Wired

I have never met a vintage wire basket I didn't like and I have them all over the house to prove it . Below are a few new additons I recently added to my collection .

 They are my favorite source for storage because they work in every room - office, kitchen, bathroom, playroom, etc . 

DesignSponge

Country Living

Rob & Jill Sharp Brinson via DesignSponge

Unknown

Country Living

I love their versatility and I think they are much more interesting than most of the other storage options out there . They come in so many different shapes, sizes and colors and are often pretty affordable . I always keep them on my radar when I am thrifting because I know I will eventually find somewhere to use them . 

Speaking of sofas

Two posts in a row about sofas - clearly I have living rooms on my mind. Lately I've noticed that I am really drawn to living rooms that have two sofas. Unfortunately our living room isn't big enough to accomodate that layout but doesn't it seem like such a luxury to have that sort of space? 

They are often shown back to back in design mags but I don't think I have ever seen this layout in a "real" person's home . It would be great for entertaining since it automatically breaks a big space up into two smaller spaces - one for TV, one for conversation, reading, etc. 

Image via Shelter

Phoebe Howard

Christina Murphy

Elle Decor

Another layout for two sofas (and probably my favorite!) is to have them facing each other. 

Domino

Hus and Hem

Coastal Living

 What is your take on two sofas? Do you have space for either of these layouts in your home?

We need a new sofa

Lonny

When we moved over the summer we realized that neither of the sofas at our old house were going to work in our new living room . I thought a new sofa would be one of the first things we would buy but I have actually been dragging my feet on this purchase .

High Gloss Magazine

Part of me wants to invest in a higher end sofa with beautiful lines and good bones that will last for many years . The sort of sofa that is so classic that it is reupholstered instead of replaced in 10 years . 

Caitlin Wilson | Featured on Design Sponge

But then reality sets in and I realize that there will probably never be a time when a high end sofa would be appropriate in our home .

Steven Gambrel

With two kids and a dog, our sofa takes a beating on a daily basis and I wouldn't have it any other way because it means we are actually LIVING in our living room . But with all of that living, it means our sofa will probably only have a life expectancy of about 3 - 5 years . 

Massuco Warner Miller

Since I know our new sofa will be somewhat "disposable" and less of an investment I feel like I can have a little more fun with it - maybe a bold pattern or color? Or maybe I will keep the color neutral but go with a less traditional style? I still have a lot of decisions to make but I am not in a big rush . For now we are using half of our old sectional for our sofa and while it isn't exactly pretty it meets our needs functionally . Which camp do you fall into? Is your sofa a long-term investment or something that is meant to be replaced in a few years?

A Day at the Races

Yesterday we attended the Foxfield Races in Charlottesville and had so much fun ! The races are held twice a year just down the road from our house .

It is basically an all day tailgate with 5 horse races and a Jack Russell Terrier race mixed in .

The fall races are more family oriented so they also have plenty of stuff for the kids . 

They even had pink chickens!

The races really are beautiful to watch  - such strength, speed and power .

(Obviously these pics are a bit blurry - I'm not sure if it is because they are moving so fast or if it is because the ground is shaking when they thunder past . )

This picture cracks me up !

The horse was so fast that by the time I got my camera up to my eye this was all I was able to capture ! 

Unfortunately the races ended on a bit of a sad note - one of the horses had a horrific fall during the last race right in front of us . Thankfully the jockey was okay but we are pretty sure the horse didn't make it . So sad ! I always DVR the Kentucky Derby for this very reason . If a horse gets hurt, I don't want to see it . Unfortunately there is nothing you can do when you are watching a live race .

Despite the tragic ending, the kids had a blast and we definitely plan to make this a yearly tradition ! Can you believe today is the first day of October ?!?

Catching Up

 Good morning ! How was your weekend ? Because I post so sporadically lately I feel like I am always playing catch up every time I write and I end up cramming a bunch of unrelated things into one big post . So please bear with me because this post will be no different :)  

We celebrated Paul's birthday yesterday . Men are so easy when it comes to their birthdays . Paul's only requests were good food, spending time with the girls and football . So we started things off with a big breakfast - bacon, eggs, pancakes, fruit, etc . 

Then we spent the afternoon running errands and finishing small projects around the house with the football games on in the background . Dinner was simple but so good and we were able to eat outside and enjoy the beautiful weather  . 

I didn't even have to make a cake . Paul's favorite dessert is brownies which are much easier to throw together. The girls helped blow out the candle and couldn't wait to dig in . 

It was a nice, relaxing day and we were happy to treat Paul with his favorite things . Hope you had a happy birthday, Paul !

As I mentioned the weather has been amazing lately so we are spending as much time as possible outside - eating meals, going to the park, etc . I took this picture of Riley and her friends, Jack and Mary Kate, running around while we were at dinner the other night . 

It was fun to see them rolling in the grass, digging in the dirt, looking at the stars,  getting yelled at for playing on the golf course (oops!) . . .

A few weeks ago I decided to set the girls up in the backyard to paint . All of my painting supplies are still packed away but I found their watercolors and bought a couple of canvases for them to work on . 

Hayes' masterpiece is below . 

She  seemed to be in a minimalist mood with her painting - probably because she was more interested in trying to eat the paintbrush than she was in painting with it . 

Riley was using all sorts of techniques and produced several paintings but this one is my favorite . 

It was a great way to spend the afternoon . Hopefully next time I can join in on the fun !

In other news, we are moving along on the kitchen updates . Hayes and I drove 2 hours each way last week to pick out the slabs for our new countertops . The decision only took about 10 minutes but it was worth it to see everything in person . Here is one of the slabs I picked .

I can not wait for it to be installed !

Would you rather

go dark and cozy

Mark D Sikes & Michael Griffin | House Beautiful

Elle Decor

or bright and white in the bathroom?

In need

I need a piece of art to go over the fireplace in our living room . I am thinking the bigger, the better . 

Via We Heart It

Ab Chao

Elle Decor Spain

Miles Redd

Phillip Gorrivan

Via My Little Happy Place

Unknown

Michael Graydon

I'm not going to be able to drop a lot of money on this project so I am probably going to go the DIY route . I really love the swirly watercolory look of the last image but that has never been my best medium . Whatever I end up with I hope the sheer scale of the art will help it have a big impact on the room . It may be time to finally unpack my paint brushes ! 

Progress

Things are slowly moving forward around here . The concrete floor has been poured in the barn .

The next steps will be electrical work and insulation which are not nearly as exciting .

Inside the house we are having the kitchen cabinets painted . 

They actually only have the primer on them in the photo above but they already look better to me . 

And I have started working on turning my bar cart into a little indoor garden like I posted about last week .

I only have a few edible plants so far but if I manage to keep them alive for a few weeks then I plan to add some more in .

Someone else is slowly making progress around here too . Hayes is officially 13 months old and still not walking . Her preferred method of transportation is to stand up on her knees and "walk" . She is so good at it and gets around so quickly that she doesn't see the point in walking on her feet . So we have been practicing lately . 

She is so close to getting the hang of it !

Indoor Garden

With Fall right around the corner I have started thinking about ways to bring the outdoors in to get me through the dreary days ahead .  This image has been a long time favorite of mine .

Lonny

I do not have a green thumb but I love the idea of something like this in my home. I'm thinking if I put most of my plants in one spot rather than spread throughout the house that I might actually remember to water them once in a while. 

Real Simple

Via Lolita

After seeing this image on Design Mom the other day, I've decided to repurpose my own bar cart as an indoor herb garden .

Via Design Mom

I'm headed out to the nursery today to see what I can find . I'll be sure to post pics once I get everything set up !

Globe Pendants

I picked up a couple of these white globe pendants at a salvage place over the weekend .

I haven't decided where mine will go yet but I think they could fit into almost any decor - whimsical, classic, rustic or modern . 

Kitchen Studio

Muse Interiors

Tim Barber

Jordie Canosa

With that kind of versatility and at $25 a piece, I couldn't really pass them up ! Did you stumble across any good finds over the weekend ?