widget below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don’t want to wait for the give-away? No worries use code ES20 and 20% off your total order!

Posted in In her shoes, Uncategorized | 24 Comments

18 Apr

Treat yo self…Belquist Pillow

Posted on April 18, 2013 by effortless

Jon always thinks I’m “finished” with a room in our house and then I get to surprise him and tell me that a. I will never be “finished” and b. I have something new I want to do.

Hudson’s toys have been taking over our living room. I’ve been trying to figure out different ways to hide them so they are out of site, but easy for Hudson to access when he wants to play.

Enter a wooden storage trunk that has just been floating around my house with no love being given to it. It was filled with CD’s, but since we never really use them I decided that the CD’s were out and Hudson’s toys were in.

I gave it a new lease on life with some high gloss green paint and then realized the top had a perfect insert for a little cushion. I went with leopard and all seemed right with the world and dare Jon say it, but it looked finished!

Well then I stumbled upon the beautiful new pillows in Brittany’s new shop. Brittany has amazing line of globally inspired pillows that are crafted in India. Now normally when you hear the words global, eclectic, ethnic the word glamorous doesn’t come to mind. Well Brittany changed that because all of her beautiful pillows are filled with gold/silver accents and even rhinestones!

Of course after viewing her pillows I had to break the news to Jon that we weren’t finished and we needed a pillow on top of the oh so pretty leopard cushion.

Enter the Bruge pillow in magenta:

The pattern on the pillow is actually applied with rhinestone trim! It’s so delicately placed and will stay put for good because it’s sewn on not glued. Trust me Hudson gave it a good run for it’s money and it’s still perfect.

I also had fun moving the pillowall throughout my living room and it works everywhere!

As a sweet treat for all of my readers Brittany is offering 20% off your entire order with coupon code ES20!

Now the pillows range from $85-$115 and they have piping, invisible zippers and down inserts included! Now when you think about the yardage, trim, zipper, piping and down insert the pillows are at a really great price point for a designer pillow.

Posted in treat yo self | 3 Comments

17 Apr

What you need to buy at Ikea…

Posted on April 17, 2013 by effortless

You know when you go to Ikea to pick up one specific item and end up wandering around and adding way too many items to your cart and then pick up a chocolate bar (damn the diet!) on the line because it’s oh so long and then leave to get your car and realize you will now have to do some crazy balancing act to get everything to the car because you didn’t bring a bag (You were only going for one thing) and then you get home all proud of yourself for actually getting everything home in one piece and realize you picked up the wrong version of that one initial thing you needed!!!! Ah! Just me?

I’ve been to Ikea more times then I can count these last couple of days for one reason or another and today I will have to go back again to return the wrong item I picked up and pick up the correct one. In all of my trips I ran through the market place a bunch of times and found some stylish items that everyone should be picking up Ikea.

No. 1: Of course a polka dot item had to catch my eye. This rugcome in black and orange in the 4″ x 6″ size and is only $20! It’s low pile, but not super thin. It actually looked really nice made and like it would hold up to a lot of traffic. I could see it in a lot of different space and if you need something bigger simply pick up 2 rugs and butt them up to each other. It has a teeny binding around it so you shouldn’t see much of a seam.

No. 2: I have patio’s on my mind and have slowly been trying to piece together what I would like to do in my backyard. By the registers at IKEA they have a ton of summer items and this table stopped me in my tracks. A lot of outdoor furniture is made out of iron and has tons of scroll work on it. Not my cup of tea. I loved the clean lines on this table and that it was available in either black or white and didn’t scream outdoors. Plus it was a large size (39″ W x 80″ L) and only $169!

No. 3: Inexpensive window treatments can be hard to come by. In my sourcing I do find lots of $10 a panel options, but let’s face it they are not the nicest options out there and most of ones by me always have some sort of iridescent sheen on them. So, Ikea is always a great source for classic aka all white panels that are nice to look at it and feel. Normally I dress them up with some sort of trim, but these panels already have that done for $15. Love the stripe action going on here and they while they are a bit see through it would be easy to get them lined (My seamstress charges around $20 a panel) or DIY with a no sew option by applying white felt to the back with spray adhesive. Just cut to size, spray glue and set. With felt you just need scissors and you will have clean lines/no fraying.

No. 4: I purchase a lot of sconces at IKEA for clients and myself, but of course I always tweak them with either a paint job or custom shade. One this beauty I think I would leave the outside as is, but add a touch of gold to the inside of the shade.

No. 5: Line a hallway or a staircase with this beauty (Also available in black) heck at the $10 price point you could use it to upholster a bench and anything else in between. A good stripe needs to have good spacing between the stripes and this pattern is perfection.

Good finds, right? I was surprised that my round up ended up mostly black and white because I’m such a color lover, but these classic items don’t need a pop a color to make me smile.

Posted in great buy | 4 Comments

16 Apr

In a Boston state of mind…

Posted on April 16, 2013 by effortless

{Boston Needlepoint Pillow}

Yesterday started out like any other day. Feet were dragging a bit in the morning as I tried to get into my typical Monday routine and head out the door for Hudson’s music class, ran some errands after class, had lunch and then prepped for a business call and continued to work away while my mom had Hudson and I had uninterrupted hours to work on design clients plans and blog duties.

I was so in the work zone that I didn’t click over to any of my social media time suckers like facebook, twitter, instagram until late in the afternoon. When I did my feeds were all filled with love being sent out to Boston. My stomach dropped as I clicked over to CNN to see what had happened. Pure sadness hit me when I read about what occurred at the marathon and and then sadness turned to fear because I know a good amount of people that live in Boston and look forward to Marathon Monday and all of it’s festivities. Luckily all of the people near and dear to me are okay and accounted for, but I know not every one is that lucky. My heart goes out to Boston today and to all of my fellow bloggers and blog readers that are dealing with this horrible tragedy. I have no words other than you are all on my mind.

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

15 Apr

Scenes from my weekend…

Posted on April 15, 2013 by effortless

This weekend started out right with my new bedding from Crane and Canopy. Can’t wait to show you guys what I picked! I’m dying to put the new duvet and shams on the bed, but I’m also terrified Hudson or the dogs are going to get it dirty in a matter of seconds.

Went over to Grandma and Grandpa’s and had a little fun:

{Love that Hudson’s new raincoat coordinated with my parents toss pillows! Room reveal on their family room coming real soon. It’s been done for months, but I haven’t gotten pictures done yet.}

Cleaned up the shoe section of my closet and realized there were too many pairs that I never wore so I started to take older pairs out for a spin. Took these cute heels out on Saturday.

Took my shoes for a spin to pick up wood for some decking Jon is building for a new shed we picked up.

{Hudson was obsessed with helping Jon this weekend. From helping Jon remove trees and clear up area for the shed to pushing the cart with wood this little guy was smitten with being Daddy’s assistant. }

Came home to fun a package with my latest find from Belquist:

{Can’t wait to show you what I picked out!}

Sunday I had the rare treat of taking a couple of minutes to myself and taking a shower while my men played outside in the yard. No, little man busting in bathroom or screams from the other room. Just peace and quiet.

We also got to work on some painting projects that have just been waiting for nice weather in order to paint outdoors.

We still managed to sneak out and eat some lunch at our favorite bakery/cafe.

No trip out to lunch is complete with a side trip to the park on the way home.

When we got home I did a little work, clean up the house a bit and played decorator in my own home while figuring out where to put this new to me lamp.

Jon continued his work outside and I’m now getting in more excited to see the new shed go up so all of my vintage furniture finds have a home while they get some TLC. Plus once the shed is up we can concentrate more on the deck!

Of course Jon wrapped up work outside while we still have some daylight to space so we got to a play a bit before dinnertime and then bath time/ bed time madness began.

{Playing drums on Daddy’s head…I think I have a rocker on my hands.}

Here’s to a productive and hopefully quick week ahead of us. I need another weekend ASAP.

Posted in weekend recap | 6 Comments

12 Apr

IN HER SHOES: Blue Chickadee

Posted on April 12, 2013 by effortless

I came across today’s featured lady from one of my favorite pals, Chassity from Look Love Linger. Chassity lives in Charleston and is surrounded by some super talented friends. One day she had a picture of some art by her friend Way Way a fellow artist and resident of Charleston who is also a blogger at Blue Chickadee. I was smitten. I’ve been obsessing about the beautiful pieces of art she produces and one of her pieces is at the top of my upcoming birthday wish list. I think you will enjoy a peek into her life and I’m now determined to get myself down to Charleston. Such pretty scenery, amazing weather and a fab group of ladies that are oh so effortlessly stylish.

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Hey there, I’m Way Way of Blue Chickadee blog and I am thrilled to be participating in this “In Her Shoes” segment! I am a wife and momma of two young boys. I’m also an artist and run my small business through a shared studio space, Novel., in downtown Charleston, SC with three of my closest artist/creative friends (Lauren Lail of Library: Archives of Fashion, Liza Cleveland of Bon Vivant and Jane Pope Cooper of Balboa Jewelry and Jane Pope Jewelry). I have been a long time follower of Effortless Style so this is very exciting for me to be participating in this segment!

A day in the life…

6:00 Alarm goes off…sleep walk into the shower. I have to get up before my boys and get myself ready or else I’m scrambling all morning!

6:30 COFFEEE can’t enter my mouth fast enough and a show for the boys….

8:30-Out the door to school

9:00 Head to my studio, Novel., to paint. Novel. is my happy place! I am so lucky share this beautiful studio space with three of my nearest and dearest friends. Two days a week I work here at the studio from 9:00-3:00 and the rest of the week I am a stay at home mom. Here are a few of my latest works (on board and the last three shots on paper)….

1:00 While taking a few minutes to eat a bite of lunch, I peruse Fab for some vintage goods that one of my besties happens to be showcasing!!! Lauren also just so happens to be one of the original founders of our studio space, Novel.!

At 3:00 I head home, but first make a pit stop at Celadon, ( one of my favorite home and accessories stores in town) and I spy some awesome pillow covers!!! A couple may have made it home with me!

3:45 I head home finally and let the boys get into a little backyard mischief…

and then decide we need to get our pants on and take a golf cart ride down to our neighborhood boat landing to do a little exploring and boat watching. This is one of the many reasons why we love living in Charleston!! We are just a stones throw from the water!

6:00-Get home and have supper, bath, and story time.

While daddy’s reading, mommy slips in a few minutes on Pinterest (supposed to be cooking supper for us-whoops!!!!)

8:30 Finish cooking and we sit down to eat and talk about our day…

Wine of course is happening at this point….

9:00 Clean up the house and off to do laundry-the worst part of my day in my opinion!!!!

(This pic was before I dumped all the dirty clothes on the floor!!!)

After laundry is finished the hubs and I plop down on the sofa to watch a little of the boob tube. By 10:45 I hit the sack. I’m tuckered out from a full week of work and play!

Thank you Camila for having me talk about my day!!!

XOXO Way Way

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Thanks so much Way Way!If you want to stay up to date with all of the happenings at Novelmake sure to check out their blog.

Posted in In her shoes | 1 Comment

11 Apr

Treat yo self: Petite Plates

Posted on April 11, 2013 by effortless

This weeks treat yo self pick is a great little gift for yourself or a friend. It would make for an especially good bridal shower treat. I stumbled upon a set of monogrammed petite plates when I was browsing through Mandy’s shop and I think you will agree that they are a must have. For only $15 you will get 2 petite dishes with your initial that you can use throughout your house.

I got gifted a lovely set from Mandy as a little thank you for featuring her last week and I’ve already put them to good use.

What would you do with a set? If you want to pick up a set for yourself or anything* else from Waiting on Martha(*Monogrammed cell phone cases & Monogrammed lucite trays not included) use coupon code ESLOVES for 10% off your order.

Hope you go over and treat yo self to set as well. If you remember to send me pictures and show me how you used them.

Posted in treat yo self | 5 Comments

10 Apr

Outdoor Living: The Before

Posted on April 10, 2013 by effortless

This year it felt like Spring was never going to get here, but this week it finally looks like Spring has hit our neck of the woods. I was out in bare legs today and dare I say it I actually complained for a second that it was too hot. Ah the grass is always greener, right.

Seriously though I’m so excited that Spring is here and I can spend some time outdoors. Of course thinking about spending time outdoors made me think of our lack of usable outdoor space.

{My oh so pale legs need a little dose of sunshine.}

I have decided that this is the year we will actually build some sort of patio in the backyard. I have been saying this for the past 3 years and something always happens whether it be an unexpected and huge veterinarian bill, or just being so busy that we simply never had time for it. I decided to blog about my plans so that you guys would keep me honest and uphold me to making this outdoor living space a reality.

The main urgency for a patio/deck of some sort is that this year Hudson is moving all over the place and one of his favorite places to run around and play is in our backyard, but currently our patio area is in a really sad place.

AH!

Here is the make shift patio we made a couple years back by removing massive amounts of bushes and laying bluestone and it just isn’t working. Add to that the fact that at the end of summer I told Jon we should trash the old patio set that was a hand me down from some neighbors we now have no chairs/table to put on the sad patio.

On the opposite side of the sad patio there is an equal amount of empty space and currently that’s where Hudson has been deciding to hang out.

Yup that’s Hudson sitting on a plank of wood that we placed over a window well because we were having issues with flooding during really heavy rain storms.

The ideal goal is to build a deck that goes the entire length of the house and give us a small seating area and a dining area. What is your ideal outdoor living situation? Concrete, composite wood decking, real wood decking? Brick pavers? What’s a girl to do?

So, there it is the sad before that will hopefully be transformed in a matter of weeks. Now to find the funds to get this project going…

Posted in outdoor living | 2 Comments

09 Apr

The inner workings of a NYC studio

Posted on April 9, 2013 by effortless

In NYC apartment rentals typically come in one of two sizes, tiny or teeny tiny. When it comes to actually buying an apartment you are pretty much stuck in the teeny tiny zone, but since you are in NYC all of your friends and family are insanely jealous of your teeny tiny space so it’s all good.

My sister’s boyfriend just bought a studio apartment in Manhattan and I’ve been enlisted for my decorating services. Now having a client that is a good friend and dates my sister has it’s up’s and down’s. On the up side I get to help furnish a space that my sister will eventually be moving into which is nice. I tend to decorate a bit more on the feminine side so it’s nice to flex my design muscles with a more gender neutral design. On the down side since it’s not the typical client/designer relationship there are times when we are both stubborn and my strong willed client won’t give in to my design vision. Normally all of my design clients are more than happy to take on all of my design advice and there are very few changes. We shall see how this whole design process goes. It will be interesting to see what we end up.

Here is a peek into the process thus far…

Before:

{This is the living, dining and sleeping area aka everything. There is also a walk in closet and bathroom off of the front door.}

{The kitchen opens up to the main room and doesn’t have a lot going on. It wasn’t even large enough for a full sized refrigerator.}

One of the first decisions that had to occur in the space was the new floor stain, paint for the walls and the kitchen.

Dark floors were the number request by my closet so the floors went from honey oak:

To dark walnut:

Since the floors went dark and the space is about 400 sq ft the question of going dark on the paint was discussed numerous times. I loved the idea, but didn’t want to push too much, because dark would make it feel a bit smaller, but I thought it would add more charm so I pushed for Holiday Wreath by Benjamin Moore. Numerous samples went up and in the end Holiday Wreath won! Yay!

Take a peek:

I love it and so does my client!

Once the floors and paint choices were made the kitchen was next. There wasn’t a big area to work with in the kitchen. The previous owner was only able to have a college sized refrigerator and my client wanted a full size one. The contractor was able to move a wall and take space from the walk in closet in order to put a full size refrigerator in.

{ During a trip to IKEA I fell in love with their new kitchen model, Sofielund. It had this great gray/taupe white wash look to it and I quickly became obsessed with it. Having it on both the upper and bottom cabinets felt a bit too modern, which is why we went with white instead.}

Stay tuned for more progress pictures..Now that the basics are done we get to start the fun part and pick out furniture, rugs, accessories, etc.

Posted in effortless style | 7 Comments

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