Adrienne's List

Yet another reason to move to Paris…

adrienneslist — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:13:39 +0000

Sorry for the parenting post, but I found this article fascinating. We like to say that our son Oliver is strong-willed but to be more accurate he is impatient like my husband and stubborn like me. I guess we can only blame ourselves for passing on these less then enviable traits, but they do make certain things like going out to dinner, taking naps and basically doing anything that Oliver might not feel like doing at the moment very taxing. Don’t get me wrong, I love and adore our little guy but I’m exhausted by the end of the day.

Well, last night my friend Lisa forwarded me this great article about parenting in France. It compares the French and American parenting styles and while it makes many good points, a couple big takeaways were the importance of teaching a child delayed gratification and encouraging their ability to entertain themselves.

“Why French Parents Are Superior” wsj.com

I don’t know if I’d go so far as to say French parenting is superior, but of course there’s value in reading about different parenting techniques to get a fresh perspective. I also think Oliver would benefit from me being less of a pushover. The article is an excerpt from the book “Bringing up Bebe” written by Pamela Druckerman. Guess I better start reading!

Adrienne

A-Listers Need to Know:

“Bringing Up Bebe”

Adler & Reid

adrienneslist — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 04:45:36 +0000

Two great interviews in this month’s Matchbook! The first is an interview with fashion designer Jules Reid. Not sure I could pull off her clothes, but I love that she made her transition into fashion when she was 40 (with 3 kids no less!) Very inspirational and such a good reminder that it’s never too late to pursue something you love. Plus, her house decor is super fun.

The second interview is with Jonathan Adler, one of my absolute favorites. His stuff can be crazy but he truly embodies his motto of happy chic and I would love to work in his office!! Enjoy!

Adrienne

A-listers Need to Know:

www.matchbookmag.com

Olive & Cocoa

adrienneslist — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:25:06 +0000

Perfect timing for Valentine’s Day! I think flowers make such a thoughtful thank you but I don’t love sending 1800 Flowers when I don’t know a local option. Enter Olive & Cocoa! They have stylish arrangements along with other fun gifts like champagne flutes, tea lights and gifts for kids and pets.

On a separate note , I was impressed when I received my catalog yesterday (just in time for Valentine’s Day) and then saw their ad when I was reading one of my favorite gossip sites (realitytea.com.. so trashy but so fun). While this makes me feel very predictable and unoriginal, hats off to whoever their media planner is. You managed perfect timing and exposure.

Anyway, I’m happy to know about this site and can’t wait to surprise someone with a fun gift!

Adrienne

A-Listers Need to Know:

Price:

Lottie flower arrangement $94

Milk glass tea lights $98

Letterpress birthday cards $38

Dainty champagne flutes, set of 6 $78

Purchase:

www.oliveandcocoa.com

Little Nest

adrienneslist — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:27:20 +0000

Indulgent? Yes. Ridiculously cute? Totally! Little Nest makes child size reproductions of iconic 20th century furniture. I love the mini Barcelona chair and the Eames lounge chair.

Full disclosure, I have a total weakness for mini furniture and I did splurge on a Bert chair for Oliver and he actually loves it! He makes himself a “meal” in his mini kitchen and then brings it over to his chair and eats. It’s adorable.

Adrienne

A-Listers Need to Know:

Purchase: www.littlenest.com

Price: Mini-E lounge chair $899

Bert chair $89

MARCH Pantry

adrienneslist — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:45:52 +0000

My Mother-in-law forwarded me their opening announcement and I can’t wait to visit the new MARCH Pantry shop on Sacramento St. in SF. The MARCH Pantry space used to be MARCH, a fabulous store that sold high end antiques. It looks like their antiques are still available on 1stdibs.com if you want to take a peak.

The new store is said to focus on “the best custom-made tables, ethereal handcrafted tableware, vintage baking equipment, antique kitchen furniture, traditional Belgian linens, all very healthy and eco-aware.”

From the pictures, the space looks fresh and sophisticated and while I’m sure it’s a bit pricey I can’t wait to visit for some inspiration!

Adrienne

A-Listers Need to Know:

March Pantry

3075 Sacramento St.

San Francisco

Tuesday through Saturday 10-6

415-931-7433, info@marchsf.com

adrienneslist — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:52:59 +0000

I signed up for Pinterest awhile ago but finally started pinning the other night and it’s totally addicting! I’m always saving pics of my favorite spaces from the web and now and this makes it so much easier to both collect pictures and organize them. I highly recommend it! You can also start following me, I’m under Adrienne Voboril. Take a peak!

Adrienne

The New Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co.

adrienneslist — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:18:43 +0000

I’ve loved Schoolhouse Electric for awhile and now I’m completely obsessed with their expanded line of furniture, home accessories and hardware. Take a peak at their virtual catalog here. I think the furniture and styling is beautiful and inspiring:

I love the pops of color and vintage feel. I’m obsessed with this kitchen (I want to paint our cherry cabinets so badly!!). I love the hardware along with the touch of blue from the steel utility stool. The dresser and chair in the room below are so beautiful, the whole room feels warm and cheerful and who doesn’t love an Edison bulb ?

Take a peak at their website and hopefully you’re as impressed as I am!

Adrienne

A-Listers Need to Know:

www.schoolhouseelectric.com

Inspiring Closets

adrienneslist — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 18:26:57 +0000

Photo from Light Locations

The natural light, the floor length mirrors, the subtle pops of colors, egh I have complete closet envy. As you know I’ve been purging and organizing and while I don’t have the closet the size of most bedrooms ( I mean really who does?) maybe one day it’ll happen. Until then, it’s still fun to look.

Bringing me back down to reality, this is a great article from Real Simple with 31 practical ways to makeover your closets. Some of my favorites include mounting a peg board for small accessories:
Image from Real Simple

And using slimming hangers to save space (they really work, these are great from the Container Store).

Image from Real Simple

I’ll get going on those practical solutions but I can still dream that one day I’ll have a space big enough for art and a fun vintage chair for when I’m just too exhausted from dressing myself.

Image from Houzz.com

Adrienne

My must-haves

adrienneslist — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 21:39:04 +0000

In keeping with the happiness project, I purged my closet this morning and got rid of a ton of stuff. Oliver wasn’t as thrilled with the process but managed to entertain himself trying to break some electronics just long enough for me to work.

While it felt great to give things away, it was slightly depressing to see how many clothes I’ve accumulated that I don’t ever wear and realize how much money I’ve wasted over the years. I did notice however that the majority of the pieces I gave away were things that I bought because I thought they were a good deal not because they were things I needed or even really wanted. These ended up being the pieces that I’d wear once and then forget about. This was an aha moment for me although I’m sure most of you are thinking ya duh (and yes I did just say duh, I’ve been up since 4:45 my vocab is lacking).

This got me thinking about the pieces that have been well worth the investment. Right on the top of that list is my Frye boots that I’ve had for at least 5 years and have gotten me through a couple NY winters to boot (pun intended… 4:45 folks) They were pricey but I wear them constantly! It’s also worth spending money on jeans because I wear them everyday as part of my mom uniform whether I like it or not. These Hudson ones are great in the summer. Also sweatshirts from J. Crew. They’re comfy and feel slightly nicer than your typical pullover.

So, what are your staple pieces?

Adrienne

A-Listers Need to Know:

Hudson Jeans $165

J. Crew Hoodie $74

Frye Boots $298

The Happiness Project Step 1: Organize

adrienneslist — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 19:18:24 +0000

Happy New Year everyone! I had a wonderful holiday with my family and our little guy is doing great. He’s a lot of work but it’s been so amazing to see him grow up, I can’t believe he’s almost 20 months!

Our close friends recently gave me a copy of “The Happiness Project”. Now I’m not usually one for self-help books, I love to read but I stick to fiction (something I need to branch out from but I love). That being said, I started reading this book in time for the new year and it has been so inspiring.

I’m only halfway through and still need to make my list of personal goals, but one of the first steps the author (Gretchen Rubin) mentions is getting organized. I still have to sort through all the stuff we’ve accumulated since our move last year, it’s gotten completely out of control. But once I do a purge of household items I need to get organized!

Now, it seems counterintuitive to buy more once I’ve gotten rid of stuff, but I think the above items would be very helpful to organize all the important papers and daily supplies that right now cover my kitchen counter and desk. They might be useful to you too!

As I said, I haven’t finished the book yet but I’m hoping it will inspire more posts. I think one big takeaway so far is that being happy is a choice and starting now I choose to be a happy person and I’m really looking forward to the change :)

Adrienne

A-Listers Need to Know:

Left to Right:

Mini Chalkboard Panels (we have a chalkboard in our kitchen and it’s great for writing out the week’s schedule):

Velocity Art and Design $18

Omaha Pencil Cup

Paper Source $6.95

Wall Pockets

Container Store $9.99

Scallop paper box

Paper Source $14.50

Vitra Uten.Silo

Velocity Art and Design $425