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interior decor
Today I'm over on La Dolce Vita with a new series that will focus on spotlighting fabulous combinations of color, pattern, texture, and other elements that are noteworthy. First up I'm featuring one of my favorites: leopard + black + neutrals. Click on over to check out the post.
More inspiration and pieces for getting the look here!
While reading the Domaine feature on Cynthia Collins, I learned that aside from being an interior designer, she is also co-owner of Blue Print - a store in Uptown Dallas. I clicked on over to the store website and immediately fell in love. They sell handpicked antiques, original artwork, accessories, and high-end furniture, all inside a really charming and architecturally beautiful old home:
They do such a beautiful job with styling:
If I ever go to Dallas, I'd love to visit the store. Looks like such an inspiring place!
So delighted that our Raja Embroidery pillow was featured in Domaine Home as part of the 'Get the Look' portion of their post on interior designer Cynthia Collins' home tour. Cynthia's home is absolutely beautiful and her design aesthetic definitely resonates with me. Each space is bright and airy, yet cozy, with just the right dose of color.
I'm a huge fan of Aerin Lauder, so I was so excited to hear about her new book Beauty at Home, which just launched. Aerin is one of my favorite style icons and never fails to inspire me. Her book looks beautiful from the previews I've seen...can't wait to receive it in the mail!
p.s. If you're also a fan of Aerin's you'll be excited to hear that we're using fabrics from her line for some of the new pillows that we'll be adding to the shop. Stay tuned!
Today I'm over on La Dolce Vita talking about faux fur throws and blankets. Head on over for lots of inspiration and a round up of sources for getting the look!
Absolutely loving this beautifully organized dressing room from the home of Rita Hazan:
Shoes are neatly arranged on white open shelves (from Ikea!) and beauty essentials are on a glamorous mirrored vanity
A stylish modern black platter helps keep things organized.
Such much goodness here - the big window with floor to ceiling drapes, the tufted daybead, the unique gold wall studs, the brass glass pendant...
A patterned tray corrals jewelry and pretty objects.
See more of Rita's home here.
Although we're bound to continue to have days of summer-like weather over here in California, I'm happy that it's officially fall and soon enough the air will get crisper and the leaves will turn. Looking forward to cozying up with warm drinks, indulging in everything pumpkin and apple, and pulling out the scarves, sweaters and boots. What do you love best about fall?
Tomorrow it will be 2 years since I opened my little pillow shop. The day I opened it, I was a bit nervous yet excited and hopeful. I was jumping into new unfamiliar territory and I wasn't sure what to expect exactly, but my intuition told me I was headed in the right direction and I felt optimistic of what lied ahead.
Having gone through, and working our way out of, a very rough economic period, my husband and I had very little money at the time. Somehow though, I found a way to come up with some money (less than $1,000) to invest in starting up the business. Upon opening the shop I offered only 6 pillows, all in one size. The idea was to start small with what I could, and re-invest any profits to grow the business over time. I figured if it didn't work out, it wouldn't be too huge of a financial loss, so I felt okay about taking the risk. I think that had I waited to come up with enough money to open the shop with as many pillows as I have available now, I possibly would have never done it.
With a little luck and a lot of hard work I'm so grateful that the business has steadily grown over the past two years. I was able to quit the part-time job I had when I opened the shop, and I've been a full time shop owner for over a year now. It's been a dream come true to be my own boss, work in an industry I am passionate about, and have the freedom and control to mold, create, and grow my business however I want to.
While there's no way of foreseeing what the future holds, I do have some things planned for my third year in business that I'm very excited about and hope will lead to other positive things. I'll be taking a business training program led by a woman I greatly admire and respect, I'll be launching a re-vamped version of the shop website (currently in the works!), adding several new pillows, and I'll most likely be hiring an assistant.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of you who have been so supportive and spread the word about the shop via your blogs, social media, and word of mouth, and of course those of you who have been customers and chosen to make Arianna Belle pillows a part of your beautiful homes. My shop would not be a success without you all!
In celebration of my 2 year anniversary and the start of my 3rd year in business, I will be offering 15% off everything in my shop starting midnight tonight, September 22nd, through end of Monday September 23rd. To get the discount, just enter this code at checkout: AB2YEAR
Thank you again for all your support!! xx
My leopard velvet pillows appeared on the TODAY show yesterday morning during their Fall Fashion & Home Decor Trends segment! Here's the video clip (they show up towards the end):
Although they didn't include an on-screen credit, it was still very exciting to see my pillows make their debut on national television! Hopefully this will be the first of more to come!
For this month's Get the Look post I'm featuring a gorgeous living room by Arkansas interior designer Laurie McFarland.
While the flooring, wall color, and main furnishings are all neutral, the room is anything but boring. Vibrant decorative pillows deliver a burst of color and enliven the space. Large mirrors flanking either side of the sofa make a symmetrical statement while giving the illusion of spatial depth. Silk draperies and touches of gold add a sense luxury and glamour.
Get the look with these pieces:
1. double gourd lamp, 2. mosaic mirror, 3. pink patterned pillow, 4. magenta velvet pillow, 5. gold greek key lumbar, 6. gold-leaf side table, 7. linen chair
I'm thrilled to be part of Roxy's latest Society Social Manifesto Magalog. It's filled with so much fabulous inspiration. I love the shots of the colorful and summery space below featuring our Trellis Watermelon pillow:
Check out the magalog here!
This gorgeous kitchen has so many of the elements I'd want in my dream kitchen someday. A bright open layout, beautiful white cabinetry, marble countertops, a large island, white subway tiles, hardwood floors, a built-in bay window breakfast nook with views of the backyard greenery...
Dreamy right?? To make it my own I'd probably add in some french bistro stools, and of course some of my pillows.
For a look at the cool built-in organizational features of the kitchen as well as before photos, check out the homeowner's blog here.
See more of my dream home inspiration here and here.
One of my favorite parts of my job is seeing my pillows in their new homes. I know I have some seriously talented customers. Canadian interior designer Raiana Schwenker is no exception. She just shared photos of her living room (which she decorated on a budget!) and it's absolutely fabulous. Take a look:
Click on over to Sadie and Stella to see more photos and read about all the details!
Have you checked out the latest issue of Adore Home? It's packed with beautiful interiors like the cheerfully colorful home of stylist and decorator Clair Wayman featured on the cover ...
AND, if you flip to page 157 you'll see our Bengal Bazaar pillow featured in the Get the Look page for a home designed by Greg Natale:
So delighted to be included in such a fabulous magazine!
If you haven't yet, grab yourself a cup of coffee or tea and read the issue here.
Honored to be included in a fun article about spring home decor on the website iVillage. Click on over to read it!
Hate turning the clocks forward and "losing" an hour, but love that the sun will stay out later and days will feel longer.
Hope you are having a wonderful start to your week!
For a couple of years now, spaces with pieces that have beautiful nail head detailing, whether it's on a chair, an ottoman, a bulletin board, nightstand, or a headboard, have tended to catch my attention. There's something so elegant about that type of detail. A few lovely spaces I've gravitated towards:
image credits: 1-via angeleno interiors, 2-sandra morgen design, 3-orrick and company, 4-via elizabeth kimberly's flickr, 5-via high street market, 6-jamie herzlinger, 6-alice lane home, 7-andreas trauttmansdorff Last week I did a post on hanging pot racks, which featured mostly large kitchens. This kitchen below shows how a hanging pot rack can be integrated into smaller quarters:
It works here because there's free wall space, as in the pots aren't blocking any cabinet doors. They do look quite high up there though, so I'm guessing the homeowner keeps a step stool handy :)
Love the idea of adding a bit of extra color to gallery walls by using mats in a color other than basic white...
...or white but with a colorful border around the window opening...
or by painting frames a fun color (like yellow or orange!)
