Kitchens are tough, you guys. Especially when you’re renting!

So excited to share with you one of my fave interior projects yet! I had the honor of designing a nursery for a wonderful client of mine, and I’m so happy with how it turned out. Nurseries have got to be one of the greatest rooms to decorate. Not only do you get to be playful and fun with your design choices, but there’s the knowledge that a little baby will be experiencing life and growing in the room you’re creating for them. Such a wonderful feeling! So when my client Nicole Silveira reached out to me with her ideas and hopes for the room, I obvi jumped at the opportunity. Even more exciting to me was the fact that this room wouldn’t be just a nursery, but a guest room as well. I’m very familiar with making rooms work double duty when you live in a small space - just take a look at my own guest bedroom/home office and you’ll see what I mean! So I immediately got to work on creating the most functional, darling joint nursery/guest room I could.

Exactly two days ago, Black & Blooms turned 3 years old - and today is my very first day as a full-time creative. Yesterday was my last day working my “9-5” (it was really a 6-3) and I. am. PINCHING MYSELF! Being self-employed has been a dream for so long, it’s absolutely wild to think this day is actually here. I wanted to share my experience over the past few years building my small biz while working a full time job, and give you a sense of how I got here and where I’m hoping to go/grow in the future.

This post was sponsored by Tempe Tourism, all opinions expressed are my own - as always!

The first time I visited Arizona was earlier this year and I fell in love hard! Such a magical state with the most beautiful Saguaro-filled desert landscapes, gorge warm sunny weather, and breathtaking sunsets. Naturally, I jumped at the opportunity to return and explore the wonderfully offbeat town of Tempe in partnership with Tempe Tourism. Located in the heart of Metropolitan Phoenix, Eddie and I spent a fun-filled fall weekend here taking in the sights and experiences. Keep scrolling for where we stayed, what we ate, and all the adventures we had during our viz.

I’ve been craving an Ojai getaway for a while now. It’s been too long since my last viz to this magical California town, so I drove up recently for a lil overnight solo trip. Only 90 minutes northwest of Los Angeles but so different in terms of vibe - slower paced with a beautiful artistic small town feel. I always feel relaxed and happy in Ojai and it’s also the perf getaway destination for solo travelers, which I can’t recommend enough! When you take a trip by yourself you get to do, see, and eat whatever you want, whenever you want. I’ve found that I have more conversations with the locals when I’m by myself, and I just love exploring a town at my own pace. I observe more and learn more, about the town and about myself. My last solo trip was in the beginning of the year to Los Alamos, so I have definitely been overdue. When Eddie told me he’d have to work the weekend I had planned, I knew this would be the perf opportunity!

This post was sponsored by 1-800-Flowers.com, all opinions expressed are my own - as always!

Have you been thinking of bringing more plants into your home, but don’t know what types to choose or how to style them? If so, I’m here to help! I recently partnered with 1-800-Flowers.com to add more planties to my dining room, and I’m sharing my tips on how to choose the right plants for you and your casa.

Eeeee the patio is finally complete! It only took the whole summer bahahaha. What we thought would be a simple “get furniture, bring it outside, voila!” sitch turned into a big outdoor project that involved a lot more work than previously anticipated. We’re just so happy with the finished space though, and I’m excited to share it with you!