Trending Tuesday: Exposed

Let's chat about apartments today... Specifically industrial style apartments. I have a slight weakness for industrial apartment lofts that have exposed brick walls. I don't know how to describe it but there's something about the exposed brick and exposed duct work that makes the entire feel of those type of apartments.

Most everyone of my friends right now are living the apartment lifestyle so I'm sure most of my readers can relate to this post in some way shape or form also.  Apartment living can be quite the adjustment from good ole' mom and dads house.  A cozy, comfortable house with all the furniture already provided for you. Now you're on to paying rent and buying furniture - Decisions, decisions...

If I have one advice for picking an apartment or making living arrangement decisions - Go with you're gut. Make a decision based on what will make you happy. After all, it is going to be your home over the next 12 or so months! I know, I know, budget has to come into play somewhere in there but enough about my advice giving abilities - Let me show you all about those exposed brick apartments I've been swooning over.

Badass Bedrooms

Image Source

Lushome

Mixathem

Mi Casa Es Su Casa

Apartment Therapy

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What are your thoughts on the exposed brick trend? Do you live in an apartment or home with exposed brick? I'd love to hear some thoughts on this style!

Moodboard Monday

Monday Monday Monday... I started sharing moodboards on Mondays not only because it sounded catchy, but because living the post grad life, living a grown up life, and even life in school or on an internship lets face it - Most everyone dreads Mondays. I love sharing a little splash of color or pattern inspiration to help brighten up your day and bring a little smile to that dreadful Monday morning!

Hows it working? Have you been following along each monday?
Either way - here's a little dose of turquoise to brighten your day!

Coffee Table Books

I can't believe I've been in Charlotte for a year! All this moving, packing and excitement about my new place has got me on a shopping rampage. I've got the typical designer fever - new home means new stuff....{completely redesigning my new home is acceptable right?} Well, lately I've been hitting the good ole' internet during my lunch breaks, and the wee hours of the night just dreaming of all the pretty things I want to buy and wish I could afford. {post on where to shop on a budget coming soon!}

For today, Here's a list of my favorite coffee table books that I've been swooning over! Cupcakes and Cashmere has been one of my favorite lifestyle/ fashion/ design blogs for a long time now and of course Emily's blog-titled book was the first to start my collection. {i'm also guilty of gifting this book to friends.. it's THAT good!}

Shop these books on Amazon here:

Which books are your go-to for the coffee table? Will you be adding any of these to your collection?

Small Style Sofas

Following up with yesterday's post, let's continue with small scale furniture and take advantage of today's Wish List Wednesday to help you find the perfect fit for your home! If you are in the market for small scale furniture in the near future here is a great list for you. I have compiled my top five favorite small scale furniture pieces and they are each under $1,000! Large upholstered items can get pricey especially with a designer tag, but these have the designer look and won't break the bank!

Tip: When shopping for a small scale piece of furniture, you can often reference 3 types
1. Loveseat | a small sofa typically designed for two people
2. Settee | [se-tee] a long upholstered seat for more than one person, with back and arms
3. Apartment Sofa | smaller version of a sofa usually running 66"-76"in length

1. Rue Apartment Sofa | cb2 | $999

2. Skyline Tufted Settee | Wayfair | $952

3. Tufted Loveseat | Target | $387

4. Skyline Velvet Settee | Wayfair | $543

5. Pennie Sofa | Crate & Barrel | $899

Shop These Pieces:

Will one of these pieces be in your home or apartment?

Small Scale

Apartment living can be tough. The adjustment to a small space can take some time getting used to, and you might think that taking mom and dad up on their generous offer of the old sofa from the living room is a good idea for a few reasons.  It will save you money, yes. It might also help ease the adjustment of leaving home for good and venturing into your own place.  What you haven't thought about.... that old sofa most likely weighs more than you and your friends bargained for when you decided not to hire movers to help you move into that second story walk up. And lastly, that sofa is probably way too big for your studio apartment wherever it may be.

As we near graduation season, the job offers are becoming real and reality of the big bad college grad world is knocking at your door. If you are most likely going to find yourself in the situation of a small apartment, then listen up because this one is for you! 

Let's talk small scale furniture. It doesn't have to scream, I live in a dollhouse - But it can also be functional. It all depends on how you style it to fit the space and make it your own. Here are some of my favorite small scale furniture looks:

via DesignLoveFest | sofa cb2

via mom toob | Pinterest

via Better Homes and Gardens

via Plum Pretty Sugar

via hip hip gin gin | Pinterest

A few tips when shopping for small spaces; choose compact furniture. Skinny frames and leggy uphosltery pieces will make the room feel as if less space is taken up. Mixing light, bright and metal furniture will make the space feel open with less clutter. Stay away from sofa's and chairs with skirted bottoms that make pieces feel low to the ground and create the illusion of less floor space.

Love these looks and want to know more? Stay tuned for some shopping finds fit for a small scale apartment!

Open Concept

As a post grad living and working in a city, the apartment hunt is a big ordeal. Every year you have to decide where you will live - will you stay in your current apartment, move to a new one, rent a house? Maybe even buy one when you're at that point in your life.  There's so many options and I don't know about you [maybe it's the designer in me] but I have such a hard time with deciding where to live.  All of the apartments in Charlotte are so nice and each one of them have their own pros and cons.

The one thing I've noticed a lot of is the open concept shelving in kitchens.  For me, the jury is still out on whether I'm a fan or not but of course I did my research and there's definitely some technique that comes with styling them.

Here are some of my favorite open shelving looks:

[via frolic]

[via Pinterest]

[via houzz]

[via Singapore Home & Decor]

[via Pinterest]

[via decor pad]

What are your thoughts on open shelving? Do you have them in your home or apartment? Would you mind them, or run away at the thought?

Read Up: 2014

Going into 2014 I have a lot of resolutions... they vary in sizes and level of commitment needed but they all count for something.  One of my blogging resolutions for 2014 is to read more blogs/magazines.  Whether it be learning new things, finding new things, getting ideas and inspiration or just for fun, I'm going to read more! [Reading more books is in that long list too, but thats for my personal resolutions]

So to start this resolution off right, Here are some of my daily reads for 2014. Feel free to join along and read them with me! I promise you won't be disappointed. 

Design + Home Decor

My new favorite websites to read everyday.  I only found domino and adore within the past few months, but they have online magazines you can read for free and they're amazing!

Design Happens: HGTV is my favorite TV show. Hands down. Well, since I'm broke postgrad and can't afford cable.. They have a blog. Yep. Read it. You'll thank me later.

Adore Home: Adore Home Magazine is amazing. They have an online magazine that you can read and a blog. They're style is so fun and current you'll love it.

Domino: Another great online magazine. You have to sign up to see their website but it's worth it. They also post about useful things like... How to Throw a Cocktail Party in Under and Hour.. see, useful right?

Fashion + Lifestyle Blogs

These 3 Blogs are already my go-to reads and let me tell you I'm not going to stop.. I may have an eye for design but fashion is not my expertise. Advice-Taken. Thanks ladies!

Made by Girl: Jen knows her fashion style but she also knows a thing or two about design. Check out her amazing house tour here.

Suburban Faux-Pas: Krystin's sense of fashion is amazing and I wish I could figure out how she does it.  Hopefully on day I'll figure it out.

Life With Emily: Emily could wear a paper bag and make it look good. She's local to NC so I found her blog when I moved to Charlotte and have been reading it ever since.  Her blog is in my "top sites" in safari when I open up a new tab... guilty.

Well, there it is! I actually have a really long list of blogs I follow but these are the ones that I just had to share. Anyone would love them! Any other daily read suggestions I should add to my list?

Happy New Year

Will someone please tell me where 2013 went? I seemed to have lost it.

But really - I feel like this past year has been a complete blur.  Anyone with me? Well, I've accomplished a lot this past year and I am so happy with where my life is headed! But I must say, I'm very excited to see what 2014 has in store!

A look back at my 2013:

I graduated college with my degree in Interior Design.

Not to mention with some of my best friends by my side.

I lived with 3 of my best friends for our last year at college!

We lived together in our apartment [long live 401] and in the design building [the black hole of norton]

I got a job doing what I love - With an office [Woo!]

And yes, those are fake plants... they came with the office.

I moved to this amazing city that I now call home!

I attended my first ever NFL football game [more than one actually]

Thanks to my roommate and her job for giving her tickets!

I started an Etsy Shop! [here]

It's still a work in progress...

And of course, I started this blog!

It's been so exciting and I love blogging I can't thank everyone enough for supporting me and reading my posts each day! Especially my mom and dad for being my number one fans!  [And Emily for being my editor and opinion-giver when I can't stare at a screen any longer]

Now go get wild tonight!!

This is available for download at The Kinch Life Blog - This is my background on my laptop and my iPhone. I'm obsessed with it! Check out all of her freebie downloads here!

Happy New Year - See you all in 2014!