Sette Design

California Coast

long hallway with five tiny bedrooms on the sides

Simple Life
This San Francisco girl living in Umbria has made it home with her girls and we are lavishing every moment here on the California coast.

Oh how I love the smell of the Pacific Ocean, the twinkling orange lights of San Francisco.

I have so much already that I want to share with you, but I am limping along with other's computers, as mine is having problems, it makes it hard to work and to write. So if I disappear for a while you will know that I am unable technically to handle much, but also we are enjoying the much needed time with friends and family.


this is not our house, I do love the faded hydrandea

I do have to show you a winter garden in Napa Valley, a cool alternative houseboat community in Sausalito and some cottage style houses that the California coast is known for, it is all so old and solid in my heart, then fun and fresh to bring to this Diario di Design.

I hear that it is snowing in Umbria. Life on the California coast is supreme, people in the sand, in the shower, chatting on the deck, the hills settling into water, American coffee, something cooking, the holidays are brewing. I am excited and filled with gratitude just to be home and breathing in the air.

I am also so thankful for all of you, my friends and readers around the world. I want to inspire you all to slow down and savor the moments that bring you joy and peace. To keep your creativity going, and take time to relish in it.

To those in America Happy Thanksgiving and to everyone else I wish you tranquility and happiness.

Simple as that, embrace it.

how cool is this house, I couldn't find this in Umbria cheers!

With affection,

Natalie

Velvet Ribbons

I love it that the holidays are coming and we can wallow in the moments of joy.

I searched all over my Medieval city for velvet ribbon, I got it in my head that I must find velvet ribbon. I did finally find bright red and rich earth brown in the sewing store.

velvet ribbon for the holidays

This way we can wrap up things in velvet ribbon and it instantly becomes a little present.

I made homemade pain au chocolat, butter and dark chocolate stuffed in yeast bread with a little sugar. Yum, then wrapped them up in aluminum foil and a velvet ribbon for school or a work snack.

homemade bread with chocolate

I like the ribbon used as fastening for a love note.

on second thought
the love note would have been cooler
inside the bottle

Hot chocolate, brown velvet ribbon and a hot pink azalea, The holidays are here!

Decoration on a bunch of berries left on my baby girl's cushion.

strawberries from a tree

Doesn't velvet ribbon just start up the holiday season with a touch of festa?

Cheers!

Natalie

I'm linking with:
French Country Cottage

Romantic Home
The Shabby Creek Cottage.com

Creativity Prevails

“Creativity is a wild beast, it feeds on harmony.”

I didn’t write that I wish I had because it is so true. There is something about creativity that is out of control, raw and free yet when life is out of control it feels hard to be creative and to have innovative thoughts. To me that lack of creativity doesn’t even matter when life if weighed down by horror, shock or hardship. Then when the harmony creeps in again and creativity follows those moments in turn seem paramount, true, fresh and invigorating.

Can harmony be created, I believe so.

“Allora” (and therefore) I wish to all my lovely readers that harmony seeps, and creeps and slides into your life.

Happy Weekend.

I love to say that. I'm going to say it again pero con la forza. Happy Weekend

Natalie
I'm linking with these parties:
Romantic Home
French Country Cottage
The Shabby Creek Cottage

Painting Crystals

It is a rainy Monday morning in Umbria. Yes I have a cappuccino by my side, do you? I love the rain, to me it always magical. The Italians are funny because they will sometimes have their umbrellas up even when it isn’t raining. For this Northern California girl it has to be really raining for me to put up an umbrella or even carry one. Now I know to look out my window not to see if the umbrellas are up but to look on the river and see if there are needle-point circles in the water. Then it is raining.

the crystals I wired on with a flexible thin gage wire

I’m really excited about this post because a while back I had a great idea. I thought why not paint with colored glass paint the crystals that go on chandeliers.

In the past I had tried to use glass paint and I found it really hard to work with but that was when I was painting kiln loads full of pottery and the kiln makes everything look so amazing that glass paint seemed pathetic.

Now that I’m painting furniture and walls, glass paint seems just like another fun alternative. Plus I’m all about process and learning new techniques.

I'll show you some before shots now.

here it it before straight from the junk store

candelabra painted white already better

On crystals I suggest a thin layer with a soft brush that does not show too much brush stroke. Then if you want to let it dry a few hours you can do another layer.

here they are before flash photo

I painted only one side of the crystal, this was all that was needed to show the color effect.

painting crystals
glass paint comes in many colors go to your art store

I absolutely love brown with a warm color. I think it is so hip.

I like the idea of doing an amber brown color with this white chandelier.

sorry I don't have the photo of it installed yet

painted crystals on chandelier

I wish you all a good start to your week. I hope it is raining wherever you are in the world. Remember every week do something creative that fills your soul up rain or shine.

plus the holidays are coming!

Natalie

I'm linking with:

Between Naps on the Porch

Modern Vintage Life

Romantic Home

French Country Cottage
Shabby Nest

First Anniversary

Happy 1^st Anniversary Sette Design Blog

I started this Diario di Design a year ago today and I remember that it had snowed on the mountains around the city that we live in here in Umbria and I thought I’m going to write about the color white, just delve in Nat, you can do it. I took the plunge and now here we are a year later. I am so thrilled you are here too.

one candle in sette design studio

I want to Thank You for hanging around and taking part in the fun and inspiration that I hope is Sette Design.

oh the possibilities

It was so pretty, I had to put in my macho work boot.

I love it that we have a little-BIG creative community around the world and around the corner. Everyone is full of positivity and joy and encouragement, it is quite astounding.

love wins

in my studio

I made a wish for Sette Design.

happy birthday sette design blog
homemade cinnamon, sugar oat bread Yumm

A few dreams-goals:

I want to complete the E-course I am creating on painting techniques and creativity. It is going to be so gorgeous with little films, and photos and stories and ideas.

I want to organize a Furniture Painting and Art Class here in Umbria, Italy that you can come to. Imagine learning Venetian Stucco and Frescos painted as motif on furniture or panels, taught easily as process and technique so that anyone can do it. Then going to find a cafe to sit in and have a cappuccino.

AND

I want to encourage you all to go after your dreams, to stop and pause and figure out what those dreams are. Right now start some project that you want to do and if you just can’t possibly start it now. Then pull out a notepad and write down what it is you have in mind to do. Then you will have already begun it by writing it down. It’s in the works! It is that simple.

HAPPY One Year!

Let’s go for 2. It is going to be an adventure.

Cheers,

Natalie

Painted Pear Box

Happy November first, can you believe it!

Here we go with the pears again. This time I am going to try to let the photos speak for themselves.

You can see where I took my creative influence.

A silver bowl and some luscious pears.

natural pear stippling - heaven

simple life- still life,
a book, sage and pears in a silver bowl

Then I thought I would try to copy the finish of the pears on this box, simple as that.

Acrylic paint, some silver leaf and some stippling in dark brown with a tiny brush.

I like the irregularly applied silver leaf
on the box closure hardware

It somehow humored my heart to paint this project. Later I gave it as a birthday present for a 9 year old friend, filled it with candies and gave the pear too, wrapped separately. It is funny to give someone a pear as a birthday present, they never expect it! It is good to throw them off, especially those tricky friends. I am sure you have some tricky friends. Did a whole hoard of them cross your mind just now with yourself leading the pack?

painted pear box

It is fun to look around and find your inspiration anywhere. I would love to do the bathroom walls or a laundry room, some small space stippled like a pear.

With affection,
Natalie

I'm linking with:

French Country Cottage
Romantic Home
Between Naps on the Porch

Eye Candy

Eye Candy - The Simple Life

I think Eye Candy is supposed to refer to looking at yummy boyz, or girls, whatever your desire, yet for us freakers in the world of design eye candy can be so much more. Do you find you walk around in a daze sometimes feasting your eyes on the small details of life? This is what I love about this simple life I am trying to live and enjoy here in Umbria and the world, the eye candy is everywhere.

Hot pink azaleas with moss green velvet yum! The crystal vase is really a wall sconce that I turned into a vase. I love it with the silver leaf table.

silver leaf and azaelas

Some days the eye candy just jumps out at me.

who doesn't love pink columns and cobblestones

This gray-green is the bee's knees.

this side mirror is beyond fabulous
1964 Ford in Foligno, Italy... strange culture
time warp

If this table and stools were mine, I would like to move them inside put felt all over the bottom to not scrape the floors and then make velvet cushions in slate blue to go on each stool.