I Spy: Wharf Hill Antiques

My by-far favorite stop of the day on Saturday was Wharf Hill Antiques in Smithfield. I love antique stores, especially the junky ones where you just know some forgotten treasure is buried under a pile of old magazines. But there's nothing like a well-curated boutique-style antique shop. Wharf Hill is such a shop, and it looked like something out of "Something's Gotta Give." I swooned, and I'm not joking when I say I almost lost my breath from gasping so much.

I'm not the only one who's noticed; Wharf Hill has been ranked among the best shops in the South by Southern Living. Seriously. Go here.

I spied:

Lovely serveware, clearly labeled in a timeless black font.

And thoughtfully displayed on an antique stove.

General store-style displays of specialty food items, many Chesapeake Bay crab-themed.

A gasp-inducing room full of grain sack tote bags, wooden heart boxes, antique dolls and rocking horses.

I love old toys, even if they can't be played with!

Imagine this chest with a silver tray holding bar supplies and this mercury glass lamp on top! It would be a great place to stash linens, board games and those magazines you just can't part with.

I loved this Irish thistle jewelry set!

The store's rooms all had themes. One was botanical/garden-themed, while another focused on maritime life. This room was definitely the "man" room...it had ship replicas, framed photos of football teams from the WWI era and gentlemanly scented candles.

And of course, a sweet nursery room with whimsical striped chests, a dreamy bassinet and framed antique christening gowns. 

The store left me wanting to move to a small town, buy an old building and start an emporium of my own! It's so lovingly arranged and just a feast for your eyes. I left empty-handed, but my head was full of ideas!

Exploring Downtown Smithfield

Saturday I woke up with that itch to go exploring. I've always enjoyed driving backroads, stumbling onto antique shops and burger joints, so I begged Sean to go adventuring with me. After some consideration, we decided to cross the James River and explore the Isle of Wight County area. Smithfield is a perfect day-trip town if you're in Hampton Roads.

Smithfield is of course known for its hams, but the town is a quaint village with perfect Victorian homes mixed with early settler landmarks, and a great little main street to amble down. We didn't eat, but if we had, we might have stopped at the famous Smithfield Inn, which has a very Southern front porch with rocking chairs.

We stopped first at Mansion House Art and Antiques, which was a little fancy for my taste, but interesting nonetheless. One of the antiques on display was this horseless carriage!

I particularly liked these mother-of-pearl inlaid caned chairs, $129 each I think. They looked a little too delicate to sit in, but they sure were pretty.

I thought this outdoor area at the William Rand Tavern, part of the Smithfield Inn, would be an amazing spot for a rehearsal dinner or small party. It looks like something out of "Gilmore Girls!"

Smithfield has bronze statues all around town, and I stopped to have a chat with Benjamin Franklin.

A few houses had these awesome checkerboard-painted porches; very fun and stylish!

This house had incredible detail. Sean dubbed it the bumblebee house.

And as we were walking back to the car, we spotted this driver. Only in Smithfield!

It's a darling town, perfect for an afternoon stroll. Later, I'm going to post an I Spy column about my favorite place in Smithfield, an amazing antique store called Wharf Hill Antiques.

Sunday Best v.49

I'm obsessed with the photography of Mark Shaw, who took fashion photos and shots of the Kennedys in the '50s and '60s before he died. I've been looking at his masterful, colorful shots on 1st Dibs, where one gallery sells prints of his shots. I'd love to have one for my dream future girly dressing room/walk-in closet!

• This cap turns any pen into an iPhone or iPad-friendly pen.
• Visit a once-vibrant town that ceased to exist. Via Black Eiffel.
• Photographer Jamie Beck dresses up like classic movie stars in the most fabulous way.
• Photographer Irina Werning asks people to recreate childhood photos. So cute!
• Create your own botanical silhouette.
• I want to live in the Rainbow House, via Black Eiffel.
• These velvet photo albums would make the most splendid keepsakes.
• This wedding started with the reception so the ceremony could be at sunset!
• Scroll down and check out the most stylish aquarium I've ever seen!

Introducing: I Spy Column

Lately, I've been really good about curbing my shopaholic tendencies and focusing on trying to get rid of stuff before I buy more. But that doesn't mean I'm kicking my window-shopping habit! In an effort to continue to hone my decorating/accessorizing eye and also share my cool finds with you guys, I've decided to start a new feature on the blog. 

I Spy will just be little shopping trips with me. It will allow me to store pics of items that inspired me, and maybe give you some inspiration of things to look for next time you're antiquing or thrifting. My first "I Spy" entry is from my stop at the Williamsburg Antique Mall after work last night (I know, I'm addicted to the place!).

I Spy:

 This glamorous gilded lamp, which is huge and would totally MAKE a room. It was fairly pricey (I think in the $250 range), but I picture it in a simple, classic-inspired room like some of the rooms featured by Katy Elliott.

This cane-sided chair was low to the ground, and was labeled "perfect for a bedroom." I could see it as a reading chair, or low desk chair, too. It's halfway to a makeover; a simple fabric touch-up would make it shine. May I suggest this fabric?

I developed, seemingly out of nowhere, a strange obsession with all things convex recently. I'm obsessed with the idea of eventually getting one of these federal-style convex mirrors (this was $145) and mixing it in with modern art and black and white photography. The antique mall had at least 3 smaller plastic versions for under $30, too.

Antlers were HUGE a few years ago, and brass is having a huge resurgence. This $15 brass antler wreath-thingie was labeled as an inkwell holder, but wouldn't it make a fabulous hook in a glamorous bathroom? I can easily imagine this towel dangling from the antlers.

If I had somewhere to put it right now, I would have been all OVER this brass bamboo bar cart, which is about as trendy as it gets. It was priced at $149, which I would haggle over a bit, but would look great in any room; no bar accessories necessary.

Sometimes I'll look at rooms in magazines or blogs and the owner will have something completely unique that makes you green with envy. This little green Russian table seems like one of those things. For $79, it would be such a sweet, unique addition to a little girl's room or would make a great cocktail table beside a big tufted reading chair.

This cool sequined elephant has a twin, and for $110 you could have the pair. The set would be totally amazing over a fireplace, and could easily go with a brightly colored Bollywood palette or a palette of neutrals.

And last but certainly not least, I spotted this brass shelf ($49) on my way out and immediately pictured it in the powder room of my dreams, which will someday feature this wallpaper. Honestly, this might be the one thing I go back for...I'm daydreaming about it holding fancy candles and a framed picture of Audrey in my bathroom.

I hope you enjoyed shopping with me! Happy hunting in your town!

Tortoiseshell Watch

Forgive the poor picture quality, as this was hastily taken with my camera phone, but check out my new watch! It's from Urban Outfitters, and cost $28.

I have been lusting over a $250+ Michael Kors tortoiseshell watch, but I tend to get swept up in watch trends and didn't feel ready to invest that much. I cursed my luck for a while and then one day realized I should just do a Google search to find some alternatives. Urban Outfitters actually had three tortoiseshell watches, all very cool, but I liked this one for its daintiness and cool pyramids. It looks classic and edgy at the same time.

On the subject of watches, many people have stopped wearing them all together, but I could never give it up. I still think it's easier to look at one's wrist than to fish around my purse for a cell phone!

Finally! Anthropologie's Wedding Line

Around this time last year, Anthropologie announced its intention to create a wedding line for spring 2011, and being in the throes of planning my very Anthropologie-inspired wedding, I was momentarily distraught. Don't get me wrong, I loved the hunt for my various accessories, and the line is still WAY out of my price range, but it is nice to see this new entry into the bridal market.

The line, called BHLDN (Beholden...what a dumb weird spelling, but whatever), launched today! On the whole, it's really the perfect line for the Anthropologie girl...a little vintage inspired, with a touch of glamour. It also has everything a bride would need, from gowns to accessories to undergarments.

I will note, it seems to bring together the best of what Etsy has been offering for years. That's a good and bad thing; good, in that Etsy sellers are not always the most reliable, especially with shipping, and bad because it mass produces ideas, often at a marked-up price. But whatever. If it had been around when I was wedding planning, here's what I would have been lusting after:

This romantic Ethereal Monarch gown looks like something out of a John Singer Sargeant painting; $3,200.

The Fondant tea dress is $600, and looks very similar to a great Melissa Sweet gown that's much more expensive.

I DIE over the Tulle Era dress...seriously, I would have worn this in a heartbeat if I'd had $2,600 to spend.

I love this bridesmaid's dress, called the Savoy. It retails for $220.

And this dress looks like something Rachel McAdams' character would have worn in "The Notebook." It's called Citrine Rose, and costs $650.

I love this sweet bolero, which is fairly well-priced at $180.

LOVE these peacock pave earrings, $188.

And if I had another chance to wear a feather headpiece, I'd love to don this plumed tiara by Jennifer Behr, for $825 (which is more than my wedding dress cost! lol).

Sunday Best v.49

Happy Valentine's Day weekend! My valentine and I are having a pretty low-key celebration this year; we took a drive out to a gourmet donut shop and relived a bit of our honeymoon, when we went to San Francisco's Dynamo Donut. Tonight, Sean has to work, so I'm doing laundry and making a valentine. :)

• If you live in the DC area and need emergency sweets delivery, try Sweet Bite Creamery.
• Should Blake Lively play the young Carrie Bradshaw? I kinda think it would be good casting...maybe TOO good, almost lazy casting.
• Visit art museums around the world with the Google Art Project.
• If I were designing a man cave, it would look just like this.
• Send virtual valentines designed by artists and graphic designers.
• So cool! This artist created 3-D toile!
• Check out this amazing sofa makeover.

Art Addiction

We have been sick, so we haven't been doing much of anything blog-worthy lately. The news in our life, however, has been almost entirely art-related. For a mutual Valentine's Day gift, Sean and I decided to invest in a painting by his cousin, Emily. Emily is a recent graduate who studied painting, and completed her senior show of works inspired by time spent studying abroad in Paris. I was drawn to this painting of a woman riding the escalator in the Pompidou art museum.

I love the strokes, and the rough effect Emily achieved with sandpaper. Very cool. The bad news about the painting is that it was too big to fit in our car -- 47 X 40! HUGE. We traveled to her house a couple weeks ago to pick it up and after struggling with it beyond reason, we realized it just wasn't going to happen. Luckily, Sean's parents agreed to rent a van for an upcoming trip and bring it down for us. I can't wait to have my French lady tourist painting up on the wall!

The art bug must be catching, because after seeing Emily's paintings, I felt that familiar stirring to be creative. I'm no great painter, but I'm capable, and it really does bring a sense of peace to just create for no reason. Arthur encouraged me to pull out my watercolors last weekend, and after a couple little hiccups, I started to get into it. I started (and completed, but didn't photograph) a painting of this bouquet by Saipua.

I also played around with blending and bleeding, and painted this funny little portrait of Jackie O. It's not so great, but I like the colors.

And I painted a little portrait of Picasso in his striped shirt.

So that's basically all that's happening in the Kennedy household lately. Hoping to get back to cooking soon; I've been eating soup all week!

Family Photos

We had a guest this weekend, and then I came down with some coughy gross illness, so I've lacked a little in my online presence. While frantically cleaning/organizing/stashing in preparation for our guest, I hastily set up all our framed family photos on a table only to notice it looked terribly cluttered, and you couldn't even see most of the pictures.

Now scheming on better ways to show off family photos, and I'm thinking I might eventually replace the sitting frames with hanging ones, but I love this picture ledge idea from India Hicks' home. Spotted this on Habitually Chic and it looks great, both formal and informal. I don't like houses that don't have family pictures; rooms looks fabulous when they're just-so, but they certainly don't look lived in.

Sunday Best v.48

My husband's best friend was visiting this weekend and encouraged me to pull out my watercolors and get back to painting. I'm still sort of struggling to remember the techniques, but for now, I'm inspired by the whimsical work of Caitlin McGauley, whose illustrations have popped up on the web sites of Kate Spade, Tory Burch and Lonny Magazine. She makes everything look easy!

• Floating bubbles in Paris!
• Send a unique virtual valentine.
• I'm in love with these tree-shaped bookshelf.
• Love this behind-the-scenes peek at how artist James Nares works.
• Which celebrity dressed best when pregnant?
• So jealous of this closet make-over.