Ana Claire

Y'all...she's here.

Ana Claire...goes by Ana Claire. She is utterly and completely scrumptious. The best accessory of my home and life.

AC joined us a little early (her due date was today!) She joined us on Thursday, December 13th, at 11:24 pm weighing a darling 7lbs 5oz and measuring 19".

Life is different and we are just humming along, loving every second of our new family. I was so eager to share the news with you!! This picture is from this morning...hot off the presses.

Hope you've been well and gearing up for Christmas if you celebrate. We are so excited that we'll get to celebrate Ana Claire's first Christmas together.

XOXO, D

Le Jardin Chinois

Brunschwig & Fils' latest collection, Le Jardin Chinois, is nothing short of a Chinoiserie miracle. B&F, one of my absolute favorites, has centered their latest collection around some of their iconic Chinoiserie prints from their archives, reinventing them in color, fabric and texture. The result is the timeless Chinoiserie we know and love with gorgeous new twists to modernize them a bit.

Of course they introduced Le Lac in some stunning new color combinations and you'll also notice Les Touches is here in pink, blue and green. I want it all:

All images via Inspired Talk

Ummm...that is cut velvet. 

The collection is huge with classic Chinoiserie prints, tons of geometrics, patterns, animal prints, etc. I haven't figured out how to view just the new collection on the website, but the images I've seen thus far are ridiculously good. Definitely something us Chinoiserie lovers will come to embrace.

More on the collection here and here...

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Nursery Design Board

I know I've explained snippets of the nursery, but here is my design board that encompasses a lot of the look and feel of the space:

A disclaimer that not everything on this board is actually in the room...I chose some look-alike pieces to give you a good idea of how the whole space is shaping up. Here are links for pieces that I can actually point you to...if no link, then the item is vintage or a hand-me-down or I just don't have a resource for it...

Brunschwig & Fils Le Lac Fabric
Jenny Lind Crib & Changing Table
Pink and White Buffalo Check Fabric
Lilipop the Frog
Yellow Pillow
Block Print Rug
Paint Color: Haven by Sherwin-Williams
Laundry Basket
Etsy seller for watercolor art

The board makes it look a little busy/crazy...but as we put the finishing touches on the room it's turning out exactly how I had imagined. It's colorful, girly and full of Chinoiserie with traditional elements sprinkled throughout to make it feel classic.

I know you all want to see pictures...and I promise to deliver those at some point!

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Let's Make a Plan

While Carter and I are putting together our plan for baby's arrival, I think it behooves us (you and me) to also make a plan.

Because one day, I'm not going to show up for work...and you'll know that the nuggette is on her way. And I don't want you to fret about missing any posts OR wasting time by coming back to the blog every day to see if there is something new...that will get annoying.

So, there are two ways that you can set it and forget it...

1) Do you follow AO and all your blogs in a reader? Like Google Reader? If so, you know what you're doing and you're all set. And if you don't...well, you likely won't start the reader habit now so option #2 is for you.

2) Get AO via email...easy peezy. You can easily submit your email address in my sidebar and any time there is a new post, you'll get it in your inbox. And once we're back to some sort of pattern and you'd rather ditch me from your inbox, just unsubscribe and go back to checking the blog the old fashioned way...

(Look for this box in my sidebar...don't try to type in this actual box b/c it's just a pretty picture)

We're about 10 days from my due date. I don't feel any jazzy things happening, so I have a feeling we'll probably make it until then. And my plan is to blog per the usual until something prevents me from doing it...like labor. 

Enjoy your weekend...I need to pack my hospital bag! See you Monday!

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Sara Tuttle in Southern Living

I just finished the December issue of Southern Living and, per the usual, it was good. Really, really good. I'm trying hard not to just republish the issue. But one feature did make me particularly happy as it included a local designer, Sara Tuttle, and a house in Maryland that she recently designed.

You may have seen these images before (I spotted them on La Dolce Vita) but Southern Living decks out the spaces for Christmas and, as always, Laurey Glenn's mad photography skillz really bring a space to life. It's fun to see the same space styled two ways:

Via Southern Living, Photo by Laurey W. Glenn

Image via Sara Tuttle Interiors

Via Southern Living, Photo by Laurey W. Glenn 

Image via Sara Tuttle Interiors 

Via Southern Living, Photo by Laurey W. Glenn 

Image via Sara Tuttle Interiors

Don't you love how the tree and presents look with those vibrant green curtains in the first photo? And I really like the switch over to a large, round, skirted table in the second photo...not as practical since you lose seating, but very pretty for a picture - especially the large pink poinsettia centerpiece!

And Southern Living includes a little bit on Sara (I like that touch):

Sara's interiors are fun to tour - she's a master of the color mix. Check out her portfolio here...

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Claudette Chinoiserie Dinnerware

Hold the phone.

Are you aware of the Claudette Dinnerware Collection from World Market??? It's marvelous!

Beautiful Chinoiserie for your table in a buffet of colors...and really affordable. We're talking sets of 2 for under $20. This dinnerware would set a beautiful table...just imagine mixing in all sorts of colors and textures with this elaborate motif of florals, birds and butterflies.

And at this price point, buying a complete matching set wouldn't be out of the question if you were looking for a spectacular gift or just wanting to own another set of your own [as she raises her hand].

Click here to see the collection...

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Julia Knight Marrakesh

I bought a serving piece by designer Julia Knight many moons ago and it remains one of my favorite and most unique serving bowls with its varying tones of purple and mother-of-pearl inlay. One Kings Lane is currently hosting a Julia Knight sale and I fell in love with her Marrakesh Collection:

Talk about a great gift...any of these pieces would simply dazzle on a table and each one comes in 3 rich colors - azure, pomegranate or caviar. I always love receiving (and giving) unique serving pieces since I love to entertain but find that spending money on "unnecessary" yet special pieces is sometimes hard to do.

The OKL sale doesn't carry all of the pieces, but some are certainly available at a nice discount (not to mention lots of other pieces from other collections are available). If not, I found this retailer carries them all.

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Golden Crib

I came across this close-up of a golden Jenny Lind crib and fell in love with the stunning combination of bedding:

 Design by M. E. Beck, image via Shades of Chic

What a perfect execution of neutrals! I think what I love most is the mixture of silver/gray and gold - it keeps the crib looking modern but the florals and bows make it sweet and traditional. And that khaki seersucker stripe is simply delicious.

It kind of reminds me of Michelle Adams' bedroom as seen in Lonny:

Photo by Patrick Cline

Happy Monday!

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Friday Crush

Photo by Laurey W. Glenn via Southern Living

LOVE this peach + mint Christmas arrangement from my favorite Southern Living.  I can't remember who the designer is in this story or if it was one of their own styled shoots...either way, this is so beautiful. I love to see holiday decor done in themed colors and these pastel hues are sensational...tones of mint and green paired with soft orange and peach is unexpected and completely lovely.

I was able to get about half of the Christmas decorating done last weekend...so I'm aiming to wrap up my nutcracker display and our living room Christmas tree this weekend. Hope you have some fun holiday plans...see you Monday! (I hope!)

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Scalloped Bed Coverlet

Design by Amanda Nisbet (anyone know photog?)
Image via Pinterest, via Droolworthy Decor

Notice the white walls...they totally work here. The green hues of this room totally pop and become quite a design statement against the clean backdrop. This room would be stunning for two little girls to share...so crisp and sweet.

But what caught my eye is the scalloped coverlet on the beds...it's the same one I'm using on the twin bed in the nursery! It's Matouk's Le Scallop coverlet and I selected mine with pink trim. If I had that money tree in the yard I would have splashed it with a huge monogram, but alas...it is monogram free to save some cash. But I did get the matching neckroll sham and had that puppy monogrammed in bright red!

I love the coverlet's sweet simplicity and details and love how it's used in a double dose in this room.

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Our Christmas Stockings

This week seems to be turning into a week of Christmas posts...what can I say, it's on my mind. With baby only weeks away I want to get all of my Christmas decorating and gifts in order so that I can enjoy my favorite holiday while I still have my wits about me.

One of the vital purchases I wanted to make this year was a new set of family stockings. There is an excellent chance that Little Miss will be here before Christmas Day so I of course want to have a stocking hung and ready to go for her.

Ideally, I would love to make our own stockings....make them really special and unique. But the reality is that a set of homemade stockings are a bit out of my reach at the mo'...so I turned to retail - Land's End to be exact.

The Shuffler family Christmas stockings:

After much deliberation, we opted for these three stockings. I thought I would fall in love with a zillion different stockings but I ended up not really liking many that I saw - even on Etsy, which was a surprise. And Carter is a classic fella, so he hates anything that doesn't harken back to Christmases of yore (having Carter on board was crucial as I once made the mistake of purchasing a stocking for him that suited both my taste and decor and he hated it...lots).

We both really liked the needlepoint construction of these and what clinched the deal was the adorable stocking for baby girl...that penguin is too cute and I love the pink + red ice skaters...they fit nicely with baby's signature color palette.

Stockings seem to always be a special part of family Christmas decor. I remember my own from childhood very fondly. And Carter's were handmade by his grandmother. Do you have special stockings with a story in your family?

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Easy Gift Wrapping

For as creative as I fancy myself to be, I'm not so great with the gift wrapping. I lack patience and so creating beautiful packages for my gifts is a tough endeavor. But I recently found a great idea for those of us that are gift-wrapping challenged...something simple, very pretty and inexpensive.

Get yourself a big ol' roll of kraft paper like this one:

Wrap your gifts and then adorn your simple package with one of these gorgeous tags from Etsy seller Indelible Impressions:

Aren't they beautiful? I really think a simple paper package with one of these stunning tags would be all you need. The tags are a smidge more than $1/piece so using them wouldn't break the bank. And creating an assortment of brown packages with beautiful tags would look very pretty under your tree.

And when Christmas is over, the shop carries a multitude of other fun tags to help you finish up that roll of paper:

I think that's what Martha Stewart would call a Good Thing.

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Our Red Door

One of my dreams for our house has finally come true...we now have a red door. And that's only part of it - the whole house has been PAINTED GREEN! Remember how long I have wanted this? Well, after some discussion and finding a great contractor, C & I decided it would be worth hiring this project out in an effort to actually get it done.

And we made a great decision! The painting wrapped up just in time for Thanksgiving and Carter and I had fun decorating what feels like a new house for Christmas this weekend. The house is now Georgian Green by Benjamin Moore with White Dove trim and a glossy red door that Carter painted.

I got that fox door knocker from Carter for Christmas last year (vintage, from High Street Market) and am thrilled to finally have it up.

I don't have good pictures of the house yet...I'll try to snap a couple for you. But in the meantime I wanted to show off our front door that is even more welcoming decked out for Christmas.

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Happy Thanksgiving

Table setting by Eddie Ross, image via Chinoiserie Chic

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all! I hope you are surrounded by family, friends and fantastic food. I'm thankful for each and every one of you and for so many other things...today is a wonderful day to spend counting them all!

XOXOXO,

D

Orange Fabric Picks

Did you guys know I love the color orange? I kid. Obviously I do - it's my favorite! And this time of year, the buzz around orange reaches its annual high. Though I'm a firm believer that orange is appropriate any time of year and it makes the most fantastic accent color.

To that end, my latest ideabook on Houzz rounds up some of my favorite orange fabrics that can be used various ways - not just for autumnal holiday decor.

Check out the full ideabook here, including ideas on how I'd use these great fabrics:

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