be creative with a crate.

Happy Tuesday AHWA blog readers. Thank you for coming to our site today. I have stumbled upon the coolest DIY project and I am so excited to share it with you. Take a look at all of these cool creative things one can make with a crate! can we call these crates? or... should we just stick to pallets? If you are looking for a good project this week...let these pics inspire you....have you ever made anything out of a shipping pallet before?

And I first present to you... a chair made from a pallet.  Now, say this in your best Oprah voice.

"How cool is thiiiiiiis?"

A skosh of french country below... A plate rack from Care2.

Ok,  let's get even more creative... an INDUSTRIAL crate table by Vintage Chica. If you read my blog, you know I love all things industrial and this would be a super cheap way to mimic the Restoration Hardware coffee tables. 

 

LOVES... I see this at the foot of a bed with a long burlap cushion.

Such a great table for an outdoor space.

 Rebecca Puig, of SugarBoo Designs is selling this amazing piece of art. It looks to be painted on a crate of some sort.

This has to be my favorite and it's going in my "when I have a kid" file. Take a look at the wall. It's all from recycled pallets. You can read how they did this amazing task at Bower Power Blog.

Well.. maybe this is my favorite. I am so in love with this cool creative bed. Read how genius Lori Danelle created this bed for her daughter.

And if you are feeling really inspired, a house. But seriously, isn't this fun?

See you soon, Alli.

What is needed for the weekend.

I am running a little late on my fall decor this year. oops. Owl figurines, cinnamon sticks, miniature pumpkins, rustic bells, burlap linens, wooden acorns and lighted branches will be making their appearance in our home this weekend! I'm so over decorating/tablescaping with bright orange pumpkins and dried fall leaves... is that bad? Yet again, I don't have kids. Kids need the classic orange pumpkin around the house during Fall. So, I take back what I said.  Pale, rustic, vintage with white pumpkins is still the theme for me. Enjoy my inspiration board. Have you decorated yet for fall?

See you soon, Alli.

Giving some Love to: the latest rug trend.

Everyone needs a good piece of sisal in their life. I usually prefer sisal rugs over sea grass rugs. TOMATE-O, TOMOT-O, right?  Sisal is the toughest of all natural fibers and works great in high traffic areas. I also like sisal more because of the tight weaves versus the wide weaves of sea grass.  A client of mine has a family room that needs a 17x17 rug and of course we chose sisal. I had been on a mad search for an affordable giant rug until I stumbled upon The Perfect Rug. Have you seen this fabulous company? .

So, I ordered 3 free samples and received this cute little measuring kit. I fell in love with their marketing and easy approach to measuring.

Here are a few of the natural fiber samples I received. My client and I decided on the one to the far right, Sisal Boucle. Can't wait to show you pictures of the finished result.

Because sisal tends to be extremely coarse, it's not the nicest to your feet and small children whom might be crawling. So a nice way to soften the feel is to add a smaller more traditional rug on top. It not only softens the feel but adds a nice fresh look as well. Take a look at what I am talking about below:

(Thank you for the inspiration Better Homes and Gardens)

Look how the sisal rug covers the entire room and then the oriental rug sits just beneath the table to add color and softness.

Houston designer, Tami Owens, did an amazing job in decorating this model home. It seems that sisal covers the entire room (aka heaven) while the large light patterned rug lays on top.    

If you are covering large wood floors in a room, the sisal should be about 3-5 inches from the baseboard. If you place a rug on top of the sisal (and you should), it can be any size and be placed anywhere. The pictures above are from Cote de Texas, my go to french design blog.

Here is some more inspiration:

If you can not afford to have a rug made but love this trend. Then the picture above is for you. The sisal rug is only slightly larger than the rug on top and it still looks nice.

Do you like this latest trend in the world of rugs?

Let us know. Leave us a comment.

See you soon,

Alli

tribal textiles, eastern accents, and the silk road goes on….

My house is craving a touch of eastern accent pillows and tribal textiles. Hang in there before I loose you... These prints are walking down the runway and they need to be walking into my living room. Take a look at some of Oscar de la Renta's Pre-Fall 2010 runway show. "His color palette was a spicy mix of canary yellow, vermillion, pink, and ruby, and he favored ikats, suzani embroideries, and bold patchworks."

And now we start to see it in the stores... Do you like this look below? I'm not so sure about it... maybe if I was camping.. hmmm...

In Elle Decor this month, Charlotte Moss is featured in an article about her latest creation and inspiration. Take a look below. She is even doing a line for Stark Carpet at the moment.

Here is the photo that started my love affair with eastern, tribal, ikats and suzani styles. It's an advertisement for Richard Shapiro's new 8905 store. I immediatly fell head over heels for these pillows and rich fabrics that have such a history behind them.

Check out one of Los Angeles newest and hippest hotels, The Redbury Hotel. Celebrity photographer and music video director turned decorator designer, Matthew Rolston uses so many authenitic pattterns.

More looks...

(Thank you for the inspiration Elle Decor)

(Thank you for the inspiration Jonathan Berger)

(Thank you for the inspiration Moises Esquenazi)

The living room below is another room designed by Moises Esquenazi, my ultimate favorite designer. He can mix almost anything to create a perfectly unique room just for YOUR taste.

(Thank you for the inspiration Daniel Sachs)

Isn't it great how all of these fabrics mix so well? If  purchased in your homes color range, they can blend with almost any decor.  Below are some suzani fabrics from Calico Corners. Suzani textiles were found along the Silk Road in Central Asia, think all of the countries that end in "stan." They were originally handmade and hand stiched with natural dye by family members.

This fabric is also from Calico Corners and is designed by the famous IMAN.



For those of us that are not into buying fabric and having something made. Check out how you can click on the links below, browse, add to cart, enter your credit card number, ship, wait a few days, come home, open your package, and waaalaaaa... TRIBAL TEXTILES, SUZANIS or IKATS.

Add this lovely Suzani "throw" to your bedroom or the back of your couch. by Tessera.

If you like this look and just want to add one or two pillows to your couch... Be Still is a lovely shop filled with gorgeous pillows ranging from $50-$100.

In the collage below, see how you can make a larger impact. Im obsessed with the pillow in the middle. It might just be at my front door in a few days! Tell me what you think in the comments. Do you like this trend?

(Starting clockwise with the Macaw Rug at Anthropologie $350, The Kilm Rug Pillow at Turkish Rugs and Kilim $80, Suzani Blanket at The Loaded Trunk $175, Kebaya Mug at Anthropologie $12, Suzani upholstered chair by Wisteria $599, Orange and Blue Pillow at Madeline Weinrib Atelier, the pillow in the middle Turkish Rugs and Kilim $80.)





See you soon, Alli.

It's about that time of year...

When I was in college, my girlfriends would love it when I sang my song..."It's about that time of year for pumpkin spice bread." That's all there is to the song... hehe! Short and sweet. But it meant... Allison was baking Williams Sonoma Pumpkin Spice Bread. The leaves were changing colors in Austin and Fall was approaching. Well since then, I have graduated to homemade Pumpkin bread. No more WS mix. But this year I found a new recipe at The Waspy Redhead.  

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

Ingredients:

3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon (I used pumpkin pie spice instead)

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

2 2/3 cups sugar

2/3 cups softened butter

4 whole eggs

1 can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling!)

2/3 cups water

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift together dry ingredients and set aside. Cream sugar and butter until well incorporated. Add eggs one at a time and then add the mashed pumpkin. Alternate adding dry ingredients with water. Fold in chocolate chips.

Pour into two large greased bread pans and bake at 325 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

As you can see.... I'm not the "prettiest" baker but this is the BEST bread! Make it and enjoy! Happy Fall.
 

See you soon, Alli.

Affordable Finds.

Mincing Mockingbirds. So sweet. The colors just pop. Group these sweet prints together and you have a fabulous collage of art work on your wall. I purchased the three prints below: The Prodigal Son Returns, Bearing Gifts Of Vengeance, Finch Number One, and A Deep Feeling For Beauty Which Would Get Me Beaten In Certain Circles. What fabulous names...right? The gold frames and large white mats add a vintage flair. Now, which room, bedroom or living room?

See you soon, Alli.

Mincing Mockingbirds by

Euro Trash = Thrown away elegance.

Meet Lizzie Corney, the stylish lead designer of Euro Trash. A store, a design service, and a European guide service for buying trips. This article featuring Lizzie's 1000 square foot bungalow in Jacksonville, Illinois was in this months Country Living Magazine. It's true, I have a home crush!!!

Love the splashes of pink.

And here she is...Lizzie Corney.

If this is trash, then I am in heaven. :)

See you soon, Alli.

pops of jewels.

Happy Friday everyone. "Us Texans" are loving this cool Fall weather. As I was out and about yesterday searching through my favorite Houston fabric stores, I couldn't help but notice the pops of deep jewel tone pinks and rich printed fabrics everywhere! ie. the chairs in the pictures below. So as Fall approaches, think jeweled velvets and deep pink fabrics and let them POP in your room of choice. Here is the picture I have chosen for my color board of inspiration.

The following rooms know what is going on and I like it. (If this picture belongs to you. Please email At Home with Alli so we can credit you.)

(Thank you for the inspiration Elle Decor.)

(Thank you for the inspiration House Beautiful.)

And... for those of us (ME) that can not keep up with every new decor update. Try these simple purchases...Stack books....Throw some new pillows... Add a simple rug to a bathroom or kitchen...

(Thank you for the inspiration Horchow.)

(Thank you for the inspiration Alkemie.)

(Thank you for the inspiration Horchow.)

Are you going to add some color this fall? Let us know your favorite piece that you are using to pop in a room!

See you soon, alli.