A love affair: Beatrice and Woodsley

What's not to love about imbibing in the woods? Beatrice and Woodsley in Denver's Sobo neighborhood was the perfect nightcap for our last night in Denver {although I wish we would have stumbled across it earlier}. The ethereal interior is a fancy woodsy-land created by owners Kevin Delk and John Skogstad, featuring bar shelves of felled logs supported by chainsaws; exposed studs and ship-lap; illumination by hanging lanterns; rain chains as faucets {there certainly is a trick to washing your hands}; and rolls of tp as installation art.

[photo credits: menu: Nina B. via Yelp; restroom and woods: talkof sobo.com; bar: Tiffany C. via Yelp; RR sketch: yours truly]

Just a stone's throw from my parents house, I know to be suspicious of any "walks in the woods" Will takes.

A snowy sight...

What a wonderful holiday we had in Denver. We had flurries everyday followed by festive lights in the evening. I didn't realize until now how tonal and beautiful the days were in comparison to the jewel-toned saturated nights.

Merry Christmas Y'all!!!

Fun photos from Queso in Marfa, Texas

Peace, love, and joy to you and yours!

O Holy Night...

as arranged by Trombone Shorty and featured on Studio 60 is still my favorite. The episode aired in 2006 when the recovery of New Orleans was in its early stages. {Guaranteed to empty my cry jar.}

PS: why was this show canceled??

Hey Shorty....

Trombone Shorty, that is...and here are his 2 cents:

the Afterparty

While I did not snap any photos during our 4th annual gumbo party {Joie de Vivre}. Here are some shots of the clean up. Key indicators of a good time in our house are: overflowing recycle bins...pots swiped clean with bread...confetti...late nite round of celebrity...a mound of chalk dust...board games used as decorations.

"in December drinking Horchata"

The new Vampire Weekend CD "Contra" is almost here. Have a listen to "Horchata" ....

....click here for your own free download "Horchata".

In the Haus...Lonny Mag

These last 4 days without sunshine are really getting me down so I am e-scaping with Lonny Magazine online. I am completely enthralled with the retail spaces this month: J.Crew, Kate Spade, and Haus Interior. I loved Jenna's style showcased in her home in Nov 08 Domino {my favorite issue} so applying her personal style to the J.Crew Women's Collection store is brilliant... Dunbar sofa and chevron wood flooring {the flooring of my dream home}...yum! Kate Spades' shimmering accent wall of paillettes really shines. Haus Interiors brightened my morning most with their affordable mix of decor pieces. The painted wood floor is beautimous {a modern take on the chevron: we recently ripped up our bedroom carpet so I am looking for the right paint & pattern to cover the ugly shiplap, hmmm...}, the variety of artist made items are fever-inducing, the hay encapsulated display table took me back to sunny Marfa and Barbara Hill's first house remodel.

photo credit for the above: Lonny Mag.

photo credit BarbaraHillDesign.com

Be sure to check out the new Lonny Mag online!

Holiday with a chance of Flurries

Snowflakes have long been my favorite symbol of the wintery season. Since my parents moved to the square state of Colorado, I actually do get to see some flurries every year. Each December my parents visit the Georgetown holiday market and pick up a few of Ken Nelson's snowflake ornaments. Each year Ken crafts a new snowflake which reflects on events of the year past. The four in our collection, as pictured below, reflect on forest fires, cacti, graffiti, and CAD drafting {actually I forgot the story behind this one other than for the first time Ken used computer-aided drafting to design the flake rather than carving}. I can't wait to see this year's creation!

Burning Desires-Plodes Studio

Now that the mercury has finally dropped here in Houston, I am back on the eternal hunt for the best firepit for our backyard. Well I think that the search is over. Check out Firepit by Plodes Studio. This firepit is like no other I have seen, constructed in cold rolled carbon steel with a rust patina, the angled form and warm texture elevate this pit into the realm of modern sculpture. Also available to keep your pit relevant in the warmer months are a cedar table top or grill top accessory.

John Paul Plauche' is the architect and industrial designer extraordinare behind Plodes Studio. I am always impressed with John's ability to deconstruct|reinvent familiar objects. Eliminating any irrelevant parts, John's work is always clean and on-point.

The 30" version {40" is made to order} is kept in stock and available at Greener Grass Design or PEEL Gallery.

Inspired reading- Yabu Pushelberg

I have been admiring Yabu Pushelberg's hospitality designs for a few years now {The Hazelton Hotel, Graves 601 Hotel, St. Regis Mexico City, Lane Crawford Home, Las Olas Lobby to name a few} and it looks like they have a new monograph out! {268 pages of beautiful!} I can't wait to take a peek at their designs for private residences. Check out a few pages on 1stdibs Introspective - Required Reading - Yabu Pushelberg.

all images via yabupushelberg.com

Industrial Chic

While I like to tease Will that he likes anything shiny {i.e. steel, aluminum} I too have a love of anything industrial. Every object is straight forward and suits its purpose. Over the last few years I have seen some really great re-spouting of typically utilitarian objects. Yumi Janairo Roth's collections Paleta::Pallet and proded, tugged, pushed, pulled are phenominal. Both are recreations of the typical utilitarian objects of pallets and furniture dollies rendered in luxurious materials of walnut, mother of pearl inlay, rattan caning, and steel castors. For 2009 she created another set of pallets, Cargo Cult, this time collecting them off the streets of New York and inlaying mother of pearl only to redeposit them on the street. Lastly the Cast Metal Milk Crate which I have spied in Urban Outfitters is a great reinvention of its plastic version for longer durability {although I think it is no longer available online, check local stores}.

Images via Yumijroth.com and urbanoutfitters.com respectively.

Art Box Reveal

Art boxes are due today!

For a few years now I have wanted to create an entire wall of vertical trim pieces. So I was motivated when said feature wall was value-engineered out of my project to create the pieces as art to hang on a wall. I am hoping to create more on a much larger scale. These boxes are created with trim and stock discards {another motivation was also a little practice on the chop saw}.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope that you are with the ones you love, gathered around a large table eating and drinking merrily!

Aioli Dinner, George Rodrigue, 1971

This painting, while not about Thanksgiving, reminds me of a few holiday's spent at my grandparents in New Iberia. Our typical holiday routine was for my paternal side of the family to come to New Orleans to celebrate with my maternal side, so it was the best of both worlds. But the holidays spent in New Iberia ring in my mind just like this painting {minus the plantation} but full of an older generation gathering around telling tales many of which were in Cajun French.

For more info on this painting check out Wendy Rodrigue's blog.

Esther K.

Allow me to introduce you to my friend Susan B., the creative mind behind Esther K. {the jewelry line named for her great grandmother}. Susan is one of the most inspiring people I have had the honor of knowing. Back in New Orleans during our spa shop girl days she was creating 'round the clock. Every morning she would come in with something new that she created or refashioned. Now living in Philadelphia {by way of NYC with fashion degree under her belt} she is still a woman about town, editing for Daily Candy Philadelphia, and designing Esther K.

Each Esther K. collection carries a theme that is brought to life in brass and reinvented vintage charms... so its sure to patina beautifully as time marches on. Susan is continually inspired by her time in New Orleans and those humid and sultry memories are perfectly channeled into these new heirlooms.

images via Esther K.

Be sure to check out her holiday collection online, all pieces are under $55.

Notes on a 3rd Birthday Party

We had a great weekend with dear friends in New Orleans last weekend. The main event was their 3 year olds birthday party. I observed the essentials of a successful party are:

Party hats {check}

Animals on cakes, animals on plates {check}

Spacewalk {check}

The best party favors {check}

Breakfast sweets not allowed any other day of the year {check}

Gumbo {check}

Adults Beverages {check},{check}