The Final Choices - Interior is Coming Together!

Here are some of the final choices for the new house! Kitchens will be white cabinets, dark wood floors, corian counters that are a dark grey, sort of colored like concrete / honed dark granite. Bathrooms will be limestone floors on the first level. Banisters will be a dark wood color.

The master bath will have an octagon and dot tile, with counters to sort of match, with white cabinets. Can't wait to see it all together!

So Excited!

I'm Alive & Well and Obsessed with Interiors and House Plans!

Ladies forgive my lapse in blogging. I have been busy with 4 years' worth of birthday parties, baby showers, weddings, and graduations that I've missed while living in Japan. In the time that I do have and consider to be "spare," I'm mostly having dinners with girlfriends I've missed and spending time with family. If there are ever good reasons to not blog, well, these are it.

In the time that I do have to actually sit still, I've been trying to get my act together to consider interiors in the house we are building here in Hawaii. It will be a two-story "Old Hawaii" (read: Missionary Plantation style home with a touch of Asian influence) type residence, with a large front porch and a balcony on the 2nd level. Both the balcony and the porch on the first level will have french doors to enter the home.

I need this house to have good bones, ladies. & I want to do it right. I so don't want to put something in "just for now" and have me pining away for the thing I actually wanted year after year. The house is being built from the ground up, so this is my opportunity to get everything I wanted (and within budget's reach, bien sur).

My plan (because y'all know I am always -- ALWAYS -- armed with a plan) is to go with something I am calling a cross between Modern Island Classic. With a small Asian touch. I have Chinese antiques I've collected over the years that I want to incorporate into the house, but I also want to keep the house fresh and young. & uncluttered. I've found some inspiration in the pictures that follow and am always looking for your input, of course.

This picture above has good bones and the color scheme I'm looking for. It's a little more tschochke-filled than I would prefer and doesn't truly give the fresh young feel I'm looking for. Again, I like it more for the color scheme and the shutters in the back than anything else. I'd like to do something similar but less cluttered. Hubs and I are really drawn to very dark floors throughout the lower level (kitchen, living room, dining room (more on that later) and a bathroom) and white walls. We'd like to put a mix of dark wood plantation shutters and white linen drapes on thick, dark wood rods. We're looking for a light creme sectional a la Potterybarn for the living room and a large, natural jute or sisal rug. We already have a great antique elm Chinese cabinet to hide the behemoth that is our flat screen TV and a square chinese antique kang table that we'll use as a coffee table. I'd like to accent with a few bright and bold throw pillows from Thomas Paul for some color and fun.

For the bedroom, I love this scene above. LOVE. We have a king-sized bed similar to the one shown. Again, white, dark wood and dark wood plantation shutters. Basically a bedroom version of the living room. :0) The master bath includes a jacuzzi tub, a separate shower with glass enclosure and a his/hers sink. The sink console will be white cabinets. But other than that, what do y'all suggest? I'm at a loss and I have to make decisions on what to do very soon! I'd like a spa feeling that goes with the idea that, "Hello! I live in Hawaii! & I'm on Hawaiian Time and I just want to walk around in yoga clothes in my gorgeous house!" What do y'all think would look nice to go with the ideas I'm throwing around for the master bedroom?

Our kitchen will have white cabinets, for sure. & dark wood floors as the living room and kitchen are merged into one great room. The appliances will also be stainless steel like the photo above. We're thinking of doing concrete countertops in a dark grey to sort of go with that minimal feeling. I'm not the girl who will seal granite or appreciate granite. I want something that gives a bit of a modern vibe against a backdrop of all the antique goings-on. My logic is that without all the small tchotchkes, the antiques can feel modern and young. With the tchotchkes, it can feel old and a little cluttered. Maybe I'm going through an early mid-life crisis, but I need the fresh and young feeling!

& now, the bathroom downstairs. I want to create something different in there that still flows with the rest of the house. I like the idea of the above photo -- something with a wood feel and a white bowl on top the vanity.

I'm thinking of using a cabinet that looks EXACTLY like the one below that I got a few years ago. What do you think?

Ladies I can't tell you how much I've missed you. You girls are my sounding board. Hoping you can help me out in any way and if you can't and you just want to stop by to say hello, please do so! I love hearing from everyone!

Have a great weekend!

Special Guest Outfit of the Day: My Mom!

Here at According to Moi, we don't just limit Outfit of the Days to just moi - it's a family effort at times. So since Little Guy is regularly featured, I thought I would introduce another to the blogosphere.... my mom! She looks good, right? She was channeling Audrey Hepburn in a major way on a recent shopping excursion and I told her to pose for the blog. It's a simple outfit but executed extremely well! Good job, Mom!

Wearing Today:

T-shirt & Jeans: Banana Republic

Bag: Dooney & Bourke

Flats: Ann Taylor

A great shot of the perfect ballet flats from Ann Taylor. I love these shoes and wasn't quick enough to grab them. They were done in a faux snake, which I'm sure 99.99% of you know. Too bad the detail isn't evident in the shot.

As an update to a previous post on the Talitha Getty dress from J.Crew, no, I ended up not getting it. My overthinking and usual procrastination, coupled with worrying about the pattern and quilt-bedding effect the dress might have on me won over my want of the dress. On to set my sights on a new object to obsess about!

Also finally settling in here in Hawaii, so posts will follow about what's been going on over here in the last few weeks with some new photos and reports on the differing experiences! Looking to forward to sharing with y'all all that's new!

Hiatus and Other Large Excuses

Andy Davis art images

Aloha to all my fellow gal pals in the blogosphere! I admit that I have been a sucky blogger as of late. I'm still getting settled in Hawaii, but I am here, there's tons to say about what's going on, tons of great photos and ofcourse I've already shopped, paid homage to the local J.Crew and all our other favorites, gone to Waikiki, yadda yadda yadda.

Once I work out my PC and storage issues, I'll be right back in here, telling you all about my fabilis and not so fabilis trials and tribulations. You know, de rigeur stuff.

Thank you for being patient with me and looking forward to us girls getting to chat soon!

What do we think of this? The Patchwork Talitha Dress

Ladies, this has been one of my "Holy Grail" objet d'art that I scour eBay for from time to time. Well, it's there, and it's available. Ofcourse, as is my custom, I'm wondering if I should pull the trigger.

The question is, what do y'all think of this dress? Would you pull the trigger?

I have always loved this dress and always fantasized about owning it. It's coming up to summer, this would be a great summer piece. I'd be in Hawaii, where -- hello! -- would this not fit in perfectly with? But the length, the colors, the patch-work-iness... would you?

Love to hear what y'all think!

Just the Cutest Shirt Ever.

Words don't even describe, ladies.

If you have a little guy, and he let's you put this shirt on him, get it.

These are the kinds of things I will always remember when he's older!

(That's a Harry Pottery Lightning Bolt scar on his head, BTW)

Shine on, baby.

I'm feeling a little easy-breezy today, Ladies. Most of my taskers for the move are either done or on their way to completion and work is wrapping up today. Today! My last day of high-flying fun with the best co-workers and boss in the world. To keep the day light and in light of my Hawaii-bound self, I decided to throw together a look that said Happy Day. This was my Happy Day outfit.

Wearing Today:

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE CREWLADE

J.Crew Collection Sequined Raye Tank

J.Crew Jackie Cardigan in Champagne

J.Crew White Matchstick Jeans

J.Crew Crystal Necklace

J.Crew Pearl Necklace

Chanel J12 Watch

Not Shown, but wearing: J.Crew Patent Juliet Heels in a light beige color (name escapes me at the moment)

This is the first time I'm wearing the Sequin Raye tank, and I've had it for awhile now and I have to say I like it very much. I bought the medium and I like the length and where it hits at the hip on me (I'm 5'4" if that helps). I am NOT the type of girl who normally wears sequins to the office, but I have to say the top is rather understated for something so blinged out, and besides, today is my last work day here in Japan and it's a Friday. Of which all these excuses adds up to moi wearing whatever the heck I felt like today. I am such a huge Jackie fan. I only have 2 Jackie cardigans but I love them. I love them for their washer-dryer friendliness and their fit.

In shopping news, I've re-banned myself, but if you saw my Anthro cart right now you would only say, "For shame!" It is soooo out of control. Anthro just has the cutest stuff right now. Let us hope I make it through this weekend with enough will power not to purchase it all. But it's all so gorg! What does a shopaholic do in trying times like these, when retail therapy appears to be only answer to the moving-to-a-new-country stress levels I've been under?

Send me your thoughts and have a nice weekend Ladies!