here's the skinny. updated website + new domain.

headband no. 5 - $25 includes free shipping

So you may or may not have noticed a new look around the blog. There's still mucho work to be done, but getting this much accomplished is fairly impressive to me. After work-work, family, working up orders/new items...well, let's just say making this site look a little more professional was like the icing on top of my time management cake.

AND, finally [i say this all shrilly & skip at the same time], finally - this site is now set up with it's own domain name. the old -- & l o n g -- blogspot address will still forward on over.

but now it's www.cardinal-house.com 

pat on my back.

See, it's the little things that make me happy!

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♥ - Kat.

fashion fix. hathaway in cavalli.

I love this Cavalli dress...but I do[did] miss Hathaway's hair. 

[This image is from Vogue May 2008]

♥ - Kat.

informed design. hardwood floors.

So JP is installing hardwood floors this week & we've been discussing all the ins & outs about it lately. She ended up with 5" wide hand-scraped walnut. Engineered 'cause she's on a slab. I'm envious [of the wood floors - not the slab!]. 

While we were discussing hardwoods, the topic of finishes came up. So many homes are now built on slabs now & concrete isn't the best friend of a thick solid wood application. Many homeowners [like JP] are choosing an engineered* wood as an alternate.

BUT. one of the details often overlooked is how to later maintain the type of finish that these new-fangled hardwood alternates come with.

Traditional hardwoods are stained & finished on site usually with a wax-based product. Most of these new engineered alternatives are factory finished with an aluminum oxide finish. Here's the catch. When the current homeowners [ or NEW OWNERS] decide to refinish those engineered floors with a traditional wax-based product...well, that's when some of the fun can begin. Typically, there have been issues of the new finish not really adhering to the engineered floors [think oil & water here, guys]. But, there are some great products out there that are designed to nip this problem. I've always heard fabulous things about Bona Kemi products - I'd check them out.

I bookmarked this site a couple of years ago because it was a great little all-in-one stop for hardwood information. You can find the page relating to the different finishes here.

*Engineered wood. Not laminate flooring--not solid wood flooring. Although there is real wood [estimate 3/16" - 5/8" thick] applied to layers of plywood. Don't knock it 'til you've done your research!

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Leave a comment with any Q's or other topics you'd like me to tackle!

♥ - Kat.

[image from Carpets of Dalton, here]

new stuff. fantasy blooms & fleur necklace.

no. 5 orange fantasy bloom hair clip / brooch.

2.5" dia. - $13 includes free US shipping

no. 6 cream & tan fantasy bloom hair clip / brooch.

4" dia. - $17 includes free US shipping 

fleur necklace no. 02 - 17" with 3" extender

$28 includes free shipping

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♥ - kat.

details, please. flowy chiffon back.

I love the sleeve & back detail on this dress. But when you have more of an hourglass figure on a petite height, ruffled bottoms just don't work so well.  Curse you, Jolie.

;)

♥ - Kat.

{rant} where did the day go?

haha - what a kodak moment! poor baby. [sniff, sniff]

but seriously...where did the day go? i know that i accomplished some things, but i don't see the proof.

I need to get some major work done that I keep pushing back for the blog [design tweaks/update pages/etc] & updates to the shop, but it's just not working out lately. At the office, I've been working on a mock-up of an update to our website. Our site currently showcases a whole lotta 90's stuff...& homey don't play those tunes no mo'... So...I've been sitting in front of the computer all day at work & coming home to do the exact same thing.  Can we say yikes?

How do you guys manage to maintain sanity during these times? End goal ='s cardinalhouse, but I do work-work full-time & giving up family time isn't an option. lol--someone's gotta cook or we'd all be fussy-britches like poor baby above!

okay - enough ranting. & just because I mentioned Homey...

~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥-kat.

new stuff. fabric flower necklaces.

fleur necklace no. 1

$30 includes free us shipping.

~~~~~~~~~~

rosa necklace

$28 includes free us shipping.

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Let me know what you think!

♥ - Kat.

fashion fix. summer dress.

oh, anthropologie. i love this dress. the style, the color, the design motifs...

♥ -Kat.

[pic from April 2007 Anthropologie catalog]

details, please. bell sleeve and ruffled collar.

Love the sleeves on those blazers. And the satin / ruffle detail on the tank collar is just enough without pushing my too frilly button. Oh, and I adore the colors.

♥ -Kat.

[pic from an old Chadwick's catalog]

design fix. big boy bed.

Obviously, this goes for girls too. If you have the space, it's a nice to go up a size for your kid's bed. I have to play devil's advocate here & point out that the larger size bed may last until college, but oh-honey-NO NO to the rest of the room! Let the kid hit his pre-teens & I'd think that he would be tired of the decor.

But that's just me & I'm comfortable with being mean.

;)

♥ - Kat.

[image from a 2002 Kids' Rooms magazine]

fashion fix. beaded duster.

Love this beaded duster. Make sure everything else is toned down when wearing such a bold piece though.

♥ -Kat.

[pic from an old AB Lambdin catalog - now through Spiegel]

everything under $20 at barrie pace.

Barrie Pace is [was] a high-end catalog apparel company. I am fairly certain I have some pages still stashed from a couple of their catalogs. I assume it's yet another company going under primarily due to economic downturn as there are no specifics on their site beyond that they are officially going out of business.

They still have styles available appropriate for business/ business casual + still a number of dresses available [although in limited sizes / colors]. But still, for under $20, it's worth a look.

Here are a couple of my fav picks:

$9.99

$12.99

(lol-this is almost a modern Joan Bennett a la Dark Shadows dress. just a tweak of the hair [& make-up] & you're there! & lightly sarcastic big thanks to mom. most other 30-ish year olds probably don't get that reference...not even the 90's revival version...both of which you got me hooked on)

;)

♥ - Kat.

[images from Barrie Pace newsletter & site]

PS - OMG!! As I was looking at links to tag for Dark Shadows...I saw a little mention that the now famous Tim Burton & Johnny Depp were both fans of the show AND ARE WORKING ON A NEW FILM VERSION! I'm all giddy. I love those two too. I wonder is Helena Bonham Carter will also be in on this one?

details, please. removable bright colors.

I think this was a good little tip when deciding upon a compromise regarding the use of bright colors. When I was a teen, I remember painting the inside of my desk hutch brighter colors. It worked well...I didn't get tired of it & it didn't bother the parental unit.

Another compromise would be to let the bedding &/or draperies to be brighter colors. While these options are more obvious, they are also easily changed out!

♥ - Kat.

[image taken from 2002 Kids' Rooms magazine]

i want that. maharam memory game.

Do you know how much this makes me smile?! Of course Alex thinks his Marvel Comics-themed memory game is way cooler, but I'll let him slide.  

 

 

This design mommy-approved memory game is based on Maharam fabric designs. $36. Find yours here.

♥ - Kat.

design fix. french provincial inspired girl's bedroom.

I am usually not big on rooms too frilly & flowery like this, but this one is darling for a girl. The twin bed pushed to the side is a great American take on the alcove beds you'll often find in older European residences.

♥ - Kat.

[image from a 2002 issue of Kid's Rooms]

travel. makana terrace at st. regis princeville - hawaii.

Isn't that view spectacular?! Sunsets there are supposed to be spectacular. Currently, this location is the Makana Terrace at the St. Regis in Princeville, HI. 

When this photograph was taken, it was known as the Café Hanalei at Princeville Resort. Of all places, I found this image in a Chrysler look book - sometimes I think the ad men [& women] have truly gone a little mad...

View Larger Map

 ♥ - Kat.

details, please. bobbles & satiny goodness.

Ports 1961 by Tia Cibani.

Oh, satin. I love you so, but you're such a temperamental fabric. You love our curves sometimes too much & don't like to behave while we're sewing. Perhaps the purpose of that fabulous bobble at the waist is to distract eyes away from too much fabric cling when the dress is worm on a mere mortal woman...

Dior.

If you have the flat belly & gentle curves to pull off this dress...I don't like you! Geez. I'm not big, but I'm only 5'3" & curves at that height on a size 6 goes a lot farther than at, say, 5'9". The button detailing on the side is spectacular. 

♥ -Kat.

[images taken from unmarked magazine - let me know if you recognize]

details, please. pretty shoes.

Love the detailing with the braid & loose bow!

♥ -Kat.

[pic from an old AB Lambdin catalog - now through Spiegel]

i want[ed] that. superdeluxe nyc.

See those fabulous coasters in the top right? I'm teasing you because it seems that Superdeluxe NYC is no longer up & running. At least their website is down & nothing pulls up on an internet search. Serves me right waiting two years, right?!

I found another post tooting their horn on Dose of Design [here]. 

If anyone has some info or know if the company is still around, please let us know!

♥ -Kat.

[top image from April 2008 Traditional Home; bottom images from Dose of Design]

oh yeah, holiday. no new True Blood. sniff.

Silly me. No new episodes on a holiday. Oh, well. Here's the Snoop Dogg video "Oh Sookie" that had me in such a fit. When it aired the other week after the show, I was laughing so hard that I woke poor Alex up from bed. Oops.

Snoop Dogg - "Oh Sookie"

♥ - Kat.

happy fourth.

Have a great one no matter what you're doing! 

♥ -Kat.

television fix. the fabulous beekman boys.

JP & I were just discussing this show last week at the office. I love it! The Fabulous Beekman Boys on Planet Green channel by Discovery - find the show schedule & see clips here.

The following newsletter clippings below comes from Terrain - a lovely specialty garden center in PA. If you're near Glen Mills, go check it out on Saturday [but sign up for a spot for the signing - details below].

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Take a peep inside the book here.

Visit Beekman 1802 's website here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ - Kat.

book nook. crafty ideas for the bride on a budget.

Most of the projects were a bit too "crafty" in my opinion. A lot of the projects felt more like a creative scrapbooking aisle exploded into wedding projects. I liked the simplistic [but lovely] cake ideas best. And there's a great "how-to" section about working with fondant with loads of step-by-step pictures in the back.

The floral projects were inspiring in aesthetics, however I'd prefer to see higher quality supplies photographed versus the lower priced typical craft store floral stems used. Frayed edges make the bridal bouquets look a bit sloppy. Honestly, I'm just not fond of the bridal bouquet as artificial flowers. I want to smell fresh flowers -- there's just no substitution for that. If you want a keepsake of the bouquet, press some of the flowers to keep in a scrapbook.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

double duty menu / place card.

I must have my snob-nose on today, because this is the only project that I really liked besides the flower & cake ideas. But I'd prefer this with both pieces the same shape/size [floral piece with name on top; menu on bottom]. Then the decorative brad through both at the top so that the two papers "slide". But that's just me....

bridal bouquet.

okay, okay. no, you can't tell that the flowers are fake & frayed from the scanned image. but, dammit, i want to smell the fresh flowers. translate this bouquet of hydrangeas & snowballs into their real counterparts & i'm in heaven.

floral place seating.

here, put the money into the real flower bouquet above & save on fake [err, artificial] flowers here. 

~~~~~~~~

now! let them eat cake:

this monochromatic, [edible] glitter-dusted cake would translate into so many other great events. lavender & pink dustings for a sweet sixteen... silver or gold dustings for anniversaries [i'm proud to claim that my uncle & aunt will approach their 50th in a couple years--so see, it can still happen]

I would leave off the flowers up top [or, only add a small stem/sprig or two]. and I admit, i'm dyeing [i crack myself up] to see this design with wedgewood blue fondant with the white accents! or, add a light washing of color [edible "paints" of course] to the bows & swags.

I think this is such a simple, yet darling, cake design. It reminds me of my grandmother's old chenille & candlewicking  bedspreads. Most definitely a choice for the romantic.

How simple & fun is this one?! Again, this would translate so well into a impressive birthday cake [diy style no less!].

~~~~~~~~

Inspired yet?

♥ -Kat.

[all images from book]

design fix. hotel sax chicago.

One of the great aspects of hospitality design [hotels] for both the designer & guest is that you can temporarily partake in an over-the-top experience. A few years ago, Chicago's House of Blues Hotel was renovated into the Hotel Sax [just before black & white damask prints exploded all over retail America].

Wowsa...look at that mirror! 

Like the domed chair in the back? You can currently find a similar style at Restoration Hardware here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Of course, I'm somewhat partial to this design & halfway wondered how the designers got hold of my student hospitality project - lol!

haha...& I graduated before the article about the Hotel Sax came out in 2007.

♥ -Kat.

[images of the Hotel Sax Chicago from October 2007 issue of Hospitality Design; other images are all me]