With Valentines Day only a few weeks away, lots of spring weddings are right around the corner. 

  

If you are a sucker for the wedding tradition of the good luck penny in your shoe, then you might love this idea as much as I do. Etsy artist, Sarah, of Seize the Night, hand stamps these keepsake pennies with your initials, wedding date, personal sentiments, and other available little designs.

 

With the addition of the little hole Sarah adds, the penny can become a necklace, added to your keychain, or put on your charm bracelet, after the big day. 

And if you already have a special penny or a penny with a specific year on it, you can send it to her. 

Don't you love to walk into a home and be greeted by a big beautiful staircase? The style of a staircase can really give you a flavor of whats to come in the rest of the home. The end of the staircase, the newel post, is the show-off detail of the stairs and yet it is often overlooked.

 Are you familiar with all the different components of a staircase? 

{designing your perfect home}

There's a lot to it, right?!

I am just about ready to tackle my own staircase redo and I am super excited. The original carpet covering my stairs will be ripped up and replaced with hardwood and a runner. I am also trying to convince my hubby that our uber colonial contractor newels, and balusters need to be given the heave-ho. Here are some of the pics I have been storing at pinterest.

{pinterest via prettystufftumblr.com}

 

My favorite look is this simple box style. 

 

 {pinterest via houseandhome}

{pinterest via nikinikinine.blogspot} 

 {pinterest via folderofideas.blogspot.com}

 

{pinterest via decorpad}

 

Although I love the look of the clean, painted box newels above, I equally love this rustic

detail-free salvaged wood newel post {hubs is not a fan}.

 

{serena and lily}

And yet these fat carved newels are quite tempting.

 

{pinterest via bhg.com}

    

{pinterest via littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com}

 

 

{pinterest via houzz.com}

 

{pinterest via parlourhomeblog}

I'm so thankful to live in a part of the country that gets to truly enjoy all of the seasons. I try to stay in the moment and appreciate the current season, but sometimes my mind rushes to the months ahead. I know that we will have more snowfalls to experience this winter, but with expected temperatures in the 60's this weekend, I have to admit that I am getting antsy about sprouting daffodils, and dinners grilled out on the porch.

 

Seeing beautiful spots like this one tucked into the corner of Helene Aumont's property in the heart of Santa Barbara's wine country, certainly doesn't help my 'appreciate the moment' resolution. This little oasis is so unexpected, and yet it such a fantastic idea! 

 

So tell me, are you getting the spring bug, too??

{images via Traditional Home}

 I was doing a little blog hopping, and discovered a new to me designer featured on Green Street. I am pretty sure my big attraction to Jenny Wolf's design style is because she is a Southern girl designing in NYC. Although her business, Jenny Wolf Interiors began in 2011, she is no newbie to the design scene. Jenny grew up in a family of furniture retailers and after college, had the opportunity to travel the country working in several positions with Ralph Lauren. She then went to Parsons and received her degree in Interior Design.

Take a look at my favorite images from her portfolio.

 

 

 

 

 

Jenny has also just started her own blog, you can check it out here.