Why I Love Miami

It's no secret to the folks I visit for work that I would LOVE to live in South Florida. I understand that this area is not for everyone. It's crowded, loud, sometimes dirty... but it's also vibrant, fun, WARM (usually), and a whole big mix of everything.

I'm up late working tonight, but had to share a few of my reasons on why I love Miami (or Ft. Lauderdale, where I'm actually staying).

You can pull off colors in your home like these and not look completely derranged or being the talk of the town in a negative way.

via Fast Real Estate

via real estate listing

via Miamism

Lifeguard stands are a testament to the hippness of the area...

Travelogue

Water, water, everywhere

Lush, green landscaping...

via Pink Shovel Landscapes

and bougainvilleas year-round!!

Art in many forms... architecture, statues, art in museums...

via Wandalust

Artist Boris Posavec via GalleryNOW

The FOOD!

Stone Crabs (and other seafood)

Mojito (must have the sugarcane!)

Plantains (either sweet or crispy fried)

Cuatro Leches cake (I am a total sucker for this... had a larger piece than I should have this evening in fact!)

And one quick bit of business. I received an email from a well-informed Atlanta resident correcting one of my posts. The "Atlanta White House" is not in Druid Hills, as I had previously reported. Thank you for the information and I apologize for the error.

via Atlanta Fine Homes

Hope y'all are having a great week!

Emmie

READ MORE - Why I Love Miami

Meet This Atlanta Power Couple

Alisa Barry and Smith Hanes via Country Home

We had a lovely weekend with the girls and tons of fun (a little too much fun Friday evening... the wine was flowing freely and before you knew it, we had gone through many many bottles. How old am I???).

On Saturday, we headed out to Virginia Highlands- a great little area of shopping, dining, and super-cute houses. (Note to self: home tours in December, which I missed last year. Must do in 2010!).

For me, Virginia Highlands is one of those great areas that you should get to often, but somehow don't. Saturday, I made the great discovery of Bella Cucina...

Their mission? "To enhance the lives of our customers everyday through the spirit,
beauty, and sustenance of artful food."

The shop is actually part of an enterprise, created by Alisa Barry because of her "passion for food and all things Italian." She also has a blog, The Art of Food, which I encourage you to check out! Note that her last blog posting was on Meyer Lemons. Yes, I think we have a connection.


Needless to say, this little stop had me at hello. Their fabulous little sauces are not cheap but they are delicious and the store offers several recipe cards to make the most of their little jars of heaven. While checking out, I chatted with the clerk about the decor, which I also loved, and found out that the shop owner's significant other (husband? I'm not sure) is a designer and was behind the shop's decor.


Meet Smith Hanes.

Smith has also been involved of the design of Serenbe, this amazing little community centered around smart development and protection of greenspace.

Blue Eyed Daisy Bakeshop

The Farmhouse at Serenbe

And one of my favorite restaurants, JCT Kitchen.

Smith is not limited to commercial projects, either, and brings this modern country farmhouse look to Atlanta residences.













Alisa and Smith's home, a 1908 Sears kit house, has also been featured in design magazines. These photos all courtesy of Country Home. The couple's love for art and modern flair is evident throughout the house.





And there we are. I hope that you enjoyed this little introduction... Off to Miami today for work!

Emmie

READ MORE - Meet This Atlanta Power Couple

Off to New York!

At times, I lament that my job is not "as cool" as many of you designers out there, but every once in a while, I get to do something fun! I'm headed up to NYC for the Wine & Food Festival.

In the past, I've only attended the event in Miami. I'm quite certain that the New York version will have a different flair. Admittedly, I'm only in for a few days and will probably just hit the Trade Tasting event, but you know I'll be on the lookout for...

And, I'll try to behave myself better than the last event in Miami, when I admitted to Bobby Flay that I've had a long-time crush on him (can you say stalker!?)

The most exciting part of the trip, however, will be catching up with my friend Jill. Jill, and her boyfriend M, are graciously hosting me tonight. Jill is the type of friend you hope everyone has. She's always there to listen, quietly offer advice, and loads of fun. She also has her own blog, Jillie of All Trades, where she describes herself as a "brownie-baking, gadget-loving, once-a-year triathlete, sometimes sporty city girl". Please say hello!

Jill has also promised to take me to the High Line, which I fell in love with remotely when Habitually Chic first blogged about it here and fell deeper in love with Jillie's recent posts here and here.

Have a wonderful end to the week! I'll be back to give my review of Birmingham, AL's Simon Pearce signing at Table Matters. The event did not disappoint and I totally blew my budget.

--Emmie

Top photos from FoodTV; last photo by Jillie of All Trades

READ MORE - Off to New York!