THE WEEKEND INSPIRATION PROJECT - JUNE 26, 2020

Hi All! I can’t believe another week has already flown by. But Friday is here which means I have my second Weekend Inspiration Project post for you. As I mentioned on my first post last week - I started The Weekend Inspiration Project as a way to bring you the many inspiration images that I personally save on Instagram. Along with nurseries, kids rooms and such, I would guess that 45% of my saved photos tab on instagram is filled with residential interiors that I love for my own home. Yep, it’s become the digital version of saving stacks and stacks of interior design magazines - which I used to do! I had years worth of Architectural Digest magazines saved. Literally stacked on the floor. I had officially turned into my mother, who saved years of Readers Digest magazines (along with many others) that my sisters and I always joked about. When my husband and I moved to our new home 2.5 years ago, he convinced me to toss them. I was hesitant and sad to see them go, but I NEVER flipped through them. They just gathered dust. I kind of wish I had saved them. You know, so that they could continue collecting dust in our new home.

Like most of you, I have so many random images bookmarked that just sit in the saved instagram folder - most images never get shared, most recipes never attempted and most books never purchased and read. But with this weekly post (every Friday), I will be including a week’s worth of saved images for us all to use as inspiration for possible weekend projects. Whether it’s a DIY interiors project, gardening project or new recipe. There’s plenty of inspiration out there that we all would like to take action on!

This week, not only did I save interior design inspiration, I have also saved a couple recipes that look so delicious and would be perfect to try out this weekend. Without further ado, here’s what I saved this week:

The last several weeks I’ve done A LOT of searching for diverse children’s books. Unfortunately, the percentage of books depicting characters of diverse backgrounds is very very low. So when I come across new titles that I’ve never seen - like so many shown here in Alice’s photo, they immediately get saved. When I’m working on a project that includes a bookshelf or bookcase, I help purchase additional books to fill them which is why I like to be in the know on what’s out there. Thank you Alice, for sharing these storybooks from your own home with all of us! For those of you looking to diversify your kids book collection, there are many great reads here.

This is the second time that I’ve saved this pillow chair because it would be amazing in a kids space or playroom! Right?! The other color I saved was a bright blue. Honestly, I don’t think you can go wrong with this playful piece. A weekend project to take from this room: Add a fun chair to your space. If you can’t find one crazy unique, order a wide striped fabric like this one and re-upholster a chair you already own. It will make your old chair feel completely brand new and FUN.

I would guess that 45% of my saved photos tab on instagram is filled with residential interiors that I love for my own home. Yep, it’s the digital version of saving stacks and stacks of interior design magazines. This room designed by Benjamin Johnston Design is so beautiful. What really drew me to this one is the drapery treatment behind the bed. A great solution to the windows tightly installed at the outer walls - which also adds so much texture and style to the entire wall. Personally, I love when art is hung in front of drapery, appearing as if it’s floating. Perfection! A weekend project you can take from this room: Add an oversize floor mirror to your bedroom. You can spend some time searching for one online and get your order placed this weekend, or if you have to get this done now, make a trip to Home Goods for an oversize mirror at a great price!

I was on Benjamin’s page for a while. I’m surprised I only saved two images from him this week. Loving the use of the drapery behind the beds here again. And the twin beds!!! LOVE the look of these beds. The entire room is so chic. Carpet stripe and color is so playful and perfect in this space. The artwork above the dresser is a rare abstract oil painting by Dr. Seuss! Wow, what lucky girls. A weekend project you can take from this design: Try adding a bold print storage bench in your kids room to up-play on fun.

This save was for my own home. I want to re-design our home office and this look by Marie Flanigan is so perfect. I wish we had those amazing large glass doors shown in this space. The natural light just floods right in and I love the style of those doors. I do love the bookcase and ceiling detail. I was trying to convince my husband just yesterday to take on a built-in in our hallway in lieu of the custom furniture piece that I originally wanted. Mind you, my husband is not a woodworker. LOL. His eyes bugged out and he panicked. I tried to make it seem like it was NBD. Just some wood framing, I’d even be ok with a pre-fab cabinet base. All the while thinking, this is going to be a disaster. So, I don’t think I’ll send him in another YouTube tutorial panic with this office bookcase. Just yet…Haha.

Yummm. This lemon ricotta poundcake sounds and looks so delish! Camille Styles got this recipe from her friends mom and shows how she made it on IGTV as well as on her blog which I’ve tagged. I may try it this weekend - using the substitutes from my own pantry for the sugar and flour. And honestly, I don’t think I’m brave enough to attempt homemade ricotta yet so I’ll follow up with deets on what I decide to use!

Loving this clean, contemporary built-in Azul Casa designed for her baby boutique project. Aren’t kids room accessories the sweetest?! I think built-ins in kids rooms or playrooms are a great idea if you have the space. You can style the open shelves with the cutest decor items, books, keepsakes and most importantly, you can HIDE all the toys and things in perfectly kept drawers. This one has what looks like a quartz countertop which may even be a great idea in a kids room to eliminate wood dents, scratches, art messes and will clean easier overall.

Two weeks in a row I’ve included a photo from Sarah Catherine Design. She has such a timeless, refined look that I love. This chaise lounge is actually very similar to one that I am using in a boys room. We’re adding a decorative trim to the bottom as well. Trim can completely change the look of a piece and I’m such a sucker for details like this.

We’ve been eating a lot healthier the last couple years and have revamped our refrigerator and pantry with healthier alternatives. Dairy products are an area that we’ve cut back on and made many substitutions. This vegan coconut yogurt recipe looks so good, especially in the coconut bowl. How can anyone resist? It looks like a plate that you’d be served while on a tropical vacation. If I can re-create that vibe at home, I’m all in! Link to the recipe is in the tagged name under the photo.

If you’re a black, white, neutral color palette person like me, you’ll appreciate this nursery design by Ivana Hicks. My entire home is white, neutrals and pops of black. And when I’m designing kids rooms, it’s so much fun to open my mind to kid friendly colors that my clients want. Kids rooms with darker colors, especially a black feature wall are hard to find and I don’t have many clients that would be open to this palette. But I do love it and find it very beautiful. So this room inspiration is for those of you who want to use black as your accent color in your nursery but were afraid to make it happen! This is proof that it can be beautiful.

I just recently came across the page of Adrienne Nolan-Smith from Get WellBe. A lot of great integrative health and wellness information can be found on her page. And this quote by Dr. Jill Carnahan speaks volumes! This is so true. And from my perspective with what I do in interior design, chemicals are all around us - in our at home furnishings, finishes, textiles and wall paint. It’s important to do the research and inform yourselves on the toxins that live in our homes and kids rooms. Shop with non-toxic brands that keep our health in mind and extend this healthy living mindset to beauty products, cooking & food storage items and of course the food you consume.

This….funny not funny. Ha! I found a great hand sanitizer spray that doesn’t contain any harmful ingredients from Primally Pure. You can find it here. It is made with immune boosting essential oils and aloe. I keep this in my car so that it’s handy. I’m so punny.