Balcony Day Dreaming

Ever since Jon and I moved out of my in-laws house in 2012, I've longed for an deck/outdoor space to enjoy a meal or cup of coffee in. In our last apartment (we rented the first floor of a 2 family home), there was a small yard but the only place sturdy enough to sit with a chair was in our driveway-not exactly my dream locale.

When we were deciding wether or not to move forward with our new place, Jon asked what my favorite feature of the apartment was and I immediately said, "the deck". Given how updated and different our new place is from our old, he was taken aback by my response (he was most excited for the open concept, updated kitchen #surprise).

Since moving in on Jan 22 (the day before the 2016 Snowpocalypse), I've been back and forth to Ikea weekly picking up new furniture and accents for the new place-happily we are almost done!

You may have seen this Instagram post where I shared my new favorite tome/magazine. For $7.99 it costs less than many high end fashion mags, but it has the feel of a coffee table book and features gorgeous shots of real homes using Ikea products. On my last trip to the store, I decided that I would also pick up another one of these books titled, "Step In. Step Out.", and I did just last night!

This book details over 29 outdoor spaces, both large and small, and I am feeling SUPER inspired to dress up our little balcony for the warmer months. I'm so excited for Sunday morning pancakes on the balcony in our pjs or Tuesday night dinners with a glass of wine after work-you can bet that you'll see such meals chronicled on Instagram immediately!

I've decided to go with a "French Bistro" theme for the balcony (cue Jon rolling his eyes), which could not be more different from our "Modern Bachelor" indoor aesthetic. Keep reading for the pieces I'm planning to dress up the balcony with-all of which are super afforable!

If you have any suggestions, I'm open to hear them!! Also, does anyone have a good crepe recipe??

You can also follow some of my more elaborate outdoor ideas on this Pinterest board!

Lately

I feel like I've been popping in and out around here, so I thought it might nice to catch up with a few recent details.



I can't get enough of these Baublebar ear jackets, this Daniel Wellington watch, these Frends headphones, and this Azature Nail Polish!

In late November, my friends and I got together to paint our own ceramics and I came home with this 3 part serving tray and espresso set. I wouldn't consider myself very creative, but I had so much fun and loved how my pieces came out!

Check out Doin' Dishes in Montclair, NJ!

I've begun reading How to be Parisian Wherever You Are and so far I love it! It's such a fun and easy read. You can check out my friend Samm's post about it here! You can also follow the book's Instagram here to ensure you're receiving your daily dose of the Parisian fabulousness! Also, this Blueprint coffee concoction is amazinggg! I can't wait to make this part of my routine once the weather warms up!

I've very recently (as in two days ago) become obsessed with introducing organic elements into our house. So, I dragged the husband to Ikea on a Saturday night to pick up some greenery and we landed upon these three babies-they're all boys by the way. Pineapple is the succulent, then Octopus is behind him and Art Garfunkel is to his right. Currently they are clustered on our dining room buffet under a window, I hope they like it there and continue to flourish and provide green pops in our house. 

While on our Saturday night trip to Ikea, I discovered that they now offer gift wrapping and small desk wares, think color coded bags, wrapping paper, ribbon, post-its, and gift tags. All of it is very reminiscent of The Container Store but SO much cheaper. Naturally I nearly blacked out and started grabbing all the gift tags I could. At 99 cents for 10 gift tags, I really feel that I can buy as many as I want (though my husband begs to differ). Regardless, get thee to the nearest Ikea and stock up for all of your birthday and "just because" gift giving needs!

*Very lastly, check out the Coffee Table Jazz playlist on Spotify if you need some easy listening music to work or hang out to!