Let the festivities begin…

Article Posted on Wednesday, April 20th, 2011 at 8:22 am

There’s nothing a Southern belle loves more than a royal wedding in the Springtime! Oh sure, we may not be British, but you’d better believe that we strive each day to live like American royalty so a big party like next Friday’s royal wedding is just another excuse to think like a princess.

On that note, here is Day 1 of some Royal Wedding festivities here on the blog and what better way to begin than with the royal wedding route. Check out this gorgeous print by House That Lars Built. I especially love the beautiful little details like those sweet red arrows that mark the drive. Isn’t it just lovely?

A Few Random Links…

Article Posted on Thursday, March 31st, 2011 at 5:19 pm

Good afternoon! I don’t know how it is where you are but here it has seemed to be dark, damp & dreary all week. Thus, I thought the photo of my very 1st Dark & Stormy (while at Chez Liberty on Monday night) would be the perfect header for a post with random who’s-its and what-not links…

This article in the NYTimes on Emily Thompson, a floral designer living in NYC, sounded perfectly romantic to me and makes me want to go home and turn our dining room into a rotating showcase of flowers and things.

Incidentally, Atlanta stylist Annette Joseph just completed a lovely series on her blog about styling your home for photos. I’m also super stoked about the rumors that Annette is going to have a reality show on  Fox. I’m not sure if it’s set in stone yet, but isn’t that great? Finally a reality show I would watch! In another life, I think I want to be Annette Joseph.

One thing I listened to while working yesterday was this interview that Emily Martin (aka the Black Apple) did with Julie Sabatier for OPB. I’d highly recommend clicking here and listening if you have like Emily and her work. She’s a Southern girl, ya know!

Finally I thought I’d add that I’ve been posting a lot of fun links lately on Twitter and the Secrets of a Belle facebook page so I think those may start replacing these Random Things posts.

You can click here to follow me on Twitter.

And here to *Like* Secrets of a Belle on Facebook!

Be sure to say ‘hi!’
xo~ Hannah B.

Friday’s Random Links…

Article Posted on Friday, February 4th, 2011 at 4:21 pm

1.) Recently, I have sort of fallen head over heals in love with the photography of Ms. Jamie of From Me to You. Needless to say, this pictorial story just added kindling to the fire! It’s called A Hudson River Story, and you can find it in the latest issue of Rue but, in the meantime, these are a few of my favorites. Isn’t the lighting just romantic and haunting all at the same time?!

2.) This is probably #526 on the list of reasons we should frequently visit NYC… and, of course, by frequently I mean at least for the 1st time. Artist Daniel Egnéus just released a book last week that tells the classic Grimm brothers tale of Little Red Riding Hood. (I will be ordering my copy ASAP!) Anyway, during the month of February these works will be on display at Traffic. If you’re in the area, please stop by for me!

{first seen here}

3.) I would like to live in this bathroom. (Also Marta’s description of how to have a proper soak is quite cute!)

4.) I am quite a fan of the adorable illustrations of Ms. Janice Nadeau, and I am especially fond of this most recent one for Coup de Pouce!

5.) I’ve been coming across great fashion blogs right & left lately, but this may be one of my new favorites. Keiko Lynn has a very rocker-chic style, I *love* Makeup Mondays, and I think I may need her bangs. What do you think?

6.) The 1st time I heard this song, Husband sang it with my mother. To make the moment weirder, I totally thought it was a fake song and have stood by that for the past 6 years. And then, I saw this cute little video. Who knew?

diy valentine’s cakes from tiger in a jar on Vimeo.

7 (sort of) Random Things

Article Posted on Tuesday, January 18th, 2011 at 8:44 am

1.) I was reading some of my feeds this morning and cam across this video on Maquette. This little girl had me enthralled–what an imagination! Also, why is it that even French preschoolers have great hair and a better vocabulary than most adult women in the States?

While we are being a little childish & imaginative this morning, I can’t help but share some of the gorgeous illustrations that have been going into my inspiration folder as of late. Do you have a new favorite illustrator?

2.) Yesterday Black Eiffel posted about Julia Denos… I am now in *love* with her gorgeous faces and pretty textures! She is also the brain behind this much anticipated Audrey Hepburn book. Plus, she has a blog!

3.) Leigh-Ann posted Illustration Sunday and brought to my attention a quirky little illustrator on Etsy called Pop Pop Portraits. I sort of love this particular print. LA’s thinking of getting a custom one of herself with her precious pup; do you think I could get one of me & a giraffe?

4.) Nichole often reminds me with her lens to look at the details as I walk down the street. She always seems to see things other people would just pass by. In particular, this Paris Gray post comes to mind. It’s really worth looking through the entire thing, but these 2 whispering girls have been on my mind ever since I saw them. Why can’t all graffiti look like this? Also, if you don’t follow Nichole on Twitter, you should.

5.) Another ‘little detail’ that I loved was this photograph of the doors at Hollywood’s Beauty Bar taken by the English Muse. Aren’t they great?

6.) Finally, I really have a soft spot for simple, black & white illustration. So when Victoria posted about the Paulette edition, I was hooked immediately. To see more of Iris Schwarz’s work click here.

7.) And as a really random little ending to this post: My friend Martha Cate, who you may have seen if you used to read my old blogspot, is about to have a baby. Well, she has started a sort of family-centered blog to document all of her crazy nesting tendencies, etc. It is really beautiful and totally worth a look.

P.S. She’s also an incredible photographer and recently did this shoot that made me cry a little. God has really opened doors for her to minister through her photography and it is amazing. You can visit her photography blog here.

Oscar Wilde Week : Day 2

Article Posted on Monday, December 27th, 2010 at 10:21 pm

{illustration source}

7 Random *Christmas-y* Things

Article Posted on Tuesday, December 21st, 2010 at 10:00 am

1.) This Ohio-an always finds the best Kodachromes. (You can see more of his collection here.) This one makes me want to wear the crazy layers like the boys in A Christmas Story and walk home from school in 2 feet of snow…

2.) Don’t these windows at Bergdorf Goodman put all the others you’ve seen to shame?

3.) That’s right… a snowman & an octopus. Love? Yes. (Seen here on Mallory’s blog.)

4.) Miss Skunkboy’s DIY makes me want to make another ornament or 3 to put on our tree. Isn’t it adorable?

5.) Also, I know I’m a “grown-up” (ha!), but I totally want to make a Dress Up Felt Board for my office just like this one Rachel made for the new Red Velvet Shop. She has a how-to on her blog.

Plus, she shared a little of her inspiration. Aren’t these *too* cute!?

6.) I am, of course, a fan of They Draw and Cook, a blog full of illustrated recipes. This one especially caught my eye last week. Full disclosure, I have not tried the Peanuts Holiday Roll, illustrated by Maribel Castells of Mallorca, Spain, but I *love* the illustration!

7.) Finally, it was on this day in 1937 that Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs premiered at the Carthay Circle Theatre. If you’d like to take a break from shopping, baking & wrapping, you may want to pop it in the DVD player and sip some hot chocolate!

Vintage Eye Candy

Article Posted on Monday, December 20th, 2010 at 10:46 am

“Personally, I’m willing to close my eyes to Reverend Thornton’s methods — after all, the basket fund has already doubled last year’s record.”
from Esquire, 1939

Don’t you just *love* these playful images? We could all learn a thing or 2 about using our feminine wiles. I’ve always thought pin-up girls were so flirty. Isn’t it fun being a girl?

7 Random Things

Article Posted on Tuesday, December 14th, 2010 at 6:18 pm

6 Random Things

Article Posted on Friday, December 10th, 2010 at 4:50 pm

1.) I saw this illustration the other day on NYTimes.com, and I just had to look up the artist. As it turns out, Chris Silas Neal’s work has appeared in a lot of publications including Real Simple & the Wall Street Journal. Don’t you just *love* his color palette?

(Click here to visit his site.)

2.) For a week & a half, I have been trying to figure out how to make a perfectly circular tree skirt. Today, on Rachel’s blog, Smile & Wave, Stacie (from Gingibersnap) did a great DIY that shows how to do just that!

3.) A lot of people don’t believe me when I say, “It’s the little things,” but for me it totally is. Take, for example, this handlebar mustache corkscrew and bottle opener. Awesome? I know. Tell your friends.

While you’re at it, you may want to check out these wacky gifts for the weird-minded foodie in your life: 1 / 2 / 3

4.) One of the very first blogs I ever read was Hilary Lang’s Wee Wonderfuls. My tastes have changed a lot since then, but I still love her stories, and I’ve especially enjoyed these 2 project how-to’s lately. Cute right? She even has a great post on how to do those ringlets!

5.) I’m kind of in love with this idea that Ashley posted on Design*Sponge this week, although I think I want to use it to keep track of menus throughout the year. May be  a fun little experiment.

6.) Today, Lara posted pics of Emily Martin’s (aka The Black Apple‘s) Paper Doll Primer, and I’ve really got to pick up a copy just to have. Doesn’t it look super cute?

Also, while you’re at it, you may want to visit Lara’s etsy shop. All of the proceeds go to pay for her cat, Atticus’ chemo treatments. I am especially in *love* with this little gal.

7 Random Things

Article Posted on Monday, November 22nd, 2010 at 9:00 am

Good morning & happy Monday! Hope you had an absolutely *lovely* weekend! 

1.)  I really love this idea from Beth Jones! It’s a style planner for the true fashion diva! Isn’t that great? As she describes it, “STYLIT lets you create inspiration pages for each season, fashion forecast each month, imagine a new look while traveling, and plan your outfits daily.” You can get your’s here. Also, I first saw it on Promise Tangeman’s blog and she also has an interview with Beth if you’re interested.

2.)  A couple of weeks ago, the New York Times released their 10 Best Books lists and, as usual, I was most interested in the Illustrated Children’s list. Then, this past week, I was excited to see that the Martha Stewart Crafts Dept. blog looked into the process of Erin E. Stead who illustrated one of the most beautiful books on the list: A Sick Day for Amos McGee.

3.)  I got really excited when I saw this little indoor cabin on Design for Mankind. It’s sort of like a grown-up playhouse. This summer, the hottest on record since something like the 1910′s, we only had AC in  one room so we brought a mattress down to what had previously been a junk room of sorts and camped out until October. It was pretty magical, and I kind of miss it. I think when we build our dream house, something like this will definitely be incorporated.

4.)  I have always had this thing for giraffes. Probably because I too have an unusually long neck. Anywho, I am kind of digging this Jonathan Adler lamp. What do you think? 

5.)  When Husband & I went to vote a few weeks ago, the lady running the booths was reading this book. I’ve only seen it available here, but it looked hilarious. For instance: Who Would Win… King Kong or Godzilla? Beer or Wine? Perot or Nader? 

6.)  To be honest, I couldn’t have said or designed it better… how much do you love this image on the front page of shopbando.com?! I will most definitely be getting something from these talented ladies for the holiday season. Perhaps I will have an excuse to buy a cute pair of pumps when we go to Chicago just so I can get some shoe clips? I was also really excited when I *finally* realized that one of my favorite photographers, Jen Gotch, was one of the talented ladies behind ban.do. (I always appreciated her input on Design for  Mankind’s Dialogue series!) Watch a super cute interview with Jen & her partner Jamie on the Girls with Glasses site. 

7.)  A while back I saw this amazing photo of a girl in a horse sweater. I *adored* the color palette, feel and styling of this photo. Well, I finally found out where it came from. As it turns out the stylist behind the blog Adore Vintage recently styled this Fall shoot with a few other names you may recognize. Check out some more shots and be sure to visit her site…