In keeping with the Halloween vibe this weekend I would like to introduce you to our scary backyard. We purchased our home almost 20 months ago but have spent that time upgrading our interior not exterior living spaces.
Anyone old enough like me to remember the movie Beetlejuice? As a kid, I was absolutely terrified of the sandworms, enormous two-headed serpents with rows upon rows of sharp teeth that live outside the Maitlands home, ensuring the ghosts never escape their purgatory. Well, that is what my backyard reminds me of when I walk down the steps.
scary stuff
Last weekend we found ourselves at the Sarah P. Duke Gardens for an event. The beauty of the gardens was so inspiring that I think it was finally the kick we needed to get to work on our own sandworm yard in the spring.
I was drawn to the perfectly manicured rows of bushes and plants
Huge pots of cactus lined the rows in the gardens. We are thinking of incorporating these elements into our yard.
Hubby on the phone in the background
I think our overall yard vision is of course function with easy to maintain beauty. I envision rows or winding paths guiding you to a fire pit or fireplace. Below are some pinterst inspiration photos that we might try and recreate if we win the lottery or magically bump into Amed Hassan and the HGTV Yard Crashers crew one weekend.
A girl can dream right
Now I will send you off this Halloween weekend with the most brilliant scene in the Bettlejuice movie, when Beetlejuice forces the Deetzes guests to perform an impromptu rendition of “The Banana Boat Song.” Enjoy!
Last night we hosted a low key Halloween dinner and pumpkin carving contest for a few of our close neighborhood friends. With work, new babies, etc sometimes it can be hard to get everyone in the same place.
Since Halloween weekend is just getting started I can't wait to share my two costumes I am debuting this year. So readers out there, what is everyone dressing up as this year?
Last weekend I was invited to the Junior League of Durham and Orange counties bargain sale kickoff. For those of you who don't know, the Junior League is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving there communities. The bargain sale held each year is there largest fundraiser and lasts an entire week.
Honestly, I had no idea what to expect from the evening. The hubby was in charge of the details and man did he get this all wrong. I arrived in a dress and gold satin shoes and the theme of the evening was tailgate.. no joke! For a moment I was mortified but then I just brushed my hair behind my shoulders and told everyone at the event that I had somewhere else to be after. Yes, I was lying as I only had my fleece pj's too see later that night but no one needed to know :)
Let me give you a tour.
~ lots of good stuff to look through ~
~ yes it's a little thrift store meets homeless shelter but I promise it had treasures everywhere ~
~ she came home with me ~
~ jersey shore did not ~
~ $1.00! snagged this baby ~
~ $2.00! Got to find a place for this at home ~
~ this mirror was only $5.00, sorry for the scary picture of me ~
After a long night of bargain hunting the real fun began with the silent auction.After a few minutes of sweating out my competition I ended up winning on my two favorite items, score!
Ended up having a wonderful evening even in my satin heels with great friends for a great cause.
Don't know about you but Etsy is quickly becoming my go to website for all things unique. From one of a kind baby gifts to beautiful jewelry I have always been impressed by each items quality and price point from it's sellers. As I have mentioned before I am obsessing over antlers lately. Since I haven't been able to convince the hubby just yet to let me hang dead animals all over my house I thought I should start small with a cute piece of jewelry to get him interested.
Last week I found the BeautyandLuckshop on Etsy and struck gold. I found and quickly ordered this incredible vintage style elk deer antlers bracelet. It was everything I didn't even know I needed or wanted but had to me mine. Did I mention that it's only $4.99!!!
Everynight after work I checked the mail just like Ralpie from the Christmas Story waiting for his Orphan Annie decoder ring. Then one day ta da, it arrived!
Luckily my packages secret message was not drink more ovaltine.
~ loving this~
So if you are in the mood to drape yourself in gold antlers like me head over to the Beauty and Luck Etsy shop.
Saturday my friend KK and I had a GNO. For anyone living in cave GNO stands for girls night out. We started our day at the grand reopening of the fabulous Furbish Studios that I have blogged about here and after some antiquing in 5 points we worked up an appetite and decided to grab some dinner at Solas in downtown Raleigh. Solas is known for food with only fresh ingredients and exquisite presentation and a Miami style rooftop deck. We started our evening with some wine at there sexy downstairs bar.
~ do you see us in the crowd? ~
After some yummy wine we were taken to our table in the back. KK and I have been to Las Vegas a few times together and the dining room defiantly had that same feel with high ceilings, long curtains separating each table, unfortunately no go go dancers though.
We split the hot rock for an appetizer. The HR is a slab of granite taken out of a fire then they place shrimp and tenderloin on top to cook in front of you... umm hello lover.
~ sizzle ~
~ fuzzy me after too much malbec ~
Dinner was just as delicious with tender shorts ribs and seared tuna. Next time you are in downtown Raleigh we definitely recommend Solas for a delicious dinner.
In the last few years I have been surprised how I have been drawn to decorate my home with dead animals. From dreaming at night of how to convince my hubby to agree to buy a zebra rug for the office to hanging a rack of antlers over our family room television I guess I have taken living in the south a little too seriously.
About a year and a half ago hubby and I purchased our second home. With every intention our new home was suppose to resemble these photos below so I feel a little cheated by our realtor. Oh well, maybe we will get it right with home #3.
