I've talked about my colors with you before, right?

Base neutrals: grey, brown, and white. Accent shades, in order of dominance: teal (dusty & bright shades), green (apple), yellow (strong but not bright).

When I bought this townhouse, it was all pale yellow inside. Yes, they had repainted it for the sale, but it wasn't really even a shade of ivory or white, it definitely would have been on one of those little yellow paint strips! At the bottom... but still! To have the entire house one color would simply have driven me batty, so the first thing to do... paint. And paint. Oh, and maybe paint some more!

I chose a light - but still substantial - dusty grey for the downstairs main living/dining area, and carried it up the stairway to the upstairs hall. Some people balked... "grey?!" they said with a little hint of, "ew, so boring, why GREY?!"

At the time I happened to be on a grey/brown combo kick, but looky who was RIGHT ON THE MONEY!! Not that this front page of Z Gallerie proves I am, eh em, ahead of the curve, but... okay, it does.

Pat, pat, pat my own back...

But really, let's take a look - grey has made a huge resurgence as a main neutral instead of the yellows, taupes, and ivories, and every time I look at my walls, it makes me realize it all fits together so nicely! A few of my favorite grey pieces are below - not all decor!

A little top I bought from Old Navy recently because I just loved the grey and yellow combination so much:


Hellllllo chair that I'm in love with and want to hug and kiss and sit on in black skinny pants and my grey and yellow tank (over the top? Yeah, well, welcome.)

Z Gallerie's Labyringht bedding, which they have carried in a variety of colors, also now in grey:

Oh how I'd love to wallpaper the wall that runs upstairs to my second floor - just on that one wall, all the way up. Heaven. For now, I will just keep coming back to this post and to Brocade Home's site to gaze at it:

A nice little Ikea cushion, grey and yellow as well, only about $30:

Talk about a dream shoe. This is a metallic silver from Butter that looks just lovely - so lovely I could never get them for fear I'd sit around looking at my feet all day instead of working!

And finally, who can forget my newest obsession with grey nailpolish?!

I have the Fall bug.

Being the transplanted northern girl that I am, I yearn for cooler weather, the feeling of Fall, the smell of chill air, and the changing colors that the season brings.

Alas, these are later, shorter, and fewer between here in DC. I will, of course, take what I can get though!

I’ve taken a different strategy on my Fall/Winter ’09 wardrobe, however, and have decided to put thought and strategy in to the pieces I need, and not pick up so many pieces on a whim, without really thinking about if I need them or if they work with what I already have.

And then, abstain from shopping. (This, of course, will be the true test!!).

My strategy? Clean out the closet (in process), and the shoes (completed!), the drawers (can’t even think about it), and determine what is really needed. I am in need of statement pieces is what I’ve decided, and almost all “work appropriate” that can move to casual as well.

Here are a few pieces I’ve either ordered or plan to order soon. I’ve tried to pick out items that will work with what I already have and complement my current wardrobe and NOT buy anything that would need an entire outfit built around it. That is for sure a no-no!

Thoughts? Reactions? Is this a system that will set me up for failure?!

Now a reminder that I work in an office where I need to be in something that is either a suit (well, I don't do matching suits - too boring - but I mean jacket and bottom) or something close enough of a suit if I need to run over to a client's office last minute. e.i. A nice cardigan or sweater-ish.

From Old Navy:

I liked this with pants and heels, or over one of my many black or black and grey dresses, or even a pencil skirt.

Okay so I got one casual tee too:)...

From Talbots - I swear, it's not just for old ladies, as long as you look around:

From The Loft:

From Boden's (ahhhh, my favorites):

This one has little elbow patches, and I can't wait to wear to work but also with jeans and black boots. Sigh!

Dang it. All I wanted to do was Martha-up my place just a little bit, and take advantage of the tiny little yard that I have. I wanted to save a little energy, save a little cash, and have fun pretending I live out in the country.

Naturally I put up a clothesline in my backyard today. It's not a free standing one, but just some quaint rope I bought at the hardware store that I strung up along three plant hangers that were already secured to the tall wood fence by the previous owner. I thought this was a GREAT idea.

Yeah it's a great idea when you have cable and watch the weather - two things I don't do. As I sit here fussing on my laptop, I heard the sudden and loud start of a rain storm. Not one of these little drizzle things to start - a total downpour.

It's raining... on my clothes. Excellent. Oh well, so my first attempt at Susie Homemaker didn't work out so well, but now I don't want to go GET the wet clothes out there, so I think I'm just leaving them. They'll dry up eventually, right?