My Excuse...

Sorry for being M.I.A. this past week. Life has been nothing but crazy since I made it back from the Lonestar State. Whew!  This is the first time I've had to sit down all week!  Next week I will be better, I promise.  Several posts are in the works, including some inspirations from San Antonio.  Until then, here's a sneak peek at one of the interior design projects I've been working on lately:

I can't wait to show you the final product!!!

Rachel Zoe for Neiman Marcus

I go bananas for Rachel Zoe.  I love her bohemian chic style that centers around 70's glam and lucky for us we can now buy her OWN LINE at Neiman Marcus!  Here are my top picks from her new collection:

Isn't the hardware system on these bags to die for?

Again, I. Die.

All the pieces shown are available for pre-order now at Neiman Marcus.

Eye Candy: Modern Femininity

I like to think that this girl:

...lives here:

...and I wish I was her.

{images via House&Home & Marcus Design}

Perfect Pair: White + Fretwork

FRETWORK, LATTICE, TRELLIS... 

call it what you want, but this look is HOT.  Starting centuries ago in the 'Far East,' migrating to the 'West' through Chippendale and working it's way up to modern day via Kelly Wearstler's Imperial Trellis fabric, fretwork isn't going anywhere soon.  The best way to update this motif for your contemporary home?  Pair it with some white glossy paint... and maybe a metallic accent here or there...

Words cannot describe how much I adore these cabinets!

{images via PiecesInc, 1stDibs & OneKingsLane}

F. Scott Fitzgerald Hardback Classics by Coraline Bickford-Smith

My favorite book of all time is F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby."  It was a required read in my high school and I remember being absolutely swept away by the glamorous ambiance of Gatsby's garden parties, the suspense of love triangles and the beautiful words that filled the pages.  I even based the style of my wedding around motifs I read about in this American classic (minus Gatsby's pink suit, of course.  I don't think my husband would have been too keen on that...).

I know these books have traveled around the design blog world for the past few years, but they are so stunning, I couldn't help myself.  I have confessed it before and I'll confess again, I TOTALLY buy books for their covers (and pictures!) and this is one book that is just as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside, if not more so!  If you are someone who likes the option to take the cover off, don't worry, the hardback is just as marvelous:

Did you enjoy that little book cover strip tease?  I know I did.

You don't have to stop at Gatsby either.  Coraline Bickford-Smith has a whole collection of Fitzgerald's novels depicting the Art Deco Era (which has been and will always be my favorite design period):

Of all the covers, I find this one to be the most fabulous.  It's not out until the end of October but you can pre-order it on Amazon.  As if I needed another reason to look forward to October...

{images via Amazon}

Texas Beauty

These Texan saloon doors where so gorgeous, they deserved their own post. 

It's enough to make me want to move to the country and raise horses.

Breath taking...

{image via Pinterest}

Don't Mess With Texas

I am off for a week and headed to the Lonestar State to visit family, eat some Bar-B-Q, and play at a theme park or two.  Texas wouldn't be the first state I would think of as 'high style'  but they definitely have their own thing going.  Don't believe me? Take a look:

My goal is to bring back some vintage cowboy boots to pair with light ruffled sundresses.  

Keep your fingers crossed for me! San Antonio and Austin here I come!!!

{images via Pinterest, WeHeartIt & FGR}