Style Me Green: 2012

PANTONE COLOR OF 2013: EMERALD

The color experts have come out with their trends and predictions for what's going to be hot in 2013. Pantone named Emerald their 2013 color of the year, and to tell you the truth I couldn't be happier. I think this shade of green is the classiest color out there, with a deep plum at a close second. Here are a few of my favorite accessories and spaces featuring this festive jewel tone. What do you think about their choice?

TOFFEE BLONDIES IN A JAR

This year for our neighbor and co-worker gifts we decided to give "cookies in a jar." We thought people bake so much during the holiday and have so many treats hanging around that giving something that they could make later with their kids or have on hand for a snowy day would be fun. I found several ideas online but not many had rave reviews in the taste department, just cute packaging. Because I had my own packaging idea we decided to find something that would taste great first and foremost. I stumbled upon this idea for Toffee Blondies from Better Homes and Gardens.

To assemble them you need the following ingredients:
1 qt. Mason Jar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
1/2 cup Heath Chips

I like to put the brown sugar at the top of the jar because if it hardens it is a pain to get out of the bottom of the jar, but they can be layered in any order you want.

Your recipient will add the following ingredients and follow these directions:
1/4 cup melted butter
2 lightly beaten eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Melt some butter in a bowl. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla. Pour in the contents of the jar. Mix it all up. Pour the batter in an 8x8x2 pan coated with cooking spray. Bake for 25 to 30 m. or until the blondies start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Cool in the pan and cut into 16 bars.

To make our cute tags we found these great free printable ones from Hey Look. And I customized the recipe cards to print on the back of one of their tags. Feel free to use this file for your own gifts.

MY HOLIDAY CARDS

Yesterday we spent all day doing our Holiday cards. I was ill-prepared and realized too little too late that I basically had one day to style, shoot, design, print and address 48 lovely cards. Fortunately, we did the same info-graphic style card last year, so we just had to fill in the new details of 2012. Magically it all happened, and I am not sure how I managed to make my office gifts, click here for those, and do 4 loads of laundry as well. (okay so there is a giant pile of unfolded laundry on my sofa right now- but its clean!) I also got a bit cracked out on the entire first season of DC Cupcakes while doing all of this, so naturally I just want to start off the day the right way with a sweet little treat.

Update: If you'd like to order cards with a similar design visit our shop here, or drop me a line for a custom design. stylemegreenstudio (at) gmail.com

ECO FRIENDLY GIFTS FOR HIM

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ECO FRIENDLY GIFTS FOR HER

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HOLIDAY WREATH GIVEAWAY

Excited to announce a giveaway with Opal Design Group. We are giving away $50 to spend at West Elm, Pottery Barn, or Williams Sonoma to one lucky winner. Details below.

CONTEST DETAILS:

Entries are due on December 20th 2012

The Winner will be announced on December 23rd 2012

The winner will receive $50 to spend at West Elm, Pottery Barn, or Williams Sonoma

Simply send in a photo of your wreath to info@opaldesigngroup.com, it doesn't have to be new this year, it doesn't have to be made by you, it just has to be fun, creative, beautiful or festive!

HAPPY BLACK FRIDAY

I think today is the scariest day of the year, even more terrifying than Halloween. I just avoid going out at all. I have never shopped a Black Friday in my life and I hope to keep it that way. But I get it, you can buy toys, clothes, and gifts for deep discounts, on a small budget you can get a lot for your money- and if you have a large family you can stretch your dollar farther. If you do venture out today in search of great deals think about investing in local businesses and keeping your money close to home.

Almost anything you can buy from a big box store can be found at a local mom and pop shop. Those same vendors you saw selling jewelry and hats at the Farmer's Market will likely still have inventory to select from. If you are shopping for someone who "has everything" try donating to a charity in their name. Give gift certificates to local restaurants, and shops if you are unsure of what to stuff stockings with. You won't regret investing in your local infrastructure, I promise. If you just can't find the perfect thing try sites like Etsy, where you can select from many vendors of homemade and vintage goods. Good luck on this day, shop smart, and shop wisely!

SO THANKFUL

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Holiday weekend, and a Happy Thanksgiving. I am so grateful for all of my readers. I couldn't have imagined having this many followers and loyal readers in such a short amount of time. I love all the emails you send me, and have loved working with some of you on your home projects. In the next few weeks I will be sharing some holiday gift guides and tips on hometown holiday shopping and decor.

THANKSGIVING TABLE INSPIRATION

I can't believe Thanksgiving is next week, and whether your taste in tablescapes is subdued or sumptuous, get ready to give thanks in style. Check out this collection of photos of beautiful Thanksgiving table settings, centerpieces and accessories for ideas and inspiration.

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HOW TO STYLE YOUR SOFA

One of my design pet peeves is when a homeowner buys a sofa, and it sits in their living room with the matching pillows that it came with. But I can sympathize, you take time selecting the perfect piece at the right price, and you have been convinced that that is how it is "supposed to look." It is hard fore many of my clients to see that it is okay to replace those pillows with some new ones that coordinate with their sofa and the decor in the room. In fact, many times you can just take off the cover that came with the pillow and purchase/make a new one. So here are a few tips on how to style your sofa.

Select a matching pair of pillows that are either 24 or 22 inches square to place on the far right and left of the sofa, I like to call these the "anchor" pillows. Work your way to the center with a set of slightly smaller square pillows.

Mix and match your fabrics, sofa upholstery and pillow fabrics should never be the same. If you have a solid fabric on your sofa use a print on your anchor pillows to ground other pillows, and vice versa. Limit patterned fabrics to one set of pillows per sofa.

I don't like to have more than 5 pillows on a sofa, I think it just gets too cluttered after that. If you want to add an odd shaped pillow to the mix to keep the look from feeling too symmetrical, include a smaller, rectangular pillow made from a third fabric that's different but coordinates.

I like to use down inserts rather than polyester inserts. They are more comfortable and better looking. If allergies are a problem, try high-quality, hypoallergenic down.When you fluff the pillows give the top a gentle karate chop, just to get the slight "v" shape. (its hard to do this with polyester filled pillows)

If you stick to those simple rules you will be headed in the right direction, and take it from me- as long as your sofa doesn't have built in cup holders, you'll be miles ahead of the curve.

Here are a few of the rule breakers and why its okay:

In this sofa they stacked the tallest pillows in the middle and the shortest on the edge. Its okay because the pillows on the ends are the same size and they alternated the color and patterned pillows.

In this room they left matching pillows on the sofa. In this example they placed a matching pillow next to a solid pillow to vary the layers. If you want to keep your matching pillows, try layering them on the inside and using a contrasting pillow as the anchor. If your matching sofa pillows coordinate with other upholstered pieces in the room try putting them on those pieces.

DESIGN INSPIRATION

Welcome to the new look of Style Me Green. It hasn't changed a lot, we just got a mini face lift. I was inspired over the weekend to change the signature green to more of a deep teal green. Where did I find the inspiration you ask? My Pinterest page of course. While "watching" the Bears beat down on the Titans on Sunday (my Fantasy team killed it by the way) I was perusing my living room boards and was surprised at how much blue/green was there. (I am a notorious grey/white girl) But maybe secretly I'm in love with Jade and Teal. Just take a look for yourself.

I am pretty sure that this is a subtle sign that I need a new sofa, because I had pinned this image twice! I love the long pillow on the front of the sofa.

So while I watched the electoral votes roll in I pulled together a new color scheme and just rolled with it. Like a new haircut I am still living with it, but loving it so far. What inspires you?

GIVEAWAY WINNER

Don't forget to go Vote Today. If you need to know your polling place or how to register please go here.

Congratulations to Ellen Bush, the winner of the Pink Collar Shop Giveaway!

HEALTHY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

Loving these peanut butter cookies and only 36 calories per cookie! You can't beat that, they are even better if you make your peanut butter from scratch. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 Cup Peanut butter
1 Cup Sugar
1 TSP baking soda
1 egg

Mix the peanut butter and sugar first then add in the egg and baking soda. Bake for 10 minutes on a lightly greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees.

HIGH POINT FAVORITES

I finally got around to unloading my ipad and phone of all the shots I snapped at High Point. Here are some of my favorites.I had so much fun, my feet were killing me, but it was all worth it. There was so much inspiration, and I was able to source a lot of things for current projects.

I love this bed, I'd even take it in the display size

This carved lamp was so gorgeous in person, the finish was amazing and they had the perfect cream linen shade to top it off.

These framed intaglios were a highlight for me. We saw them at quite a few showrooms and I think they look so sharp framed in the gold with the detail on the edge of the mat.

I not only love the shape of this nightstand, but the hardware was perfect. I am a sucker for a great tassel or ring pull and these were the perfect addition to this feminine silhouette.

This pillow was one of my favorites at market, I've seen this detail done on pillows before but these guys did them so well. If there was a heaven for pillows you'd see it below.

The re-CYCLER had all these great bikes hanging on display, I thought it was so funky.

Love this finish.

This table is one solid piece of carved stone, beautiful! I also loved the cabinet behind it.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Don't forget to enter the giveaway! HERE

GIVEAWAY: PINK COLLAR SHOP

I am excited to be hosting an awesome giveaway once again. This time from the fabulous, Aubree Hegdahl, owner of the Pink Collar Shop, and creator of Herbivore Sweets. Aubree makes, from scratch, Vegan-friendly soaps, natural lotions, soy candles, sundries, and other yummy beauty products. She lets nature do the work, and never uses any artificial colorants or dyes. The products are inspired by nature’s charm, and her inner “foodie.” Here's what she has to say about her favorite products:

The Vegan Peach Tea body butter has always been a best seller of mine, it’s a thick whipped cream made with raw shea butter. Using it for dry weather, it gives you that extra punch of moisture when you need it most. The formula is paraben free and vegan-friendly, with an original recipe of delicious essential oils of peach tea and a hint of ginger.

The Mango Peach Salsa is for the foodie’s enjoyment! The soy blend candle is a unique, fresh scent that adds a positive ambiance with the fair-trade soy wax and the sweet blend of Mango Peach Salsa.

SO HERE IS HOW TO ENTER:
1. Like Style me Green AND The Pink Collar Shop on Facebook

2. After you've done these 2 things leave a comment below telling us what scents you love to mix, or you'd love to see in future beauty products.

*If you don't have a blog or Google account please leave an email with your comment, so we can notify you if you're the winner!

FOR AN EXTRA ENTRIES
1. Follow Style me Green on twitter/pinterest, be sure to leave an additional comment on this post (up to 2 extra entries).

2. Mention this giveaway on twitter/facebook/personal blog, be sure to leave an additional comment on this post (up to 3 extra entries).

3. Follow Aubree on instagram @thepinkcollarlady or Erika @erikablank be sure to leave an additional comment on this post (up to 2 extra entries).

4. Pin this giveaway on pinterest, be sure to leave an additional comment on this post (up to 1 extra entry).

The giveaway ends Monday, November 5th at 11:59 PM.
One winner will be selected using random.org and will be notified by email.

*Remember you have to comment to be entered, if you don't comment you can't win.

HALLOWEEN 2012 COSTUME IDEAS

I hate store bought Halloween costumes. I get that they are super convenient, and they can look just like Spider-man or Cinderella-- but I love coming up with a fun costume idea, and spending time finding or making all of the pieces and parts that go into it. This year I was racking my brain as to what to go as, but as soon as we saw Moonrise Kingdom I knew exactly what our 2012 costumes would be:

Three years ago John and I went as the statue of Liberty and Mt. Rushmore. It was my favorite costume to make and was basically free, we were only out a can of black and green spray paint, and 2 sheets of foam board! We still have the mask and crown just in case we find ourselves in a costume pinch!