I love this home by Madrid-based interior designer Marta de la Rica. It’s whimsical and colourful without going overboard, with lots of patterns (ikat!) in small doses without being too busy. Marta has a knack for designing spaces JUST RIGHT. And how freaking adorable is that pink/purple tufted sofa?!?!

More work my Marta can be found here and here. 

Anyone can throw together a bunch of knick knacks and call it a vignette or shelfie. I personally feel it takes talent to pull it off and not want to change a thing. Like this beautiful armoire styled by interior designer Nora Schneider. 

Last summer my husband decided to build a garden in our backyard. It was not planned out and in the end I was really not happy with the quick and dirty execution of it. Basically it looked like crap. (No offense husband dearest!) This summer I insisted he destroy the existing garden and WE come up with a plan for something much more aesthetically pleasing. We did a quick google image search one day for raised garden beds and came across a photo very quickly that we both loved. It was essentially a big rectangle with an area cut out in the middle to walk around in. Simple yet a great layout. And let me say right off the bat that if you’re thinking of building a garden GO WITH A RAISED GARDEN. Weeding is actually FUN when it’s not back-breaking!

We found a super resource of cedar so we went with unplaned cedar to keep the cost down (in the end it cost about $380, and the garden is about 6′ wide and 18′ long). The wet spot above may or may not be me having just hosed down cat pee. 

We placed it against the side of our garage (that one day in the not so distant future needs replacing). We have grand plans of building a screened in gazebo type shed thingy next to it so we can hang out with the cats and not have to tie them up with leashes/harnesses. 

This garden is fairly large but aside from the gazebo and a larger back porch we don’t really need anything else back here. Note the random ferns. They are all over our property. I had no idea they grow like weeds. Best looking weeds out there I’d say! 

The wood on this side of the garage was rotting so husband found something called plytanium. It’s an outdoor wood with grooves to look like planks. I decided to hell with it, we would leave it unpainted and I don’t care that it doesn’t match the rest of the white garage because at least it blends in with the garden. I thought that would make a prettier, more organic backdrop although the plants have grown so big in the few weeks since they were planted that it doesn’t show much anyway. 

We left some space between the garage and garden in case we need to do any maintenance to the garage and filled in the area with mulch. I could not bring myself to remove the ferns so they can stay until they get too big and then I’ll transplant them. 

The garden was constructed several weeks ago but only this past weekend was the gate finally built to keep out any critters….

…like cats. 🙂 Luckily they have no interest in veggies. 

So this is the space inside the garden that allows us easy access to all sides. Mulched all in there too. Yet another stray fern lives within. 

NO BENDING!!!

We planted a ton of herbs – thyme, sage, dill, oregano, lime basil, red basil, thai basil, lemon basil, lettuce leaf basil (yes, we like basil), cilantro, parsley, rosemary and mint. 

For vegetables we planted ghost peppers, 10 types of tomatoes (WUT?!?! I just found this out when getting husband to list it all off – he’s the one that went to the garden centre), green beans, cucumbers, jalapeno peppers, red and green peppers and lettuce. 

We have a ton of work to do on the rest of the property (don’t even get me started on how terrible the front yard is), but I am soooo happy this is finally done, and done right. 

And just when you think it can’t get any better…the magic egg farmhouse has a GUESTHOUSE!!! 

A little spot just over a little hill from the Magic Egg farmhouse. The guest house was filled with spiders and piles (and piles) of books when we got there, but it was easy to see the promise of this space. We let the original floors and wood beams steer the style, and kept things simple and light. Textured linens, white plaster, brass accents, some hanging sage from the garden, and of course, some built in bunk beds. It’s the perfect sized weekend getaway. Jersey Ice Cream Co. does it again. 

If you asked me what type of home I would want to live in for the rest of my life if I had to choose one, this is my answer. This home and everything in it. A late-18th-century farmhouse tucked away in 167 acres of fields and forest, complete with a barn, pool, pond, and tennis court. Over its many years the house has seen plenty of renovations and, we can only imagine, has lived just as many lives. Its most recent iteration featured a rainbow’s array of wall colors and strange furniture choices. It was immediately clear that all that needed to go, and that we’d basically need to start from scratch, while keeping just a few old details like the wide-plank floors and rich chestnut paneling. Such a relaxing, serene environment filled with all the wonderful textures and neutral tones you would expect in your dream farmhouse. By Jersey Ice Cream Co. (Previous feature here)