Yummy Color

Okay you already know how much I love organic milk paint. We have been using the milk paint finishes on a variety of our furniture for a while now - but mostly with a historic palette. So I am thrilled that Anna Sova's line will be re-launching soon. Her color palette is so extensive it's definitely sparking some imagination. It is, in a word, amazing.

I just now pulled a few colors from the Anna Sova website for an adorable footstool in a room, complete with cute floral fabric and girliscious trim. Yummy and Beautiful.

 

Enjoy!

Lise

Earth Day - Clean Green

Earth Day falls on April 22, 2008. This year, thanks to a wide variety of inspiration and information, I have made many more personal changes to green things up around the house.

If you have yet to start on making any green changes, here are a few recipes for easy, healthy cleaning products. Making one change per month makes it easier to make ongoing changes. But really, my motivation was set once I started to do the research about the chemicals and their side effects in many of the products we used.

So here's a quick green clean shopping list:

Vinegar
Borax
Salt
Lemon Juice
Essential Oils for fragrance
Vegetable Oil and Castile Soaps
Baking Soda
Spray Bottles (check out the beautiful linen spray bottles here)

From these ingredients you can make:

Countertop/Surface Cleaner
Combine Vinegar and Salt for a great scrub for many surfaces and non-porous surfaces

Window Cleaner
Vinegar & Water is a classic window cleaner. Use newspaper for a bright shine

Room Freshener
Pour vinegar in a cup to remove odors from your room. Or use vinegar to clean and freshen fabrics (test in an inconspicuous place first)

General Cleaner
With a bit of water the castile and vegetable oil based soaps will clean almost any surface.

Borax (about 1/2 cup), Splash of Vinegar and 1 Gallon of Hot Water can be used to clean and disinfect your rooms and make them sparkle.

When you bottle your cleaners, be sure to order some cute and creative labels to let everyone know what ingredients are included, and what you can use them for.

Inspiration & Dream Boards

Inspiration and Dream boards are found in a few rooms in my house. My kitchen, office, and bedroom each have one. I use them to capture ideas and organize goals and project ideas.

The inspiration board featured here was created from an large 60's picture frame. It hangs in my office and contains a few photos, product prototypes and labels. I have used the board as a frequent background for our product photos.

Dream and Inspiration photos deserve to be embellished too. In fact this idea inspired the Align :: Creative Organization Collection. We've created small custom push pins, magnets, and tacks that reflect the design of the rooms they're used in. Beads, buttons, vintage earrings & small brooches, and brass or copper findings dress up the every day push pin and add that special detail to your room. (I've found that they are also useful for casual curtain and simple panel tiebacks too...)

Now my kids are getting into it. A few weeks back my oldest son and I went shopping for one of his very own. My son quickly posted a photo of new sneakers, a dream car, and some other short term goal reminders. He doesn't have his own tacks yet, but we did hang the board with some beautiful decorative hardware in copper. I'm telling you, it's the details that make the design.

My next project board will be made from a vintage picture frame and some sheet metal. I love the contrast of new and shiny and I also want to use these custom and oh so adorable decorative magnets.

How do you hang your inspiration?

Lise

The Keeping Collection

Over the past few months we have been diligently working on our new project, called The Keeping Collection. The Keeping Collection is simply our answer to the missing modern day hope chest. Based on the traditional hope chests that our grandmothers used to keep, but with a modern edge. This collection will be launched soon on our website, but I couldn't resist sharing some of the information with you.

The Keeping Chest is offered in three sizes and styles - and it is benchmade. Benchmade is a term that means that it is hand crafted by one person, (right here in the USA) with particular emphasis on traditional furniture making methods. Each chest is constructed for the individual - there are none in stock, as they say. Plus our Keeping Chests are made with eco-friendly materials. No harmful fumes for you, just beautiful wood & hardware, milk paint and non-toxic stains. I love that.

Personally, I feel very fortunate to be connected to this product for several reasons. First, because I want to help people who are requesting both sustainability and quality from their products. I really believe in purchasing furniture that can be passed to the next generation and not end up in a landfill somewhere. Heirlooms - a return to classic, time-honored style.

I'm also so excited to connect you with the person that makes the keeping chests. You know from whence these come, because each chest comes with a special introduction and letter from the artisan, not an inspected by sticker. Hand made by one person especially for your loved one. Not shipped on a slow boat. That in itself is a story.

Another big reason I feel fortunate to be a part of this is because I'm also sensing a need that all people want to collect special things for their future. In a way, I want to turn tradition on its proverbial ear. In the past, hope chests were used to save precious items for young ladies who were preparing for marriage. Today however, all people have a desire to collect meaningful items for their future - whether you are a man or a woman, or plan to marry or not.

Plus I've already heard stories of using Keeping Chests as unique gifts for bridal showers and children collecting memories for parents, instead of the other way around. Our business meetings have included talks of collecting vintage jewels and photographs, journals, recipes, and diaries of family traditions and events in hidden compartments within the Keeping Chest. Oh the things we can collect...

I'm excited by The Keeping Collection. Especially the craftsmanship and the enduring appeal of building a legacy. If you are at all interested in keeping a collection of your own, please email me.


Enjoy,

Lise

Designer Bling

This weekend I was invited to see my friend Karis' collection of vintage jewelry. The snapshots on this post don't really do this collection any justice. Karis began collecting these pieces at a very young age. So these vintage jewels are gorgeously exquisite. I was in awe of this YUMMY stuff. When people say that they just don't make it like they used to - there is a reason.

Because we love re-use in design, we are lucky that some of these jewels and a few of her vintage buttons will make their way onto our own line of one-of-a-kind handmade pillows and other linens.

We we be sharing these with you in the weeks to come, so stay with us for more vintage glam for your home.

Enjoy!

Lise

Wanna win something?

I'm posting a few photos from our trip to CHA to work with the Canvas Corp team. That's Deanna on the left, and me on the right. I was doing a few demos for the Homespacing product line. The design team created some beautiful boards and we heard lots of ooooing and aaahhhing.

If you're interested in trying a Roomspacing kit, leave a comment below. We will be doing a drawing at the end of the month from those that leave a comment and an email link below - and we will send one along to the winner!

Good luck!!!

Lise

UPDATE: Congratulations! The winners have been chosen! I'll be notifying the winners and sending out their prizes next week.

Jump off Design - Natural Palette