New threads...

Every time I have to get on a plane to go away I feel the need to have a new wardrobe. I have no idea why, maybe since it is a vacation and I am able to leave the crazy life behind for a bit, and one way to do that is with new threads. Here are a few items that I have picked up with Maui in mind over the last couple of weeks...

 Rachel Roy Donna Dress | Cheap Monday Melinda Dress | Forever 21 Sheer Tiered Dress

 BCBG Drape Shoulder Top  | BCBG Lilliana Blouse | Forever 21 Mixed Sleeves Top | BCBG Karlie Sweater

Vix Solid Long Pant | Forever 21 Hi Low Skirt | Splendid Maxi Skirt

I am saving some shopping for the trip, there are some great boutiques all over the island that I adore, along with a fab selections of stores in Wailea that we always hit up. So knowing that this is a short 4 day week it is going to VERY busy and full of anticipation!! Hope you have a fabulous Monday! Mel xo

Home...

Last night during my evening blog tour I went over to Terri's blog, Wind Lost, I love visiting it since she is a local blogger. She shared this amazing video with her readers and I wanted to do the same. I have seen snip-its on the commercials that are running now but never the full video. It showcases the beautiful scenery that I am lucky enough to call home. Take the time to watch it, it will put a smile on your face and give you chills, I promise. Also, be sure to watch it in full screen, it is too good not to!

Thank you Terri sharing this and reminding me how amazing this place truly is!!! Mel xo

Project Update: Hillhurst

The inner city home we have under construction in Hillhurst is close to being wrapped up and it is just stunning, come and take a peek before we finish it off...

Love this dining room; the ceiling, wainscoting, and deep dark color...can't wait to see the light installed!

The mud room cabinetry came out lovely, we still have doors to install on the bottom portion, the clients wanted to be able to hide the mess that always accumulates in this space.

Oh the mess!!! Lighting boxes everywhere, tile being installed...gotta love the last few weeks before a possession. The kitchen is going to simply be STUNNING once it is complete. Once the cabinet doors are installed, accent lighting turned on, and the space cleaned, LOVE!

We used a 1x1 dark grey glass mosaic where the cook-top will be located and then a split face stone for the perimeter, here is a blurry shot of our sweet tile setter doing the instal. 

Close up detail of the cornice & bulk-head that goes around the entire kitchen. We had a nasty beam that we had to work around...after much headache it turned out wonderful, another reason why I love built-on-site cabinetry, you can't do this with pre-fab! On the left is a close up of the split face back splash paired with River White granite.

There is a Jack & Jill bathroom on the second level, the clients fell in love with the bath I have for our boys in our new home (on the right), so we went with the same white hexagon floor tile, black pencil liners, and white subway tiles. To top it off we will be installing wallpaper by Cole & Sons.

The tile work is almost completed in the master bathroom (on the left) with pebbles inlayed in the shower floor and the back of the niche that will have floating glass shelves for shampoo bottles. The other main bathroom has a fun and youthful blue glass & marble mosaic, it is so fresh, love it. 

I'll share more images once we have the home photographed...when it is cleaned and finished. Thanks so much for taking a little peek and here is to a better day today than yesterday. I managed to get into a car accident, drop 5lbs of frozen blueberries all over my kitchen, find out my little guy has a nasty infection, and the older one coming down with what I think is the flu. It can only get better, so here is to a kick butt Tuesday!! Mel xo

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'WOW' 1000 times...

Check out this 1000 Sq. Ft. cabin designed by Olson Kundig Architects, it will make you say 'WOW' a thousand times...

The home can be almost completely enclosed when the owners are away...

A massive glass door leads from the main bedroom to a raised steel deck...

Love the mood that the entrance gives...

The industrial steel elements are well balanced with the use of wood and the exterior elements that you can see through every pane of glass...

all via Olson Kundig Atchitects

Pretty amazing space right? Hope your Monday is off to a great start, last full week of January already, crazy, right?! Mel xo

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PoP of color...

Baby, it is COLD outside!! Seriously, yesterday it was -31C (that my US friends is -27F). So I am using these images that have pops of color to warm me up...

via Diamond Baratta

How fun would this be for a beach home, a nice, warm, sunny, beach home...

 via Holly Dyment

Lovin' against the dark...

via Apartment Therapy

This image is making me want to paint the upper hallway in our cabin a fun and vibrant color. Maybe a good project for a rainy day this summer?

via Hurlong & Associates

And finally Blake, ADORE this dress & her. If anyone knows the designer of this dress let me know, I need it, now.

via google

So this post is my pick me up for the day. Stay warm wherever you are!! Mel xo

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Altadore I Updates...

Have I mentioned how excited I am about this home?? I decided to switch the exterior coloring so it flows with what I have going on in the interior of the home, here is what I put together...

The stucco will be two toned, the darker accent color is Benjamin Moore Iron Mountain (I have this in my home and love it) and the main color will be Benjamin Moore Grant Beige. For the tongue & grove ceder work & front door I am having a custom stain mixed up similar to the image above, and for the stone, a new profile from Eldorado called Ledgecut 33 in Sage.

 I am finally wrapped up with the rest of the mill-work drawings, including this little number that I did up yesterday for the den wall...

As as you can tell from the few sketches I have shared, I do it all by hand at first, I am old school like that and I feel that it give life to the concepts, something the ol' computer just can't do. Mel xo

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What I ate & Instagram love

I have a new obsession, Instagram. I feel like I can share tidbits of my life & day without having to do a blog post or make a massive Facebook or Twitter announcement. Something I have started doing is posting pics of the dinners that I make. One of my New Years resolutions was to take better care of myself, and one aspect of that is eating clean healthy food. So here is what was created last week in our kitchen...

Last night I made this wonderful dish from Cooking Light, a go to for me. Every recipe is amazing and bursting with flavor, including this one, Crunchy Shrimp with Toasted Couscous & Ginger-Orange Sauce. I also roasted up some amazing red peppers, just a bit of olive oil and the oven at 425...25 minutes to a fab side and great to add to eggs or sandwiches the next day!

After my workout on Saturday I wanted to make some easy go to snacks to have on hand. First up was a batch of kale chips, simply tear apart the celan/dry kale into bite size pieces, spray with olive oil, sprinkly with coarse salt and pop in the oven at 350 for 12-15 min. I may have eaten the whole batch that day. 

Next up were some steamed artichokes, could.live.off.these. Add garlic, a bay leaf, and lemons to the water and steam for 45min or until the leafs pull off easily. Keep them in the fridge and enjoy them cold.

Friday evening was from Women's Heath magazine. The hubs was not excited about this dish, he hates (or so he said) beans. But every bite was gone...from all of us, the boys included. This recipe of Seared Scallops with White Beans, Spinach, & Bacon paired with roasted carrots is going to be a staple around here!

Thursdays dinner is one I like to make when I know our sitter will be here. It is gluten/dairy free and it doesn't have cilantro or beans (she really does hate those), so since she was hanging with us this evening I made New Orleans Style Shrimp from Cooking Light and paired it with brown rice and steamed broccoli...full of flavor with the fresh rosemary and lemon.

Another Cooking Light dish that is AH-mazing, I la la love this and so does everyone else under this roof. It is Gnocchi with Shrimp, Asparagus, & Pesto...easy and so damn good. Can you tell I like this one? And yep, roasted carrots again, I love how roasting veggies brings out the sweetness to them.

The week started off good with this warm Chicken & Shrimp Coconut Curry Soup. I posted this a few months back and heard from a few of you that tried it...so far everyone has enjoyed it as much as we do! Also, just realized we ate a LOT of shrimp...maybe that is why I have red meat on the menu 3 times this coming week!

As you can see, you CAN eat clean, healthy, amazing food without trying to live off baked chicken & raw veggies. If you want to follow along with me on Instagram simply search 'verandainteriors'. Have a fabulous week and try one of these possibly new to you recipes. Mel xo

Altadore I in full swing...

Seriously so busy, can't.see.straight. Why is now that I decided to give up the sauce till we leave for Maui next month? Oh well, it is what it is and I made a promise to myself so I am sticking through it, thanks mostly to the massive amounts of coffee I have been consuming as of late. Altadore I is in full swing, hardwood is being laid as we speak, the tile has all been ordered, and the finishers are starting the cabinetry today. Here are a couple of concepts I have going on in there...

One of the walls in the kitchen is above, well, my rough, very rough sketch of it. And below are my selections for this area of the home. OH, and haven't been this excited about a kitchen since our own...and I think I am MORE excited about this one, how is that possible?!

Counters: Caeserstone in Raven

Back splash: White sub-way with dark grey grout

Perimiter Cabinets: Lacquered Benjamin Moore White Dove

Island: 1/4 sawn vertical grain oak with custom stain

Cabinet Hardware: Richeleu

Lighting: Visual Comfort Boston Functional Wall

I'll share more with you as I get caught up, I will admit the boys are still waiting on me for some mill-work drawings (bad Melissa), so excuse me while I do that! Mel xo


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Dream home...

Wanna see what my dream home looks like???

Head on over to La Dolce Vita today to see. I am so honored to share this with you on Paloma's blog, hope you like!! Mel xo

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Apparatus

So you all know my obsession with lighting. Well, it just became even larger since I found Apparatus, one of a kind fixtures made from salvages components. 

Ridiculous, right?!

all images via apparatus

I would love to see more of their creations. Each one is individual and oh so stylish. If only I could get my hands on that first one for one of our Altadore projects...that would make me a very happy girl!!! Hope your weekend was wonderful and you are sticking to your 2012 resolutions. I am very happy to say that so far (8 big days) I am following through with them, that puts a smile on my face. Mel xo

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For my girls...

I hold my friends very close to my heart, maybe it is because I have never been one to have a Rolodex filled to the brim with them. But once I let someone in I promise to cry with them, make them laugh, and be there for them...even if it is 3 am. Some of my best girls have come across bumps in the road & when I saw this quote I thought of them...

via pinterest

You know who you are, you know you are loved, and you know I am right here for you. 

Mel xo

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Recipe: Banana Bread

 I promise you this will be a hit and a recipe that is requested all the time. Give it a shot, you will NOT be disappointed!

 1 C. unsalted butter (room temp)

2 C. sugar

6 ripe mashed bananas (3 C.)

4 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 1/2 C. white flour

2 t. baking soda

1 t. kosher salt

1 t. ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350

Cream butter & sugar together until it is light & fluffy.

Add in bananas & eggs, mix well until combined.

Sift together dry ingredients, slowly add into wet mixture and combine, do not over-mix.

Pour batter into either 2 loaf pans or 1 bundt pan that is lightly greased.

Bake for 60-70 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!!!

Hope you love this as much as we do, the boys get SO excited when I pull bananas out of the freezer (great way to save old bananas, just thaw in the skins before using, they will be watery but that is OK). Hope your day is off to a great start, I know mine is with a slice of this and a big ol' cup of coffee! Mel xo

If I had a...

If I had a

via Apartment Therapy

I would have it look something like one of these, from light to dark...

 via ModernHepburnTumbler

 via happyliving.uk

 

 via pinterest

 

 via myidealhome.tumbler

 via myparadissi

via etsy

Or maybe I could just take all of these, squish them together and make the perfect space for me! Do tell, which is your fave?? Mel xo

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