{ Design Inspiration: Artifact Coffee }

my favorite place to seek inspiration for my design work is usually through commercial spaces and neighborhoods. I love the way neighborhoods here have their own unique personality. one moment you're in quirky, eclectic hampden and the next moment you're in quaint, historic mt. vernon. 

my sister introduced me to Artifact Coffee the other day, and the moment i walked in i knew i'd be a frequent visitor. The industrial/rustic trend is not exactly new, but Artifact pulls it off in a way that feels totally organic and not at all contrived. 

and let's take a second to talk about those donuts. GUYS. i can barely find the words. they're not nearly as sugary and sweet as dunkin, but they're full-flavored, rich, real, and utterly delicious. i think i'll serve them at my wedding instead of cake. (but really.)

thanks for sitting tight while we continue on this apartment hunt and get settled in our new/old city. 

lovelovelove.

C

{ apartment hunting: baltimore edition }

Trevor and I had a fun-filled day of apartment hunting yesterday. While we saw three great places, we still have yet to make a decision, since there are a few issues with each of them. Apartment hunting is not for the weak, lemme tell ya. Let's go through each of them, we shall we?

THE DEETS:
LOCATION: We almost didn't even follow through with our appointment to see Apartment # 1. It's not exactly in our desired location (but not far from it). The area is slightly more "up and coming" than the area we were originally envisioning, but it's on the same block as a cute tapas restaurant, an old school movie theater, an actual theater, and several other cute little spots.

INSIDE: The apartment itself is pretty much perfect. It has TWO FULL BATHROOMS (a total fluke because they were originally making this a two bedroom until they realized it wouldn't be up to code), exposed brick walls, crazy high ceilings, all new eerything (while still maintaining some historic charm).

PRICE: It's also incredible reasonably priced (at the low end of our budget) and has awesome AC already installed (no need to buy pricy window units and putz around with installing them ourselves). I left this one super giddy and excited, but still a little hesitant thanks to the location.

THE DEETS:
LOCATION: Almost perfect. There's this one particular street that we'd love to be on (but finding something open in our budget there seems to be tricky) but this is a good alternative. It's right by a park,  coffee shops, close to public transit, and generally very walkable.

INSIDE: We both were pleasantly surprised by how much we liked the actual apartment. It's definitely not quite as "fancy" as the others that we saw, but it had a lot of light, space, and charm. Honestly, we both just really disliked the actual building the apartment was in. It's actually the priciest apartment of any that we saw, but the building wasn't well kept at all. The walls in the hallway were painted three different colors, light bulbs were out, dust was everywhere, etc. I know it may sound trivial, but it was just a big turn off compared to the others. I don't know why, I just can't quite envision us here.

PRICE: Within our budget, but the most expensive of the three that we saw yesterday. There are also no AC units and it's on the top floor, so we'd need to invest in those.

THE DEETS:
LOCATION: This guy is in a tree lined, historical, residential neighborhood that's a quick hop, skip and a jump from our desired location. That being said, it is a tad bit further from the hustle and bustle than we were hoping for, but it's hard to complain when the surroundings are as pretty as they are.

INSIDE: The space was definitely comparable, in a lot of ways, to the first one that we loved. Exposed brick, nice wood floors, high ceilings, etc. The downside? The bedroom was tiny. I mean like, tiny enough that I'm a little concerned about our full bed fitting in there. Oy.

PRICE: It was the least expensive of them all, trailing just a tad behind the first one, price-wise.

We're honestly still feeling really torn and have two more showings tonight. We know we are going to have to be flexible since the rental market here isn't exactly stellar, but figuring out what to sacrifice is definitely not easy.

Thoughts? What would you guys do?

lovelovelove.

-C

{ woah. }

I stumbled across this photo on Pinterest and it stopped me in my tracks. It served as the perfect reminder to push the boundaries in our new little home (living with a boy be damned!). I doubt our rental will have quite the same charm as the clawfoot tub, thick moldings and dark wood floors, but a girl can dream.

On that note, I'll be spending today on the road with Trevor - we're  heading to Baltimore for a week of apartment hunting. Wish us luck!

lovelovelove

-C

P.S. Tomorrow is the last day to receive 50% off of my Design at your Door services. Hope you'll join in to celebrate the fun :).

P.S.S I can't seem to find the original source of this photo - anyone out there have any clues so I can give proper credit?

{ everywhere you go, chicago }

It's my last night in Chicago, and while I know in the morning things will feel a whole lot brighter, I can't deny that the weight of leaving this beautiful city has finally hit me. I had my last Chicago dinner tonight with Alaina and Danielle - it was only right to have it at Feast, where we had our first meal together just over a year ago. 

{after the BHLDN event in 2012}

On the way home from dinner, they asked me what my favorite Chicago memory was. It's nearly impossible to pick because honestly, this whole year has been one amazing memory in and of itself.

But then I remembered this moment:

It was from last August, at my first movie in the park (a free movie screening in the park where Chicagoans gather with blankets and snacks and wine). I can't even remember what movie was playing, but I vividly remember a huge wave of peace washing over me when I laid back and stared at the Chicago sky, knowing in that moment that I was in exactly the right place. I had no job, no money, no apartment of my own, and yet, life seemed pretty much perfect. I was home.

There's no doubt in my mind that I'm leaving the Windy City a better person. A year ago I was just barely on the brink of feeling like my life had some direction. I know many of you feel that way right now, and let me tell you, I am the last person who can say that I have it all figured out, but I can tell you that you can do so much more than you think you can. I have achieved things in this last year that I never thought I would be able to. I have grown up, become more confident, more daring, more ambitious. Not only has this city inspired me to dream bigger and hold myself to a higher standard, but it's introduced me to people that (without fail) reach out to help me, believe in me and instill nothing but absolute faith in my capabilities. For that, I am eternally grateful. 

I do believe that life is far too short to be complacent and it's up to you to make your life the story you want it to be. Chicago has been the most amazing chapter. I feel nothing but love for this city and all of the people in it, and I couldn't be more grateful for the last 365 pages. 

Chicago, you are not an easy city to leave. Thank you, thank you for all of the memories.

{ introducing Caitlin Creative Interiors & Styling }

I am so, so excited to announce the official launch of Caitlin Creative Interiors & Styling. As most of you know, I did a few freelance decorating projects before I took on a new full-time job working in social media back in the Fall. Well, things are changing, and I'm thrilled to be back to focusing on design work, and especially excited to be focusing on smaller spaces (think apartments, condos, little bungalows, etc.) in a more budget-friendly and new format than before. While I love e-decorating and full service design, the Design At Your Door package strikes a happy balance - giving you tangible, in-depth information to execute your design, plus a 30 minute follow up consultation, while still allowing you to execute the plan in your own time, as your budget allows you to. 

The Design At Your Door services are very budget friendly to begin with, but in only feels right to give you guys a little extra to celebrate the launch, all of the wonderful support I've received, and my pending birthday next week!

From now until May 22, you can receive a custom Design At Your Door package, for 50% off of the full priced service. That means you can get a full Living Room (or bedroom, etc.) for as little as $250! I know, y'all. Call me crazy, but I'm just so doggone excited to be back in action that I feel the need to share the love. And if you haven't had a chance to check out my portfolio (more to come soon!), be sure to take a peek!

So go on! Just email caitlinpaigebrown@gmail.com and we'll be on our way :).

lovelovelove and a happy weekend to each of you!

C

{ heading east }

So I know I've already been a bad blogger and I only started again a couple of weeks ago, but I promise I have good reasons! A few things have been changing around these parts and I had to wait until everything was settled before I could let you guys in on the fun. 

Here it is: I left my job at the PR firm. I'm going to be offering decorating services again (more on this very, very soon). Trevor was offered an amazing position as an Industrial Designer. In Baltimore. Hence, we are moving. Next week.

Cue the freak out. 

No but really. I am so, so excited (and yes, a tad nervous) for this new chapter. We're heading out next week to search for an apartment (yay!) so this is all happening very quickly. If you don't already know, Trevor and I both grew up in Baltimore. His family lives there, as does my sister, so we're thrilled to be close to family again (even though we never expected to be moving back to Baltimore so soon in our adult life). 

Of course, I will miss Chicago tremendously. I have grown and learned so much since I came to the Windy City one year ago. The idea of leaving this beautiful, wonderful place and saying goodbye to the amazing friends that I've made is enough to make me all misty, and I know there will be days in Baltimore that I'll ache for all of this. BUT, I am certain that this is what I'm meant to be doing right now, and I couldn't be more excited for the journey. It should be a fun one :).

lovelovelove.

C

{ be right back }

Good morning guys and gals. Hope you all had the best weekend. I definitely did, as I spent it flying to Baltimore for a surprise visit to Trevor for his graduation party. I have so, so much to fill all of you in on, and I plan to do just that later today. For now, I'm off to work with Jess Lively on an exciting project for Business with Intention that will be debuting later this Spring/Summer! Stay tuned, and I'll be right back!

lovelovelove.

C

{ Treasure Hunting: Chicago }

I spent last Saturday thrifting at one of my favorite local thrift stores ( The Brown Elephant) when I stumbled across this hunk of $125 goodness. The photo really doesn't even do it justice, but hopefully you can tell that the lines are pretty spectacular. Even the fabric was in amazing shape. I wanted to take it home with me - I even texted a photo of it to Trevor to see what he thought (he wasn't as obsessed as I was but he liked the price). In the end though, it doesn't make sense for me to make any big furniture purchases at the moment (more on that to come).

IF I had taken it home though, I was envisioning it with a big, patterned lumbar pillow from Caitlin Wilson Textiles. I liked these two most:

Obviously I just copy and pasted photos of the fabric on there, so use your imagination. :)

What do you guys think? Do you like it, or are you siding with Trevor on this one?

Happy Thursday! Thanks so much for stopping in.

lovelovelove.

-C

{ office hours }

A friend of mine just moved into a new apartment and is currently planning out a little home office for their spare bedroom. She asked if I had any suggestions for a space that would primarily be hers, but also suitable for her boyfriend to work in occasionally. 

(Uh, chyeah.)

Don't get me wrong, I like sequins and pink just as much as the next gal, but I'm beginning to accept that there is definitely a part of me that's very much drawn to a more masculine first layer, with more feminine pieces drizzled on top, if you will. 

I'm currently obsessed with Bashful by Benjamin Moore, and this is a perfect example of my favorite way to use it. In a room of more masculine furnishings, the peachy pink hue envelopes the room and softens each piece, making it fit for a lady but still apropos for a man. Win, win! The fun mint file cabinet (which I just happen to have been lusting over for several months) also serves as a side table between the two side chairs facing the desk), and lends a bit of color and fun to the space. Actually, the lamps would also be a great place to inject a little more "her" in the room, but I kind of dig the simplicity of the black. Plus, the finish on them still makes it all feel just a touch "glam." 

(Oy, I really detest that word.)

As you can tell, I couldn't find the perfect painting to sit above the credenza just yet, haha. I'm thinking something with a bit of that mint color in it, but so far I haven't found anything that seems quite right. 

Any reccs? What kind of environment do you prefer to work in? Do tell!

Thanks for stopping by, all! 

lovelovelove.

-C

{ new beginnings }

There are certain times in life when the only thing that feels right is starting fresh.

Anyone else with me on that one?

After neglecting my little blog, Reverie to Reality for six whole months, I decided the best thing to do was to start a new. And it's kind of perfect, because there are so many changes happening in my little life right now - some of them I'm not even sure of yet. But in the meantime, you can get all caught up as we figure it out right here. More on that to come soon.

I spent my weekend walking around furniture flea markets, instagramming simple pleasures that I encountered throughout the days, watching my favorite movie (When Harry Met Sally), and getting inspired from my favorite magazines. It was a weekend full of things that I haven't done in a really long time, and it was perfect.

In the midst of all of the latest changes that are underway, I can't help my think back to my little feature on The Everygirl. (Which launched over one year ago now!)

"When something is not encouraging you anymore, when the joy in your work is gone, you owe i to yourself to make a amove. Find the joy again, wherever it may be. Change doesn't mean failure. It means growth, and most important, bravery."

I'm thankful to have my little story there as a reminder for myself to keep the faith, move forward, and take each chapter as a lesson learned. Because you really never know what opportunities lie ahead.

I'm so excited to be back to blogging and I can't wait to fill you in on what's to come.

lovelovelove.

-C