Not Nearly As Scary

And the after. Ah, much better. The bathroom is not finished. I still need artwork for the walls and new towels and oh, other stuff too. But if I waited until it was totally finished, you would never see it!

This is looking in from my bedroom. I love the mirrors. I originally wanted two separate mirrors but 6 months after the project was complete we still had nothing. It is not that easy getting ready when you have no mirror. My husband kept saying "They are just mirrors. Pick something." Now I don't want to say he was wrong, but he was wrong. I am so glad I waited because one day I woke up and said "I've got it!" I quickly sketched out the wall to wall mirror with wood trim and called the carpenter. Just in the nick of time. I went into labor 2 days later and asked that it please be done when I got home from the hospital. Something about strange men in my bathroom while I lay in bed with my new baby just didn't appeal to me. I'm weird that way.

The light fixture is the Retro Three Light Sconce from Circa although it may be discontinued. I couldn't find it anywhere on their website. And the countertops. Concrete. Big thick polished concrete. My true love of countertops. I would love to have the same thing one day in my kitchen. They have brought me nothing but joy. Warning, concrete is expensive. The truth? They are totally worth it. If you live in Wilmington and need a good concrete guy e-mail me.

The vanity was custom built at 37 inches high. I swear the old vanity was 25 inches high. I got a back ache every time I brushed my teeth!!

Not a great picture but that is O.K. I am sure you have seen this shower curtain a hundred times before. Doesn't it still make you happy? Anthropologie carried it for years. Shower curtain here.

This is the wall across from the vanity. Just an old Pottery Barn bookshelf my mom was getting rid of. I really wanted something metal and industrial looking but for now this works. Did I mention it was free?

I couldn't get a good picture of the floors. They are tumbled marble and look a lot like this but with a few light gray pieces that pick up on the concrete.

That's about it except for my faucets. Don't look at my faucets. Did you look? They are a little sad. I couldn't find exactly what I wanted that did not start with a one and end with a thousand so I picked something cheap thinking I would replace them later. It is later and they still have not been replaced....oh well. I am happy with everything else so I hate to complain. Even though I am good at it.

Hope you enjoyed the tour of my teeny, tiny bath.

Jealous?

...Of my pretty pink bathroom?

This is not my bathroom exactly. For some reason I can't find our pictures, but you can get the idea. It was a sea of pink.

Pink sinks and toilet and tubs.

A pink square tub. Ours was even fancier. It had two seats so you had a little sliver down the center where you could bathe. Why two seats? Why seats at all? Are you expecting company? If you are, I don't want to know.

It is not a big bathroom. 8 x 10. When we gutted it several people suggested I take space from my closet to make it bigger. What? Crazy talk. I have seen some bathrooms that are big enough for dinner parties. Who wants to eat dinner in a bathroom? Not me. It has everything I need in it's small space. Sink, tub, toilet. The perfect work triangle.

After pictures tomorrow. As soon as I clean up!

Silhouettes

Everywhere I look lately I see silhouettes.

I love the bright colors. It doesn't seem so old fashioned. And the crown. A crown is always a nice touch.

I like this giant silhouette of Lulu Guinness, but I think my larger than life profile might scare my kids.

I love these. I would be happy every time I sat down to eat. The chandelier would also help to bring me joy.

I am not sure if this is one boy as he is growing up, or different people. The top left hand silhouette looks like the Grinch.

Then while I was out shopping (I mean, doing really important stuff) I came across this...

This has got to be one of the best book jackets ever!! Even better? I got it at the Giant Book Sale for $2. I think they have those Giant Book Sales in other cities, but if not, you can get this book here. I wouldn't mind having a giant framed copy of this. And yes, I do plan to read the book..someday soon. It looks like it might be a good one. In the meantime I will be shallow and enjoy it because it is pretty.

Did you know you can get custom stationary for your children? You just send in a profile picture and you get fabulous, monogrammed cards back. Love it. Here. A monogram and a silhouette...what could be better?

Need more options? I've got them. Check out Gibson Lane Studio.

This is a great inexpensive way to go. You get a lot of bang for your buck. Check out this Etsy seller here.

Now this would be a fun piece of art to have in your home. I really want to do this. The chances of me getting profile pictures of all five of us is slim I know. Maybe I will just do the children. And then give it to my husband for Christmas! (But we all know it is really for me) It would be the perfect gift...something for him that I really want. Check it out here.


pictures from: My Favorite and My Best, La Dolce Vita, Delightfully Random and Pink Wallpaper.

School-Church-Shoebox

Yesterday was the first day of Preschool for Butterball. We were so brave. No one cried.

Here he is checking out the playground. If you look closely you can see the climbing gym is built to resemble our church, First Presbyterian. It even has a rooster weather vane on top just like the real steeple. Creative details. Gotta love it. (He's wearing a a name tag with his real name on it, I wrote Butterball underneath. I am not sure if he knows his real name)

Here he is in his classroom.
I said he didn't cry. I never said he wasn't worried.

This is the moment he saw me at the end of the day and took off running. I know, couldn't you just cry?
That's his teacher, Mrs. Maria, cheering him on in the background.

He had a ball and was so happy. I think he is trying to whistle here.


Being down at the church preschool got me thinking about churches converted into homes, so I decided to look some up. Most of them were not all that attractive. Who would have thought? I did find one I thought was interesting.

Quaint and charming I found this on Modern Prairie Girl.

It is from Cookie Magazine.

I think they did a pretty good job and I love that chandelier.
It pays to live in an old church when you have a light fixture the size of a Volkswagen.

The church bench is a nice touch.
I don't know if I could live in a converted church. I prefer quirky and cozy over cathedral ceilings and baptismal fonts. Plus, wouldn't the organ keep you awake?

P.S. What is going on over at the neighbors'?
Converted Nike shoebox? Different in a good way or just different??

Hope you have a great holiday weekend!

Target

I was in Target the other day and saw the cutest clothes for Fall.

Everything is $12.99 or less.
Wouldn't this be perfect with jeans, a white t and cardigan? Or maybe a big bag made out of the same fabric. I love the blues and browns.

Dress or tunic. Gladiators now, jeans and ballet flats later.

This looks a little springy but I loved the flowers on it.

You have got to admit this looks just like Mini Boden or Crewcuts.

How cute would this be with some boots and a giant flower pin? All these choices are little funny for me because I am not a pink person. Love it on others, not on me. But just because I don't wear it doesn't mean I can't share it with you. I want my readers to look good. I can't have Blue Hydrangea readers looking shleppy.

Now don't get too excited.. Unless you are two years old. You guessed it. These adorable clothes were all in the toddler section. Now I have been known to squeeze myself into an XL in the children's department before at Old Navy and Gap, but I don't think I stand a chance in the toddler department. But boy if I had a baby girl, I would be shopping like crazy. The boy's stuff?? Not so cute!

I did find something good for us big girls. By big girls I mean age NOT size!!
Actually Betsy P found them and was kind enough to share her deal with me. Can you stand them? Don't they look just like the Frye boots?

This is the Frye harness boot for $200. The Target boot is $49. Don't you just love Target? I saw the boot in person and you really can't tell the difference. O.K. Go. Shop. Let me know what you find.

Circus Freak

Last night was parent's orientation at the preschool. I got to go and meet all the new parents. The very young new parents. I laugh and joke a lot about being old to be Butterball's mom, but really it doesn't usually bother me. Until last night. I felt like a circus freak. Step right up. Pay a quarter to see the preschool's oldest mom. Please don't feed her. She is old and cranky and may bite. I came home and googled Botox, Restylane and Micro-Dermabrasion. Then I decided to find some pretty pictures to cheer me up.

I like pictures with pretty things and books. Yes, books are good.

A little stack here...

and here brings me joy and makes me happy.

Supposedly if you are happy, you look younger.

Books, flowers and butterflies..yes, I am feeling younger already.

I also made a decision....

No Botox. Yet. I have decided what I need is some new, cute shoes. Yes, shoes. That way everyone will look at my feet and not my face. For the record...Butterball will be turning 2 in November and I will be 45 in December. 45 really isn't that old, unless everyone else in the room is 30. My husband loves to remind me that I will be 50 when he enters 1st grade. Okay, I've admitted it, now we must never speak of this again.

P.S. I know I am very lucky to have Butterball. And I know there are moms out there older than I am. I know because I read about them in People magazine.

pictures from: Todd Selby, Elle Decor, This is Glamorous, Walking Around

Off to San Fransico

OK not really, but I am off to guest blog for Lilah at Urban Sardines based in San Fransisco. Lilah has been with Blue Hydrangea since way back. She was one of the first to support my blog and leave me comments. For those of you with blogs you know what it is like in the beginning when you are just starting to get comments and realize someone out there is reading. It's the best. Since then we have kept in touch and I have loved watching her blog grow. Please be sure to check out one of my favorite posts here. And another here.

This is a hint of my post topic for today.
Sofia or Sophia? There seemed to be more info with "Sophia" so that is what I went with. Right or wrong I don't know. Just enjoy the pictures. Check it out here.