27 November 2011

designed: Holiday Pinspiration

Pinspiration- I'm pretty sure thats a word... I seem to be daily Pintrest-inspired, especially now that its officially Christmas time.  Shhhh, don't tell my sisters, I've been "cheating" and listening to my Pandora Christmas stations for a while now! And so my holiday pins have really started add up. I'd love for y'all to look at all the pretties on my boards, but I think this right now I going to show you the ones I think I'm going to actually do this year. Like this one, I just want to put these little guys everywhere.

Source: weheartit.com via Lea on Pinterest


I love the way this little present is packaged, simple and natural, with a bit of shine. I usually wrap all my presents in kraft paper but I like the contrast either way.

Source: google.nl via Lea on Pinterest


These are totally going to be on the porch, en masse. I'm thinking 3 or 5... :)



I love this table setting, and I've got tons of pinecones!



I've already started on this for the stairs in the front hall. I'm not using a bunch of colors, just a glittery silver and a steely colored satin ribbon. Its gonna be so cool. I'll show y'all when I'm finished.



And lastly, since this is a reality based Christmas decor post and my unlimited time/budget dream... I think I will try to make these too.



If I manage to do all these I will be a happy camper and our home will be warm and sparkly for the Holidays. Cheers!
xoxo Lea Hart

designed: glittery fabulous FREE decor

so, um, I'm sure this is gonna be a shocker...
I... like... no, ummm... I LOVE glitter. a lot. really like sooooo much.

M is luke warm about sparkles, especially when they wind up on his clothes, but he likes to see me smile so he lets me put sparkly glittery stuff everywhere. Thanks Babe. I mentioned that I jazzed up some foliage and I thought I'd show you the pictures I snapped while making them!
We have this gorgeous tree in the front yard that has leaves that turn the color of sunshine in the late fall.  And then they fall off and totally cover the yard.



so I picked up some of the good looking leaves and took them around back to get my glitter on. I also had some pinecones and plastic pears to make fabulous, too.

a few helpful tips-
gloves are awesome, so worth it not to have to scrub spray paint from underneath your fingernails
glitter in a wide mouthed container is best, so it is easy to recycle the glitter
paper plates are the perfect tool for catching glitter and funneling back into the glitter container


I had some gold and silver spray paint as well as spray adhesive to play with. I picked some branches from a bush to experiment with too.   Some things I just glittered and some I sprayed gold or silver first and then glittered. I like to mix it up like that.

And now with out further ado... 
FREE sparkly decor that will make our home oh so very festive this Christmas!







I love them all! So easy and pretty. I will show y'all how I use them all over the house to make everything lovely for Christmas.

xoxo Lea Hart

26 November 2011

designed: a little entry decor


Here are a few little things I put out in the entry just before Thanksgiving. "Recycled" glitter pumpkins along with some thrift store finds, wedding presents, M's art and Trader Joe's tulips.












































The ball jar was brought back from our wedding in Carrizozo, NM and the hurricane was a wedding gift from our Crate & Barrel registry. Love it! The small brass lilly pad tray was from a cute little thrift store in Arlington. The art is one of my favorites of M's work, and it also had the Autum-ish colors I was looking for. I grabbed cream and orange books to add height and color.

Here are some more pictures... yeah, you can probably tell... I'm not a professional photographer...
Next time Carrie Anderson comes to visit, I will get her to shoot as many projects and I can ;)













































tiny glitter pinecones!
and now, a few attempts at some ambient photography...















































































oh yeah! I grabbed a few of the leaves from the front yard and sprayed and glittered them. And as I alway say, "One can NEVER have enough glitter!" Below is an angle from the kitchen, like that P?!? I do.







and... I might have made that dang bread... again...
This is Chip. He was my helper.

























Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Being thankful is a great way to realize how truly blessed most of us Americans are. Hopefully y'all will inspired to spread the LOVE around this Holiday season.
xoxo Lea Hart

12 November 2011

designed: Pintrest, a MAJOR addiction

I told y'all I found these on Pintrest and then this...
And then I thought, do y'all actually know about... Pintrest?!? and all of its awesomeness?!?



What it is, is this really cool online "pinboard" and it is beyond addictive. Its pretty funny, there are lots of other bloggers warning about the perils of a "Pinning" addiction, like herehere, here, and here. Seriously, folks its an epidemic!
But if you are a visual person, like me, you've probably had a hard time corralling all those beautiful images you see online, right? And even if you managed to locate the image somewhere in your bookmarks or reader, good luck trying to find out where it originally came from (can be a major pain for a blogger- as you must always source images) So now Pintrest does all that for you! And no they're not, in case you are wondering if they are paying me to say something. Its all honest true adoration straight from little ole me. Its a total life changer for interior design, with all of the shopping  pulls and inspiration pictures that come with each project. I can pick as many as 20 lamp options just for one side table... anyway, I'm sure you see where I'm going with this. You can make as many boards as you want about whatever you want. I've made boards for recipes and holiday decor or organizing...  I've got ideas for the new house and gardening tips. And that is just me there are thousands of boards to be inspired by.

and now without any further ado... some pintrest-y eye candy
favorites from my Interiors board













































so those are just a few of my favorites from one board! I mean, actually, the whole board is full of my favorites. I wouldn't have "pinned" them otherwise ;) next time lets do New House Ideas, and I'll tell y'all how I'm planning on putting my spin on them.

xoxo Lea






entertained: Holiday Baking part 1

found this little slice of heaven on Pintrest

Source: sundaybaker.net via Lea on Pinterest


I made it yesterday. There is none left. It is GROOD (thats great+good) You can get all of the necessary ingredients at good ole Trader Joe's, or any other grocery store. We are a TJ's family. I got everything organic too. So I knew it would be even better for me.
I totally plan on making this again. I'm so not a baker, and I thought this was E A S Y. The only thing I  will tweak next time is doing all pumpkin batter on the bottom and all cream cheese filling on the top. It was delicious and moist and crispy all at the same time. Oh yeah, did I mention its freaking healthy! Mmmmmm, enjoy!
xo Lea


11 November 2011

designed: Lucketts

guess where I went the other day! The old Lucketts Store just outside of Leesburg.


It. Was. Awesome. Like, kind of how I would imagine...heaven. Yep,  definitely heaven. It is just outside of Leesburg, VA (about 40 minutes from Arlington) and the drive out there during the fall is absolutely beautiful. I snapped a picture just after we turned onto Lucketts Rd. 

So this store is stuffed to the gills with totally awesome stuff! 

























I love the topiaries. And the formal yet somehow very comfy looking couch :)





Tons of painted frames and mirrors. And, this ceramic canister set for $18. They have lots of old vintage-y metal outdoor furniture out in the yard. I also really liked this rusty pendant light. Possibly for the new house? 


       There are these cute little sheds out in the yard, too. Also full of awesome stuff!



 
This sofa frame was a whole set, seven pieces for $98!!! What?!? Also on the property is a store called the Beekeeper's Cottage with all things sparkly and girlie. I got the cutest pair of earrings. I LOVE anything that sparkles... I'm a ferret. I can't help it. And rooms with piles of linen-y, ruffle-y, snuggly pillows and throws. I was happier than a pig in... well, you know what. 




So, I had the best time there. I got some great stuff to decorate with. I'm going to take a few pictures of my   finds and the decorating I've already started at the house with them. And I got this diamond in the rough...


I know, it looks quite "rustic" but I loved the shape of this patio set. It looks sort of Gio Ponti-esque. I just hadn't ever really seen outdoor furniture with those sort of lines. I told M, I haaaaaad to get them and if I talked them down, could I please, pretty please. He said sure, and I talked them down to $65 for the whole thing! 2 of the chairs need to have the spacers refastened and I need some glass cut for the top. But after a little elbow grease, a new coat of paint, and some Mexican Oilcloth on the seat and I think it will be the piece de resistance in the new backyard! More updates as I work on them! I'm super excited, can't wait to show y'all. After shopping at Lucketts, M and I took a stroll around historic Leeaburg. My photography skills do not do this foliage or this adorable town justice. You should go check it out, and see it with your own eyes. 




























This house was my favorite. I loved the exposed brick and the trim colors. And the classic architecture.

I love living in Virginia! There is so much fun stuff to see and do!
xoxo Lea