Before and After

Here is my dining room as it looked when we first walked through our house. As is the trend (which I disagree with), the owner had "neutralized" everything, so it was a very boring white on white that did not show off the great mouldings at all. I did it a traditional red as I love a cozy dining room, and man is it easy to decorate for Christmas! My little key lime trees have done really well in front of the windows and have grown several feet since I got them. I chose not to do curtains because I like the natural look of the trees against the windows and feel like that is enough decoration.

The chandelier is from Ballard Designs about three years ago. The black and white prints are photos I took in Sydney, Australia and had printed on canvas at Kinko's. I have two leaves for the dining room table, but like to leave them out for every day. We have lots of nice extended-family dinners in this room, and I can't wait for the holidays already!

Ready, Set, Go!

I am loving these throw-on-and-go dresses from BCBG. Talk about no-nonsense. Just add great shoes and you are out the door. They are on sale plus an extra 20% off right now.

Go Big Orange!

If you live in this part of the country, you cannot help but get caught up in the annual excitement surrounding SEC football. Specifically, University of Tennessee football. And if you don't know, our team is called The Volunteers, or The Big Orange. Our team colors are orange and white: we are talking bright, practically flourescent, road-crew orange (there are some jokes about that, but I won't get into it here). Another thing about football around here is that women take their game-day outfits pretty seriously. Luckily, orange is a really dominant color in fashion right now, so it's easy to find stuff for us Vol fans to wear to the games and parties this year.


All of these goodies are on sale at J. Crew right now:

I also found some great stuff at Anthropologie's sale:

Personally, I like to wear jeans and a white top and then accessorize with orange. It's a strong color so small doses go a long way!


Last but not least, I love this tee shirt from Perpendicular. Shame on me, I didn't check to see how many she has in stock, but you can go to her Facebook page and ask:

Fall Wish List

A few things on my need-to-get-list for Fall: A pencil skirt from J. Crew ( to go with the Madewell silk blouse I ordered: see my Facebook page); a pair of French Sole ballet flats in leopard, because they go with both black and brown and I have worn the bejesus out of my Target ones that I've had for three years!; and a military-style jacket - available pretty much everywhere but I like this one from American Eagle.


This list will be growing, for sure. In the South it's difficult to shop for Fall because it stays hot well into October. So we have to hold off those cravings for warm clothes a little longer than most. Which would be another blog post, actually...transitional clothes that don't look too summery but are still light-weight and comfortable for 80 degree September and October days. Stay tuned!

Wisteria

Oh how I love to browse the Wisteria catalog! I have yet to make a purchase, but man am I tempted! Here are a few favorites from the current catalog and their website:

That sofa is upholstered with a bridal rug, and no two are exactly alike. Wisteria is great for their worldliness: they travel all over and recreate pieces with such an authentic ethnic feel.


Likewise for their suzani items. I am still slightly suzani-obsessed and hope this trend won't go away too soon. Love this large ottoman and also the bolster pillow on the bed. Speaking of the bed, that black headboard is so great! It comes in a twin-size too.


The gothic console table is another favorite. It looks like you salvaged it from an old church - what a great focal point in a foyer or serving piece in a dining room.


Swoon!