Creating a personal, lived in feel in a new home can raise challenges.  There's something so austere about freshly painted walls and pristine floors.  But our new contributor, Esther, is showing off how she established her own unique style in her new Raleigh home.  The last thing you want when you walk into a home is to feel like you've stepped into a textbook open house - nondescript styling and accents just to fill a space.  Esther wanted to bring in both traditional furniture (her home has very traditional finishes) and the modern aesthetic that she personally loves.  Here's what she accomplished in the most-used social room in her house, her kitchen/dining room:





Since I don’t host sit-down meals often, I wanted casual dining table settings that wouldn’t show a lot of dust. To keep with the graphic patterns I'm layering in this space to create a modern aesthetic, I layered stripes napkins and geometric place mats, all in neutral grays and whites to make a more cohesive look. The coasters are my favorite purchase; I love the pop of color from these Anthropologie geodes!  For an improptu centerpiece a make-your-own terrarium is a low maintenance counter to traditional fresh flowers. 


 The two large focal pieces of my gallery wall are the items that I most identify with.  An aerial map of my current home town, Raleigh, and a portrait of my actual DNA (below).

The days are longer, the Japanese maples are covered in pink blossoms, and yes, it's somehow finally spring.  Easter snuck up really quickly this year and I am embarrassed to admit I haven't changed out our place settings since January.  Full fledged maroons and gold over here.  Luckily I stumbled across a #hpmkt fave, Blue Pheasant for some spring-inspired tabletop ideas.

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We're closing in that time of year again; High Point Furniture Market season.  Last fall one of the great new finds Lucy and I came across was the surprisingly affordable Dwell Studio.  Think modern furnishings, fun and graphic textiles, and free shipping.  Excited yet?

Mallory Chair upholstered in Ming Dragon Admiral fabric.  BTW yes, you can order just the fabric from their website to upholster your own furniture or make your own pillows.  At $58/yard it's not going to set you back nearly as hard as a yard of Chiang Mai.

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An enchanting nursery via

And a gold animal menagerie for your bookshelves or side tables that won't break the bank. via

Fusing a west-coast love for a simple, clean aesthetic with a blue and white heavy appreciation for Asian inspired accents, Barclay Butera is a designer that's become a household name since he first emerged on the design circuit in the mid 1990s.  Butera is a one-man brand powerhouse with bedding, furniture, and decor lines, as well as a multiple lifestyle books,  But one look at his work, and you'll see why design lovers keep coming back for more:

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His booth at High Point Furniture Market this past fall was one of our favorites!

One of my favorite parts of this year's High Point Furniture Market was getting to speak with so many local designers and entrepreneurs.  Based right here out of High Point, North Carolina, the husband and wife design duo of Andrew and Audrey Kane behind Tapestries, Ltd are bringing vintage charm to everything from wall hangings to throw pillows. Audrey's mother, Nancy Herman, started the company over 45 years ago, and at it's outset the company was focused on traditional hand-woven European tapestries.   Like most success stories, they've faced a lot of challenges and are constantly re-evaluating what they can bring to the design world that is unique, new and fresh.  We interviewed Mrs. Kane for our feature today, and are thrilled to share how they've transformed their business, all while maintaining their local NC roots and love of all things vintage.

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is that warm, fuzzy feeling called nostalgia that just hits you with every glowing light and smell of pine trees and freshly baking cookies.  Around July, I felt my first wave of the 2015 season hit when I spotted one of the iconic nostalgia pieces of my childhood in Cary Towne Center (I know, for some reason I still go there but I always wonder why after about 5 minutes of seeing the depressing state of the Belk's store).  There it was: an 18 inch gleaming and shining ceramic Christmas tree, like it had jumped straight out of my grandmother's parlor from the doily covered end table between her pink velvet sofa and chairs and right into the mall expressly for my personal buying pleasure.

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Then I looked at the price tag.  At $162, I decided that maybe there is a price on memories. But for the past few months I've been constantly looking for a craigslist or etsy deal on one of these vintage trees, just hoping someone else didn't value their childhood memories quite as much as that store at the mall.

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Fast forward to Black Friday, when my friend Betsy and I stopped in our local Hallmark store for her to shop for recordable books for her nieces.  On our way out, I spotted a lonesome little green tree in the window display.  I hesitatingly lifted the tree cringing mentally for what I assumed the inflated price tag would read.  $39.99.  Wow.  A sales lady who had obviously spotted me manhandling the ceramics was now right beside me to help.  "Do you have any more?" I asked.

"That's the last one I think.  Do you want it?"

Was there some sort of trick here?  "Yes."

At that exact moment, a family of 5 women in matching all black attire and plaid scarves surrounded us.  They also wanted the tree.  5 of them.  The sales lady went to the back to check for more.  There was a brief moment where I thought I may actually get attacked for a piece of ceramic, but luckily there were plenty in the back.  I checked and these trees are not listed online, so if you are shopping for a similar tree, head to your local Hallmark store and take a look!