Pure Style Home

Today you will find me guest blogging over at Pure Style Home. A special thanks to Lauren for having me!


Head on over so you can see a before and after of a little DIY project of mine.

Natural Instinct

I love this month's cover of Country Living (the room below). It kind of makes me wish I would use more color/ pattern in my house- which I could easily do with pillows and accent pieces. This room has a completely neutral base with pops of color and pattern here and there.
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Definitely something for me to consider....

Arte Bebe

Since I am officially 6 months pregnant- I have decided that this is the week to start on the nursery. I've been looking around online for some inspiration- and last night I came across the blog Simplified Bee. I loved looking around and was excited to be led to this cute online shop- Arte Bebe. They have so many great items to give as a baby gift or to use in a nursery.

Here are a few of my favorites:
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Knit Cupcakes $34

Little Twig Body Care $43

Elephant Cashmere Cotton Blend Blanket $85

Organic Baby Cradle $325

Purple Hippo Storage Bin $38

Marjorie Duck $46

Elephant Bookends $82

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Now I'm off to get some paint samples mixed, look for fabric, etc. Lots to do.

High/Low: Cottage Living

I know that many of you are on a budget (like myself)... so it's always great to see how one room can be pulled off with a high budget and a low budget. I love the section on the Style at Home site called High/Low. They design two rooms that are pretty much the same- but one is higher in price than the other.
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Here is the High for $9,781 (see room details here):

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And here is the Low for $5,461 (see room details here):
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*Note: after reading Colette's comment- I agree. $5500 isn't my idea of LOW!

*via styleathome.com

Shopping: Spring Dresses

I have a confession: I have spring fever. But probably not for the right reasons. I am ready for spring so I can wear a dress with flip flops every day (rather than tights, boots, and a scarf). I've always been a fan of dresses- and in the spring/summer you'll find me in one 95% of the time.

And now I'm an even bigger fan as this belly of mine is starting to grow. It's so much easier to throw on a dress than the maternity jeans w/ the bella band (which just never stays in place).

I ran in Old Navy on Sunday afternoon and came home with a few things. They do not have a maternity section in the store--- but I bought a few things in a size larger than I normally wear. They have some cute and inexpensive items for the spring.

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And these are from their actual maternity section online:

*via oldnavy.com

Speaking of maternity clothes (for those of you who are also pregnant)- I just found out that Topshop has a maternity line. Go check it out here.

Neptune Classics

Are you familiar with a company called Neptune Classics out of the UK? I wasn't until recently when I saw an ad in a Country Living magazine. I LOVED this kitchen that they used in their ad and I immediately jotted down their website address so I could see more.

Go and check out their site if you aren't familar with it.

Sugarboo Art Prints

*Thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers for my dad's surgery. He seems to be doing well and I'm headed up to the hospital this morning to check on him.

Now- changing gears....I've been at a loss as how I should decorate Baby C's nursery. As most of you know- we are not finding out the sex so the nursery will be gender neutral.

I've gone in a million different directions when planning the nursery in my head and my thoughts always come back to this (remember this post?):
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So, I've decide that it will be my starting point.

I'm not sure if you are familiar with Sugarboo Designs out of Georgia- they are a precious husband and wife team. Their site has so many creative items but favorite has to be the art prints which are framed in vintage recycled wood:
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And as seen in an issue of Coastal Living:

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*images via Sugarboo Designs

a small request

*Update- My dad's surgery went well and he was moved to his room. Thanks so much for your thoughts, prayers, and comments... It means a lot to me.

If you are reading this- I would appreciate you saying a little prayer for my dad today. He's having surgery this morning at 7--- he found out in early December that he has prostate cancer. My parents are here in Birmingham for the surgery- so I am thankful to be nearby.

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*my dad, Michael, and me {at my best friend's wedding last summer}*

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I cannot begin to tell you how thankful I am for the dear friends that God has blessed me with. I came home yesterday to find these thoughtful goodies:
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Thank you for your thoughts and prayers! I'll be back soon.
xx- Brooke

Birth Announcements

I've been working with a new client on some designs for her bundle of joy due soon. She and I like many of the same things/designs- which makes this project lots of fun for me. While I love colorful birth announcements with stripes and polka dots and photos--- the ones that I've created below are more my style.
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Sorry- they are a bit hard to see because of the white background. I hope you can get the idea. I've just added them to my Etsy shop.

Ornate Initial Background Announcement

Nest Announcement
Ornate Initial Announcement

I'm very thankful to the each of you who have supported this little business of mine!

Wrapping up ATC's house

I hope you enjoyed seeing Anne Turner Carroll's den and kitchen renovations from last week. I never tire of looking at them. I thought I would wrap up today with a peek into her living room with some of her creative before and afters. I love seeing what people do with old furniture.

Here is a before of her wing chair:

And here you can see the after of the pair:

Arm chair before:

Arm chair after:

And my favorite- sewing table before:

Sewing table after (yes, she had it covered with grasscloth!):

*all images via Southernliving.com