Hope you all have a warm and sunny weekend full of fun decor projects and more gardening. While you’re out running errands for those projects, I highly suggest you stop at your local bookstore and grab a copy of Sixx Design’s “Downtown Chic”, that I mentioned in a post late last year (or online). Jo and I recently got our hands on copies and it is SO inspirational for those of us who are renovating houses on tight budgets. The book showcases seven of Robert and Cortney Novogratz’s projects, from town houses in NYC, a country house in Massachusetts to a beach house in Brazil. I have a hard enough time going through renos in my house with 6 cats, and these guys did it with 6 kids. (!!!!) The photos are exceptional, as you may have noticed in posts we’ve published here, here and here of their work. Oh, and if you get to page 20, check out who they’ve got listed under blogs they frequent. 🙂

Mark Carl Ciolli is an interior designer from New York whose work I spotted in one of my new books “The Find”. He seems to be such a versatile designer as his portfolio is a mix of Hollywood Regency and contemporary. The first 5 photos below are from Mark’s seemingly high end and very glam 350 sq ft walk up studio apartment in Manhatten’s Lower East Side. I say seemingly because Mark is a thrifter, and many items in his apartment were huge bargains. The dove in the 5th photo was $1. The art in the third photo is a print mounted within 2 flea market frames for a total of $48. The stacking tables in the 4th photo are from Target. Being a thrifter myself, I applaud Mark’s skill at mixing vintage with valuable pieces.

There are many countries I’d love to visit, and Italy is at the top of the list. I think it would be a wonderful experience to see where my mom came from. After visiting the website of Italian photographer Adriano Bacchella, it’s like I’ve already been! The villas he has photographed are so unmistakably Mediterranean and rustic and gorgeous that I want to sit down with a great big bowl of pasta and a glass of vino and take it all in.

heyhome is the pairing of photographer Pernille Kaalund with stylist and journalist Louise Kamman Riising. The only thing I can read on their Danish website is that they have worked for several Scandinavian magazines such as Boligmagasinet, BoligLiv and Bo Bedre. Speaking of Scandinavian, the majority of the photos included in their portfolio are typically bright and white, with punches of colour and an eclectic vintage feel. What’s not to love about that combo?

Just a quick note that the kind folks over at Houzz (Adi in particular) have posted an interview featuring me and my little house that I thought you may want to check out – particularly because they were kind enough to let me pick a giveaway gift for someone who leaves a comment on the post. I’d tell you what it is….but NAH, you’ll have to go over to Houzz and find out for yourself. 😉