Burlap Holiday Wreath

Thought I would share this gorgeous wreath that I purchased from the Etsy Shop Get the Door.  I think it is just perfect for the holiday season and I can't wait to receive it.  I am trying to decide what kind of coastal element I will add to it.  I may do a simple sand dollar or a white sugar starfish.  Or maybe nothing at all.  I will decide when it arrives.  

Here are a couple more that I really liked....

Hope your having a wonderful holiday season....looking forward to catching up on all of my favorite blogs this weekend.  

My Charlie Brown Christmas Tree.....

Just could not resist this little Christmas Tree.  I've now worked my way up to four trees...and I do not have an overly large house.  This little one is for my kitchen....as soon as I saw it - I knew I had to have it.  

Is this little tree not irresistible?  I just absolutely love it and am dreaming up little coastal accents that I can add on.  This is from the Etsy Shop Fairyfolk.

I can not wait to receive this little Charlie Brown tree. Hope your having a great week.  

All things from the Sea....

I'm a little late to the Christmas Decorating this year - so right now, I'm in a big rush to get things organized and set up.  I am very excited as I thought I had four trips left before the end of the year...and two just got cancelled so now I'm jumping for joy.  Since I am staying with the same theme as last year, I'm trying or at least attempting to not buy very many ornaments or decorations since this will be my last Coastal Christmas for a while.  

But I could not resist these adorable sand dollar ornaments from the Etsy Shop tuttomare which means All things from the Sea. 

I fell in love with this little Santa

Love the little pink starfish

Had to get a snowman in there

Surfboard is a fun touch

So adorable

Love his little glasses

I just think these are so adorable...I could not resist them. Check out tuttomare as there are still a few left.  I didn't completely clean out the supply!  Hope your enjoying this holiday season. 

Coastal Christmas Countdown

Hello Everyone.  Hope you are enjoying this amazing holiday season.  Hard to believe that another year has gone by and I have my favorite time of the year coming up.  I've spent alot of time in the last week or so - planning all of my holiday decorations.  I have decided to keep one more year of the Coastal Christmas look with the aqua and red theme.

I thought I would share a few of my very favorite coastal inspiration photos that I have collected on my pinterest board called Coastal Holiday Decorating and Christmas Trees.  Please check this Board out for some awesome holiday inspiration.  

Hope you enjoy some of my very favorite images...

I look forward to sharing some of my holiday decorations this weekend when I get them all up.  I am having to modify my set up as I have a new kitty in the house and to say he is a bit rambunctious is an understatement.  Trying to figure out how to set up my tree without him noticing.  

Looking forward to seeing what everyone is up to this holiday season.  Best wishes.

My Keys House Makeover

Hello Everyone.  First, I feel like I must apologize for falling off the face of the earth - or well maybe falling off the face of the blogging world.  For those of you are are also my Facebook friends - you probably know that I did not disappear as much as I've not been in one spot for very long - these last 6 months.  My job has kept me so busy that I really have not had the time to devote to anything extra except my family.  

I feel though - that I must explain that I have five or six email accounts - all set up for different reasons and I feel bad that I've not checked my Love of the Sea email account in months until this past couple of days.  Funny - how being grounded with a Hurricane allows me to go back to the things that I've neglected. So, I owe many of my blogging friends an email and I hope to be catching up on that soon.

In the meantime, I've developed a serious addiction to Pinterest...and have been spending time searching for fabrics, paints and styles as we are redecorating our house in The Keys (especially since Isaac didn't do any harm).  I went there last week for the first time this year...yes - that's how busy I have been...and I'm finally getting around to getting that project done.

So with that - I thought I'd share some of my very favorite pins for My Keys House Makeover.  I finally met with my decorator aka advisor/therapist yesterday and we narrowed down most of the details to get this project started. She's been  ready to hit me over the head very patient with me this last year and has you can see - has provided lots of ideas, colors and samples.  So I will be sharing some of the before and after on what she is doing to help update my little Keys getaway that I've forgotten to getaway to.

Here are some of my inspiration photos:

Here are some of the choices that I narrowed down so far...

These are the fabrics I narrowed down for the guest bedroom shams and bed skirt.

Leaning towards this one  The coral for the bedskirt and the shells for the shams.
I'm thinking to add on green and pink contrasting pillows. 

Some of the choices for the living room. 

More choices. 

As you can see - I love Coral Reef.

Leaning toward this for the master bedroom. My husband loves this one. 

I love this...but can't figure out what to do with it. 

TIme to make decisions.  And these are the ones that I narrowed it down too.  

Next week - I'll be posting final decisions on the living room, dining room and sun room.  Then the fun can begin.  Hope you are all having a great last week of the summer.  Hard to believe that Fall is almost here.

View of the Day....

Hello Everyone...it's been so long since I've done a post or checked in on my favorite blogs.  It really wasn't intentional...kind of one of those things where one thing leads to another. And next thing you know....6 weeks have gone by. Nothing in particular has been going on other than I've been very busy with work and in my free time, a bit distracted trying to get back into shape (yes, I've kept my New Year resolution so far).

But I've missed catching up with all my favorite blogs...and creating my posts.  So I'm gonna get right back at it by sharing an amazing photo and quote that I found today on Coastal Living in the View of the Day.  For the month of March, each day Coastal Living will be posting a breathtaking coastal photograph along with a quote.  You'll have to stop by and check it out. So I thought...what better way to get back into blogging than by sharing today's Coastal Living View of the Day.

"May the road rise to meet you, may the wind always be at your back, may the sun shine warm upon your face, may the rains fall softly upon your fields…"

–Irish blessing 

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.  Looking forward to catching up with all of you to see what you've all been up to. Have  great week!

Six Steps to Exotic Beauty

So I'm spending my Sunday catching up on reading my favorite blogs and magazines...and wanted to share this amazing home courtesy of Coastal Living.  I love the style of this Manhattan Beach home.  It's really inspiring me to redecorate some of the living spaces in my home.  But I must finish my current projects which is my closet re-do and my guest bedroom (stay tuned for photos in future posts).

Once those are completed, I just may do a little bit of redecorating in my family room.  That is the beauty of slipcovers...I've been telling my husband that we need a new set made...so that we don't "over use" the current set.  So far, he is groaning a little bit but it seems to be working.  I didn't mention that we may have to do more slipcovers for the dining chairs so they don't clash...thats all in due time.  

So here are some photographs of this amazing home....

Hope you enjoyed these photographs...check out Coastal Living for more inspiration. Have a wonderful week! 

My New, New Years Resolutions...

Well, as hokey as it sounds, every year I prepare a list of New Year Resolutions that I plan on doing starting on January 2nd. I always take a "free day" on New Years Day as I consider that the last holiday of the year.  So I began my new year today...and am vigorously practicing all my resolutions.  

Here's my list (not necessarily in order of importance):

• Slow down and take time to smell the flowers.
• Take my exercise program more seriously.
• Eat healthier with more fruits and vegetables. 
• Spend more time with my family.  
• Devote time every day to focus on my spiritual growth.
• Be more generous to others.
• Shop less, spend less, save more.
• Learn how to invest in the stock market.
• Be a better listener.

So that pretty much covers the areas that I want to focus on this year.  Even if I keep to 75% of them, I'll be happy. But for now, I plan on holding myself accountable to all of these, especially when I look at the list and realize these are qualities that I want to have more of. So today, I started off on the right foot with my food and exercise and spiritual growth. I ran four miles, while listening to "Ask and It is Given" (an amazing book from Esther & Jerry Hicks) and then worked out with my trainer for one hour.  Yes, it was a good day.

I just love of the freshness and possibilities a new year brings. So here's to an amazing 2012.  May yours be filled with health, happiness and prosperity.