Lucky No. 31

I love looking at boutique hotels and imagining that I will one day stay at one of the cooler ones. Well, a very long time ago, over Thanksgiving I did! My husband and I went rogue and went to Ireland to celebrate when the Pilgrims and the Indians sat down and ate delicious turkey and stuffing. We stayed at a delightful little place called Number 31 at 31 Leeson Close as in the sign I photographed above.


It was located right off St. Stephens Square and run by the most charming man (besides my hubs). We were also right next to this row of amazing homes with Georgian style windows over them. I must have taken 100 pictures of them--so gorgeous.

This is one of the rooms we stayed in (we stayed one extra night due to a mix up in hotels by yours truly). I love the mix of traditional and modern. This pic is from No. 31.

Each room was decorated differently, there was a sunken reading room in the lobby, a loft like breakfast room looking down on their garden, and a famous Irish breakfast too! This cute garden separated the main building from the rest of the rooms.

The breakfasts were made to order and also had a choice of pretty much any thing else including yogurts, fresh fruit, granola. YUM.

You could enter from the opposite block into this amazing entryway. Look at that tile work and moldings!

Ireland was our first trip abroad as a married couple besides our honeymoon and it was amazing. The people were beyond friendly though the "gift of gab" certainly lives on in Ireland, and I have never seen so much green in my entire life (not a complaint). It was beautiful and I can't thank Noel, the owner of No. 31 enough. PS--all the pictures here were taken by me unless noted otherwise.

Alicia B.

Pantone Color of 2012

I love when Pantone announces the "Color of the Year", it's so much fun! The Color of 2012 is Tangerine Tango and I really love it. It's a really fun color and is a little bit pink, a little bit orange, and a little bit red.

The tangerine is super intense and vibrant.

This orange linen fabric on this chair is...a tangerine dream. Yup, I said it. It's a traditional setting with a fun pop of color. Sara Bengur.

I should have included this in my last blog about vertical striped walls. The orange stripe mixed in with white, blue and taupe really makes it pop. I love the way it looks with blue, too. Sheila Bridges.

Muriel Brandolini designed this adorable fabric with a faded carrot background with bright orange flowers. Fabric.

Amanda Nisbet mixes a lot of bright colors together in this playful sitting room but grounds it with some dark blue and beige.

Yeah, I have some orange pants. These are very cute too from J. Crew.

I think I must really love the navy blue and tangie combination. The nautical blue stripes paired with the bright orange is very appealing to me. Massucco Warner Miller.

Do you like the tangerine color? Turns out I like all the new colors of the year. I guess I just really love color...surprised? According to these jokers, orange means enthusiasm, happiness, creativity, success, and stimulation. True that. When you use these in a room they are fun, dynamic, and creates action in the room.

Alicia B.

Striped Wall McGee

A friend slash client of mine told me the other day that she has this small hallway in her apartment that she wanted to paint navy blue. I LOVED the idea but suggested that she really do something fun and paint vertical stripes. She loves nautical style and I THINK she took to the idea. In any case it would be a really fun project. Let's check out the competition.

This is obviously wallpaper but i LOVE the effect. Also the bedframe is stunning.

I like the wide stripe. It's simple and graphic against the saw horse style desk situation.

I would never do this in a master bedroom, but in a guest bedroom it would be fun and special. Also a great idea with that type of ceiling--it increases the ceiling height.

This is perfection for a small space. The alternating stripe expands the small space. From AT.

I LOVE how the stripe extends to the ceiling. The light stripe is fun and accentuated the height of the ceiling. From Lamps Plus.

I will totes let you know how it goes with my friend. I know the project will be labor intensive but it could be really fun. It's a small space and the perfect moment for a crazy decorating adventure. BTW all these pics are from pinterest (thank youuuu) except for the last one.

Alicia B.

Happy 2012

J. Crew, you're perfect.

I'm not going to lie when I say that I'm excited for 2012. I love the idea of a fresh start even though New Years is a huge cliche. I know that any day you can make a fresh start but now I have an excuse. I do not care for making new years resolutions because they only point out that anything that you did in the past year was a huge mistake and that you screwed up an entire 365 days. I like to think more positively.

I'm going to set 3 goals: 1, think more positively. Seems easy right?

2, do more yoga; I really would like to learn how to relax more. On a beach preferably.

3, See a Broadway show!

I think these are really fun and actually attainable goals. If I don't meet them, that's okay. WHAT are your New Years Resolutions? Anything fun? On a POSITIVE note, even though 2011 left me extremely stressed out, I married the love of my life so I am very thankful for that. I know, awwww.


Alicia B.