Thursday, January 31, 2013

Good Stuff

I am pretty much in love with every detail of Meg Galligan's home.
As soon as I saw the feature on The Everygirl I knew I had seen it somewhere to before.
Her home was also included in one of my favorite Matchbook Mag features.
Between her natural light, antique rug and insane molding I am smitten.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

Weekend Recap

First up, some busniess...
if you are not into GFC but want to follow your favorite blogs, check out Bloglovin.
It sends you an email reminder and you can follow multiple blogs.

Thursday night I took Doug to one of our favorite dinner spots in Raleigh, Mo's Diner. 
I needed a break from studying and I could not miss out on Triangle Restaurant Week


I am officially a brunette. New year, new low maintenance me.  
The sad thing is, this was the least creepy picture I took. I try. 

Looking forward to using Grayline Linen. Great linens under $10. 


I am slightly addicted to my new Whitney English planner
It is a game changer if you are a hot mess like me. 


Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Pretty Print

 This LuLu DK print is calling my name.




Tuesday, January 22, 2013

RUG FOR SALE

A friend of mine recently ordered this "to the trade" rug. Unfortunately, it was too small for her dining room. It is literally brand spanking new and needs a new home.


5x8
Woven, over dyed blue-gray wool with off-white details.
Additional views here.
$150

Email me if you are interested at
As usual, it is first come first serve. I try to go down the list and be as fair as possible.




Monday, January 21, 2013

Around our house...

My ginger jar collection is taking over our house and I am not complaining. 




Kitchen Ideas

I am currently helping two friends spruce up their kitchens. 
They are both in very different situations. Friend #1 is in the process of gutting her kitchen. She is planning on being in her house for a long time and is not concerned about resell at this point. Friend #2 hates her kitchen but she does not want to spend a ton of money because she plans on moving soon. 

On the first kitchen we are really focusing on function. She has a new baby and wants the space to be kid friendly. She is adding a dining nook. I have a feeling this will get a ton of use from her family. Tips: Use outdoor fabric- it is super easy to clean. 
Add storage- have the seats open and add drawers on the side. 


While her kitchen is kid friendly, she still wants it to look "adult". We are looking at adding a vintage runner to add some interest. 


Another suggestion was to add inset cabinets. They can be very expensive, and may not be a good option if you are planning on moving.


Example, of overlay cabinets vs. inset cabinets. 




Pinterest sources- great when considering a kitchen reno. 






Friday, January 18, 2013

Top Ten Beauty Buys


Shimmer Lights: I obviously made this round up when I was still blonde.
Brow Wiz: I have naturally thin eye brows so my life revolves around this pencil. It lets you fill in your brows without looking like you filled in your brows.
Posie Tint: This is my favorite cheek color. It looks like it is coming from inside your skin.
Speed Freak Hairdryer: I have said it before and I will say it again, BEST HAIR DRYER EVER.
Tan Towels: I despise being pale.  I also do not want to look tan during the winter. These towels give you a little extra color without looking orange or streaky.
YSL Touche Eclat: Great for under your eyes and also brightens up dark spots.
Stila EyeLiner: I discovered this thanks to Birchbox, it has a faint shimmer that brightens up your eyes.
Microderm Paste: True story, I have horrible skin. I feel like I had tried everything you can possibly try. I was at my wits end about a year ago and even considered going on Acutance (scary). My mother in law started working for Rodan and Fields, aka same people who created Proactive. I was super skeptical but decided to give it a try. I by no means have beautiful skin but things have gotten so much better. If there is one product that I cannot live without it is the Mircroderm Abrasion paste. Even if you do not deal with break outs it makes your skin feel so soft. I CANNOT say enough good things about it.
Clinque Men's Bronzer: Best brozner. It is a gel and does not leave streaks. A little bit goes a long way.
Boxom Lipgloss: I have never been a huge lip gloss girl until I tried Boxom's line of plumping glosses.

Thanks for all of the feedback. I basically gathered you are interested in home decor, sources and my dance moves(they cannot be taught). I am going to try and answer everyone's questions next week!


What is your favorite beauty product you cannot live without?




Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Favor Time


Hi Internet friends. Hope everyone is having a wonderful week. I have a little favor to ask of you. Here is the deal. My days consist of going to work, going to class, coming home and studying.  Repeat. It is only for a short time so I am not coming here to complain. The issue is, with all of this nonsense I am finding it particularly difficult to get my creative juices flowing. I look at my computer and I usually fall asleep. So I come to you, my creative friends to help  me get through the next 4 weeks. 

Please leave a comment or email me jessicaepley@gmail.com
and let me know what you want to see more of. It can be anything.  I am hoping
this will give me the inspiration I need to pump out some posts over the weekend 
and will not make me feel too guilty for skipping study time. 

Needy, eh? 




Monday, January 14, 2013

Designer Crush: Jules Reid


Jules Reid is having a 70% off sale. I am currently stocking up on resort wear.
I ordered this (in pink) for an upcoming trip to Turks & Caicos.

Friday, January 11, 2013

Friday Favorites





Viceroy Cylinder Lamps- I am the lucky owner of some new lamps I picked up on sale at Furbish. 
Dorothy Draper Paint Colors- Just a little Benjamin Moore inspiration.
Reef Print- One of my most stylish friends has a pair of these in her bedroom and they are hot.
Grace: A Memoir- Next on my list when I get done with this stupid class. 
Clare Vivier Clutch- No explanation needed. This needs to come live with me. 
Tassel Key Chain- I am going through a tassel phase.
I need a little fluff after the longest week of my life. I promise to never use the word BUSY ever again. This real estate class is exhausting. Work is pretty much the craziest it has ever been. I am feeling a little overwhelmed. I am currently missing food, reality TV and sleep. Enough complaining, next week will be better! 

Monday, January 7, 2013

Heat Update

Best news of the century---

Our heat was not broken. 


This is fantastic news because we would not be keeping our resolution this year. 
Replacing heaters= no fun. 
Painting your ugly brick=fun. 
On to New Years (house) resolutions...
I love painted brick houses. Back before I was a home owner, my delusional self thought we would paint the brick the week after we moved it. I mean, it is not expensive or anything. I also thought I would walk in and redo the kitchen and bathrooms. I quickly got a reality check.  My non delusional self still has non painted brick 2 1/2 years later. What are you opinions on painting the brick? Is it worth the upkeep?


In other news, there is going to be some spotty posting on the blog for the next 6 weeks. 
I signed up for a real estate class and I currently leave my house at 7:30am and get home at 10pm. For someone that is usually asleep by 9 this is huge adjustment. Let's not mention the fact that there is no break for dinner. These people obviously have no idea how hungry I can get. 

Promise you will still be my friend? I promise to make a better effort at blogging once the class is over. 

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Finally Friday

Our heat stopped working...



2012 Progress: Kitchen/Den


Our kitchen is DONE. There is not one thing I would change. 

Before:
 After:
This is the only project that was not a DIY. When I first started reading blogs, I would see someone do a kitchen renovation and I remember thinking that I could not imagine ever being in that place It was kind of depressing, loving design but something like a kitchen renovation  seemed unattainable. 3 years later after lots of saving and planning we finally finished our kitchen. It was a huge accomplishment. I think it is important to remember when you are reading these blogs, nothing happens over night. 


Den Progress:
2010
There are no words. Things were bad. We painted the brick white. It made a huge difference. I know some people are scared to paint brick because you cannot go back. Paint that mess. 
This room is awkward. It is so long and skinny it is hard to do much with it. I would love to add some panels on the windows behind the sofa. Does anyone have a sofa that sits on a window like this? I would love to heard any tips. I thought about putting something to stop the sofa from smashing the panels.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

2012 Progress:Dining Room

This is a blog mainly focused on decorating so instead of my resolutions you get my "home resolutions". We had a big year in 2012. 

2010 - I found this old picture from MLS. I remember my Mom coming to Raleigh and she had a tear in her eye when she walked around our house. The entire house was cream. Floors to ceiling. Maybe that is why I am so addicted to color now. 
2011- We made do with what we had. I found a ton of faux bamboo stuff on Craigslist, by ton I mean way too much. I still kind of love the aggressive coral. We got a chevron rug like every other blogger on the planet. I would love to replace it with something a little more classic  


2012- We added grass cloth and Griffin and Wong wallpaper panels and some new curtains. What a difference a year made. We still need 2 more chairs. 


We added a sideboard for some more storage. It also provide a space to add lamps. No one wants to eat with overhead lighting blaring. Take a note from The Perfectly Imperfect Home, avoid the "dreaded overhead".