Marie Claire Idées Magazine

It is fortunate that I have a super amazing sister-in-law who happens to be French and ultimately should scout cool things for me as a full-time job. A few visits ago, she introduced me to Marie Claire Idées magazine, a gem of French crafts and styling which is so different from American offerings. I daresay it's even (gulp) better than Martha Stewart Living for it's utterly whimsical, over-the-top color schemes and undeniably French fashion. Each time I get a magazine (I get mine from Joseph Beth bookstores locally) I STUDY it, DEVOUR it, fold over essentially EVERY PAGE and then put it on my desk to savor and review again later for anything I may have missed.

Here are some examples of the pages of this most recent issue. I've already pulled some pages for my inspiration wall but you'll get the idea I hope! I should note that the magazine is written in French, which makes things a little confusing with my minimal knowledge of the language. Luckily, there is no translation needed for the beautiful images and well, I never read magazines anyway... ;o)

More color inspiration-Blue (and red)

One of my favorite blogs to visit is decor8. It often has such beautiful images and links to artists of all sorts. Today's post is a monthly feature on color studies (Color Me Pretty) with blue and accents of red. These photos make me so inspired!!

Color Inspiration with Purple and Red

I've been seeing some of this wonderful color combination lately with my clients and I thought I'd show off how great it can look! Ruby reds, orchids, aubergine, grape, lavender and other shades can be combined in careful ratios to create a rich alternative for autumn weddings. The best approach is to not do the red and purple in a 50/50 display of color. Choose your favorite color as the base, and then accent with the other. Done right and it is spectacular! Thanks to Karen Ross for the invitation inspiration that led to today's colors. Of course the invitation is available through Margot Madison Creative. Take a look at the save the date that coordinates with the invitation on the "Wedding Portfolio" page of my blog.

More Great Grad Ideas from etsy

Including the Margot Madison orange damask laptop cover.

Peonies Color Collage

I am obsessed with the peonies in my front yard. I went out to sketch them on their "Opening Day" and could not have been happier in the sun with my pencils and pastels. It's been, oh, I think since college that I did something like that. While I miss my friends at the retail store, I'm so happy to have this part of me emerge. When my 7 year old Natalie walked past me outside she said, "Wow Mom! You should be an artist!" It feels good to be back...

So I played around with some peony inspired collages with one of my current Margot Madison wedding invitations (I love that small pinstripe of pink...it's so tailored and elegant!), the bracelet from Lampwork Jewelry, the beautiful clutch purse from FiazCo, the shoes and flower arrangements from the great wedding blog OnceWed.com. Lots of fun with that beautiful color!

Hop into spring with this Grasshopper theme from etsy

I thought this was a cute idea and it includes the Margot Madison Stationery Bugby Grasshopper clipboard too!

Etsy Treasury "Congrats Grads"

This treasury has some great graduation gifts from etsy including the Margot Madison Organic Circles Personalized Laptop cover! Take a look at the other vendors as well...

DID I MENTION MY NEW PHONE NUMBER?

Well, after several phone calls and 3 different responses, I'm VERY DISAPPOINTED IN CINCINNATI BELL for neglecting to give me some correct information. It turns out that they won't offer my new number when the old store number is turned off.

Please take note of my new office phone number!
513-376-6763

I'm home!

Well, it was no easy feat! After a crazy day on Friday with the $10 bag sale, everything that could be sold at the Margot Madison Retail Store was sold. What was left was donated to my daughter's art teacher at Fairview Clifton German Language School in Clifton. She swears that the kids will use the plexi-glass displays for their sculptural projects next year. I'm so happy to see everything go to a good home. While the closing of the store is an end of an era for me, I feel good about moving on!

As I've been saying, I'm still designing for you! You can reach me by my same email address and my new number will be listed on the website etc. I so look forward to a more balanced career that lets me design more and also have a family life.

I've spent this rainy Saturday setting up my home office and I'm quite comfortable here already. I've been doing some assembly now that the kids are asleep and feel good.

I'll say thanks again for the 7 plus great years in the retail world. I truly enjoyed it and loved meeting and becoming friends with so many of my clients. Please keep in touch with my blog, Facebook, Twitter and the other various social networking avenues of late.