Day trip up to Sedona.
After a looong day at the pool.
While I did check email and got online occasionally in the early morning hours, (the two hour time change meant we were all up ... literally ... at the crack of dawn, I must admit it was nice to kind of take an internet break. I read a great book (Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger who also wrote The Time Traveller's Wife) and, of course, flipped through my fair share of home decor magazines and catalogs, swam, went to the Cubs last Spring Training game and just enjoyed being outside while it was in the 30s back at home. Anyone with little, little kids knows that vacations with them aren't very relaxing ... but the boys are getting old enough now that we all truly did relax and enjoy ourselves. My parents were with us too for most of the trip which was an extra treat. Many laughs and happy memories. And even though temps reached 101 while we were there, we spent the entire day in the pool and lazy river. Since I always get cold in the pool, this was perfect swimming weather for me!
Even though it is so sad for a great vacation to end, there is something about walking in the door of your home for the first time. Doesn't it feel so good, like a big hug? Do you ever feel like it causes you to look at your house in a new light? To notice some of the little things you hadn't really paid attention to in awhile? Distance does make the heart grow fonder, and every time I'm away from home and come back, I love it a little bit more.
So now ... back to reality. While folding my second load of laundry, I flipped on Secrets from a Stylist that I had DVR'd while we were gone (love how that's now a verb). The living room/dining room transformation Emily created was certainly swoon worthy and I especially loved her idea for creating family silhouettes.
She took a silhouette picture of each family member, blew it up, then placed each picture on top of a sheet of blue paper, took a pair of scissors and cut around the silhouette of the face ...cutting through both the photo and the blue paper. She then took each blue silhouette and laid it on top of a white piece of paper and framed each one. I love the look. And it's a nice variation on the traditional black silhouette.
(On a side note, that chandelier totally makes me swoon!) Anyway, in the first "look" she had these on a wall in the dining room surrounding a vintagey mirror. I loved them there ... but when she moved them over the mantel, I agreed it was the right call. They look clean and fresh, a nice contrast to the old fireplace.
I know there are places that will do this for you, but now I am thinking about trying this by myself. I have been spotting similar silhouette art in many a chic room lately.
via Design Sponge
via Decorpad
I even like just one silhouette nestled into a salon-style art wall.
All three images via Houzz
I do have one silhouette portrait of my boys when they were one and three that I cherish. It was from a photo shoot we did, and while I loved the picture itself, what I loved most was the shape and position of their bodies angled together, so I asked the photographer if she could turn it into a silhouette.
Now, I think I'd like to try Emily Henderson's technique for myself with just their faces ... I'm thinking really small ones that I'd mix in with some other art I am collecting for a gallery-style wall. Stay tuned for a future post!
If you're not sold on silhouettes of people, perhaps try a botanical silhouette. I saw a DIY tutorial on DesignSponge for this beauty. It's kind of like a Rorschach test ... makes you think a little.
You could create something along the lines of this space in Kate Spade's New York apartment.
