If challenged to choose a handful of only neutral colors and design a room around them, most people would probably not end up with something as moody and glamorous as this. I think we'd see a much lighter room, a lot more creams, browns, tans, greige, maybe some grey, or black, or white—but not this mix and not in this way. This image is actually from ZGallerie's fall look book (which can easily be accessed from their home page or clicking the above photo).

I was immediately drawn to it, not simply because I'm obsessed with moody rooms, but because the concept seems like it shouldn't be too difficult to pull together using an image such as this for inspiration. 

Essentially, the designers used black, an off-white, green, and a metallic—all of which are neutrals. But the genius is in the pairing. Using more black than white, particularly on the walls, carpeting and mantle creates a very different feeling than if the proportion were the other way around. The sofas balance the darkness and give your eyes a place to rest. The vibrant malachite green acts as an accent color and all of the gold provides additional light and reflection to keep the room from being too heavy and dull. The use of pattern is also fairly restrained, so the mix of shapes and materials is what provides the depth here. 

Bringing in glass objects, some chrome, and other accessories in these same shades adds interest to the room, and I love the large format framed canvas on the mantle which ties it all together seamlessly.

This is also a good example of using a trendy color (emerald) but in a way that's easy to move around if you're someone who likes to switch out accents each season or as trends come and go. Another nice point of balance is the use of a round coffee table and curved sofas in front of the symmetrical very square/rectangular built-ins.        

I think it all came together brilliantly. What do you think of this room? Does it work for you?

image via zgallerie

Xx a

Well, it's officially fall now. The boots have been broken out, and I've had my first hot cider and cider donut, so I'm a happy camper. We went apple picking yesterday at Beak & Skiff, one of the many amazing orchards in Central New York, and had a great time even though it was freezing. I felt like a terrible mom for not being prepared with mittens and hats (I did have a thick blanket for the baby), but they both loved the tractor ride to the u-pick section. And Sunshine got to eat some apple herself and Cupcake got a cider donut, so they were both happy.

We picked McIntosh, which are my favorite, and checked out the brand new outdoor kids' area and completely new barn housing a cafe and all their distillery products. If it hadn't been so cold, we might have stayed longer to explore everything, but we still enjoyed ourselves. Some people were picking pumpkins as well, but I like to save that for October. Don't rush me, fall! I do hope the weather warms up again soon and lasts for a few more weeks at least.

I'm not sure what it is about this season in particular, but I feel as though we have so many more family traditions in autumn than we do in any other season, in addition to the girls' birthdays and our wedding/anniversary. I love the fruit picking, but also corn mazes, and soon, everything to do with Halloween, my most favorite of holidays. But again, I don't want to rush it. Yesterday was cold enough; I'm not ready for the S-word most associated with Syracuse.

How about you? Do you go apple picking or have other family traditions during fall? Anything good we should try?

During late spring/early summer, I worked on my first project with Redbook magazine, a supplement to their September issue called Kidbook. It came out a few weeks ago, but it had limited exposure because it only went to subscribers.

I did all the market work from Syracuse, which was a first for me; but it worked out really well, thanks to my amazing pr contacts/friends and the editor who worked with me. 

I produced two stories: One piece was about organizing kid clutter and the other was a cute bath decor story. I think both stories have a lot of really fun, useful products, and I'm excited to share them with you!

Just when I think it's hard to believe it's already August, August is more than half over. And as much as I love fall—and am already secretly pining for apple cider (hot and cold)—I'm not at all ready to rush summer out the door. So to celebrate the first week of my shiny new blog, I will be sharing summer-inspired finds.

To me, summer always feels like the season of freedom. And not just the freedom to frequently indulge in ice cream, which, obviously, I do. During summer, everyone seems more carefree and happy, work schedules can often be a little lenient, and I think people make more of an effort to take a break from all their responsibilities and feel the wind in their hair. 

It doesn't take much to make me think of driving around with newly-licensed friends and staying out late, sleepovers where somehow we thought we were levitating each other (were we? I still don't know), and flying down the street on my bike. The unmistakable ding of a bicycle bell is one of those sounds that snaps you right back to those moments.

But, really, the totally cute designs of Poketo's pattern bike bells are why I kept returning to their website after seeing them for the first time.  The modern styles are a fun update to the classic metal look:  

By the way, don't miss the rest of Poketo's site. The company started out making vinyl wallets, and over the last few years has grown to design and carry a wonderful range of products. I've loved seeing their booth at the NY gift fair become more and more robust. If you're in LA, you can check out their brick-and-mortar shop.

I really like the pink/blue/white style, but the geometric monotone design (bottom right) goes so well with my own  bicycle:

I don't have a bell yet, but I feel like I should get one. Which pattern do you like best?