// Toby's Black + White Room Inspiration

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We are in the middle of overhauling Toby's room into a super fun place. We didn't put a whole lot of focus on it when we first moved in because we were eyeball deep in renovations and making the place livable. Now that we've had a chance to get the house up to speed and upgrade Toby to bunk beds, we figured it was time to put the time and effort into his room to make it a space that was really special and unique. His room has always been overflowing with toys and knick knacks, so we took this chance to get rid of SO MUCH STUFF! Clothes, toys, books, you name it. Toby really wanted a super graphic/bold look in his room, but Mike and I were not about to budge on the "No red walls!" rule we put in place. Instead we all compromised on a white room with one statement wall in black. Black and white can be worked with from so many angles, and pop colors are the perfect way to pull it off. Here are a few rooms I looked at for inspiration on how to handle Toby's. Drop back by on Friday and I'll show you how it's coming along so far! 

xo KB

// Office Space: 13 Small Workspaces with Personality

It's been about 6 months since I last shared some home office inspiration, and in those 6 months we've renovated our spare bedroom, turned it into an office, found out we were pregnant, scraped the glitter off the wall, and started to repaint for a nursery. It's been a busy half year! haha I was really aiming to make the entire room cohesive and relaxing, and I'd like to think it really worked for the few short months I was able to use it. By the time we found out we were expecting in early December I was zonked 24/7, so it really did only get used for a month or two (sadface!). While it's easy to be bummed about the geometric glitter wall we spent a lot of time and energy on, I'm actually enjoying my new (much smaller!) space in the kitchen. The way our kitchen is laid out is kind of weird, and I have a whole half wall for my desk and a few odds and ends. It's not the 12" x 12" room I had grown accustomed to, but my tiny 3' x 8' area is proving to be plenty big.

Organizing my workspace is a different animal entirely though. I tossed or stored probably 95% of the stuff in my office, and now I'm just working with a desk Mike built, my iMac, a lamp, and 2 cubby shelves that hold my business books. There's a window right behind my computer so that leaves very little vertical space to use, but I'm going to try and make the most of every inch of space. One of my biggest problems, however, is that I like to start cluttering it up if I give myself too much space... so it'll be a delicate balancing act.

Things I look for in the *perfect* workspace:

1. Lots of light! - I prefer natural light, but my workspace faces the North side of our house and I don't get a ton of sunshine over here. Luckily the area is fairly open and light tends to trickle in. It helps to have some custom blinds too, so that I can control exactly how much light I am letting in at any time.

2. Greenery! - I love having fresh flowers at my desk, but I also supplement them with some fake Ikea succulents. I'm hoping to find a way to bring in live greenery. I love the look of ivy draped around the work area.

3. Color! - I'm into the cliche interior trend of white (or very light) environments, dotted with colorful pieces. Whether it's office supplies or artwork, I like there to be "pops" of color (I know, so overdone!)

4. No drawers! - Maybe it's silly to admit this, but if I have drawers to put things in, I'll put everything except what belongs in there. I'm not organized enough to be given the responsibility of desk drawers or filing cabinets, despite loving the look. 

We're eyeball deep in redoing my workspace, our bedroom, and planning the nursery. We've been in our home for over a year now and it's so crazy to me that the bathroom is only like 75% finished. We really are racing the clock over here... 

If you have any great resources for small workspace organization or planning, or even just some cute office products (!!!), I'd love to see! 

And now one final question: What's the one thing (or three!) that you do to help make your workspace feel more "you?" Whether you work in a cubicle or in a closet at your home, hunched over a laptop or tinkering away with your hands, how do you ensure you feel at home in your space? My answer: I try to have fresh flowers around as much as possible. I have some really nice silk/Ikea ones that do the job when I forget! Little pops of color help distract my eyes from my bright computer screen.

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Home Inspiration

It's crazy for me to sit in our loft and think that this is our last week here. It's so incredibly bittersweet. We're so tickled to be moving across the river and to have a home, a fenced in yard (soon!), and a bathtub (!!!), but we can't help but sit in bed every night and tell each other how much we really love it here. We're not sure we'll ever live anywhere with this much character again, but who knows. Our loft totally isn't for everyone, but we love how "home sweet home" we made it feel. But we're also really excited to do that with our new house, too! I can't help but scour Pinterest on the daily for home projects that I want to sink my teeth into. I shared a few in a recent TiLT post but here are some things I'm hoping to give a whirl over the next several weeks (or just things I think are neat!)!

♥ this inspiration board right behind the monitor ♥

♥ this chic and minimal jewelry display ♥

♥ this is exactly the look we're going for in the bedroom ♥

♥ this would be perfect for our kitchen ♥

♥ this DIY wreath made of shims ♥

♥ this is a super cute storage/display idea ♥

♥ this is another cute jewelry display idea ♥

♥ while i'd never do this much chalkboard in my kitchen, this is cute ♥

♥ these pallet shelves are so cute! ♥

♥ these beautiful handkerchiefs in frames ♥

♥ this has made me consider building a new desk for our bedroom ♥

♥ loving this wood on wood look! ♥

Do you have a specific aesthetic? (Better yet, do you + your partner agree on the same style/look of things?!) Mike is much more modern/minimal than I am, and I love shabby chic and feminine... It's always a fun tightrope to walk in our home! (At least he's handy with some power tools!)

Happy Tuesday! It's going to be a crazy week. xo

On The Road...

Everyone has been so encouraging of the mobile business we're working so diligently on and while it's far from an original endeavor already, we're just as thrilled to be stepping in the right direction of our dreams. This post is scheduled to go up Friday morning while we are on a mini-roadtrip! Mike and I have been given the opportunity to look at several different campers today so we're hopping in the car, driving a few hours north and poking around for a bit! Woohoo! We originally had one picked out and were going to go ahead with renovations, but a few more presented themselves (through the same family) so we want to make sure to pick the *one* and chart out the interior with them in person. I thought I'd share some of the cutest mobile businesses around since y'all linked to me to sooo many! I'll be the first to say that each and every one of them has inspired us in some way. Mostly just to get our business up and going, but I'll explain that more in each paragraph!

Up first is Punky of Haberdash Vintage!

Haberdash Vintage: Punky (Amy) was among the first (or the first, I think!) to have a mobile vintage shop and since I remember being friends with her back in the MySpace/StyleMob days, I was eagerly following along. Something about it just seemed so surreal and fun, but totally unreachable for me. I loved following her blog and seeing her get involved with Swap while doing her clothing swaps, etc. Her blog isn't just an inspiration for her business, but also just her totally (what seems to be) a jam-packed schedule full of events. Her shiny lil 'dash is very different from everyone else's pastel paint jobs and I just love that! I love how she utilized the inside of her door as a chalkboard and I love the grated mesh type stuff that she hangs her shoe heels on! The Haberdash is the original folks! Take a good look at this sweet lil' beauty! (She inspired us to pick up an astroturf rug to go our front! I can't wait to get it all set up!)

Wanderlust Mobile Shop: This is the one I just can't get enough of! Oh my stars! I have Vanessa and Dan's blog pulled up in a permanent tab on my computer. I just can't help it. I think it's the combined fact that 1.) They are SO adorable, 2.) They make me hopeful for what me and Mike might be like and 3.) Vanessa has been such a doll emailing back and forth with me giving me helpful tips to make the shop a success! The pastel mint and yellow, her pretty pretty hair and dresses, and the just "homey" feel of their little Cardinal makes me swoon! I wish I could travel to Portland right now and just hang out with them! They are the cutest ever! I die. Like, I want to be BFF with them SO.BAD. (And we're totally taking a cue from their little outdoor sign! How sweet is that?!)

Mimsy's Trailer Trash Tattoo: While this is not a mobile retail shop, it is a mobile tattoo shop! How fun! I love the styling of the outside and I am head over heels in love with her tattooing style. A few people linked me to her in the comments of my original post and I remembered having seen some pictures on Tumblr a while back. It wasn't until then that I took the time to investigate but I'm so glad I did! I feel like it's such an awesome business plan! Just wish it wasn't so far away! The look of her caravan is probably my absolute favorite!

Trish Hunter Finds: Another long throw from Nashville is Trish Hunter Finds from Australia! I can honestly say that the clean and sleek modern interior, without a doubt, has inspired me for our shop. She and her dad renovated the interior together! I am in love with the custom built-ins that they installs and how bright everything is! Shopping in there would be such a treat! (She totally inspired me to try and find a cute little mini picket fence! I don't know if we will or not, but how cute would that be?!)

 

Oh So Lovely Vintage: I'm not sure how I didn't know about them sooner considering how small the internet makes the world but holy moly cute! About 45 of y'all linked me this way in the original post and I about keeled over and died. The fact that I want peach (small) scallops in the paint job on our camper kind of terrified me once I opened their page (because we all know someone just wants to shout "You're a copycat!" to any/everyone at any chance they get), but honestly I don't think I could ever pull off a shop so darling! I had a mini freak out and wanted to scrap the whole idea but decided to just roll with the cute! The girls are the cutest (I love that it's a BFF team, since the 'bean part of honeybean is in reference to a certain special someone [wink wink] and that kind of partnership is so inspiring) and the interior is insane! They seem to have the best hand-picked collection that I've seen so far and just skimming through their blog has been a delight. (I think) they are a kind-of-still up-and-coming mobile shop so to see how freakin' adorable they are already totally inspires me to push forward (and to utilize space any and everywhere... like the pegboard door! Holy smart!) 

Hill Vintage: More absolute cuteness! Erica of Hill Vintage left a comment linking me over to their Facebook page and offered up loads of advice via email if I wanted and I think anyone willing to share their tried-and-true business successes (and failures) with a total rookie like myself is AMAZING! I haven't taken her up on her offer just yet (Erica - I totally have the email half written! But I know I'll have a million questions after this trip today! Eeeep!) but I always find myself flipping through their Facebook pictures. I love love love the kind of "found" feeling of their business cards with stickers on them. I've always thought approaches like that were super freakin' cool and the fact that it totally goes with their recycled clothing is such a great business idea! (And the melted record bowls?! SWOOON-CITY Y'ALL!) Their little trailer warming party has totally inspired me to maybe try and plan one of our own before too long!

These are just a few of the ones y'all linked me to in my original post and the ones I've found the most inspiration from. I'll never try to take credit for the idea because obviously it has been a long-standing one, but I can't wait to use our original design + the inspirations of all these fantastic businesses to build the perfect little 'bean. Gotta give credit where credit is due, y'all, and these are the cream of the crop!

Do you know of any other amazing mobile businesses that deserve some time in the spotlight?! Feel free to leave a comment below or shoot me an email!

Hopefully we'll come home today with some good news! xo

Sunday Spotlight - Illustrator: Erin Wengrovius

I'm kind of really excited to share this week's spotlight as it's showcasing one very talented lady that I've had the pleasure of working with at BUST Magazine. I was first in contact with Erin about two-and-one-half years ago as I was inquiring about an internship in the art department of BUST. It was my favorite magazine ever and I found Erin to be such a doll when we were exchanging emails for the first few months. In May 2009 I headed to NYC on my solo adventure of working under Erin and the other fabulous women at the magazine. I was even more elated when I was invited back in 2010 to do my second stint with the girls. Erin's design style has always inspired me and it was so cool to be able to work so closely with her; this past year especially. Not only is she an incredible designer and illustrator, but she is also such a sweet gal! She's a definite rockstar so when I received a packet of her adorable animal prints in the mail I knew I wanted to showcase her for all of you! Hopefully you'll love the following interview and love her work even more! Enjoy! xo

Hi Erin! We're so excited to have you on Little Chief Honeybee! Just to introduce you to everyone, how about you tell us some interesting tidbits about yourself!

♥ Hey Kaelah! Well, I’m a designer slash illustrator living in Brooklyn, NY (www.erinwengrovius.com). I‘m the Senior Designer at BUST Magazine, which is a woman’s pop-culture magazine. It’s a super fun, girlie environment, I get to meet and work with really rad people (like Kaelah Bee!). I also started my own business last year called Grovius where I sell paintings and prints; you can see them at www.grovius.etsy.com.

 

How long have you been into the whole illustration thing? Did it start by drawing doodles as a child or did you find your passion later in life?

♥ I was drawing ever since I can remember. It is really one of the few things I am good at so I invest a lot of my time working on it. I’ve always been a bit of a sales woman too. When I was a kid I would make little clay animals and sell them at my lemonade stands for a dollar each, I even employed the neighborhood kids to work for me. I guess it’s in my blood. Being able to make a living off my illustrations has always been my dream. It is a slow process but I am getting there. I basically want to be the next Jonathan Adler.

 

You pretty much draw the cutest little animals ever. You also choose a very eclectic mix of species... What is that all about?

♥ I have always loved animals, I remember studying animal atlases and learning all the different kinds of species. Their shapes and patterns fascinate me. The reason you see such an eclectic mix is because I pick animals that have the most interesting shapes and personality. Some animals have silhouettes that are especially unique; those are the animals I get really excited about, like the baboon or the kiwi. Another factor is all my designs are based on the square. If I can draw an animal to fit nicely in a square I will illustrate it. I am still trying to figure out how to fit a narwhale in a square.

 

Do you dabble in any other media of art such as canvas painting, woodworking or anything else equally as awesome?

♥ Yes, I experiment with everything. My favorite medium in acrylic paint which I love painting on wood panels. The fun thing about wood panels is you can use wood stains. It creates this great texture which kind of looks like animal fur so it is perfect for my designs. I also do a lot of digital art, I can’t say enough nice things about Photoshop and Illustrator they have made my life so much easier. Another medium I am exploring at the moment is embroidery. I am working on creating designs for pillows and tea towels.

 

Your style is also pretty refined and specific. Are there other illustrators or artists that you draw inspiration from for this kind of work?

♥ That is actually really nice to hear because I always thought my style was all over the place, there are so many styles I’m inspired by and I want to try them all. My earlier work was very realistic and labor intensive. But I learned over time the beauty of simplicity. I get my inspiration from all over the place. I think Charley Harper is a genius; he is a huge influence. I am a big fan of Orla Kiely’s patterns, Inuit art and Mid-Century modernism as well. Since I commission illustrators where I work I am constantly finding amazing illustrators, I am too shy to list them! It’s almost like telling everyone is school you have a crush on someone.

 

When you're not doodlin' up some darn cute doggies, what can you be found doing? How about a typical day in the life of Erin?

♥ I can’t be found doing much else. I am a total workaholic, as most illustrators I know are. When I am not working or drawing you can find me hanging out with my boyfriend, wandering around Brooklyn and eating! I also love movies and TV, which I watch while I illustrate. I don’t have an actual television set, I just watch everything on the Internet, currently I am obsessed with Peep Show, Trailer Park Boys and Freaks and Geeks. If you have not seen these shows I suggest you watch them right now!

 

Now for a more business-related question! If someone wanted to commission you for a portrait of their pooch or favorite animal, would this be something you'd be open to doing? Would you ever venture into the world of people portraits? I think a whole family photo could be pretty dang cute!

♥ Totally! I have created lots of custom paintings. I can paint anything; I’m not limited to animals. In fact, I love painting portraits. I had been considering doing a series of celebrities portraits on wood panels. I think portraits of James Franco would sell like hot cakes. Maybe I should get started on that. But if anyone out there needs a portrait of his or her aunt Edna, I’m your girl. Just give me an email at hello@erinwengrovius.com.

Any else you'd like to share with the little honeybees?

♥ Yes! If anyone has a cool idea for a project please send me an email, I love to collaborate. That is what’s so amazing about the blog world; it brings people together! 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Thanks to Erin for taking part in this little interview for LCH! I hope you guys love her work and take a chance to check out the rest of her stuff! 

What is your favorite piece in Erin's shop?

You're kind of in love with the Sloth, right?! I know I am! (And peep the little bulldog on the wall up there! I die!)

Wedding Wednesday! [Our Wedding!]

I know you're all itching to have Wedding Wednesdays turn into a very "personal" feature (and so am I!) but Mike and I have taken it very very slow in making any real decisions. We obviously want to establish ourselves in our field and we definitely want to enjoy being engaged before rushing to the altar. We want it to be a fun experience for the both of us... not necessarily a stressful one (even though we know that will go without saying). As far as where our plans lie thus far, I'm still just finding pictures that inspire me and feel magical. From colors to decor, I've already tried a few DIYs and I'm secretly envious of those bride's that I've seen who just "get it right" on their big day! I know that no matter the outcome, I'll be marrying my best friend and I'll be surrounded by the people I care the most about in life, so that's fine by me!

Here are a few pictures that are definitely owning my inspiration board as of late! You'll probably be able to see where I'm going with this...

These gorgeous colors, and succulents in the bouquet!

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Burlap and gorgeous outdoor fields.

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Tea-length wedding dress and mismatched bridesmaids!

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DIY centerpieces

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Mix-and-match acquired plate settings

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DIY drink favors

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Swiss dot cake and large sugar flowers

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Vintage cake stands and a plethora of sweet choices

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My Dream Dress!

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My love for paper pom poms is evident

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DIY signs

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Mason jar drinks + margaritas

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Hopefully my vision for our wedding is a little bit clearer! Mike is usually pretty game with the whole idea as we have very similar styles, but he knows that I've been dreaming up this very day since I was a little girl. I'm kind of nervous to actually *make* any plans though! I'm sure this happens to most brides... right? haha! Anyway, that's my Wedding Wednesday for today! Hopefully that will satisfy some of your desires about making it more personal! I promise, once we actually start planning things, I'll probably flood the blog in inspiration, questions, experiences, etc! xo

Wedding Wednesday!

I went a little crazy on Pinterest last night and re-pinned so many pictures to my "i do" styleboard. I'm overrun with inspiration right now and I can't wait to turn these little dreams into a reality. So in keeping with the "OMG I just got engaged" theme, I'm going to share several photos from my styleboard that I'm swooning over. Don't worry, next week I'll be sharing a fabulous reader wedding submission! xo

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