playing HGTV for a day

yesterday i spent the day over at my cousin's house, painting & decorating! Jen has a darling house, but she wanted to do some things to make it feel more like a home! she's got a very eclectic/bohemian style, so i got pretty much free reign to do whatever, it was sooooo fun to get to pick things for someone else's house!!! does anyone else second guess every single thing they put in their own house? i sure do!

anyway, here is the before pic, i'm starting in her living room, then moving to bedrooms... i think its so important to have a beautiful-warm-welcoming room when you first walk into a house, it sets the whole mood!

the walls are all neutral, which is easy to work with... and she's got great space to accessorize and add color!

jen wanted to do a color palette of reds/oranges/and blues

so,

after some painting, and a very interesting trip up the ladder with a table in one arm (oh yes, i was quite funny looking-- too bad no one saw)

ta-da, jen's new room!!!

(sidenote: this is not finished, but you get the general idea)

we picked blue for the accent wall color because its clean and harmonious, and has a fresher feel, rather than a red. here is a closer up pic of the nook decor

of course, i'm still hunting for more things (thats really a huge space up there, it looks smaller from the ground, haha) but i think its going to look awesome! i'll post the updated pictures as i add things!

--hope you are loving your new living room jen, thanks for letting me play interior designer!

clues to find hummingbirds

well, since my green diamond wall episode... i've been doing some things to incorporate a little color into our casa (aka swoff-house) so... i found these two little treasures at yet again, the thrift store! an old school clue gameboard, and this darling little needlepoint hummingbird picture-- woohoo $2.50 each!!!

why, you may ask? the clue board- because, it was one of my favorite games growing up, and its cool (and i've yet to see one in anyone else's house-so, why not?). and the hummingbird needlepoint - because it reminds me of Nana, oh how we love our Nana! anyway, i mixed them with the metal/wrought iron decor to create an "artistic piece" that still had a modern twist!

and, while mama & daddy were here over mother's day weekend, daddy put my super awesome anthropologie knobs in the guest bathroom for me! how fun are these guys...

its a horrible picture, i'm sorry-- taken from my iphone

but i wanted eclectic hardware, although i'm sure at some point in time or another someone will inevitably say "hey, did you know those dont match?" -- yes, thanks.

anyway, i'm enjoying my thrifty finds

Happy Friday to Everyone!!! (tomorrow)

papa-swoff and pappadeaux

wednesday recap.

drew's dad (who was dubbed by drew's friends "papa-swoff") came into town today for some business stuff. he and one of his business partners flew in on a private plane, so we met them at the million air airport (i'm not making that up or making a lame joke, thats really what its named) and got to check out the plane. i have to admit, it was pretty cool, so i of course had to take some pics

here's hubby (all 6'4'' of him) squished into the little plane

dont those seats look much more comfy than regular airplane seats???

 i think so!

...and here i am pushing buttons

okay, not really pushing any buttons

although, i had some options... look at that craziness!

so, then papa-swoff took us all to dinner at pappadeaux!

yummy!

kudos to papadeaux on some really delicious raw oysters, they were so fresh and clean tasting (does that even make sense?) we all enjoyed them! oh how i love pappadeaux!

it was a pretty wonderful day, loved seeing my sweet father-in-law

happy wednesday!

ps. dear papa-swoff,

i would be oh so very happy if peach ice-cream

were to show up for me to eat

perhaps in june?

just an idea! 

old school

i finally found one of these!!!

yippee!

...

okay, i'm calm now. but, seriously!

i've been wanting an old school student's desk for ohhh, a very long time. i found this little charmer last week, and at $14.99 it was a steal.

i'm debating on weather or not to paint it, and i dont know how long its going to last in the living room, but for now i love it there and everyone seems to want to sit in it.

i'm not entirely sure what my fascination is with antique seating these days, but i'm just obsessed.

1) the yellow swing in our bedroom

2) my fabulous student's desk

3) and this little ray of sunshine that i picked up last week too

we had one of these when i was little, and as soon as i saw it in a thrift store, i was hit with a massive case of de-ja-vu, turns out my mama got one just like it as a wedding gift (weird wedding gift, right?) but ours was green. funny how things like that pop back up!

this is actually pretty practical, cause it serves as extra seating (which we dont often need, but on those rare occasions, its a less bulky way to get another chair around the table) AND its also a step-stool.

see...

i always need a little boost reaching things,

i'm only 5'2''

and its a happy color. score!!!

did anyone else have one of these when they were little???

slow and steady wins the race

so, andrew being the sweetie he is saw this little man in the alley behind our house last week, he scooped him right up and put him in a big tupperwear storage box in the garage... so when i got home from work i saw the box, noticed it was out of place and looked unusual, then when i looked inside... there was a turtle. ???

andrew is not really the type to bring in stray animals (thats way more my style) so i was actually trying to figure out how this turtle managed to climb up into the box. i went inside yelling that there was this huge LIVE turtle in our garage, ick! andrew just smiled and said "i got him for you as a pet" -- pause, followed by an awkward moment, "but honey, i DONT want A turtle, especially THAT turtle."

luckily, drew didnt want the turtle either, he just wanted to show him to me! we decided to let him go...

i decided though, that before we let him go, i should name him and send him off with warm wishes for his life in the field behind our house, and wisdom not to wonder onto public roads again, or he could be put back into a box. last week, while painting my green diamond wall, i watched "Finding Nemo" and so i named the turtle Squishy.

Dory: "I shall name him Squishy, and he shall be mine"

Squishy would not peak his little head out of the shell for his photo shoot, talk about shell shock. Lame joke, i know... do i get points for effort???

we stood outside for a while waiting for little Squishy to take his first brave steps out into the wild, but he did not move. i got bored and went inside, drew wanted to wait till he saw him move.

and hour and a half later...

Squishy had still not moved and drew gave up.

bye bye squishy!

friday

hey hey! people, we made it to friday! woohoo! although i have to admit, friday used to mean something totally different when i was younger, how does that happen? i mean, back in the good old days, us 90's kids used to get pretty psyched up for friday night at the skate rink, or at least the TGIF line up (you remember: Boy Meets World, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Step by Step, Family Matters and Full House)  now-- why is is that on friday night, all i want is a nap???

well, life happens. but that doesnt mean i have to give up the memories or the music for that matter! So, in honor of friday i wish you all a happy trip down memory lane, weather you were skating or at a slumber party... here was the playlist!!!
1. MMMBop - Hanson
2. Wannabe - Spice Girls
3. Macarena - Los Del Rio
4. Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody dance now) - C+C Music Factory
5. Losing my Religion - REM
6. Good Riddance - Green Day
7. Gettin Jiggy wit It - Will Smith
8. All-Star - Smash Mouth
9. Nothing Compares to U - Sinead O'Connor
10. Mambo # 5 - Lou Bega

HAPPY FRIDAY!

a little unwind treat

so, after a long day at work or just because you need to "chill out" who doesnt love some ice cream??? i know i sure do, and i have my favorites:

mmm, Ben & Jerry's Chunky Monkey

and then there is a new favorite, from Baskin Robbins "Splish Splash" which is a tangy sour mixture of blue raspberry and blueberry sorbets, yum!

very refreshing!!!

and then, a very old school favorite i usually reserve only for special occasions, or very traumatic events. yep, the good old Godiva Belgium Dark Chocolate! heavenly!

oooh, and now i'm craving ice cream

any other suggestions for yummy treats to try???

lime + apple + grass = peapod green

i've come to realize that my idea of "normal" is not really in line with the general population's idea of "normal" -- but really, thats okay!!! so, when i decide to do some re-decorating... sweetheart andrew has gotten much better at saying "i'm sure that will look great honey" instead of the natural reaction of "really? ummm... why?"  so, when i told hubby i wanted a bit more color in our home, he was totally agreeable! although, i'm sure his idea of a little more color didnt quite look like this....

(before picture)

yep, that would be our living room folks! i wanted color, and color i have! i really love it though, everything was getting a little too neutral, and i think its a good thing to have evolving tastes. i get it from my mother, as soon as she finishes one room in the house, she goes on to start redecorating another. and then, once all the rooms are up to her standards, they move. haha, lets just say our home never lacked in something going on & my brother and i had some of the coolest bedrooms ever!

i also decided to change up the mantle decor too!

i'm not really one to move things around once i designate a place for them in my head, but i'm opening up to the concept after being around Jennifer, she is a furniture mover-arounder & her home is darling! in theory, if you love the things you have,

they should look good in more than one room right?

so, i bought a few frames from a thrift store for $1.99 each (woo hoo) and gave them a fresh coat of paint, and then used my collection of black candlesticks, moved some items from my kitchen nook,

and here is what i came up with:

i know this look doesnt work for everyone, because its not symmetrical.

i am not a symmetrical person, so i like the un-even-ness of it all.

i figure, if i get bored of it ... its only one wall, and all i need is a coat of nomadic desert (sherwin williams color) to undo the diamonds (peapod green- colorplace @ walmart)! easy breezy!

for those of you interested in the technical side of it all, i made a pattern for about the size of diamond that i wanted, traced it on to the wall, and did a double-wide tape line around the diamond. i went with a double wide so the pattern would be bigger, rather than smaller, and i still wanted a noticeable amount of the tan (nomadic desert) showing through. ... it looks generally like this:

anyone else have a fun/different project they are working on???

happy monday!

a desk for me!

hello friends!

so, i've been on the hunt for an old desk to re-finish and put in the black/white striped room... something to paint on, instead of the kitchen table. so, after many trips to thrift stores and evaluating many shapes and sizes i present to you: my desk (before)!!!

and after a few coats of paint, and still not completely finished, but you get then general idea:

ta--da, the after picture!

now, time to do some paintings!

lately

so, here is what has gone on lately:
mama and daddy came for mother's day, so i did a little decorating around the house to have some new things for mama to look at
1) hung plates under my cool clock

and, originally i had planned on decorating our kitchen nook for each holiday, except i kinda got bored after easter, so for now and until i change my mind and decide to "theme decorate" again, i present to you all:

the green kitchen nook.

and a close up of the super cool green books i found at a thrift store, one of my favorite finds as of late

oh, and i painted this little guy

i'm supposed to be putting it in a store/booth to sell, but how cute is it in my black and white room, maybe i should keep it.........???

and currently, i look like this:

yep, lowlites.

i've been thinking about being a brunette for almost a week now, and i've decided to handle it rationally. new thing for a hairstylist, i know. we usually get on a color kick and within 45 minutes we look like a completely different person... no no, not this time. i'm going gradual. who's proud???

its almost time to shampoo, so i better head out!  

never a dull moment!

-jacq-

ps. yes, the foils in my hair are pink.

and

yes, the pink ones cost more than regular so i dont use them often.

hello, friday

i realize that i'm not a real mommy, BUT i am Coach's mommy, and Add & Aud's godmother, so that makes me important too! i got a sweet card from a&a for mother's day, totally melted my heart. their dad even wrote in it that the girls helped him pick it out, what talented 13 month olds!!!

and as i was sitting down to blog, i look over at my little one (well, i guess he's actually pretty big, but still a baby to me), and he's doing this...

1. ignore the blanket in the chair, that chair is for "off limits" things, and strangely Coach doesnt pull it down, now, if that blanket were on the couch, he pulls it right off and sleeps on it. -- and the towels/laundry/jackets or anything else that is on the couch. why???

2. ignore the vacuum, thats next on the list after i finish blogging

For those of you who arent super familiar with danes, they do this, and its always funny. he will just lay around with his legs in the air like its no big deal, especially out in the sun, so cute!

happy friday to you all -love-coach

because they are cute

okay, so really this is one of my more pointless posts, so i'm giving you the warning-- you will not gain any life knowledge, hair tips, or recipes from this: read at your own risk!

as ALL of you know, mother's day is this weekend (yay, mama and daddy are coming to see us, so excited) and for a completely irrelevant comparison, SOME of you may know that baby cows "drop" aka "are born" in the spring. so, since we live basically in the country, we have cows around us... i've had so much fun seeing all the little teeny baby cows out in the fields frolocking around after their mommies! sadly, they grow sooo fast and now they're not very little anymore. boo! stay tiny and cute!!!

so, here are some other little cuties... since by the time i wanted to take pics of the little calves, they were big. enjoy!

itty bitty!!!

aww!

i really want a pet monkey, guess what drew said:

NO!

makes me want to watch "Happy Feet"

Happy Thursday!

bridal beauty

no, not mine! haha! i worked a wedding this weekend (did hair) and it was so fun. weddings are always a blast, its fun to be a part of the "get ready" process, and i've been so lucky that i've never had a BRIDEZILLA so, i still very much enjoy doing weddings! here are the pics from sweet bride carly's "trial run"

after meeting her and trying a few different up-do's, we both agreed that something more simple would fit her personality better, so this is what we came up with for her wedding day hair:

isnt she gorgeous, her sister started crying when i put the veil on and carly said "i'm getting married today!!!" - it is so fun to see my brides light up once all the hair and make-up is done and its time to put the dress on!

and here are some of the bridesmaids:

oh how fun! best wishes to the new couple!!!