The coin canister

My friend and realtor, David, who sold my last apartment and found me The Beautiful Wreck, sent me a lovely Christmas gift this year. I've steered a few possible clients his way recently and it's his way of saying 'thank you'. Totally unnecessary but appreciated nonetheless! It's a glass canister set into a wrought iron base of metal leaves. There's a hammered copper lid with metal rose hip on top. I decided it would be a great place to stash coins and it looks great on the little shelf above the dining nook.

The moose on the mantel

Most every year my mom gives me a Christmas ornament as a holiday gift. This year she gave me a little wooden statuette of a moose (or is it a reindeer?), wearing a buffalo plaid sweater. Super cute. When I got home with it I realized I didn't have many Christmas decorations in the city, so I decided it would look good on the apartment mantel alongside my little snow scene in a jar that someone gave me a while back. (Thanks Mom! xo)

Eye on the prize

Ever since I moved into the apartment three years ago I've been wanting to find a small painting for the dining niche, something small, an oil maybe, with an ornate gold frame to offset the modernism of the niche's design.
Coincidentally, my friend Jim has been taking painting classes, and he has a surplus of canvases that he's created. I jokingly told him I wanted one and he kindly said, "yes". Yay.
He texted me a small (5" x 7") oil study of an eye.

I immediately loved it and thought it would be a great solution for what I'm looking for.
I Photoshopped his painting into frame to see what it would look like:

Jim was in Michael's, the craft store, the other day. He brought the painting to see if there was a frame that would work. He texted me this one and it was only $11. Perfect.

And here is the real painting nicely placed in the niche. I'm very pleased with the outcome.