You guys!  I'm SO excited about the coming weeks, it's not even funny!

Yesterday I photographed a tablescape that I'm working on for Leon's.  I am bursting at the seams with this little secret and can't wait to share more.  Until then, here are a few pieces that were included in the tablescape.  And remember, be sure to follow the hashtag #helloyellow on social media for lots of sneak peeks!  More to come, I promise, and soon too!

We enjoyed some a.o.k. weather this past week and took advantage by heading to the hill for some tobogganing fun.  This time, I didn't wear my snow-pants which was a big mistake.  There is no fun in standing and watching, no matter how delicious the tea is! ha!

One great thing about shooting a tablescape is the leftover florals!  And there is nothing better than having fresh flowers scattered around the house (as much as I love my faux blooms, the real deal is especially beautiful).  I love placing flowers on the kitchen counter, next to the stove:

I hope you're all enjoying a wonderful week so far and keeping warm!  These chilly temps are something else!  Come on spring!

Cheers,

J.Crew and Coach Fall/Winter 2015 Collections

Do you dream of attending #NYFW?  I do, so sooooo much.  Even if it's just a matter of standing outside photographing the show's attendees entering and departing the buildings.  Yes, seriously.  Now I know that that may sound crazy, but just think about who you'd see if you did just that.  Groups of talented fashion icons, celebrities, writers, bloggers and more.  It would be inspiration overload, I'm telling you!

I was pretty darn pleased when I received some gorgeous shots of the Coach and J.Crew Fall/Winter looks that were presented at #NYFW and of course, sharing them with you is the right thing to do.

Here are a few of my favourites from Coach:

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The variety of sweaters and coats, so good.  Bound to keep us ladies fashionable during the cooler months, when bundling up is oh-so necessary!

I'm always so excited to see what J.Crew will be offering and this girl, who typically shies away from the colour yellow, is surprisingly excited to see this colour making a big appearance in their Fall/Winter Collection!  Have a peek:

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The tassels on the shoes, the outfits that mix both casual & dressy, the sweaters, knits, tweed and flattering lines, I just love it all!

I'm slightly fearful of what my bank account is going to look like come fall! Ha!  But seriously, a round of applause to both Coach and J.Crew, well done!

You can view the entire J.Crew Women's collection here and the Coach Collection here.

So, which outfits or pieces are you loving?

Cheers,

Bits and Pieces

I need to stop relying so heavily on my Instagram photos for posting here, but really, it's as good as it gets right now! ha!

Some pretty exciting things are in the works over here, I can't wait to share more, but here's a sneak peek and mega hint:

A shot taken while visiting Leon's last week.  I can't share too much now, but it's going to be fantastic and be sure to follow the hashtag #HelloYellow on Instagram and Twitter!

I've been focusing on the smaller details around here lately.  I'm super excited to have finally found some beautiful brass candlesticks.  I thrifted the two in the first image at our local thrift store and believe it or not all of the lovely pieces in the second photo are from my Mother in Law!  She had them tucked away in her basement and was happy to give them a new home!  Woohoo!

I decided to make some new pillow covers for the couch in the family room to match those that are on the chairs for a couple of reasons.  One being that I absolutely love the fabric (which you can find here at Tonic Living) and two because it helps unify the room.  This girl loves symmetry and this helps a lot!

I'm also looking for new hardware to place on the IKEA dressers that flank the fireplace in the family room.  I think I've settled on these Louis XVI style knobs (B) or the Rope-Edged.  Both in antique brass and I'm hoping to order them today.

Other happenings:

I secretly love finding little Lego figures in random places around the house.  It always makes me smile....as long as I'm not stepping on them! ha!

I bought this white peplum top from Gap a while back.  It fits differently than tops that I'd normally wear, but I absolutely love it.  Bonus, it's currently on sale!  Also loving the Brave Leather Enno Cuff!  It seriously goes with anything!

I have a huge love for plants and I may have a few too many around the house, but they make me happy.  The newest addition to our family, this beautiful variegated snake plant, just $10 at Walmart.  The planter is from HomeSense.  I love that the plant grows vertically, making it the perfect filler for the corner in the family room, allowing us to easily sneak past the couch to look out the window.

The next couple of weeks are going to be crazy, I keep saying that I hope to get back to my regular Mon, Wed & Friday posts, but here we are....mid February and still nada.  Hang in there, I'll get to my regular posts soon!

Have a lovely week!

Cheers,

Then There Was......A Piano.

Isn't she beautiful?!  I mean, her brass detailing is enough to make you want to love her, no?  I found her on Kijiji and you guys, she was free!  Well, truth is we ended up having to pay to move her (she was a tad heavy) but the move took only 1hr so it didn't cost too much.  Winning!

So yes, we have a piano.  She sits ever so beautifully in the living room, filling the space that has been bothering me for nearly 2 years.  So the living room re-jig continues and is nearly done, really just some styling left to do!

Also in the works, a beautiful spring tablescape (this combo is making my heart flutter...loooove it!) and I'm also searching for new hardware to place on the dressers in the family room.  Leaning towards the ring pulls, a touch of warmth and a touch of class.  Done and done.

Have a lovely weekend, friends!

Cheers,

How Did I Miss That & A Fabulous Book by Erin Gates

So the Golden Globes were this past weekend and like many, I totally enjoyed watching the red carpet arrivals and laughed my butt off at everything that Tina and Amy said.  The next day again, like many, I read people's recaps and that's when it happened.  I spotted this picture of Gwyneth Paltrow prepping to leave for the award show.  She looked ever so lovely but what really caught my attention was her house!  My goodness!  That settee, those floors, the width of the entryway.  I.could.go.on.  So of course I then took the time to find out and see more of the house and that's when I discovered that the house was not only featured FOUR YEARS AGO but that I've pinned many of the rooms on Pinterest!  Facepalm.

Though there are a few rooms that I could do without, I am over the moon in love with all of the spaces designed by Windsor Smith.  The entry, family room and kitchen (seen below).  I don't only love the design, but I love how she imagined the room to be used by the future owners.

Lovely.

Also, I finally ordered Erin Gates' inspiring book, Elements of Style.

I know, what took so long, right?!  Have you picked up a copy?  I knew that she was a talent and a half and I knew that I loved her style of writing, but I didn't realize just how much I would love this book!  It had me laughing out loud, made me think and brought on a few "a-ha" moments.  Her honesty is so appreciated and the spaces she designed, so gorgeous.  I loved hearing her stories about living through a reno, her lessons learned (some the hard way) over the years and the chance to see things as she sees them.  And the fact that she dreamt of being a grocery store cashier when she was a kid, something that I also dreamt of (it's the buttons on the cash register, there's just something about them!), I mean honestly, she's too cool for school!

I really enjoyed the book and if you read the comments on my Instagram photo (seen above) I'm not the only one!  I read the book front to back in one sitting.  Now that's love!

I hope you're having a fab week so far and that you're staying warm.  It's cold out there!

Cheers,

Well Hello There!

Yes, I'm here.  Yes, I'm alive and yes, everything is just fine.  You see, I'm pretty certain that life kicked me in the butt over the holidays and I'm still trying to recover.  Ha! #truth

A brutal eye infection (in both eyes) that started two days before Christmas and is still trying to fight me to the end and that chose to include my sinuses along with it, plus a couple of other hiccups left us with a super crazy, super emotional and super exhausting holiday.  Well, more for myself and hubs.  The kids had a wonderful holiday despite having parents who were pretty much taking in coffee via IV.  So in the end, if you look at it from the kid's perspective, the holidays were super awesome.  Yay!

But seriously, I'm just trying to catch my breath, which explains the absence.

That being said, you guys, I'm really excited for this year.  If you're following me on Instagram then you've seen/read that I'm planning on doing less this year, but that's a good thing!  Because by doing less, I will be accomplishing more.  I have some fun collabs in the work (I know, such a blogger thing to say, but it's true!), some great ideas that I am going to push myself to go for.  But I'm also going to push myself to no longer settle, to go for what I really want.  I'm learning how important this is in your overall health and happiness.  The littlest things can have a huge ripple effect and it's important to realize that with every decision that you make.

This will be be about quality not quantity, it's always really been that way with me, but I can be very lazy when it comes to blogging and that needs to change.

Anyhow, with that said, a quick recap of the past couple of weeks, totally relying on Instagram photos for this one!

First up, the living room.  It's going to see some changes.  We brought up a console table from the basement, the chairs and couch switched spots and I am currently sourcing a few new pieces to go in the room.  I'm embracing wood this year, I'm yearning for the warmth that it brings to a room, hence the addition of the console table.  You'll see the addition of wooden elements throughout our home, it's comforting to me, I like this idea a lot.  Bringing it back after banishing it for several years.

Ummm, this layered look is a favourite.  The delicate fabric beneath a cozy sweater.....and bring on the marshmallows.  mmmmmm

One of my favourite things to do is to peruse the home decor book section at Chapters.  There's something so beautiful about this aisle and I will forever dream of owning every book you see here and more.  Like a kid in a candy store.

Speaking of Chapters, this faux fur hat....I've wanted one forever and it was on sale.....so I nabbed it and have zero regrets.  Let's go on a snowy adventure you say?! Sure, just let me grab my Faux-Fur Trapper Hat! lalalalala

A trip to Target and HomeSense never disappoints.  I've wanted these tea towels forever, so thrilled to have finally found some.  The gold little jar, well, it was on clearance and was a no brainer.  Small accessories are the perfect finishing piece to any styling project.  And it's pretty.  And it's gold.

Another great gold piece, a gold votive holder from...wait for it....Walmart!  Yes, run to your nearest location!

This is one of my all time favourite spaces.  Designed by the talented Alexa Hampton.  I love it all.  The chairs, the curtains, the bookcase.  It's fabulous and more photos of this space and of her projects can be found in her book, Decorating in Detail.

Lately it's been colder than cold here.  I don't particularly mind winter, but these extremely cold temps aren't fun in any which way....they call for super cosy attire & accessories.

sweater, scarf, striped shirt 

I have a feeling that January will be a very quiet month here, but it's all in prep for a better year of blogging.  Follow along via Instagram & Twitter if you need to see a little more of me ;)

Have a lovely weekend you gorgeous people!

Cheers,

Our Christmas Tree & Lots of Marshmallows!

 

Well, the countdown is on!  One week from Christmas Eve, can you even believe it?  I have a little more running around to do before the kids are out of school.  We will need to pick up some groceries a few days before Christmas, but otherwise, we are good to go!

I wanted to share one last holiday post with you before I take some time off.  We usually pick up our tree at the beginning of December.  It sits in the front window in the living room, so we have to move around some of the furniture, but nothing too drastic.

Our tree houses a collection of ornaments, which the kids hang all by themselves (except for where they can't reach of course).  I used to have "rules" about where the ornaments were to go, but now we just let the kids go to town and it's so much fun watching them!  I love it when they pick up an ornament and remember where we purchased it, when they made it or who gave it to them.  It's fun reliving those moments with them and knowing that these memories will last a lifetime.

We have handmade ornaments, ornaments made by the kids, vintage inspired ornaments (though we no longer have complete sets due to a couple of trees toppling over over the years! Goodness, I know! Memories I tell ya!).  Some of the ornaments were gifted to us, handed down to us and made for us, others represent "firsts".  There are ornaments that represent traditions, money socks with the kids' names on them, a tradition carried over from hubs' side of the family and salt dough ornaments that the kids make every year.   Our tree skirt I've contemplated replacing several times, but I never can do it.  I bought it for our very first Christmas after we were married, from Walmart (11 years ago!!).  I remember being so excited to celebrate Christmas together in our new home and the memory is so strong that I just can't get rid of it.

Our tree is a mix and well, it's our mix....it's our story.

I really didn't add too many decor pieces to the room this year.  I decided to keep the tiered stand from the coffee table styling post because I truly do love it's beauty (only wish there were some more Ferrero Rocher's to place on it....must buy more lol).  A few gold candles, our red pillows that only come out for the holidays and a glittery deer round up the pieces in this room this year, the tree is definitely the focal point!

Now, all that's left to do is to grab a magazine or a great book, a delicious cup of hot chocolate (with a slew of marshmallows that have melted juuuust enough) and to have a seat, cozying up next to the tree.

sweater - Old Navy, bracelets - Alex and Ani c/o, jeans - Gap, socks - Old Navy, mug - Chapters Indigo

Have a lovely day, friends!

Cheers,