Have A Lovely Saturday!

Well, today is Saturday and everyone is home!  It looks like it's going to be a pretty nice day out!  A little cool, but pretty nice just the same.  Typically on Saturdays, we all prepare something that we each like for breakfast, wait, let me back that up...they will tell me what they want for breakfast and I will prepare it!  Okay, that's more accurate!  Then we'll all head out!  Sometimes we'll have a specific agenda and sometimes, like today, not!  I'm in the market for a new camera.  I have a nice little Nikon point and shoot that takes pretty good photos.  I used it when I shot A Taste Of Atlanta...Bungalow Classic.  The pics were pretty good, but I really need a camera that is going to take AMAZING photos!  I've been looking at the Canon EOS Rebel T2iD-SLR and the Sony NEX-5N Compact System.  This one is a DSLR, as well!  I really love the Sony!  It feels really good in my hand, doesn't have all the little buttons, bells, and whistles that the Canon has, so for me this translates to being more user friendly, and I think at the end of the day, is going to be the better camera for what I need because of all of the other incredible features!

The pics below were taken with my iPhone via Instagram with one of the many filters!  I like taking random shots of things around my house!  I am always surprised at the inspiration that comes from them!  The filters that I use most often with Instagram is Nashville and X-Pro II, but I also use Sutro and Brannan.  When I shot the pics for my A Day At The Market posting I used my iPhone via Instagram!  Instagram is such a fun way to snap photos and share them immediately because you just go into the Instagram app and start shooting!  I can share on Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr, with a caption if I like, right there on the spot.  Oh, I would love for you to follow me on Instagram if you're on or decide to come on board (prhondae).  Let me explain why everything is prhondae...!  Someone else has the audacity to have my name!  Can you believe it!  So, what I've done is taken the initial of my last name (P), and placed it first, use my entire first name (rhonda), and then follow it up with the initial of my middle name (E).  My favorite number is 3, and that is why my Twitter name is prhondae3!  Okay, so consider yourselves in the loop!  LOL!!!

My Anthropologie picks!  I love this owl!  My friends think I'm nutty, but they're not surprised!  I did a posting back in December, Amazing And Affordable...Wow! that featured the Owl cookie jar and the vase from Anthropologie.  The small bowl is new and is in stores now.  I bought a few of the bowls.  I really don't know what for, but when it comes to things that I really like and am drawn to, I don't need to know it's purpose, because at some point, it will get used!  Oh, and that owl cookie jar...will NEVER be used as a cookie jar!  We have a very nice Tweety Bird cookie jar that is doing a wonderful job!!! 

I love books!  Have tons of them!  This is why my home is littered with them!  You will not find a corner, shelf, flat surface, or floor space that doesn't have books!  These are probably my go to three for simple, creative ideas on "How To" whatever!  The blue bud vase and colored tealight holder are from West Elm and both were featured in the posting Amazing And Affordable...Wow!  From that posting I also featured pure white ceramic vases that I had to scoop up a few, to scatter around the house!  The ceramic tray was found at again, Anthropologie!

This is a pic taken just the other night of items that are on my desk in my bedroom.  I have a sitting area that is in my bedroom that I converted to an office.  I need to hang a couple of beautiful draperies to really separate the spaces because as you can imagine, it stays pretty littered with work stuff that you just kinda don't want to see first thing in the morning!  Most of the items shown in this pic were from West Elm and Z.Gallerie.  I love having pretty votive holders, picture frames, and the like on or near my work space!  I can look up and always see something that makes me happy and puts me in a good mood if I'm not already in one!

I keep old perfume bottles of fragrances that I've worn, especially if I think they're pretty!  Why?  Just because... I just never know what I'll need or use them for!  The small silver tray I purchased on my trip to the last Scott Antiques Market.  I plan on attending in March, as I am on the hunt for teacups and saucers, and Spode dinnerware, ooh, and maybe some antlers that I can paint and place on the massive walls that I have in my family room and foyer!

Have a Super Saturday!

Rhonda

PS.  This was not an advertise posting for any of the above mentioned companies or apps!

Movie Set Designs That Inspire Me..."Somethings Gotta Give"

I love rainy days!  Especially when I'm caught up on my work, the kids are doing their thing, and I'm left to do whatever my little heart desires!  Most of the time its sitting on the sofa, wrapped in a throw watching a movie that is reflective of the mood I'm in at that particular time.  Well today, since the kids are home, I've pretty much given them the run of the house while I am holed up in my bedroom in my bed, which by the way, I love!  No, there's not anything all that special about it except, I have nice bedding and lot's of pillows!  It's soft and warm and just a heavenly place to be on a day like today!  Anyhoo, I digress!  I'm sitting in my bed with my laptop, iPad, iPhone, magazines, hot tea, and pistachios at hand!  This is what I call heaven!

Okay, so the movie I'm watching is Somethings Gotta Give (romantic comedy, 2003), with Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton.  I love this movie!  It's so funny, has a great cast, and the set design is incredible!  Of course, as soon as it was available on DVD, I pounced on it!  I dream of having a beach house like the one Diane Keaton has in this movie!  From the time Jack Nicholson and Amanda Peet pull into the drive of this home and open the front door, I am in a state of awe!  Daydreaming!  Hoping!  Wishing!  Praying that one day I would be able to design a home like this for me and my family!  Ahhh, again, this is what I call heaven!  This beach home is set in the Hamptons.  Who wouldn't want a beach house in the Hamptons?  But for me, there are so many areas closer to where I live, where this home would fit in quite nicely also have the charming markets and shops to spend the morning browsing and shopping!

I hear angels singing!  Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!

I would love to have a porch, veranda, lanai, portico...whatever suits your fancy!

This picture just does not do justice to the room as it is shown in the movie!  You guys have got to see this room!  It literally makes me swoon!

Rooms should be lovely to look at and wonderful to live in!  Jack has no problem here enjoying all this room has to offer!  And boy, you should have seen him jump off this sofa when he heard Diane drive up from her date with Keanu Reeves!  Too Funny!

If your room is large enough to have intimate areas for other activities, then definitely take advantage of this!  In every interior I design, I always try to carve out a space where one can sit quietly to enjoy reading, napping, or what have you, but still be apart of the larger room.

What a great place to read and enjoy a nice glass of wine or a cup of hot tea!

Such a wonderful dining area that is roomy, cozy, can be casual or formal, and has a place to display treasured collectibles!

This kitchen is totally my dream!  I would be so happy with the different work areas and the storage space!  Are you kidding me!  Oh my Lord!  There is a place for my cookbooks (yes, I look through them from time to time and dream about trying some of the recipes!).  Look at all of the surfaces to prep and make pretty!  Lol!  I say make pretty because sadly, there is just not a lot of prepping going on in my kitchen!  Well, I've always said that if I had a kitchen like this I would cook more!  I would!  Really!

So pretty!

I need that range!  Yes, I would use it!

Oh my gosh!  Look at all of the storage!  For an organzation fanatic like me, this is the perfect kitchen!

The bedroom is fantastic!  I mean, look at the open airiness that is created by the windows and doors!  This means that it gets amazing light during the daytime hours! 

My desk looks like this!  Sometimes worse, but who would care with a view like that?  What I find funny about this picture is this is probably the face my kids see when they come into the room when I'm in the midst of trying to work!  God bless 'em!

Finally, at the end of my day...hmm, maybe even at the beginning, I could be found here!  Alone, either getting my thoughts together to begin my day, or reflecting on all that I got accomplished and still need to get accomplished!  Either way, whatever the case may be, I would know, just as I know now, how blessed I am to have the life I have and to be surrounded by the most phenomenal people!

Thanks for stopping by!  Have the most incredible weekend possible!

Rhonda

*Google Images



Family Time

Well, today is Thursday and it's actually quite late in the afternoon for me to be posting!  I usually post very early in the mornings.  My children are home for Winter Break this week, so I've been scheduling everything around them.  Not that this week is any different from any other week!  Oh, don't get me wrong, I am not complaining!  I feel truly blessed that I am able to have a career where I can work my professional life around my family life.  Well, most times anyway! 

Noah is eleven and such a great kid with a wonderful spirit!  Also, he loves his mom!  I enjoy this because I realize there will come a day when his affection for me will be placed onto..., oh Dear Lord, I can't even bring myself to say it!  Gillian is six, and watching her grow and find her voice and personality is like watching a television show!  They both make me so happy and so proud to be their mom!  Then there is Pete!  I've loved him since the very beginning, twenty years ago!  My very best friend!  I cannot imagine my life without him!

This is the smile I wear as my uniform daily!  I enjoy smiling!  It makes me feel good to smile!  My family tells me, when their day seems like nothing is going right, my smile let's them know that everything will be alright!  I can't think of kinder words to hear from the mouths of those who are your world.

Taken at the home of one of my very best friends.

I apologize for not posting images of interiors and giving my colorful insight, but today, my family is what is inspiring more than anything else!

Have an amazing day!

Rhonda

They Are Back, And I Could Not Be Happier!

Every Sunday night at 9:00pm, I could be found sitting on my sofa with a glass of wine and some sort of bite-sized treat transfixed and transported to another era!  The show, Mad Men.  The era, early 1960's.  I had done this every July since it's beginning on July 19th, 2007!  But, oh no, not this past July!  Well, they are back and I couldn't be happier!  Happy doesn't even begin to describe how I'm feeling about its' return!  Elated?  March 25th can't get here quickly enough!  Each time I saw the intro (click here to watch), fade onto my television screen, watching the gentleman falling as the theme song played, I knew I would not be disappointed by whatever happened behind the doors of Sterling Cooper Advertising Agency, the ad men of Madison Avenue!

What was so captivating for me from day one was the lifestyle of that time!  The attitudes, the fashion, the interiors!  I was sold!  Bought and paid for, and would never be the same!  I'm pretty certain this is where my love of Mid-Century modern furnishings began!  Furniture that I remember vaguely, from my childhood, I now wish I had said to everyone in my family, "Stop!  No, please don't give these pieces away!  Keep them, store them!  I will want them when I'm older and can appreciate the beauty of them!"  But alas, I had no clue, and obviously nor did they!

This is Don Drapper's office!  The show is centered around this dapper gentleman, that I don't think has met a woman who didn't want to be with him or a man who didn't want to be him!  He's usually always pretty composed, but season 2, I think it was, he began to unravel!  Many of the furnishings used on the set are originals!  Room and Board, as well as Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams are great stores to find reproductions of these modern classics.

Donald Drapper, the man himself!

I love this shot!  This angle puts me in the room!  I actually feel as though I could walk in, have a seat on the sofa, and engage in a dry banter with a man that is as vulnerable as he is complex!

Roger Sterling's office!  Beautiful!  Smart!  Well edited!

Roger and Don, always with a drink in hand, and usually a cigarette too!  That was crazy for me, when the show first aired, to wrap my mind around being able to smoke and drink at work, in an office building!  I guess it wasn't that long ago that smoking was banned in public buildings!  But now drinking, I definitely don't remember that!  Everyone smoked!  And I mean smoked all of the time!  I remember one episode when the Drappers pregnant neighbor was visiting Betty, and smoked the entire time she was there!  I was like wow! how times have changed!!!

This is the kitchen in the home that Don shares with his wife Betty and two children, Sally and Bobby.  Well, not anymore!  Guys, if you haven't watched the show, I do recommend you get up to speed!  I don't want to give too much info for those of you who may want to get in the know!  I don't really see knotty pine making a comeback any time soon!

Don and Betty speaking with an interior designer, or "decorator" as they were called back then!  It's only been in the last 15 years or so that we distinguish between the two. 

Betty, Peggy, and Joan

I suppose I could go into detail about these women, but why would I do that?  I will say, Peggy, in my opinion, probably made the biggest 180!  Joan has always been pretty consistent, but not without her challenges for sure!  I love her controlled sassiness!  She will get you together and I love it!  Betty?  Betty, Betty!  In the beginning, I adored her; but then, she got a little nutty!!!  I can identify with each of their characters, though!

The cast!  It truly is a fantastic show!

So for me, and I'm sure millions of others, the countdown has begun!  Thirty-three days to go!  I'm thinking of hosting my own premier party!  If there's one thing I've learned from watching the show is how to throw a dynamite, intimate affair, sans cigarettes!  If you don't already have plans to watch the show's premiere on AMC on March 25th, please make this apart of your evening and let me know what you think!

Have a fantastic day!

Rhonda

*Images

Work Spaces That Work!

I hope you all had the weekend you set out to have!  It sure makes it easier to get back to work today and the rest of the week!  My weekend was fantastic!  My son had a sleepover at a friends, so that left me and mini me (my 6 year old, going on 16, daughter) to have some bonding time!  It was great because she needed that time alone with me and of course, I with her!  We hit a couple of stores to do a little shopping.  Nothing major!  A few items from Ikea and a few from Z. Gallerie.  I'll post pics of our finds a little later!  I love that she has a very discerning eye for what she likes and how she will make it work!  It makes my heart smile to see and hear the passion she has for those things that she finds beautiful and worthy of her attention!  She is really interested in design and enjoys accompanying me on sourcing trips for clients.  It's really cool!  But then, she also wants to be a rock star, model, and actor!  I did say mini me, right?  I tell her, she can be and do whatever she chooses, so be choosy!

Okay, so back to the idea of "work"!  Since I work from home, it is so important for me to have a space that motivates me to want to work!  It has to get great sunlight, be very organized (I am an "everything has its' place" person), and it has to have elements of inspiration that I can gaze upon when I need to daydream!  I know, you know what I'm talking about!  You know, that moment when you look up from what you're working on and before you realize it, your mind is everywhere, and anywhere except work!

Isn't this great!  The space gets great sun and it's very pretty, filled with objects that would motivate and inspire me to do my best work!  I really love how gold and silver finishes were used here!  The soft sprinkles of color makes it even lovelier!  I've always liked the idea of layering rugs and it is done wonderfully!  This work space belongs to Dallas Shaw , a very successful fashion illustrator, business woman, and author of a hugely popular blog.

This space definitely has the organization that I would need in order to work effectively and efficiently!  I don't do well with clutter!  It makes my mind feel cluttered!  The shelving that is used is great.  I can use bins, just as is featured here, to hide lesser attractive items that I need to have handy, as well as be able to display those things that are lovely and inspiring.  Ooh, and did you notice the brass swing-arm sconces above the shelves?  How clever is that!  Truly a win-win, for me!

Have a terrific week, my Friends!

Rhonda

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A Relaxing Sunday

There are times when I want ornamentation and intricate detail, but then there are those times when I long for simplicity in shape, form, and necessity. 

Hope you're having a lovely Sunday!

Rhonda

*via my Pinterest Boards