hoo hoo: owl tell you something...

everywhere you look these days, owls abound. those big-eyed birds are on everything - and I LOVE it. 

Pillows...

Target.com

Cookie jars... 

WestElm.com

Jewelry...

Pinterest

Even sweet candleholders...

Target.com

and now I've got a little birdie watching over me while I work. 

I picked this guy up at jcp.com. They have some of the best home decor at really reasonable prices. I swapped out the shade for the gold and white chevron shade I already had. I love having a little buddy in the office with me, there's something comforting about this wise old fella staring at me all day. 

broiled steak...

have you ever had the hankering for a steak, but didn't have a grill? never fear, the answer is as close as your broiler. In just a few simple steps you can have a juicy flavorful steak without ever stepping outside.

First, select your favorite cut of steak – I used top sirloin. Then I marinated it in Worchestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper for a few hours in the fridge. Thirty minutes before cooking, take the steak out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature.

When it comes time to cook the steak, you'll be using a broiler pan. If you don't have a broiler plan, you can use a cookie sheet and a a bakers cooling rack to create a makeshift broiler pan. I wrapped the cookie sheet in foil to make for easier clean-up. 

Next move the top oven rack 4 inches from the heating element. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and put your empty pan inside. Once the oven preheats, carefully remove the hot pan from the oven and place your steaks on the pan. You don't want to put your steaks on a cool pan into a hot oven, it will cook unevenly. Cook them for 7 minutes on one side then flip and cook for 7 minutes on the second side. This will give you a nice medium steak. 

I topped it with some more Worchestershire sauce, put it over a bed of mashed potatoes, and served it with a cucumber, feta and tomato salad.  Minus the grill marks, it tasted just as good as steak on the grill. 

A beautiful meal and some beautiful flowers my husband surprised me with. 

Enjoy! 

It smells like pumpkin...

must mean it's fall. First bag of the season!

I'm on a boat...

Well not yet, but later this afternoon. On a photoshoot for work. Not a bad day at the office.

chairs. so many chairs to choose from...

I have a vision for our front room. It's a combination living room/dining room and I am envisioning the living room portion to have a moody, lounge-y vibe. Very Hollywood Regency in feel with some cool chairs, maybe a vintage love seat, an old bar armoire and glass coffee table.

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So right now I am obsessed with finding the perfect chairs. They have to look cool but also be comfortable. This is where I picture us hanging out with friends, having a drink, listening to music. I had always pictured barrel or club chairs in this room. My grandparents had the coolest set of gold velvet swivel barrel chairs in their front room when I was growing. They looked exactly like these:

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I would love to have those now – very Mad Men-esque.

I was at HomeGoods the other day and saw these. Obviously not this fabric but they were comfortable.

Some others I've liked in the barrel and club style are:

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However, on that same trip to Home Goods, I sat in this puppy and was instantly wowed. 

It may not look comfortable, but I can assure you, it is. It was like sitting on a cloud. The back came up far enough that you could lay your head back and have your neck supported. And it was wide. I could easily sit on it indian-style and still fit. The slipper chair is much easier to find and comes in all kinds of fun fabrics. 

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The fun of Hollywood Regency style is that anything goes as long as it has a beautiful fabric and classic detailing. My search continues...

Tell me, which do you prefer: barrel or slipper?

color me indecisive: choosing the right paint color...

now that we're heading into fall, my focus around here is shifting from the outside of our house to the inside. specifically painting this place. when we moved in, it was a blank slate. the builders paint was all that was on the wall. since then we've been living in pretty much a beige box...

beige carpet, beige walls, beige tiles in the kitchen and bath. It's been great to have as a backdrop while deciding on the direction I want to take our decor, but now it's time to get down to business. 

We have a great open floor plan but that also means, whatever paint colors we choose have to work equally as well in the family room, hallway, kitchen and upstairs loft and hallway, since they are all connected. I've decided on gray, light gray in the majority of the house, a darker gray in the combination living room/dining room right at the front of the house. 

But that's a far as I've gotten. Numerous trips to Home Depot and Sherwin Williams and all I have to show for it are rows of paint chips taped to my walls, taunting me as I watch TV... 

Greeting me as I enter the house...

Even when I head upstairs, there they are begging me to make a decision...

(10 points to the person who can tell me where that quote is from.) 

I want to make a decision. I really do. But just when I think I've decided, the light in the room changes and so does the color and there I am, back at square one. I always thought having my own house would be great because I can pick out whatever colors I want and paint to my heart's content. But in reality I find myself with a case of "painting paralysis." 

Have any of you suffered from this debilitating condition? How did you find a cure? Let me know before my house becomes the world's largest collection of paint chips!