Melissa Loves

Closer to home: what is it?

Hello my darlings....

                           Now, I love handmade & independent artists with a passion....as you may know. But, I am here to tell you, that I don't have an ounce of talent in handcrafting myself. I wish I did....when I am with my crafty friends ;) I look on with admiration & amazement. How easy it comes to them, with what grace they complete a creation. Then...there is me. Now, the evidence,a simple pom pom animal requested by a 4 year old from a kit. It is up to you to decide....was this craft made by Marichelle, my friend(for this post is for her, she really wanted to see if the bunny was as bad as I said) or me, said 4 year old or our puppy Luna? 

Yes, me. Do you SEE? Do you see what I am working with here? Whole lotta nothin. But, that is okay because in the end...it serves for a very good laugh( I can hear Marichelle giggling across the  mile between our houses....and some of you as well) *sigh* It's okay....because I still have all those creators to admire and you know what? My 4 year old still loved it (after she recovered from the shock) and keeps it among her precious things on her dresser. Good enough for me. :) I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, truly I do. And to that end, I want to show you: 

~ this photograph & this one 

~ this new blog, head on over and welcome Dana (she is sweet too) Thank you Erin for the introduction! 

~ this dress

~ this necklace 

~ this blogger movement

~ this gorgeous home (of lovely, lovely Maria's)

~ this awesome home (thank you Grace for such fantastic sneak peaks this week) 

~ this hilarious & healthy response to some silliness. 

I will see you back here on monday my friends, with a new Inspiration Monday. Until then...be well! 

xo

Melis

ps please don't be  jealous of my mad crafting skillz, I will make you a bunny if you wish. ;)

The little things: shades of brown

Hi sweethearts! 

              Wow...is it snowy here! How about where you are? What is the weather doing? Even though I have felt spring creeping into to everything I think about, today I was captivated by all shades of brown. I hope you like them too....they are some little things that are making me very happy today.

 

~ gorgeous sheets here 

~ good lookin chair here 

~ beautiful wall graphics here 

~ come on! The sweetest little deer....here

~ gorgeous necklace here 

~ clock I love here 

What are some little things that are making you happy today my friends? I would really love to know! I will see you back here tomorrow with a new "Closer to home", until then....be well! 

xo

Melis

 

Melissa loves: Inaluxe

Hello my friends! 

                 You know how hard it can be to put into words the love you have for someone? Your partner, your children, your family or friends? When I saw this sweet piece from lovely Kristina, I thought "That is perfect! That is exactly what it feels like to love someone so much & not be able to find the words!" Kristina found them though.....What better way to describe love than this..."there's a sea in me when I think of you". *sigh* I adore that ..... So, I asked Kristina if she could share a bit about the inspiration behind this piece & when she did? It made me love it all the more. I think you will agree....:) 

"Some months back I was asked by a friend if I wanted to participate in a children's comic anthology, and at the time I had just drawn my first fox. I liked it so much, I decided the comic I'd write would centre around a fox, so the drawings started. I love the fox because they have beautiful faces, bushy tails, and closer to home - also remind me of our goof-ball chihuahua x, who has the biggest tail in the world, and very foxy features. Watching her daily, and learning more about the fox,I become even more in love with them. Birds have been a source of fascination for me for some time now.The deeper inspiration for this work really came about wanting to share love, tenderness, friendship, and hope. It's about how good others make us feel - whether they are our children, lovers, friends, or relative strangers. The piece is about our similarities as living creatures even if we look different on the surface."

 

~ gorgeous photograph here 

~ sweet succulents here 

~ beautiful earrings here 

~ handsome pillow here 

~ one beautiful bracelet here 

~ rugthatIcovet here 

See what I mean? Love. Thank you so much Kristina, for sharing your inspiration with us and for being such a sweetheart. It is a pleasure to have you here! (Kristina also has a blog, right here ) Have a wonderful day friends, I will see you back here tomorrow for a new "The little things". Until then....be well. 

xo

Melis 

 

Cheap & Chic: inspired by a drawing

Hello my sweet friends! 

                                Isn't this a beautiful drawing? I love this sweet girl as she strolls along with her collaged bird companions. I wish I had a dress like this....so, I thought I would get together a cheap & chic outfit inspired by this pretty piece. 

 

 

~ vintage dress here $55.00 

~ rope necklace here $42.00 

~ awesome ring here $5.80 

~ sweet flat here $39.95

~ Trompe L'Oeil bag here $28.00

Total ~ $170.75

~ and again, the beautfiul drawing is right here

What do you think? I sure hope you like it! I will see you back here tomorrow, my sweets, with  a new Melissa loves. Until then.... be well. 

xo

Melis
 

Monday: inspired by a photograph

Hello my sweets! 

                      Happy Monday! Did you have a good weekend? What did you do? We spent some lovely time with friends and I found the BEST quilt! The best quilt you say? Yes! I feel like I have been looking and looking for a quilt just like this and I walked into Target this weekend and there it was! I am here to tell you that it is so, so lovely in person with a slight sateen feel to the cotton....just lovely! Also over the weekend I saw this beautiful photograph and it made me begin to dream of spring. So, with all the snow we have here in the northeast (and more snow threatening to arrive this week) I thought I would get together some springy things to brighten your day! 

  

~ slight clutter's "floral" photograph here 

~ the sweetest bag here 

~ an adorable little narwhal here 

~ a lovely necklace here 

~ SPRING in a towel here :) 

~ pretty, pretty pillow here 

~ gorgeous print here 

I hope you like my picks & that they  gave a little lift to your spirits. I am also visiting my friend, Darling Deb, today...come on over and pay me a visit! :) I will see you back here tomorrow, friends, with a new cheap & chic. Until then....be well. 

xo

Melis

 
 

Closer to home: the bedroom

Hello my dears....

                       Now, before you call me crazy & mutter to the screen "Melis! stop obsessing about your bedroom!" , I want to ask for your help. If you were visiting me a few weeks ago, you would have seen that my bedroom frustrates me( still). I have not been able to pull it together in a way that satisfies me. So, I have been ruminating on it & here is a little bit of what I have come up with. 

I love this duvet & the shams, the grey euro shams I have and the lamps are very similar to what we have in there already(except our shades are cream) . The beautiful mimosa pillow from lovely afrochic is a dream item but, it looks lovely in there don't you think? So, I look at this and think...."Ah, that is more like it..." But, what else? This is where I need your help! What would you add? What do you think is missing? Maybe it will jog my creative juices....to hear your lovely opinions! What about your bedrooms? Are you happy with them? Or do you have visions of them that just aren't quite coming together for you? I would love to know your thoughts on this. 

~duvet here

~euro sham here

~mimosa pillow here

~lamps here

I just found this lovely gal via Feyhandmade, isn't she adorable? Great style & here is her shop. 

I wanted you to see this & this....gorgeous. 

This lovely lady sent me the sweetest note this morning about featuring her gorgeous blouse yesterday...that always gets me, talent & kindness wrapped up into one. One of these days I am going to have one of her lovely pieces for myself. Yes siree! :) 

I saw this book, that I mentioned last friday, in person & boy is it awesome! I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy(maybe for my birthday). 

Oh, and last but not least.....how adorable & sweet are these two? Look at the whole set, they are best buds & just too sweet. (found originally on lovely Miss B's blog here ) 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend my friends! Do you have any fun plans? I sure hope so. :) I will see you back here on monday, until then...be well. 

xo

Melis

The little things: deep & linen

Hi lovelies! 

              Am I repeating myself? I know when I love something I have a tendency to say it over & over again ( when I tell my little ones "I love you" they say " I know, mama, you tell us all the time!" ( hee hee) So, forgive me if I am, indeed, repeating myself....but, I do love deep colors with linen. 

 

~ gorgeous necklace by lovely Cassie here 

~ paper raindrops here 

~ sweet birdie pillow here 

~ beautiful top here 

~ adorable calendar here ( third down from top)  

~ sweet, sweet bow here

This combination is making me very happy, it is a little thing I treasure. What about you my friends? What is a little thing that is making you happy today? I would really love to know. I will see you back here tomorrow for a new "Closer to home", until then be well. 

xo

Melis

Melissa loves: Julianna Bright

Hello my dears! 

                   I am sorry I am so late today! Everything was a little chaotic in my household this morning but, all is well! I am so happy to have lovely Julianna with us today. I featured Julianna once before, do you remember? I was excited to feature her again & fell for this lovely piece called "Katydid", I adore what Julianna had to say about the inspiration behind it. Would you like to hear too? Great! 

"This painting was part of a larger group of work. I was exploring ideas about mothers and daughters and stewardship of the natural world. In much of the work, the daughters are in tune with and tending the landscape, or wide-eyed with wonder in observation. This piece in particular was inspired by watching my daughter on her belly studying a caterpillar from 3 inches. 

 I hope in looking at this piece, the viewer might remember an encounter with something strange and marvelous."

~ beautiful bracelet here 

~ sweet flat here 

~  lovely bowls here 

~ gold vase here 

~ adorable dress here 

~ awesome pouf here 

Thank you so much for being with us today Julianna, I love hearing about the inspiration behind your beautiful pieces. This story is one of my favorites. Have a wonderful day friends! I will see you back here tomorrow for "The little things". Until then...be well. 

xo

Melis

 

Cheap & Chic: inspired by a painting

Hello my dears! 

                    I am sure Louise from Art & Ghosts doesn't need any introduction...I saw this painting over the weekend and fell in love. The dark & bright white together...soft colors here and there...the elegant horse, chair & assorted shapes. *sigh* Just beautiful...So, I thought I would get an outfit together based on Louise's "White Horse Dream". I sure hope you like it! 

 

 
 ~ vintage top & skirt here $95.00

~ necklace here $8.80 

~ ring here $3.80 (sigh..so apparently since I found this ring, it has now disappeared. Here is another that would work $4.80 ) 

~ vintage bag here $32.00

~ flatsIcovet here $55.00 

Total ~ $ 194.60

I think this may by one of my least expensive outfits....hmm.  Thank you Lou for letting me use your beautiful piece!  I hope you all enjoyed it & have a wonderful tuesday.. I will see you back here tomorrow with a new "Melissa loves". Until then... be well! 

xo

Melis

 

Monday: inspired by a painting

Hello my friends! 

I hope you all had wonderful weekends! Did you rest? Relax? or get a lot done? I guess I did a little of all three. Over the weekend I also met a lovely crafts person from etsy. I had ordered something from Christina and since she lived a couple of towns over from my town, she offered to drop it off! Isn't that lovely? Just another reason I adore etsy. It was such a pleasure to meet her(she is a sweetheart & chic) & so fun to meet the person you are buying from. Lovely...I also saw this beautiful painting on flickr and was inspired to find some other lovely things to go with it. 

 

~ tunic here 

~ wicked pissah boots here :)

~ beautiful bracelet here 

~ lightIaminlovewith here 

~ sequin bag here

I hope you like my picks for today & I hope today's beautiful piece inspired you. Have a wonderful day my friends, I will see you back here tomorrow for a new cheap & chic. Until then...be well. 

xo

Melis