News 01.11.24: Five Essential Articles
4 days ago
Nursery {inspiration}
Labels:
Baby,
Boy,
family,
inspiration,
Interiors,
maternity,
Nursery,
Sarah,
Sarah's house
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After dinner at the Ritz in Buckhead
Isn't my family beautiful ;)
....back to the nursery! Here are some pictures that inspired my ideas:
I started at restoration hardware baby and child because I basically love every room that they do. I love this color blue!!!!!! It is just so dreamy.
Then, I became obsessed with hot air balloons and globes! The colors in this picture are not exactly what I am going for, but I love! the globe mobile, giraffe lamp, and the hot air balloon model.
And, of course, I have to have animals for a little boy! Here are some of the prints that I liked....
To add a bit of a vintage feel, I decided to go with a Jinny Lind style crib similar to this picture:
Although I am not much of a "theme" person, going to market really helped me narrow down some of the items that I wanted to include in the nursery and the overall look that I am going for. The best description that I can come up with is a baby safari adventure/travel theme in a pastel colorway.
Now, I am on to paint colors! Here are some ideas I already have for the walls:
I am looking for a light greige, but I have to decide whether to go more brown or more grey.
I can't wait to share some of my purchases with everyone!....and, to post some before and afters. I would love to hear what you think.
{all pictures not linked are courtesy of Pinterst}
Enjoy!
Black and white
Labels:
Bathroom,
inspiration,
Interiors,
Nicole,
Nicole's Apartment
·
I have been really drawn to the Black and White trend recently. Of course I
love wearing the combo, but I am considering the clean palette for the guest
bathroom as well. Here are a few inspiration pics I have found so far. (Click
the picture to get to the original source.) These are all beautiful pictures,
but I will need to be very creative since I am in a rented space where
installing black and white tile or wallpaper is not a practical option
currently.
Let me know if you have recently updated your bathroom or have creative
design ideas for rented apartments.
XO,
Nicole
Still here.....{a catch up post}
One of our closest family friends (and Nicole's best friend) got married on June 22nd!! It was a very fun weekend for our family since we were actually all present!!
We both went to the bridesmaids luncheon, and Mom maid everyone monogrammed button ups to wear during the "getting ready" process. They turned out great! And, we had fun doing everyone's hair....
Here are a few (and I mean a few bc we didn't remember to take many) pictures from the reception....
....this is a rare moment to have all three Fontenot siblings together and ready for a picture!
The wedding was beautiful and definitely a fun night for the entire family. The reception was next door to the Methodist church in Hollandale at the Clarke's home.
It occurred to us, that if we share EVERYTHING we have done over the past couple of months that could get a little lengthy. So here are some of the photos from each of us.....
From Sarah....
We had a blast at "MPhA"!!!
Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort
June
....and, the biggest news of all....
Sarah and Carey are expecting their first baby in December!
 |
| 14 weeks |
 |
| 14 weeks |
We can hardly wait to find out the gender in July, followed by a "Women of the family" trip to market in Atlanta {suspected guests include Sarah, Nicole (host), Whitney, Katie, Gayle, Maria, and Kit}. Let the shopping begin!! {on second thought....it already has}
side note: We couldn't be happier that "baby P" or "peanut" will have a big cousin, scheduled to arrive in October!
 |
| Whitney {Carey's sister} at 23 weeks |
From Nicole....
So many things going on in ATL... summertime fun!
We are so happy to continue blogging! Hope everyone had a great weekend!
Enjoy!
Sarah and Nicole
p.s. We gave up on the organization challenge :( we got a ton done and hope to share it soon, but we didn't want to abandon the blog because we could not stay on track!
Eight weeks to organized... Bathroom {part 1}
Labels:
Bathroom,
challenge,
clean,
Cleaning,
DIY,
Nicole,
Nicole's Apartment,
Organization
·
Since I have been sick with a sinus infection and ear infections, organizing my bathroom drawers seemed like a good task--I could sit in bed and bring the drawers to me. I had a long ways to go as the "before" picture below show....
I decided to take this project one drawer at a time and start with DIY cereal box drawer dividers inspired from a post on iHeart Organizing {one of my favorite blogs} that I had been dying to try. You can find her original post here. I should tell you now that this took me longer than I expected, but I did not have to spend any money which is always a huge positive. I started out by gathering boxes that I had been collecting for this particular project.
Then, I began fitting the boxes together in the drawer that I wanted to organize. Keep in mind that my boxes did not magically fit in the drawer like this the first time. I actually tried several different options {while watching tv} until I decided to stick with one. The cereal box was not in my original pile of boxes to choose from. I swiped that from the pantry when I realized I needed a few more options. So just keep trying until they fit together--think of this part as a puzzle.
Next, I traced around the outside edge with a marker. There are several ways you could accomplish this step. Measuring would work just as well, but at the time this seemed easier to me.
Then, I cut the boxes to be flush {or as close as possible} with the top of the drawer. This step takes some time.
Next, I used scrapbook paper that I had from a previous project to cover the boxes. I measured the paper and made the creases before using glue and tape to secure the paper in place. At the beginning, I was completely covering the boxes inside and out. Then, I decided that it was most important to line the insides and not worry as much about the outside since that would not be showing. Any pretty paper would work for this step. Maybe you have wrapping paper or large decorative sheets of paper that are sold at craft and art stores. It probably would have been easier if I had used wider paper for this step, but I was trying to use items I had on hand in order to keep the cost down.
After lots of measuring, cutting, gluing, and taping, I finally finished covering all of my boxes and here is how my organizers turned out.
Next, I wanted to make the other drawers as pretty but did not need all of the different sections. Rather than buying contact paper to line the drawers, I used scrapbook paper from the same book that I used to line the boxes. I matched up the pieces and taped it down to prevent it from sliding around.
Because I had created so much organized space in my top drawer, it opened up the space in the drawers below. Now the drawers look like this... Some of the items in the very back are not easily accessible, but those are items that I do not use regularly.
When I was cleaning out my drawers, I realized there were lots of product samples without a "home". For now, I threw them all into one of my spare baskets that came from the dollar store years ago. I am planning on putting the basket in our second bathroom for guests. I will probably add to this over time in order to make it a more complete selection. Currently, there are different types of shampoo, conditioner, lotion, sunscreen, mouth wash, and tooth paste. As well as being great for guests, these are all great sized products for travel, and any time I need something for a trip, I will know exactly where to find it.
Low budget organization may take more time {and patience while accomplishing it} but it was great to finish part 1 of my project still not having spent $1. Do you repurpose items in order to help with organization? I would love to hear about some of your ideas and projects.
Happy spring cleaning!
Nicole
Closet: Storing off season items {part 2}
Labels:
challenge,
clean,
Closets,
Organization,
Sarah,
Sarah's house
·
So, here are my before and after's of my closet. There is not a lot of drastic change, but I did accomplish everything I set out to do. I started by taking most everything out of the closet and separating the items into those that I wanted to resell/donate, those that needed to be stored for winter, and those that should stay for the summer. I wanted all of my shoes to have their own "place", so I stored the off season shoes in a container under a bench. I happen to wear a lot of shoes that could be considered winter for work, so anything I was doubtful about, I kept in the closet.
{Before} {After}
Notice the shelf to the right{above} and the floor {below} are now clear. Remember, one of our goals is to keep horizontal services clear!
{Before} {After}
Prior to this cleanup and cleanout, the top of my closet was merely a place that I put {threw} things when there was no where else to put them. Another problem I had, was the large amount of tshirts that were taking up a lot of drawer space. The basket is something I have had for a while that was not really being used for anything. It now houses by bathing suits and coverups!
{Before} {After}
The last area was this smaller {detached} closet that was previously a place for cocktail/nicer dresses that I didn't want to get tangled up in my other clothes and place to quickly hang dry cleaning {instead of putting it away like I should}. Now it is the perfect place for t shirts....I moved the hanging shelf from the other closet because it didn't really fit there anyway. Jackets hang on the left and cocktail/nicer dresses on the right!
Lastly, I found a perfect tote to lay my dry cleaning in for the bottom of this closet, and it has handles so I can just scoop it up and take it to the car when I need to go to the cleaners.
{Before} {After}
And....I found this old shower curtain rod and some hooks that served as a great way to store my purses so that I can see them and they keep their proper shape.
Like I said before, I didn't have too terrible of a mess when I started, but I can say that it is much easier to get dressed now with everything tidy and visible!
One tip that I learned through the process is to use what you have to divide areas. Notice I used a beach bag next to my bathing suits {handy}. Or, use pretty shoe boxes to serve as the perfect bin to hold smaller items that get messy easily {see the DVF magenta one-my tights are in there!}
I hope I have inspired you to tidy up!! Good Luck....
Enjoy,
Sarah
Skinny~Spaghetti Squash Alfredo!!
I tried spaghetti squash for the first time a few of years ago, and I like to use it as a side when I am trying to cut back on carbs! I have always just cooked the squash {in the oven} and added a little butter, salt, and pepper. So, when I came across a this recipe from The Comfort of Cooking, I couldn't wait to try it!
Try it out and let me know what your think!! I don't think you will be disappointed :)
Enjoy,
Sarah
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