Home Styling // Within A Room

Bedroom inspiration // A collection of found images.
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A Housewarming Gift

I recently took a day trip to visit my friends Athena and Carl at their new home in Indiana. They moved there for grad school a few weeks ago and are still getting settled in. Prior to my arrival, I had planned on making them a real home cooked dinner since I love to cook and they're not too into that sort of thing—yet. 

After realizing that they barely had enough food let alone utensils to cook a proper meal, we headed to a nearby grocery store to pick up a few essentials. In all honestly I may be a little overly picky about what I use in my cooking; it just kills me to use standard table salt as opposed to sea salt. Regardless, I found the items needed to prepare the meal I had planned—a gnocchi dish with mushrooms and a gorgonzola sauce, which they absolutely love. I made a mental note of a few things they could use around the kitchen while I was cooking and ended up buying them a spoon rest since I dirtied up their stove so much. 

It's a start.

Minimalist Make Over

Before I moved into my new house, I was contemplating whether I should change the style of my new room or keep the same sort of feel as my previous one (think cozy, pottery barn-ish), but after getting more settled in I realized how much of a change I longed for. As you can see from the pictures above, I decided to give it more of a minimalist look. It's a start but still have a lot to go.

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two books I picked up for inspiration and ideas:

Space: Japanese Design Solutions for Compact Living, by michael freeman
The Joy of Less: A Minimalist Living Guide, by francine jay

An Intimate Gathering

Reading Kinfolk magazine has inspired me to host my own small gathering with a few close friends. My sister Catherine and her best friend Maddie came over last night for a homemade dinner of penne pasta mixed with fresh, locally sourced asparagus and mushrooms in a creamy leek soup base, an artisan baguette from the local market accompanied by a petite cheese plate consisting of smoked gouda, and a few mini babybel cheeses.

After opening up a bottle of New Zealand sauvignon blanc, we began our small feast. Both Catie and Maddie adored the simple and colorful set up, and I was pleased to hear how much they enjoyed my cooking as well. Nothing was too overly contrived, which I feel adds something special.

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A few notable passages from Kinfolk:

On starting a new tradition- start a new tradition, not centered on travel or shopoping or working toward a new year, but focused on creating a time to enjoy the comforts of those closest to you. Whether with a sibling, a friend, a parent, or a lover, greet the frosty morning before the sun, no matter how much your body may plead to stay beneathe the quilts. Rub the sleep from your eyes as the kettle boils. Then, with piping mug in hand, curl up on the front porch and share a quiet sunrise. 

(p. 54, words by Elise Yetton)

On Why I Cook-  To create something beautiful together, to share nourishment, is fulfilling on levels that go far beyond fueling the body. We live in a hectic, traffic-jammed, competitve society. So often we sacrifice traditions based on preparing and eating real food for the convenience of drive-thoughs and freezer dinners, convinced that by saving time in the kitchen, we'll get ahead in some other way. My mission is to encourage people to slow down and to experience the simple joys of cooking, and to focus on nourishing our bodies and spirits. 

(p. 81, words by Sarah Britton)

 On Entertaining Details- The simple intimacies that surface naturally in our preparations for company provide an unimposing uniqueness to our gatherings. The way the cloth napkins twist upward on a solitary corner, for example, or the bow of the apron ties and parcel strings. Appreciating these organic occurrences magnifies the beauty of the unplanned, and eliminates an all-too-common air of superficiality. It's time to enjoy the details of entertaining.

 (p. 17, words by Andrea Gentl and Martin Hayers)

(photo source: 1 / 2)

DIY: Home Ideas

fabric lined glass jars

bobby pin catcher

upcycled memo board

alphabetize your recipes

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more great diy ideas: 
-50 mason jar diy's.
-diy savvy: Oh Happy Day!, The Perfect Pear, & Poppytalk.
-my diy pinboard.
-find colorfully designed washi tape at this etsy shop.

My Sunday Morning Read

backyard view

tiffany blue tea kettle

a light breakfast + kinfolk

I can't help but love waking up to a quiet Sunday morning while savoring the solitude of the early hours that most (unfortunately) sleep through. After opening the curtains to expose the morning sky, I patiently wait for the water on the stove to boil. Shuffling through my ipod for some good morning tunes I stop at Camera Obscura today. Once the water is ready, I pour myself a steaming cup of black ginger peach tea with a bit of sugar and splash of milk from the small silver creamer I found at Tuesday Mornings yesterday. After settling into my seat, I begin to flip through this little gem of a magazine I recently came across entitled Kinfolk: A Guide For Small Gatherings.

The simple aesthetic of the thoughtfully composted editorial gives the magazine an intimate and personable feel. I'd highly recommend it to those who enjoy savoring the small details that many people thoughtlessly overlook when welcoming friends and family into their home. 

Homespiration

florals

heavenly composition

rich red tattered carpeting

metal and brick

warn down orange

I've been gathering ideas from all sorts of interesting interiors and elsewhere, and it's quite a thrill to find inspiration in odd places you usually wouldn't think to look. See more images below.