This bright and cheery dining area

This art filled workspace

and these links:

My current art kick has recently taken me on a poster search.  There's something about a poster that adds a different element than other art prints…..it makes a space more casual and it's less expected.  In the wrong room it can look cheap but in a nicely styled room it looks chic. Here are some of my current poster inspirations:

1. This simple poster adds color and a major touch of unexpected.  While I could imagine it being in a dingy hotel room, it totally looks great here and works in this space.

2. I love the natural element of this one, it's pretty classic yet begs for attention. 

3. A Vogue poster adds such a cool vibe.  It's bold and interesting.

4. The iconic Andy Warhol poster….enough said.

5. I always love a good Scandinavian monochromatic poster.

We spent St. Patrick's day in Chicago….I was surprised at how green they were able to make the water, it was even pretty.

Playing with patterns

My brother visited and we played tourists

I found this gem of a rug

Finally got my Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree (Ikea)

My little girl's sense of wonder with the snow.  I let her stand out the door for a few seconds in her boots and she was completely satisfied.

Have you guys ever noticed a trend in your pins on pinterest?  Well according to my pins, this copper pendant has been catching my eye as of late.  Maybe it's because lighting has been on my mind, but when I caught another glimpse of it over on Sarah Yates living room reveal, I decided it was worthy of a post.  It really is beautiful, is it not?   

The dining room has made a ton of progress since this post.  Originally, I had wanted to stain the table darker to make it look old, but the more I looked at stains and did research it seemed that new tables stained to look old really just looked like new tables trying to look old.  I'm sure there are some amazing concoctions out there, but in the end I felt that the natural look was best for me.  So, we simply did a couple coats of a low-sheen poly to seal it.  I was very happy with the outcome.  We have also built the bench AND (drumroll please) bought our head dining chairs. While I love all of our craigslist and thrift store finds (which honestly is about 3/4 of our house), this was the first time I've picked out and purchased dining chairs from a store, and it was very exciting to say the least.  I've had my eye on these guys for a couple years now, and I'm still surprised when I walk by them that they are in my house.  I'm going to do a dining room "reveal" down the road, but for now here is another sneak peak.

               

Holly Becker's stunning dining room

This workspace

The most beautiful Ikea upgraded kitchen

and these links:

When Red was deployed to Iraq for a year, I wrote him daily.  He wasn't able to write as often, because he put in a lot of long hours (and that's no exaggeration...18 hour days with no days off!). However, when I did get a letter from him….it made my month. I would save it for bed and read it over and over again, it felt so wonderful to hold something that he had recently touched. Anyways, I once saw a letter that was enlarged to poster size and framed. I loved the idea….minus the fact that I'm way to private to do that with a personal note from Red. So, the idea came to me to scan one of the envelopes from our correspondence and enlarge it for framing. I used some textured paper from my local craft store, and was pleased with how it turned out. I love that the envelope has the APO address with the "free mail" stamp that I remember looking for in the mail. These envelopes were (and are) so precious to me, and when I look at this "art piece" I am reminded of that year a part, and how blessed we are to be doing life together.