happy holidays and have a prosperous 2010

be back in 2-0-1-0

55 DEGREES!

can you believe that today it's 55 degrees and raining, in FLORIDA? 45 minutes to the atlantic ocean! something just doesn't seem right. i guess it's time to coordinate the inside of my home with the outside. pulling out the blankets, galoshes, and put up the christmas tree.

winter decor to me is always warm, DARK, and inviting... as opposed to summer decor which should feel light, air yet still inviting. my go to guy for winter decor is always Ralph Lauren... he seems to alway capture that rich, luxurious feeling. Whether it's a feeling of lounging at a luxurious ski lodge, or a night cap at a five star hotel or restaurant. He captures this through is unique layering of rich colors and accessories.

i love switching out my home decor from winter to summer. i try to keep it simple (but Lord knows I can do things over the top sometimes), I basically switch out my window treatments, choosing a darker shade... with dark accessories.
secretly i wish my husband would paint the walls darker in winter and lighter in summer, but that would be too much, you think? :) i hope this inspires you to get the spirit of winter...


happy winter decorating...

Table Settings and thankful

this year i am thankful for laughter... laughter when gathering with family... laughter among friends... thankful laughter to know the Lord has spared my life for another year... have a wonderful Thanksgiving day and may your holiday be filled with family, friends and many more to come!

color me purple...

TGIF.... amen! this has been a truly hectic week... and the NaBloPo didn't help, but i am getting through it.... this is going to be a great weekend... i can just feel it... we have a few family members coming over for a well needed gathering... as i type i am putting the finishing touches to the table setting... i just took a quick snapshot with my camera phone (since my camera is off for it's regular check up)... we will also be venturing out to see the Color Purple....yes the play and i can't wait... our entire household is excited (household= the hubby and i)... i hope you have a wonderful weekend filled with family gathers, broadway plays and lots of love....

project dress up (NaBloPo 4)

after much time of procrastinating i have decided to get my butt in gear on dressing up our bland walls... though they have a hint of color, something still feels missing... so this weekend i am going to get the old paint brush and canvas out... i am a huge fan of gilt champagne frames, escpecially the ones from pottery barn... gilt champagne frames with a human form sketch on a tea dyed paper... i am in heaven... if all goes well this weekend, expect a post on my masterpiece...

lost for words (NaPoBlo 3)

today has been an extremely long day (longer than a day should be)... so i wanted to share with you a few of the places i would rather be than where i am right now...

man this NaPoBlo thing is getting hard!

paper or paint? (NaBloPoMo 2)

wallpaper has made a comeback... and it's not your grandma's kind of wallpaper! many companies have created clean fresh designs to appease any style or taste... i have been considering applying wallpaper in our downstairs coat closet... but with so many projects on the burner, this will have to wait.... but i will get to it eventually.... (notice the bird cages?)

NaBloPoMo...... (always up for a challenge)

yes, monday starts of the month for National Blog Posting Month. which means, if i accept the challenge, i will have to post something every day for the month of November (even on weekends and holidays)! well, i guess i have to do what i have to do...

lately i have been in love with everything zebra (just accents, i think animal print can look very tacky if used too much and you have to get a really classy print as well). i purchased these zebra print hand towels from pottery barn (which i use as my hand towel in the kitchen) and i love them... I am now looking for a custom made cushion for my banquette and you guessed it, i am thinking of getting a zebra fabric for this project... not sure yet, but i will keep you up dated.

I love the decor above, this would be perfect in your beach or vacation home. and i love the birds... i actually have a huge bird cage on the landing of my stairs and every time my nephew comes over he always ask his mom.... "mom where are the birds? she replies "there are no birds, buddy." "then why does auntie Tamsin have a bird cage in her house?"

I wish i had a good answer for you buddy... i just like them and i think they look very classy and vintage....

one post down, twenty eight more to go....

a busy ride...

i have been very busy these days, so i apologize for the lack of post. from visiting my new niece to creating my business website and still trying to maintain our happy home... i haven't really done much to our home lately but i have a few projects stirring and waiting to be completed. the finish products of our home will be posted one of these days... but til then, i share with you little gifts of life to wet the palate... see you soon...

we pardon this blog-cast to introduce Jazmine Mya....

i call her "Patchouli." my beautiful neice

she was born one day before my birthday.

a toast to a happy ending...

madison ave gifts -zrike pavillion clear glassware

pottery barn - classic goblet

villeroy and boch - boston

target - gibraltar ice tea glasses

pottery barn - montana goblet

yesterday was not a good day for me... i encountered rude, disrespectful people throughout the day. thank the Lord i know the Lord, because if i didn't, they would have met my alter ego, TUNISA... even though it was a rough day i quickly cheered myself up with my favorite past-time, shopping. it seems as if i am in need of everything these days. i have been looking for unique, classy goblets and have found a few that i must have. i contemplated over them for weeks. i love them all! the zrike pavillion adds fun, i probably will use this for my girls night in. the classic pottery barn goblet says it all, it's classic and i will use it for my dinner parties or my luncheons. the boston goblet is for guest that are staying awhile. the gibraltar is for everyday use and the montana goblet is for my famous dessert parties. so as you may figure i got them all. boy did i feel good after my horrible day... now let's only hope tomorrow is a better day, if not, i've been eyeing a really nice pair of shoes that will quickly cheer me up!

Storage + OCD = trouble (the organized home)

as you know from my last post i have been on a mission to get things in order. i have ordered storage boxes galore, i just started getting rid of things i have not used in years or what i call "some other man's treasure." things are looking up and finally i begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

photographs from http://www.taylorhannaharchitect.com/

I have been casing the internet for ideas on our kitchen. I am not a big fan on having a cluttered counter, so i have displayed only the finest items that i want everyone to enjoy. thank goodness we have 42" cabinets which means lots of storage. i have become a big fan of storage, in anything and any way i can find it and i have began to utilize it more. Even though i am not a fan of white kitchens, i love the the storage this long alley kitchen displayed above has. do you know how many place card holders i could store in this kitchen?

photographs from http://www.taylorhannaharchitect.com/

this is a woman's dreams! a place for all our shoes, purses and accessories, this is truly a dream. and look there's room for his clothes as well... not only do i like the the shoe shelves but it also gives me great ideas for my husbands closet and adding extra storage for him. (i love the shoe draws below and the shelf ideas for sweaters).

photographs from http://www.taylorhannaharchitect.com/

more storage idea... i love built-ins in the closet, bedroom, basically anywhere as long as they are architecturally pleasing...

OCDing...

it has been a very crazy few weeks... i feel like i am constantly cleaning and organizing my home... i think i suffer from some serious OCD behavior... this will be the 730th time that i have cleaned and organized my home since we built it two years ago... it's the craziest thing, i just never feel like our home is clean enough or organized enough... everyday i say to myself this will be the last time this week that i clean and organize the house... someone save me from myself... it's getting out of hand...

but all in all i must say that my OCD does pay off at some point, like

the storage box above comes in so handy for organizing everything... they are typically used as CD boxes but i have used them for photos, cards, check books, and receipts...etc... and i also got a label maker so i can easily know what's in each box (crazy, right?)... yes, i know, i am the OCD-ier of all OCDs... but whatever makes me happy, right?

so for those of you that have been wondering where have i been? you can find me at home cleaning and organizing....

is this the point where i say, hi my name is Tamsin and i am an OCD-ier? hey, at least you can eat off of my floors...

(if interested in the storage boxes and label maker, click one the orange words)

Fabric Frenzy

this weekend my good friend brenda and i went to calico corners to check out some material to recover a couple of my living room chairs (pictures to come soon). as soon as i walked in i felt overwhelmed. there were so many styles, colors, patterns and types of fabric to choose from. i almost cried trying to figure out what fabric i wanted (seriously). i wish i could have walked in the store having the sales lady tell me i only have one option, so take it or leave it... the bad thing is, i had a look in mind and once i got in the store i threw that look out the window... in my panic i whipped out my iphone and took pictures to email my husband to see which one he liked, but i decided i wanted it to be a surprise and that it was!
as you can see there are lots of beautiful fabric to choose from, so you can understand my frustration and my crying break down! 10 hours later the winning fabric was cut and sent off to it's happy new home.


when i first bought the chairs that i am recovering, my husband had to express how much he hated those chairs, well to my surprise, once the fabric was on the chairs my husband found it absolutely necessary to text me while i was grocery shopping that evening. his text was as follows, "forgive me, i will never question your styling and designing again. the fabric is great!!!" -------------true story!

wood U?

my #1 choice
the very dark, is my husband's choice

it's been a while since my last post and there is no excuse for that. i have been a busy woman. i didn't realize how little time there is in the day to accomplish things. we have been so busy re-landscaping our front garden, getting our summer travels out the way, and most importantly catching our breath along the way. enough about me... our wood samples have finally arrived and i am super excited (i am over our carpeted living-room). the very top picture is my number one choice because it's warm and i love the natural looking knots. my husband likes the darker of them all and there's a story behind that. when we first started talking about wood flooring i told him i want it to be blacker than black because it was very regal and chic.... i sold him on the idea (as i always do) and he's set that he only wants the darkest... so now i have to sell him on the warm idea... good luck to me

it's electric!

taken with my iphone

for some reason, lately i have been into lamps... setting the right mood with lighting for the right occasion... For instance, when i cook, i like to dim the lights, light a candle and listen to some good old soca or Calypso! it puts me in a calm mood and i enjoy cooking more... or if we have friends over for a dinner party, i love having only candle lights with the corners of the house glowing or dark, but if i am cozying up to a good book, i need the brightest light they make... whatever the reason, i have been seeking out lamps for every corner of my house and low and behold, i came across this little retro beauty at home goods (it wouldn't go with my house, but perhaps you have been dying for this beauty all your life)... first off, i love the color of the shades and did you know yellow is the new it color? and i extremely love the details on the base of the lamp... for twenty nine ninety nine and being that fabulous, i say you need to run to home goods now!

nothing desperate about kim zolciak

desperate housewives may be on a summer break but the real housewives of orange/atlanta/new york and new jersey are hot and kicking. i am not a big fan of reality shows but i can't help checking out the cat fights but most importantly i always check out the decor. during the season of the real housewives of atlanta i fell in love with Kim Zolciak's atlanta townhome... check out the spread