What I Have been Up To...

I have been very neglectful to posting!  Regardless if anyone is paying attention I am continuing on... because it is fun.

Life has been interesting and therefore I have not written any posts in months.

I have been busy with my boyfriend, projects and work.  I have been extremely inspired but have not had the time to do all that I want.  There doesn't seem to be enough time.  The tree house or "the nest" as we call it, is not near finished.  Although, I do have a couple of photo projects in the works I have not had the time to move forward but I do hope to have at least one done by the end of June.

Work has been very consuming and so I thought I would share some of what I have been doing these last few months... in photos.

Thanks for looking!

Billy and I being clever

One of many drapery "fabric swatches" for Pottery Barn

One of my favorite beds for Pottery Barn Teen 

A new friend that I made at one of our locations...REMY!

Fun day spent on a Williams-Sonoma shoot for the new Australian catalog

A day with the PB Bed & Bath team... these are the photos that made it into the catalog

I have the most fun making beds for Pottery Barn Bed & Bath

Spring bed for PBB&B with Brad Knipstein and his crew

An evening walk with friends and dogs at Fort Funston

The most recent swatch wall of upholstery fabrics... photo effects by Lori Roark

SEE... I've been busy.

Biodegradable Flower Pots? Yep.

I recently was invited by a young photographer and fellow Blogger, Lynn Kloythanomsup, to style a product she was shooting.  Always, excited to do something new I took on the opportunity to do more prop-styling.

Her clients family has had their nursery for almost thirty years.  The son, Jed, wanted to have a more sustainable production using biodegradable containers rather than plastic.  So, he used an old technique of using rice husks to make new containers.  He has developed amazing and colorful pots for plants.  They will biodegrade over time and quicker if left outside but they are riding the wave of the future at Ecoforms.  Taking better care of our Mother Earth.

Jed, who has been running the show since 2004 hired, Lynn to help update their website with shots of their newest product colors and shapes.  His parents opened up their home to us to produce our photo shoot.  We had a fun day experimenting with all the varieties Jed provided.

These are my favorite pictures from that day.

Please check out both Ecoforms' and Lynns' websites and see great ideas and stories.

Up in a tree: Part 1

The first time I went to visit Mike I noticed the tree house.  Never one to hold back;  I exclaimed "you have a tree house"!  Then I asked him if he or his three teenagers use it.  "No,  the kids were never interested".  My brain started spinning.  What fun to hang out in a tree in Marin!  Luckily for me he liked my enthusiasm.

Of course the next question was "do you mind if I check it out"?

The new venture started.  My man let me climb up and I spent a day cleaning house.   I asked the spiders to please leave so they wouldn't get sucked up by the shop-vac.   

We had our first cocktail party on the veranda that night.

The house was built between two Bay trees and is very solid.  Not only did the architect line the outside with weather proofing, he finished it off with shingles left over from the add-on to the main house.  It has a nice little window that faces West.  Perfect for the afternoon sun to stream in.  Although, the inside measures 5 by 4 feet wide and only 5'4" tall there is a lot of potential for lounging.  

The outside has about a 3 foot veranda that goes around two sides.  Plenty of room for two chairs and two people to sit and sip.  The door is a piece of plywood that Mike is going to shape up and I will paint. 

There are some minor adjustments needed for the outside.  One, which Mike already started, is to finish shingling the outside and the other is to change the entrance up to the house.  The rope ladder and small hatch in the floor is not going to cut it for most visitors.  We will create a new entrance with a ladder.  

Mike also made a pulley for raising and lowering a basket to transport goods!

My idea is to have cushions on the floor and hang any other items that might be useful to have in the house.  Like blankets, glasses, a corkscrew...  I am sure you catch my drift.  We are leaving the rustic charm of the outside for camouflage and authenticity.

I have started the next phase: painting.  I primed the inside last week.  Chose two colors of paint for the floor and walls.  Then earlier this week I painted the walls "chamois"... getting some in my hair of course.  Yesterday,  I painted the floor "silver spruce".   I also, hung my first piece of art. This is just the beginning!

I can't wait for you to see it done!!!!