Room of the day

Hang a row boat from a ceiling? Why not. . .If Jeffery Alan Marks can do it, why can't I?!

I adore the master bedroom of his Santa Monica home. It's so classic-California-cool, don't you think?!

Gone Surfin

The weather has finally warmed up here in California (it's been unusually cold and wet for May and June.) So now that the sun is shining and the temps are rising all I can think about is my next trip to the beach!

Have you ever noticed how a surfboard propped in the corner or mounted on the wall automatically adds a relaxed, laid back vibe to any room? It's no wonder, the whole 'surfer look' is defined by carefree casualness! I'm sure I've posted a few of these images before, but I can't help myself in sharing them again! Here's a peak at some very stylish rooms featuring surfboards;

via BHG

via House Beautiful

via Pinterest

via Unknown

via Pinterest

via House Beautiful

via Decorpad

via Tim Clarke

 via Coastal Living

via Brooke Gianetti

via Pinterest

via House Beautiful

via Habitually Chic

via Elle Decor

via Pinterest

via Habitually Chic

via Nate Berkus

 via House Beautiful

via Elle Decor

via Australian Vogue Living

 

What do you think of this look? Would you prop a surfboard in an empty corner or mount one on the wall in your house? Do you think this should only be left to those who actually live near the beach?

I can't believe I'm going to show you this. . . but here's a (really horrible) picture I found recently that dates back to when I first moved to Los Angeles, was in college and trying to be a 'surfer girl'. Ha! 

This was one of my first apartments living on my own. I really had a lot to learn about decorating at the time (do you like the scarf-turned-tablecloth on my patio furniture-turned-dining table?! I won't even comment on the wind chime, fake flowers or overload on the chachkis. . . what was I thinking?!) But notice my super cute yellow and white surfboard?! It wasn't used for 'decorating' at the time, I just didn't have anywhere else to store it. That board is currently in my garage gathering dust. I am totally considering proping it in a corner somewhere in my house! What do you think?

Wedding Wednesday!

I surf the web A LOT. So much in fact that I think I'm starting to develop carpal tunnel! Anyhow, upon searching for the perfect dress for my upcoming beach wedding, I stumbled upon a blog that had my name written all over it! California Wedding Wave is my new favorite place to 'surf' for wedding ideas! They feature daily posts including 'dress of the day', real California weddings, 'fab photo of the day', sea of ideas, and more. There is also a 'surf board' forum and vendor resource section as well. From sunny So-Cal to the Central Coast, the city of San Fran to the hills of Napa, they feature it all!

Head over to California Wedding Wave to get inspired!

House for Sale in Aptos, California

I spent Saturday in Santa Cruz (and surrounding areas) with my fiance and my sister checking out potential locations for our upcoming wedding. We've found the perfect place, but just have to settle a few more details before we can set a date!

While driving around a neighborhood in Aptos (just a little South of Santa Cruz) we spotted an 'open house' sign and decided to stop in and take a peak. The house was 3,000 square feet, three bedrooms, three bathrooms and listed for a little over $3 million dollars (notice a theme?!) It was situated on a cliff and practically every single room of the house had a breathtaking view of the ocean. It was recently remodeled and boasted a swimming pool (which is pretty unusual for the area) as well as a attached office with a separate entrance. From the outside it didn't look like much, but once you stepped foot through the front door, you can see exactly why they were asking so much - the million dollar views! (Or three million. . . ) After speaking with the realtor we found out that the house had been recently remodeled (although I was a little unimpressed with some of the finish selections) and that it was a second home for a couple who had just purchased another home in the same area. 

My favorite room in the entire house would have to be the family room that had an upholstered day bed situated near a bank of floor to ceiling windows. I could totally see myself curling up with a blanket and a book and enjoying the AMAZING view of the Monterey Bay for hours on end! 

To see a video tour of this house, go here. 

So what does $3 million buy in your neck of the woods?!

Show House Visit?!

I am DYING to make a trip to San Francisco before the month is over so that I can tour the 2010 San Francisco Decorators Showcase! May is already jam packed for me and I am not sure if I am going to be able to squeeze it in. . .

Katiedid has been posting about the show house for the last couple of weeks and I have been trying my hardest not to read the posts and see all the beautiful pictures of the interior, as I don't want to spoil it if I go! It's really hard not to peak though! Keep your fingers crossed for me that I will be able to attend!

Vacation, here I come!!

It's official! I am burnt out beyond belief and taking a vacation! I've been ignoring my little blog lately because I've been moving offices, adjusting to an even longer commute, and have been wrapped up with 'life'. It's the first time in three years that I am taking a week off and it's well over due!

The boyfriend and I are leaving Lodi (where we live) on Friday and taking a little 'tour' of the central California coast. First stop will be Monterey for the afternoon where we plan to visit Cannery Row. Then onto Carmel where we are staying for two nights. Sunday morning we head out early to drive South down Highway 1 along the coast. We'll be stopping in San Simeon to visit Heart Castle (where I plan to take tons of pictures of the beautiful architecture to share with you!) Then onto Morro Bay and Pismo Beach where we will be staying three nights. While in Pismo we plan on going wine tasting, squeezing in some relaxing and beach time, and hopefully enjoy some sunshine. I should be back the end of next week, rested and recharged! Bon voyage!

A sign of the times

You know things are BAD in the economy when Ethan Allen goes out of business in a high profile shopping center in my area. . . and guess who moves in?. . . Goodwill. (Which is FINE by me!) And did you know that you could shop the Goodwill online?! Check it out.

via flickr

Eclecticism at it's finest

This weekend I will be doing a little bit of this. . .

And a little bit of this. . .

Oh, how I LOVE California and all that it has to offer. . . tonight I'll be dawning my boots and heading to Sacramento to watch PBR (Professional Bull Riding) and then Saturday morning I am headed to Santa Cruz to visit my sister!

And speaking of an eclectic mix of things. . . check out this bathroom!

via Houzz

Happy Weekend!

Snow Day!

 image via flickr

I have to admit that I have been ignoring my little blog lately, but thats only because things are pretty hecktic right now in my life. After the first of the year I plan on going back to regularly scheduled posts, but for now, I might just be dropping by here and there to share a thing or two. Hang tight :)

I just had to post and let you know that IT IS SNOWING today. I know, I know, big deal to some of you, but for anyone that is from the Central Valley in California, you know that this only happens like every ten years!!! In fact, this is only the third time in my life as I recall that we have gotten snow here. I actually had to put a jacket on for the first time this year, and opted for Uggs instead of flip flops as I got dressed this morning :) I drove to work and watched the snowflakes fall onto my windshield. It was beautiful and totally put me into the holiday spirit! Hope you all are enjoying this time of year!

Apple Hill and all it's Autumn Festivies!

After reading this post from Katiedid's blog on Friday, we decided to make the trip up to Apple Hill on Sunday to get our annual dose of Fall festivities (instead of visiting the huge corn maze in Lathrop like I mentioned on Friday during this post ) I had never been up to Apple Hill (which is about an hour and a half north east of Lodi) and boy, I was in for a treat! It is compromised of about 50 apple farms, vineyards, wineries and breweries. They are particularly busy this time of year when people from Northern California flock there to experience all things autumn and apples! They have pumpkin patches, corn mazes, pony rides, craft fairs, train rides and of course amazing food! Aside from all the apple pies, carmel apples, apple cider, apple butter, apple fritters (I could go on, but I'll stop here) you can find some amazing bbq and beer. It's a great place to take kids, but would even be enjoyable for anyone wanting to get out and enjoy the crisp fall air and the beautiful countryside.

I had a disastrous thing happen last night when I was uploading pictures off of my camera and these where the only ones I was able to salvage. I was pretty upset, but all things aside, we can always go back next year and take more pictures. Needless to say, I will be going out today to purchase a new SD card and throw my existing one in the trash! You can check out applehill.com for more info on this great little slice of California.

What you get for $3.7 mil. in Capitola, California

Last weekend I visited my sister in Santa Cruz and spent an afternoon in Capitola which I blogged about here. We had a great day, shopping, eating, drinking, being touristy and what not. But leave it to me to be able to spot a "open house" sign wherever I go! Of course we had to stop in and take a look!



Check out what we found inside;








It's a four story piece of prime real estate on California's coast. The lot that this home sits on is a mere 1,307 square feet. The home however is a total of 3,113 sq. feet but the first two levels are convereted to studio apartments that you could either rent out to help pay the MASSIVE mortgage, or use as guest suites. Both of these levels are accessible from the back side of the house. The front of the house leads you to the front door of this recently remodeled beauty. After entering on the third story you find a den (that they have staged as a playroom for kids), two bedrooms with a jack and jill bathroom, a half bath complete with beautiful mosaic tile, and a glorious master suite. You take the staircase up to the fourth story of the structure where you find the main living area that includes an open kitchen, living and dining area, complete with a powder room. Overlooking the street there is a patio with a built in barbeque and the beach side of the property has bifolding glass doors that open up to the sensational views of the ocean.

What did I think? The staging was so-so, I would have done a few things differently, but non the less, it screamed "beachy-contemporary". While the kitchen is beautiful, I think it is a little too "trendy" in my opinion. All in all, it was a beautiful beach home in a well sought after area in Santa Cruz County. I'm curious to see how long it stays on the market or what it will end up selling for!! Hey, if I had an extra $3.7 million dollars laying around, I'd pick it up in a heart beat!

JPM Design's 100th Post!

It's been about four months since I accidentally stumbled into the wonderful world of blogging. You see, up until that point back in June, I had no idea such a large community of talented individuals even existed. To be honest, I didn't even really know what a blog was! Well. . . here I am, 100 posts later and I feel like I am finally beginning to get the hang of this blogging thing! I am not sure what I enjoy most; reading other people's blogs or attempting to create one of my own, but all in all, it's an amazing experience with so many aspects that I love! It fills a void in my design loving heart. I feel like I have learned so much in the last four months and I am looking forward to growing this little baby seed of a blog!

With that said, let me get back to why I am here, which is to tell you a little bit about my weekend. . . So last weekend I went to Santa Cruz to visit my sister for the weekend. For those who don't already know, Santa Cruz is my favoritest town in California and I would move there in a heartbeat. (Why don't I? Well, lets just put it this way, my sister and her roommates pay more than twice in rent of what I pay in a mortgage living in the valley. BUT, this is what she sees when she walks out her front door and turns to the left;

I think it's worth every penny, don't you?!

Anyways, we decided to go into Capitola on Saturday to do a little shopping and what not. Capitola is just a little east from Santa Cruz, going around the Monterrey Bay and only takes about 10 minutes from my sister's house. It's a cute little town that draws tourists with it's trendy shops and restaurants right on the shore.





On the way to Capitola, you pass through Pleasure Point, which is a huge surf spot as well as the home to Jack O'Neill, founder of the O'Neill empire that basically invented the wetsuit in addition to starting the first "surf shop" back in the 50's. That's his house below;



And here's a few images from Pleasure Point (of course most of these pictures are via Flickr, I have been there so many times, you don't want to look "touristy" with your camera, especially when you are with a "local" (my sister) who roles her eyes the second I start digging through my purse looking for my camera. . .





So we hung out in Capitola, visiting my favorite restaurant there, Margaritaville. We sat out on the deck and sipped on delisiously stong beverages. They have the most amazing mosaic tile work there. Everything from the floor to the columns is covered in brightly colored mosaic works of art!



Here's a picture of probably the most recognizable architecture in Capitola. They are cute little vacation rentals right on the beach!



This is a home that we walked past that I absolutely adored;


It's just your typical beach cottage but check out the mosaic work they have going in their front yard! Love it!


I have more to share about my weekend in Santa Cruz so stay tuned!!!