Another One Bites The Dust

I'm back from another fun-filled beach trip!  We spent the weekend celebrating my sweet sister-in-law Kelly's final days of freedom singledom.

My other sweet sister-in-law, Laura, rode down with me on Friday afternoon.  We made it into the area around dinner time... so a stop at Johnson Creek Tavern was a must!  It is the closest restaurant to Fripp Island, and - fortunately - is also a family favorite with delicious seafood, fried pickles, and hush puppies.

The rest of girls arrived later that evening, and we enjoyed some wine while settling into the house.  On Saturday morning, several of the girls organized the absolute cutest lingerie shower I have ever seen!  Seriously.

The theme was 'bootylicious,' with all of the food, drinks, music, & games tying into the theme!  For example, there was 'Fruity Patootie Booty Fruit Salad' and 'Pink Pantie Punch'...  And of course, this unforgettable cake:

The rest of the weekend was spent lounging on the beach, enjoying another delicious meal in Beaufort, and getting in lots of chatting & story-telling at the house!

Hopefully Kelly enjoyed her last fling before the ring... Now the countdown to their big day begins!

Stolen

As I mentioned earlier, we had a wonderful long weekend with friends! Unfortunately, I didn’t take a single picture... But I was able to steal a few from Amy's husband.

The days looked a lot like this:

And this:

With plenty to eat & drink for all... Including a delicious dinner of this guy... Talk about eating local!

As a sign of these-trips-aren't-spring-break-anymore, I will admit that the last night we were all in bed by 10:30 pm!  Jeff's response to my observation of this was, 'well we were fishing all day.'  I'm not gonna lie, I kind of like it. 

Save your pennies

We're back from an amazing long weekend at the beach!  I have 2 full work days to go before I'm back on vacation for my sweet sister-in-law's bachelorette party.

However, I'm resisting any vacation souvenir spending, including my favorite: t-shirts.  I'm saving for this monogram necklace.

Unless my dear husband wants to give me a summer school start-of-the-semester gift... That's not a stretch, right?

Beach-Bound!

We're beach-bound for the long Memorial Day weekend!  I actually owe a huge thank you to all of our wonderful, understanding friends... We were originally set to spend the weekend at my dad's beach house, but there was apparently a miscommunication between him & the other part-owner (a very good friend of my dad's who lives in Apex, NC).  To make a long story short, the house was rented by the part-owner for the weekend as well.... and we got bumped.

Fortunately, every one has taken it in stride, and we ended up getting an amazing house on Edisto Island.  Added bonus:  the house is much larger, and we each get our own bedroom! 

But, I still feel terrible... And what does a Greek girl do when she feels terrible?  Makes it up with food.  And a trip to CostCo.

We're departing early tomorrow morning, giving me just enough time to spend this evening whipping up a few meal items and sweet treats to say 'we're sorry' with calories!

Can't wait for a nice, long weekend of fun (and hopefully forgiveness for last-minute plan switching) with friends!

Summer Room Inspiration

I used to feel very strongly against white walls.  In fact, Jeff's entire house was painted white, and repainting was the very first item on my to-do list, once we were married.

Now, I'm not sure if I feel the same way... This living room is a relatively small space, and I l-o-v-e the white walls as well as the white sofa and settee. 

{apologies, can't remember where I found this image... I believe the home of a blogger? let me know if you know!}

Perhaps a nice off-white wall color for a change in our living room is in order?  (I know, I know... I promise I'll stop this one day)  Maybe it is the summer weather, but I've been drawn to crisp, clean, clutter-free rooms lately... And this one really gets that look!

What do you think... Do you have any white rooms in your house?  Or does it make you feel like Ke$ha... blah, blah, blah?

Sew Important

Learning how to sew has been on my 'to-do' list for quite some time now... But recently it was bumped up to priority one, after I finish my grad school program next spring.

I can't count the number of times I've thought, 'I wish I could just make those (you fill in the home decorating blank here... drapes, pillows, ottoman slipcover, bed skirt) myself.'  And to add another 'I wish' to the list, I've been racking my brain to come up with a way to make my own table skirt for a console table in our office.

I love this linen table skirt from Wisteria.  The panels allow you to access all storage items easily, which is exactly what I need in our office to store my school notebooks, our photo albums, and other items I don't want on display.

Naturally, Jenny created a beautiful skirted console table with her mother's help.

I'm wondering if I could create a similar look with some iron-on hem tape?  Suggestions welcome, until I can learn my way around a sewing machine.

Living Room Progress

We've been in the slow process of redecorating our living room... As I've mentioned before, I was a little too quick to purchase at first and am learning my lessons slowly but surely on what I like style-wise.  I'm so happy with the progress we've made, and while we still have work left to do, I thought I'd share a few before and after pictures.

Before:

After:

It feels so much larger, and without a doubt brighter, now... Not to mention much more like home.  I'm still eagerly awaiting a sunburst mirror for over the fireplace, with our new substantial mantel replacing the 'ledge' that was there before. 

Other items on our short list... We have plans to frame a series of 9 botanical prints from Wild Flowers of America, via Jenny, above the yellow settee.  We also have two paintings of New Orleans, by Jeff's grandpa Zeke, for the opposite side of the tv console table (these are two of my favorite items - as in, they are on my list of things to save in case of emergency)  Finally, we need to get some curtains up to soften the look of the wooden blinds.

Trading out that old, rust-colored dual recliner is also on my short list... Unfortunately, it is not even on Jeff's long list.  Any tips to disguise it's old, 80's furniture look would be more than welcome.

Hope to have some more living room updates and project details for you in the next month or so!