Jumping On the Bandwagon: Emily Henderson

The blog world has been buzzing for a few months about Emily Henderson, an HGTV Design Star winner and the brains behind their new show Secrets From a Stylist.

But since I don't have TV, I didn't really sit up and take notice - at first. Then my favorite bloggers started posting about it: Michelle at Ten June posted about the show here, followed by Modern Jane here. Last week Michelle was back to interview Emily (which you can find here), and Young House Love punctuated the week by talking about the show here.

At this point, I really couldn't ignore the buzz any longer; I just had to see what all the hype was about. Lucky for me, HGTV has full episodes online (since you all know we don't have cable), and I watched the first season in a record 4 days. Thank you, summer!

Emily is just adorable! She is sweet and peppy without being saccharine thanks to a big dose of quirky and down-to-earth. And like her multi-faceted personality, I love how she layers different styles in a space to create a look that is interesting, personal, and curated.

It's a lesson I could definitely use so my house does not become a mid-century modern museum. Here's what my instinct would be...

And here's the final product thanks to Emily's layering genius.

So much more textural and visually interesting, even if it is a bit out of my comfort zone.

Plus, I love how she finishes a room with art and by styling shelves and other surfaces with books, flowers, and other curiosities.

Oh, and she finds the most awesome sofas. Witness these two beauties.

Her sense of color is really keen too. (Watch me attempt to complement myself here.) Check out those ochre walls that she featured in look 2 of the first episode.

Do they look familiar?

Oh, and I want to steal all of her vintage blouses, flowered dresses, high-waisted bell bottoms, and her jackets. I am starting to think the show is as much about fashion as it is furniture.

(By the way, all photos via Emily's website, which you can check out here.)

I'll be back tomorrow to share how I fancied myself as Emily over the weekend.