I’ve been hearing the siren song of wallpaper recently; these two images of bathrooms with wallpaper got me thinking about putting up some wallpaper in our rental bathroom, which is need of some love. This first image comes from Luke Edward Hall’s home (he works for UK brand Toast, among other endeavors).  The paper is made by Trustworth Studios (so many delicate intricate papers!).  I found both via Julie’s Pinterest, which is a very happening place.

Then, I came across this image from Steven Sclaroff on Desire to Inspire.   I love the lily pad paper — still looking for a source (I’d probably only have the gonads for a single wall of this print!).   Have you ever wallpapered a small room?  Big prints or small prints? One wall or all?

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We’re on the cusp of spring here in NYC.  I feel things speeding up, leafing out, getting ready to burst.  And if that weren’t enough, today I’m going to my accountant to do my taxes, a sure sign of spring! Shelving is on my mind these days; we need shelves in the living room for all the books and in the kitchen, too.  Via The Kitchn and Desire to inspire.

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So the best part of pizza night besides the bonhomie and, well, the pizza, was getting to be in Kate and Kyle’s kitchen.  I’d see little glimpses on Instagram but it was a delight to actually *be* there.   They renovated their kitchen a few years ago and they totally nailed it (grey walls, open shelving, farm house sink, bowling alley countertops!).  Comfortable, functional, modern and charming.  I particularly like the open shelving (which I may adapt to our own nyc rental kitchen one of these days). See lots more photos on Kate’s blog, Fork Knife Spoon.  Thanks again Kate & Kyle for having us over!

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This weekend we went to Minneapolis to celebrate Febgiving (the celebration of Thanksgiving in February, natch). We ate like royalty all weekend between Friday night pizza with Kate (amazing photographer and food blogger) and her husband Kyle and the feast itself on Saturday afternoon (photos of last year’s event here).   Friday night the wine was flowing and the pizzas were amazing:

1. San marzano, fresh mozzarella, sautéed mushroom and truffle oil
2.Cambazola, prosciutto and pear
3. Roasted butternut squash, asparagus, goat cheese and garlic oil

Kate and Kyle have a pizza night every Friday night so they make a sourdough pizza dough from scratch every week, using a recipe from Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in 5 Minutes a Day. (Wordy, but, delicious recipe after the jump!)

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I had a internet mash-up inspiration moment: these awesome dip dyed placemats ($8) from Leif  + these white on white Micheal’s mat + frames found by genius Jenny = affordable abstract art. I’m trying this out for a friend and will report back on the end result (if you go down this road, you will need to cut down the placemat a bit to fit the 11 x 17 frame).

PS Placemats found on Design*Sponge’s awesome Pinterst!

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Our closets have been in turmoil since we moved six months ago. While I know this is totally normal and par for the course, the hall closet has been BUGGING me recently. It was my birthday over the weekend and I happened to come across these cheap baskets at $3.75 a pop at my favorite neighborhood hardware store (compared with $15 dollars a basket at the Container Store) I gave myself an organizing gift and let myself have at the closets.  This is what turning 34 looks like people!  Organizing closets!  Well, actually, this is what turning 34 looked like, thanks to my sister and a little app called Giffer.

Anyway, the closet is better, if not perfect, and the red baskets and semi-order make me happy every time I use the closet.  If I look on the bright side, and ignore the grey hair, I guess maybe the wisdom of 34 is giving yourself permission to fix things that make you crazy.

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This story by Ralph Gardner on Inge Reist and Robert Freeman is an ode to street walking in New York.  In short, Inge and Robert walked past each other on their respective walks to work for 10 years and now they are getting married.  I’ll let you click over for the full, romantic story.

PS I’m a huge Ralph Gardner and his Urban Gardner column — it’s my favorite part of the WSJ.

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So I saw what I thought was a beautiful knit chandelier the day while looking through the internet and I sent it to my friend M as an example of what might look nice hung over her dining room table.  She sends me back a short note saying “Hmm, I might worry what a guy coming into my apartment would think if the first thing he sees is a hanging cradle…” [click to continue…]

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Jenny’s girls filled out her ______ = LOVE poster.  Such a thrill to see something I made being used and hung on a wall.

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Rachel is also switching her son’s crib to a toddler bed and is looking for a dresser that he could reach (and some day dress himself!).  This first one isn’t exactly toddler material but I liked it so much I couldn’t resist adding it here. Gray lacquer on my wishlist for sure. [click to continue…]

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