Decor fit for a Bride: Katy's Nautical Bridal Shower

If there is one thing I love, it's decorating and decorating for a party is even more fun! Derek's sister Katy is getting married this August in the mountains near Shaver Lake and with a wedding comes lots of parties. Her bridal shower was this past weekend in California at her best friend's family home and you know who offered to bring the decor for the party. 

In keeping with the nautical theme, I went "overboard" with decor. My motto is if you think you have enough decor...you better pack a little more.  While we didn't have to rent a uhaul to get everything down to California, we packed every inch of the truck and left just enough room for us to sit in the front seats.  Seven crates, three boats, plates, silverware, napkins, nautical swag and hundreds of seashells later, we were on the road. 

The back of Derek's truck. This was the more organized part. The back seat was filled to the brim too!

We set up the party on Saturday night. There were lots of small details that went into the planning of this celebration. Four people and four hours later, we had almost everything in place.  

Derek is the best boyfriend ever! He's always helping me with all of the details! 

The day of the party we finalized all of the last minute details. When you walked up to the front door there was a chalkboard with the countdown to the wedding. Luckily, Katy's Matron of Honor, Becky,  has nice handwriting, so she nailed this chalkboard! Mine tends to look slightly elementary, if you know what I mean. 

The entry was our Message in a Bottle station where we asked the guests to write their marriage advice for Katy and Chris and put it in the bottle. 

We had a nice group of 25 close friends and family of the bride. Tables were simply decorated with petite white lanterns filled with sand, seashells and a small candle. Napkins were tied with a nautical inspired ribbon and placed at each setting. 

Once guests arrived they were invited to enjoy sandwiches and salads prepared by each of the bridesmaids. The buffet table had the most detail. 

Mimosas were a must! Pomegranate, Orange and Mango to be exact and of course our ice chest was a boat! 

The gift area had it's own set of decor with personal touches specific to the bride and grooms' relationship. One of my favorite details was the fisherman's ruler with the "keep or throw back" measurement. Chris is the definition of an outdoorsman, with hunting, fishing and hiking being some of his favorite hobbies. Obviously, when he reeled Katy in, he knew she was a keeper!

Last but not least, the dessert bar: where I spent most of my time. Vintage cake plates of all shapes and sizes overflowing with sweet treats. Macarons, lemon bars, chocolate covered strawberries, and a cute little anchor-topped cake. Love is Sweet: Take a Treat!

It was a beautiful day; filled with great people, lots of love and well wishes for the future bride and groom. I was delighted to go overboard with the nautical theme! The best part is being a member of this beautiful group of bridesmaids filled with ladies that are equally beautiful on the inside as they are on the outside. A big thank you to  Becky for letting us come in a take over your family's home for 48-hours and for all of the planning you did to make this day special for Katy and an even bigger thank you to Katy for letting me be a part of your inner circle.

Staging Sells: Mt. Rose Street Edition

In the past couple months I've staged several homes all which have sold in record time! The quickest sold within 24-hours of listing it. I've found that I absolutely love staging and helping people sell their homes. Homes are like people, they have unique personalities. Some are introverted and need a little help coming out of their shell while others are quite extroverted, exhibiting so much personality, they need help containing themselves. It's important when preparing your house to sell that you remember you are trying to appeal to the masses and engage multiple offers so you can sell your home quickly and for the best price possible. 

The home I staged yesterday is a true gem, located in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Reno and it has been completely renovated with no detail left undone. This 1,600 sq.ft. beauty was a pleasure to stage and possibly my favorite to date. It was a "complete stage" meaning it had nothing in it and everything had to be brought in.  Hello Uhaul! Here I come! 

If you'd like to see this house in person, OPEN HOUSE is this weekend on Saturday and Sunday! 1485 Mt. Rose Street. For more details and for all of your real estate needs, call Mike Hays: 775.771.9801

Click the picture below to see the before pictures:

Now scroll down to see the transformation:

One of the coolest features of this house is the double sided fireplace that adds ambience to the living room and kitchen/dining area. It's a statement immediately welcoming you inside upon entering through the front door. We kept the decor simple and modern with a cozy twist.

Overstuffed micro-suede couches furnish the living room and make you want to cuddle up and enjoy a good book. From there, you move onto the office nook which is the perfect space to get your work done without being isolated from the living room.

The kitchen makes a beautiful statement with the espresso cabinets, grey subway tile backsplash, beautiful quartz countertops and stainless steel appliances. Dining in sounds better than dining out with this space. Heck, I'll even come over and do the dishes.

From there you head to the bedrooms each providing its own unique oasis. The first guest bedroom we equipped with a twin bed and small desk, perfect for little ones. The second bedroom boasts neutral tones with some metallic details to give it a little pop.

Lastly, the  master bedroom is an ideal retreat for unwinding after a busy day. With sliding glass doors that lead to the back patio, a spa like bathroom and a great closet, you're sure to be impressed.   This room is light, airy and simply delightful. 

Do you have questions about staging your home?? Want to know about this home?? Feel free to reach out to me. 

And that's a wrap! Our first year in business is complete. Here's the recap!

The difference a year makes: 365 days ago a lot was going on! I changed jobs and moved from an established company to a startup, I was selling off my antique inventory, moving out of my space in the antique mall and without knowing it, starting my own business. When the startup failed, my back up plan was already in full swing. Reflecting back on the last year, I'm excited about how far Eddy Street Vintage Market has come and there is no doubt in my mind it's because of you. Growing up here, leaving for college and coming back, I realize how great our small community is. You have helped spread the word by coming to each sale, bringing a friend, referring a friend, and in the process becoming our friend.  Each person who walks through our door helps us continue to bring you the "Eddy Street Production" each month.  To commemorate the last year, let's take a stroll down memory lane. Here are the highlights from each sale!

Year 1 was a blast and I'm looking forward to all that Year 2 has to offer: the opportunity to meet new friends, bring you even better vintage treasures, the possibility of an antique fair Eddy Street Style, the introduction of the Eddy Street Express and I'm sure a few surprises along the way. Thank you for being a part of this journey with us! Cheers!

Managing Magazine Mania AKA Magazine Storage

If you are like me, browsing through magazines is one of your favorite things to do. I can't help but purchase some of the magaines that motivate me but I get a little twist in my tummy when I think about how many magazines I have at home already and where I am going to store all of them. 

Magazines over the years have definitely increased in price and most I like range from $10-$15 each! (Ouch) Here is what I have learned to do: 

For magazines that only have a couple of WOW ideas, I usually just take photos of the ideas I like with my phone and then return the magazine to the news stand. It's easy to scroll through the photos and the best part is no physical clutter!

But for those magazines that tug at your heartstrings that you can't live without, what are you supposed to do?? I took to Pinterest to find out what others are doing and here is what I found: 

There are some really unique DIY ideas out there for storing these periodicals. If you have the space, I thought the magazines on hangers on the wall was a clever idea. I would use old wooden hangers to keep with the theme. 

I also really liked the wire basket made into a rolling caddy. This could be great for storing so many things. 

I perused a few more ideas before deciding on what concept I would use in my home. I found the console table with the baskets underneath. I liked how it looked and felt it would fit nicely with the design in my living room.  I didn't want to use a traditional basket though so I found this awesome galvanized metal tub at Target. It was definitely spendy but it can also double as an ice chest for Summer BBQ's so I splurged.  (It's on sale right now which is great too!)

Once I made my purchase, I decided to go through all of my magazines and select what I wanted to keep. Then I  alphabetized them and put them in the container. They all fit perfectly and no more clutter!  Here are the pictures of it in my home. 

I'm loving it! What do you do with all of your magazines? Let us know. For more ideas about magazine storage, check out my Pinterest board. 

Magazine Storage

Spring Living Room Makeover

Each season I get an itch to change up the decor in my house. There is something about moving my furniture and adding new pieces to make it feel like a completely new space.

I love looking at Pottery Barn, Ballard Designs and Restoration Hardware for inspiration but I don't really care for the amount it would cost me to makeover my living room using their stuff. You can create the look (for significantly less) with a little bit of research, creativity, paint and determination.

So here is a tour of my Spring Living Room Makeover! I forgot to take before pictures (a common problem I have). I will be sure to remember for next season's make over. 

My living room is a long and narrow shape. One of the hardest spaces to decorate in my opinion. We have an entry table to the left of our front door that serves as a catch-all for our keys which live in this adorable little trophy from 1933 I came across on one of my treasure hunts.

I love using salvaged elements. I have several chippy white doors as decor around my house. Two smaller doors sit behind the entry table along with a beautiful piece of tin ceiling, a stack of vintage books and an Essence of Peppermint bottle with dried roses that have a hint of pink. 

I just received the latest Ballard catalog and I am loving some of their cabinetry, especially these grey and white pieces.

And even though items are currently 15% off... You are still looking at over $1000 for each piece! (My wallet hurts) So I decided to go about it my own way. 

I found two matching cabinets with beveled glass doors, lights, and covered storage on bottom (JACKPOT!). The structure was great, they were solid wood and they weren't  $3000. They weren't the color I wanted but I knew I could fix that. Yes, it was Super Bowl Sunday but Derek was willing to go with me to pick them up. What a guy!

I had the vision for them. So we sanded both and painted them. Knowing we had a looming deadline for game time, I may have sanded a little faster. The chosen color is called Brook Trout. It's a grey color with a hint of brown. Wanting to highlight whatever items I stored in the cabinets, I decided to paint the inside white...Swiss coffee to be exact. I changed the hardware from a mismatched wood knob to a rectangular antiqued brass knob. 

I'm a sucker for symmetry so these cabinets became the perfect frame for my fireplace. Inside I decided to showcase some of my favorite vintage luggage, a few art pieces, an ampersand and a figurine. Boy am I happy with the end result.