remembering:kennbunkport

i look forward to my anniversary all year.

my husband and i always get away 
together for at least one night. 

(no easy feat with three small children!)
we talk about, plan for, 
and dream about these little get-aways all year. 
for our 6th anniversary, we decided to visit

kennebunkport, maine.

it was just as lovely as we 
hoped it would be.

here are some of the pretties we found there:

i loved the rugged coast of maine.

it was truly spectacular.

(and a perfect retreat from the humid south in august!)

downtown kennebunkport:

great shopping, amazing lobster rolls,  

overflowing window boxes, gorgeous architecture...

...it was like disneyworld for adults!

or, at least for adults that love great food, 

beautiful architecture and splendid views.

yes, i just used the word "splendid".

i covet this.

even though is has been over 7 years since our visit, 

i still think about this house.

it was just so vibrant and classic and fun!

and very yellow.

but that's what i loved about it.

this house is beautiful.

i love the soft grey color, and the stone wall.

wow. i love this one.

classic, classic, classic.

what a majestic mansard roof!

sooo much detail on this house.

this one was right across from the water.

isn't it lovely?

a view of the town from across the bay.

this was a church on ocean blvd...

very near the bush-family compound.

i thought the stone work was facinating.

love the red sign and green shingles.

*sigh.

there's just something about lighthouses, isn't there?

here is where we stayed.

it is an old motor-lodge that has been converted into a cute hotel.

this was the view from the breakfast area.

and this was the view from our room.

we forgot to take pictures of the  inside of the room, 

so i grabbed this one off the internet.

it was very pretty...creamy white bead board with teak trim,

dark textured carpet, crisp white duvets and

locally photographed scenes printed in black and white.

to read my tripadvisor review, click here

only 12+ years to go...

until i force my opinions upon help

one of my daughters to design her wedding.

isn't this divine?

they are sooo going to resent love me helping

them plan their receptions!

image from custom event group

design school: year 4

a lot of the projects completed during my senior year

were group projects.

this is one of the only solo projects 

i did during that final year.

we were given a space in a chicago high-rise,

and asked to lay out an apartment.

there were a ton of requirements...it had to have 

certain service areas,a maids room, 

a music room, a study,

two separate staircases, 4 bedrooms, 

and a recreation room.

and, the walls could only be 

put where a window mullion was. 

it was a challenge.

during my last year in design school, 

i got special permission to use watercolor paint for my

presentation boards, instead of the markers we were

all "supposed" to use. the watercolors gave me more

freedom to mix the colors i wanted, and i liked to 

soft result and movement it gave my final boards:

that's all folks!

design school projects: year 3

ahhh...a trip down memory lane.

i remember many things about my years as an
interior design student, 

but the things i remember most are:

1. fingers covered with spray mount and xacto wounds

2. staying up all night to finish a presentation

3. an intense hatred for rendering. blech.

4. dialated eyes from staring at a computer too long

5. spending obscene amounts of money on mat board, 
foam core, markers, staedler pencils, 

xacto blades, spray mount and mat-cutting fees. 

(i think i could have bought a condo 
on mauii for what i forked out on foam core alone.)

5. feeling like i LIVED in the design building.
(i ate way too many "cup o' noodles" and 
cookies from the vending machine. 
for real.
i should be long dead from an overdose of 
sodium and preservatives.)
here are two of my projects from my junior year:

be nice. 
it was the 90's.
restaurant project:

the purpose of this assignment was to create a 

restaurant, using a kitchen tool as inspiration.

i chose a wire whisk.

the board above is a collection of the preliminary

sketches and ideas for the project.

early on, i decided that i wanted the ends of the

wire whisk to be "cut", forming a more tree-like form.

as you can see below, the wire whisks 

became metal tree-like sculptures in the space.

here is the final exterior elevation,

and an interior cross section.

i hate that i didn't photograph these when they were

still "new". spray mount is pretty awesome, but after

13 years in storage, i guess it loses some of it's adhesion.

check out the scuffs on the mat board.

that's what happens when you move 9 times in 13 years.

things get a little dinged up!

the floor plan.

a rendering.

blech.

i hated doing renderings.

(just thought i'd remind you)

master bath project:

for this assignment, our professor gave us a very ODD space, 

and asked us to create a master suite with 

a walk-in closet, sitting area, a fireplace, 

a door to the outside, and a large 

bathroom with all goodies that people want 

in a master bath (two sinks, separate tub/shower,

 enclosed toilet room, as well as a fireplace near the tub.)

here's what i came up with:

i'm sure if i was given this assignment again today,

the space would look totally different!

but even though this was designed 13 years ago,

i still wouldn't mind living here today.

design school projects: year 2

these are all from my first year as

an interior design student/second year in

the design department.

ugh.

renderings.

blech.

i don't think i've mentioned how much

i hated doing renderings yet, have i?

oh. 

i have? 

several times?

yeah, well...that's how much i hated doing them.

i literally cringe 

when i look at these.

but, what can i say?

it was difficult to do, and these were

my first attempts.

you have to start somewhere, right?

this one really got damaged in storage.

it's interesting to see this space and how i chose

to lay it out. i would do something completely different today.

i'm missing the floor plan and finish board for this one.

during my 2nd year in college, i was able to take a

furniture design class

from milo baughman.

it was by probably my favorite class in college.

i loved every second of it.

the next year, milo offered an advanced furniture design class, which i also took,
along with woodworking and upholstery (twice).

(aww...look, there i am, in all my oversized-shirt and
light wash denim glory, hacking away at some innocent
piece of furniture.)

i wish i had some of my projects from the advanced
furniture design class.
 but many of them were either on the computer, 
or sculptures, and in the process of one of our moves, they got lost.

i ended up getting to know mr. baughman a little better, 
when he asked me to be his intern.

it was my first experience with 
"real" interior design: 
meeting clients, ordering and 
measuring things 
"for real". 
it was an amazing experience.
sadly, he has since passed away.

i could use a little more...

this:

and a little less this:

here are some pretty outdoor spaces i can dream

about until the snow melts...

this really looks like a true outdoor room.

love, love love the 

mirror hung by chain, 

and the sheers behind to define the space.

i let out a deep sigh whenever i look at this.

i want to sit on that sofa and take in all 

the pretties.

the blue/grey is so restful in this veranda...

an outdoor space is the perfect place 

to paint wood floors.

lovely.

images from veranda and house beautiful