in real life: This weekend might be one of the best weekends of my life: spending Saturday night at The Parker Palm Springs with some girlfriends and then seeing Beyonce back in LA on Sunday night!!
Do you guys rememberthe inspiration board I put together for the outdoor deck space in our new loft? Well I'm not going to lie to you, but I think I pretty much nailed it. I am so obsessed with how this deck turned out and am super excited to finally be sharing before and after results with you today. Our moving truck was over a week and half late coming out from Chicago which was incredibly annoying, but also somewhat of a blessing since it allowed us lots of time to focus on sourcing, buying, assembling and planting all the stuff for our deck!!
The roof deck area is about 750 square feet which is a lot of space to cover considering the only piece of outdoor furniture we were coming into this space with was a coffee table. The biggest concern of mine going into this was how to fill the space so it feels complete, but enough free space for us to throw big parties while still having an intimate feeling for smaller gatherings. Some of the mandatory items were a large cabana for shade and privatization, a dining table big enough for 8 people, chaise lounges of some sort and a social game situation (all while trying not to spend a million dollars on this project!). I have been mildly obsessed withZ Gallerie's Portofino Pavilion for years now and my parents bought it for us as a housewarming gift. Since the pavilion is such a statement piece, I based the design of the rest of the deck around it. The other "splurge" item on the deck was the outdoor sectional that sits under the pavilion which was a lucky Craigslist find. Besides those two items we found most of the deck furnishings at Target, Ikea and Craigslist which helped keep the entire project budget friendly. You can see all the sources for the items on the deck at the bottom of the post.
Similar to our last loft's deck, we planted mostly succulents here since they are so low maintenance and thrive in the California heat. I did want to bring in some greenery besides succulents to give the space a more lush feel so we also picked up a small ficus and a palm tree at Home Depot as well as a few Italian Cypresses, a dwarf Eureka lemon tree and a 10 foot ficus from different sellers on Craigslist. Just as a random tip- if you have the time the drive around, Craigslist is a great source for plants/trees since you get a great deal and the plants are already acclimated with mature root structures so you have less chance of killing them!
I apologize in advance for how picture heavy this post is, but I just couldn't narrow it down any more than this!!
{I'll let you in on a little secret- for this hanging planter I opted to use faux succulents so that I wouldn't have to deal with the maintenance of watering it and having it drain onto our side table}
{I am so happy with how these DIY lights turned out for inside the cabana- especially since the decorative orbs were on sale for $15 each at Target!}
{this amazing ceramic swan planter is actually from Chris' late grandmother's house and it definitely is our most treasured possession on the entire deck}
{the succulent on the left was actually on our old dtla deck two years and we planted it at Chris' parents house so they could babysit it for us for the past two years. It really grew like crazy- have you ever seen one flower so much!?!}
{dogs gotta get fancy too.}
{As I mentioned, one of the mandatory items for the space was some sort of social game situation. After spending some time on craigslist, I fell in the love with the idea of buying an outdoor pool table that someone was selling, but it unfortunately wasn't going to fit in the tiny elevators of our historic building. The next best thing was inspired by a dive bar we sometimes find ourselves at that has a shuffleboard table so I started searching around for one. Craigslist once again came to the rescue with a 9 foot long shuffleboard table (the limit of what could fit in the elevators) and
we scooped it up right away!}
Two years ago I was introduced to watching The Bachelor with a group of girlfriends as we rotated watching at each others houses every week. At first I was in this get-together more for the wine and gossip since I was 100% skeptical of the cheesy show, but now I am full on convert obsessed with watching as the contestants compete for love (I'm really not kidding- my excitement to watch the finale last night was disturbing.) Today I'm sharing with you my go-to entertaining set up for a girls night tv viewing party. This formula of a batch cocktail, easy appetizers and light snacks is my go to for week night get togethers where you don't have a ton of time to prep.
Obviously you could serve wine to make it even easier on yourself, but batch cocktails only take a few more minutes to prep and they make the evening a lot more fun. Plus guests are able to serve themselves so that as the host you can enjoy the evening as well! For this recipe, I have modified one of my favorite girly cocktails, Maiden's Blush, into a party size recipe to serve 10 using Pinnacle Vodka and adding a champagne float. Scroll to the bottom of the post for full recipe!
As for snacks, I always have a stockpile of spiced cashews, almonds or pistachios which I fill on a vintage tray with and set it on our coffee table for guests to graze on after the appetizers are finished. My favorite appetizer is a good crostini recipe that tastes just as good when it is freshly toasted as it does once it has cooled after guests actually arrive. You can see some past crostini recipes here, hereand here, but for this one I keep it simple with a light spread of ricotta cheese, a tiny spoonful of ready-made pesto and top with freshly cut cherry tomatoes as well as a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. The pesto is what really brings the flavor in this crostini recipe so you could really substitute the ricotta and tomatoes for other fresh items you might have available such as goat cheese or fresh basil.
Cheers!
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When we moved to Chicago I had every intention to send out some fun snail mail moving announcements, but my good intentions got overtaken by the moving process, busy schedules and lots of travel. I promised myself I would find the time to get some simple address change announcements out to our friends and family this time around. Inspired my obsession with palm prints (evidence here & here) and wanting another reason to use color seams envelopes, I designed these simple 4 bar sized moving announcements. I absolutely love how the color palette of stark black and white with pale peach and the punchy palm print work off each other. I have also removed my personal text and made this simple design available for free download! Scroll down to the bottom of the post for sources and download links.
With all the negronis we make around here, it is not as if we are hurting to get through a bottle of Campari, but the bitter taste of the spirit has really grown on me so I have been searching for other fun drinks to use it in. A girlfriend of my mine orders Campari spritzes from time to time which inspired me to try one out especially since it seems perfect for the summer heat. This recipe is a total classic and extremely simple to prep not to mention it includes sparkling wine (whats not to like?!?!). This drink definitely showcases the unique flavor of Campari, but the refreshing sparkle from the club soda and prosecco make it a perfect poolside drink.
on pinterest: I want to recreate this floral display of fresh white hydrangeas in silver trophies- its the perfect mix of vintage and preppy. How amazing is this escort card display with a painting seemingly coming to life with fresh flowers!? Flutterfetti is one of my favorite brands of confetti and Oh Happy Day has a great diy tutorial on how to make it yourself!
on my wishlist: Even though we are in the dead heat of summer, I can still appreciate a great fall coat like this camel one from Revolve.These masculine trays from West Elm would be a perfect addition to a new midcentury inspired table we just purchased for our entry. A great print for a bar cart or kitchen!
If you have read this blog for a while you know that I don't do many giveaways around here which means that today's giveaway really means a lot to me! After seeing her Beverly prints in my Chicago home, the fabulous Jessica of The Aestate offered to do a giveaway with my readers which I immediately jumped at the chance to bring to you!
Today you can enter for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to The Aestate's online shop so you can score a Beverly print of your own or one of my other faves below! Simply leave a comment on this post to be entered (more rules at the bottom of the post). You do not want to miss out on this one- I already have my eye on a few more prints from her shop for our new place likethe new Sophie print!
Entry: To enter this giveaway simply leave a comment on this post- if you are not a registered commenter make sure to leave your email address.
Additional Entries: For one additional entry: "like" Mint Love Social Club& The Aestateon facebook then come back here to leave an additional comment letting me know that you have done so!
This giveaway will end on Sunday July 27th at midnight PST. I will draw a winner at random via the comments and contact them directly on Monday July 28th.
In addition to our outdoor deck (which I'll be sharing next week!), we were able to finish the bedroom area of our loft pretty quickly- I mean there is nothing like sleeping on an air mattress for a week and a half to motivate you right?!? Our old loft actually had walls around the bedroom area, this time around we are in a true loft situation with the bedroom being located just on the other side of the kitchen separated by a partition wall.
Not much has changed in this room since our Chicago bedroom, we had to losethe slatted bench for space reasons and we brought inthe Beverly prints from TheAestate since this is the only wall they will fit on nicely. The moroccan wedding blanket has found a home at the end of our bed and I love the bohemian vibe it adds to the otherwise glam-inspired decor. The one problem area I haven't figured out in this room is what to put on the gray credenza (which used to be our bar) that is under our largest (and favorite!) piece of art. I don't want to overload the piece with a bunch of stuff, but it definitely needs something, but I'm not in a big rush to figure it out since it's always nice to have a little project to work on.
Be sure to check back tomorrow for a special giveaway post with The Aestate!!
Sources to items that are still available for purchase (everything else is old or vintage) at the bottom of the post!
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