Chartreuse and Gray Paint!

I THINK I'VE DONE IT!

I think I (and my husband of course) may have finally decided on a colour scheme the our main living area in our soon to be house :)

We visited many stores (Lowes, Rona, Home depot, etc) but it was at Benjamin Moore that we had the most luck and the most help figuring out exactly what we wanted.

We decided on...

SPLIT PEA

For the open concept livingroom/dinning area.

I really wanted a chartreuse/yellowy green but I kept trying to pick colours that were too light or not saturated enough.... then they just looked florescent or wishy/washy.

I was thinking that in a townhouse the lighter the better but I didn't want such a large area to be blindingly bright either....

For the accent wall at the back of the house that has a fireplace in the middle and a window on either side we decided to paint...

 AMHERST GRAY

The nice man at Benjamin Moore actually suggested a gray one shade darker than this which was almost black.... but we decided a slightly lighter gray would work just as well.

We figured that the gray wall would break up the space and look really great with the crisp white mantle and our tall white(faked) moulding.... etc.

Then for our entryway (and we'll carry it into the basement which is open to the main floor... ei. no door just a railing) we decided that a lighter gray would be nice.  So for now we picked...

 COVENTRY GRAY

I know that I was originally thinking of doing 

AQUA & CHARTREUSE 

but after much thought (and the fact that my husband isn't a fan of aqua) we decided that maybe trying to fit aqua in wasn't going to work.

I will still have RED & AQUA accents in the kitchen... just not painted on the walls.

PLUS we found a lovely chair that I've already posted about that was some great inspiration.

and I found this awesome fabric...

So there you have it!

I think we may have finally settled on our colour scheme.

Of course we'll have pops of teal and mustard yellow... and lots of dark woods too.

Now we just need our house!

Can't wait ;)

I'm itching to go WHITE BLONDE!

Of course now that I have a good 2 inches of my natural colour growing in and I have a fairly good match so that you can't actually see it growing out, I need to dye my hair again....

Note the sarcasm.

I'm not sure what it is about me but I ever since the first time I dyed me hair (coppery red when I was 13), I am never satisfied with my natural colour.

As I've stated in other posts, when I vocalize this dissatisfaction people often look at me in disbelief and tell me I should consider myself lucky that I have naturally blonde hair as an adult.

BUT

Well... I find my dirty blonde hair colour kind of boring on me!

I have gone practically every other colour in the rainbow expect for...

WHITE BLONDE.

I don't usually go lighter.... in fact I never go lighter.

I love having dark hair... red, dark pink, black, brown...etc.

But I am loving this new trend in hair that is so blonde that it is almost white.

AND

I'm reeeeeeally liking the idea of adding a pop of colour to it.

I was thinking of either turquoise or pale purple.

Either way I think I'm going to take the plunge and go lighter.

Hopefully it doesn't look trashy when my roots start growing in.... 

I don't have dark hair... 

so I should be slightly in the clear...

I love the fact that these blondes are not at all brassy.  I think that is what always puts my off going lighter... when you use bleach you end up with yellowish hair...

SO

I am going to the lovely hair dresser who stripped my dark and bright red hair back to a dark blonde without killing my hair.  Provided she thinks its possible to go this light without it going yellow (and it doesn't hurt my "wallet" too much) I am making this change after my next paycheque.

Pictures to come...

WISH ME LUCK!

~***The Madonna Inn***~ A Kitschy Oasis...

I don't remember where and when I came across the existence of this magnificent hotel

BUT

I remember that when I did, I fell in love!

The 

MADONNA INN

is in San Luis Obispo, California. 

It has 110 extremely unique rooms.

 

It was built between 1958 and 1960 

and I think it's clear from the photos that has retained it's retro charmed quite perfectly.

All of the rooms are decorated with different themes. 

 

And I think it's fair to say that when they excecuted these themes originally, they must have been following the mentality of

 

"GO BIG OR GO HOME"

I hadn't really had a strong desire to visit California over other more desirable vacation destinations...

BUT NOW!

I totally want to make a tradition of going there every year so that we can stay in a different room every time.

The kitschy quality is undeniable.

I'm not sure it would ever get old.

I am completely captivated by their amazing over-the-top dinning room.

The weird thing is, I featured a picture of this dinning room in a previous 

"Pictures that make me Smile" post.

It was the Pink Edition.

And I had no idea where or what the pic was of.  I just came across it on weheartit.

Then I stumbled onto this lovely hotel on a completely separate occasion.  As I was browsing the pics I thought "Hey....this looks familiar"

I hope the owners never sell this place.  

I have a feeling that an outsider would change it drastically to modernize it.

I think it should stay exactly how it is.

Frozen in time.

That is, of course, what makes it so appealing!
Well.... to me at least :)

We could all use a vacation without all of the "modern conveniences" anyways.

I've always wished that I was born in 1950s.

So getting to stay in a "time warp", so to speak, would be like a dream come true :)

~*Michelle Williams*~ Great Actress. Great Style.

As I get bored with my wardrobe I start to ponder....

Who would I switch wardrobes with if I could choose anyone????

I have already posted about how much I love 

Katy Perry, Zooey Deschanel and Dita Von Teese's Style.

But today I'm lusting over Michelle Williams feminine, retro, pixie-like style.

Her evening-wear choices are UNBELIEVABLE.

Seriously....DROOL.

Love the romantic fluffy layers of this one....and the cinched waist....and the purple.

via: sandalspumps

Really I wish I could steal her whole look..... is that creepy?

I've always loooved short pixie cuts.... but alas, I don't think I have the face for it.

I had really short hair once...in high school actually.  Everybody loved it but me.

I think my head is too small..... and my face is too big. 

Does that make any sense?

4 via: greenteaandcupcakes

I HAVE, however, gotten over one of my body insecurities that I used to have....
we all have them....
And that was my legs. Well, more my knees.

I have always felt as though my knees looked like they were upside down.
And that, on top of the fact that I have shorter more muscular legs, just made me never want to wear anything shorter than the bottom of my knees.

I mean I wouldn't even where shorts for a long time.

via: thehouseoffabulous

Then I'm not sure exactly what happened and when, but I just somehow got to a point not too long ago when I just got sick of thinking:

"I love these cute shorter dresses on everybody else but I can't wear them..."

I think it started with the discovery 

(or rediscovery if you count the 80s and early 90s) of 

LEGGINGS.

I felt much more comfortable wearing shorter dresses as long as I had a pair of leggings on underneath.

Then slowly this transitioned into being able to wear shorter dresses without leggings.  I guess this happened when I was yearning to wear a certain dress I owned, but it was too hot for leggings.

Don't get me wrong, you still won't see me wearing a super mini skirt/dress because I feel like it would be inappropriate or maybe inhibiting as far as movement goes BUT I have definitely come a long way in terms of accepting my body.

via: trend911

Anyways.... enough about me, this post is really about how drop dead gorgeous Michelle Williams is.

via: thetriplethread

Even her casual style is effortlessly cool.

Now if only I had the money to update my own wardrobe...

More Retro Upcycled Candy... taking the form of a...CHINA CABINET!

In our soon to be new home, there is a half wall up the stairs that will face into the livingroom.

We could have chosen to upgrade it to banisters but, quite frankly, we couldn't afford any upgrades ;)

I had been thinking about how to deal with this half wall.

I was thinking that it may look slightly awkward...

BUT

my brilliant husband suggested that it may be a good spot to place a smallish china cabinet.

Since we have a dinning area that doesn't really allow for any more than a table and chairs, I was thinking that there would be no place for a china cabinet.

AND 

Now that I know that there is an ideal spot for one, and I don't have one, I have been debating a DIY project... of course.

So, if you follow this blog at all, you'll know that I have been lusting after a 

Red and Aqua Kitchen

&

an Aqua and Chartreuse Living Room.

So as an aqua accent I was hoping to find an antique china cabinet in the style pictured that might need some TLC for a reasonable price.

AND

Of course, I'd like to paint it a nice aqua colour like in the first picture.

If, for some reason, I decide not to go for aqua there are other soft options like white or pink, as pictured.

via: foreverpinkcottagechic

via: inthefunlane

BUT

I doubt that will happen, as I really do have a fondness of the retro/modern look that the aqua gives.

via: favim

Now I will just have to start shopping for pretty things to fill it up! :)

Pictures that make me smile. Part 7

"At moments of great enthusiasm it seems to me that no one in the world has ever made something this beautiful and important."

-M.C. Escher

via: heartdrawsadream

via: freshmn

via: weheartit

via: vintague

via: drinkblackwater

via: cinderellaws

via: indulge-in-reveries

via: violetkat