Welcome to Friday Favorites, a series where we share our favorite decor, design inspiration, movies, podcasts, fashion finds and more! And though it won’t all be French, some of it definitely will! 😉
I guess I should start this post with a huge thank you! The response from our first installment of Friday Favorites last week was overwhelming – in a good way! I had so many of you comment and tell me how much you liked it, and so many friends found it on Instagram and also came over which really meant a lot.
Because if this post is anything, it’s a way to connect with all of you and I felt like that’s what happened. I loved that so many of you loved it too. (If you missed last week, you can find that post here).
This is where I share everything from a great decor find, to a favorite movie, recipe, or podcast, to a wonderful thing to wear – anything that strikes me as interesting or fun or that you might love, too! 😉
THINGS I LOVE IN DESIGN/DECOR
Have you seen the Kelly Clarkson line at Wayfair?! It’s lovely and has a subtle French style that I just adore. Love this dresser, this coffee table, this side table that’s under $200, this charming chair, this fabulous ottoman, and this china cabinet. And I could go on! Seriously, it’s all so good and I don’t think there’s a single item here that has under a 4+ star rating.
You can see the whole line here.
While perusing Pinterest and looking for inspiration I found this gorgeous European farmhouse tour.
Another idea floating in my head is my desire to re-do our stairwell gallery wall. It’s full of vintage photos of family and while I love it, the frames are all over 20 years old and I’m not really feeling the mish-mash of frame styles anymore.
I’d love to re-do them in the same frames to bring continuity and a cleaner style to it, while still honoring the history. I really like what this blogger did here.
THINGS I’M WATCHING/READING/LISTENING TO
My husband and I usually watch dramas these days but we recently stumbled upon Ted Lasso and it’s so sweet and heartwarming! (And no, it’s not really about sports so ignore that, haha!)
And in my quest for new design shows, I found a old/new one! (New to me, but definitely not new!) I’ve watched a ton of Property Brothers over the years and to be honest, they’re sweet but it’s not my first choice in design shows.
However, I just found their show Brother vs. Brother Season 7 and I’m hooked. Maybe because this is in Hancock Park, an area that is a beautiful, historical area of Los Angeles, but I’m loving it.
The idea is much like Rock the Block in that they each purchase a home and whoever fixes their home up and sells it for more wins, but these homes are million dollar homes with million dollar budgets which is amazing. It’s really fun to get ideas and the historical beauty of the homes can’t be beat – I’m a sucker for an old home!
Who knew this has been around for 7 seasons?!
As much as I love design books, I’m also a huge fiction reader – especially in the summer! Is there anything better than a good book at the beach or by the pool? I recently read Small Great Things and it was profoundly moving. And if you love a good mystery The Last Flight is a lot of fun.
THINGS I’M WEARING/LOVING/WANTING
I get a ton of questions about the little gold beaded bracelets I wear whenever I’m doing videos on Instagram, so I thought I’d share them here with you. These bracelets are inexpensive because they are gold-filled – but gold-filled doesn’t turn!
I did some research and came to find out that gold-filled is not at all similar to gold-plated (which always turns and which I hate). I don’t love throw away jewelry, but I also can’t afford for every piece of jewelry to be 14k. Enter gold-filled!
Did you know that gold-filled is 5% pure gold by weight and that the products can last 20 years or more? And I love these little bracelets because you can wear a bunch or only a few, and they look great layered with other jewelry. 😉
I love espadrilles for summer and these are sooo comfy! I walked for hours the very first day and they didn’t rub or feel unstable like many espadrilles can.
Another summer favorite is this self-tanner lotion. It’s very subtle – I use it almost everyday. And it smells good too. If you’re into a darker tan this Bronzing Mousse is similar to a spray tan, works really well and looks natural and not at all fake or orangey.
Things I’m Making/Eating/Drinking
We are all about ice cream over here in the summer! If you have a Trader Joe’s near you, I highly recommend these amazing treats. They’re dangerously good.
It’s also been ridiculously warm this week so cooking has been pretty low on my list of things I want to do. As a result, I’ve been making BLTs and lots of salads. This version of Chinese Chicken salad is easy and delicious.
And in more ice cream news, this delicious homemade gelato recipe was on the blog this week. Just sayin’.
RANDOM THOUGHTS
In my quest to beautify the small everyday items in my house I’ve been looking for white sponges and a simple dish soap bottle that isn’t glass (I had those twice now and they broke because I’m handling them with soapy hands).
I finally found these sponges at Anthropologie – yay! There are also these less expensive ones at Ikea which I’d like to try at some point. This dish soap smells great and comes in a clean and simple bottle and I plan on refilling it after it’s empty.
My hands seem to take such a beating between cleaning, cooking and gardening so a couple of nights a week I slather them in Aquaphor and wear these gloves to bed. It makes a world of difference in how soft they are.
I don’t know where I’ve been but I recently started following this gorgeous photography account on Instagram – wow!
And if you missed it, earlier this week I shared these cheerful summer decor items.
I love sharing things that inspire me with all of you, and I hope you’ll find things that interest you, inspire you or just make you smile.
Happy Friday!
Sheila
xo
*AFFILIATE LINKS ARE INCLUDED FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE*
P.S.
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Oh and if you’ve missed any of the previous Friday Favorites, you can find them all here!
Kelly says
Such a fun post! Love the gallery wall you featured. I have a wall of our travel photos with all black frames that I’ve wanted to switch to cream or white. I’m going to try painting the frames to save $. My daughter bought me two of those beaded bracelets for Christmas. I wear them every day and they still look amazing. Thanks for all your shares!
Sheila says
Your daughter has good taste! 😉
And I think painting them is a great idea – let me know how it turns out!
Sheila
Carol Heartfelt Whimsies says
Wow—what a fun post! Lots of great tidbits and ideas for me (and for gifts)!! Love your design aesthetic, Sheila! Congratulations on this great new Friday Favorites series. Love it!
Sheila says
Aww thank you Carol! And thanks for all your support – I so appreciate it! (and love that you love the series!) 🙂
Sheila