One Woman's Trash is Another's Treasure

Ah, the beauty of Craigslist, peeps. This weekend has pushed me from casual peruser to *in my own mind* seller extraordinaire! I have officially wandered into the dark recesses of Craiglist and put up my first ads. Um, no they weren't personals. Instead, it's home deco all the way, baby! Here's a sneak peek!

Small, Japanese glass floaters I bought and collected in Japan. Lovely, but not loved. So they must go. & go they did! I had a number of interested people in these within the first hour of posting. If anything, I've learned that as a buyer, I better be quick with the phone call if I want something I think others will want just as much as me!

The "old" bar stools that are making their way into a new home today. These were gone in the first hour as well. I'm sure it has much to do with my pricing, which I believe was fair and a little low, but I needed them to go. There's nothing worse than having tons of stuff in your garage because you're trying to make an extra $5. I have enough in my garage, thank you very much.

Dark Plantation Shutters Debut & the Retro Couch that got Away

First, thanks to everyone for chiming in on the counter stools. I agree that a back rest would have been ideal, but I ordered a single Restoration Hardware stool for a desk area and when that baby came in, all bets were off. I ordered 2 more and they are on their way. I liked them for their swivel, their roomy seats, and their vintage industrial look. I admit I chose them for style and function came a close second. But I'm happy with my choice and I can check that box as done.

On to the next. Our wenge wood plantation shutters arrived and I have to admit I love them. They pop against our white walls and look great against the dark, hardwood floors. A small tour:

The dining room - slash - bar - slash - library. I'm hoping to find some interesting shelving, and a great retro, vintage couch as starting pieces. Perhaps I can turn the inside of the Chinese armoire in the photo to the bar? Thoughts?

The living room also got its windows dressed up. We put plantation shutters on the tall, thin windows that flank the entertainment nook and white linen curtains on the big window over the couch. I'm not a fan of that couch. If I can find something with more clean, minimalist lines, I'd be a happy camper. Craigslist, it is.

The kitchen comes along. Those stools at the counter now? They will be going. That stool at the desk will have friends soon and the swivel action will make them all tall enough for the counter height. Am waiting patiently for their arrival. In the meantime, the kitchen is still a work in progress. I'd like to do a white subway tile backsplash treatment but have never done tile work before.

Alas, the retro couch I missed by 10 minutes this morning at a semi-garage sale in Honolulu. It would have been FABULOUS in either room that is calling for a retro couch, and I actually like the lime green color. It could also have been slipcovered in something more subdued, but you really lose the retro feel when you take away that great color!

Deciding on Counter Stools for a Clean & Simple Beach House

Who knew picking a counter stool would be so difficult, peeps. I mean, it's a counter stool, not a couch, or a dining table, or any other significant piece of furniture. The way I used to nerve wrack over J.Crew purchases, I've somehow channelled that anxiety and overthinking into my counter stool purchasing. It's good to see neuroses never die!

First, let's talk about the stool requirements and the set the stage a little bit. I'm in need of 3 counter stools, around 26" in height, for my kitchen island. The kitchen and family room are right next to each other and form a large open space. If I could have a theme running through the house, it would be, "Clean, Simple Beach House." Everything needs to go with what we already have, peeps. But I've come down to some common elements in each of the rooms downstairs:

1. White walls

2. Dark distressed wood floors

3. Distressed wood antiques of the Asian variety.

4. Lighting fixtures with clear bulbs.

5. Touches of bronze in ceiling light fixtures and floor / table lamps, and drapery rods.

6. Stainless steel appliances in the kitchen.

7. Dark wood plantation shutters and white, long drapes on the windows.

Now that we got that straight, walk with me down counter stool lane and I'll go over the finalists I've got on the brain. I'm in need of some direction, ladies. Some serious, Come-to-Jesus-style direction.

The Modern Industry stool from Sundance Catalog. $125.

Me Likey: The white metal contrasting with the dark wood floors and the way the stainless seat would pick up the accents in the kitchen. I also likey the price.

Not So Much: It seems to lack warmth and doesn't look that comfortable.

Modern Times Factory Stool, Sundance Catalog, $195.

Me Likey: Again, the white / stainless combination. In particular, I like how much more this one is distressed (chipped paint and all), and I love the swivel seat.

Not So Much: It looks unsturdy and slippery. & again, it seems to lack warmth.

The Lyon Fixed Height Industrial Stool, available online for $83.

Me Likey: The stool on the right. & I'm seeing it spray painted a funky color, like an interesting green or something. It would be a pop of color in my very color-neutral house. It also looks more sturdy than the other stools so far, and I love me the price on this one.

Not So Much: It looks too industrial. Definitely lacks warmth, and may not go well with the distressed wood we have elsewhere in the house.

& Finally, the Colby stool from Potterybarn, $99.

Me Likey: It would add the warmth I think is missing from the other stools and add that depth of distressed wood in the kitchen and tie the other rooms' antiques together. It would definitely add that "beach house" element I'm going for, with the rough hewn look it's sporting. I'm relaxed just looking at it. It also seems sturdy and the price is right. Where's Bob Barker at when I need him?

Not So Much: It doesn't have that "industrial" tie I'm looking for, and is a bit of a safe choice.

A final contender: Restoration Hardware $169

Me Likey: The swivel wood seat. Brings in that wooden, vintage feel to tie in the antiques and add warmth to the kitchen, while keeping the industrial vibe I so adore. Adds dimensions of the black colored oiled bronze we have going on in each of the adjoining rooms. The metal accents would tie nicely with the stainless steel in the kitchen and it would contrast nicely with the dark wood floors and white kitchen cabinets and walls. Overall, my favorite for its balancing act of price, requirements, and aesthetics.

Not So Much: The max height is 25.5 inches and I'm worried about how sturdy it is "under pressure" at that or at 24 inches high. It's RH, so the quality should be great, but you never know. The seat diameter is 13 inches. That's a lot of possible rumpus hanging off the edges.

The choices are maddening!!! So now that you've seen all the finalists in the line up, which one would you go with?

More House Fixing Up

I have house on the brain. I admit it. I'm almost no fashion, all house these days. Thought I would snap a few pics and show what's been new in the house decorating department.

Pillows: Thomas Paul, bought from Gilt

Glass Sea Urchins: Roost

Pharmacist's desk lamp: Target

Spider Mums: Whole Foods

BTW, I am in LOVE with these sea urchins.

Pendant lamps: Roost

All installed and with some great Edison bulbs to boot. I think the next set of bulbs will not be as strong. These were 60 watt. I'd like to see the filaments! Hello! That's why I spent more on the bulbs!

Pendant lights off. I think they add to the clean palate I'm trying to go for.

What do you all think?

The House Comes Along

Ok, so I don't deny that I'm moving at a sloth's pace when it comes to getting the house in order. By "order" I mean, "Up to my fantastical standards of fabulousness," bien sur. But slowly, the pieces of the puzzle are coming together. Thought I would share some of the happenings going on with getting our house ready for Housewarming next month. It's an uphill battle, for sure.

Here's a sort-of ghetto fabilis photo of our kitchen, thus far. Pretend you don't see the coffee press on the counter or the mac book air.

We decided to go with these pendant lights for over the kitchen island, three of them to be exact. They are by Roost, and were purchased at the Sundance Catalog. BTW, if you haven't gone to look at the home section at Sundance, you are missing out. They have some pretty terrific finds. Sundance calls these their Meridien pendant lamps, and Hubs installed them pretty quickly with some Edison bulbs to advantage of all that clear glass. They add such a great, clean touch to the room. Photos of course, to follow when the house is Dwell / Elle Decor ready.

Purchased a new console table from Hawaii store Pacific Home. Check it out, they carry great things and I love going in there to just glean ideas. I'm hoping that design ideas will just seep through my pores, osmosis-style, by my just being in their shop. They have a great, laid-back style that I'm trying to capture in my house. This piece is called the Parisian Console table by Carina Sherlock. It's supposed to be modern meets French Country, which is somehow working with my clean, beachside, Pacific vibe. Hubs had decided to install in-wall speakers, which has inadvertently made my Chinese plasma console unusable. Thanks. So now that bad boy is on Craigslist waiting for a new owner and I'm going to throw my TV on this baby. It seems random at first to put the TV on this table, but with baskets underneath in the living room, I think this is going to be a good fit.

Last random purchase while at Pacific Home last night, Roost's glass sea urchin vases. Peeps let me tell you they are so freaking adorable. At $12-$15 each they were an affordable indulgence and with candlelight in the background? Soooo pretty. One of my favorite purchases in a long time.

Alas, I have no J.Crew to share. It's a recurring theme of late. No fun fashion purchases. But hopefully you'll stay with me and be interested in the crazy things going on at the NoJcrewinJapan House!

Happy Chinese New Year and Year of the Rabbit to everyone and enjoy your February this week!

The GAW post on jobs and kids.

A dear friend, an old sage at heart, called today to give me some wise words of advice after seeing my last blog post on the idea of taking photographs as a job. She apparently wants me to keep my day job. I hope she doesn't kill me for blogging about this, but alas, peeps, I must. It's time we all had the GAW talk. For those unfamiliar, that's Grown A.. Woman, which we all know we have to be at some point.

First and foremost, we here at According to Moi are not chickens without heads, and put a lot of thought into the choices we make. & we are pretty left-brained here as well, which means no life-changing decisions - especially when one has children and a mortgage - can be made at the drop of a hat. Research will go into this possible career addition, and in no way would I walk away from the fortunate situation of stable employment - akin to jumping off a cliff with my baby and house in hand. GAW don't do things like that, though sometimes we fantasize about it aloud and in the blogosphere.

& you know, I'm a GAW and can handle criticism. Not everyone's going to like me. & I don't care. :0) I'm happy to do my thing, my way, when I want to. If that means fewer offers and more time in between jobs - great. I can spend it with my little guy and my hubby. & if it all doesn't pan out, I'll still take photos. Because I like it and I want to. & that's the beauty of not being motivated by money or empire-building - I get to do what I want because I like it. & that's a Grown A.. Woman talking.

Beach Wedding and a Budding Idea.

My sister-in-law, pictured here looking gorgeous, got married this past weekend at a secluded, Hawaiian North Shore beach house amidst a small gathering of close family and friends. My job? To follow the actual photographer around and take photos for my mother-in-law, aka The Mother of the Bride. I did this because because we all know that MOBs are hella busy on their daughter's wedding day, tending to the bride(zilla), and they need some family member to take tons of photos of their only daughter's special day. & also because we all know that MOBs are highly impatient and in no way capable of waiting for the actual wedding photog's edited photos to grace their in-boxes a ridiculous 2 weeks post-wedding. P'shaw! So here are my first attempts at photographing a wedding. [As a note, I'd love to share more with you, peeps, but I don't want to post the bride or her party all over the blogosphere. I'm sure she'd love to do something like that herself, so I'm posting just one of her and a couple shots of her flowers, which are all un-edited because I just don't want to edit for the blog right now... Terribly lazy of me, I know, but I know you all understand.]

Now an interesting thing has come of this. My own mother asked why I don't do this as a job. A job?! I am a serious analyst! I am busy defending a budget that is going to be hammered in the near future and besides, I'm not that good of a photographer. Hmmm. But I have to say the idea stuck with me this week. The other oddity, a co-worker saw my photos and asked what I charged, and if I could come out to the beach today to take photos of her family. I had no idea what to say, peeps, which is a rare thing for me. Ultimately I said yes, gave her a quote of my fees, and suddenly, I find myself a photographer. I'm heading out to a beach in front of Obama's vacation home in about an hour, and am playing with the thought of creating a portfolio to actually do this on a part time basis.

The thought of a job that allows me to the flexibility of a SAHM during the week, especially with a little one on the way, is tantalizing. Especially when this is something I would love to do for free. I know my weekends would be full, but I'm fortunate to have both my MIL and my mom just 20 minutes away if I needed someone to watch the babies.

I have a lot to learn, both about taking my work from casual, hausfrau photographs to professional, and about setting up a business. Any suggestions? Any thoughts on it? I'd love to hear from you all who have set up a business and what it took to get there. I've spent the week researching photography websites and the market here, which is ripe for a boutique-style company.

What do you think?