{L&B's big boy room}

Sorry for the crickets around here friends...but I'm back today with a fun post to start the week!

Yesterday while shopping at my home away from home, Hobby Lobby, I stumbled upon this ADORABLE map canvas and picked it up for the boys' bedroom...

SO cute, right?!

I've been wanting to make over their room and turn it into a big boy room for awhile now and this artwork is the perfect jumping off point. Not to mention the fact that they are still sleeping in toddler beds, so we need to upgrade them to twin beds stat!

Here is a fun little plan I put together with the map art as my inspiration...

The bunk bed, bed tent, rug, lamp and bedding are all from IKEA...convenient, huh? {wink} And I really love the idea of painting a whole wall in their room with chalkboard paint, like my friend Erin did in her sweet son's room. I discovered that you can get colored chalkboard paint so we'll see...could be really fun to use something other than black. And of course I also have some fun DIY artwork ideas swirling around in my head.

I'm not sure how quickly this will come together, but I'm hoping we can do it over the summer, in time for the boys to start kindergarten. I can just picture them sleeping in the bunkbed together under the tent. {sigh}

I found some great ideas on Pinterest too...I might have to buy a big map to include somewhere based on how awesome these rooms are!

Source: boysbedroomideas.org via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: gallery.apartmenttherapy.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: easyliving.co.uk via Mandy on Pinterest

And how cute is the map garland?!

Source: etsy.com via Mandy on Pinterest

The boys' room has never been fully decorated since we moved to this house, so I'm really excited about them having a finished space. Stay tuned friends! And if you see any cute ideas to add to my pile please send them my way!

{home decor dreaming}

I'm home sick today with a horrible head cold. Blech.

And I want to blog, but my brain is too foggy to put anything very coherent together on my own. Sooo...how about a little Pinterest home inspiration?

Here are a few spaces I'm drooling over...

Source: abeautifulmess.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Elsie's living room...I'm especially in love with that vintage green shelf.

Source: abeautifulmess.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Katie's living room...reminds me so much of our first house. And how much I wish I had painted our fireplace and trim white!

Source: abeautifulmess.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Ashley's living room...such a fun space with eclectic and vintage pieces. And I love the photo wall over the fireplace.

Source: abeautifulmess.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Mandi's living room...this girl has such an eye for interior design.

So now I'm off to dream about these spaces and hopefully sleep off this cold!

{pinterest picks}

If you are like me, you have pinned dozens and dozens, {OK...2,491 to be exact} ideas on Pinterest. But how often do you go back and look through all of them? Me...not so much.

So I decided to pick one of my boards, look through all of the lovely pins, and share my top picks...to inspire myself and hopefully offer up some inspiration your way as well.

Today I've chosen my Kitchen Dreams board. Because, well, I'm dreaming of a new kitchen.

The mix of the modern cabinets, white counter, and cool greens in this kitchen make me swoon...

Source: housetohome.co.uk via Mandy on Pinterest

I love the pop of orange in this space mixed with the natural wood counters...

Source: bhg.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Who wouldn't love to have this cute coffee station in a corner of their kitchen?

Source: thecreamtomycoffee.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Layla and Kevin from The Lettered Cottage kill me with this chalkboard wall...

Source: theletteredcottage.net via Mandy on Pinterest

I love the absence of upper cabinets in this space...

Source: lonnymag.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Brick wall + open shelving + chalkboard sliding door = shut up!

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Mandy on Pinterest

So what do you think? Could I get away with adding a brick wall, chalkboard door, open shelves and a coffee station to my kitchen? Yeah...I know...that would probably be *a bit* too much. :)

Which one of these spaces is your favorite?

{pinterest fashion inspiration}

After wearing two of my dresses as skirts this past week, I decided to head over to Pinterest and search for some more inspiration and ideas for different ways I can style the dresses in my wardrobe.

I found tons of really adorable and chic ways to layer tops over dresses, many of them using button down shirts.

Here are my favorites...

Source: iluv2dressup.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: thecaffeinatedcloset.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: keikolynn.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: atlantic-pacific.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

This confirms that I really need to find a cute chambray button down. That will be on my list the next time I go thrifting for sure!

Here are a few more great looks using pullover tops...

Source: galmeetsglam.blogspot.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: alwaysamrsforeverakidd.blogspot.com via Holly on Pinterest

The color combo of this last one is a bit out there for me, but I love the concept {I'd also do flats because I'm not a heel girl}...

Source: thedaybookblog.com via Ravyn on Pinterest

Is it crazy that now I want to look for dresses that I can specifically wear this way? I especially want to find a striped or chevron maxi dress.

This look works great for my office because it adds a layer of warmth in the chilly AC, and also helps to transform some of my not-so-work-appropriate dresses into more conservative, but still fun, options.

Is this a new trend or am I just late in jumping on the bandwagon? What is one of your favorite trends in fashion that you've tried out recently?

Linking up with...

{pinning}

What better way to start off the week with some Pinterest loveliness?

I was going through my recent pins and discovered that I've been a bit obsessed with "statement" necklaces lately. But who isn't, right? Here are a few that have caught my eye...

Source: anthropologie.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: elizabethkartchner.com via Mandy on Pinterest

The one above is a giveaway from Dear Lizzy! This J Crew necklace is ALL over blogland and it is gorgeous!

Source: etsy.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: abeautifulmess.typepad.com via Mandy on Pinterest

This one is a great DIY from Emma over at A Beautiful Mess. Love the simplicity and graphic effect.

Source: isurfprivately.com via Mandy on Pinterest

And this one is playful and romantic.

What are you pinning these days? Blog about it and link up with Wildflowers and Whimsy here...

{quick art project}

Since we finished painting our hallway, the walls have been bare and begging for some fun artwork. I found these cute and free printables from DimplePrints on Pinterest awhile back and knew they would be the perfect thing to hang outside of the boys' room..

Source: tatertotsandjello.com via Mandy on Pinterest

I sing this to them before bed most nights. :)

I wanted to put them in white frames but didn't have any, and really didn't want to buy new ones, so I took some frames that had been in storage since we moved from our last house...

Used some white spraypaint that we already had, and then simply taped the printables to the back of the frames...

I like the fact that they don't have glass, and the way they have a bit of a shadowbox effect to them.

And here they are in their new spot outside the boys' room...

They bring a really bright and happy feel to the hallway, and the song lyrics are close to my heart.

Thanks so much to DimplePrints for this free printables! They are lovely!

{playing dress up}

No outfits from me today friends...it has been a crazy work week with lots of events. And to be honest, I'm a little bored of looking at picture after picture of myself. So it feels kind of good to take a break today, and share some inspiration outfits from Pinterest that all include one of my favorite colors right now...coral!

I love absolutely EVERYTHING about this outfit. The top looks super flattering, the chevron bracelet is gorgeous and I love the color palette...

Source: polyvore.com via Mandy on Pinterest

This outfit pairs coral with my favorite neutral, gray...

Source: polyvore.com via Mandy on Pinterest

This combo if coral and mint is so fresh and pretty...

Source: polyvore.com via Mandy on Pinterest

And I would love to wear this outfit for a relaxing day of shopping, magazine reading, coffee drinking and knitting...

Source: polyvore.com via Mandy on Pinterest

What color combos are you loving right now?

{pinned}

Some dreamy spaces to share with you on this lovely Friday...

Source: designsponge.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: designsponge.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: tumblr.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Happy almost weekend!