Mid week musings and a giveaway!!

Hi looks like this mid week musings thing is now a regular gig, so why not...a great way for me to talk about a whole bunch of randomness. Hope you are having a great week...mine is good, busy and productive. I cannot say summer has been super relaxing so far but I have managed to squeeze in some down time and the little I have had has been wonderful! I am also offering a wonderful giveaway....all details on bottom of this post.

I am actually headed to New Orleans on Friday morning and cannot wait. Its been a few years since I have been there  and I cannot wait to hit the antique shops on Royal st., indulge in french pressed coffee and a piping hot sugar laced Beignet and go to some of the wonderful restaurants we had the pleasure of visiting last time. This is absolutely NO time for a diet.....the food in New Orleans is off the hook amazing! Any suggestions are more than welcome!

For anyone else who has "a thing" for New Orleans....this book is one of my favorites. Got it about a year ago and it just captures that New Orleans essence to a tee, a really wonderful book!

Many of you are so kind to ask about sweet Teddy, he is doing well.....hair 90% grown back so its good to see him whole again. Heres a few pics of him doing what he does best......yep, relaxing!

Does he think he is CZ Guest here or what? 

I like to share the results of my weekly Which would you choose and thought it would be fun to see which girls bedrooms took the top prize from last week, so here they are in order of their votes!

1st place (and my personal favorite)!

A close 2nd place 

Tied for 3rd place

Several of the others vied for 4th place...what can I say, my readers, you have excellent taste!

Finally ordered the wallpaper for the back powder room (this is off the kitchen and the bathroom we use on a daily basis). I decided it was one of the first I loved and often times we go back to the original choices.....this was the perfect blend of something elegant but not too formal, fresh and crisp. I really like it and it gives off the exact vibe I am looking for......will finalize the check I will do the window treatments in and likely have some cute little fabric shades made for the sconces too.......

I also like covering shades with fabric for a custom touch...experimented here, me likey!

I really like Anthropologie and think they are one of the stores that are getting better and better. I recently ordered a bunch of these exquisite glasses...love love them! I am a sucker for anything etched and these look really old and are just beautiful! I cannot wait to use them....what do you think? I have found so many unique and beautiful things there.......

Can you believe I am STILL waiting (only six months and counting) on the Thomas O Brien rock crystal sconces? Crazy! But I have looked and looked for a suitable replacement to no avail....so wait I will. Every time I look at them, I realize they are perfect and I can envision them in my room so hopefully the newest delivery date of August is finally the date that I can see these babies and get them up and get this bathroom done!!!! Once they are up above the tub and at my vanity...I just need my chandelier, a chair and I am set...woo hoo!!!!

Here they are.....by Thomas O Brien

They will go above the tub and on either side of the mirror (single ones) on the vanity....

And on either side of the mirror

And very excited finally got these gorgeous Ralph Lauren sconces ordered for the living room....cannot wait to get them! They are really beautiful, leave it up to Ralph!

They will go on this wall (one either side of botanicals) as well as between all the French doors in the living room.

Moving on.....I love costume jewelry, well I love all kinds of jewelry but being paranoid about losing (lets just say I have done my share) I don't  wear "the good stuff' unless I am going to a wedding or special event and it is all locked up in a safe spot. But I love fun costume and have quite a bit, just ordered some jewelry drawer boxers/liners and cannot wait to start organizing, but in the meantime how cute is this? Its a dress form with hooks for jewelry its finished in a muslin fabric and has French writing. Believe it or not found it at Michaels for $14.99!! I love it and think it adds such a sweet whimsical touch to my closet.

Store biz......I am not going to be adding anything over the summer. While business is going wonderfully I am hoping to take a little time to enjoy summer as it goes by so fast. I have a few brackets left and this is it as well as a few other items I am just about sold out of. I am planning to revamp things come fall, phasing a few things out and adding some exciting new things, so stay tuned and thanks for your continued support and enthusiasm!

I have one of the black and gold brackets on the right and one pair of the antique white painted brackets. I am selling the one black and gold for $45.00 and the pair of large ant.white for $100. This is the very last of my brackets and these prices are far far below retail. Email me if you wan them.

Also......

Last antler pillow.......

Last gray chinoiserie pillow..........

Last small dough bowl, since I have one left I am selling this for $100 even. A great deal if you know the price of dough bowls...contact me if interested!

Last small olive tray (they will be in again sometime later August).....

Last black chinoiserie tray......$90.00

And last have two of these beautiful blue and white scalloped dishes left and that is it! These are soo pretty, I kept one for myself! If you are intersted in this item, you can purchase online (have only two left)!

If there is something in the marketplace you feel there is a lack of, or you would like to see me carry, shoot me an email. I love hearing your feedback!!

Now onto my giveaway, giving a stunning silver cake spade and a darling set of crown bookends to two lucky winners!

All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this blog after visiting my online store and tell me an item or two that you would love to receive. That's it! I will announce a winner on Tuesday morning. Click here to visit my store.

 First the beautiful crown bookends...........

And the beautiful silver highly decorative cake spade.....

Thank you Kristy and Beth from one of my favorite blogs Design Chic for featuring my butlers pantry in your gorgeous post today about pantries!! Great post, click here to visit!

So that's my randomness for a few days. I am leaving early Friday for New Orleans and will return early next week. I will miss visiting all of my favorite blogs but it will give me something to look forward to when I get back. I do have access to my emails while gone so feel free to contact me if you need to. And if you have any must see or do suggestions for the Big Easy, please by all means pass them along! Wishing you a wonderful rest of the week and a fabulous weekend ahead! Until next week........

Beautiful belljars.......

Notice I changed the pictures in my header? I figured why not change it up to reflect summers light, airy vibe with a blue and white touch. Hope you enjoyed a relaxing and happy, safe Memorial day weekend.Hard to believe summer is officially here, we ended up having a lot of fun, it was more action packed than I originally was hoping for but once in the throes of all the activity, gotta admit we had a darn good time!

Before I begin, I was so honored to have been featured in a really fabulous online magazine spread, Belle Inspiration. If you arent' familiar with it, you are missing out, its a wonderful online magazine created by tastemaker Mimi, and is wonderful treasure of all things French. I was so honored when they asked to feature me and The Enchanted Home shop! Click here to visit (click on May/June issue) . It begins on Page 79-80. Its worth heading over! It is such a beautiful spread....thank you Belle Inspiration!

One of my favorite kinds of lighting is bell jars. Just like the ones I have in my kitchen which is what prompted me to even start carrying them in the first place. They are classic, elegant, don't detract, just enhance and are always such a perfect choice when in doubt. They also provide a nice soft lighting, nothing too strong but a definite room enhancer.  I have seen them work their magic in the most traditional spaces to very light airy modern/transitional ones.  So today a look at them in all their beautiful glory...what do you think, do you like belljars? Have them? Would want them? Would love to know!


So first my own belljars, funny for lanterns that were supposed to be "temporary" I think they are now staying. For good. They literally look perfect here, and for anyone who has seen them, they have thought I am crazy to consider switching them....so looks like they are home sweet home. These are the "tulip etched" design........

I love the etching, gives it such an old world appeal

Belljars hold their own in the most spectacular and formal of spaces, Barry Dixon

Love the way the belljar was used in this showstopping foyer, Intrinsic Designs

Love the belljar in this super chic bathroom, Jennifer Eisenstadt

They are the perfect choice for a bathroom, House Beautiful (Same line as I carry)

This pair in nickel by Dana Wolter adds just enough tradition to a somewhat transitional feeling kitchen

Love how Barry Dixon used a belljar for this beautiful girls room

Rinfret chose a beautiful etched glass belljar for this beautiful and stately dining room (Same line as I carry)

Even for dramatic spaces, JMA

Rinfret used a collection of four (these are the line I carry) to create an interesting lighting design

Belljars are perfect for hallways and gallery type spaces, James Michael Howard

A pair of belljars is like a sure thing above an island, Deborah Lehman 

Belljars to me, are always the perfect choice for baths and smaller spaces too (same line as I carry)

Adore this closet by Barry Dixon......the belljar is a perfect accent here to not detract from all the fabulousness in this space!

Adore this space by Mary Evelyn, the belljar is a great compliment but does not detract from the beauty of the room

A trio of pretty belljars work perfectly with the scale of this long island

This is the cut star design, used beautifully in this stunning bath, Rinfret (same line as I carry)

A pair of belljars with a bronzed finish looks beautiful in this kitchen, James Michael Howard

The pretty and "go with everything" starburst design is a perfect compliment to this pretty dining room, Kristin Panitch

Belljars are my favorite lighting for hallways, both big and small, Bacco (same line as I carry)

Belljars can hold their own even in the most formal of spaces, as executed by Barry Dixon

This is the diamond cut pattern and reflects light beautifully (Thes are also from my line)

For a cleaner crisper feel, the polished nickel finish gives a nice gleam and adds to a crisp aesthetic

I think they are perfect for transitional spaces like small vestibules, Intrinsic Designs

Love the oversized scale Thomas Hamel used for this cozy elegant breakfast nook

Love the mix of styles here, the belljars with a highly polished nickel finish were a great choice, Downsview

Homey Design shows that even in more transitional spaces, belljars are a great choice

Love the way the belljar here adds the effect of lighting against such beautiful window, Barry Dixon

Another pretty example of why these always work for above an island! Alexandra Luhrs (From my line sa well)

Ralph ( as in Ralph Lauren) yes we are on a first named basis, uses belljars in his personal closet! Smart man that he is:)

For tall ceilings, they do a nice job of anchoring the volume of the space, Doma Architects

Barry Dixon chose a tinted belljar for this elegant bath

Even in a more formal room like a dining room, belljars look fabulous, prefer the ones with the metal tips for dining rooms, Rinfret

I think belljars are an ideal lighting option for foyers and vestibules, Barry Dixon

So....do I have you hooked yet on belljars? What do you think? Do you like the subtle way they add interest to a space yet don't compete with what else is going on in the room as some light fixtures do? I think thats one of the most redeeming qualities about them, besides their versatility is that that they add interest, beautiful soft lighting but do not detract from what else is  happening in the space.

Reminder for anyone thinking about belljars from my shop, my approx. 20% price increase is effective tomorrow June 1st. They, even with the increase will be still be considerably less than my competitors, but right now they are as low as they can go! Thanks for stopping by and would love to hear your thoughts on belljars! Wishing you a wonderful day.