obsessions this week

Dear readers,

Excuse my sporadic postings lately. Marrily has me busy!!

I couldn't resist sharing a few things this week, though.

This was ordered from eBay. It's pasteless wallpaper, so I'm hoping to attempt my hand at some wall panels for our office design! I'm thinking a little skinny crown moulding frame will finish the look. I'll share my design board later, but it's TO DIE for :) So excited! LOVING the inexpensive price tag + the elegant blues and the Chinoiserie print!

Two words: Lara. Spencer.

You may recognize her from Good Morning America? Since I work in an office each morning, I miss out so I really didn't know much about her, but Steven happened to catch GMA last week on one of his off days and Lara was on there talking about her new shows coming up on HGTV. Not only did Steven record it for me, but he watched it with me as well. Hubby of the year, right?! Lara and I would be two peas in a pod when it comes to decorating. HGTV featured a special show last weekend to highlight her new book (which is on it's way to my doorstep!) and I could have died. Not only did she give some wonderful thrifting tips, but she styled an entire home in preppy-chic gorgeous decor that was mostly ALL second hand and fabulously colorful. Of course she splurged on Kelly Wearstler wallpaper and Schumacher fabrics, but it was amazing. I'm pretty sure the episode was a one time thing, but she does have a flea market contest show that will run as a series. I'd prefer to watch her decorate more homes, personally! She even had a twitter conversation with me! Love her!

Next:

All fresh, organically grown, sourced locally. Bee hives are even on the roof so they can use their own honey! The crack fries did not disappoint.

This new discovery is where S & I enjoyed a spur of the moment date night after we scoped out the NC Farmer's Market earlier this week. Market is NOT at the FM, but it is in this adorable downtown neighborhood in Raleigh called Mordecai. Even better, it's right next to this amazing chocolate shop, where you'll find the most amazing flavors and homemade ice cream. We couldn't resist the push pops! Afterwards, we rode around and found our dream house and other cute bungalows and decided it was where we'd like to live. 

 

As I mentioned, we went to the Farmer's Market to gain a little landscaping inspiration. I got intimidated because I have no clue how to deal with our yard. In some areas if you try to dig, you reach concrete .Our tiny front yard is totally shaded by a huge pine tree and the side is long narrow, the back is open to our neighbor's side yard. Kind of awkward. We're getting a landscaper to come out to evaluate our situation, but we went ahead and took inventory on some prices.  

I loved these succulents:

& I'm seriously dying to get a couple of these for the front porch:

And as long as we're talking about obsessions, I couldn't resist these two:

Have a great rest of the week!

xo,

SugarMeg

Happy 1 Year of Blogging to me!!

One year ago I committed to blogging as Sugar Megnolia. Posting regularly was easier than I thought it would be, so I'm inspired to continue! I look forward to bringing you more as often as I can! Thank you, dear readers for joining in with me. Every comment, every follow, and every new blog I discover makes this all the more fun. Thank y'all!

Oh! This weekend I'm guest blogging over at Belle in the City :) I've styled a colorful, preppy picnic so be sure to check it out when my post goes live!

Thank you!

xo,

SugarMeg

Friday Frills

I've always been in love with a frilly Peony..

But I'm officially obsessed with them styled in a ginger jar: 

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Perfect for Spring, right?

xo,

SugarMeg

Our 1st Anniventure

And so we were off! Steven stole me away last weekend and I had NO clue (literally nothing more than a weather forecast of a hint) where we were going. I kind of narrowed it down to being north of the Carolinas...but, still. No. Idea. I was assuming Williamsburg, but he asked me, "WHY would we go somewhere we've been before!?" and my response was, "Well? If it means something to us, why not?!" As we were nearing closer, I was still confused and we were edging close to water. As we drove through the backroads and an actual DIRT ROAD I started getting ancy, yet again. Last week was kind of a nightmare for me. I'm not a huge fan of surprises. Or not being in control. And I know- I need to let it go, especially when it comes to surprises from Steven :) But really, were we lost!? 

Just as we're rounding a small country road, I spotted some signage and a white fence. Warner Hall? I was still slightly confused (really). As we turned down the drive, the house came into the view and I started crying, naturally. It was gorgeous! Warner Hall was George Washington's great grandfather's home. The current owners, Troy and Theresa did an entire renovation several years ago and opened up the home as a bed and breakfast. Their dogs kind of steal all the attention, but they all shared the warmest hospitality. Warner Hall was full of gorgeous southern antiques, framed letters from Robert E. Lee and photographs of all the previous presidents who had stayed there. I was in the company of good ole' Abe. Even Queen Elizabeth spent time there! I died. 

Theresa cooks breakfast and the presentation was almost too good to eat. Everyone on staff was welcoming and friendly and Chef Eric Garcia's cooking was seriously good!

 The view from our wing:

Queen for the weekend...(kidding, but this is pretty funny if you're my mom & dad):

There was a graveyard on site, for the Warner family. I thought it was kind of cool that it was ACTUALLY April 6, that day, just 201 years later.

The back of the house...

The house had a cute boat house with a dock where we relaxed...

We had a charming breakfast in the sunroom Saturday!

They made sure we had snacks:

  We ventured out to dinner for Friday evening. Live music at the yacht club. Heavenly!

Y'all know me- I did a little shopping for antiques and picked up a few goodies that I may share later!

 One task Steven asked me to take care of was planning a picnic. I brought the dishes we used from our wedding reception, macaroons, and some other snacks. My aunts gifted us with wine from Napa Valley  and Sonoma (and they now have a house there -seriously, cannot WAIT to visit!) for our 1 year, 5 year, and our wedding night. Such a cool gift, so it was a perfect addition to the picnic! The basket was actually used in our wedding for a container for our favors! To make it fun, I packed a few games and I packed up all the cards we received from our big day. We looked through our wedding album and we read our old love letters and cards. Perfection!

One funny thing about this perfect picnic was that we were in the middle of where owner's dogs play. They started to circle the yard at a distance while they barked at us. Clearly, we were in their territory! woops!

After the picnic we explored around on some beach cruiser bikes.

 I decided that we're moving there. Actually, there was a plantation near by for sale. Too bad we didn't win the lottery 2 weeks ago!

We can at least have horses... right, honey? Please?!

Dinner at the Inn was phenomenal. Best. Ever!

Gloucester, VA is the home of the annual Daffodil Festival and they were certainly in bloom everywhere!

 

After Easter Sunday at the sweetest chapel, we hit up Yorktown on our way home! It was indeed the perfect weekend!

xo,

Sugar Meg

Nerd Alert: We even saw a pirate ship!