Dining by Benjamin Moore

To continue with Boston's Dining By Design, this is one room (....really house) which blew me away. David Stark, the designer of this Benjamin Moore table took color swatches and created a wave of blue walls. The table was so vibrant and used bold colors in such a way, you wanted to dive right in and have party there! In the most fantastic way, it felt like a box of crayola crayons exploding! The gradual changes in color were extraordinary and I can only imagine how many hours it took to get it just so. Patience would be something to come in handy with this project! Take a peak at the images below, it is like being in an Alice in Wonderland Chapter, at least for a design/paint lover! Truly remarkable and creative work! I can't wait for next years show now.







(images from my collection and Toast and Tables)

Dining By Design Boston

this was one of my favorite tables. I loved the combo of apples, twigs and flowers in the vases and how they mimicked the wallpaper. The thick wood top table had uplights built in which was one of our favorite features!
table by Beringer Vineyards, Marc Blackwell

Friday night I was invited to attend the DIFFA Cocktails by Design event at the Boston Design Center. This is an amazing event where designers, local artists and corporate sponsors create over the top dining tables. As you will see some of them lived up to the over the top description! It was great fun to view these Alice in Wonderland type designs, a few very practical and others incredibly fun to daydream about! The event travels around the country to many other cities so check out the website here to see if it will be local in your part of the country! In the meantime enjoy some of the photos I have below, it was a truly exciting and inspiring evening!

the "bubble chandelier" and photographed wall decor were fantastic


it's hard to tell in this photo but the benches were very deep and had a great lounge feel. The combo of the fuscia and silver was a nice elegant touch. Those are little butterflies tagged onto the branches, easy to duplicate on your own table!



table by Leslie Saul Interiors, she used an Eames like coffee table on top to create height



Hewlett Packard by Vivenne Tam



what else can I say, except I was in awe of this table. The workmanship to create the boat like feel of the ceiling was incredible. It was a very Zen like room



Dennis Duffy, a Boston Designer really had fun with this table! The words to describe this room were "happy and joyful "! The acrylic chairs played so well off the pink fabric



"the green table"
New York Times by Doug Wilson

You can see more pictures of the tables that travel around the country here.
Did you attend the event? If so what table was your favorite?
Tomorrow I will post about the most amazing room from one of our favorite paint companies!!

(all images from my own collection)

Monday Morning Happy!

Hi All! Hope you had a great weekend! This weekend I finally forced myself into a time out. Have you ever had to do that for yourself? Just say enough, you are moving to fast, take a break, slow down and give yourself time to recharge? Well that is what I did...at least on Sunday. I woke up to a dark day with snow falling and chilly temps, which is sometimes the best feeling when you have no where to go and can hang out on the sofa under some blankets! It's amazing what a little down time can do for you, today I feel energized and ready to get going! How do you give yourself a time out? Is it by pampering yourself with a spa day, turning off the phone and vegging out with movies or is it by cooking a big meal? Share some of your recharging tricks by commenting below!

The Cute Picture of the week is an adorable book I came across on the Urban Outfitters website. The first Charles Schulz book named, "Happiness is a warm puppy"! Could it be an cuter? It is filled with happy thoughts like "Happiness is a fuzzy sweater and Happiness is a pile of leaves". Just more evidence that sometimes the simple things make us the happiest. I think this would be a great stocking stuffer for the favorite people in your life. Yet another reason to take a "time out" and appreciate the little things, like that fuzzy sweater!
Enjoy the week!
JUL

Diary Entry - Review, Enter, Win!!

Pop over here to my blog post today at the Tastemaker Diaries and learn how you can win a $1000 gift card just by reviewing a product! Now who would turn down an opportunity like that?!

Calling all Boston Design Lovers!

This coming weekend will be for all Design lovers. The Boston Design Center will be open to the public, free of charge! I know, wow, that never happens right? Saturday December 6th will be a day to explore showrooms filled with luxurious fabrics, gorgeous wallpapers and to die for furniture (most not so budget friendly but still nice to dream about)!
Along with exploring the showrooms, Domino Magazine editor, Tori Mellott will be signing copies of the new and very user friendly Domino Book of Decorating. The first 100 visitors will even receive a free copy of the book, so get going early birds! If that was not enough fun, my friend Andrew Anderson from Ilex floral designs will inspire us all with his amazing holiday table settings! Don't get tired just yet because Alexis Contant will talk about the latest design trends and local celebrity chef Barbara Lynch will make our mouths water with her cooking demos. Phew!
Oh and did I mention Beringer will be providing the wine? Yup! Gather the friends, you are in for an unforgettable day at the BDC!







(images from BDC and the Dream Home)

Bite Me.

Here's another edition of "Guest Blogging with Betsy", take it away Bets!!

It’s probably because of the fall season, but I’ve totally been digging apples lately. Among all of the apples, this is the one I love the most: The other day I was at the “orchard” where these apples are sold. My husband and I were there on a mission to replace and upgrade, and sadly, the mission wasn’t my mission. I was along for the wagon ride, watching him bob for these lovely apples. So as not to waste time standing around, I thought I might look around, try a couple samples, and see which apple was the apple for me.

I found it.

Not only did I find it, I found friends for it… lots and lots of friends.

You’re probably not seeing how this relates to interiors or fashion, and you may think this is old news. After all, millions of people have already discovered the goodness of this apple. But really, don’t you think that gorgeousness like this deserves multiple mentions and all the props we can give it. Of course it does! Because my friends, you should know by now that good design is never old news.

Now, wouldn’t this apple look gorgeous in my… ahem, I mean, your office?

With this?

And this?

And how could you forget this?

Here’s to the Harvest!!
Bets

(images from Apple)

Photo blocks - A little slice of heaven

Susannah Tucker's Etsy shop is just as she describes, "a little piece of heaven"! She is a self proclaimed, self taught photographer. I love the way she explains her creative passion as dealing with the emotional side more than the technical side of taking pictures. You feel it right away when you peak in to her shop. To be honest it was hard to not highlight her entire collection but I took my time and picked 6 of my favorites. Some of her pictures have that wonderful vintage feel and others are crisp and clean. Most of the photos I chose took me back to a memory in my own life , don't you just love when someone can capture that feeling? Along with her gorgeous vision, what I was really drawn to is how she presents her photos. Not only are they offered in many sizes but they are also available in these sweet 4 x 4 photo blocks. Which can be grouped together on a wall or stand lovely alone on an end table! The perfect unexpected accent, so unique! With CreateGirl being all about "budget friendly finds" this is one of my favorites.



A 4 x 4 photo block sells for $22 and 5 x 7 photographs go for $12 (all produced on archival, acid free photographic paper with a matte finish). The perfect gift, I would think and I am sure there is one in her collection that will spark a great memory or emotion! Just let it take you away!

Monday Morning Happy

Welcome back! Hopefully everyone enjoyed a few days of relaxation away from work! I know I did! My long weekend was filled with lots of family time, watching the Celtics win again at the Garden, attending a FANTASTIC party my friend Nicole planned with old high school friends and than capping off a fun weekend with a leisurely Sunday dinner! I am not sure it could have been any more perfect. I have a few great posts planned for this week as I have been busy scouting for clients and have come across many great finds. Most of them budget friendly too, which is very helpful around the holidays so please check back in during the week!

The "cute picture of the week" is an adorable pup I came across on the Redbook website. Isn't he just the cutest? He appears to be loving his nap all snuggled up in his dog bed!
Enjoy the week!
JUL

(image from Redbook)

Happy Thanksgiving!

(Tree card image from Little Brown Pen)

A few more thankful accents

Some additional finds which would spruce up a Thanksgiving Table
* The fun leaf trivets are from notNeutral,
* This fantastic modern brown runner can be found at Plum Party
* I adore the simplicity of the twig plates also from notNeutral
* The orange bubble vases add a bit of whimsy and can be found at Hudson Boston

The most important is a stylish place to store the leftovers! The storage containers above are from, French Bull, very FUN!

It's nice to be part of the group!

Today is a very Thankful day here at CreateGirl! We were just added to the Boston.com blogroll, which will hopefully open the door to many new readers. I know, I am a bit biased but I love my city and where I live. So to now be on the website (which I visit about 3x a day....mostly to read the Celtics Blog and DISH the food blog) makes me very proud. It feels great to be part of such a creative local group! Yipppeee!

Inspiration in the Dining Room

For the most part Thanksgiving revolves around the Dining Table so I compiled a few of my favorite rooms to share with you. As you can see my style ranges from casual, to regal to comfy modern! I hope you enjoy a peek inside my Dining Room Inspiration Folder!

fun twist on the traditional style with the bold fabric on the chairs

a serene and calm setting

this Georgian Style Dining Room feels regal but relaxed, I think I was drawn to it for the orange

I am positively, absolutely in LOVE with these dramatic chairs and table!

this picture is similar to my personal style, great clean lines but still dramatic. I might just switch out the chandelier and the rug to something a bit more modern.

(images from Domino Mag, Point Click Home and House to Home)

A traymat for the hostess

Lenora Mendoza the designer and owner of Engage Green creates products that are "crafted from recycled and sustainable materials". These fantastic "paper trays" are from her home collection. When I am invited to a holiday or party at someone's house I like to bring a gift to the host, a way of saying thank you for all your hard work. This is the perfect gift both functional and great for the environment. If you are bringing cookies, breads, or even assorted nuts why not present them in one of these trays and leave it behind for the guest to use later? The best part is the price - $12 for the small and $14 for the medium, they are available in many fun patterns. Just when you thought one gift couldn't get better, you see the tray transforms into a placemat! Fabulous, now you have a placemat to eat your leftovers on!



(images from Engage Green)

Visually Pleasing - Styled Food

Wow, its really all about the food this week isn't it? They say you eat with your eyes first and for me that statement could not be any more true. For instance, look at this picture I just came across. A gorgeous, styled bowl of orange - cranberry compote and now I have the urge to run up to the store and recreate it! The recipe is really easy and can be found here.

(image from Redbook)

Monday Morning Happy - Cornbread

Hope you all had a fun weekend! I woke up this morning counting down the days until Thursday! I love Thanksgiving and my absolute favorite part is my mom's Delicious cornbread! After dinner we all dive for the leftovers to take home with us. I love to toast it up the next morning, spread some soft butter and enjoy my cup of tea.It's a simple pleasure and there is something even more enjoyable knowing another person made it for you! Just thinking about it makes my mouth water. YUM! This week along with posting a few more Thanksgiving ideas, know I will be thinking of Mom's homemade cornbread recipe! Do you have a special favorite food you look forward to on Thanksgiving?
Enjoy the week
JUL

(image from Martha Stewart)

How to Thursday - Shake it up, the new Colors

(ohhh I just adore the small tumbler with the purple tulips!!)

How about we mix up the color scheme for Thanksgiving a bit? We will keep the orange but lets try mixing in a bit of purple and chocolate to the scheme. We all know how trendy purple is at the moment so it should be easy to find a few accent pieces. Below is a great example photo!

Here are some of my quick finds! This is how I would set a table with the pieces below. First I would use the "Nubby Table Runner", add the brown charger (nice contrast with the runner) next the orange napkin and lastly the glass purple dinner plate. I chose the glass plate (which introduces a new element) since the orange cloth will look nice against the purple which is not too dark. Than we have the vintage wine glasses, which I adore. I like to add a different texture to the table which is why I chose the wooden serving pieces, it is a nice element and this is more of a casual table so we can get away with it! Mix in a few of your favorite short vases or glass tumblers with greens from the garden and you are ready for guests! Don't forget the pumpkins seat tags they will pull in the napkin color!

If you are looking to create a different table from the norm, flip through magazines find a table you like and recreate it for yourself!! It's easy and you might already have some of the pieces in your home!!



(images from southern accents, southern living, crate and barrel. william sonoma, fishs eddy, pottery barn)

Thankful Cards

In place of the Holiday card (but usually in addition to depending on the amount of time I have) I like to send Thanksgiving cards. It's the perfect way to say thank you to all the special people in my life. It also tends to be a unique idea because it is completely unexpected and who doesn't love getting a good ol' piece of snail mail? Especially cards as pretty as these! Though I must admit the selection is limited, isn't there anyone out there who appreciates a good Thanksgiving card as much as me? Did you purchase Thanksgiving cards this year? If so please fill me in with a comment below.

(images from Little Brown Pen, Stamper By Night and Pink Lily Press)