Cath Kidston

I got a Cath Kidston catalog in the mail yesterday!!!!
I first fell in love with this fabulous pattern designer when I saw some small coin purses for sale at Tulips, a cute little boutique on campus corner in Norman. I was drawn to the bright colors and her vintage inspired floral patterns. I looked her up to find the cutest website I had ever seen!! I wanted to buy everything on her website. But, of course the prices were in pounds. and the shipping would be a lot. 


Fast forward five years. I went to London in November. My mom and I happened to be visiting Windsor one day and after visiting the queens house we decided to do a little shopping. As we turn the corner, I see a bright store front practically calling my name. Hm. "Let's go check this store out, Mom!!!" and then I yelled "It's Cath Kidston!!!!!!!" I am sure everyone thought I was strange. A strange American. I can't begin to describe how fun it was to look through the store. Cath Kidson caters to a variety of customers. Adorable children's stuff, kitchen accessories, clothing, any kind of bag you can imagine: purses, totes, travel, make up, grocery, baby! A huge selection of wonderful fabrics, all kinds of fun bedding, very adorable craft supplies: fun printed scissors, sewing bags for your supplies. Sadly, I had to be wise in purchases since I literally had no room left in my suit case. I bought some fun dish towels but would have loved to buy some fun coffee mugs and a laptop bag...maybe a fun make up bag too! 


Some of her prints tend to run on the shabby chic side but I am in love with the colorful vintage florals. When I was checking out at the counter I signed up for her catalog and asked the sweet sales lady if they ship to the US. She had no idea and said "fill one out anyway! If you end up getting a catalog one of these days, I guess we ship to the US!!" AND they do ship to the US because I got mine in the mail yesterday with so many new spring products! 

   

decorating the floor...and i'm not talking about a rug!!

Looking for a way to spruce up that disgusting linoleum flooring in your kitchen in a budget savvy way? Well, look no further! Why not try painting the floor? It's an odd thought at first, I know. Painting the floor? There are indeed other ways to decorate the floor besides cover it with a rug AND a good rug can run you several hundred dollars! This is a much cheaper (and creative) alternative! 

Check out these fun images below for a little bit of inspiration! Not only does painting the floor cover up what you don't like but it also adds fun character- like a 1920's bungalow with oh so much personality you just can't stand it!  

very modern

Oh, that black and chartreuse together! Love love love! So striking.

edgy and playful

one of my personal favorites. There are several places online that you can order floor and wall stencils custom. Much cheaper than a new floor or wallpapering the walls!

how fun!

Oh I love this subtle and delicate lace pattern. So pretty.

The color of the year

Pantone has announced the official color of the year: turquoise! So, we'll be seeing more of this color throughout the year in fashion, decor, and even weddings. Its a bright and cheerful hue. I am all about using turquoise accents in my home but for me personally, I don't think I would paint with such a bright color! Maybe a muted turquoise. What do you think of this color? Would you decorate with turquoise or wear it more this year?

Here are some example of how to apply this cheerful and fun hue to your style this year:

this is a fun color combination: turquoise, black and pink. 

this would be the perfect palette in a house full of college girls living together! 

Pantone even has a wedding color guide this year! Check it out! This Pantone guide can be really helpful when choosing the perfect color palette for your big day!

i want this!!!

How funny! I don't drink loose tea but I would if I had this cute little submarine. How fun would it be to use this every morning. It would make me smile every time I used it.  Featured Here - This place has the quirkiest little gifts. Check it out!

the look and feel of open shelving

Open shelving. I. Am. In. Love. This look is definitely not everyones style so before you decide to go and rip out all of your kitchen cabinets, think about the housing market in your area. Would people go for this look in your area? Open shelving in kitchens has a very modern and lofty feel. It also is very clean...so that means you have to keep everything organized..no cabinets to hide an unorganized mess!   

oh my pretty! love the how these dishes are displayed and how COLORFUL they are! It really adds character to this room. This person has a dish collection and they aren't afraid to show it!

clean clean clean! I prefer a bit more color but I still love the all white except for the wood block counter tops. I am loving the white subway tile.

This is more my style. Open and airy but there is color too! Love the stainless steel light fixtures.

how fun would it be to cook in this kitchen?

overnight oats

I read decor and fashion blogs. EXCEPT for this blog. It's called Kath Eats Real Food. She is studying to be a nutritionist. She has great recipes. She eats oatmeal EVERYDAY! So, I thought I would try overnight oats KERF style (with my daily english breakfast tea, of course!). It was awesome! I was very surprised at how much I liked it. Kath does different variations everyday. Its nice too fixing it at night and having breakfast almost ready in the morning. The oatmeal kept me full until about 1:30 in the afternoon (I ate it at 8:15AM) Here's the recipe! I am going to try a new variation tomorrow. (also, I used 1/2 cup of oatmeal, milk, yogurt..tomorrow I will use less because I didn't even finish it all!)


1/2 c rolled oats (i use quaker)
1/2 c milk
1/2 plain lowfat yogurt (i used vanilla)
Mix these together and put in fridge to lets oats soak up liquid until morning
In the morning, add whatever toppings you'd like
I added:
half a banana
small handful of banana  granola (bear naked brand)
tiny tiny hand full of honey chex...to add some crunch!
1 tsp. of peanut butter. (i didnt mix this in but just left it on top.


Here are some more variations from Kath Eats

Chicken and Green Bean Casserole

I tried this recipe last night and it was great! I am not a huge fan of Cranberries but it was a great touch of sweet and salty.

Chicken and Green Bean Casserole

bag of frozen french style green beans

2-3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped (I boiled the chicken)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can (about) milk

Pepperidge Farm Herb Seasoned dry Stuffing Mix

Prepare stuffing according to package instructions (I usually make it for 6 servings). Place thawed green beans in a small casserole dish. Place chicken on top. Mix soup and milk together and pour over chicken and beans. Spread stuffing on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve with whole cranberry sauce.

recipe from Rachael's Recipes This blog packed with great recipes and grocery tips.

walls full of frames

I love using multiples of an item when decorating. It adds an unexpected factor to a room design. Some may wonder, "why so many of one item??" Its about creating a statement with multiples that grabs the attention of the viewer. Imagine just 1 or 2 frames on the wall. It looks nice, simple and maybe a bit conservative. BUT when you add 10 more...what happens then? You get a completely different look. Its when you push the boundaries of design that you truly begin to see the art in it.  Something new, fresh, and edgy is created. 


Side note* freshman year in college I took a 3-D art class. One of our projects was to create a sculpture using multiples of something. It could be anything. I finally landed on the idea of gum..it was weird and different. So, 1700 pieces of double mint gum later, I had a sore jaw and a wooden chair covered in gum. It was quite a statement using 1700 of something. It was a fun lesson in designing with multiples. ( I tried to find a picture of the chair but I had no such luck! Luckly, it is still at my parents house) Did I mention that I called Double Mint and asked if they wanted to have it?


Back to wall collages as some people call them. This design takes on the roll of art..very comforting art. I can't get enough of pictures of family and friends around my home. This style is very versatile. The image below is a bit more clean and Pottery Barn style but some of the other examples below are more trendy and playful. This idea can be adapted to anyones style preference!  

A variation of black and white frames and different sizes too.

All the same exact frame in perfect rows.

A smaller wall collage to fill up a small space

Love the large photo of the little boy in what looks like a play room

This room is very busy with so many frames and bold wall color but there are so many interesting things to observe about this room. I love that the wall collage looks like a collection of things the home owner has gathered from traveling the world. The contrast of organic and geometric shapes on the wall is really nice.

I love this room. Looks like most of the frames are full of art work rather than family photographs. The pops of color from the art add a visual excitement to this room. 

I am instantly drawn in.

I think I want to do something like this above our dresser. Let the small mirror collecting begin! And of course, a large enough mirror in the lower left so I can actually use it too! 

This photo is from Cupcakes and Cashmere. An edgy fashion and recipe blog! 

amilee

My good friend Diana is insanely creative. She has the neatest style. She is always making fun jewelry, crafts, and redoing furniture for her CUTE little house in Salt Lake City with her husband Josh. 


Diana just started an etsy business to showcase all of her fun projects! Check it out here. Here are couple fun things in her shop:

Did I mention they're going to have a sweet baby in June?! 

That baby is going to be the coolest ever with such fun parents. 

trends for spring

I went browsing around the mall today and after seeing what they have out so far for Spring and then reading some fashion blogs...here is what I have found to be the trends for Spring 2010. I have never really been in love with the whole nautical look but love the glam meets vintage grunge/ gold studded accessories look further down. 

I have seen a lot of this embroidered floral pattern lately.

F21

I love this look. A little whismy and a little grunge. Love the brown accessories and gold jewelry. 

oh my goodness. gold beaded gladiators and gold earrings. love. With that floral dress and scarf!

 I am really in love now! So chic!

i heart magazines.

There is something so fun about going to Barnes & Noble and reading fashion, bridal, and decor mags for hours! It is something I have always loved doing.


It makes me so sad that many magazine companies are going under due to the internet and printless publishing now. I read in an article today that in 2008, 535 magazines went out of business. So, in my efforts against magazines going under I have subscribed to two magazines. I subscribed to SHAPE and Gourmet. Both great mags. I love shape for its great exercise and nutrition information and I loved Gourmet for its great and unique recipes. Sadly, Gourmet went under and then they started sending me Bon Appetite. I just love cuddling up on my couch and reading my magazines with a cup of tea. Recently, I have heard that Modern Bride and Instyle Weddings are finished too. InStyle Weddings was a good one when planning my wedding. And I was extremely sad when Domino Magazine was done. That magazine had some awesome home decor ideas. I was at Barnes & Noble the other day and I bought three magazines (I never do this unless I am at the airport) to support the magazines I love. My two favorites being:


House Beautiful

The first HB issue I had ever seen. 

Those navy cainets. French doors. That chair. Black chanelier.

 PINK peonies! The lime green type. I am in love.

Elle Decor

Love Elle Decor's funky vintage meets modern take on home designs

Buy a subscription to your favorite magazine if you don't already have one and support the magazine industry! 

delicious curry chicken salad with grapes

This recipe is the perfect take to work lunch! the protein makes it a filling meal and the grapes add some sweetness! It is so quick and easy to make too! the recipe I found only serves one so I quadrupled this recipe so I could take it for lunch through out the week! I didn't add walnuts because they didn't sound very good. I found this recipe from Spark Recipes. They have thousands of healthy recipes! and their other site Spark People is a great site to count calories. You can find recipes you want to cook and important them into the daily calorie counter. Very convenient! 

Ingredients

1/8 c. non-fat plain greek yogurt 

1 1/2 tsp. mayo (lite mayo) 

1/4 tsp. curry powder 1/8 tsp. kosher salt (used regular salt, though kosher salt is very cheap!)

dash of pepper 3 oz. 

rotisserie chicken 

chopped 1/4 stalk celery, sliced thin 

1/2 c. seedless red grapes, halved  (added extra grapes for the sweetness) 

1/8 c. walnuts, chopped and toasted (didn't use walnuts in mine) 

1 tbsp. cilantro ( i didnt have this so I just used basil)

Directions

In a small bowl, mix together yogurt, mayo, curry powder, salt, and pepper. Add chicken, celery, grapes, walnuts, and cilantro. Stir together until everything is coated evenly. Eat as is or on bread.

Number of Servings: 1