Posts in Shopping
What I’m Reading: January 2020
What I’m Reading: January 2020

This year one of the things I wanted to do more of was read. Since I’m already an audible user, I figured the very least I could do was use my account more. Over the past two years, while I’d defused my audible account pretty regularly — listening to way more books than I’m certain I would’ve actually read — I knew I wasn’t really getting my full money’s worth. So I challenged myself to listen to at least two books a month — one fiction, one nonfiction. 

This month I’d already tackled my two books, both leftover from 2019 — “With The Fire On High” by Elizabeth Acevedo and “Dapper Dan: Made In Harlem” by Daniel R. Day. These are both books that I downloaded (I kid you not) back in November but I just never got around to listening to them.

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ShoppingAlbie Knowsaudible, books, amazon, shopping
Mood Board Inspiration: January 2020
Mood Board Inspiration: January 2020

Inspiration can be found in all places, in all things, including driving through a “snow storm” after picking up the kiddo from school. Cognizant of how design inspiration can be found in the most unlikely places, I decided to start pulling the palettes from the scene — literally just with a color dropper — just to see what colors were really resonating and it was really illuminating.

From one spontaneous moment in time, I was able to capture what really was (is) an amazing color palette. And now here we are… the first of 12 mood board inspirations for 2020.

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Design, ShoppingAlbie Knowscost plus world market, lulu & georgia, mood board, h&m home, shopping
Retail Therapy... Recent Haul Favorites
Retail Therapy... Recent Haul Favorites

I have a confession to share: I’m an emotional shopper!

While, in general, I am pretty intentional when I am shopping. I try and myself to prevent buyer’s remorse, but a lot of times, when I am in an emotional tizzy, more often than not I get my relief from shopping. I comb through my wishlists and start adding to cart, or I take a drive to one of my fav retailers and take out my stress on my wallet.

P.S. don’t be like me… be better than me.

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Shopping, LifestyleAlbie Knowsmy home, target, hobby lobby, h&m home, shopping
Smart Home Made Easy With Globe Electrics
Smart Home Made Easy With Globe Electrics

Fun fact about me: I’m a tech nerd. 

Always have been. I love tinkering with all kinds of gadgets and while I am very aware of the pitfalls of technology, I just can’t help myself. As luck would have it, I married someone equally obsessed with tech & things, and even our toddler is pretty well-versed in using most of our devices without any assistance from us. Being that we rent, we knew that we couldn’t get as tech-savvy in our home as we’d like, BUT that doesn’t mean we couldn’t do a lil somethin somethin. 

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Design, Shopping, LifestyleAlbie Knowssmart home, globe electrics, breville, shopping
Behind The Design: Organizing My Pantry
Behind The Design: Organizing My Pantry

When we moved into this condo in Spring 2017, one of the very first things we were thrilled to have was an actual pantry! Prior to this, we’d had really good storage in our kitchens — our studio apartment in NYC had WAY more cabinets than we ever used and our first apartment in WA had a tall pantry cabinet — but this was the first time we had an actual step-in pantry and we were geeked! My husband cooks, I clean, and it’s a glorious arrangement for us. With that, it meant he now had a place to hoard store all his culinary things, while for me it was a place to organize… a win-win all around. 

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Design, ShoppingAlbie Knowspantry, organization, kitchen, amazon, behind the design, shopping
Shop With Me: Decorating With Natural Weaves
Shop With Me: Decorating With Natural Weaves

Y’all know I love me some hygge right? And one of my favorite elements of hygge design is the use of natural elements to create a design that feels layered with warmth and texture and character. 

Some popular weaves and textures are raffia, rattan, and jute — elements that can be (and often are) easily mixed up with one another — and that’s just scratching the surface! When it comes to wanting to add that earthy feel to your space, you can also consider options like water hyacinth, rush, and grasscloth.

Decoding the precise differences between the different options would require a whole different post, and ain’t nobody got time for that. LOL. Today, we’re going shopping — how can you bring in these cozy elements into your home through different furnishings and decorative elements?

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ShoppingAlbie Knowshygge, decor styling, natural weaves, design therapy, shoppingComment
Batching Hack: Setting Up Canned Emails in Gmail
Batching Hack: Setting Up Canned Emails in Gmail

If you listened to the last Q & Albie episode of the season, then you know it was all about batching with e-designer and content creator, Heather Hess. After a long season of sharing insights and tips for elevating your design business, it seemed only fitting to end with an episode all about productivity.

As we addressed productivity hacks on the show, there was one that we both agreed cold save a ton of time with clients, vendors, or other partners:

Q: ARE THERE ANY BATCHING HACKS THAT YOU CAN RECOMMEND?

A: CANNED EMAILS!

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Business, ShoppingAlbie Knowsdesignpreneur, free resource, gmail, the design influence
Outdoor Entertaining Essentials
Outdoor Entertaining Essentials

Summer is here! And whether you own or rent, live in a small space or a large estate, it’s time for some outdoor living! So often we talk about bringing the outdoors in, but now is the season for bringing the indoors out with comfortable seating and chic accents that are reminiscent of the rest of the home you’ve created.

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ShoppingAlbie Knowsoutdoor, summertime, decor styling, shoppingComment
Shop The Design: Brooklyn, NY Studio Makeover
Shop The Design: Brooklyn, NY Studio Makeover

Where some people tend to get overwhelming and tap out, is where I just get started. I love the research that goes into finding the right pieces to fit the parameters of any projects — size, cost, timeframe, etc. Because I enjoy digging around the interwebs for product so much, I forget how many of you actually hate the whole things — like loathe it. Needless to say, so many of you messaged me asking about where to find so many of the items from my latest One Room Challenge reveal. Over on my Instagram, I also had you guys guess what you thought the room totaled, and while majority voted correctly, a large amount of you were also about $1000 to $1500 short. That’s when I knew I had to dedicate a separate post to just the shopping list.

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Design, ShoppingAlbie Knowsone room challenge, small spaces, budget friendly, apt2b, amazon, brooklinen, sponsored post, behind the design, shopping, reversible designComment
10 Amazing Art Finds From Amazon
10 Amazing Art Finds From Amazon

After the One Room Challenge week 5 update, I was overwhelmed by how many of you couldn’t believe that the artwork in the project was from Amazon. The 4-piece canvas featuring the silhouettes of 4 dope African American females is only one of many amazing art finds I’ve uncovered on Amazon — I practically shop for a living — and so I decided to share ten of my recent art favs from Amazon that I think you’ll love too!

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ShoppingAlbie Knowsartwork, amazon, design therapy, shoppingComment
Airbnb Essentials To Create A Great Guest Experience
Airbnb Essentials To Create A Great Guest Experience

While I’ve never considered myself a hotel snob, I’ve always been pretty particular about certain hotel requirements; and for that reason, I’ve never stayed at an Airbnb. When this whole Airbnb business model became a thing, I was very skeptical about staying in someone else’s home. The way a host prepares an Airbnb is no different than the way a host would prepare a guest bedroom…or at least it shouldn’t be. So what makes a great Airbnb?

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Design, ShoppingAlbie Knowsairbnb, high point market, guest bedroom, design therapyComment
Spring 2019 High Point Market Trend Report

Being part of this season’s Design Bloggers Tour meant I was able to exclusively tour 15 showrooms — some old favorites and others, new discoveries — and not only see the product but also get insights into the brand stories. After 48 hours and way too many cups of coffee, it was inspiration overload! So much new goodness! So what do we have to look forward to in 2019? Here’s my Design Bloggers Tour Spring 2019 Trend Report.

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Business, ShoppingAlbie Knowshigh point market, design therapy, hygge, design bloggers tour, sponsored postComment
Apartment Sized Sofas in Every Style

Based on the 10 styles of my Decor Discovery Style Quiz, here are 10 Apt2B sofas that’ll not only fit your space but that are customizable to complement the personality of your home. With so many silhouettes available on the Apt2B site — apartment and full-sized alike — and even more fabric options available, there’s no way your next sofa won’t be full of style and personality!

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Design, ShoppingAlbie Knowsapt2b, sofas, living room, shopping, reversible design
E-Design Shopping: Home Depot Finds

As a renter and as someone with a very renter-centric audience, I’ve noticed that some retailers end up becoming synonymous with home ownership and/or home improvement…retailers like The Home Depot. So I was pleasantly surprised when preparing for a new project I found that I was able to specify the ENTIRE redesign on The Home Depot site! If you’re like me, and you’ve never considered The Home Depot for your design project — whether it’s a a full do over or some quick styling updates — I’m gonna share with you some of my recent favs from the Home Depot site that are stylish, chic, and perfect for any space.  

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Shopping, DesignAlbie Knowsedesign, the home depot, design therapy, decor styling, vignette styling, small spaces, shoppingComment
16 Books To Get Inspired & Start Decorating With

I love decorating with books, especially on my shelves. With every new vignette I do, I pull out the books whose covers & spines are the best fit for my palette, and they easily become part of the decor. This isn’t to say I don’t also read my home books — because I absolutely do — so really, it’s like I’m paying one price for two functions! Whether it’s for your coffee table or your next shelfie, here are 16 of my favorite picks for books that’ll not only inspire you, but will make great additions to your library and decor styling:

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ShoppingAlbie Knowsbooks, decor styling, vignette styling, shoppingComment
Valentine's Day Tablescape Ideas: Three Ways

It’s that wonderful time of year where getting a restaurant reservation is harder than trying to get a toddler to bed on time. Call me old fashioned but I’d much rather celebrate my love in the quiet, intimate setting of my home. There’s no wait time, no mandatory gratuity, and no dress code. Here are three tablescape ideas — whether you’re celebrating romance with your significant other or Galentine’s Day with your best friends — to make your at home Valentine’s Day plans fabulous & unique!

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Design, ShoppingAlbie Knowsdecor styling, tablescaping, design therapy, kitchen, valentine's day, favorites, dining room, reversible design
The Personal & Professional Benefits of Being an Amazon Prime Member

As a mother, a wife, and an entrepreneur Amazon has become so much more than a shopping site — it’s a resource! There is a myriad of ways to take advantage of all that Amazon offers — whether it’s by simply shopping the site, getting a prime membership, or using their devices and that’s not even scratching the surface! How and why I use Amazon only makes up for a fraction of the site’s features & benefits.

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Shopping, LifestyleAlbie Knowsamazon, shoppingComment