Design.Wine.Dine.

Pink Party for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

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Call me #basic, but by the time September rolls around, I’m ready to embrace all things fall.  From autumn inspired recipes, to warm mulled wines, to pumpkins and candles that remind me of fall scents back home in Michigan – I just can’t get enough of my favorite season.  October, however, is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and it marks the beginning of the most important time of the year for us at work.  Since half the profits from our Chardonnay give back to Gateway for Cancer Research (providing clinical trials to women with breast cancer), just when we’re ready to dive head first into fall, everything turns PINK.

We have a division of our company called Hope at Home which offers at-home wine parties that benefit the cause of your choice with 15% going back to the non-profit of your choice.  As our Art Director, I’m always on the hunt for creative and fun ways for our team to stay inspired and get motivated to throw their own parties – especially during our cause months.  A big challenge for me this year at work was figuring out how to throw a pink party, when everyone wants to curl up with a blanket, drink warm mulled wine and pull out their orange pumpkins and decor.  I poked around the internet for some inspiration and ultimately ended up coming back again and again to a flower arrangement that embraced pink and orange equally.  It was inherently pink but also perfectly fall so I decided to run with it.

Since everything we put together had to be easily replicated by our team members who might not be full fledged floral designers or regular party hosts, I broke it down into three simple DIYS and four food/appetizer ideas that both embrace the fall season and pair wonderfully with our Chardonnay.  The best part of this project (beside seeing it all come together) was definitely trying the recipes.  They were SO good and everyone in the office chowed down while we popped open a few bottles of Chardonnay.  Check out everything below from the DIY and recipes to shots from our own little Pink Party 😉

PS: If you’re interested in hosting your own PINK party for Breast Cancer Awareness Month or if you’d like to raise money for another cause that you’re passionate about OR if you’d like to make an income while giving back to various causes, please consider Hope at Home 🙂

DIY YARN FRINGE BACKDROP

DIY PINK FALL FLORALS

DIY FLORAL ICE CUBES

PINK MARSHMALLOW DIP

PEAR + GOAT CHEESE CROSTINI

BRIE + FIG PASTRY BITES

CHARDONNAY CHEESE PLATE

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CHEERS!

 

 

Good things come…

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…hopefully!  Right?!  After a ton of CAD, a glass of wine and taking a leap of faith by moving some desks around at the office last night, I’ve come to realize that my original configuration for the third floor of our space just isn’t going to cut it.  WORST.  And after waking up at 2:30 this morning with a light bulb moment, trying it in CAD and seeing the new idea successfully come together (YES!), I’m too excited to go back to sleep.  So, indeed – if good things could please come to those who are up late, that would be fantastic 😉

Hope you have a great day and more updates to come!  xo

{Lettering by Jasmine Dowling}

Apartment 34 – Office Inspiration

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At work, we’re growing crazy fast right now, which is awesome, but it also means that we’re experiencing some growing pains – space being one of them.  Our LA office is BEAUTIFUL architecturally with three floors, tons of natural light and an amazing screened in patio/conference room/studio, (all white!) kitchen and glass executive office.  What I’m not thrilled with though, is our serious lack of storage.  We have 1 (ONE!) 6×7′ “closet” space downstairs that also houses all of our utilities including our electrical box and we therefore can’t store ANYTHING within 36″ of it or it’s deemed a fire hazard.  We’re also not allowed to build out a storage unit under our stairs unless we install a sprinkler system because storing anything “combustable” (did you know that IKEA furniture is a “combustable”?!) under stairs is prohibited.  EFF!

That being said, we’re now cramming way too much stuff and way too many people on the third floor of our office which is where everyone seems to prefer sitting.  It’s also where our marketing team needs to be and almost our entire LA office is comprised of marketing people so we have to figure out a way to make it work.  Over the course of the next week, we’ll be re-arranging our current furniture and getting some new pieces to hopefully configure everyone comfortably and in a space they can love 🙂  Until now, I’ve been totally stumped, but the Apartment 34 office reveal came at just the right time and has me really excited.  I mean, how beautiful is this space?!  Super light and airy, but with just enough color and warmth without feeling busy or overwhelming to work from.  I’m feeling totally inspired to hop on CAD and figure this whole thing out.  Take a look at some of my favorites shots below.

All images by Aubrie Pick on VSCO film for Apartment 34.

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Missing Michigan

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For whatever reason, around this time of the year, I get really nostalgic for Michigan.  I will stand firmly next to the claim that there is no place more beautiful in the summertime and will forever miss the Mitten during the warmest months of the year.  Last week in LA we had rain (rain!) in the summer which is so rare.  I honestly can not remember the last time we had rain in July or August and it’s been at least 5 months since I’ve seen a drop fall in our little beach town.  Hearing thunder made me ache to the core for home in all of its summer lush with endless rolling hills of emerald green.  If you follow Sarah Sherman Samuel of Smitten Studio, you already know of her cabin project on the shores of Lake Michigan.  If you don’t, prepare to fall in love.  Anytime she posts about Michigan, I get so homesick yet excited about the thought of Jake and I maybe having our own cabin one day in my home state.  Regardless of whether that ever happens, I’ll still look to her little cabin renovation for inspiration for my own home in the future.

PS:  These are just a few favorites from Smitten Studio.  Sarah’s entire renovation process is INSANE and you have to check it out here.  Her line of products is pretty amazing too and can be found here.

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Inspiring Image

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I’ve been super into color lately and I’m trying to do a better job of infusing it into my every day life – particularly my work space.  I’m such a neutrals gal to the core, but there’s something about a pop of color on a pillow or photograph that just brings life to a space.  I found this image floating around the web and was able to track down the photographer.  It just makes me want to travel and explore the world!  Anyway, just thought I’d pass it along in case anyone was looking for a Thursday pick-me-up.  What inspires you?  Xo

Dreamer

Screen Shot 2014-03-19 at 12.05.07 PMI randomly woke up at 4:30 this morning and hopped on Instagram which is a recipe for disaster if I’m trying to fall back asleep.  While I was scrolling through, I came across this and fell in love with it.  I am not a morning person by nature and while I love the morning once I’m up, getting out of bed is a major struggle.  I blame it on being involved in way too many activities in high school – dance team after school, studio dance until 10 or 11pm and then home to do homework until 1 or 2:00am with classes starting again at 7:20am.  Seriously, how did we do that while we were growing up?!  Needless to say, I remained a night owl through college and to this day, for me, mornings are the pits.  Couple a bad habit with the fact that my bed is a freaking cloud (seriously, SO comfortable) and I’m never getting up.  This, however, put things in perspective for me this morning and I found myself getting out of bed and into the kitchen to make coffee at 5:30am.  My morning was so productive, I felt surprisingly refreshed and was more than ready to tackle the day.  I think I need to plaster this to my ceiling or on my nightstand so it’s the first thing I see when my alarm goes off 😉  Just thought I’d pass it along in case any of you need a little extra motivation too!  Hope you’re having a great week chasing your dreams and changing the world!

xoxo

 

TGIF!

tumblr_m85f6tm0C21qlu8g1o1_1280Came across this a while back on Pinterest and it always helps me feel a little better when I need it most.  This week was tough.  My mom and aunt were visiting last week and having them in town was SO nice.  It’s really hard not having any family within 2,500 miles and saying goodbye only gets harder over the years.  Coming home to an empty house on Monday after work felt a lot lonelier than I’d anticipated it would and even little Lily couldn’t fill the void (although she tried with tons of cute snuggles and meows).  Fast forward 2 days and I’m drowning in a sea of work in preparation for what feels like a million projects before I leave for a week on vacation.  SUPER excited to go on vacation, but trying to squeeze in a TON beforehand to make up for the time I’m going to be gone has been stressful.  Do you ever feel that way too?

Anyway!  I’m excited for a weekend with my love and my kitty in an amazingly clean and adorable backyard that my mom and aunt so generously spruced up last week.  Can’t wait to share some images soon 🙂  In the meantime, have a very happy weekend!

xoxo

Meg

Holiday Table Inspiration

ONEHOPE Holiday Table Final Flattened

Faux Sheepskin – Ikea |  Confetti Placemats – Kitchen Papers  |  Hurricanes – West Elm  |  Cedar garland for table – Available at most wholesale flower marts | Clear glass candlesticks – CB2  | Hanging candle holders – CB2  |  Deerhead – ZGallerie  |  Chargers – Assorted from Michael’s and ZGallerie  | Reclaimed wood wall – Pallet wood DIY (details coming soon) | New York White Sequined Linen – La Tavola  |  Gold Rimmed Glasses – West Elm  |  Votives – Jayson Home and Garden (no longer available but similar here)

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Happy, Happy Holidays!!!  I hope everyone is having some much deserved down time and rest while gearing up for 2014!  I think it’s going to be a big one and I’m actually super excited to see what the new year holds 🙂  So, without getting too distracted, I REALLY wanted to get this published before Christmas, but if you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen what a ridiculously chaotic yet successful December we had over at ONEHOPE Wine.  We more than quadrupled our sales over last year and we had an all-hands-on-deck situation for most of December.  Instead of dabbling in anything creative, I was with the majority of our team in our warehouse packing boxes, sourcing product that we’d run out of (eeeek!) and helping to load hundreds upon hundreds of boxes onto multiple UPS trucks daily.  The experience of seeing our company grow like that and watching all of our hard work finally pay off was nothing short of incredible and I wouldn’t change being there, smack dab in the center of it for anything in the world 🙂

In early December, I posted a few sneak peeks from our ONEHOPE Holiday party (#ONEHOPEHoliday) at work. Since the wine industry is absolute madness in December every year, in 2012 we didn’t plan anything fun during the holidays. It was the first year that I really felt that the holidays just slipped through my fingertips and it bummed me out beyond belief. I wanted to make sure that didn’t happen again this year and planned an afternoon for the girls on our team to spend some time together outside of the work madness to decompress and do something fun. We played Christmas music, did a little wine tasting and gold leafed glasses to give away as gifts… It was just what we needed. Since we were going to have a photographer there to capture it as a DIY, I wanted to make sure that we gave our conference room a little TLC and turned it into a winter wonderland. I am SO HAPPY with how it turned out and can not wait to share the images our amazing photographer captured.  In the meantime, take a look at my inspiration board for the project 🙂

PS: I know Christmas is over, but I truly believe that so many Christmasy pieces can be carried into New Years Eve/Day parties.  So, recycle that garland, grab some gold confetti and wintery fur and enjoy your seasonal decor for a few more days!  If you’re not diggin’ it, keep this in your back pocket for next year 😉

xoxo

Meg

Office Inspiration

Color-PaletteAs much as I love the black executive suite at our office, the marketing team’s space on the top floor is collaborative, bright, airy, open and white… which is truly my go-to aesthetic.  It’s hard to believe that it’s been over a year since we moved into our space and within that year, we’ve inevitably had everything from boxes to paper samples to glass samples, ribbon – you name it – pile up… everywhere.  I took a day this week to de-clutter my personal work space and I was shocked at what an unbelievable weight was lifted off my shoulders.  I actually WANT to get to the office early, light a candle, put on some tunes and get creative.

Around the same time, I’ve been stalking admiring Emily Henderson’s latest project (isn’t she seriously THE BEST?!?!) and being that my color palette right now is basically mint/sea foam green, white and flax, I realized how insanely easy it would be to integrate some of the warmer blush tones and a hint of raspberry or coral to spruce things up.  I finally pulled the trigger and ordered some art that I’ve been wanting forever and can’t wait to pull everything together hopefully next week 🙂  Below is a little inspiration board I threw together… What do you think?

Office-Inpsiration

love print / made by girl
greek key pillow / caitlin wilson textiles
monique lhuillier / blush champagne coupe
french cade lavendar candle (favorite candle ever) / voluspa
do good print /sugar paper
faux sheepskin / ikea
hold the phone / fab
gold polka dot pillow / caitlin wilson textiles
peonies in a vase / minted

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