To Do: Unexpected Color Combinations

Plover Organic on the cover!

I was at the grocery store this morning when I spotted Plover Organic on the cover of Better Homes and Garden's Do It Yourself Fall 2011 edition. But what really blew me away was how the stylist had mixed patterns to amazing effect. (Even I have never considered mixing Pink Roses, Red Roses, Red Dots and Teal Squares!) It looks so gorgeous. I also LOVE the Thomas Paul blue zigzag pillow and Hable Construction's yellow throw pillow mixed in there. Genius!

A closer look inside...

And again...love the Herringbone fabric on the dog's pillow, from Joel Dewberry

Organic Conscious Mom

Thanks to Michelle Savin for yesterday's Tumbr post! If you have a few minutes, check out her recent Nate Berkus show appearance. Her recipe for a eco home cleaner is alone worth the watch...

Pantone Postcards!

Like many people, I am mildly obsessed with Pantone. So when I saw these Pantone color postcards for sale at Urban Outfitters (via the awesome Portland Monthly At Home blog), I had to buy them immediately. Whether I'll use them as actual postcards or just for color inspiration remains to be seen.

Wild Goose Farm: Gourmet Sustainability

Eating at the table set in the barn, where all the cooking was also done

Yesterday was one of the more special dining experiences I've had in a long time, in Portland or elsewhere. (I apologize in advance that I didn't take better photos...too busy having fun!) To celebrate the upcoming wedding of our dear friends Annie & Eric, we all splurged on a dinner party at Wild Goose Farm out on Sauvie Island. Run by the lovely and talented interior designer Jessica Helgerson, and her equally talented husband, the architect Yianni Doulis, the farm sits on 5 acres and is just a 30-minute drive from the city. All the food served is grown on-site or sourced nearby—including meat and cheese. It's rustic and delicious, but of course the real star is the setting. How many times in your life will you have a gourmet meal on a farm? With baby turkeys? I can't recommend it highly enough. And I cannot wait to have my husband build a wood-burning oven in the backyard!

The scene of our pre-cheese course stroll

Yianni shows the kids the wood-burning oven. (Yes, Emm is wearing a tie!)

Don't You Want to Sleep Here?

Plover's Vine print on crib and Twin bed. So pretty!

Heather at Brookline Street Design is a great customer of ours, and when she started snatching up a bunch of stuff more than a year ago, we had no idea what she was up to. But this week we found out: designing an amazing, gorgeous, serene space for her two girls. The results are incredible.

My favorite Plover touch in the room: she turned our Aqua Dots Fabric By the Yard into room-darkening curtains. Wish I had thought of that! Enjoy the pics. Thanks, Heather!

Heather's answer for finishing touches? "Lots of Etsy purchases," she says.

DIY Recycling

The Skittles Eco Kite is available on TerraCycle's web store

Like many of you (I hope!), we subscribe to the EcoFabulous weekly newsletter. Founder Zem Joaquin puts together a list of green products and initiatives that are always worth knowing about. This week she made a video suggesting a recycling bin in the bathroom. Seems obvious, but I'd never thought of it, and it would certainly make my life easier.

Even better, she introduced us to a program called TerraCycle, which allows you to set up a recycling program for the previously "un-recyclable" in your own neighborhood. You simply sign up on their website, pick the waste you want to collect (plastic bottle caps, perhaps?) and put out a collection box in your area. When your bin is full, you can download a FREE shipping label on their website, and ship the waste off to be recycled. This is an amazing program for areas that don't have exhaustive recycling programs curbside. I encourage everyone to at least check out TerraCycle's website—you can also buy recycled products on their site—and pass it on to all your friends.

Happy Earth Day!

Earth Day Sale!!

To celebrate Earth Day tomorrow, Plover Organic is offering 35% off all items online! Enter the code EARTH11 at checkout to receive the discount. Sale ends Monday, May 2, so shop soon!