Pretty Places

We took a little vacation to Maine last weekend through this past Tuesday. It was wonderful, relaxing, beautiful and too short! I just need to go through all my photos and will hopefully have a post up by Monday.

Today it is rainy in the city. I woke up to the rain tap dancing on my window sill, which made it very hard to get out of bed. It's supposed to continue tap dancing throughout the weekend so I think it will be a weekend of indoor fun and relaxation.

Here are a few places from the Lonny blog, where I could get mighty cozy on a rainy fall day.

That reminds me, I need to work on my kitchen chairs and share with y'all.

Happy weekend.

Nashville

So glad that y'all liked my post about the no sew Roman shades. Such a quick and easy project and I loved sharing it. I have another little project coming up and it involves my kitchen table chairs. Hopefully you'll like that one too. Stay tuned next week!

I planned on writing about my Nashville weekend early in the week, but time got away from me, so here we go.

My fall is busy y'all. I'm gone just about every weekend in September AND October. All good things and fun trips so I can't complain. Last Friday, the girls flew to Nashville to celebrate the next bride to be...
Nashville quickly became one of my favorite cities. The people, the music, the food and the town in general were so much fun. On Friday night, we ate at Merchants on Broadway and then danced the rest of the night at various Honky Tonks. We also had a contest to see who could take the most photos with cowboys. I think it was a tie. Oh, and we all sported the hipster glasses too.

Here is Allie and her soon to be sister in law dancing to a band on Friday that made up a song about our trip. Listen carefully to the words. (still haven't figure out a great way to embed video!)

Saturday, we slept in! It was fabulous. Then, we ventured outside and did the Pedal Tavern. Have any of y'all done this before? They have them in many cities (not NYC though). I highly recommend it for a group party. It's BYOB and you get to tour around town while peddling and drinking. Working out while consuming alcohol? Even better.

That night we ate at Whiskey Kitchen and did some more dancing at The Stag. Wouldn't you know, I ran into someone I knew. Small world.
Like all trips with these girls, we laughed and laughed. They are my rocks and I don't know where I'd be without them.
Big thanks to Allie's sister Abby and Emily for planning a great trip! Can't wait to see Allie walk down the aisle to marry Bradley in just four weeks! Congrats, bride to be!

Remembering

People (people from the South) often ask me if I ever feel unsafe living in New York. My response is always, "Of course not. I'm more terrified riding along on a small country road at night than walking by myself across Broadway at 1 a.m." (don't worry mom - I don't do that). Though, I think it's a fair assumption from them, thinking that Manhattan could be scary. I mean, there are a lot of crazies on this small island, showing their faces in pretty much every neighborhood or subway. You really don't have to look that hard to find them.

But, one thing I have learned in my six years here is that New Yorkahs (said with an accent) are actually kind. They may not open the door for me at the bank or say, "How y'all doin'?" or even smile at me as I pass them on the street. Yet, I know that if I'm ever in real trouble, someone would stop and help. Why do I know this? Well, because I live in Manhattan, where 11 years ago today, the city, along with the rest of the country and world, watched as we were attacked. I was just 17, sitting in AP history class at Sanderson High School in Raleigh, when the planes hit the towers. Shocked. Saddened. Horrified and Scared.

Though I didn't know anyone that lived here at the time, I have listened to many accounts of that awful day from co-workers who were here and experienced it first hand. I've watched tv specials, read the stories, visited the Memorial site, listened, listened and listened. What's the same from all those stories is the acts of kindness from individuals that day - many who saved lives and helped others get to safety.
Today, on this beautiful fall morning (which 11 years ago was a beautiful Tuesday morning too), I thought for a moment of all those individuals who died on September 11, 2001. And, as I passed a few crazies on my way to the office, I did notice New Yorkers acting a little kinder than usual - smiling and remembering - and I felt safe.

No Sew Faux Roman Shades

I've officially lived in my apartment for a year. So far, this apartment is in the running to be my favorite and if you've been reading this blog for awhile, you know that I've lived in quite a few places since moving to NYC in 2006. I'm a fan of older homes with charm and character and this place has it. It might not have all the modern conveniences of other places I've lived in, but it has personality and that's what I love the most.

My building was built in the 1920's and at the time it was somewhat of a "scandal" because it was one of the first non-brownstone apartment buildings on the block. There's great molding, high ceilings, real hardwood floors and large windows just to name a few. But, like older places it has its quirks too (and rodents - I saw a mouse a few months back, but he hasn't shown his face in awhile, thank goodness!).

Since moving last year, I've quickly tried to make it feel homey. It's hard when you are renting because nothing is definite. I'm not quite as brave as some bloggers out there, who are renting and renovating. To me that just doesn't make a lot of sense. But, there are small things you can do.

I don't think I'll ever really be "finished" with decorating but that's half the fun. There is always something more to be done. Last week, I decided to tackle the bathroom. The bathroom in this apartment is nothing special, but has potential.

Here is the window as it was before. Very bland and boring. Aren't you jealous of my view? Can't get much better than a brick wall right?!
I found this teal Ikat dot fabric at Mood Fabric in the Fashion District and LOVE it. Ikat fabric is trendy right now, so I thought it would be great for a curtain rather than a piece of upholstered furniture that I might get sick of down the road.
I did this whole project in less than 30 minutes and it cost less than $30. Here is what you need:

• A yard of fabric
• Iron on hem tape
• 3 tension rods

First, I measured the width of the window and hemmed each side so that my fabric fit across the window without going over too much on either side.

Then, I hemmed the top of the curtain so that a tension rod could easily be inserted through. Once that was done, I hung the tension rode at the top of the window and let the fabric drape down.

Next, I hung the second tension rod and then pulled the fabric over, letting it double over like a fold. Now it's starting to look like a roman shade. Then, I hung the third tension rod about six inches apart and pulled the fabric up, repeating the fold like the first section. You can hang the tension rods any width you want, depending on how tight you want the shade to look. I prefer a more open look so my rods are spread further apart.
If you have a bright room, I would recommend hemming a back to your fabric. Or, if you have enough you could double-over the fabric. My bathroom doesn't get a lot of light thanks to the beautiful brick wall, so I left it as is.

Here is the finished curtain. I love it so much that I'm thinking of redoing the curtain in the kitchen and adding one in the bedroom.
Since hanging it last week, the wrinkles have fallen out, otherwise you could iron the fabric before you hem it. What do y'all think?

See ya Summer

I have been traveling all over this summer and I'm tired. It's been such a great summer, but I'm ready to stay in one spot for awhile. Too bad that won't happen this fall. I'm very lucky though and thankful that I'm able to visit so many great friends and family. Plus, I'm racking up the miles!

My great friend Lo lives in Chicago but is moving back down South in a few weeks. So we decided last weekend would be a good time to fly out and see her before she and her fiance, Adam move South.
We ate our way through the Windy City and I'm still full. On Friday we took the train out to see Hall & Oates (why do you really think I went to Chicago?!). Lauren, her sister and friends packed an awesome dinner.
I've now been to 5 H&O concerts. Well, maybe 6. That's either embarrassing or awesome. I like to think the latter.

After the concert, we ventured to the local pub for some dancing. My cousin Jay even made an appearance.
The next morning, we ate some more. Of course we did. That's a bacon doughnut. It was delicious.
That afternoon, the four of us headed out to Wrigley Field to watch the Cubs play. I haven't been to a baseball game in forever, but sometimes there is nothing better than a beer and baseball. The Cubs, of course, like the NY Mets did not win, but we still had fun cheering them on.
Thanks for a great trip Lo and Adam! Good luck with the move down SOUTH!

In other news, I have been doing some projects around the apt. Here is a sneak peak that I will share with y'all tomorrow.