Living Room Shenanigans
My living room is the next room on my "demolition list". It is going to get stripped down to the design studs and completely made new. There will be new paint, a new rug, new seating, new window treatments, new shelving on the walls, and a shifting of artwork and accessories. I love bringing in a bit of new and fresh, but also working with all of the great accessories that we already have. I am most excited about the "new" couch, which is something I will be able to share after a while. It is a collaboration between me, and one of my favorite artists...and I am stoked!I have already started the process of elimination, so the old rug {that was falling apart and too small} has been removed, store bought artwork {from almost 20 years ago} has been removed,{thank goodness!} and yesterday...I bought these two new stool/ottoman/side tables from.....wait for it.......TARGET! The wooden legs will go nicely with the new shelving for the walls, and I love the gray wool stitched tops. Very multi-purpose, very utilitarian...and absolutely moveable from room to room on an as needed basis. I looked and looked for these on the Target website and could not find them...so you may have to go by your local store to find them....and if you are here in Greenville...I already bought two of the three! {but there are a few Target stores!} At 39.99 a piece....they are kind of a steal.I am excited about these new little additions, and I do promise to share photos along the way of how the living room comes together......promise!Thank you to my kitties, Bleeker Olive and Newsie Mae, for being amazing {and super cheap!} models for this shoot.Have a wonderful weekend!xo,Barb Blair
I'm starting to cook.....for real
image via Alida Ryder of Simply Delicious
I have always cooked...decent.....or maybe horrible....I don't know. But seriously, I dream of being an amazing cook who can whip out a delicious dish using skittles, chicken, white wine, and bread crumbs. Have you all seen Chopped? One of my daughter and I's favorite things to do is watch cooking shows, and Chopped absolutely freaks me out and amazes me all at the same time. If you can cook with the crazy ingredients in those baskets ...you. are. amazing.One thing I want to do more of, and get better at, is cook...and bake. So, for Christmas I got a new pot, a KitchenAid mixer, and a pie book {because I ate their pie in NYC, and I did want to slap my granny it was so good!}. I totally and completely love all of my new "tools", and it makes me want to try new recipes....and then when everything tastes amazing...it makes me want to try even more! I have a feeling I am going to be buying more pots and "such" of this nature......It's like having new paintbrushes and tools for furniture and design...I just can't help myself. Another perfect example of when having the proper tools makes all the difference.Anyhow....the whole point of this post is to tell you that I tried a new recipe last night for dinner. I made Nigel Slater's, Cog au Riesling...{pictured above}...and let me just tell you...It was fantastic {and super easy to make!}! Everyone in my family devoured it, and that just doesn't happen around here. I originally found the picture on pinterest, and it led me here where I found the recipe. The recipe is in grams and ml, so I just used "the google" to look up the the conversions and was good to go. The only thing I did differently was left out the mushrooms.....I just can't go there. I served rolls, rice, salad, and roasted asparagus as sides....and when I plated {see how I said that? fancy.} the chicken, I had fun pouring the sauce and creating some presentation goodness.I'm telling ya.....it was wonderful....and this recipe will become a regular.xo,Barb Blair
The Knack Shop... and Online Things
With all of my time off over Christmas, I had plenty of time to think about Knack. Things that I should do, could do, would do, want to do, and AM going to do. Phew! That's a lot of "do's"!I am one of those people that absolutely relishes a new year. I love a fresh start and the opportunities a new year brings. I love making goals. {not to be confused with resolutions however} Some of my goals are ones that are definitely within reach...but then there are always, always "pie in the sky" goals as well. These lofty "pie in the sky" goals are the dreamer in me, and always the ones that challenge and excite me to no end.One of the things that I knew I should do....{but was scared to}.....was delete my etsy shop. I have been on etsy since 2007/2008 and it was a fantastic tool for me. Etsy allowed me to get my furniture out to a huge audience, and is the very reason that my furniture resides in homes all across the country and world. Now do you understand why I was so scared? {Eep!} You may wonder what I hit my head on, or what in the world I am thinking.....but you see....I have a fully powered online shop within my own website as well. So, trying to keep up with both made for extra steps and extra work for me....and this year it is about simplifying and working even smarter not harder.When I moved to Lois Ave about a year and a half ago, I closed my antique booth that I had run for the past 6 years. I did that because I now have the most beautiful shop and showroom space... and wanted to focus solely on this location. It was a very difficult decision, because the antique booth had been such a security blanket for me for years...and kept the bills paid for the first studio that I had. Etsy was the same thing for me...security and comfort. However, I tend to like risk...and so first the antique booth went and now my "etsy crutch" is going away too. I have paid for a beautiful website and online shop...and I need to utilize that money and time to the best of its ability!As I was thinking about this post yesterday, sitting here at my desk in the shop, I grabbed my camera....and these photos emerged.This is Knack.All of these fun things are available in the online shop ....{that you may or may not have known about...but now you most certainly are aware exists!} I ship out most orders the day they are placed so that you can have your goodies in just a few days. The furniture takes a bit longer due to the carriers schedule, but normally pieces arrive within 2-3 weeks.Take a gander.....pillows are 50% off right now....and to celebrate this new year decision, I am creating a 20% off coupon for the entire online shop. Just enter coupon code "woohoo" at checkout. Here are some easy links directly to products in the photos above: Wooden Whales|| Metal Numbers|| Spitfire Dishtowels|| Glass|| Bottle Openers|| Deer Hook|| Wire Basket|| Ladders|| Scissors|| Pointed Finger|| Totesxo,Barb Bair
Creative Homes
2014 is here! Ready or not, it's time to make it happen! I hope that all of you had a wonderful Christmas, and that you were able to spend time relaxing, enjoying quiet moments, contemplating, planning, and just enJOYing the life that you have.I took 10 days off from the shop and studio, and wow was it wonderful! I lolly gagged, rolled around in my pj's, tried new recipes, organized, spent time with family and friends, partied like it was 1999 {oh wait}, bought and read new books, and wrote down dreams and goals for this new year. It was awesome.....totally awesome. {insert clapping cheerleaders here}One of the new books that I purchased {and read} was Creative Family Home. I absolutely love this book because the spaces are original, playful, and most importantly.......lived in! I really appreciate the fact that while definitely modern in appearance, each home is unique and special because of the people who live there. The artwork on the walls, the collections in the corners, the mismatched chairs, the glorious book shelves with treasures galore, the random garland, the rocky horse in the dining room......I mean how refreshing is that?For someone like me...this book is preaching to the choir. Amen? Living with who and what you love, and letting your home tell your story speaks volumes to me. This is what I strive for in my own home. It is not all about having the latest trend in home decor....and it is absolutely not about having the same thing everyone else has......but rather picking, collecting, and displaying things that you love and are meaningful to your family. Boom.I love when people are eating in my dining room and I get to tell them about the antique table they are sitting at. It is over 100 years old, belonged to a retired minister, and we bought it at an antique store about 16 years ago. It was our first big furniture purchase, and I cried when I walked in and saw it... because it was exactly what I had been looking for. It was way out of our price range.....but we made it work...and it will NOT get painted! I can only hope that one of my children will want it in their home one day. I also love to tell people about the " I Suwannee" print that was made by me, for my husband, out of a print that we inherited from his grandmom.{we would never have used it if it hadn't been for Pinterest! Shawew!} Then, there is the artwork that we have collected over the years...each one with a story...each one purchased from artistic friends, interns at Knack, or picked up at the goodwill for the simple reason that I was drawn to the geometric water color in the wheat {only to find out they are famous prints worth thousands}! There is also the bowl that I made from a car break drum, the recycled window "hutch" that I designed, and the car mirror candle stand whose candles light the room with their soft glow {you would never know I had to make friends with a little pit bull named "red bones" at the junk yard to get those mirrors!}.......These are fun stories to tell.....We had more people in our home over this past holiday season, than we have had in a while....and it was refreshing and fun! I loved opening the doors to our home big and wide! Sharing the stories of my home, and hearing over and over again that people felt comfortable and loved here... was an extra special blessing.I hope to share more and more of our home here this year....it is a big part of who I am and why I do what I do. I want to continue to make it unique and special for those who live here, and spend time here. After all, this is what home should be about right?xo,Barb
A look back at 2013 - and a Merry Christmas to you!
How do you even begin to try to capture a year with just a few images? It is impossible to do, so I will quit trying.These images hold just a few {a very few} of my treasured memories and people from this year, and include my family, my Knack family, and my furniture friends.This year was so full.....so full of life. There were so many firsts, a few lasts, tears, fears, joys, cheers, growth, friendship, love, challenges...........like I said......full........and as we end this year of 2013 and look forward to the new year of 2014....I hope you can look back and see movement forward, change for the better, risks taken, love given, extreme generosity, cherished family, strength, and gratitude.May we give ourselves away even more in this new year, and seek to continue life based on the truth of the gospel, and all that it calls us to be..... courageous, without fear, powerful in mind and spirit, generous, quick to forgive....showing love to all.Merry ChristmasWith much love,Barb Blair
Enjoy it all...
image via pinterest
Christmas is just a few days away now....and then it will be New Years...and then a new year has begun.......and before you know it...we will be here again... It all happens so fast...and so much transpires over time...both good and bad.......be sure to enjoy the little, the big, the ALL.....xo,Barb
A teeny tiny little chest of drawers named "Berengaria"
This little gal is the cutest thing you have ever seen! My dad rescued her out of the estate of an old family friend. He lovingly repaired all of her drawers and sagging sides...until she was as good as new....and then I stepped in and gave her a fresh coat of paint, new knobs and vintage map drawer liners.She is so happy now, and her big name " Berengaria" gives her all the street creds in the world!Measurements:26 1/4" tall19" deep36" wideThe gorgeous floral arrangement in these photos was created by Julie Dodds of Willow Florals and is available for purchase and pick up at the Knack shop || 11 Lois Ave. Greenville, SC.Enjoy!xo,Barb