Gil Schafer's Greek Revival

I live for Saturday mornings. Carter and I wake up, pluck Ana Claire from her crib, brew two cups of coffee and head to our den where we watch old episodes of This Old House until the reality of weekend chores sets in.

This past weekend, we were watching this episode which included a tour of an upstate New York home done in the Greek Revival style (the same style being used on part of the project home).

Here's Norm standing in front of the visited home with architect Gil Schafer...who I now understand is brilliant.

That's a cruddy screenshot of the show. I think this home is Gil's. Not sure, but that's the sense I got from the interview as they walked through the house.

This house is beyond amazing. I think I stood up in the den and spilled my coffee to get closer to the screen to jump up and down and praise its beauty. It's not large (and I think it's meant to be a cozy vacation escape) but it's perfectly scaled. And the details are stunning. And get this....IT WAS A NEW BUILD.  That was the headline of the TOH piece...a new house built with old details. I was shocked that the house had no history...bits and pieces of it do...but it was definitely built from scratch with details to give it a sense of place.

Here are some great pictures from Gil's website that really showcase the home's charm:

^ Entry Hall ^

^ Dining Room / Library ^

^ Living Room ^

^ Kitchen ^

^ Bedroom ^

^ Bathroom  ^

AMAZING. DREAM HOUSE.

Now excuse my video screenshots, but I thought some details were worth exploring...

^ Amazing entry with beautiful mouldings...^

^ Details like pocket doors and mercury door knobs ^

^ Reclaimed wood floors ^

^ An awesome butler's pantry with apron-front sink and vintage lighting ^

^ This kitchen is beyond words, I love it so. Butcher block counters! A painted wood floor. Vintage lighting. Glass-front cabinets. Great hardware. Modern appliances. A dining table. A FIREPLACE. ^

^ View of dining room/library looking into the living room. Love the shared fireplace and the double entry. ^

^ Another view of the living room. Love the art perched on the cabinet. Love the natural floorcovering done wall-to-wall...really grounds a very traditional space. Also, note the floor-to-ceiling windows...so awesome. ^

^ The hallway that runs from front to back of the house with the stairwell. ^

I think this house would be very at home in Virginia horse country...say, Charlottesville...a place Carter and I would be very happy living. Hmmm....

So I'm now obsessed with Gil Schafer's work. 

Update: thank you to my awesome commenters I now know Miles Redd had a hand in the interiors. And it appears the book already exists - I want it. Apparently I've been living under a rock to have just discovered Mr. Schafer's talent. 

Check out Gil's website here...

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Raggedy Ann Birthday Party

As I mentioned in this post, Ana Claire had a Raggedy Ann-themed first birthday party. I really tried not to go overboard...and since the party had to be inside due to the cold of December, I had to keep the guest list slim. But let's be clear that my natural reaction was to make this the Party Of The Century...especially when Pinterest sends your party-planning mind into overdrive.

So what's the best way to prep for your daughter's first birthday party? THE STOMACH FLU! Naturally.

Carter and I were DOWN for TWO DAYS the week before the party. TWO DAYS. And my company holiday party was the night before her 11 am party...and apparently drinking two glasses of wine after having the stomach flu is equivalent to taking 73 shots of tequila...so let's just say my 6 am wake-up call to finish the party prep the next morning was miserable. There might have been a 9 am breakdown where I asked Carter to call everyone to cancel.

But alas...I found my inner strength...Carter rallied...and we pulled it off. I didn't get to the cupcake picks. Or hanging the lanterns. And the cake wasn't really baked in the center (no one ate it). But as you can see from the pictures, the event was still delightfully cute. And the most important customer surely didn't care that not all of the items on my Pinterest board were completed.

Have a look at our sweet celebration:

All photos by Crystal Downs

 ^ My favorite picture ^

 ^ I made the cake but got the topper on Etsy ^

 ^ Kettle Corn favors!! ^

 ^ Mac n Cheese cups & Ham Biscuits ^

And here are the best pictures of all...the birthday girl in striped tights.

Adorable.

It was a great party. Ana Claire was surrounded by people who love her. She thoroughly enjoyed her cupcake. I wouldn't change a thing :)

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Friday Crush

Yowza! This is magnificent. Maybe not for my house...unless I lived in a crazy mansion...but PERFECT for what looks like a hotel. I found this guy on Pinterest and it credits Hotel Monaco but I'm unsure of which location it is. Anyone know? And look at those floor lamps. They are table lamps but in floor size! Brilliant. But back to the pagoda...wow. And against that red wall. Stunning.

Ya'll, I have been sick FOREVER. I'm going on two weeks and I need to shake this. And it doesn't help that one day it's 2 degrees and then this weekend it will be 60. Seriously? I have lots to do in 2014 and I'd like to get to it. Have a fab weekend. See you next week!

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Finally

Finally.

My go-to accent color of lavender/plum/orchid, lovingly dubbed lavumchid (how does one pronounce it? I have no idea), is the darling of the color scene. Per Pantone.

I've been yammering on about shades of purple for a while like here (2011!) and all the posts here. Not that I'm a soothsayer. I'm just happy a color I love has been dubbed uber-hip so I'll see it hit the marketplace with force in the coming year. I already spotted a gorgeous lumbar pillow at Target that might need to come home with me.

This room showcasing John Robshaw fabrics is from 2012 but it nails the trend IMO.

Lavender, plum and orchid do not solely belong to the tween crowd.

And you KNOW I love this shade paired with green, as seen in my dining room. In fact, all this hubbub about orchid has me wanting to tackle some new curtains for my dining room - I've had some orchid velvet sitting in a box for YEARS waiting to become curtains...and I want to move my chintz to the chair seats as I'm growing a bit tired of the large hem look. I'll let you know if that happens.

See more of this awesome bedroom here...

So what say you on the color of the year? Have you been an orchid lover all along? Or is the hue new for you?

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Fetching In The Fan

Follow me here.

Remember my friend Julianne (a.k.a. Mason's mom*)?
Julianne has a sister named Willa.
Willa has a sister-in-law named Kate.
Kate lives in Richmond, Virginia...

IN AN AMAZING HOUSE.

Kate shares this fetching home in the Fan District of Richmond - a historic, beautiful part of the city - with her husband and three kids. She paired her fantastic taste with the talent of her interior designer Lesley Glotzl and these ladies created an eclectic stunner of a home for a young family.

This is just good on the eyeballs:

(WALLPAPER!)

I just die over traditional pieces paired with modern elements and bold colors. It works. And this house has so much personality. It does not at all feel "designed"...it just feels like a well collected, beautifully mixed home. I especially love the art! And that dining room with the red curtains paired with the traditional armoire, modern chairs, and gold light fixture. Yes, yes, yes.

Julianne shared this little gem with me a while back but I was holding on to it as a good way to kick off 2014 on AO!

Check out the rest of Lesley's work here...and check out Kate's website (she's a blogger among many talents).

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*p.s. Today is Mason's birthday! Happy birthday, Mason!

Friday Crush

(Anybody know the image source?)

Now that the holidays are over, and after nursing a week-long case of laryngitis, I'm ready for a whole lot of this. Pretty fires in a pretty fireplace. Today's temperatures are in the 20s so after a day at work, I'll be ready to curl up in front of our own fireplace for a weekend of rest.

Hope your new year is off to a fantastic start! See you next week!

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