I was just thinking how most examples of bright, saturated orange in living spaces are in sleek, ultramodern rooms. Don’t let that scare you into thinking it won’t work elsewhere! I actually think it would give a perfect bit of punch to a soft, eclectic space—think pale blue walls, weathered gray wood, vintage style pillows, and white ceramic accessories. Something like this:

In yesterday’s post I said I wasn’t really a Chinoiserie girl and then qualified it by saying I could be. Honestly, all it takes is the right pieces!

And actually—this comes as no surprise—I’ve always fantasized about living in an American Chinatown and pulling outside inspiration into my home. So I went ahead and created an inspiration board for a chic and sunny Chinatown abode. Check it:

The trick would be to avoid looking like my home belonged in a museum or theme park, so these pieces would need to be balanced with other styles—maybe modern lucite (yay), mirrored Art Deco, or Midcentury Modern furniture—though Asian influence would definitely dominate. I love how this home featured in Trad Home did just that, oh-so-subtly:

Lastly, if you love this look and want more ideas on how to get it, read this, History of Style: Chinoiserie, pulled from a past issue of Lonny (click to enlarge):

Most people are at least two years past their obsession with peacock blue. For me, teal was never really a trendy obsession—it’s more like an ongoing fascination.

I don’t know why this color provokes me so much. But it does, especially when it’s paired with clean neutrals and brights, like in these rooms from the current issues of Adore Home and Lonny:

This image from West Elm showcases Benjamin Moore’s “marine blue” wall paint, which coordinates with their current line of furniture and accessories:

Years ago, when I attacked my first (and only) upholstery project, I was desperately looking for teal velvet to recover my vintage chair. I searched everywhere I could get to by train but found nothing, so I eventually gave up and bought plum-colored velvet instead (you can kind of see it in the corner of our living room here), which was nice, but I’m still pining for that teal velvet piece of furniture. Don’t tell my husband, but I’m secretly hoping to own a teal velvet sofa someday!

Something like one of these, perhaps?

Or, oooooh—maybe the teal piece to invest in is a luxe upholstered bed. And then to accent it with modern geometric pieces, like this:

So while you’re onto bigger and better trends like camel and lipstick red, I’ll still be out there, creating my perfect room with peacock blue!

All afternoon I’ve been sipping limonana, one of the greatest summer drinks ever, and it got me thinking. Or, more accurately, daydreaming.

I don’t even have to close my eyes to imagine myself with good friends, lounging on a cushioned wicker sofa, eating hot dogs, drinking limonana, and watching our kids jump about in a lawn sprinkler. We’re enjoying each other so much that we stay through nightfall, Citronella candles flickering in the moonlight.

Maybe it’s because I’m surrounded by boys all day, but I have a sudden urge to roll around in pretty shades of lavender.

Much to my good friend’s chagrin, her daughter wants a unicorn-themed bedroom. “Do I have to give in?” she asked me. “Can’t I just put up fuzzy pink drapes and call it a day?” So I offered to come up some ideas that would satisfy her ten year-old and her own worldly tastes.

My starting point was this unicorn print by Etsy seller serpentmandalas, which is more colorful-tapestry-storybook than pink-glitter-rainbow (1 point: Mojan). I then built a room around that style with pieces that are equally colorful and appropriate for a ten year-old girl—and acceptable for a world-traveled mom.

I miss a lot of things about the Western world, like Taco Bell and Target, pretty stationery, quiet libraries, designer showrooms, big parking lots, vibrant theaters, art galleries, and options. Oh, how I miss options! But one thing I only just realized that I miss is glamour.

We live in a notoriously casual place, where beachy furniture, breezy fabrics, and Birkenstocks reign, where people walk slowly, talk leisurely, and sit lengthily. It’s a great place to be raising my kids in these early years, because I have so few distractions. But now I see there’s a gaping hole where there should be silk drapes and crystal chandeliers.

Looking at Crate&Barrel’s Chloe Chair, I imagine a living room that’s glamorous-casual, halfway between the life I’m living now and the glamorous life I used to live (take that statement with a huge grain of salt. Remember, I’m four and-a-half years out, so everything about my Chicago life seems glamorous now):

Oh, so my husband saw this image and said he couldn’t imagine us living in this room. So note to self: create an inspiration board for the kind of room my husband could live in. You know, cozy, cabiny… against all my natural instincts, but I’ll try to make it work for both of us.

Fast Company’s design blog featured this clever little serving dish yesterday. It’s called the Double Dish, and it’s from UK-based kitchen product company, Joseph Joseph. One look at the Double Dish and I could already envision it in my home, since we’re big on pistachio nuts and edamame around here.

Then, by happy accident, I came across the CB2’s Dunk Sushi Plate, another clever entertaining solution. You place maki on the outer part of the dish and soy sauce on the inner part. We often order Japanese takeout, so it’s another win.

And then, well, one thing led to another, and I found myself creating a whole green-and-white sushi dinner party theme.

Perhaps the most exciting find in this whole set is the table linens. Paper Cloud’s Petunias Field pattern is fun and quirky, and the linens are hand printed with water-based inks on organic cotton. Love!

Our trip to Rhodes last month put me in a major blue-and-white mood, thanks to this entrancing view of the Aegean Sea:

I love the idea of decorating in blue and white, but I wouldn’t want it to look too nautical nor too English country. I’d want it to have the same clean, chic yet eclectic, and bold yet feminine style that I love. So here’s my sunlit corner for reading, writing, and drinking tea (yes, please!):

On another note, I’ve been thinking a lot about what my goals are with this blog. I know that I don’t want it to be a resource for new products (a lot of design blogs seem to take that route), and I know I don’t want it to be merely a journal of my own work. The direction I seem to be naturally taking is a library of design ideas to inspire me, and hopefully you. That means design ideas for your home, your wardrobe, your wedding, your life. What I’ve been publishing here is pretty much exactly what I think about every day.

Of course, this blog will probably evolve over time. In fact, I hope that it does. And I’m sure I’ll often stray from my own standards—

but hopefully you’ll forgive me because I’ve already warned you.

When people say things to me like, “That’s my dream living room!” or “That’s my dream bed!”—I think to myself: “Which dream?”

I have so many that I’ve lost count. For instance, take the Eames Eiffel chair, designed in 1948. I love this chair so much that my heart goes aflutter just mentioning it. You could say it’s my Dream Chair—my Midcentury-Modern-Florida-Beach-House-Dream-Chair, to be specific.

So when I came across Anthropologie’s On-A-Whim dinnerware yesterday, I got very excited because it fits my Florida beach house fantasy perfectly.

By adding Crate&Barrel’s Everyday silverware, Alfi’s modern classic yellow carafe, and Chiasso’s serpentine fruit bowl—

my sun-soaked breakfast table is ready.