Our House's Story

My chosen profession is both a blessing and a curse.  On the one hand, I get invited into gorgeous homes and am surrounded by the world's most stunning fabrics and furnishings all day long.  On the other hand, I will never ever be able to move into a house and be completely 100% satisfied with my surroundings.   We began our house hunt after our April 2014 engagement and, I felt it was imperative that we find a house we could "fix up" so that I could better relate to my clients and their remodeling experiences.

It turns out my definition of a "fixer upper" was quite different from Mark's.  I think he expected to do some painting, and some minor touching up and be done with the whole ordeal - ah young love, how little he knew about his chosen bride!  After some initial pleading (on my part), we decided on a house that needed a lot, I repeat, A LOT of work. Was it easy? No. Was it worth it? Absolutely.

We purchased the house in June of 2014 and embarked on our first remodel with our trusted contractor (and friend) Bryan Beavers.  This was my first time to be the client in the relationship, and we were lucky enough to have one of our best friends guiding us through the process.  Given the chance, I know we'd do it all over again, and loop Bryan in for our crazy ride!

Planning a wedding + remodeling a house + moving in with a man + full time job designing other peoples houses = one stressed out gal.  If anything, this experience gifted me with an understanding of the stress my clients are under when we invade their homes.  Of course, it was all worth it in the end. We pulled off the whole project in 3 months, and moved in the week before our engagement party.  Did I mention we had my family staying with us that weekend as well? Yes, we are crazy people.

I love nothing more than a good before-and-after, so I'd like to start off a series of posts showing you all the transformation our house underwent.   Today we'll start with the before pics... prepare yourself for a real doozy!

The Exterior before

The house from the exterior was certainly nothing to write home about, but it is in a great neighborhood, and we saw potential! Actually we were desperate... we had been looking for months, and had not found "the one".  One fortuitous evening, we visited a listing down the street with our realtor, and walked out feeling completely dejected - once more, it was just wrong, wrong wrong.  It was at that moment that the owner of our house walked onto the front lawn and put his for-sale sign in the yard.  We asked if we could take a look, and he invited us in.  He and his wife were having friends over for dinner, and we immediately saw how this could transform into a wonderful home for entertaining (our main goal of course).  We submitted our offer the next morning, and the rest is history.

Closing Day!

I have to give Mark props for going with me on this one... it was a bit of a daunting task.  Also, please forgive my cell-phone pics, this was long before I ever thought about sharing these photos with anyone!

Entry

Entry (note the accordion pocket door)

Dining Room (standing in entry)

Living Room

Living Room  (lots of parquet floor)

Living Room Looking into Dining

Living room looking into (very blue) kitchen

Kitchen (you can see the dining room's yellow walls through that door)

Kitchen looking through to living and dining

Kitchen

Kitchen (why the 3/4 height shutters? I don't get it)

Utility Room (leads to garage)

Powder Bath (adjacent to laundry room)

Hilarious golfer-man wallpaper (Mark eats-sleeps-breathes golf... it was a sign!)

(yikes)

Hall bath (standing in entry)

Hall Bath

Hall bath 

 Hall Bath

Hall bath's crowning glory... a blue throne!

Front bedroom

Front bedroom

Hallway

Middle Bedroom

Middle Bedroom

Middle Bedroom

Hallway

Master

Master

Master

Master (yes, I believe that is kitty pee)

Master closet (read: my closet)

Master bath

Master bath

Master bath

So there you have it - the official "before" tour of our little house.  Can you tell by the wallpaper samples that I was a bit prematurely excited to decorate my own home?  I promise I'll start posting some "afters" soon with details on the design process!

Xx
Ivy

Chrissy Tiegen's Cravings!

Big news! My all-time favorite funny girl Chrissy Tiegen has finally released her long-anticipated cookbook Cravings: Recipes for All the Food You Want to Eat! I for one, have been waiting for this amazon pre-order for what seem like ages! It finally arrived yesterday, and I devoured the book - but really, my nose didn't leave it's pages for hours, and I found myself actually laughing out loud. Girlfriend is hilarious!

Chrissy has been blogging about her love for cooking for a while now over at SoDelushious, and people have gone nuts for her mix of humor and soul food. Likewise, her Instagram account is the epitome of "food porn" and one that I frequently stalk.  She is the ultra-cool, older sister everyone wants to spend the afternoon cooking with - Ok, the older sister who also happens to be a super model, but hey I love a girl who likes to eat!

Her new cookbook is an array of all the most deeelish recipes you could imagine - she includes Thai infusions from her mom's side of the family, her hubby John's famous fried chicken (um yum!), cheesy-cheeseless eggs, southern green bean casserole, the list goes on and on.  On my immediate list of recipes to whip up:

• Perfect Seared Scallops with warm corn salad
• Roasted Jalapeno and Chorizo Queso
• Chicken Lettuce Wraps
• Chrissy's famous Secretly Spicy Deviled Eggs
• I am also dying host a Frito Chili Pie party now, thanks to her!

I can't wait to dive into a few of these recipes this week - I love how the majority of her collection is good old comfort food, and not your typical "I'm a model, here's how I make cardboard taste yummy" book. I'm making her Lemony Arugula Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe tonight, so wish me luck!

Bon apetit!
Xx
Ivy

Wakeup Call!

Oh Monday, I have such a love-hate relationship with you! The weekend never seems long enough, and my to-do list is never complete by Sunday's end.  However, I do love a fresh start at the beginning of each week!

A few fun links to inspire you for the week ahead:

1) It seems like everyone I know is pregnant right now - while i'm not exactly feeling maternal quite yet, I am DYING to decorate a nursery! Of course Emily Henderson does the worlds most darling nursery ever...

2) I live for a One Kings Lane makeover... this dreamy bedroom is phenomenal! Neutral and bohemian in all the right ways!

3) We just received Colefax & Fowler's latest fabric collection at the store and loved everything. I'm currently scheming up ways to incorporate their "Otto" fabric into my house... This small-scale cheetah print is a very sneaky way to incorporate an animal pattern... you can never have too many!

4) If you can't be a queen, you might as well smell like one - rumor has it the Palace of Versailles and Guerlain have teamed up to make an incredible perfume called Le Bouquet de la Reine (The Queen's Bouquet) inspired by Queen Marie Antoinette's bloom of choice - Jasmine. Proceeds from each 550€ bottle will be donated to the restoration of the palace.

5) House Beautiful's 4-ingredient flower food recipe sounds easy enough! I'm going to try it this week on my grocery store bouquet!

Happy Monday!

Xx
Ivy

H O W - T O : Shop Estate Sales Like a Pro

Last night I went to the mother of all estate sales - a ladies only night sale at the home of a woman who had recently moved to California and left behind enough clothing, shoes, and handbags to clothe the entire state of Oklahoma. I'm not kidding, this lady knows how to shop! I looked around the 100+ women who were pushing and shoving to get closer to the racks of clothing, and I only saw about 3 or 4 girls my own age - a travesty if you ask me! My friends are constantly asking how I find all of my vintage treasures, and in truth, some of my best decor finds (and steals) have come from estate sales. Case in point:

• The array of matchbooks pictured above were being sold in bags of 10 for $5... I went back the next day and cleaned them out. I spent an afternoon going through each one and wondering how on earth their previous owner managed to travel to all of these places!
• I bought a classic french fauteuil at the estate of a local boutique owner for $45!! I Promise to do a post on the significance of this little chair later.
• Classic 1960s gold bamboo flatware - the holy grail of silverware - purchased literally 2 blocks from my house for $35! This was a drive-by sale... proof that sometime you just have to hit the ground running to find the best deals!
  

  

  
  
• White fox-fur stole - again, another estate sale find for… wait for it… $10. Had to!
• I also make sure to stalk the jewelry section... I've found some fabulous vintage earrings this way!

My mom and grandmother have taken me to estate sales and auctions since I was a little girl, so you could say I’ve had a lifetime of experience. This is also how I came to be a "trinket hoarder” - I say it is my job to stock pile accessories! I want to share few little tips and tricks I’ve learned over the years:

• Do your research
• Many estate sale companies have email lists - sign up for as many of these as you can! I find these sales are much better than those listed in the classifieds.  
• Ask local antique shop owners if they know of an estate sale company in town.  This is a very friendly community and most dealers are happy to help out newbies!
• Take a look at the photos of a sale before you go - The photos can give you a hint of what lies in store for you.  If you see a lot of valuable pieces, this is a good clue that it will be crowded!
• Arrive Early
• I typically try to get to a sale about an hour early. There is almost always a line, and this is also a nice way to meet people - bring donuts to share, and you will be everyone’s hero!
• I once arrived at 6:30am for a 9am sale (had my eye on a vintage chanel purse), only to find a 30-person line! The first woman in line had been there since 4:30am, and she went home with the handbag… well deserved I think!
• Make Friends
• Enlist a pal to go along with you! It is always more fun to shop with a friend! Bonus points if you don’t fight over the vintage foo dog bookends.
• Strike up conversation with the other shoppers… odds are you will see them again at another sale.  More experienced antiquers have often led me to another sale the same day that I did not know about!
• Don’t be that girl who pushes someone out of her way to get to the mink bolero… nobody likes that girl, and you will quickly earn a bad rep in the estate sale crowd!
• Dress Accordingly
• Dress warmly if it is winter time, as you will be waiting outside!
• Bring a large tote or shopper for your purchases! 
• Comfortable shoes… you never know if the sale will have the patio furniture of your dreams!
• Play The Waiting Game
• Most sales have half-off Sundays! If you are hesitating to pull the trigger on a pricier purchase, wait until Sunday.  If it is still available (and half the price), you know it was meant to be!
• Treat yourself to a celebratory glass of champagne and congratulate yourself on that self-control and savvy shopping!
  
  I hope these little tips and tricks will inspire you to hit the pavement this weekend!
  
  

Happy Hunting!!

Xx
Ivy

WELCOME HOME!

Full Disclosure: Not my house - wish it was! 

In the spirit of the new year, I’ve finally decided to jump head-first into the blog world, which is something I've wanted to do for a long time! February has always held a special place in my heart - I started dating my husband in February (many moons ago), and began my dream job during this month as well. It is a month of new beginnings, and now a new creative outlet! 

My hope is that this space becomes a source of design inspiration for your home, a kick-in-the-pants for your inner hostess, and a respite from the doldrums of normal life. While I’m sure those of you reading this already know me (Hi, Mom!), for the sake of formality, allow me to introduce myself:

Full Name: Ivy Jean Pierce

Age: A Lady never tells...

Hometown: Oklahoma City by way of Fort Worth

Day Job: Interior Designer at 30A Home in Oklahoma City. I truly adore working for this store and transforming my clients’ houses into homes!

House-mates:

1 husband - Mark

1 pup - Greta

1 kitty - Lilly Pulitzer

I collect:

• Blue and white chinoiserie pottery
• Brass everything
• Vintage cigarette lighters (for candles of course!)
• Shiny Brite Christmas ornaments

If lost, look for me here:

• The nearest estate sale (true life: I’m an accessories hoarder)
• Sipping vino on the nearest patio with my gal pals
• The French Riviera (in my dreams)
  
  
  

  

  
  

Mark & I on our honeymoon in St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat

Design Inspiration:

• My travels
• Scouring vintage shops
• The queen herself - Dorothy Draper
• Old film sets - Grace Kelly’s abode in High Society is to-die-for!

Grace Kelly on set filming High Society

Now that you know a little bit about me, please feel free to stop by once in a while- I promise to entertain you!

Xx

Ivy