Drooling (Literally) Over Kitchen of the Year

Monday, when I got home from the dentist I couldn't feel nearly half of my face. I must be really sensitive to novicaine because even my lower eyelids and ears get numb. It's a great thing to be pain free, but man do I hate that stuff!

Anyway, I decided to take it easy and watch an episode of Flipping Out. In case you haven't seen it before it's a show on Bravo about real estate investor/flipper/designer Jeff Lewis and his team. In the episode I watched, Bright Lewis, Big City, Jeff heads to New York for a meeting about the kitchen he's been choosen to design for House Beautiful magazine's Kitchen of the Year. I had seen a few pictures of the kitchen floating around on the internet and it was fun to see a bit of the behind the scenes action. Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think of his designs!

All photos from housebeautiful.com

Dream Home Design

Back in elementary school I used to write my cousin Samantha who lives in another state. We would draw sketches of our house because one day we were going to live together on a horse farm! While the drawings were simple and we've since abandoned our horse farm dream (although she currently lives with her husband and baby on a real farm), I still remember how fun it was to put my dreams down on paper. 

If you have thought of building your own home someday, assuming you haven't already, have you ever sat down and actually tried to sketch up a floorplan? Recently, after telling Andy how I knew what I wanted in our future home, he encouraged me to draw it up and we might even be able to get a cost to build estimate. After multiple attempts I've come to realize that I need the help - it's so difficult!

My laundry list of wants: 

• 4 bed
• 3+ bath
• 2 story
• 2 car garage  
• Library/study
• Spanish/Mediterranean influence outside
• Lots of storage (large closets, pantry, linen closets...)
• Tons of light, relatively open floor plan
• Limited "wasted space" - No living room that's just for show or formal dining room that gets used 1-2 times a year 
• Moderately sized rooms - I don't need a sofa in the master bath or a whole living room in the bedroom! Cozy, but not cramped, is key!
• Bedroom closets accessible from the bedroom - I don't want to have to walk through the bathroom to get to the closet
• Master bath: separate toilet, single sink but plenty of counter space, jetted tub, doorless walk-in shower (Andy's wish)

Are there any must haves on your list? If so, what are they?

Spanish style home in L.A.

If you share my love of Spanish revival style houses then you should definitely head over to Cococozy and check out this gorgeous L.A. home. It is a little too much house for us, but I love how bright and airy it is.

Funny thing is I didn't show this to Andy because I figured he's probably sick of hearing me talk about houses. A few days later he came across the same house and showed it to me, saying that he really liked it!

Inspiration, part 2

I thought I'd share a few more photos of some gorgeous Spanish-Mediterranean homes, enjoy!



















This house has beautiful symmetry. I love the fireplace flanked by built in bookshelves. The three archways remind me of the Crosley (see below).

Source

I love those wooden doors! 

The Powel Crosley on our wedding day. A large house is a must to be able to pull off a fireplace of that size. Oh, and did I mention I love wood doors?

The Crosley was built in 1929 by Mr. Crosley for his wife Gwendolyn and served as their winter home. The house is 11,000 square feet with 21 rooms, 10 baths, and servant's quarters on the second floor. Mr. Crosley abandoned the house after his wife passed away. In 1982 it was bought by Manatee county and placed on the National Registry of Historic Places. It's amazing to see the photos hanging in the upstairs hallway of the house when it was abandoned. You'd never know it now, but it was falling apart. Click here to see the photos. For more information, visit the Crosley's website.

This is actually not a house, but a spa. I'm not sure what's on the 3rd floor, but that vaulted ceiling is amazing!

Dream Home Inspiration

I love thinking about the design of our dream home and all the features I'd like it to have. I've got a file on my computer in which I keep inspiration photos that I've found online, but the biggest design inspiration for our dream home, at least in terms of the exterior, is the house next door to my grandmother. I don't think I need to explain why, just take a look at it!

I love the Spanish-Mediterranean style, the rounded corners, the arched entryway, and the pretty green trim around the windows. It was built and sold a few years ago for over $2.5 million - slightly beyond our current means. For now I'll have to keep dreaming.

Is there a particular style that you're drawn to?