"Falling" in Love

Every year about this time I start dreaming of fall days, crisp breezes, autumnal colors, sweaters and boots, the smell of cider and pumpkins and the sounds of college football season. Visions of trick or treaters dance in my head. (It is one of the things Martina loves most about me.)

Some Treats...















and some Tricks.

And for kicks...

I LOVE these boots!

My Favorite Things

1. Grooveshark. Now that Pandora has started charging for their services, I have been forced to look elsewhere for my office background music. I would like to thank Pandora for asking me to dig into my wallet in order to continue listening to their melodies, otherwise I never would have found Grooveshark. I like it better because I can make my own playlists. I have been working on the perfect 8 hour playlist and am only a fourth of the way there but am enjoying every song I CHOOSE. Something Pandora was not offering me.

2. Design Inc. My new favorite interior design show. It comes on Fine Living Network (not sure of the times since my DVR catches them all for me). They tend to decorate in light and fresh colors, which I love.

3. Publix Cola. What can I say? It was on sale, so I tried it. You can't go wrong with a soft drink that only costs 50 cents for 2 liters! I think the regular price is a whopping buck. It is more comparable to Pepsi than Coke (which is perfectly fine with me) and worth every penny - all 50 of them!

4. Magazines. I love magazine. All kinds. Love. Them. My favorites are Southern Living, Better Home & Garden, Real Simple, People Style Watch and Martha Stewart (especially the holiday editions). But if I am being honest, I will read just about any magazine I can get my mitts on.

5. Brew Station Coffee Pot. I love that there is not a coffee pot to clean and therefore takes up less room on the counter.

6. Glade Clean Linen scented tea lights. At CORE Group a couple of weeks ago Laura's house smelled great! The culprit? These little guys. They have a nice sublte clean scent.

7. Sunburst mirror. Consider this my cry for help. I am addicted to these things. I have bought 2 in the past couple of weeks. I am considering doing a wall of them in my bedroom just so I will have an excuse to keep buying them!

8. Wall Stencil/Wall Paper. So I really want to paper a few rooms in my house. Ben thinks I am crazy. Even Candice Olsen cannot convince him that wall paper is back. I would love to do a feature wall in my dining room, the entire hall bath downstairs and maybe even my laundry room. Ben's main concern is the removal process (and if I am being honest, that is a real concern of mine as well). As a compromise I have started looking for the perfect stencil that will create that subtle wall paper look I am after without the hassle of papering.

In my search, I found this tree wall sticker. I am thinking it would great climbing up the wall behind my stairs with picture frames in the limbs. An instant family tree!
9. Sun shining through grove a of trees. I love to see this and am so blessed that my drive to work includes this scene quite frequently. It makes me happy every time I see it...and let's be honest, making me happy at 7:30 in the morning is no easy task!
10. Bodenusa.com. I happened upon a catalog for this store at Steve & Anna's house last time we were visiting and loved it. However, I returned to the Ham and forgot all about it until Supablogga reminded me of it a recent post of hers. The prices are quite high...but I just love the simple and fun styles. They have great finds for the whole family!

Addendum - JCP vs PB

Found the photo I was talking about....this same photo was found on jcp.com as well as potterybarn.com.
I also found this comparison...which one do you think is from Pottery Barn?

Top picture is from JCP and bottom is from PB. I would have thought the opposite, no?

And doesn't this look like something straight out of the Fall 2009 Pottery Barn catalog? It has that same transitional, Napa Valley feel that PB is famous for. But if you thought that, you would be wrong. This is JCP's "Linden Street" collection. It is the same sectional that was featured yesterday.


Another example of the Linden Street collection:

(By the way, I am in love with the soft colors in this photo. The blues and taupes are exactly what I am trying for in my house. The pops of orange may not show up so well in this photo, but I think they give it just the punch of color that it needs)

Doesn't it compare to this little number from PB?

PB vs JCP

For awhile now I have been convinced that JCPenney and Pottery Barn have the same buyer (or at least buyers who are friends). I have found room set ups on jcp.com that are EXACTLY the same as on Pottery Barn's site. Whether or not my theory is true, they do have some eerily similar pieces. The main difference? Price. Check out some of these examples...

Can you tell which of these is from Pottery Barn?



The top photo is from JCP and costs $1500. Bottom photo from PB costs $3600!




How about these? Which one cost more money?




The top photo is from JCP and costs $799 (pillows included), bottom photo from PB costs $2300.










The top photo is from PB and costs $999, bottom photo from JCP costs $499.
Personally, I think the JCP version looks better.






The top photo is from JCP and costs $299, bottom photo from PB costs $599.










The top photo is from PB and costs $799, bottom photo from JCP costs $239.






The top photo is from PB and costs $499, bottom photo from JCP costs $199.

The top photo is from JCP and costs $169, bottom photo from PB costs $299.

The top photo is from PB and costs $399, bottom photo from JCP and costs $169.

The top photo is from JCP and costs $799, bottom photo from PB costs $1599.

The top photo is from PB and costs $1399, bottom photo from JCP costs $779.

This one is actually a trick! The JCP version is actually more expensive.
The top photo is from JCP and costs $1643, bottom photo from PB costs $43 less at an even $1600.