Wednesday Words of Wisdom by Albert Hadley

I always heard about Interior Designer Albert Hadley growing up—being that my mom is an interior designer and my first name is Hadley. And believe it or not, I was not named after him, but by how my mom talked about this design icon, you would think I had been!

Even though I am many months late on posting this, I felt it would be wrong of me not to acknowledge the passing of the one and only, Albert Hadley. When I was browsing through the May-June 2012 issue of Veranda magazine, I was touched by the editor's tribute to Albert Hadley's life and work. What an interesting and talented man he was! He skillfully mixed classical and daring, modern details with a perfected eye.

And he sure was quotable:

"The essence of interior design will always be about people and how they live. It is about the realities of what makes for an attractive, civilized, meaningful environment, not about fashion or what's in or what's out. This is not an easy job."

"Flair is a primitive kind of style. It is innate and cannot be taught. It can be polished and refined. When a person has flair, a grounding in the principle of design, and self-discipline, that person has the potential of being an outstanding designer."

I love his sketches—so loose and expressive!

Just last year, Architectural Digest asked Hadley, What is your definition of a great room?

“The best rooms have history and MEANING: photographs that remind you of someone, furniture that has a story. Whatever you put in your house should be interesting. I may not like it, but that doesn’t make any difference. And decorating is not about dollars and cents; it’s an emotional thing, it’s passion. Buying a painting or a piece of furniture just because a famous name made it isn’t passion.”

"Decorating is not about making stage sets, it's not about making pretty pictures for the magazines; it's really about creating a quality of life, a beauty that nourishes the soul."

- Albert Hadley, American Interior Designer

Mr. Hadley, thanks for all the inspiration and for sharing your creative genius with us. You and your words of wisdom will truly be missed!

Atchison Home - will work for furniture

One of the fun things about my job is bartering; however, I rarely barter these days for obvious reasons—I work to help pay the bills! BUT, when my friend and occasional tennis partner (and now client) Taylor Atchison, asked me to design their new Atchison Home logo, I had to make an exception.

Atchison's is probably my favorite home store in the state of Alabama—and maybe the entire southeast for that matter. Seriously.  It's that great. I love to wander around their THREE-story shop and drool. Problem is, my budget doesn't usually (or ever) allow me to shop there, so bartering would be my only hope to owning a real "big-girl antique" Atchison's piece!

We've been working on several design projects, but the first one we conquered was the branding. They're changing their name from "Atchison Imports" to "Atchison Home," so they needed a new logo. They wanted to keep the same overall look of the Atchison Imports logo—it just needed some updating and freshening up. I also created a web version of the logo, since the square design didn't fit well with the new website. 

And here's a sneak peek of the new website (AtchisonHome.com) which is COMING SOON! Get ready, you'll be able to shop online and see everything that's in the store, online. This is going to be so exciting for them AND for anyone who lives too far away to visit! For now, you can visit their current website. I'll keep you posted once they launch the new site!

So...I brought my design team with me the other Saturday to walk through the store and help me select a piece of furniture. I've visited several times over the past few months and just couldn't decide—so I needed another set of eyes.

When I saw this beautiful armoire upstairs I knew it was perfect for our space. I immediately fell in love.

And here's how it looks in it's new home.

love the detail.

I took our old armoire (see post here) to a local furniture consignment store (High Cotton) because we didn't have room for it. It surprisingly made me sad to see it go. I loved that little piece—especially after I painted it—but this is something we'll have forever.

Gotta love a good barter!
 

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! HOTTY TODDY! I'm sure we'll get killed by Bama this weekend, but if you're an Ole Miss fan, you're used to losing so it isn't a big shocker!

Wednesday Words of Wisdom

Yesterday marked the beginning of my last year in my 20's! It was without a doubt, my best birthday yet. A relaxing pedicure, laid back sushi dinner date with my two best friends, Bruner and Calder, and this little one got to taste her very first cupcake—it doesn't get any better than that.

Special thanks to my sweet family and friends who made me feel so special and loved yesterday. I am beyond blessed and pray 29 is the best year yet!

Southeastern Salvage, Round 2

I stopped by Southeastern Salvage last week and came across some great deals! Last year I blogged about Southeastern Salvage, and as a result, they sent me a $100 gift card. So, in hopes of receiving another one this year, I'll show you some recent finds! :)

 Great looking bed!

 This table would be perfect for a desk.

I was amazed at how many stools they have!

 

 I always love their baskets...

 I couldn't help but be tempted to buy one of these chairs for Calder.

 And how cute are these little rocking chairs?

 

I could roam around this place for hours. Definitely worth stopping by if you're in the area!

Wednesday Words of Wisdom

I love this quote. Definitely something we should all aspire to do.

Weekend in Maine

Happy Monday everyone! We went to Kennebunkport, Maine for my cousin's wedding last weekend and it was  B E A U T I F U L.

I'm busy catching up with work today but had to share some of the photos from the weekend.

The Colony hotel was amazing.

 

My aunt Beverly is so creative (click here to see her fabulous antique shop) and her little touches were everywhere this weekend...

 

The Rehearsal dinner was a casual lobster bake. yummmm

 

And we couldn't be in town and not visit my Aunt's shop, Antiques on Nine. See this post for more photos and info on her shop. It's definitely worth a trip!

 

 

I loved this little bench.

I bought one of these bowls and carried it all the way home with me on the plane. That is love.

Half of the gang in front of Aunt Bev's shop :)

We spent the rest of the day at the Colony pool—which was not too shabby!:)

Dad and I went on a walk before the wedding and I took these pics. The Maine coast really is so beautiful.

The Bush Family plantation is only a mile away, and this is the church they attend. Just a random tidbit of info in case you're interested:)

I can't believe I don't have a picture with the bride and groom. Caitlyn and Ben are such an adorable couple and we loved celebrating with them!

love my cousins!

Bruner sent me this picture of Calder and I was dying to get back to them!! And in case you're wondering, I had some free time in the airport (3+ hour layover) so I became a little obsessive over my new camera app (Camera+). Hense the photo effects in this post!

Such a quick trip but so glad I went and loved spending time with family. And no matter how amazing the trip was, the best part was coming home and being greeted at the airport by my little Calder-bear!

Hope everyone has a wonderful week and it feels like fall today in Mobile! Definitely going to get outside and enjoy it!