Beautiful Home: 09.23.10

There is something so comfortable about this room. I can totally see myself curling up on one of the couches and I adore the mixing and matching here (and the tufting, of course). And while the feel of designer Dana Abbott's Corona del Mar home is a bit more casual and country than usually attracts me I think there's something really great about it.

The open space also features the kitchen and eating areas. Blue-grey cabinets seem to be all the rage, but I don't think I would ever choose them for myself. They do look good juxtaposed with the darker woods here, though.

A fun recessed breakfast nook.

A Rohl farmhouse sink.

A great chandelier plus linen wingback chairs and two

 leather butterfly chairs makes this a really great space.

Seems like a great place to curl up with a book.

Lots of light and a great rug in the master bedroom.

I die over this whimsical outdoor area complete

 with iron trellis, strings of lights and a fireplace.

Love.

Hope all of you have a really wonderful day.

Don't forget to enter the Navy Blue Notes

 giveaway and a big thanks to the super fab

Blair of Wild and Precious for Wiggling me!

Images via House Beautiful

Beautiful Home

I have loved this house since seeing it in an issue of House Beautiful awhile back.  The home, designed by Christina Rottman, is located in Montecito, California and has a really warm vibe.  I love the bits of Mediterranean and Moroccan influences mixed in with the neutral decor.  Photos by Mikkel Vang.

The linen velvet sofas and leather ottoman in the living room were upholstered by Rose Tarlow.  Loving the fireplace, too.

In the dining room Rottman mixed a Tuscan-style walnut table with an 18th century Italian wall hanging and a rococo chandelier for an old world feel.

A settee and studded leather screen in the Moroccan-influenced master suite.

Can I say how much I adore this Moorish doorway in the living room?  Love!

What a great Spanish daybed in the guest room.

The turquoise kitchen adds a fanciful element to the home.  Two coats of glaze (blackened umber then turquoise) plus scraping, buffing and stippling were used to achieve the look of the cabinets, which I think compliment the limsetone countertops nicely.

Another piece of the house I would die to have--the loggia.  I can just imagine spending warm nights sitting out there.

Alla Prossima

Wedding Bells Toll for Same-Sex Couples

The first couples to get married as a result of California's Supreme Court ruling last month on same-sex marriages.

The ruling that legalized same-sex marriages comes into effect today at 5:01 p.m. PT. Although it is after county marriage licensing hours, many offices plan to stay open late to accommodate same-sex couples.

Clerks expect a large number of couples Tuesday morning. They will complete marriage-license applications that replace "Bride" and "Groom" with "Partner A" and "Partner B."

The California Supreme Court struck down a state ban on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional in a May 15 ruling. The state Department of Public Health, which serves as state registrar and oversees vital records, designated Monday as the last day the court could rule on any requests for a rehearing.

Opponents say that they have collected enough signatures to call for a statewide referendum that would define marriage as between a woman and a man. The California secretary of state must verify the signatures in order for voting to take place on an amendment.