{vintage tropical}

aruba blue + flamingo pink + beach sand white loungers.
such a dream for a pool & patio.
especially vintage styled umbrella.

add rattan bamboo furniture under breezy portico.

getting my sun hat & i'll join you under the palms.
just thrilled for beach weather!

{tropical dream via coastal living}

{baby closet}

have a peek into the first space of the bungalow that is virtually finished {haa} the far corner of our bedroom which has now become home to my vanity + trinkets. also note how the walls have been painted {bm stonington gray, oh and the closet is valspar national historic trust bella grove spruce in semi-gloss}

here's a before shot. we're talking about the wall with the black lines on it. besides painting the room a soft dove gray, we removed the closet door on the right. though as you'll see, it isn't a real closet as it houses the hot water heater. the plan is to eventually run curtains along the entire right wall behind the headboard wall and which will also cover the water heater closet--now shelves--so the clutter that is a closet will not always be in plain view.

so to take full advantage of the space above the hot water heater, shelves were installed. just got cabinet grade wood from lowes and cut it to fit. a piece of molding on either side held them in place.

and add some color so shoes and accessories stand out

annnnd--here's where i'm kind of proud of myself--found these really pretty hooks at --get this--wal mart!! for just a couple bucks! {here they are on amazon if you wish for them to just show up on your doorstep} traditionally used for things like hanging plants, i thought the detailing was really pretty and the perfect low profile hook to fully take advantage of the few inches between the outside of the door frame {where the curtain will hang} and the plywood covering the water heater.

*ta-da* oh and the barnwood earring frame was a gift {thanks ev} but i'm pretty sure she got it on etsy

{monday sandal}

b & i are heading to the beach for easter weekend which marks the official start of summer wardrobe wearing. am in love with these embellished neutral metallic sandals and believe they are likely the very same sandals worn by ariel after she traded in her mermaid tail.

{beach glamour provided by seychelles blast sandal in off white at endless for $79}

{tele-guise}

unlike someone else who lives in the bungalow, i generally do not find the black monstrosity --albeit a skinny one-- that is our television particularly attractive. and though i'll concede that it is marginally better looking mounted on the wall sans cheap credenza to keep cords, it still is currently the focus of our den / main living space and i've lately been brainstorming ways to downplay that focus, or distract from it at the very least. and considering it is on the largest wall in the den {and wow, that photo is old and also makes it look as though i have zero design sense. promise updated photos stat.} and the only one that doesn't have windows or several doorways, doing a gallery style wall is a real possibility. though there are concerns of it looking cluttered. a real editing eye would be necessary to pull off television incorporated salon picture wall successfully...hmmm..

and while the following idea really wouldn't work in our den space considering the aforementioned issue of wall space, the idea of doing a gallery wall on a neighboring wall to the tv is intriguing and maybe would divert attention altogether?

this next photo is a beautiful integration of collection and television. didn't even notice the tv until you looked again, did you? love the top shelf idea with leaning frames. though my wall is really three times the length of this one. perhaps will steal leaning frame shelf for elsewhere...

and perhaps need to at some point accept that i/we live in a home that does enjoy its share of {mindless?} television and not actually in the pages of an interior design magazine. but that doesn't mean i can't have impeccable design in the room in which the television resides. thank you palmer weiss for this beautiful but realistic family room.

...can't resist another view of the same room.

or the fantastic tangerine damask curtains with aqua trim. love.

{photos via hgtv, apartment therapy *and see more ideas there on how to incorporate a tv, house beautiful, and the last 3 photos - room designed by palmer weiss}

{boho sophisticate}

usually am one for cool colors, there's something about the persimmony reds and hints of aqua in this bedroom. a white chandelier and a bit of black to anchor the colorful florals adds sophistication. also betting that headboard was thrifted somewhere & painted.

{photo via canadian house & home}

{monday shoes}

lots of elastic espadrille wedges are around this springtime.


{comfort chic and clockwise from top right :: chocolat blu ellena espadrille at endless for $99, lauren ralph lauren celestine stretch espadrille at endless for $47, strappy espadrilles at silouettes for $27, rebels genius wedge sandal at endless for $27}

{carrara kitchen}

big strides -huge- in our bungalow kitchen: farmhouse sink + countertops + new faucet have arrived. before scrolling down much further, remember the kitchen before? and the old countertops? welcome kitchen, to 2010.

we had tried sanding down the old countertops {which were not actually butcher block, but pieces of hardwood flooring...guess someone had some leftover?} but the end result was less than pleasing. the seams that are inevitable in flooring left gaps in places for food crumbs to hide and left us dustbusting {just to be clear, by us, i mean me} way more often that i care to admit. plus, when it came to installing the new sink, which is an undermount sink {meaning it sits underneath the countertop--which is a *dream* for wiping down countertops--and yes, i have dreams about counters. especially clean ones.} the edges of the hardwood flooring would a)-be rather unsightly next to new gleaming farmhouse sink and b)-are porous and not at all ideal to sit in close proximity to running water. plus, as it turns out, requiring a carpenter to work with said old countertops when installing new farmhouse sink, would require precision cutting = much more expensive. so ultimately the decision was made to put that money towards new countertops {natural stone is also a selling point if/when we ultimately decide to sell our bungalow; i.e. we should be able to get our money back when selling}. i should also add that we have very little counter space so that was the real key to keeping costs low for new counters. below is the kitchen when we were working with old counters sanded down + old sink + different new faucet.

below was the state of things for a solid week as we waited for the countertops to arrive. note to readers--be sure to schedule carpenter who rips out counters/installs sink + people who install countertops to come a day apart rather than waiting for carpenter to arrive before deciding on counters.

but being no strangers to living in construction mess, two weeks later, we found ourselves with this for our kitchen... also three things - 1)-apparently am married to a plumber and didn't know it -- b installed the new faucet {and replaced all the old piping under the sink} completely and 100%-ly on his own. amazing. 2)-notice my sweet chandelier? will do another post about its origins & subsequent makeover, but you should know it was only $25. which is awesome seeing as i can't say that for all the other lighting fixtures in the bungalow. and 3)-maybe you remember the original farmhouse sink found on craigslist? yes, well, turns out purchasing sink before bungalow doesn't always pan out as planned. said craigslist sink, was wayyy too long to fit in our tiny kitchen. so found another one at online discount store and original sink is back on craigslist {need one??}

view of carrara marble counter by the stove. i would really like to get these appliances off the counters, but am at the moment without a solution... oh -a note on carrara marble- while beautiful, it wears much more than granite or other harder natural stones. meaning if you are the type to get a little boozy and leave red wine rings til tomorrow, these counters are not for you.

annnnd a wider view. and holy pantry! curtains are in the works, if i ever pick out a proper fabric. {usually there's just a clothespinned dishcloth} but remember when b finished the pantry space? and remember before that, the gaping ugly hole where a wall mounted oven used to live? also, you'll notice that we are missing two cabinet doors...when the microwave was installed, it took about 4 inches off that cabinet, so we finally have had the doors cut down and they are currently in the process of being painted. also, we still need to drill holes for cabinet knobs.

another view -- this one really shows the eyesore that is the unfinished backsplash. not for much longer though...

annnnd this weekend, that is exactly the project. come to find out subway tile is about as cheap as it gets at 24 cents a tile. amazed to find this out as am used to having expensive taste. turns out, subway tile only looks expensive with its classically vintage style. still thinking about incorporating not as affordable glass tiles... updates to come on very first tiling job. supposedly it's not too difficult.

happy weekend! p.s. if you're in the area, we are having a garage sale tomorrow {7 am start time, yipe!} after cleaning out the storage unit kept while living in a one-bedroom apartment, turns out we don't need really any of it. funny how living without something for 2 years will do that to previously thought of treasures.

{green design}

take a page from st. patrick...


{images via jonathan adler for house beautiful; canadian house and home; domino}

{bella grove spruce sunroom studio}

i hesitated to post these pictures for a few reasons: reason 1-this room is no where close to being finished, still need to paint the trim and floor, and of course move in some furniture, add curtains, and make the huge window seat; reason 2-the paint color looks darker in photos than in real life; reason 3-there is a bit of clutter on the window seat {including, if you look closely, a cardboard box which recently became the house of a stray cat & 4 kittens {we named her patsy cline, if you must know. kittens are two weeks old today and we're saving the naming privileges for family & friends who adopt them. need one?}

but, in realizing that this was the last view posted, it's about time to post some progress. oh and don't forget the fake wood paneling and old sliding glass door in the before photo.

what you can see, is the new french doors, new rug {ballard designs} & lemon tree {early + fabulous birthday present from b's mother and yes it will soon grow lemons} in this photo. said lemon tree still needs a lovely pot in which to call home.


though there is still some clutter on the window seat, prior to painting, it was full of unpacked boxes...


and finally, you can see the closet built to house the washer & dryer and storage areas above. all the trim will be painted white and the stairs pictured on the right side will also be finished and painted. someday soon.


p.s. post title = paint color.

{monday shoes}

eek, it's been a week and no posts. have a bit to share, promise it soon. for now, bring sophistication to spring weather with corso como south beach sandals, in black or beige.

{hot to trot corso como south beach sandals at piperlime for $89}

{monday shoes}

seventy degree weather brings springtime sandals. take to the coast with this nautically inspired grecian t-strap. pair with flowy sundress and straw tote for an effortless look.


{celebrate spring with the osorno sandal from dv by dolce vita, $54 at endless}

{happy weekend + springtime at home}

didn't mean for this week to come and go with nothing happening here at {s&s}. my mother came in town to help deal with some of the chaos around the bungalow and to lend a hand at painting the sunroom studio {pictures soon, promise}. and then i took the last few days of the week to go back to my hometown of blythewood, sc {where the internet doesn't exist, apparently} to clean out our overflow furniture in mom's storage unit now that we have places to put it all. {and in doing so have come to the conclusion that a bungalow garage sale is imminent.} anyway, came across this house tour at apartment therapy: modern florals + lattice grey + pop of yellow.

{sunny photos from summer & josh thornton's one bedroom apartment. see the rest of their home tour at apartment therapy.}

{monday walking shoes}

had a reader request for cute flats to wear during her walking commute to work {save those heels} pick up a pair with bow, ruffle, or buckle detail.


{chic and {hopefully} comfortable, clockwise from top left :: wanted bolero ballerina for $39 at endless, diego di lucca ladonna flat for $87 at endless, sm stella ruffle flat for $39 at dsw, gwyneth ida driving moc for $94 at endless}