I’d hoped to feel rested up by today but somehow I’m not. No good excuse either! We were homebodies for most of the weekend, which felt great in a way but had it’s frustrating moments, including refereeing squabbling children. I feel like we’ve got so many projects that we want to do around our house but I’m holding back (or stuck) for a couple of reasons. A) Funds are tight and we just can’t tackle the big projects like flooring, kitchen, etc anytime soon and B) I’m just so freaking tired these days that I don’t know if I have the energy to finish even a little project! But I know that the latter is just a mildly lazy excuse and I’m perfectly capable of organizing a closet (or three) so I think I just need to make an actual goal list for the week to get some momentum going. Small projects, even simple ones, can make a world of difference and I’m the type of person who thrives on project planning. Thankfully, my store is the perfect creative outlet when I’m in a rut on the home front and we’ve got a few exciting projects in the works that I can’t wait to share. In the meantime, to coax Spring out of hiding here’s a collection of spaces + products featuring my current colour crush, aqua + green:

Oh Happy Day | Photo by Paul Ferney

Oh Joy! for Target (available March 16th)

“Swim” by Janis Nicolay | Pinecone Camp

Cartolina (also available at Spruce Collective)

Yvonne Ellen

Isn’t there an old saying, “together blue and green should never be seen”? Well I totally disagree, obviously 😉 Enjoy this soggy Monday!

Hurray for the weekend! I’m feeling a little low on the energy scale this week, you know that feeling when you’re moving in slow motion and start several tasks without finishing any? Yeah, that’s me. But the weekend is here so I’m hoping to reboot and recharge before jumping into several creative projects, both at the shop and at home. Speaking of creative, my Spruce Collective girls and I recently filmed our first YouTube video (totally out of our comfort zone, fyi!) and I thought you might enjoy a little look behind the scenes in addition to some other links I loved this week:

1. Our first YouTube video for Spruce Collective!:

2. Although our own basement renos have slowed to a snail’s pace, I still love living vicariously through other peoples renovation adventures. Can’t wait to see the end result of Sarah‘s home and here’s a glimpse at her DIY studio in the meantime:

Smitten Studio

3. Winter can be a little lonely, can’t it? Especially when temperatures drop, brrr!  But I can’t think of a better way to come out of hibernation than with a communal dinner like this one, attended by Shannon Eileen and hosted by Aran Goyoaga of Cannelle Et Vanille:

Happiness Is

4. A big kitchen reno is high on my wish list but isn’t remotely realistic at this point in time (wah!) but I’m hoping to come up with a few creative and budget friendly tweaks to make it at least a teeny bit happier. Loving the concrete counters and open shelves in this small Dutch kitchen:

Fantastic Frank via April + May

5. I love a good motivational quote and absolutely love this DIY “wallpaper” by blogger Marij Hessel! So awesome and sooo easy too, my kind of project!

My Attic

Off I go to attempt at least somewhat of a productive day, wish me luck 🙂 And have yourself a fabulous weekend too!

What a crazy burst of weather we’ve been having! Blizzard conditions on Monday turned into sunshine + bird-chirping Spring, total switcharoo but I’m definitely not complaining! I’ve got Spring cleaning on my brain and, inspired by our recent “freshening-up” over at my store, feel ready for a few bright + de-cluttering changes around our house. Considering my mild addiction to discount rug websites (like this one) and the endless quest for the perfect living room area carpet, it’s no wonder that this home tour on SF Girl by Bay caught my eye a couple of weeks ago. Layered with subtle pattern and texture, natural wood accents and bright pops of colour throughout, it’s hard to believe that this home was dark + dated before designer Natalie Myers got her hands on it:

Photos by Amy Bartlam via SF Girl by Bay. Design by Natalie Myers | Veneer Designs.

Design by Natalie Myers | Veneer Designs. Photos by Amy Bartlam.

Photos by Amy Bartlam via SF Girl by Bay. Design by Natalie Myers | Veneer Designs.

Design by Natalie Myers | Veneer Designs. Photos by Amy Bartlam.

Photos by Amy Bartlam via SF Girl by Bay. Design by Natalie Myers | Veneer Designs.

Photos by Amy Bartlam via SF Girl by Bay. Design by Natalie Myers | Veneer Designs.

 So bright and classic, isn’t it? I absolutely adore the layered rugs in the living room and the vintage furniture + accessories used throughout the space. That bright turquoise door is pretty awesome too! I generally tend to paint doors out to match the walls but why not trick them out in a bold accent colour? Could you live here? I could.

Snow day, anyone? After the warm sunshine of last week, our little blizzard this weekend (although anyone used to real snow would probably laugh at our West Coast idea of a blizzard!) was quite the surprise! The snow won’t last long but it sure is pretty. Despite the snowfall (and a very early 4am wakeup call to watch the big hockey game, GOLD!!!), Brad and I took the kids to Victoria yesterday where we attended a memorial service for a family friend.  It was a very sad reason for a trip to the Island but we were so glad to be able to attend and celebrate a life well lived. We had hoped to walk around the city in the afternoon but the weather didn’t cooperate so we decided on a whim to go visit the Royal BC Museum and it turned out to be the perfect way to spend a snowy afternoon as a family:

(Excuse the iPhone pics) I hadn’t been to the museum since a grade 6 field trip but it was awesome! We all loved exploring the exhibits and brushing up on the history of our great province and they just happened to have a number of extra creative things going on for the kids during our visit too. If you’re planning a trip to Vancouver Island anytime soon, I’d highly recommend a visit! It was a looong day and despite some very sad moments, it felt really great to get out of town and do something fun together.  Sometimes the best family times are the ones least expected, aren’t they? Life is so funny sometimes but I’ll take little doses of happy anytime I can get ’em 🙂

This week flew by and having the kids home today for a pro-D day made it feel extra short. I haven’t felt overly productive but I did manage to have some great visits with several friends and plugged away at getting our new office at the shop organized so no complaints! I’m looking forward to hunkering down with the kiddos today and Brad + I are off to our first Bollywood-themed party tomorrow night, I can’t wait to dress up! Without further ado, here are some links I loved this week:

1. This Australian rental property, Vintage House Daylesford, is off the charts amazing! Built in the 1860’s, this miner’s cottage has been restored and re-designed into a luxury getaway full of vintage treasures and eclectic charm. When can we go?:

Vintage House Daylesford via Desire to Inspire

2. I find it so inspiring hearing about other people’s “success” stories, especially other women entrepreneurs, and Emma’s (from A Beautiful Mess) is pretty awesome:

A Beautiful Mess

3. While I love doing real “field trips” to new shops, virtual ones are the next best thing and Victoria always does an awesome job at mapping out new stores and things to do in San Francisco. This shop, Electric Blanket, looks pretty darn cool:

Electric Blanket via SF Girl by Bay

4. I’ve got a serious weakness for vintage bentwood and this entire Scandinavian home, including this dining vignette, had me at hello:

Hitta Hem via Decor Dots

5. White cabinets, wood accents, black window/door frames, vintage rug, artwork and great lighting all add up to the perfect kitchen in my books! Loving everything about this one:

Photo of Penelope Loorham?s house for The Design Files.  Photo – Eve Wilson.

Any big plans for you? Our weather has been pretty manic jumping from stormy to warm + sunny back to wind and even some hail so it’s hard to plan outdoor activities. But I’m hoping to get outside at least a few times, really hankering for Summer these days. Sending you sunny thoughts wherever you are, enjoy the weekend!