Engineeringirl: February 2011

The pictures of my living room are done, and I love them!
First off, much thanks and hugs to my bestie Jaime Marshik, otherwiseknownas the most amazing and talented photographer I know. Jaime and her hubby, Charlie have a little blog. Y'all should go check it out... they have lots of fun doing neat things like planting gardens and taking crazy safaris in Africa.

So now we get to the pictures. Sorry folks it's a long post, but I don't care. I am so excited to debut my new space! If this doesn't scream Diva, I don't know what does. It is perfectly fabulous with out being overdone. More Kimora Lee Simons, less Mariah Carey. Check out how I got here from a few posts ago. And for those who are inspired, the source list is at the end.

"Oh why thank you House Beautiful, I would gladly allow you to publish photos of my house in your latest issue!"

Doesn't the shot above look reminiscent of my inspiration in House Beautiful?

The view from the breakfast area. Aren't these Barbie prints to die for?

Lola is such a pretty princess. I tell her all the time.

View from the entry way

I love you sparkly console table! Almost all the decor on this table is from Marshalls Home Goods.

View facing the kitchen.

Luv this shot. Hearts and kisses to you mirrored table + zebra chair combo. Another shot of her highness, Barbie.

This is my favorite part of the rug

Continuing with the detailed shots. I love that Jaime took the time for these.

Tweet.

I think that was Jaime's favorite part of the rug.

Source List:

Trollsta Sideboard from IKEA - purchased in the "scratch & dent" section for $99. Added the hardware myself for $9 for 6 knobs at IKEA.

(7.5' x 10') Ivory Floral Rug from Overstock - purchased for 20% off and free shipping

Chloe Velvet Ivory Sofa from Macy's - purchased on sale and with 10% off coupon

Zahir Armchair from Pier One - purchased on sale

Alyssa Tan Microfiber Nail head Chair from Overstock - purchased on sale

Hayworth Mirrored Console Table from Pier One - purchased on clearance (had to drive over an hour away to pick it up as it was the last one in the entire state of Texas)

Light blue bird toille ottomans from Marshalls Home Goods - purchased for $49 each.

Faceted Mirror Side Table from West Elm - purchased for... full price. GASP! I just couldn't live with out it.

Rust Velvet Curtain Panels from World Market - purchased for 25% off

Barbie illustrations from Cheryloz store on Etsy - purchased at full price... I love Barbie scary amounts. Signature Frames from Aaron Brothers Framing - buy one get one for a penny sale. Wide mats with silver detail from Aaron Brothers Framing - purchased with 50% off coupon.

Accents: lotus flower tea light and mercury candlesticks with blue candles from Kohls' Elle Home Decor. Tiffany blue lamp, acrylic box, silver and white ceramic urns, and mirrored tray from Marshalls Home Goods (I negotiated 10% off that box because the hinge was messed up). Blue shiny bird and coral stand from Pier One. Rust velvet pillows, light blue ruffle pillow, and turquoise velvet pillow from Pier One. Chocolate brown furry blanket was a gift from Nordstroms Home

Christmas Accents: Mantle tree from Marshalls Home Goods (I negotiated 10% off as the bronze base has a chip in it). Gold cone trees and sparkle garland from Houston's Nutcracker Market. Mercury pine cone candle from White Barn Candle Co. (75% off after Christmas sale). White owl ornament from Crate & Barrel (50% off after Christmas). Bird and bronze owl ornaments from Pier One (50% off after Christmas)

Hey ya'll, I just returned from 2 weeks in Alabama where I was doing some training for work. I have to admit I was a hater before traveling to the beautiful state of AL, but that was only because I had never been there and therefore had no idea what I was talking about. Weird how that happens, huh? For those interested, I still stand firm on my distaste for other states such as: Michigan and Ohio.
Real quickly, let me summarize why Alabama was bringin' it:
1. I got tons of compliments on my hair.
2. Random strangers were nice to me. For example: they lady in the Kroger parking lot who was compelled to inform me of the major sale going on at Dillards... and you know how I love sales.
3. There was no traffic.
4. Fried okra

So yeah, traveling for work is AWESOME. For one, I had satellite radio in my car! I was totally jammin' to 'The Heat' every day, for reals. And next, I got to meet so many people from other areas of my center as well as other NASA centers. I made a bunch of friends from my class who were kind enough to keep me entertained the entire 2 weeks. I swear I ate my way through the city of Huntsville, AL with these folks (thanks George, our native Huntsville resident who knew his stuff when it came to Blue Plate specials!). I noticed there were a lot of signs in this town. And so here we have the reason for my post.

THE SIGNS OF HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA