we’re over on Daily Candy again, showing off Emily’s new shop!  if you’re in chicago, you better stop by!  there’s a gadrillion cute things you definitely want.

thanks Emily, and DC for the mention!

when planning a kitchen, it’s important to remember that your backsplash needs to be the bomb.

not really.  but in my case, yes.  i started out with white cabinets, because i love white cabinets.  then i found a DEAL on a slab of soapstone, which is the coolest stuff.  no maintenance, hard as hell, and lovely, lovely, lovely.  mine is sort of a slatey blue grey color, with lots of chalky white veining.  the best part is the matte finish, and the way it feels.  it’s the same material as talc, so it’s soft.  sometimes i just stroke it.

here’s how the kitchen looked on dec 15 of this year, when it was first installed.

and that’s pretty much how it looks now.

BUT!  a new development.  the backsplash.

let me just say i never thought i would want glass tile.  i always found it too modern, too bright.  i wanted a scandinavian farmhouse kitchen.  i wanted white on white on white.  i was into subway tile, with grey grout, maybe a herringbone pattern.  now i look at my inspiration photos and i’m like zzzzzzzzz….i don’t know what happened, but my house is not the austere, sophisticated yet primitive place i imagined.

it’s happy.  and i kind of love that.

isn’t that what we’re always telling our clients, and you guys?  your house should make you happy.  and this backsplash makes me grin.

i am going to add more white to the blend, but here’s kinda where we’re going.

notice how it matches my spatula.  and my company’s branding.  hmmmm.  in fact, our graphic designer recommended this company.  you can create your own blend from a gadrillion colors of tile.  so fun to play with, and the sample is really gorgeous.  i don’t know why my lazy-ass iphone pics don’t do it justice.

here’s how it will look with more white:

a few more kitchen details:

this will be the glass inserts for the cabinets.

that’s how it will look with my wine behind it.

and my awesome parents got me this for my birthday!

and i’ve been eyeing this for the floor.

that’s it for now!  what do you think?

and by that i mean, tell me it’s going to look AMAZING.

when we were asked by emily of orange beautiful to help her style up her new retail space we were beyond psyched.  first of all, emily is awesome.  we met her at chiblogo, and not only is she lovely and hilarious, her stationary line is genius.  if you haven’t seen her work, you should definitely head on over.  second, we LOVE retail spaces (we’re actually in progress on two others).  as designers, we can be a little more adventurous, even theatrical, that we might be in someone’s home.  not everyone wants to paint their trim turquoise, or create floor to ceiling shelves by stacking expedit shelving, but it a retail space you can get away with it!

here’s a few snaps of what’s been going on at OB, and you can read more about the process from emily, here.

the already beautiful before.  emily is blessed with an amazing landlord who pulled up cat pee carpet and refinished the floors for her, not to mention knocked down a wall and finished out the space.  it’s gorgeous!

emily already had these units in her old studio, so we decided to maximize storage by stacking them.  don’t worry, we had professionals bolt them to the wall!  plus, em is super organized, so they’re going to be filled with lovely white boxes and won’t look cluttered at all.

ikea cabinetry acts as a floating counter.  and the wood slats?  pieces from an old shelving unit.  read more about that serendipitous event here.

question:  how do we feel about an orange door?   answer:  we feel good.  very good.

it’s our first ever. we’re kind of nervous! we’d love to see some friendly faces out there….
here’s the blurby:

your style @work- a roadmap to finding your workspace bliss

tuesday, april 6, 6:30pm

fee: $15, but the first five to register get free admission!

if a new pair of yoga pants can get you to the gym, creating a workspace you love can surely help you get things done. in this interactive workshop, Lauren Paradise and Courtney Davis, of the Chicago-based design firm kelly + olive, will help you mix and match, revamp the old, and make room for the new, all in the name of productivity. come armed with inspiration, or just show up, and let Lauren and Courtney guide you in creating your own personal workspace moodboard.

ready to get down to business? call Julia to register at 708.488.9297.

PLUS: julia’s also offering $10 off any purchase, $20 off any $100 purchase, and $60 off any 200 purchase. i’m pretty sure we’ll be picking something up. and we can write it off, right? cause it’s totally work-related!

so if you’re looking for adorable business expenses, look no further. we leave you with just a smattering of the cuteness at julia’s store, and hope to see you on tuesday!