We've Moved to gracehilton.com!

This past year has brought a lot of new adventures in design and heritage conservation.  Among them, a home we worked on in the A. Quincy Jone's Crestwood Hills tract in Brentwood California will be featured on the cover of the next issue of Atomic Ranch magazine.  Very exciting for us!

With all these changes also comes a change in where you find us on the web.  It's been fun Blogspot, but it's time to move to a more permanent home at the Grace Hilton domain.  Please join us at our new address: gracehilton.com!

Follow Me On Instagram

Hello, one and all!  Yes, I am still alive, just insanely busy with chasing a toddler around and all the other fun (and not so fun) things that life throws my way. Blogging has sadly taken a back seat. Heck, it's not even in the back seat. If you look in the rear view mirror, you might just catch a teeny tiny glimpse of my former life as a blogger. 

So I must hit the pause button on blogging for now, but the bright side is that I've been snapping photos with Instagram these days. Communicating life through images is so much more fun than words, isn't it? Come, join me on Instagram and see what I've been up to! Find me by clicking the gallery link in the right sidebar or search for GH_Sarah. 

This Weekend in L.A.

Here are just a few of the fantastic events happening this weekend around L.A. Check one or all of them out!

The 2nd weekend of the Bauer Pottery Holiday Sale
Saturday + Sunday, December 10th-11th, 9am-5pm

2nd Annual Renegade Craft Fair
Satuday + Sunday, December 10-11th, 10-5pm

Remodelista Holiday Market at Big Daddy's Antiques
Saturday, December 10th, 10am-4pm

Eat My Blog Bake Sale
Saturday, December 10th, 10am-4pm

Artisanal L.A. -- Celebrate and explore LA's finest local, sustainable and handmade edibles
Sunday December 11th, 10am-6pm

...and of course
The Rose Bowl Flea Market
2nd Sunday of every month (that's this Sunday!)

Wishing you a wonderful weekend full of adventure.

Photo of Big Daddy's Antiques via Remodelista

Ice Cube + Eames

I'm not sure this post needs a lot of words. Ice Cube + Eames is guaranteed to make your day. That pretty much sums it up. Watch the video right here and enjoy. 

Recap: Unique LA

Occasionally you get those posts that are so hard to edit and narrow down all the great people, places and products that were rolled into one event. Unique L.A. put me in that predicament. Unique is an independent design and gift show that started in L.A. back in 2008 and will expand in 2012 to include shows New York and San Francisco. Featured products are exclusively made in the U.S.A. and the event aims to help small businesses and artists grow. Considering the record breaking attendance record set on Sunday, it seems like they're accomplishing their mission. 

So, what stood out to me at the 4th annual Unique L.A. holiday show?  There were some old favorites like Rock Scissor Paper and Graf & Lantz. There were also these new-to-me companies that caught my eye: 

Textiles from Nell & Mary, Appetite and a little something for the wee ones from Sass & Peril

Jewelry from Kyyote and Amirilo Designs

Some pretty amazing headpieces from Pooka Queen

A soon-to-be debuted line of furniture from Ribbit Stopit

Sustainable soaps and lotions from Further

Artists 33 Stewart Avenue and Lekkar Haus

Drink coasters and other pretty felt items from Feisty Elle

Vintage goodies from Long Beach retailer Salvage Life

Handmade pottery from Sadie & Emma

Plus, there was oh so much good artisan food to sample: Rice puddings, marshmallows, peanut brittles and of  course cupcakes -- All with cutting edge flavor combos. I can't even delve into all the examples, but for all the foodies out there check out this weekend's Artisanal L.A. 

      

All photos by Grace Hilton

Architecture + Ice Cream

What a delicious combo, right? Architecture and ice cream might be one of the happiest unions I could have imagined. Coolhaus, the ice cream truck that's been cruising around Los Angeles since 2009 opened their very first brick-and-mortar location in Culver City this week.  Stop in for a one (or two-story if you really need a sugar rush) Mies Vanilla Rohe or any one of their other delicious designer flavors.   

Photo via LA Eater

Good Design + Good Cause

CB2 is teaming up with Share Our Strength, a national non-profit dedicated to ending childhood hunger in America. CB2 is offering you a 15% discount when you contribute to their Can Do food drive. Donate seven nonperishable food items to support a local food bank to receive the discount in store or $10 to Share Our Strength to get the online discount.

Jewel-Tone Holiday Table from Unison Home

I'm loving this moody, jewel-tone color palette from Unison Home as an unexpected option for a Thanksgiving table. The Heath Ceramics dinnerware is a nice addition to the gold, eggplant and ultramarine backdrop.  The candle holders, glassware and linens are all available through Unison. Order now for the holidays and get free shipping. 

Smeg Obsessed

I've long been an admirer of the Smeg refrigerator. It's time to come clean about my obsession. What's not to love about this classic appliance? They come in a rainbow of colors and their 50s flare adds just the right touch of whimsy to kitchens in a wide variety of styles -- Just check out all these examples; From Scandinavian to Ultra Femme, the Smeg feels right at home. 

From top to bottom: Home of A Butterfly In My Hair (Photo by Ralfefarfar), Berlin apartment via Decor 8, Scandinavian kitchen via Pikkuvarpunen, Blue Smeg/ Star kitchen via Dittepigen's photostream, White kitchen via Pinterest, Krista Ewart Design

Spotted: Modern Valet

The new Trine Bench/Valet caught my eye while browsing CB2 today.  Hooks and coat tree options are plentiful, but when it comes to valets there are few modern choices. Thanks to CB2 for filling the void!

Rejuvenation Los Angeles

I popped into H.D. Buttercup over the weekend and was excited to see that the Rejuvenaton's new location is open. Even browsing their website, I feel the need to start collecting houses in a wide variety of architectural styles so that I can buy every light they make. So, you can imagine what happened when I stepped into the brick-and-mortar store. Joy.  

The visual merchandising is beautiful! Of course, it helps to start with such beautiful products. In addition to their gorgeous lighting, they actually offer an array of other vintage-inspired products including pressed glass cake plates. 

Also to note, there are somewhat limited options out there for mid-century homes in the bathroom fixture and hardware department. Rejuvenation has a mid-century modern collection featuring products in brushed and polished nickel, in addition to their fabulous line of reproduction mid-century lighting. 

Cordelia Is Turning ONE!

Hello friends! It's been awhile...months fly by with the blink of an eye these days. Cordelia's first year is coming to a close (She's turning one already! How can that be?) and we're slowly starting to get into the swing of things...a little breathing room is nice...of course, it's just in time for her to start walking and the pace to change yet again! Although as crazy as it's been at times, it has been a most wonderful year and I can't fathom my life without that little girl. So, forgive me for blogging (and design in general) taking a back seat these days. My days have instead been filled with play dates, messy meals, and lots of laundry...and I'm loving every minute of it!

As we gear up for a little celebration we're having for Cordelia and her little friends in a couple of weeks, I thought I'd share some inspiration photos from my Pinterest board.  Be sure to follow me there for a peek into what I've been inspired by lately, as well as on Twitter and Facebook for more frequent updates. Enjoy! 

Smash cake from Sweet & Saucy Shop 

1950s party ware via It's Your Day Vintage on Etsy 

Glassine bags with doilies via Sweet Lulu

Marimekko Madness

Finally! I got a chance to pop into the Crate and Barrel at the Grove late last week and couldn't be more excited to share with you these photos and the news that Marimekko has teamed with C&B to roll out shops in select stores throughout the U.S.

Crate and Barrel has had a relationship with Marimekko since the 1960s,. Sadly, in recent years at least, its been a limited selection of  products and usually in muted colors. I'm happy to report that they have not backed down on colors this time around and they're offering everything from personal accessories, like totes and coin purses, to dinnerware, kid's products and even fabric by the yard. And did I mention pillows? So many fun pillows!

Enjoy the eye candy and for a complete list of a Crate & Barrel stores that include the Marimekko shop, check it out here. Right now it's limited to CA, NY, and Chicago. There's also a great selection of products online though and C&B and is offering free shipping through August 7th. 

 Photos by Grace Hilton