beautiful books

weather like this makes me want to curl up on the sofa with a mug of cocoa and a good book...

these shelves filled with books are so inviting. i love a beautifully arranged bookshelf. it's a wonderful opportunity to not just store your books, but to also show off some of your favorite treasures. 

{via emmasdesignblog}

{via isuwannee}

{via wherethesidewalkbegins}

{via pinterest}

{via cococozy}

{via dosfamily}

{via apartmenttherapy}

{via pinterest}

i believe a thoughtfully laid out bookshelf can transform a room, bringing depth, visual texture, and a unique piece of 'art' to the space.

xoxo

etsy shop of the day: birdhouse jewelry

while at the brooklyn flea market the other day (more to come on that fabulousness that is the brooklyn flea) i stopped at amy lapierre's, of birdhouse jewelry, wonderful booth and simply fell in love. she had such beautiful pieces of jewelry that were, much to my delight, actually affordable! i've been looking for the perfect 'v' pendant necklace for a while now and i found it here! 
i would have to say my favorite part about my new necklace is the fact the the length is adjustable...that's right, there are three different lengths i can wear this bad boy depending on the collar of my shirt. i love that! 

here are a few of my favorite items she has on her site right now:

{love this simple understated necklace}

{these were gorgeous in person. they reflected the light beautifully}

{love a good statement ring}

{love my v necklace! i wear it everyday}

she has some gorgeous pieces that i'm sure to put on my wishlist for any upcoming holidays *hint, hint mr. williams* ;)

make sure to check out all her shop has to offer here

what is your favorite piece she has? 

which item do you want to add to your holiday wishlist?

xoxo

happy weekend

after working this am, my day will hopefully consist of 

this

{can't get enough of this book}

plus some of this

{yum!}

plus a whole lotta this

{seriously? can't get 'nuff of her}

happy weekend

 

xoxo

party plannin'

{via oh happy day}

even though viv's birthday is not for 5 more months 

(and by no means does this mama wish her baby to be a year old already)

(is it normal that i already feel she's growing too fast?)

(if only there was a freeze button on life, why hasn't this been invented yet?)

anywho...although i don't want to wish her birthday to be here yet, i can't help but ponder what we will do for her party! like...what decorations we will do, if the weather is nice we could even have it at the park, color theme, hmmm... the wheels in my head are a turnin'!

when i came across this tutorial over at oh happy day i immediately thought this would be so cute to have as part of the decor! if the weather cooperates, i'd even love to hang them in some trees at the park and have her party there...

{via oh happy day}

Materials Needed: Folds of Crepe Paper (buy the good stuff here or the cheap stuff here) , Scissors, Tape

Step 1:  Cut the roll of crepe paper in half (you may need a box cutter for this)
Step 2: Take the roll of crepe paper and with another person’s help, have each person stand at an end and pull until most of the stretch from the paper has been removed. (To speed up the process you can do these two at a time.)
Step 2: Fold the paper together.
Step 3:  Begin cutting fringe halfway through the fold, leaving some space in the middle.
Step 4: Turn the fold over and finish cutting the opposite side of fringe. Be sure to not cut all the way through.
Step 5: Attach one side to the ceiling and let the other side fall to the ground. Twist the bottom to create twists in the crepe paper. And you are done!

{via oh happy day}

isn't this just the cutest? it'd even be sweet in a baby girl nursery, hanging above the crib or dresser...hmm, i just might have to try this!

what about you? what were your favorite birthday party themes/decor? as an adult or kid...

xoxo

outfit inspiration: downtown chic

i love the depth and interest that all the different textures bring to this all black outfit...

{via toryburch}

xoxo

the ever chic novogratz...

{via pinterest}

last night was a night from a dream for me. you see, the other day on our way to work, viv and i stopped in cb2 to check out the new line the novogratz collaborated with cb2 to design. while there we saw this sign...

{the window display at cb2}

{the dining chair, and a rug from their new collection, as well as their newest book}

you see, the novogratz have been my favorite design team since i first discovered them a few years back. mr. w and i have been faithful viewers of their show (home by novogratz on hgtv) ever since. this nyc couple have perfected the art of blending modern and vintage, chic and eclectic, always adding something unexpected and fun to their designs. i love that none of their spaces are matchy-matchy. if ever i were able to work with any designers to create a space, it would be them.

can you tell how excited viv was? :)

{we had them sign our book to vivenne. major offered to sign it too, but since he can't spell his name yet, he drew her a picture. too cute :)}

 
i admire them not only for their fantastic design skills, but also for their amazing sense of family. you see, they have 7 kids! let me rephrase that, they have 7 well behaved, kind, respectful, beautiful children. we got to spend a little time with them last night as they all loved little viv, (who can blame them, she's pretty much the talk of the town, ya know :) ) all taking turns holding her and playing with her. major (the youngest novogratz) even bashfully planted a kiss on her! although who can blame him, that face just begs to be smooched!

{twins bellamy and tallulah novogratz}

{right after he went in for the smooch :)}

it's really wonderful to see a family in this crazy city who is living out their dreams, having fun doing it and who still values and loves family time. a rare occurrence in this city.

{love this}

{viv wanted this light}

here are some of my favorite looks they've created:

{sprawled on their family rug for cb2 via pinterest}

{my all-time favorite kitchen via housetohome}

{my second favorite kitchen ever via japanesetrash}

{lobby of the bungalow boutique hotel via japanesetrash}

{love the mix of fun colors and prints and unique pieces of furniture via pinterest}

{adore this girls room, so feminine but not kiddish. both via shed home}

{simple entry with eye catching pieces via pinterest}

{family lightboxes for cb2 via thenovogratz}

{how's about this ground level trampoline? how cool is that?! via debsphotographs}

{brilliant way to display photos without having tons of frames sitting everywhere via thenovogratz}

{striped stairs? why not? via hgtv}

thanks to the novogratz, i have gotten so many great ideas and realized my passion to someday buy a home that we can renovate to make our own modern eclectic  style. until then, i will simply continue reinventing our little apartment, making inspiration boards and dreaming of the homes to come, together as family...

xoxo

workout wednesday

baking is one of my favorite pastimes... i love to bake! and mr. w loves it when i bake! hopefully one day viv will too. (i've always dreamed of being the 'cool mom who bakes the best cookies EVER' for all my kids and their friends...oh the things i aspire to!)

well, as i said last week, even tho this girl loves herself a yummy baked goody, i always try to find ways to slip in some nutrients in any way possible. i firmly believe that even indulgent treats can still be made with ingredients that will love your body as much as your taste buds love to eat them. 

my go-to whenever i'm in the baking mood is a classic chocolate chip cookie. i've actually gotten to where i can't ask kyle what he wants when i feel like baking if i want to try a different recipe because his response is always "but babe...you're chocolate chip cookies are just sooo good!" *insert mr. w's best puppy dog eyes* (i can hear it now, the same thing coming from tiny children's voices! begging for the best chocolate chip cookies in the world!!!) how pathetic do i seem right now? :)

  

little by little over the years i've gradually made adjustments to the original recipe, most of the time not telling kyle because i want to see his reaction before telling him. nearly every single time i've altered the recipe to make them healthier, he has asked what i did differently this  time because they were his favorite so far! that equals success in my book. impress a chef: check!

so here's my spin on the classic nestle tollhouse chocolate chip cookie recipe...the same recipe that monica and phoebe tried to recreate without a recipe and after i think 18 different tries they realized her grandma's 'secret' recipe was the classic "nestle' tollhauz" recipe...ha, i love that show!

here's my adapted version as follows:

2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup smart balance butter

1/4 cup applesauce

3/4 cup organic evaporated cane juice (aka sugar)

3/4 cup sucanat (brown sugar if desired)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 chia eggs (2 tablespoons chia seeds mixed with 6 tablespoons warm water)

3/4 cup dark chocolate chips 

1) preheat oven to 375 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment.

2) mix chia seeds with warm water, stir in small bowl and allow to set for five minutes. this allows the fiber to take over and make a gel, which replaces the eggs in this recipe.

3) cream butter, applesauce, both sugars, and vanilla in large bowl. and chia eggs and continue to cream until well blended. and all other dry ingredients except chocolate and blend until well mixed. next, hand stir the chocolate chips . drop by rounded teaspoons onto baking sheets.

4) bake for 8-11 minutes depending on oven and desired cookie density. (i like mine more cooked, mr. w like his gooey. i usually do one pan gooey, one a little more cooked.) remove from baking sheet and allow to cool before inhaling, if you have any amount of self restraint to wait that long!

*a few things i should mention: sucanat is a more natural version of brown sugar. it's organic and not as processed. brown sugar is simply white sugar that has had color added to it, whereas sucanat is color because it hasn't been bleached out.

sometimes i like a few cookies without the chocolate (i have since i was a kid) so a lot of the time i don't use as many chips as the recipes states so that the last few scoops will be chocolate free.

if you're a coconut fan you could also use regular coconut oil rather than the butter. it would add a slight coconut undertone to these. i think it'd be delish as i'm a huge coconut lover, but i've not tried it this way yet.

since this recipe is egg free, there's no need to worry about salmonella if you're a cookie dough lover. and let's face it, who isn't? you could even freeze this dough to have on hand for the occasional cookie dough nibble or to bake a cookie or two when the sweet tooth hankerin' strikes.*

i hope you find these as tasty as we do!

xoxo