Hot Stuff

My new summertime mantra is: if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Sure, it's a little cartoonish, but were there ever finer philosophers than Tom and Jerry or Bugs Bunny? Those homies knew how to cut to the meat of the matter. At any rate, the heat may be abating a bit, and there's even rain in the forecast. Things are looking up, so much so that I can finally look at colors other than icy white or soothing lavender without spontaneously combusting. So here's my ode to hot orangey red -- tempered with a lot of crisp white. Because I still can't stand to look at a solid red wall. Things aren't looking that far up.

Did you catch that Fornasetti double feature? And I'm finally coming around on the magic of flowers to totally transform a room. Also, I need a snow leopard bench. Stat.

Last but not least, this is what my backyard redesign shall look like. In addition to fabulous topiaries, becurtained verandas and killer sculptures, I am hatching a plot to air condition the outdoors.

For more hot red fabulousness, read this post at A Dreamer's Den.

It's officially summertime, gang -- so I am over and out. I'm pretty sure a pool somewhere is calling my name.

[AD Russia, Hallie Buton, Keri Russell via Elle Decs, Roger Davies, Mali Azima]

Ikea Update

Yesterday Ike, Ben and I, drove all the way to the northern wilds of Round Rock, home of the Texas Ikea. It's so far north Karly asked me if it was snowing up there, but sadly I had to inform her that hell had not yet frozen over, and that it was 105 degrees in the shade. The heat is sending me into a fugue state of ever increasing laziness, so as a result I'm gonna dispense with the chit chat and get down to some really important list making. Let's read about how we lost three hours of our lives riding through the desert on a cart with no name.

1) I finally sat on this couch.

So, yon Hovas was actually pretty comfy, but Ben was utterly repulsed by the slipcoveryness (Ben is not terribly savvy in the cleaning department, obvi). While there were a few details I was not thrilled with -- the arms are a little too rounded, the seat cushions stick out too far, and I wish the back cushions weren't contoured like that -- I thought it was pretty awesome for $499. Too bad the fabric choices are abysmal. I will be waiting until they make some nubby linen like covers like they do for Ektorp.

2) They did not have my Vago patio chairs so I rolled around in the middle of the store and threw a tantrum.

This is patently unfair, since that dumb chair is one of the best things Ikea has ever made. Check out Modfrugal taunting me with her fancy Vagos, arranged around a campfire. Awesome! Although just looking at that fire is making me hot.

This is really very frustrating, though. WHY can I not order things through the Ikea site? WHY can they not even ship site to store? It's so ridiculous.

3) I bought Ike a bunch of kiddie crap.

Besides purchasing several accessories with funny Swedish names like Mesmakr and Pslinger, I snagged a Mammut stool so Ike can sit around the baby pool and dip his cute, chubby little toes into the boiling water.

4) I struck out in the rug section.

Ikea has some great, kid friendly rugs. I love the new Basnas, which is much nicer than the pictures show. It's a nubby gray flecked flatwoven rug that has a lot more texture than a kilim, but no nasty pile with which to trap cereal bars and legos. The only problem is that, like many of Ikea's rugs, it doesn't come in an 8x10 option. The Swedes must live in shoeboxes. Same story with this Perisk rug, which was on super sale, but was super small.

5) Despite utter failure on many accounts, I did snag some cute planters.

Of course, most of the good stuff was already sold out. Oh, and while I'm working myself into a lather, let me ask why most Ikea pots do not have holes drilled in the bottoms for drainage? Plant whisperers, am I missing something here?

Enough kvetching. Sorry I'm Miss Bitchy today. Mondays suck.

I mean, YAY! Happy Monday!

Tomorrow I will be all sweetness and light. Pinky swear.

For All You Lavender Lovers Out There

I'm just not a pink and purple kind of girl, (although my rather extensive childhood collection of My Little Ponies may provide evidence to the contrary), but I have to admit that lavender is occasionally stunning.

Also, I love the lighted panel insets on the stairway. Also also, I think I really like Fornasetti, especially after seeing this rug in person at ABC Carpet (it's incredible!). But mostly also, I like the cooling effect of white with lavender. Because, while I usually favor neutrals and warm tones, just looking at red makes me sweat right now. It's so hot I don't even want to turn on the lights in the house, for fear of raising the ambient temperature to HOLY SHIT.

What I meant to say was: Have a fantastic weekend, ya'll!!!

[AD Russia]