Melificent

Lovable Friday!

1. Hair Chalk; Since my hair is shorter now, I don’t really have all the options I did before for fun ombre and fashion colors. That’s why I’m all about these temporary hair chalks! They are easy to apply, come in vibrant colors and wash out without a problem. Sign me up!

2. Batman Money Clip; I have a lot of nerds and dorks in my life. And I would never have it any differently. When I saw this Batman money clip, I knew I had found the perfect gift item! Definitely keeping for future reference.

3. Glitter Mani; Although I’m no longer very adventurous when it comes to unique manicures (they always seem easy enough, don’t they???), this one has me itching to attempt a recreation. I mean, does this read princess or what? May be worth the effort! 😉

4. Flamingo Bikini; It’s almost time for bikini season…well, let’s be honest. It Miami, it’s always bikini season! My first bikini encounter will be next weekend at the Floatopia event, and oh how I wish I could debut this ADORABLE number from Victorias Secret. Not only is it electric and fun, but it represents the 305 with its quirky little flamingos to the tee! Total must have.

5. DIY Ottoman; IKEA makes it so easy to have a fresh and hip home on a budget! Its affordable furniture makes it easy to use for DIY’s, especially this one. Seems like after only a few easy steps, you can have a statement piece for your living room (or even bedroom – think of it in front of your bed!). Best part? The grand total is a whopping $8! Love.

Master Bedroom Redo

Is it possible to nest without being pregnant?
This is what I’ve been asking myself since I decided 2013 would be the year that we would start phase 2 of home renovations/remodeling/general facelifts. Although I feel like our house is definitely a home, we want it to portray more of our personalities, so we are looking for more art for the walls, spunkier furniture and accessories to spruce things up a bit in certain rooms.

I am currently focusing on the living room, but the bedroom is next up on the plate. Right now, our bedroom is very dark and masculine. Basically: not us. We wanted to make it a little lighter and brighter, and the hubs has been nice enough to let me add some more feminine touches. Here is a guide I’ve been working with to try and decide on aesthetic and I decided to share it with all of you in case you are also looking for something similar for any room in your home; new or old.

1; Audrey mirror 2; Gazelle figurine 3; Malm dresser 4; Fado table lamp 5; Mirrored glass table 6; Polka dot lucite tray 7; Polka dot sheets

So back to that question. Nesting: only a phenomenon while pregnant? I vote no. What do you think?

IKEA favorites

PS Cabinet – $99

Some girls get excited when they receive a Victoria’s Secret catalog. I do when I see the magnificent thickness that is an IKEA catalog. I like to refer to it as Meli porn. I make time to sit and look through it, patiently dog-earing all my favorite items and picturing where I could squeeze them into our current setup. And these were just a few of those (some weren’t available online to share with you all just yet – bummer). This PS Cabinet is just so wonderful in so many ways. Our house is a perfect combination of modern and warm. We pair classy pieces with the fun to make our house seem more like a home (I can’t stand those cold, surgically modern homes), so that’s why I was drawn to this cabinet as the perfect “table” to place behind our couch (more about the couch later). It fits our style and budget. How did I ever live without you, IKEA?

Karlstad Sofa - $499

So our couch. When we bought our first home, we were determined to buy a “big kid” couch. You know, one that had a hefty price tag that would last us a long time and be a statement piece in our home. So we chucked out our sweet little leather IKEA couch for a grown up West Elm one. I’m starting to think that was a bad decision. Our pricey sectional is such a headache. Sure, it is very easy to clean, but it’s supposed sturdy weighted cushions are constantly falling…as we are leaning on them. I can’t tell you how embarrassing it is when guests are over watching a movie or just hanging out and they almost tumble back first onto our floor. The moral of this story is that expensive is not always better. And this is why I would ditch our sectional for this itty bitty cute hot pink pretty. OK, so maybe I wouldn’t, but isn’t it tempting? Maybe one day when I live in a flat in London. You know…one day 😉

Lack Wall Shelf - $49

Our house is not small, but we are minimalists. We don’t like a lot of clutter or furniture taking up precious personal space, so this Lack Wall Shelf really appeals to our design aesthetic. I can place all my useless garbage (aka; cutesy/kitschy decor) on the shelves without feeling like I am making our home more and more claustrophobic as the days pass (can you tell I grew up in a home with “stuff” popping out of every corner?). Plus it’s unassuming and just goes perfectly with any decor style. Oh yeah, and it’s cheap, so feel free to not limit yourself to just one. Pop one of these suckers in every room, or combine them together for more cargo room!

IKEA is also offering a lot of black and white throws and pillow covers this year, which is just so so fun. I love stripes, and think they really add a pop of modern fun to any room. Unfortunately, these were the items that were not yet on the website. Guess that just means a shopping trip is in order! 😉

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Weekend Highlights

Nothing too crazy this weekend to report on, but I am happy to share that after a not-so-fun, but successful trip to IKEA, we have some new fun pieces for our home! Our walls have been bare for a very long time, as the hunt for Meli and Augi approved art is not an easy one (or an affordable one), but we were able to find two fun gallery wraps that fit perfectly on our naked walls:

The best part is that they were both reasonably priced, but have wet my appetite to continue filling up all the blank canvas! I especially love the beautiful Klimt replica – the colors match our living room to the tee! And the kitschy pop art print in our bedroom brings a little more life into what seems like a very dull and lifeless color scheme (all brown & white).

We were also able to pick up a nice silver frame for our one-of-a-kind print by Nan Lawson, which is now adorning our entry way, as well as an adorable little pillow for our bed. I love the polka dot pattern complimented with the mustard color backing (which matches perfectly with our striped duvet cover).

Want a similar look?
Klimpt canvas art – $49.99
Pop art print – $9.99
Ribba frame – $9.99
Polka Dot pillow – $9.99

Our front yard also has gotten a tremendous face lift, but that’s another post for another day.
Loving how our little nest is coming together!

Weekend Highlights

Is it me or do the weekends seem to get shorter and shorter as time goes by?
I find myself gripping on to Sunday’s, hoping that they will never end, but fail.

Also irritating?
The fact that the weather has decided to be unbearably beautiful on weekdays and overcast & yucky on weekends. What’s up, Mother Nature?

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I got the opportunity to swing by IKEA Friday afternoon to check out their patio furniture & was bummed to see a lot of the items I posted about last week either would not work or were out of stock (already!). Thankfully, I was able to mix & match some fun pieces I found and am super happy with the way it all panned out. Our patio is still not complete, but it is well on its way! For those of you interested in this look, it is made up of a Bollo folding table, 4 Marius stools in orange, 2 Majallby scented candles, Solig fly swatter and Solig solar operated lighting in white. Also, something that I didn’t pick up but thought was amazing was the Platta decking system, which has the power to turn any patio from blah to chic in two quick snaps! Unfortunately, I don’t know how smart that would be for us Floridians considering we would have to be removing & replacing the pieces with every hurricane threat. I wonder if there is a way to anchor them down?

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