Ho Ho Ho!

So I had grand intentions of driving out to Half Moon Bay today with the family to cut down a gorgeous Christmas tree, really I did.

But then I got to thinking about the environment and all that crap.

So we bought a fake-o one instead. We even went to Kmart to get it. Ick. But we came home with one of these.

And the best part? It has a rotating base! It moves around! In a circle! So you can see all the sides!

The second best part? I think they mis-charged me! $99.99 and the label in the store said $179.99! Maybe I was involved in a super secret 40% off sale? Who knows? Who cares! This baby will pay for itself in two years.

What a day. Now we just need to find our Christmas decorations.

I Want This...

There must be something in the water. I've been craving all these modern pieces of furniture. Anyone who knows me will wonder if this chair will 'fit' into my home. I can't help it though. I must have 6 for my dining table. Hello, um, Santa?

In My Mind Right Now...

From DWR

• Eames Molded Armchair
• Eames Molded Plastic Rocker (i swear the second i find out i'm pregnant i'm buying one of these)
  

From CB2:

• fotofalls ornament tree
• hippie arm chair

From West Elm

• silver parsons table (it would match my new computer - he he)
  

Smith and Hawken

• glass cloches

NapaStyle

• Benvenuto door mat
• Pauchard step stool
  

Wishing I lived in Portland after finding this site.

Wishing my copy of the Darjeeling Limited soundtrack would arrive already.

And i know i am putting the cart before the horse, but isn't this bassinet just the cutest?

Latest Purchase

Hot Chocolate Cups from Crate and Barrel.



Glossy inside. Matte finish outside. Fits in my Tassimo machine.

So cute. For coffee (grownups) or hot chocolate (bella).

New Semi-Obsession

Mark and I had a romantic evening in SF this week (including a great meal). We were right around the corner from a Borders, so we stopped in to peruse the mags. And I found this:

Atomic Ranch. A magazine all about midcentury marvels. So sleek. So hip. So not me. But I am loving the landscaping ideas.

Must...resist...urge...to...have...atomic...ranch...house.

New Reads....

New Cookbook:

Vietnamese Cooking Made Easy

my next purchase will be the Filipino volume.

Books to inspire our upcoming remodel:

The Barefoot Home

Creating the Not So Big House

Patterns of Home

I think the expression 'your eyes are bigger than your stomach' applies here somehow.

getting back to who we are.

while reading stef's post today, i was reminded of a desk i've been wanting for a LONG time. (stef, i think you may have convinced me to make the leap.)

the jay desk from west elm

this desk represents a change we've been going through at casa peterson of late. we've been craving organization lately. it's amazing how peaceful i feel once i get a few things in order - even if it's just the cutlery lined up like little soldiers in a new cutlery tray. isn't it strange what small things calm you?

our house is rather small (less than 1200 sq.ft.) and in a place this small, you must be as efficient as possible with your belongings. but the fact of the matter is....

we're not. at all.

everything is crammed into every available space. recently i had an 'aha' moment where i realized that every space in your home doesn't need to be filled. a little empty space is vital for flow. and most of all, i'ts OK. and that's what got the ball rolling.

but we're slowly making changes. we're ordering closet organizers (at this stage we're looking at elfa from the container store - any feedback?) . we're looking to ditch the furniture in our living room in favor of a smaller couch like this:

and a small slipper chair like this:


for bella we'll be trading in her changing station and dresser in favor of a dresser like one of these

with a shelf above it. and trading out her rocking chair with one of these:


it isn't as much of a makeover as a chance to express our lives a little more accurately, to distance ourselves from what we thought we should look like from the outside. to remove ourselves from the curse of the 'i'm getting rid of this - you want it?' style of furnishing, and break free of the items we have taken from family members and kept out of some strange obligation (i mean, if it was that special, why didn't they keep it in the first place?).

we're rethinking our artwork, and most of all trying to represent our true selves. no more will i spend each night eating dinner next to artwork that looks like it should be in a dentist's office!

and our motto now is 'one thing in, one thing out'. it's MUCH tougher than it sounds. but it does make you really think about what you are buying.

the book apartment therapy has been a tremendous help. if you are thinking of 'cleaning house' i can think of no better place to start. they even have a blog.

i hope you welcome your true selves back as well.

Latest Issue of Domino...

I absolutely LOVE Domino magazine (as well as Cottage Living, but that's in another post). The latest issue has some neat features. So their flipbook of the current issue doesn't contain either one of these, but I would say it's worth picking up a copy (or at least taking a look when you are in the checkout line). Or, if you are patient, they will probably have these on their site next month.

The first would be turning a spare room into a dressing area (page 73). Really neat ideas though. My only beef is that they say it's done 'on a budget' - ahem $5000 isn't a budget to me. I can see splurging on great quality shelving (in this case they used elfa), but $499 on a mirror? Sometimes I read this magazine and think, 'why didn't they just go to Target?'. In 30 seconds of Googling, I found one that is almost identical to the one in the piece. Back to the point, wouldn't it be great to have a) an extra room to turn into a dressing area and b) $5000 to blow on one?

So the second thing I really thought was a great idea was a feature in the latest issue about throwing a dinner party at a restaurant (page 70). Why didn't someone think (or write about) this sooner? OK, so it's basically making reservations for a large party, but the extra tips for making it a special night are great. And, I wouldn't be surprised if having a dinner party at a restaurant cost just about the same as having something at home. The article suggests using your own table decorations, having a menu printed up for the event (with a limited number of choices for each course to help YOU stay on budget, and giving each attendee a little gift at their place setting). This especially rings as a good idea if you live in a teeney weeney place and still want to entertain. Just think, you wouldn't need to have all the fixins for your sister-in-law's favorite cocktail - she could just order it at the dinner. I wonder how many restaurants would actually go for something like this? This would be worth it for me just for the fact that I wouldn't have to do dishes AND I could actually spend the whole time chatting with my guests!

G