Carrie's Brownstone, v.2.0

There were a few audible gasps in the movie theater during Sex and the City: The Movie. Relax, I'm not giving anything away for the four of you who read my blog and haven't seen the flick yet. I'm talking about the response to Carrie's apartment remodel.

The audience, 99 percent female, lived through six seasons of "I had to wonder"-thoughts and watched her type them out on her Macbook in that apartment. (BTW - have fun on Carrie's Macbook Pro here. I'm already addicted.) But in the movie, the gray neutrals and mismatched bohemian pieces gave way to brights and grown-up clean lines.

Casa Sugar interviewed the set designer Jeremy Conway about his vision for the room, and will have more details tomorrow....I'm so hoping they give some insight on Carrie's 70s-inspired mural, which totally caught my eye. I think it says "LOVE" but I only saw the movie twice in a 24-hour period, so who can really be sure? Ha.

Thanks to Casa Sugar we do know that the walls were painted a custom blend very similar to Benjamin Moore's Electric Blue. The Chicago Tribune says the paint, Benjamin Moore's No. 2061-40, is about $45 a gallon. It completely makes me rethink blue, which I previously relegated to little boy rooms and cheesy nautical-themed living spaces.


The coffee table the gals gather around for a shower - how vague of me - comes from the always-intense ABC Carpet & Home. (My two trips to ABC Carpet & Home went like this: the first time, I had no idea there was more than one floor and thought it was full of only chandeliers and Indian-inspired rugs and on the second trip, the elevator was broken and I called it a day at the floor with the overpriced Frette linens.)

Check out the old skool Carrie suite here, where there's also some scans of the Traditional Home issue that covers the apartment remodel. I like their suggestion to find a rug similar to the one at the foot of her bed, especially since it looks more of an eggplant than black and white on second glance. Love these Thomas Paul rugs!


All in all, a great redesign, but I had to wonder...where did her kitchen go? I mean, I know she uses the stove to store sweaters, but a culinary appliance is nowhere to be found!

Dwell Studio lands at Tarjay

So, I have one more reason to love Target, or shall I say Tar-jay. Not good news, since I consider it a small act of God if I get out of there under $50. Anyway, they've just recently started to carry Dwell Studio bedding, baby bedroom gear and kitchen stuff! There's not too much fanfare on Target's site, but a few bloggies are liking the goods. I've kind of always associated Dwell with hipster modern mommies with good taste and the Target line doesn't seem to sway too far away from that.

I really like the table linens since they look sturdy enough for every day use (they're 100% cotton) and they're not that expensive. They also have reversible placemats for only $4. That's the cost of one grande skinny vanilla latte at Starbucks! If I wasn't on a self imposed home decor buying freeze, I'd definitely pick up the taupe and cream kitchen towels ($5) you see below here.

I have a mild obsession with chocolate brown + baby pink, so the crib set below ($80) is definitely adorable to me. I like that it's girly but not overly saccharine sweet like a lot of baby girl bedding can be. Not like I've been shopping for that or anything...just a random observation!

I also think the Dwell Studio bedding looks pretty cool. Even just the accent pillows and shams might be cool to mix up your bedding you already have, like with this guy or this guy. I noticed that the original Dwell bedding is actually very similar to the Tarjay line. Check out the original Dwell bedding called "Talon" below (left) in comparison to the Target version called "Baroque" (right.) They're a little bit different, but the execution is still the same. (Ah, side note - is this baroque/damask thing not out of style yet? Good, because I like it and my dishes don't need to be passe.)

I heart d*s

Apparently, I'm on a blog-posting roll today.

Last one, seemingly dedicated only to my love of Design*Sponge...how I love thee...let me count the ways.

No one else can make me feel giddy about ottomans and existentially happy about rocking chairs. If you're not reading, start. It will get you going on that early-in-the-year feeling that you're finally going to make your abode say something about yourself. Personally, my two-story Irvine suburban condo is saying "Brianne really likes plain walls" but I'm resigned to it, successfully convincing myself it's that white-washed shabby chic thing.

d*s is home to many a great idea. Grace Bonney and her team seem to scan the universe of shelter mags and blogs that results in a superbly edited collection of cuteness. If you're feeling crafty, check out their DIY section. Don't miss their weekly wrap-up post if you're pressed for time. And if you're traveling to a new city soon, check out their plentiful city design guides. Here come some random d*s photos just to get you going....enjoy!

my friend megan would dig this.

she specializes in loving adorable flowers in small bowls.

is that peony wallpaper? love the lamp.

this console-as-a-desk makes me want a laptop, real bad.

shall i ever get a ginormous collection of books and a non-working fireplace,

this will be the look for me.

cat + anthropologie-like bedding = a good time to me

i have a similar yellow/pink/green combo

in my room, and it seems to work.

How to paint a "headboard"

The new year is all about setting really unrealistic goals for yourself that you might not meet, but they were pretty fun to make. Like "get abs of steel" or "clean out my scary closet."

So I'll just go ahead and qualify my excuse as "I live in an rented condo" for why I can't make use of this fun idea to paint a faux headboard in one weekend. The idea is from Apartment Therapy, which has been giving me design envy for quite some time.


The color pink is pretty intense, but mellowed out by all the white bedding. Plus, I really dig the mirror over the bed. Hopefully you have a nice landlord or own your home sweet home, so you can take advantage of this cool idea.

Another Shelter Book Bites the Dust

I hate when I hear about a magazine folding.

It's always so sudden and without much reason but the ever-looming "ad sales" issue. Who cares about the bottom line, I say! (coming from a girl who took the most elementary math classes possible.) Well, I learned today in a staff meeting that House & Garden has bit the dust. I seriously love shelter mags, but they really are in a volatile state these days. Guess they won't be needing this special offer anymore, hmm.

Here's an interesting quote from MindShare in The New York Times piece...

“The category as a whole is so crowded,” said Kelly Foster, senior partner and print director at MindShare North America, a media planning and buying agency that is part of the WPP Group, adding that the magazines “get in each other’s way.”

The article also says House & Garden is one of the country's oldest magazines, as it was founded in 1901. In December, H&G will close its doors and eliminate 80 jobs.

Bum out. I was just really getting on the band wagon after their gorgeous November issue with Gwyneth Paltrow. And H&G really does have such great blogs.

I certainly hope this does not affect Design*Sponge, as so many others do.

Sigh.

As if trying to dress like Carrie wasn't enough...

Since I'm just copying CasaSugar for the time being, let's also point out they are giving us tips on how to copy Carrie from SATC's home style. Hey is it just me, or did you ever notice the heinously Southwestern/1980s rug in front of her bed? How did that get in there? And I thought you weren't supposed to put things on radiators? Hmm....this could be my California ignorance talking.

Anyway, they go on to link to products you can buy to emulate the Carrie style. My roommate, who has been dying to find a version of Carrie's muted bedding for years, will be mucho pleased that she waited it out and didn't purchase the $300+ bedding from Anthropologie that she had lukewarm feelings about. I'm wondering if this Calvin Klein collection will do the trick for her.

I so love that they're even giving us an option to buy a faux "Aidan Chair." Recently, they also showed how to get the Miranda Hobbes look, which I think is more suited to my taste. I've always loved her sunburst mirror and am thinking about getting one in the near future. I'm also a fan of her crystal ball lamps. I purchased two very similar versions from Target back in March for super cheap, $35 each! Restoration Hardware, eat your heart out.

Interesting tips! I'll definitely be on the look out for any Charlotte or Samantha "get the look" information.

Shabby Chic, Literally

There are many things I will not do. I will not buy a perfume made by Paris Hilton. I will not put garbanzo beans on my salad. And I will not live in a trailer park...or would I?

For most of my adult life, I've thought the idea of inhabiting a trailer park might be one of the least desirable housing options possible. However, I'm having second thoughts after knowing of a chic couple who bought a doublewide in Malibu, Calif., and after seeing this Shabby Chic-inspired version.

I tend to enjoy a tad more color than we're seeing here, but this 2,016-square-foot residence has got to win the Best Doublewide O' the Year Award. The Kentucky mobile home was featured in Country Living, that has to mean something. I really love all the distressed wood and the black/white, somewhat Parisian theme. I'm actually really surprised the construction of this mobile home can support some intense-looking wall mounts...all the more power to these antique enthusiasts, though!

Really beats plastic yard flamingos and TV trays, eh?