What I'm loving today....

this striped settee from John Derian's store in NYC's East Village.  I've been spotting the pink and red color combo a lot these days in both fashion and interiors and I gotta say....I really like it.

You?

The Perfect Desk Chair

I love this desk chair and I would like to find one like it - I bet I could find one at a antique fair, consignment store or the like.

If I found one, I'm sure it would need to be reupholstered.  I would choose a black and white striped fabric.  I think the black and white fabric paired with the brass frame and casters would look so chic.

This fabric which has a sort of john robshaw'esque' feel (at least to me) would be perfect (the price is perfect too)!

I would only need a yard and 1/2 given this nifty little yardage table for reupholstery projects.  And, if the frame and casters weren't brass, I would paint it in Rustoleum's Metallic spray paint in brass.  Or switch out the existing feet for these beauties!

Okay, now I gotta go out and find me this chair!! :)

Gruss Gott! Week One.

So, we made it one week in Vienna.  Well, actually a week and a half.  So far, so good.  What I love about our apartment is the location.  We are central to what seems like everything.  This is the cafe you see when you walk out of our building.

So far, my favorite thing to do is to go to the Naschmarkt (1 block from our apartment) and enjoy all the fresh food.  It is incredible. It certainly is a luxury to have fresh food daily - cheeses, wurst, bread, vegetables, pastries, etc.  Here are some pictures I took yesterday.

They also have fresh flowers daily.  

You can tell the Europeans are used to eating fresh foods daily as their refrigerators are so small.  There is no room to store or freeze much of anything.

Luke completed 3 half days of his new Viennesse Montessori school.  I am so proud of him.  From what I can tell (at this early stage), the kindergarden school system is very different from the American.  And, I can't get over how much smaller everything is here - especially the school class rooms and the playground (which they call 'garden').  It makes you really appreciate 'space'.

Elizabeth is faring well, but I am trying really hard to get her into a fixed sleeping schedule.  Once I can do that, my daily routine will be easier and more predictable.  So, for the time being, I am a bit limited with my outings around the city.  I'm sticking to a radius of about half a mile.

This past week we've been focusing on just getting settled and getting some of the bureaucratic things done  which always is a bit slower here in Europe.  With this behind us and Elizabeth schedule more regular, I am hoping to venture out to explore more of the city - especially the innerstadt, flea markets and the many furniture and antique stores (which seem to be everywhere).

Jenny Wolf Interiors

I love pinterest.  Who doesn't?  I stumbled across Jenny Wolf interiors while pinning and I hopped over to look at her portfolio - I am so glad I did.  I really like her style.  She grew up in the South and credits her style to her Southern roots.  Anyway, I like what I saw and thought I'd share.

Pretty, huh?  

Also, I realized I never posted my pinterest account on my blog before.  If you want to follow my boards, you can find me here. 

Crushing hard....

I know Nick Olsen's apartment featured on West Elm's blog, has been all over the blogosphere, but I had to post it because it provides endless inspiration (at least for me).

What I'm loving....

1. Stripes on wall

2. Yellow lamp with black shade

3. Classic linens 

4. Antique table

5. Stack of books 

If you haven't seen it, go here.  

In other news, we're slowly getting settled in our apartment!  Luke had his first day of school today at the Vienna Montessori school and he really liked it.  I'm so relieved.  More later. 

I'm alive....

but just not 100% with it.  We survived the long plane trip (long b/c our kids barely slept) but we, thankfully, made it safely to Wien.

Here is a picture of us at the start of our trip....

and, at the tail end of the trip when the kids finally passed out (with literally 20 minutes to go).  Isn't that always the case?

We're suffering from severe jet lag and when I say 'we' I mean the kids;  but I am the one telling Luke at 2 AM in the morning that it isn't time to get up yet.  I'll be back soon.....

2011: A Year in Review

Happy New Year!!   2011 has brought a lot of success in so many ways!  Of course the greatest is little E that is now 3 and 1/2 months old.  Other successes were finishing up some long standing projects around the home and getting our house sold in a relatively quick manner.  Here are some Green Street 2011 highlights:

DIY bulletin board

Before & After Kitchen Roman Shade

Before & After Kitchen Stool

RIT Dyed Lamp Shade

DIY Painted & Stenciled Ikea Rug

Before & After Kitchen

Before & After Patio

Before & After Hallway

DIY Greek Key Roman Shade

Before & After Renovated Bathroom

Before & After Dining Room

Before & After Sideboard

Make sure you click on the links to see the 'before'.  There are some huge transformations.

All of these projects were completed before Elizabeth was born in September and our house sold in October.  Phew! We accomplished a TON in 2011 and I look forward to a new adventure when we temporarily move to Vienna, Austria (leave this Tuesday).  

I hope you all have a wonderful New Year's Day and the next time you'll hear from me will be in Vienna!!   Bis dann....