architectural digest : Sofía Vergara

 

Architectural Digest recently showcased Sofía Vergara’s luxurious Los Angeles residence in its “Hollywood at Home” edition. 

Vergara, who bought the house with her former husband Joe Manganiello, led an extensive makeover that transformed the once-outdated property into a welcoming, richly decorated space brimming with antiques and personal details. 

Sophia worked with interior designer Ohara Davies-Gaetano and architect Timothy Corrigan to reimagine her house.

 

The home, originally built in the 1990s, was completely updated. Arches and columns were removed to create a space that's brighter and feels more open.

 

A peek of the kitchen from Sophia’s Instagram.

Landscape designer Stephen Block created gardens filled with tropical plants that reflect Vergara's Colombian heritage.

 

Sophia’s Instagram

The redesign includes European antiques from countries like Spain, Sweden, France, and Italy.

 

Notable pieces are an 18th-century Venetian mirror, a French limestone fireplace from the same period, and ornate Baroque armchairs with gilded details.

 

The 18th-century Venetian mirror with a newer console.

Elegant touches throughout the house include a dining room ceiling decorated with hand-embossed floral plaster, an antique chandelier from Italy, and a sizable collection of porcelain antiques.

 

What a dreamy outdoor space!

 

So perfect for parties!

I love the muted colors used here.

She's especially proud of her walk-in closet, which is floor-to-ceiling, color-coordinated.

 

Sophia describes her closet as "a girl's girl's dream."

Sofia also owns a vacation house called "Casa Chipi Chipi" in a secret location believed to be in Colombia, her homeland. 

She enjoys spending time there with her family and often welcomes friends and fellow actors to visit. 

The home is famous for its tropical atmosphere and warm, fun décor that reflects Sofia's lively personality.

 

Hey! I have those same pillows!

They’re from Serena and Lilly.

Such a pretty and beachy place setting!

We hope you enjoyed this tour of Sophia Vergara’s lovely homes.

Pictures are courtesy of Architectural Digest & Sophia’s Instagram.

ciao fabiana

 

 

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the newest Cottages and Bungalows

Reading the latest Cottages & Bungalows magazine has got me really inspired for summer. There’s so much included in this little gem, that I have to sit down again this weekend, and take some “me” time to really zero in on every detail to reread this issue again from cover to cover.

 

So today I thought I'd share with all of you some of the beautiful pictures from the homes in this issue that most caught my attention.

Let's start with the welcome letter from Kelly McMaster that includes some of the lovely features in this August/September issue.

I’m really loving all the waterfront homes and coastal inspired décor in this issue. Flipping through the pages is such a pleasure, as there are very few ads, and so many beautiful pictures and articles filled with design ideas and instructional columns.

 

The first home that caught my eye is this pretty little cottage in Hilton Head.

This is a typical 1970’s home style in Hilton Head, South Carolina. In fact, our home in Hilton Head has a very similar roof line and architectural style.

 

I love how they added darling cottage details to the exterior of the house. The charming shutters and the window box really set it apart from the rest of the homes in the neighborhood.

 

Nicknamed “The Grace Cottage”, the inside of this home is also bright and colorful, and so perfect for a vacation home.

 

This amazing beach house pictured above is located in Cap Ferret, France and I’m in love with every single detail here, from the mismatched pendants to the painted blue band that runs around the room. 

This is my kind of room and wait ‘til you the rest of this beach cottage!

 

But wait... as we flip through this issue, we come across another lovely blue and white coastal room. Those painted Chippendale style chairs are so chic. They add that definite “coastal grandmother style” to the whole space.

What catches your attention most about this room?

Cottages & Bungalow’s brand ambassador Kara Williams invites us all to join her very own “Seaside Soiree”, which includes a beautifully set alfresco table, charming coastal décor and the cutest surf and sand cupcakes dressed up with sugared seashells and sand (crumbled graham crackers).

I'm just soaking up every detail of her pretty home and outdoor entertaining area. And who can resist a fun little cupcake like this? I love how she surrounded the cupcake plate with seashells and more crumbled graham cracker sand.

All-in-all, reading this coastal issue of Cottages & Bungalows brings together all the joys of summer décor that I love so much and offers so much inspiration that I can add to my own home.

Seeing these relaxed beach vignettes also allows me to take a deep breath, chill, and take it all in. Isn't this a peaceful view?

 

I especially love the tranquil feeling of this room. It's the neutral colors, the white slipcovers and the natural textures that really draw me in.

 

Did you know that Cottages & Bungalows also has an amazing website and Instagram page? 

Here's a fun little surprise...  

My little vintage toolbox filled with cottage flowers is  highlighted on the “Online Exclusives” page in the magazine. 

C&B’s website is always filled with incredible inspiration and lots of fun recipes too!

 

And if you like to get an early start on planning your Christmas décor, you can’t beat the newest issue of Holiday Décor filled with the festive homes of some of our favorite bloggers and Instagram friends.

 

Best of all, this issue comes out September 17^th, and copies are limited so you can reserve a copy here. 

We get the best of both worlds with these two gorgeous issues of Cottages & Bungalows, pages and pages of glorious summer and winter inspiration!

 

ciao! fabiana

 

 

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vacation highlights and styling projects

A typical sunrise at our beach in Sea Pines.

Summer vacation is over, and I really miss it. It's like we snapped our fingers, and it vanished into thin air! Over... so quickly. That's the way it goes with these sorts of things, I guess.

This year's two week vacation was spent at our home in South Carolina. Our first week there was dedicated mostly to DIY projects and updates in the house. 

We try to maintain the original 1968 style of the home but at the same time bring it up to more modern standards with the use of fresh paint and coastal accents.

 

Located on Hilton Head Island, our home is second row from the beach so coastal style and accessories are a must, but at the same time, we try to keep it from looking too kitschy.

 

Since we're only able to get out there for about two weeks a year, the rest of the time, the home is available on VRBO for vacation rental. 

The laundry room wall is updated with a variety of vintage baskets.

It’s been two long years since we’ve been able to travel back east, so the house needed major attention! 

We hired a painter to help us spruce up the fence, repaint the kitchen cabinets, walls and all the doors for a much overdue facelift. We tackled the more fun jobs like adding new artwork, accessories, bedding and organizing the kitchen.

An easy way to add texture and coastal charm to a room is to display a collection of baskets on the wall. 

The photo above shows our laundry room. It’s the first room that guests see when they come through the carport door, so we wanted to make it fun.

 

Most of the round baskets are thrift store finds that cost between 50 cents and $2, and I also found a couple of nice ones at Home Goods.

The wall of coat hooks is perfect for hats, bags and beach towels. We actually put that together over 15 years ago, and it's proved to be a great addition and very user friendly. 

 These vintage travel posters were thrift shop finds.

We traded out some tired artwork for bright and more appropriate beach house art and sprinkled in some new pillows and other goodies throughout the house.

 

The Savannah brick fireplace is original to the house.

The living room is a big, bright and cozy room. We simplified the look, added a few fun accents, and reupholstered two vintage slipper chairs. The bookcases did need some attention, though.

Spotted these at a consignment store, but they weren’t cheap.  

We needed a pair of vases or urns to fit into the top of the bookcases that feature arched openings. After scouring several thrift stores, Home Goods and consignment stores, we found the perfect pair.

This pair of vases were the perfect size, shape and color 

for the top of the bookcases.

I also restyled the books in a more informal manner and only used books that were in blue, green, beige, white and black tones.

 Lowcountry Produce is our favorite restaurant in Sea Pines.

Even though the DIY stuff did seep its way into our second week of vacation time, we did spend some nice beach days and dining time with our boys. Biking and fishing are also favorite activities.

This is the view from our favorite high-top table.

Here’s a peek at our top choice for dining, Lowcountry Produce. It’s really close to our home, and the food is always good. It’s more of a breakfast and lunch place, but they are open a few nights for dinner.

 

Besides the great food and surroundings, they have a relaxing playlist of music, mostly good 80’s songs. 

Their homemade baked goods are out of this world. Amazingly delicious giant peanut butter chocolate chip cookies always seemed to make their way home with us.

 

Our friend Tad came to visit us one weekend and brought his portable pizza oven, so we each got to make our own custom pizzas, which was really fun! The most unusual one we made was topped with mango pineapple salsa and local shrimp, yum!

 

Pizza night was finished off by warm plum pie from Lowcountry Produce, served à la mode, of course!

Our time in Hilton Head was really busy with all the projects we had to do, so there was no time to visit Savannah this time around. I was looking forward to visiting my favorite store and coffee house, The Paris Market, but it’ll have to wait until next time.

 

One funny thing is that while perusing The Paris Market on Instagram, I noticed that they carry a few tablecloths by Pacific & Rose!

 

The REALLY cool thing is that their website features some of the photos I styled and photographed… it's so funny how the world revolves, and then comes back compounded with the things you love most!

 

Among the pile of mail that was waiting for us when we arrived home was the new October/November issue of Cottages & Bungalows.

 

It was fun to see the little Laguna Beach project I styled back in March. We actually styled a summer look first that you can see HERE, and then we put together this quick outdoor vignette for fall.

 

We used the homeowner’s existing furniture, rugs and pillows, and I brought in the pumpkins, baskets, plaid throw, orange feather napkins, and HELLO PUMPKIN pillow.

After moving some things around, the pretty orange Birds of Paradise flowers and palms made a nice backdrop for the photo. The sunflowers really do liven things up too.

 

It was a quick “let’s just shoot something fun for fall” moment. Turned out pretty cute, I’d say. 

ciao! fabiana

 

 

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