But I digress.
Hollie

Who doesn't fantasize about hanging furniture?  It may not match everyone's style, but it's inspiring nonetheless.

I'm not sure if I'd quite consider a hammock to be furniture, but it's certainly a place I'd like to "hang" out.

Source

I came across this company called The Floating Bed recently.

Source:  The Floating Bed

It would certainly be hard to find bedding that works, but how cozy does that look?

More iconic is the Bubble Chair, designed by Eero Aarnio in the 60s, which still looks fresh today.

Source:  Lonny Mag

Hanging chairs are often made of rattan, which could look '70s Bohemian, but this one fits in with a minimalistic modern room.

Home of artist Ylva Skarp, as featured in Elle Decor

Any kid would enjoy the bunk room with hanging beds in this summer cottage.

Source:  Unknown

But what about this classy, traditional room?  It's appropriate even for adults.

Source:  Coastal Living

Swings are always fun.  Even indoors.  Especially indoors!

Source:  Remodelista

I don't think hanging furniture would work in my home, but it's definitely crush-worthy.  What do you think?

Anyone else excited for the new season of Design Star to premiere Tuesday, May 29?  I checked out the portfolios of all the designers on HGTV.com.  Here are my two favorites, just from a quick check of the work they submitted to HGTV.

Britany Simon
HGTV describes her as a "resourceful girly-girl [who] is passionate about creating modern, glam spaces without spending a fortune."

She looks like a young, blonde Giada De Laurentiis

Tailored, with understated spunk

Youthful and now (maybe not long-lasting, but certainly fun)

I thought maybe she was a blogger herself, so I looked her up.  She does have a blog, but she just started it.  You can find it here.

Danielle Colding
Her HGTV profile reads that she "draws inspiration from world travels and her passion for art and fashion to create polished, eclectic spaces."  She used to be a professional modern dancer, holds an anthropology degree from Stanford, and now works as an interior designer.  Her portfolio really impressed me.

Looks like a classy lady

Moody and masculine

The art makes this room

Anthropology influences coming in here

Eclectic, inviting office

Moody modern glam

Clean, fresh kitchen

Put me in this space.  Now.

One never knows how normal people can handle the insane situations they're put in on the show.  I feel bad for someone who seems to be a good designer, but just doesn't catch a break on the show.  You may remember that my favorite Design Star winner, Emily Henderson, totally bombed out on her white room challenge.  Thankfully she made it through that week and went on to win, as her show Secrets From a Stylist is one of my HGTV faves.  I like reading the behind-the-scenes insights she shares on her blog too.

Who are you rooting for this season?

Hollie

1. Spread prepared apples in single layer on paper towel–lined baking sheet and pat thoroughly dry with paper towels. Combine flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in large bowl. Whisk cider, eggs, and melted butter in medium bowl until combined. Stir apples into flour mixture. Stir in cider mixture until incorporated.
2. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat to 350 degrees. Following step 1, use 1/3-cup measure to transfer 5 heaping portions of batter to oil. Press batter lightly with back of spoon to flatten. Fry, adjusting burner as necessary to maintain oil temperature between 325 and 350 degrees, until deep golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer fritters to wire rack set inside rimmed baking sheet. Bring oil back to 350 degrees and repeat with remaining batter. Let fritters cool 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk confectioners’ sugar, cider, cinnamon, and nutmeg in medium bowl until smooth. Top each fritter with 1 heaping tablespoon glaze. Let glaze set 10 minutes. Serve.

A couple weeks ago I told you I had a new rug on the way for the living room.  I've been searching for months and months for something to ground our black leather sofa, to link our living room with our kitchen (which has white cabinets), and to bring some pizzazz to what was feeling like a blah room.

And I think I found just the right thing!



Here's what the old rug looked like.  Just a plain beige jute rug.  The neutral rug with neutral walls just wasn't doing anything for the room.

Before

As soon as I laid the new rug down, I felt the room instantly change.  It felt like a real "before" and "after," rather than just an update.


The wall art makes more sense now, and the bright pillows on the sofa make more sense now.  Not sure why it is exactly that the rug also helps the pillows, but it does.  Maybe just because there's more pattern in the room.  And in case you didn't notice, the pillows are different from the before shot.  I bought these from flash sale site Gilt back in October, but have never shown them on the blog before.  I'm still looking for pillows that have black, turquoise and red or coral. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find that.  The only ones I've found have a huge shot of yellow, too.  A little yellow is fine, but a lot of yellow doesn't work here.




I'm sooo thrilled with the rug now.  Just after I pulled the trigger and placed the order, I started having doubts.  I mean, there's IKEA's Stockholm Rand Rug that I've been crushing on for months.  But IKEA keeps pushing back the in-stock date, so I got tired of waiting. If you follow my board on Pinterest, you've seen some of the other rugs I've been considering.  I've been stalking the daily flash sale sites for rugs too.  I just couldn't hit the superfecta of style, color, size and price.

The day after I placed my order, I came across this photo on the Sixth Street Design School blog.  Kirsten Krason had helped finish up a room design for a client who whose husband is stationed in Paris. Thes FLOR tiles had me at hello.

via Sixth Street Design School

I immediately popped over to the FLOR site (mind you, I already had a rug on order), as I figured they would also have a black and white colorway.  Turns out this design had been discontinued.  I wonder why?  What a great look!

So I had my fingers crossed that the rug I had purchased would be the right one.  And it was!  It's about the same width as the old rug, but a couple feet shorter.  I just barely got the front sofa feet on it, and then was able to stretch it across to the gray chairs.  Anything shorter would not have worked, but this size just makes it!

If interested in the rug for yourself, it's the Dash & Albert Indoor/Outdoor Diamond Rug in Black/Ivory.  You can find it at several online retailers, but I got mine at Layla Grace (with a 10% off promo code I found at Retail Me Not). I purchased the 8.5 x 11 size, but it comes in several sizes and colorways.

What do you think?  Is the room coming along?

My latest project combines my fondness for fonts, color and vintage signage.  I've been spending lots of time on Etsy and Ebay lately accumulating these treasures.


The first time I put them up, I ended up with some empty spots, which delayed the reveal a couple weeks.  Then once I had the additional letters, I did some rearranging to balance the colors and font styles.


Before our dining room walls were nothing exciting, and I had a wrought iron etagere in the far corner.


I've been pondering several wall art projects for a while now.  What I almost put on the walls were black and white vacation photos framed in matching black frames with white mats, like I saw in the condo we stayed at in Vancouver last summer.



(Clearly those last three photos were taken before I learned about white balance!  Boy does it make a difference!)

I don't even remember what it was that changed my mind from the framed photos to the vintage letters, but I'm glad I decided on something a little unusual.  I can always tone things down and do something more conservative later, but I'm enjoying the zaniness of vintage letter R's all over my dining room walls now!



I believe The Mr. and The Teen think I'm nuts.  They haven't exactly been shouting their approval.  But that's pretty hard to come by, so I try to do what makes me happy!

What was your latest project that was a bit on the zany side?

Hollie

I was flipping through the new Ballard Designs catalog today and was caught off guard by how chic and how cheap some of their indoor/outdoor rugs are!  This chevron beauty is the first one that I came across.  Only $229 for the 7'10" x 10'10" size.  For those of you who are big into chevron, this is a steal!

Chevron Stripe Indoor/Outdoor Rug

I'm loving the aqua colorway of this next rug, but all are great.  Only $249 for the 7'10" x 9'10" size.

Geneve Indoor Outdoor Rug

The Farrah rug has a pattern I don't know that I've seen before.  I like it!  The biggest is comes is 5' x 8' for $149.

Farrah Indoor/Outdoor Rug

If I had seen Ballard's Saybrook rug before I bought this one for our living room, the Saybrook might be lying across my living room floor right now.  I looked and looked for a rug with both black and aqua, at a reasonable price.  This is only $319 for 8' x 11'2".  I'm happy with my rug decision (just arrived today -- photos coming soon), so I'm glad I didn't see this one first, but I think it's a great look.

Saybrook Indoor/Outdoor Rug

We all know that ikat is as big as chevron these days, but this is an ikat pattern I haven't seen everywhere already.  Gray and turquoise are a great combo, too.  This one's a little pricier at $699 for a 8'3" x 11'6" size.  Still not a bad deal.

Suzanne Kasler Ikat Indoor/Outdoor Rug

Animal prints are not really my bag, but for those who are fans (Kimberly and Sabrina), here's one for you!  At $249 for an 8' x 10' rug, why not have some fun if leopard is your thing?

Leopard Belgique Indoor/Outdoor Rug

Each of these rugs come in several sizes, and most in several colors as well.  And no, Ballard is not paying me to talk about them.  I've been doing so much online shopping lately for large rugs for our living room, that I thought I should share the wealth with you!

Which one is your favorite?