Jumping on emerald green wagon

I have been working today on painting my desk a green somewhere in the emerald / kelly family.  It is quite green and it has me a little shocked and unsure if I like it.  I don't want my entire house neutral or pastel though -- a few pops of bold color are fun.  Coat 2 will start tomorrow (oil paint needs 24 hours between coats) and I'll unveil pics as soon as I'm finished.

Inspirational photos:

Via Pinterest

Via Pinterest

Via Houzz

Via Safavieh

Maybe something like this?

Have you incorporated any emerald green into your home recently?

XO,

Whit

4 Free Chiavari Barstools

Luckily, we didn't make too many big mistakes in the renovations process, but one was pressing order on 4 of these bar stools.  Josh tried to tell me to order only 1 first, but I did not listen.   This was all my mistake.  Hyper, impatient and stubborn.

Problem #1: They arrived in all their white plastic glory (I mistakenly checked resin instead of wood).  Being white really accentuated the very plastic looking joints.  After FedEx informed me they would charge about $600 to send them back (way more than the cost of the chairs!!!), I decided to try and salvage them by painting them black.  For a few hours they actually didn't look too bad in the kitchen.

Problem #2: Unfortunately, the lacquer just wouldn't adhere to the beautiful plastic surface so I've ended up with speckled chairs and paint chips on the floor.  Luckily, Olivia has finally learned paint chips are not delicious treats.

Problem #3: When ordering bar stools you should really know the difference and consider counter height v. bar height.  It was a detail that never crossed my mind.  These stools were meant for a bar and therefore you had to have quite tiny legs to get them under the granite and even still you were hovering awkwardly high above the island.  Not comfortable.

Now that we've finally tossed in the towel on these chairs, does anyone want them for free?  I would have tried another paint and kept them if we didn't also have the height issue -- the chiavari style really is attractive.  

They will be in my basement until someone comes to take them to a new home.

We snagged new bar stools from Restoration Hardware during a great sale they had at the beginning of January.  I can't say enough good things about how quickly they arrived, the quality and the overall customer service.  

We are so much happier with counter height, non-chipping, comfortable stools.  All three of us, that is...  What is wrong with this crazy dog?!

Any takers??

Also - a few overdue pics from La's shower and engagement party weekend.

Thank you to our lovely hostesses, Ann & Rachel.

That evening friends of the future bride and groom hosted an engagement party in downtown Raleigh.

UNC roomies and our husbands - we missed you, Caroline & Lathan!

La's camp Thunderbird friends

Anderson Family

Bean Family

I have a million pics from this weekend so maybe I'll get around to creating my first FB album in a long time.

XO,

Whit

Love is all around - Mr. & Mrs. Taylor and future Mr. & Mrs.

We attended the lovely wedding of our friends April & Jack Taylor on NYE in Raleigh.  So much fun and one of our very favorite couples.  Stunning bride and a great evening!

Josh, Whit, Reilly, Julia, Alex (aka Bean) & La

I didn't do a very good job taking pictures since I only had my iPhone, so I stole a few from friends (with credit given below the pic!) -- hopefully they won't mind.

Photographer - Barbara Newcomb

The reception was held at the bride and groom's house in Historic Oakwood.

Photographer - yours truly - not a good pic!

I loved the gold foil oak trees on their custom cocktail napkins, the heavy glass old fashion high ball glasses and the black and white lines on the cocktail tables.

Photographer - me again

Photographer - Meagan Jennette

Alfred and Oscar, their beloved dogs, were represented on the cake

Photographer - Janna Neisler

Photographer - Parker Honeycutt

grainy photo taken by me

Photographer - Hillary Crittendon

Photographer - Katie Bruce (L) and Meagan Jennette (R)

pic I snagged

Meagan Jennette's photos

How special and unique to cut your wedding cake in your gorgeous dining room.  That chandelier!  That wallpaper!

Josh with the groom

The next bride and groom

Lucky couple off to Bora Bora

Two of my dearest friends and bridesmaids got engaged over the holidays.  I wish them both a lifetime of happiness.

Grayson & Matt - engaged Christmas Eve

Josh and I with them at Ellen & Scott's wedding in July '11

Kathryn & Chris - engaged Dec 30

These two lovebirds met at our wedding - she was a bridesmaid and he was a groomsman.

So happy for all my friends and the festivities we get to participate in!

XO,
Whit

Bookshelf in Need of a Little Love

I have a love hate relationship with my den bookcases.  I love that they hold a lot of little treasures and memories and my mom did a great job helping me style them when I moved in with the random accessories from all over my old house -- but I think I need to be on the lookout for a few new frames & accessories to get them a bit more uniform for my liking!  

One thing I love is wallpapering the back of bookshelves or furniture.  Do you think that will help make it appear a bit more monochromatic and tie it together?  Am I overthinking the need for order on these shelves?

Let's look at a few visuals.

Here is the right side on move in weekend:

The view of the den from the living room doors (a "real-life, non-styled" day in Aug) -- notice the blue in the breakfast room, but everything else is pretty beige:

View from the adjoining kitchen:

More what the mantel looks like now (although Raleigh painting is now framed and pumpkins are gone!)

Not too long ago I finally got the pillows made for my couch.  The sample had been lying on the couch since Edenton Street!

I remembered a few weeks ago that I still had a big roll of grasscloth left over from when I wallpapered the back of my old den bookshelves.  The background of the paper was a pretty green, but from more than a few feet away the paper came off looking brown, which didn't thrill me.  From the renovations we have LOTS of paint in the basement so I decided to try painting the grasscloth for a free project.

The paint color is Benjamin Moore's Harbor Fog.

I've measured and painted three sections, but have only installed (aka scotch-taped) the bottom half of the right bookcases. 

Grainy iPhone pic of how it stands right this minute.

What do you think?  Go ahead and finish this project.  For you non-UNC peeps, is it too much Carolina blue?

XO,

Whit