mirrors on my mind

My cozy, dimly-lit lair has served me well for the past 5 months, as I've cranked up the radiator, fixed mugs of hot cocoa, pulled up the covers, and made my way through all of Dickens' best works the first two seasons of The Sopranos. There's been a nice little hibernation vibe going on. At this point, however, I'm clawing at the walls for some light, some exposure, some hope that winter will just go away so I don't have to scrape ice off of my car in the morning and I can get that 10 extra minutes of precious sleep! Okay, I'm being a little dramatic. The snow doesn't really change my sleeping patterns, but it does mean I'll be desperately trying to hit every green light on the way to work. Still... snow in March is not normal for a place like Portland.

Complaining aside, I'll most likely be stuck with the chilly weather and gloomy skies for at least another few months, so I'm thinking about "opening up" my small studio apartment with some mirrors. Not only do mirrors bring in light, but they create the illusion of depth if a little thought is put into it. And what girl doesn't love a home full of mirrors? So many opportunities to realize you have lipstick all over your teeth (put way too much bronzer on, need to do something about your greasy hair, should just go back to bed, etc. etc.)

Here are the unofficial guidelines:

1. When you hang a mirror directly across from a window, there will be light.

2. Extra large mirrors can make small spaces look much bigger. And I actually love the mirror sitting-on-the-floor look.

3. Make sure that you pay attention to what image is being reflected in the mirror at the position you want to hang it. (You don't want double ugly going on.)

4. If you get a really heavy mirror (many of the old ones are especially heavy) make sure to have a lengthy conversation with the guy at Home Depot about the best way to hang it. If he doesn't seem to know what he's talking about, consult a framing store, or even your landlord. Trust me, you don't want the mirror sliding down to the ground with the nail going right along with it, and you don't want a huge chunk of plaster breaking out of the wall.

Here are some of my favorite spaces with notable mirrors. I'm brainstorming here...

Photo Source

(My favorite photo of the bunch. I am especially obsessed with that artwork reflected in the mirror. Must find.)

Photo Source 

Loving the object in front of the mirror, but I'm not sure how that would affect light or optical illusion goals.

  Photo Source

 Photo Source

Photo Source

Loving this look as a whole, so much.

Domino Magazine

I love the layered look over mirrors.

Oversized Mirrors on the Floor

Photo Source

Photo Source

Dresser/Mirror Combos

Photo Source

 Photo Source

The #1 piece of mid-century furniture I lust after.

 Photo Source

Similar to my style...

Mirrored Furniture: So Glam

Domino Magazine

 Photo Source

Photo Source 

Mirror Walls

Photo Source 

Photo Source 

 Photo Source

Disco Balls. Yup.

Photo Source

Photo Source

Photo Source

And I leave you with this rad watercolor mirror I saw in an Apartment Therapy post, created by French design company Petite Friture.

The Help: 60s and Southern

After stuffing my face with almost an entire baguette, brie, and blueberries, I have just gotten home from watching the 84th Academy Awards at a friend's house (everyone knew The Artist  would sweep tonight - French snacks were appropriate!). I've spent nearly the past 5 hours commenting on gowns and hairdos, overall-good speeches, and all the movies I still need to see. And I'm still thinking about a few things: Billy Crystal is going to be a really adorable old man, I will never stop girl crushing on Penelope Cruz, and since when did Nick Nolte become Santa Clause? Sad face. (for the children)

And before this past year's films get totally away from us, I wanted to do a post on the set design of the various homes featured in the "Best Picture" nominated The Help, which takes place during the 1960s in Jackson, Mississippi. While watching this movie, the interiors really caught my eye because they are a look I am familiar with: both my mom and grandmother's favored home design and decor style is Southern and filled with antiques (definitely not something I appreciated as a kid. Antique shopping had to be the most boring thing in the world. My, how times have changed). But that doesn't mean they are stuck in the 1960s; there are elements to the interior style achieved in The Help that are timeless and therefore totally doable now. But definitely not that crazy pink bathroom below! 

As The Help's production designer, Mark Ricker, explains for Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles, he found design inspiration from vintage copies of Better Homes and Gardens Magazine, Under Live Oaks by Caroline Seebohm, and of course the iconic Southern film, Gone With The Wind. After scavenging for the right antiques and decor from Memphis to Jackson, he chose to show the variety of 1960s Southern interior design by taking a different style approach with each character's home.

 Hilly's home represented the new South style that was "prim, perfect, pastel and icy." In this photo I am drawn to the pale peach walls and the porcelain lamps. Very elegant.

Photo Souce

 Hilly's bathroom was designed with bubble gum pink everything and vintage wallpaper. This bathroom is soooo retro!

Photo Souce

During this era, painted family portraits were pretty popular as seen in this photo of Hilly's living room; my grandmother had a very pretty portrait of my mom above the sofa in her den for a long time.

Photo Souce

Celia's house was a "relic of an older generation, filled with all the history of a grander time and rich in family tradition." This photo makes me want to play I Spy with all of the animals! Jeez Louise!

Photo Souce

I love that mirror in this photo of Celia's bedroom, but everything else is a bit too dramatic for me.

Photo Souce

My mom often covers her formal dining table in a lace table cloth as done in this photo, and she often displays her silver and china in a similar way too.

Photo Souce

Elizabeth's house was a middle-income ranch style home with a blander style, in an effort to keep with her character. Those walls scream 60s to me! In fact, everything about this room does.

Photo Souce

Skeeter's home was light toned and comfortable, but still had a "formality of tradition."

Photo Souce

 I love that linoleum floor!

Photo Souce

Gettin' Crafty: Birthday Gifts

This past Friday was my friend Lisa's 28th birthday (we are "birthday sisters" because our birthdays are less than a week apart), so we got the party started by going out for some sassy cocktails, oyster shooters and cajun food at her favorite restaurant, Portland's iconic Le Bistro Montage, tucked under the Morrison Bridge. After having a nice, long dinner we moseyed over to a basement club called The Goodfoot where we got all kinds of hot and shiny while getting down to loud funk music under a sparkly disco ball. Of all the photos snapped over the course of the night, Lisa's favorite was a close-up action shot of her whipping her hair across her face while working it on the dance floor. Everyone really needs a friend like her. <3

Because this girl and I have a very thoughtful, long-lasting, close friendship, I thought I'd do something different this year and create a homemade gift for her birthday. While I love shopping for the perfect birthday present, sometimes it's fun to make a gift instead because it always ends up being super personal. After searching on Pinterest for a new way to decorate a picture frame and finding nothing I liked (been there, done that), I had a completely random, Brownies-era thought pop into my head: I should make her a dreamcatcher. Now this gift might not be appreciated by everyone, because it's a little bit "out there" and a unique kind of decor, but I was pretty sure she'd be into it. And she was.

The basic steps for making a dreamcatcher are pretty simple (I mean we all made them in elementary school, didn't we?) but there's definitely room to get creative with the details, so I support straying from the instructions a little bit and just trying something you think will look good. Picking out unique materials and charms was the most fun part for me; I went to several different shops to get gemstones, beads, silver charms, sea glass and feathers. I felt like a 28-year old Goonie hunting for treasure. My favorite personalization was the addition of amethyst to the catcher because it's the birthstone of February. And what month is the diamond again? Yeah, those are the lucky people! 

I'm not going to give you instructions for creating a dreamcatcher because when I made one I just entered it into Youtube and came up with about a dozen how-to videos. The best instructional video definitely being this one (this is when the existence of sarcasm font would be helpful) - listen for the cats. Instead, I thought I'd take the space to share some of the other cool DIY decor-related gift ideas I came across on the web.

DIY Etched Map Serving Tray from Design*Sponge

Egg Carton Wreath from Homemade Serenity

 DIY Monogrammed Mugs from Design Mom

DIY Clay Jewelry Tray from Fiskars

DIY Sunburst Mirror from K Sarah Designs

Cool, huh? There are some crafty people out there! I would be thrilled to receive any of these. :)