happy holidays

oh hey, it's been a while...hope your holidays were merry and bright! since we last spoke...i've celebrated halloween, thanksgiving, christmas and a golden birthday (turned 25 on the 25th of december!) and i received a fancy new camera too - so you can bet there will be more posting up in here. here's a little sneak at what the holidays have looked like in our little apartment...

santa and vintage reindeer

handmade santas from tesoro

gingerbread!

mercury glass trees mixed with my handmade yard trees

my favorite ornament addition this year...mr. gnome

paperwhites

vintage glass ball ornaments mixed with my silver ornament collection

oh, hey bert.

thrifted stockings for jason, nelli, bert and i

photos via yours truly

dress up your orchid

have you ever purchased a beautiful orchid to give as a gift (or to keep and admire yourself)? you know those ugly little hair clips or green twist ties that come attached to that fabulous orchid? yeah...change those out. just use a piece of raffia, twine or string (i like to use bakers twine) and tie a nice tight bow holding the orchid to the stake in place of the clips/ties. you can even use a little moss to bump up the chic factor by tucking a bit under your bow before you pull it taut - bingo - a well dressed orchid.

lately...

i've been absent around these parts lately...busy with work, life and loooots of puppy snuggles. here are some things that are currently making me happy:

1. my new sheepskin rug from ikea, draped over a chair in our living room.
2. mulling spice from trader joes. i like to boil a few tablespoons on the stove...it makes
the whole apartment smell so cozy!
3. my new sparkly fall flats...from payless!
4. this happened yesterday and i can't get enough of these two together. xo


i also decorated the buffet table in our dining room for halloween. i'm not usually too excited about halloween, but this year i was feeling festive so i went with a black + mercury glass theme with some fun hanging orange/black paper pinwheels! aaand in case you didn't know...black candles are über chic :)

have you decorated for halloween yet?

meet gilbert...

nelli's new little brother! jason and i adopted him last week from the napa animal shelter, he is a 12 week old chihuahua and he was found abandoned in a box at a local flea market. now he lives happily with us and we couldn't be more excited! xoxo

fourth + school giveaway @ selective potential

this week my etsy shop is hosting a giveaway over on tieka's fabulous blog selective potential. click here to view the post and enter to win my metallic gold espresso set! if you follow fourth + school on twitter and facebook you can score extra entries (make sure to leave her extra comments if you do!) and the winner will be randomly selected on september 6 so hurry on over! xo

p.s. yesterday i added a handful of fun new fall items to the shop! be sure to check them out and stop by soon because i'll have more in the next few days!

what's on your nightstand: susi of design shuffle

today susi of design shuffle is putting a fun, new spin on the nightstand series!

thank you design shuffle for guest blogging this week!

Hi everyone, I’m Susi and I write as a guest blogger for DesignShuffle.com, 

a fabulous social media site that promotes interior designers and their work 

from around the world. My writing focuses on things I'm passionate about: 

interior design, decorating ideas,  home furnishings, gardening, travel and art. 

I get to look at gorgeous things all day and write about them. I'm a very lucky girl!

Thanks for inviting me and Design Shuffle to visit your blog, Cecelia. 

Like you, I have a simple wood nightstand. Mine is currently piled with summer 

reading and a vintage lamp.  So I was inspired to go looking for unexpected 

nightstands to see what clever ideas people had come up with to replace the basic 

nightstand.  I love some of these ideas, I hope you love them too.

Enjoy!

 Swiss Miss (via)
In a tight space, a floating shelf and pendant light make the perfect 

nightstand alternative. The floating shelf doesn’t take up any floor space either. Love the large pulley holding the light.
Cupcakes and Cashmere (via)
This is a great use for vintage suitcases. Love the pastel colors and the mirror used as a tray on top.
 Susk and Banoo (via)
Can you guess what this is? It’s a dentist cabinet with a white marble top. 

Love the blue color. A great repurposed piece for holding books, sleep mask, ear plugs… whatever you need. 

From dentist's office to interior design—who knew?
 The Painted Hive (via)
A chest of drawers makes for a swell nightstand if you have the space next to the bed. 

Just make sure the chest of drawers isn’t too tall.
Amy Meier Design (via)
A demilune console table makes for an elegant bedside table.  Not sure 

if this would hold all my books but it would be great for a guest room to hold a carafe of water, a clock and a lamp.
Pinterest (via)
A Parsons desk makes for a smart nightstand alternative with extra surface space and drawers for storage. 

Could be used as a desk or vanity as well as a nightstand.
Pinterest (via)
For the minimalist bedroom design, painted white Moroccan stools can replace bulky nightstands. 

Love the pendant lights that provide light but don’t take up any horizontal space.
Apartment Therapy (via)
This birdhouse/bookholder/nightstand is my favorite for creativity and form meets function. 

A place for a glass of water, your glasses and the book you are reading… all cleverly designed. Love it.

This content is provided by Design Shuffle, where you can find and share talented interior designs from from 

New York interior designers, Los Angeles interior designers, and more, check out the latest at Design Shuffle.

what's on your nightstand: jessie of sweet thing

 

 

Hi sincerely, cecelia readers, Jessie here from Sweet Thing. What you keep on your nightstand can be very telling as to who you are and the things that are important to you. I like to be surrounded by sentimental photos, literature and a little bit of nature and my nightstand reflects that. 

I purchased my nightstands about eight years ago from Ballard Designs. I love the antique, chinoiserie look paired with my modern platform bed from West Elm.

A series of three Polaroids taken by my friend as part of her wedding save the dates hang next to each other. The Polaroids were taken in Ojai, CA. my home town and I love their dreamy, romantic quality. A strip of photo booth photos of my boyfriend and I from a trip to NYC also hangs near my bed.  I like to look at the photo strip first thing in the morning and before bed, to remind me of the trip where we first fell in love. 

On top of my nightstand I have a simple yet fun lamp from Urban Outfitters. I found these lamps on sale a few years ago and I quickly snatched them up. They bring a little modern pop next to my vintage first edition book by Anais Nin (a gift from my boyfriend). A sandalwood candle from Anthropologie makes my room smell amazing and a vase of hydrangeas from my front yard brighten my day. There is almost nothing that gives me more happiness then waking up to fresh flowers.

Underneath I like to stack books I am reading and plan to read along with latest fashion and shelter magazines giving me inspiration. 

Have a sweet day! Jessie xx

when life gives you lemons...

...make homemade lavender lemonade.

i spent a lovely afternoon with silvanie in petaluma on sunday, we had brunch (eggs benedict for me, a b.l.t. for her) and lavender lemonade at della fattoria then we spent a few hours thrifting downtown. i came home with some amazing loot...milk glass, a picnic basket and some fun fall items for the etsy shop...but when i got home i couldn't stop thinking about that lavender lemonade.

after some searching i found a recipe and whipped up a batch for jason and i. with the help of our le creuset juicer it was simple as can be, but getting the right lemon to sugar ratio took juuust a bit of finesse at the end. i highly recommend giving this recipe a whirl if you're looking for something delish to serve at your end-of-summer bash!

the perfectly imperfect home

i don't know about you, but i'm sooo looking forward to the release of this book...

the ombre glitter manicure

after receiving the glitter guide email for this post the other day, i was determined to attempt the diy ombre glitter manicure. one coat of opi ridge filler, two types of wet-n-wild glitter polish and a clear top coat later...ummm...i'm obsessed. i highly recommend you try it out.