Guest Post - Pretty Girl's Rooms from Christine

Another day, another fantastic guest post for all of you! I feel so lucky to have the utterly fabulous Christine from Bijou and Boheme here to guest post for me. Here's a little fun fact for you... Christine was the very first blogger to find out we had a little peanut on the way! I told her in person at the Christmas One of a Kind Show preview breakfast back in December, and her enthusiasm for mommy hood definitely helped! So thank you Christine... for everything!

Hi Fanciers, I'm so so happy to be here today holding down the fort while sweet Kerry is resting up and getting ready for her little peanut to arrive...or maybe I should edit this to say 'while Kerry is enjoying her new sweet peanut' ...we'll see :)

In any event, and as you all know, Kerry is having a baby...and it's a girl!!!

In honour of her sweet soon to be (or maybe is) timbit, I thought why not dream up a little room pretty that her little princess can enjoy through the years.

First the nursery...

Next, her childhood princess room...

And finally, her cool teenage boudoir...

Note that I changed the layout, furniture, wallpaper and lighting in each design...these are just mood boards after all...budget rules/reality/sane decision making need not apply:)

And with that, I'm wishing Kerry all the joy in the world as she becomes a mommy for the very first time...there's nothing so sweet in the world!!!

xo

Thank you SO MUCH Christine! These rooms are absolutely stunning, and may of course inspire our little girl's future bedroom once she grows out of her turquoise nursery. You truly have a fabulous eye. I hope everyone else enjoyed these gorgeous moodboard's as much as I did!

Guest Post - "Outside the Box" Kids Rooms from Shannon

Good Morning! We're still adjusting to being brand new parents, so today my lovely friend Shannon from What's up Whimsy is here with a guest post for all of you! Shannon has such great style, and you can see it reflected in the bedroom she completed for her little boy Keaton! Speaking of kids rooms - Shannon is here today to share some great kids rooms, check these out!


I am so happy to be guest posting for Kerry while she is taking care of her little Peanut (I'm sure we all know her name by now, but as I'm writing this, she is still in Mommy's tummy). Since we're talking all things baby lately, I thought I would write about a topic near and dear to my heart - kids rooms. I love being able to take a blank room and transform it into a cool and unique space that's perfect for a newborn or child. But I'm not talking your typical kids room. I'm talking about something that's a little more grown up, yet still has a kid element to it. I just recently put together a room for my two year old son, Keaton.

Even though he is only two, I went a little grown up with the colours, accessories and wall colours...and that skyline is definitely not typical! But, the bottom line is, he loves it.

So, I thought I would share some other atypical kids rooms to show how it pays to think outside of the box.

Via DecorPad

Tell me, as a teenage girl, you wouldn't love waking up to this bright and unique room. Heck, I'd like it at this age! The purple and yellow is a really interesting colour combination and something you wouldn't really think works together, but it does!

Via Ohdeedoh

As soon as I saw this nursery tour, I knew I loved it.  The neutral decor isn't always the first colour route for new parents, but it totally works here.  And what other baby has a cool, hand-painted gallery wall?

Via Ohdeedoh

The colourful prism design on the wall was the first thing that grabbed me in this not-so-traditional girls room, but it's the bed that I'm in love with.  Too bad I can't recreate the big bow detail in Keaton's room ;)

Via DesignSponge

And lastly, a great example of how small spaces can turn into really unique kids rooms.  In their small apartment, Jordan Ferney, of Oh Happy Day, and her family needed to make room for a new baby, so they transformed a walk-in closet into a bedroom for their son.  They even managed to fit in a cool set of bunkbeds!

When it comes to kids rooms, looking outside the traditional box of gender-associated colours and typical furniture, can develop into a unique room that your kid will be proud of - and you will too!

Thanks for letting me guest post today Kerry. I hope you're enjoying your time off with Peanut...I can't wait to meet her!

Thank you so much Shannon for this great post! So much inspiration for when our little girl grows... and of course, you know I love out of the box rooms. Halle's nursery is my favourite place for the two of us to cuddle and nurse and just enjoy this time with her being a tiny squishy newborn! 

Guest Post - Christine's Baby Wish List

Today I am so happy to have one of my best blogging buddies here, Christine from just bella. I was beyond thrilled when Christine let me know that she was expecting a wee babe (yup, she emailed me and told me before she told all you). I knew as soon as I started thinking of asking a few gals to help me keep things going around here, that I wanted to ask Christine. Not only is she super sweet, but girl has some serious style - check out her baby wish list...

I am so excited for Kerry, B and their new little baby girl!!! Kerry has been such a great support to me since I found out I was preggers - sharing stories, tips, complaints and our love of snoogles. I couldn't be more happy for her. These babies are going to be bloggy besties from the moment they can start bashing the keyboards ; ) At this point of my pregnancy, I was hoping to be a bit farther along with nursery plans but, alas, things seem to move a bit slower when you're busy making a human (that's my story and I'm sticking to it!). Although I don't have a solid nursery plan yet, I have had no problem getting to some shopping! My wish list is continually growing, baby stuff is just so cute. Here are a few of the things on my baby radar....

1) Timi and Leslie Diaper Bag  2) Sheep Mobile  3) Naturally Neutral Container Set  4) Jonathan Adler Utopia Elephant  5) Organic Snapsuit  6) P'kolino Zebra Rocking Chair  7) IKEA Stockholm Cushion  8) Esthex Simon the Snail Musicbox  9) IKEA Britten Nummer Fabric   10) Juju Baby Sandal 11) Urban Outfitters GiGi Nightstand 12) Eames Elephant

Thank you so much for having me, Kerry. I hope you're enjoying every single second with that beautiful little girl!!


Christine, I cannot thank you enough for putting together this beautiful little post for me. I love every single one of your choices.... especially that diaper bag! It's absolutely gorgeous! Now I can sit back and anxiously await the arrival of Christine's little bundle... I'm dying to know what's hiding in her adorable belly!

Guest Post - Adorable Baby Fashion from Sharstin

Morning friends! Thank you all so much for your super sweet words and wishes about our little girl. Today I am so grateful to have Sharstin visiting from Me and Mine. Sharstin and I have become fast blog friends, and if you're not familiar with her blog, well then, you're in for a treat! Sharstin is not only an uber talented photographer and sweet lady, but also a fabulous Mom to three adorable little kiddos. Her wee one's are always so well dressed, I just knew I had to ask her to put together a fun little post of some of her fave fashion finds! Check out these adorable outfits that Sharstin found...

Kerry thanks for having me over here at your uber cute blog! I was so excited when you asked me to guest post, and you my girly are going to make one fantastic lil momma! I must start off by telling you that i am a such a huge stripe fan, and of course have been lovin all things nautical. Since it is summer and all, i thought i would share some nautical loves from a few of my favorite kid's stores...

 

{tea} {zara} {gymboree}

 

{zara} {crazy 8} {gap}

 

{boden} {gymboree} {boden} {old navy}

{old navy} {zara} {zara}

 

{tea} {gap} {gap}

A big thanks again to Sharstin for coming over and sharing these adorable little outfits! I may have to make a trip out to visit her in the future for a shopping trip together. I just know we'd have too much fun!

Baby, Baby You're the World to Me

{via}

I'd like to introduce you all to our little munchkin Halle Evelyn!

{Seconds old - skin-on-skin with Mommy}

Halle joined us on Saturday July 23rd at 5:41am, weighing 7lbs 11oz and 20" long. She's gorgeous and happy and healthy.

{10 hours old, after her very first bath}

There's a whole long story to how she got here, but I definitely feel that she was well worth all of the hard work I had to go through to hold her (let me just say that, the second before she joined us the Dr's response was "Woah"... no one expected me to go for number five).

{Our Little Peanut - after our first night with her. She doesn't enjoy being away from Mommy}

B and I (and her Aunts, Uncles and both sets of Grandparents), couldn't be any more in love! She's stolen all of our hearts, and any and all sleep deprevation I am okay with at this point if it leaves me staring into the eyes of our beautiful baby girl...

{Ready to go home on Sunday morning}

I plan on spending the rest of this week with B, enjoying our precious girl (and recovering). I have some great guest posts lined up for you, and should be back next week with some stuff for you. 

Hope you all are as happy as we are after our exciting and loved weekend!

Fancy Friday Love

Happy Friday everyone! We have a very exciting weekend ahead, and I'm sure you can all guess why!? I'll leave it at that though, and you'll have to come back on Monday for more news (we hope)! For now, let's see what was fancy this week...


Big thanks to Brittany for sharing this lovely kitchen last Friday! Love those ceilings and that huge window! We may have a big kitchen, but unfortunately it doesn't get quite this much light.

Did you have a chance to check out Barbara's interview with Tommy Smythe on Sunday? If not, you absolutely must! (Barbara's weekly So Canadian, eh? feature is so great - and exactly what the Canadian Design Blogging Community needed!)

Caitlin Creer shared this perfect nursery on Monday. The perfect little space for a tiny little girl - so calming and serene and just absolutely gorgeous. I love when Caitlin shares her work, every room is always stunning!

Want this gorgeous Kate Spade bag! How lovely is the Postmark Jasper?

Did you see Rachel's master bathroom transformation on her blog (OR in the most recent issue of Cottages & Bungalows) this past week? Her and her hubby did a fabulous job transforming this outdated space into something beautiful!

If you missed the June 2011 Issue of House & Home... then you missed A LOT! Michael Penney's home was featured, and as usual he did an incredible job making it look absolutely gorgeous. Head on over to his blog to get a look at all of those beautiful spaces...

It's been incredibly hot this past week. Something I would normally soak up, along with some time hanging by my parents pool. Unfortunately, with my little built in heater still tucked away in my tummy, I spent my week hidden away in my living room drinking ice water and keeping cool in the A/C. I think that this delicious looking Strawberry Raspberry Sorbet, from armelle blog, would've also helped nicely. Maybe I'll have to try it later this summer?

While i'm on the topic of food, I must say - I'm dying for something like this yummy looking lemon meringue pie in a jar that Joy shared on her blog yesterday! I am a lemon addict...

What fun and fancy things do you have planned for this weekend?

My First Handy Man!

Nope - not B... my first ever handy man - My Dad! You may remember last month when I posted about the wonderful bookshelves that my Dad constructed for Peanut's nursery.

Well, that post stuck with one of my blogging girls here in Toronto, and not too long after that was posted, my Dad got an email from her. She was looking to hire him for a project of her own... a 10 foot outdoor table for her backyard. Shannon from 8 foot 6, has a major backyard makeover going on (which is gorgeous!) and I was so thrilled when I saw the finished photos of the solid cedar table and benches that he made for her...

... B and I are wondering why we've never asked for a beautiful table? Then again, it's probably because we have him waiting onside to build us a custom vanity for the bathroom when that reno begins in the late summer/early fall... and some custom kitchen cabinets in the future. 

Thanks Shannon for sharing these photos (I never would've seen that gorgeous table otherwise). If you're in the GTA and would like to hire him for a custom project - he is available. You can always email me or him directly! 

I feel pretty lucky to have him not only as a Handy Man, but as my Dad... and Grandfather to my daughter (who will at some point have to join the real world... right?)...

Another Back Burner Project Completed

As you probably guessed from all of my other posts this week, while waiting for baby we have been focusing on finishing up those "back burner" projects that were either unfinished or just pushed off "until later". One project that I have been dying to tackle for ages now is the headboard for our master bedroom. 


You may remember way back in April of 2010, I bought a beautiful Robert Allen fabric that inspired our master bedroom project (that of course never actually got under way until February of this year). I purchased it for a steal of a price on Fabric.com, with the intentions of making a beautiful headboard for our bedroom. So, this past weekend, B and his Dad pulled an old piece of plywood out of the garage and we got busy.


Friday night B had measured the bed and we decided the headboard would be 24" x 62.5" - so he cut up the plywood to the right dimensions for me. Once it was cut, I used an old double sized IKEA duvet we had laying around, doubled it up and cut it to wrap around the plywood nicely...

Once wrapped, I pulled out my trusty upholstery staple gun that my parents bought me for Christmas (along with B's air compressor) and got to work. It was my first time using it and it was fantastic and so easy to use (much easier to pull the trigger than the giant heavy staple gun B has). 

{What? You don't make upholstered headboards when you're 3 days over your due date?}

Thanks to some extra pairs of hands from B and his lovely Mom, we were able to get that duvet wrapped nice and tight around the plywood and stapled into place rather quickly...

Next step was to pull out my fabric, and centre it onto my board until we liked the repeat pattern that we saw. When we had it just right, and knew we'd have enough fabric on all four sides to wrap past the batting, I got to work cutting away the excess fabric...

Once again, I required some extra hands to wrap the fabric around our headboard, especially at this point where we wanted to be sure we had some nice clean corners. B and his Mom were such a great help with this part, folding and holding and B made sure to staple the corners for me as they required a little extra pressure with the excess batting and fabric. I took over whenever I could though... I love using that stapler...

We made sure to staple either end of the headboard, then the top and the bottom last to make sure we got everything tight and looking good. The bottom we were a little less concerned about since it will be hidden behind out bed frame. The finished project was pretty good - I mean, even that back look neat and tidy when we were done with it...

Once it was all done (about 20 - 25) minutes later, B brought it directly upstairs so that we could see how it was going to look in place. We all agreed it was a successful (and very easy) project to tackle in an afternoon.

It makes the whole room feel more finished and like a proper bedroom - especially with my finished artwork (which we actually hung on the exact same day that we made this). The best part is how it comes up our half wall to meet our slanted ceiling, and brings some more colour into our room. That fabric is a large reason why I wanted to paint the walls white, and I think that it works out perfectly.