Time for Change

Yesterday afternoon I had the first appointment with my new interior decorator. I had never even considered hiring a decorator because I've always felt that I should just be able to figure out the decorating thing myself....seems like a girly thing that I should be good at. But after much debate with Bobby about the color of our kitchen, he came up with the idea of bringing in a professional. I was surprised by this, and maybe even a bit humiliated. But I got over that pretty quickly because the idea of an interior decorator advising me on our house seemed just too cool.

side note: The funny thing is that my Mom came to me for advice about colors and decor for her new house that we have been completely transforming since last February. I picked most all the colors for her new house it all turned out great. So I have decided that I am not completely inept at house decor...I just can't seem to think outside the box in regard to my own house.

The meeting with the designer started out a little questionable because she was so focused on her design/color "bible"...I guess that was her way of getting a feel for what we like/want. But it ended up being great. She advised us on new paint colors for our kitchen, stairway, hallway, and master bedroom and bathroom. She gave us some tips to spruce up our dining room: take down the wood blinds & add curtain panels to frame the window, nix the hanging plants, paint a darker shade below the chair rail, and change around some of the pictures.
The thing that really blew me away was what she had to say about the kitchen. I already knew I wanted to paint the walls a different color, so she helped pick a couple to try out. However, what I didn't know is that my kitchen decor was "over" 5 years ago. Apparently, the wine and grapevine theme went out years ago and I never got the memo.
Ladies.....you have all been to my house.....where were you at on that one?!?!?!?!
When she said I should get rid of all the wine stuff you could have knocked me over with a feather. I asked her what I would replace it with...she said we will have to wait and see what the kitchen looks like after we paint it, but maybe nothing. Huh?
And get this... when Bobby and I had our follow up discussion after she left, he told me he was not at all surprised about the wine decor thing. oh really?!?

Other than that, we discussed options for the kitchen area, a built-in desk, accent pieces. All that fun stuff comes later....after we get the painting done. Next on my list is to schedule a few painters to give us quotes for the work.
Even though I was totally caught off-guard on the kitchen decor thing, I am completely thrilled about the process of making these changes to the place we call home.
~~~

Condo-Warming & Champagne lesson

Last night some friends and I "warmed-up" a friend's new condo with good talk, a nice spread of food, good wine, and good champagne...sorry, sparkling wine.
One of the girls taught the rest of us something new.....that it is only called Champagne if it comes from Champagne, France. Otherwise it should technically be called sparkling wine. The bottle we drank last night said Champagne on the label, but it was from California.

She was exactly right...here is what Wikipedia has to say about it:

Champagne is a sparkling wine produced by inducing the in-bottle secondary fermentation of wine to effect carbonation. It is produced exclusively within the Champagne region of France, from which it takes its name. While the term "champagne" is used by some makers of sparkling wine in other parts of the world, numerous countries limit the use of the term to only those wines that come from the Champagne appellation. In Europe, this principle is enshrined in the European Union by Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status. Other countries, such as the United States, have recognized the exclusive nature of this name, yet maintain a legal structure that allows longtime domestic producers of sparkling wine to continue to use the term "Champagne" under specific circumstances.

Overall the condo-warming party was nice get-together among friends and a perfect way to spend a rainy Wednesday evening. It is amazing how we all recognize and appreciate the great bonds of friendship that are growing and strengthening right before our eyes.

~~~