GO RED: ROMANTIC REDS IN FASHION & DECOR

Red. It is perhaps one of the most dominant and dynamic of all colors. Red grabs your attention and overrules all other hues. Red is the first color we lose vision for at twilight. Objects in red environments may appear longer, thicker, and heavier. Red also causes objects to appear to advance, creating the illusion of the objects appearing closer than they are.

Reds are seen as warm, even hot, exciting, and stimulating. Symbolically, red means fire, life, and strength and it is associated with passion. Men are attracted to yellow-based reds, such as tomato, while women are attracted to blue-base reds such as raspberry.

Celebrate this passionate and romantic hue in everything from fashion to decor this Valentine's. And in homage to New York Fashion Week - GoRed...

Valentino Haute Couture.

Ellie Saab - Pre-Fall 2015.

Tadashi Soji RTW F/W 2014

Mats Gustafson (born 1951) Swedish fashion & portrait illustrator

Zuhair Murad Couture - F/W 2013

Red - The single most dynamic and passionate color, symbolizes love, rage, and courage. Demanding attention, red has a great emotional impact. Those who select red are aggressive, impulsive, and strive for success. 

GoRed!

Women raising awareness to fight heart disease and stroke.

No wonder the campaign is called GoRed - because remember, red symbolizes fire, life, and strength. 

 

 Watch the GoRed Collection from Macy's NYFW show here.

Thank you for stopping by.

Have a Happy Valentine's (and New York Fashion Week!) Weekend!

ELEGANT & CLASSIC VALENTINES INSPIRATIONS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PURE inspiration to Celebrate Love...
Happy Valentines!

IMAGE CREDITS | SOURCES: Together Forever,   B&W Lovers on the town,  OGGI SPOSI car,  Ralph Lauren Dining Room,  BW Tiffany ad,  Cartier red box,  Phantom Of The Opera Rose,  Casamento Table Black White Red,  simple red rose close-up,  Romantic Liaison,  Rose wallpaper & oval back chair,  lady with red roses,  lady in red lace,  Colin Cowie Wedding Rose table & gold,  gold wedding placesetting w/red menu,  mini rose cake  MOET,  cocktails and champagne,  simple red tulip bouquet,  red velvet cupcakes w/white bows,  Kissed quote card,  BW couple dancing,  rose & i love you note  

Thanks for stopping by!

CREATE A PERSONALIZED VALENTINES GIFT

There's still time and you need not be a crafty person to create a personalized Valentine's gift for your sweetheart. All you need is your theme, for example gourmet grilling, and you can shop for special goodies to create a customized gift basket for the chef in your life. My "go-to" source for not only gourmet seasonings, but kitchen tools, dish towels for color, unique dishes or cutting boards, and even the basket itself is HomeGoods. You can use your cart while you shop to place your basket, and fill it with the special ingredients for your chef or grill master. After you've purchased your basket and gift items for inside, stop by a local craft store for excelsior and ribbon (unless you already have), head home and secretly create your personalized Valentines gift... (just remember not to share any pics of it on Facebook until AFTER you've given your sweetheart their surprise!) Here is the Valentine's Gourmet Gift Basket I made last year for Jeff, with great goodies I picked up at HomeGoods...

 Jeff loves to grill - so I stocked up on great grilling seasonings and a few new kitchen gadgets.

Tip: To help give the items inside the basket a lift, fill the basket with crumbled brown craft paper before adding items inside. After items are stabilized, will in nooks & crannies with the excelsior (shaved paper) and add your bow. This was a storage basket so it had a hinged lid, which helped make the items appear to be bursting from the basket. Other items to add to a gourmet basket can be chocolates, your card, a gift certificate to a couples cooking class, or even a new recipe to try from a favorite chef.

Gift baskets need not only be made for Valentines - They also make wonderful gifts for a first time homeowner housewarming, bridal or baby showers, graduation (fill a storage ottoman with dorm needs!) Mother's Day, Father's Day (fill a cooler with dad's faves!) Besides making gift baskets, HomeGoods is also a great source photo frames - another gift you can personalize for your Valentine, especially if you got a little creative before hand, and had a photo shoot with a a friend as a photographer or aprofessional photographer...

 

Here in Arizona, local photographer Megan Sanders of Borrowed Halo Photography got uber creative and used perfectly proportioned pet furniture from HomeGoods to create this stylish Valentine's photo.

Besides the traditional cards, chocolates, flowers and dinner, creating a personalized Valentine's Gift for your sweetheart is a wonderful way to make them feel special, and let them know they are loved. What are some ways you create a personalized Valentine's Gift for your partner, spouse, friend, family or person you're dating?

Thanks for stopping by,

Note: This post is sponsored by HomeGoods and the Happy By Design project. All thoughts and opinions are of my own.

How To Set A Romantic Table - My Guest Post @ Hadley Court Interior Design

Is it any wonder, probably the most romantic month of the year is February? More than likely, this is due in large part to the celebrating of Valentine's Day. But why should Valentine's be the only day of the year for celebrating love or setting a romantic table for two? As I wrote and shared my tips on how to create a romantic table setting for the Hadley Court series Celebrating Gracious Living, I recalled some of my own personal experiences on setting romantic tables for two throughout the year. Going out to dinner can get expensive – not to mention crowded, lack of privacy, perhaps a limited menu, along with eating in a seated time session – and that’s just not romantic. Setting a romantic table for two at home for Valentine's or any memorable occasion can create a new memorable moment for the two of you. Be sure to visit the Hadley Court blog to see where I share my tips on incorporating the season and your location into your planning, selecting the menu, romantic recipe references, tips for shopping together, setting the mood - including a romantic music play-list and a classic romantic movie, dessert ideas, and how to incorporate those moments you and your partner have shared - all important factors in How To Set A Romantic Table...  especially for Valentines Day...

Although I shared at Hadley Court inspiration for romantic outdoor settings for Spring, Summer, and Fall -  For Winter (especially THIS Winter!), bring your romantic table setting inside & fireside similar to how this Valentines Love Letter Shoot was done at Ruffled…

 

Who else but Ralph Lauren can tell a romantic story on a table setting?

 You may not be able to fly to Venice for your romantic dinner, or even go on a gondola (or boat) ride, but you can take the “idea” of the memory to be the inspiration for your romantic table setting – and make it personal to you both...

 

 Be sure to join Hadley Court on the Celebrating Love ideas pinboard on I created on Pinterest for additional inspiration and ideas. In Midland Texas, where Hadley Court Founder Leslie Hendrix Wood is located, they do a lot of formal entertaining, which was the core inspiration for my other Hadley Court blog guest post contributions including:

Top Tips: How To Set A Formal Table

 The Gracious Dinner Party – Top Tips For Making Your Guests Feel Welcome

Top Tips: Table Manners For Gracious Living 

Etiquette Top Tips: Formal Dinners and Business Luncheons

Thanks for stopping by,

 

WELCOME FEBRUARY WITH THESE ROOM #LOOKSTOLOVE

February. It's not quite Spring yet, but the hope of it is lingering in the air. A new month, with new events and new journeys await - and even time to make a Valentines date! With Valentines just two weeks away, now is the time to get inspired. Usually, Valentines can get a little too fluffy and crafty, however designer Jennifer Brouwers uniquely designed a living room and dining area to be anything as such. These rooms have a graphic & bold wow factor that is sure to give your heart a jolt. Jennifer even cleverly and tastefully included a few DIY projects you too can apply to your own space with a little paint, a large canvas plus a few cut out hearts as art...

 

Beyond LOVE for the oversized painted heart canvas, especially paired with plaid pattern wall...

 

The black and white pattern mix is perfectly balanced in the space, allowing the red accents to pack a powerful punch... 

Clever idea to apply: If you already have a capiz chandelier, shade, or light fixture, weave in a few red hearts...

 

 The simple fireplace design is topped with a heart patterned canvas, making this a cool modern, family friendly living room with a pink heart theme...

 

 

 The X O framed prints pop against the lively pink and white zebra print wall in this dining room - and the fifth wall, the ceiling, is not overlooked by being painted red...

 

Again, how simple is this to apply to the Ikea Maskros pendent lamp...

 

Simply amazing - and amazingly simple for Valentines!

What a way to Welcome February...

 

 

Love how bold these uniquely shaped mirrors in white contrast against the black walls - Again, allowing the simple red accents quietly refer to Valentines, without the fluff, plus this look is bold but simple enough to live with everyday...

 

There's more to love of Jennifer's beautiful Valentines Room and design work - just visit her site at

Jennifer Brouwer Designs.

 Speaking of designs to love - I saw so many showrooms, furniture + accents, and wall decor I fell in love with while I was at the Las Vegas World Market, I'm still sorting through all the pics I snapped to share with you here on the blog. I have, however shared albums on Google+ and Facebook, plus a few images on Twitter at #LVMKT. My recap of my first Vegas market experience will be coming up this week - so stay tuned! 

This month I'll also be sharing #LooksToLove and #BooksToLove...

Thank you for stopping by and Happy February!