Birthdays are a big deal at our house.  My sweet little princess recently turned five and she had her mind made up months before the big day that she wanted to have a Cinderella party.  We had a blast planning out all of the details.  She invited all of her girl friends to come dressed as their favorite princess and join her for a tea party.

Tables setting for the tea party:  I used scrap book paper for the place mats.  The girls all sipped sparkling grape juice or lemonade out of the Cinderella glasses (from the Disney Store) which they all got to take home as part of their party favors.   Mini pizza bites, mini corny dogs and assorted finger sandwiches were on the menu.  A fruit bouquet served as the centerpiece for each table.  It turned out to be a fun way to get them to eat the healthy stuff too .

My mom, my little princess & I in front of the buffet.  Assorted finger sandwiches, ants on a log, fresh fruit, chips, sparkling grape juice & pink lemonade.

Instead of a cake this year, the princess wanted to do cupcakes.  Our favorite place for cupcakes is the Cupcakery (you have to try their Southern Belle ~ OMG!  You will think you have died & gone to Heaven!  It’s a red velvet cupcake).  For the party, we had them make chocolate & vanilla dusted with light blue sparkle edible glitter.  I found the cupcake stand on-line here.  I  adorned it myself by spray painting it blue, adding ribbon and of course a little bling.  The Cinderella mini cake is from Kroger.  I had them add some edible glitter to the skirt of the cake as well.

After lunch, the girls headed up to play on Jaylie’s stage in the gameroom as they anticipated the arrival of our special guest.

Cinderella is here!

Time for all of the princesses to take a ride around the neighborhood in Cinderella’s carriage!

The party was absolutely magical.  The princesses didn’t want the fun to end.  “One more ride in the carriage…. ppplllleeeaasssee!!!!”

Happy Valentine’s Day!  I hope you all are enjoying this day with your sweeties.  My gift to you today is some eye candy featuring the classic Valentine’s Day color palette of red & pink.

If you’re considering using either of these colors in your home, you may be interested in knowing the meaning behind each color.

Red:
The color of love, passion & beauty.  It is also the most emotionally intense of all of the colors.   Red stimulates a faster heartbeat and breathing.  It’s also said to cause appetite stimulation.

Light red represents joy, sexuality, passion, sensitivity, and love.
Dark red is associated with vigor, willpower,  leadership, and courage.

Pink:
Pink, a pale shade of red,  is said to be the most romantic of all of the colors.  It’s tranquilizing and compassionate.  Pink is youthful and exciting.  Pink signifies romance, love, and friendship. It denotes feminine qualities and passiveness.

Popular pinks:  hot pink, baby pink, bubblegum pink, carnation pink, shocking pink.

Hot pink walls & sleek sofa make a real WOW statement!

The British flag as an accent  is a huge trend right now.

Hot pink walls liven up a neutral white sofa & flooring.

Classic red from the pages of Elle Decor.  My fave is the window treatments in this photo!

A rather neutral room is brought to life with one hot pink accent wall.

Bright white is accented with with red accessories.

How fabulous is this bathroom?  I love every inch of it!  Perfect for the girls who just wanna have fun!

Up close detailing of the bathroom cabinet drawers.

Another neutral beauty livened up by the pop of a red chandelier.

A kitchen transformed into a colorful chef’s dream!

Retro take on classic red creates a fun kitchen.

Last week I featured my 4 tips to start your bedroom makeover on GMT.  You can watch it here. I figured you may like to have a little additional eye candy to help inspire you.

Tip #1
Start with a fabulous bed!

This stunning upholstered bed is one I designed & made for a client.  It’s graceful curves, tufting and nail head trim detail make it a real statement piece for their bedroom.

Monochromatic beauty from the pages of Elle Decor.  Every fabulous bed deserves a fabulous bench.

Check out this hottie ~  a luscious red velvet headboard.  I always love a red, black & white color scheme.  This one is executed so well because they let the showstopping red headboard stand on it’s own with only a few smaller doses of red in the bedroom.  This allows the black & white to balance the rest of the room.

I’m a sucker for a great iron canopy bed.  I had one very similar to this one in college.  I also had sheer drapery panels hanging from each of the posts.  It makes your room feel like a quaint little getaway.  This bedroom could easily fit right into my home.

Tip #2
Don’t skimp ~ get yourself some magnificent bedding!

Gorgeous bedding by Alessandra

I love the idea of using drapery to frame a bed.  It’s just so romantic.

Another stunning bedroom featured in Elle Decor.  They layering of the different hues of blue has a tremendous effect.  The cool crisp linens are so calming and peaceful.

Tip #3
Lighting is key!

Add color to your bedroom through the use of lovely lamps like this orange beauty.

I love putting chandeliers in bedrooms.  This piece is perfect for all of you lovers of contemporary design out there.

The gorgeous chandelier in this bedroom is the perfect compliment to the rest of the regal setting.  So classic and luxurious!

Tip #4
Select great nightstands! Remember ~ they don’t always have to match.

I heart these vintage suitcases stacked on top of each other to create a bedside table.  Muy fabuloso!

How cool is this?  They used a small ottoman with a silver tray on top to create a nightstand.  I also love the combination of pink, black & white.  This looks like a room I would create for my daughter for her teenage years.  I think I would do a fabric Roman shade instead of the woven wood window treatment.

On the bright side… How about bringing out the colors of your color scheme with a hand painted bedside table.  This yellow is so bright & cheery.

It’s snowing like crazy in Dallas today.  My sweet little princess is home from school & enjoying playing in the snow while I try to play catch up from traveling earlier this week.  Today is the perfect day for one of my favorite slow cooker recipes.  I got it from Taste of Home & it is always a hit with family & friends.  Yum-O!

Ingredients

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast halves
• 1 can (16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes with mild green chilies, drained
• 1 each medium green, sweet red and yellow peppers, julienned
• 1 medium onion, halved and sliced
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 flour tortillas (8 inches), warmed
• Shredded lettuce and chopped tomatoes, optional

*Note:  I’m using 1 can of Bush’s Black Beans instead of the kidney beans.  I also added a packet of McCormick’s Fajita Seasoning.*

Directions

• In a 3-qt. slow cooker, combine the chicken, beans, tomatoes, peppers, onion and seasonings. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until chicken is tender.
• Remove chicken; cool slightly. Shred chicken and return to the slow cooker; stir to combine. Spoon about 3/4 cup chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla. Top with lettuce and tomatoes if desired. Yield: 6 servings.

Hello my fellow design lovers!  I have a big treat in store for you today!  I’d like for you to meet Meghan Blum,  the newest guest blogger to join the Designer Detective team.  I first met Meghan at a blogger breakfast hosted by Hickory Chair last fall.  Her sweet personality and well put-together style made it hard not to love her!  We chatted for quite some time & I decided that I would have to insist she come on as one of my guest bloggers.

Meghan is an Interior Designer with The Mansion in Des Moines, Iowa. She works on a vast array of projects but is primarily involved in residential design. She enjoys helping clients through the design process & showing them how to live a better life in their home.   Meghan’s love for design has inspired her to write a blog of her own to express her passion. Her blog called Living in Style is devoted to doing just as the title states, living a stylish life. Being a designer she is surrounded & inspired by beautiful objects, interiors, & lives & hopes her blog will help you live a stylish life.

Stay tuned for Meghan’s first post later on this week on her “Five elements to a well designed room”.

Congratulations to Vickie Velis! You are the lucky winner of the Sony Handycam!  I will be e-mailing you to get your shipping information.

Thank you to everyone who participated!  I love reading all of the great comments.  Keep ‘em coming!  All new comments from today forward will be entered into the drawing for the next giveaway.  Stay tuned to see what it will be!

Happy decorating

Image from House Beautiful

To avoid headache & achieve precision, hire a professional art installer to hang art & mirrors in your home.  Large scaled and heavier pieces can sometimes require special hardware to hang properly.  Professional installers usuually charge by the hour.   To make it worthwhile, be organized & have several pieces that need to be hung throughout your home.

First Saturdays in Celina warehouse sales will resume THIS Saturday!  Get ready to load up because our warehouse is packed with loads of goodies!  This is the sale that all of your friends & neighbors talk about!  Furniture, art, rugs, accessories & more all up to 90% off.  If you’re decorating on a tight budget, this is certainly a great way to get name brand furniture & accessories at amazing prices.

Details:
When:  Saturday, February 6, 2010
Where: IBB’s Celina Warehouse
200 S. Louisiana
Celina, TX 75009
Time:  10:00-4:00

We are officially extending the deadline for the Sony Handycam giveaway.  Due to the technical difficulties we had on the blog last week (while incorporating some new features & updates), I thought it was only fair to extend the opportunity to win the video camera.  So, good news ~ you still have a chance to win!

For all of the details on how to win, click here.

The drawing for the winner will now take place on Tuesday, February 9th at 5:00 PM.

Good luck everyone!

You may have noticed that we had some technical difficulties over the past few days on the blog.  We are in the process of updating & making a few changes to make your experience on the Designer Detective blog better & more interactive.  Don’t be bummed my decor devotees, I have lots of great updates & fun stuff in store for you this week.   I will also be re-posting last week’s content!  I appreciate your patience while we work out a few kinks.  Thank you!