Mr. Black, you do intrigue me.

So many posts about crazy colors that my friend, mr. black, got neglected.  No, not the John Black from Days of our lives, circa '85 although yes, he has also been neglected (is he still whispering instead of talking?).  But the color, BLACK.  Yes. Black is always 'in', never boring (although the whole 'little black dress' thing really can put me to sleep if its not done right); It is assuredly masculine, often feminine, and is modern and traditional at the same time. It's a real go-to color, whereas most others are trendy, their popularity wavers with the season, year and decade.  Would I say that black is 'The Notebook' of all colors?  - For sure. It's timeless, ageless, an instant classic that tends to conjure tears and make me force Brian to repeat 'i promise we'll die together, i promise we'll die together' until I cry myelf to sleep. 

 um. ...woah.

Give me that beatup leather sofa, on that traditional rug, with a surprise black wall.  via emmas blog

messy messy sexy bed, with an awesome black pendant.  thank you Mikkel

Love this room.   I love how clean, inviting, modern yet casual, fresh and huge it is.  

(adjetives much?)

I already regret 'The Notebook' comment.  I'm feeling a bit paranoid.   But, am i alone ladies? ...Am i?......... Ladies?  (dear god....i am, aren't I...??)

Will my cooking taste better if i painted the walls blue?

Do I want a peacock blue dining room?  Well, do I? Methinks I do. Methinks.

from LonnyMag

Or this one. 

from James Merrill

Gotta run. Sorry for the quickie... Oh if i had a nickle for the number of times i've said that, eh?

Thrilling tales of chandelier shopping... on the edge of your seat kind of stuff.

Remember when i was like, 'I'm thinking about getting the random hanging light from DWR'? as if, 'Oh, if i have the time i'll swing by and grab it',  or, 'Perfect, i happen to have $1200 extra dollars in my piggy jar (is that the right word, piggy jar? hmmm), or, 'Sure, since i'm in the neighborhood i'll give it a whirl'.  Well, reality has set in, (I hate you reality, take a f-ing hike). So while Mr. amex is tempting me and Mrs. I-can-rationalize-anything is whispering in my ear all the reasons why i deserve it, Sir. Reason has now won.  Yes, Sir Reason, you are quite correct, I can not afford this light right now.  La di da. Way to ruin the party.  This is the blessing and the curse of being raised by super practical high school teacher parents.

i won't be buying today.

So this chandelier :

But I still need something.  My dining room is the main source of light in my apartment, wall to wall windows, so i don't want something too obtrusive.  I want something that is a huge statement, but quiet and not too distracting. I love the random light so much because it is organic (the string is totally random and different on each one) while still being graphic (a perfect sphere); and it's a huge statement while being super quiet and not needing a lot of attention - one of my favorite combinations in things and people, bt-dubs, take note.  But I need to get over it.  It's in the past.   It didn't work out, it wasn't meant to be, it is a sad parting, but both of us will move on.  So, I went to Ikea to look at this one, the Ikea Maskros:

It's great in a huge space where you don't actually get too close to it. But it is uh-normous - like over 2 1/2 feet in diameter.  I love the pattern that it reflects on the walls though.  And it's only a hundy, which is a lot of bang for your buck.  But it's too big for my space.

So back to the drawing board.  A reader (I heart you Natalie, from Ban-do) reminded me of the diy version on Etsy which looks like this: 

Unfortunately I can't do it, not for such a big moment over the dining table, it's too diy for a serious room. Although it is only $15.00.  I think it could be cute like in a kids room or somewhere where the DIY-ness of it will be embraced.
So here is my newest idea:

It's from Clayton Gray Home.  Not exactly the first time we've seen this, I know. But here are the plusses - it has some drama, but it's not distracting at all - the sunlight will filter through easily.  It is modern, kind of has the industrial thing going on, but there is a looseness about it that works for me.  And lastly, its $280. Not nothing, but certainly not $1200.  And lastly I just found this on-line, a diy blog called Small notebook, which i think is super pretty, although I would use white chord/bulb thingys instead of black.  might be worth trying, they give the step by step, and it under $50.

What do you think Sir. Reason? oh and by the way how did you get knighted? by being the biggest buzz kill in all of England?
But seriously, is the Clayton Gray chandy too played out?  is saying the word 'chandy' super douchey?  is the word 'douchey' played out?  do i ask too many stupid questions?

Settle.....settle.....

I may have lost it.  why? because i think i'm going to wallpaper a wall in my apartment with this pattern:

Now, now listen. I know that I want something crazy, bold, big, exciting, etc etc, and yes I may get sick of it in 2 years.  BUT, i don't think we'll be in this apartment much more than three years (unless I can be convinced that a baby can sleep in a walk-in closet and still grow up to be a normal sun-loving child).  So, is it a waste of money if I can't take it with me to my next home? probably.  But i'm bored.  and I looked for fabrics that I could  cover my walls with instead (check out four posts ago) but I couldn't find any that had the same drama and impact that weren't $97 a yard.  I'm going to look at it in person today and if the colors are right, i'm going for it.  Just one wall - er, two.  And if nothing else it's going to be super exciting for a while....
Here is why I love it:

It's a take on a traditional pattern while being super large in scale, making it more current.  The colors are bright, and unless i find out differently in person, they will work well with the whats happening in my living room (although below is living room 1.0, i just rearranged it, added this enormous 4x6 foot vintage swiss flag - a red cross, basically, and edited the art/added a couple more - and yes that is popcorn ceiling, i don't want to talk about it).  Also, as much as I love a a pretty neutral pattern, the space that i'm putting it in gets almost no natural light, so i think it would look dead and flat.  The wall i'm wallpapering is around the corner from this room, fyi.  It's the entrance wall into the kitchen and would go up and over the large doorway.

Here are the backups:

Love them both.  I love that this chinoiserie is almost like a mural, but it's a bit periwinkle for me (I think. i'm going to look at it in person today) and might be almost too matchy with my rug.  the green Susan Hoodless one, is amazing, but the scale is a bit too big for the space and its metallic amazingness would get lost with the little daylight situation.

opinions?? on a scale of 1-10 how fast should Brian buy a2 strait jacket for me?

And it begins....

I rearranged our apartment last night.  and rehung all the art. and reorganized the bookshelf. oh and also cleaned out my closet.  woah.  yes, i'm in overproductivity mode.  Nothing, and i mean nothing in the world is as fun as rearranging your furniture.  Am I right or am I right?  Brian doesn't necessarily agree, he said he would rather be doing almost anything else in the world, actually.  But he's an actor so he always says super dramatic things like that.  and really, anything? brian? anything? What about going to the mall, cause i'm pretty sure you said that that was the worst thing in the world to do.  And now he's happy cause it doth look much better.
Anyhoo now i have a better list of what I need to shop for.

white porcelein stool - could be garden stool, could be petrified stump, but a side table, small round and white.

french or wingback arm chair (something traditonal, not modern), vintage and yes, i'm prepared to reupholster. - like the brown leather one above.  i love.

brass base coffee table - still looking for the pic
wallpaper for one wall, something a little cuckoo.  i've got my eye on one.
chandelier for dining room - something big, round, modern, but quiet.  i'm debating the DWR one below.

Has anyone successfully made the knock off of this light,  with string around a balloon? I saw it all over the blogs a while ago, and it is much easier on the pocketbook.  But i don't want it to look homemade. suggestions?

Emily, 2.0

credits:  emma's blog; elle decor
So i've done some serious soul searching.  night upon night of praying. day after day of not so silent mediation.  And finally i was given the answers I needed.  Ready for it??
                                                   I, Emily Henderson.   Like.   Color.

credits:  domino, christine rudolph/mikkel vang
Shocking i know.  But i realized that as much as I dig all of these neutral palettes (way above) they simply aren't very 'me'.  I think that i'm not terribly sophisticated.  not a shock to most of you who know me.  I don't do 'tame' very well, or 'pared down' or 'clean' or 'modern' or 'perfect' ....geez, lay off a little wouldya? truth be told i'm a maximalist.  How much more of a self-important, pretentious blog post could this be?  not much, i know. I might puke in my own coffee, nope i love coffee too much.  Anyhoo, when the style gods give you an answer you feel like you should share it.  the world must know. The last couple months i've been working on interior design (or should I say 'styling' as i'm not certified) projects and when I got all done i realized that I have never 'designed' my own home.  Blasphemy!!  I have a lot of stuff i love and it all lives in a room together, but its not very cohesive, not as intentional as i want, and frankly it can look a bit junky all these pretty things living on top of each other.  These pics (above and below) are what i respond to most.  they excite me in a way that the neutral palette doesn't.  (gross, not like that).

credits:  i forget!! maybe City Sage, Flowers - Frolic and pink sofa, city sage
Now, now. don't think i'm turning into a crazy person. i'm not going to be buying a pink sofa, all my major pieces will still be neutral, but i'm amping up the color everywhere else - textiles, art, accessories...

SO.  i'm on a mission.  i have a few new mantras that i have written on my mirror for myself to repeat in the morning before i go shopping. They go something like this:

I will only purchase with intent.
My new posessions must be either functional or beautiful - that's been my mantra forever, but i'm really going to try to stick with it.
I will not buy any new vases or animal sculptures or lamps or weird portraits of people that creep my houseguests out - i have WAY too many.
I will mix my finishes (I have too much wood, need me some more ceramic, leather and metal pieces)
don't compromise, no matter how much of a 'once in a lifetime' opportunity it is (the flea market problem), wait until you find the perfect piece.

yea, the mirror isn't exactly functional anymore.

So starting tomorrow i'm on the search for the perfect items (perhaps even, dare i say, investment pieces???) for my new cohesive home.  i'll go through piece by piece what i'm looking for and hopefully through dutiful research and savvy negotiating skills I can find what i'm looking for, within my budget (again, i'm loaded, so much money, but still budgeting is kinda a fun hobby).

i welcome any and all suggestions.  er. maybe not any  and all. but surely, some and most.

Genius! DIY fabric wallpaper.

I'm so embarrassed.  I can't believe I hadn't seen this before.  I found it on Ruche, way to go, Ruche.  So here's the deal, you can make temporary (in the sense that it is removable, not that it is fall-down-able) wallpaper from fabric, mira above.  Man! there are so many reasons why this is awesome.  Shall I name them? oh yes, Emily, yes, please do.  my fingers can barely type fast enough i'm so excited.

1. Ideal for apartment renters - easily strippable, take a damp cloth to clean the walls and presto, the wall is back to it's original paint job. wash the fabric and you have the fabric again in its original form.
2. most fabric has no lead time - just pop down to mood or go online and order it, you should have it in a couple days, most of the best wallpaper has at least 4-7 day lead time.
3. Most fabric is cheaper and much wider than wallpaper.  most fabric is around 54" wide whereas wallpaper can be as little as 18" wide. You can find a lot of awesome fabric for under $20/yard, and most cheaper wallpapers are $120 for 72 square feet which calculates out to be: ha! fat chance! No way i can figure that out, but i'm pretty sure that the fabric would be cheaper.
4. endless patterns.  vintage wallpaper is hard to find, vintage fabric not so hard.  And even without vintage, there are millions of different patterns out there (which is why fabric and flowers are my two favorite things to shop for, no two rolls or flowers are the same, and both are affordable ways to refresh the home...woah there cheesy blogger, this isn't QVC now).
5. you can always change it out. with mood, season, style changes, complete redecoration, etc.  treat it like its throw pillows.  maybe you are in the mood for bright patterns in the summer, but want rich washed grey linen in the winter.  who knows?!!! lets get crazy with our textiles, ladies!
6. fabric has more texture.  texture = good.

Here's how she does it, but follow the link and read hers to be more accurate.  She says to take 1 cup sifted corn starch and whisk in 1 gallon of hot water til it's thick. Then coat the back of the fabric, probably let it soak in (that's what you do with wallpaper anyway) and then she coated the front on one of them.... I need to do it myself to find the easy mistakes (don't worry, I will make them).

DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS???!!!

I can have a pattern on my walls. hell, I can have 15 patterns on my wall and not worry about wasting the fabric (that is always a problem when its vintage, feeling like you might regret using it and then not having it.....yep, direct quote from hoarders i'm pretty sure) and no more anxiety that I am investing in something that i can't take with me to my next (hopefully purchased) home.

life just got a little bit better.  It's as if somebody up there or out there is throwing me a bone.
and i was hungry....for some wall treatment ideas....?