Designer Files: Hanging with the Hewitts

I'm excited to have one of my favorite style bloggers, Caycee from Hanging with the Hewitts here today! As a wife, mom, and all around stylish gal, she's dishing on her home, how she got into design and what she can't live without in her own house.

Enjoy!

1. You have small children, but you love design and keeping a beautiful home. How do you let your kids be kids, but also keep your home tidy, allowing it to be a place you truly love?

They have their spaces and mommy has hers :)  My kids know they can freely go into any room in our home whenever they choose, but they also know which rooms are not meant for running, coloring, and kickball.  I tried really hard to give them a space just for them, a place their imaginations could run wild, and honestly, in their playroom is where you will find them 90% of the time.  Carson is my neat and tidy child and always cleans up his mess, and Taylor....well, she has a long way to go before I can say that about her ;) 

2. How did you get into design?

It has always been something I love, and the older I get the more I love it.  To be honest, I am not 100% when it really became an obsession of mine, but I am guessing when my husband and I bought our first home. 

3. Stripes or plaid?

Stripes all the way!! 

4. Geometric or floral?

Hmmm....can I please choose both?!? Because this one is a tie! 

5. Symmetry or asymmetry?

Symmetry. I am way too OCD and type A. 

6. One decorating "rule of thumb" is:

Always hang your drapes/curtains as high as you can.  It gives the illusion of a taller window and makes your space appear larger. 

7. I couldn't live without _____ in my home.

Sunburst mirrors. I have them in four different rooms and I never get tired of seeing them. 

8. A design don't:

Don't forget the details that make your space special and unique.  I love walking into someone's home and seeing personal little snippets. 

9. What is your favorite spot in your home?

My daughters room. We are currently in the middle of re-designing it from nursery to big girl room, and I am already in LOVE!! 

10. What has been one of your biggest design challenges?

Our master bedroom.  It is the most oddly shaped room I have ever seen!  It's extremely long but narrow. Furniture placement has been such a challenge in this space. 

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Thanks for sharing, Caycee! LOVE Taylor's room and I also adore sunburst mirrors. Don't you love her philosophy on design with kids in your home? I will remember that for one day down the road :) Go say hi to Caycee and get fashion and home inspiration from her here!

You can find all of the other posts in this series HERE.

Happy Tuesday!
xoxo

interior design website / services / portfolio

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Get the Look: Coastal Home Tour

Blackband Design / Tessa Neustadt

 To me, this home is casual, sophisticated, well-designed, interesting, resort-like, and a home that you could truly relax in. I've seen this updated beach home tour posted a few places, but it debuted on Style Me Pretty last week. Being so drawn to neutrals and blues recently, the feature caught my eye and I couldn't help but share it here, too! Some favorite details in the home include:

- The amount of seating in the family room. It's a lot of seating, but doesn't feel overwhelming or cluttered.
- Countertops in the kitchen.
- That bedroom. Oh me! Can I stay in there for just one night?! The flowy draperies, the seagrass chairs. It's everything.

You can get this beachy vibe below:

DETAILS:

What's your favorite part about this home tour?
xoxo

interior design website / services / portfolio

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Friday Finds: Rocksbox

It's almost the weekend and for this week's Friday Find's series, I'm sharing about my new obsession. It's called Rocksbox. Appropriately named, each month (or more, depending on how often you want to get new jewelry!) you will receive this cute little box in your mail box. Inside there will be 3 new pieces of jewelry for you to wear on loan until you decide you want to send them back (in a prepaid package) for 3 more new pieces. If you love an item of jewelry in your box, you can purchase the jewels at a discounted price. It's such a simple and fun process!

My favorite part about this is you will receive jewelry that is in line with your style, because when you sign up, you take a style quiz. Your Rocksbox stylist will refer to the style survey when putting together each box. I've always struggled with finding jewelry I loved and then actually remembering to wear it is a whole other problem. It's the last thing I think about when getting ready in the morning, so it often gets forgotten. Usually I stick to a sentimental diamond necklace my mom gave me and a simple silver bracelet. But now I have so many fun options! Last month I bought the Kendra Scott bracelet that came in my box and I wear it almost every day now. It's simple, gold, dainty and light weight-- perfect for me. You can shop it here.

Here's what came in my box this month:

A beautiful bangle, gold Gorjana V necklace, and a Loren Hope statement necklace: 

I think I'll be keeping my gold V necklace this month. I can already tell I'm going to love it after wearing it yesterday :) Here's the best part: if you sign up using the code michaelanoelledesignsxoxo you will get your first month's box for FREE just to see how fun and easy it is. Since you essentially rent unlimited designer jewelry with this subscription, you could get as many boxes as you want sent to you in your one month free. It's thrilling-- let me tell ya ;)

Sign up HERE! To start, you'll take the style survey, then get to browse through all the jewelry and add pieces you love and want to try out on your wist list. Easy as pie. Let me know if you give it a whirl. I'll show you how I styled these pieces sometime soon!

TGIF!
xoxo

interior design website / services / portfolio

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Apartment Kitchen Updates

It's been a while since I've shown you an update in my kitchen and since I've added a few new things, I thought it was the perfect time to show you around!

 I have been saving up for my marble cutting board from Sur La Table, and finally I decided to pull the trigger while I was at the store a few weeks ago. Since I have all (ugly) laminate countertops in my apartment, I wanted to come up with a way to distract from them. This HUGE marble pastry/cutting board covers a large section of my counter and I love it! I was surprised by how affordable it was. {Side note: Sur La Table is one of those stores I could stay in forever and end up thinking I needed absolutely everything in the store by the time I left. Thing I didn't even know I wanted or even existed suddenly seem so necessary! ;)}

 I picked up these flowers (probably the last of the peonies for the year!) at the farmer's market yesterday.

Since my apartment is so white, thanks to these builder-white, no-sheen walls, I like to add color in other ways. When I saw this ADORABLE print by Lily & Val, I knew it needed to go in my kitchen asap. If you know me, you know I drink ridiculous amounts of tea, so this print was basically made for me ;) I framed it in a fun turquoise frame to pick up on the pastel colors in the chalk art. Have you checked out Lily & Val recently?! Valerie has everything you could dream of! From placemats, wrapping paper, sweet greeting cards and more, there are so many beautiful and thoughtful pieces for your home. You can get 10% off your next L&V purchase with code MND10.

Two weeks ago I picked up this little basil plant and thankfully, it's still alive! I truly can't believe it! Clearly it's a little wilted, but hopefully it has a few more weeks left in it, because I love cooking with basil. To complete the little counter vignette, I have my recipe box sitting to the right.

Last week I grabbed this dish towel for 50% off at Anthropologie, which made it less than $10! This exact one is sold out, but I love this one just as much. This striped set is also fun.

Tea Kettle

Finally, I'm not sure why it took me this long to think of it, but I've finally found a great solution for two problems. One, the top of my fridge has always felt awkward and empty. Two, my fruit/veggie bowl has always taken up too much counter space. Last week I stacked two of my cookbooks on the fridge and put the bowl on top of that. I think it added some good height and keeps things interested up there. It also covers the ugly cabinets a bit ;) 

Cookbooks: Three Sisters Bake / It's All Good  / Fruit bowl: HomeGoods


It's amazing how small little updates can really make the rooms look and feel so different. I love that about decorating! Have you made any kitchen updates recently?

Don't forget you can get 10% off your next Lily & Val purchase with code MND10.

Happy Thursday!
xoxo

interior design website / services / portfolio

Note: MND was gifted the Tea print from Lily & Val, but as always, all opinions are our own. Thank you for supporting shops we genuinely love.

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My Story, Part Four: Things I've Learned in Business

Photo Credit: Danielle Poff Photography

It's Wednesday, which means I'm here to share some more of My Story with you. I started by sharing how I was when I was little, how I decided to study interior design in college, how I chose my college, how I started my blog and what awesome experiences having a blog has afforded me. Today I'm excited to share a few things I learned when I first started my interior design business.

1. Website Design. Being a blogger, I know how sensitive I am to good (or bad) design and layouts. If something isn't aesthetically pleasing, chances are, I'm not going to stick around for long or come back. I knew when coming out of the gates with a new interior design business, I needed to come out strong and with an awesome website. I hired Ashley & Malone to create a pretty website that really suited me. A website legitimizes your business, so I suggest spending the necessary money to make it great!

2. Confidence. Knowing in your head and heart that you can make your business work is really important. Something a teacher told me in school stuck with me as I was starting my business. She said, "call yourself an interior designer. That's what you are! You aren't a person who 'dabbles in design' or is 'trying out design' for fun. Go in with confidence, because that gives people confidence in you!"  Wow! What powerful words to a new business owner.

When people would ask what I was going to do with my degree, I was guilty of answering "I'm going to try to start my own business" or "I'm going to help people decorate". NO! By telling people "I am an interior designer and I'm starting my own business after I graduate", people were more confident in my ability.

3. Ask for Help. As a new business owner, I approached designers who I had worked for to ask questions about things I wasn't sure on. Thankfully, I had very kind mentors. I have asked my dad for help with taxes (holy cow-- that's a whole other subject!!) and asked for assistance from many others along the way. It's always best to ask and do something right, than to not ask and make mistakes. That brings me to my next point.

4. Accept that You're Going to Make Mistakes. It's just going to happen. Approach situations with grace and humility. Learn from your mistakes and put systems in place so they don't happen again! I remember once a few months into my business, I forgot to charge a client tax on their thousand dollar order. Guess who paid their tax for them?! Yes, that'd be me ;) Never again!

5. Align Yourself with Trusted, Talented People. Collaborating on projects and posts with awesome people and bloggers, knowing you can trust your website developer and everyone else you work with, and gathering a team of people (for me that'd be painters, contractors, upholsterers, woodworkers, tile-layers, etc.) I feel are talented and have integrity is key. I have a friend in the industry who I regularly chat with about our upcoming projects and ventures, just to bounce ideas off one another. This has been huge for my business!

6. Continue Blogging and Growing Your Online Presence. I get half of my business from people who have heard about me through my blog, Facebook or Instagram. By blogging often and putting quality posts on Facebook, Instagram and other social media, I am increasing my chances of being seen. I try my best to be personable and friendly on social media, engaging with my sweet friends and readers. This increases brand intimacy! 

Those were some of the most important things I've learned as I started my business, all the way until now; two years into my business. I'm still learning something with each new client! In a field like this, you just never stop learning. 

 Catch up on the series here:
Part One: Floor Plans & High School Papers
Part Two: College & Starting My Blog
Part Three: Opportunities Through Blogging 

Happy Wednesday!
xoxo

interior design website / services / portfolio

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Summer Essentials: Home Accessories

DETAILS: lemon towel / vintage clock / two tier cake stand / gray vase / lemons / floral print / copper candle / pink napkin / gold terrarium /

Accessories are a fun way to instantly update your space. While you probably want to keep your big items-- sofa, tables, beds, chairs, etc. -- you have more flexibility with the little items of decor, pillows, and curtains. Here are some of my favorite decor items for summer above.

- I love me a gold terrarium. West Elm has SO many cute shapes and sizes this season!
- A two-tiered cake stand tower is so fun for parties and entertaining, but I can also see it out on your kitchen counter for everyday use. It can house your fruit, snacks, small mugs, or a cute plant.
- Change out some of your art in your gallery wall with a fresh, colorful print to reflect to the season! I love this floral print.

Other items to change out for the warmer season are entry rugs, doormats, and pillows.

What are your favorite summer shoes? Catch up on my Summer Essentials Series here:
- Tops
- Shorts
- Dresses
- Patio decor
- Shoes

What decor do you like to change out?
xoxo

interior design website / services / portfolio

1

California Kumquat Inspiration Shoot

I hope you all had a wonderful Father's Day weekend! Saturday was my dad's birthday, then Father's Day on Sunday and now today is my boyfriend's birthday. That's a whole lots of celebrating! Today will be spent baking a cake in between working :)

Last April we hosted The Bloom Workshop in Los Gatos, California at Regale Winery. Last week we had our styled inspiration shoot featured on Style Me Pretty, but wanted to share it here as well! Since we were in California at a winery, we wanted the casual, yet sophisticated California feel to shine through our setting. With a gorgeous backdrop like Regale, our job was easy! We came up with a kumquat-inspired tablescape, complete with gorgeous dishes from Pieces by Violet and the most beautiful centerpiece by Natalie Bowen Designs. She thoughtfully incorporated kumquats into the arrangement and perfectly executed my vision!

Photography: Ashley Slater | Floral Design: Natalie Bowen Designs | Wedding Dress: Sarah Seven | Cakes: Sweet Tooth Confections | Hair And Makeup: Camille Monique Beauty | Venue: Regale Winery | Calligraphy & Signage: Kaitlin Parisho Designs | Event Concept & Styling: Michaela Noelle Designs | Event Styling & Coorination: The Bloom Workshop | Film Processing: Indie Film Lab | Rentals: Pieces By Violet

Didn't it turn out lovely?!

Have a wonderful start to your week!
xoxo

interior design website / services / portfolio

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