Van Nuys…I’ve Missed You

We visited Van Nuys Airport a lot last year, so it felt weird to go almost an entire month with no business trip to the northern Los Angeles airport. I was tickled last week to hear that we would be there for a few days.

This Citation CJ4 was in our normal staging departure spot, but I didn’t mind too much. With expensive color-changing paint like that, you have to give the guy some breaks, you know? He’s obviously had a very rough life!

The line guys were busy on this Monday morning, getting lots of airplanes ready for their departures today. While the hangar was sort of empty, they also took the opportunity to wash the floors.

Can you see them scrubbing in the background behind this pretty Learjet 60?

Somebody put Baby in the corner.

Good morning, Gladys! It’s been a few weeks since we flew to Salt Lake City, so I’m glad to have such a nice trip this week!

And I just got my schedule for the next two months. I will be home long enough to do laundry and perhaps restock the freezer with Digiorno Pizzas for Hubby. But that’s about it!

It’s going to be crazy busy, and I can’t wait!

As you can see, a busy day on the ramp! This Hawker fired up its engines and left shortly after I arrived to get Gladys ready for our flight. I saw one pilot inside and another walking up to the airplane, and then it left a few minutes later.

So they must be going to pick someone up somewhere, since they left without any passengers. Or maybe they forgot to wait for their people to arrive? Ha, that would be funny!

I got newspapers ready, in case they felt the need to catch up on the news.

And, perhaps even more importantly, I got a little treat out and ready for our two passengers today. Nice, cold water and a tiny, adorable bag of Haribo gummy bears.

Does it get any cuter than that?!

I watched at the gate for their car to arrive, and then we loaded the airplane and were on our way. What a pretty day to fly!

Aren’t those mountains pretty? We will be taking off in the opposite direction from them today, Runway 21 for the JOHNS1 Departure with Phoenix ATC.

This little Eclipse was cleared to take off just in front of us. I worked for Eclipse for a year in their Customer Care department. I still hate talking on the phone because of that job…

And this pretty Falcon jet arrived this morning. While waiting for my passengers, I watched lots of big, gorgeous, expensive airplane depart today. The Waste Management Golf Tournament in Scottsdale and had ended just the day before. We even watched Phil Mickelson's plane take off…a beautiful Gulfstream V.

I say…good for him! He deserves such a pretty airplane! Hard-working and good to his wife? Good on him, mate!

After a few airplanes left in front of us (Tower frequency was buuuuuusy!), it was our turn to be cleared for takeoff.

Aren’t the views way better from up here, anyway?! It’s kind of my favorite place to be.

We flew at Flight Level 340 today on our way to the smoggy Los Angeles valley. I think that El Capitan wanted to go higher, but ATC couldn’t allow it today. I like staying a little lower for these short flights. It doesn’t make any sense to climb all the way up to FL430, just to start our descent back down as soon as we arrive on top.

Let’s save the fuel from that climb and go fast!

Los Angeles Center helped me get my way today. Thanks, guys!

Wow, incredibly breathtaking views on our trip today.

Just kidding. I’m only out of breath because I would hate to be down there driving to L.A. today! Flying is so much cooler!

Now we are crossing over Palmdale and into the valley that receives slightly more irrigation water. We are just about eight minutes outside of Van Nuys Airport now!

And we are cleared to cross JANNY at 8,000 feet on the LYNNX8 Arrival into Van Nuys today. In case you wanted to know.

Now we are getting into the crazy-high population of southern California. I would hate to live here for so many reasons. Have you ever experienced the traffic here?

But apparently, they’ve had lots of rain lately, too. Just like us at home. Look how alive these hills look!

If was so smoggy just over the mountains today that I could barely make out downtown Los Angeles. But you can at least see our runway now. Cleared to land, Runway 16R.

This little King Air 90 looks like it was getting some maintenance work done. Or else somebody did a really bad preflight and didn’t realize that the engine cowlings were missing!

Either way, I don’t think that I would go flying with them today…

After we land on Runway 16R, it’s a long taxi back to our favorite FBO on the field. But guess what? They just got bought by Bob Hoover, so the name is now Hoover’s Hangars! And he was even there for some business meetings, but I didn’t get to shake his hand.

Bob Hoover is an aviation legend, by the way. I’ve seen him perform at many an airshow, and I would have loved to meet him in person. Maybe this week, since we’re going back?

He just turned 90 years old and still flies. That’s how awesome Bob Hoover is.

This little homebuilt airplane took off as we taxied past. Look at that green grass, too! Sheesh!

And this big, beautiful, and expensive Bombardier Global Express was waiting for takeoff right behind the little guy. Wonder where it’s going today?

We parked and got our passengers on their way. Then it was time to prep Gladys for a few days on the ramp. We would be here through Wednesday, so I even have tomorrow off to explore!

I am so sad that we are a two-hour (at least) drive to Disneyland, or I would totally go down for the day!

Ah, Disneyland…

I cleaned up the cabin and threw out some trash after the short flight this morning.

The ramp was empty when we arrived, but they got much busier that afternoon. And when we departed on Wednesday, the place was hopping as well.

Good for you, Bob Hoover!

Two nights on the ramp will suit Gladys just fine.

Sorry about all of the pictures of her today. I haven’t seen her much this past month, so I was making up for some withdrawal symptoms.

Of course, this February and March are so busy that it will more than make up for some lost weeks of flying over Christmas!

I can’t wait!

OK, last one. I promise.

For today, anyway…

As you can see from the lack of a sign, this place is no longer Pentastar Aviation! Hoovers Hangars has arrived at Van Nuys Airport!

So El Capitan bought an annual pass to Universal Studios since we’re here so much. And he asked if I could just take the hotel shuttle instead of him dropping me off at the hotel. He wanted to get on his way to Universal.

I said OK! We arrived by 11:00 AM, and I didn’t think it was fair to miss another hour of the park just to take me to the Holiday Inn in Woodland Hills about twenty minutes away.

Unfortunately…I waited for two whole hours for the hotel shuttle to finally pick me up! I was so hungry for lunch that it made it seem longer. Had I known that they would take so long to come get me, I would have borrowed a crew car to grab some lunch near the airport.

Needless to say, I was pretty tired of this view after two hours of waiting for my ride. I’m just glad that they finally came at last! Now I can get some lunch!

Texas-sized Mood Boards

My sister and her husband are about to close on a gorgeous home in Texas. We are all so thrilled for them.

I am particularly thrilled because she asked for my help to create some mood boards for her new place. Yipppeeeeee! Sign me up!

The Dining Room

This is how the dining room looked during their house hunt. It’s a nice, big space with lots of natural light and tall ceilings. A great blank slate!

I decided to start with the dining room because it’s a manageable space and easy to attack. I created a few different rooms to show her and her husband to give them some ideas for their formal eating area.

You can ignore the prices…there’s no way on earth that I would let them pay that type of money to decorate a room! But I wanted to find pieces that would give a certain look and feel. If they like it, then I know that I can find better-priced options.

On this particular board, I love the happy rug, green buffet, curtains, and chairs. The bird art just screams my sister since they have lots of ties to the North Carolina coastline. Luckily, she likes it, too! They also love the table, rug, and buffet. I think that we’re on the right track!

She is really searching for meaningful pieces and not just items to fill a room. I am looking to make each space memorable and meaningful to them. I love finding ways to make it special!

On this board, a few can’t-fail items are kept the same. But I changed the dining chairs, curtains, and lighting fixture. I love them all but have learned from personal experience that comfy dining chairs go a long way. (We bought ours at World Market a few years ago and still love their perfect look and cushy feel). I’m just not sure how comfy these chairs would be for a long dinner party.

I really love this light fixture over the table, too. Her style is rustic cottage traditional. I am trying to incorporate her tastes into a space that feels like them without going crazy in any one direction.

Apparently, I’m a little more comfortable with bright colors than she is. I loved these curtains, which had the colors from her desired palette (aqua, yellow, raspberry, moss green, and navy). I even saw them in person last week and liked them even more!

I think that it was a little too busy for her, and that’s OK with me. At least she’s honest so that I know what to do better to make them happy.

I switched out the green buffet to this wooden one, though I think that it is too similar to the table.

She loves big art, and these colors are so pretty. We might do something like it in another room (the family room?). I am tickled that she likes the bird art enough to keep it for the dining area!

The dining chairs were switched again as well. This time, these more-traditional French chairs came into play. I like how they make the room feel more elegant against such casual pieces, but they are still slightly rustic in their finish, too. It wasn’t quite their style, but I wanted them to see several options before they decided!

I took all of my favorite elements and made my ideal space. If I was to decorate their dining room using the hints of their style, these would be the choices that I would make!

Of course, it isn’t my house, so I am more than happy to do what they want. She put some color swatches in the mail yesterday to show me the palette for their entire house! It will be fun to shop with them in hand.

The Master Bedroom

This is how the master looked during the home tour. That ugly blue wall will be the first thing to go before they move in, thank goodness. So I designed a nice, calming space that used a lot of items that they already own.

Bright, fun, happy colors combined with lots of calming neutrals and natural textures. I think that this room could easily become the haven that they want. They already own that awesome white bed (we found it on Craigslist and she painted it white), the arm chairs, and the over-the-bed art print from Crate and Barrel.

I will use what they already have to tie in more elements of color and peace. The rug underneath the bed will be big enough to go on both sides and at the foot of the bed. I picked out a his-and-hers nightstands to add even more character to the room.

And those hanging bedside lights? I can totally make those, yo. Then we just add a few colorful accessories and lamps and voila! Done master bedroom!

The Family Room

It’s been so much fun to design a whole house. I’ve been working on more projects to help them like their new home, but the family room is where we are focusing next. They will spend the bulk of their living time in this area of the home.

Creating a room is so much easier when you have a starting point, like a rug, art print, or curtains, that incorporate a lot of the colors and/or style that you want to see in the rest of the space. So I found some contenders for potential rugs in their family room.

As you can see, I stole #3 to put in the master bedroom above. It is a gorgeous color and pattern but is still soothing and neutral for these sometimes color-shy folks.

I would have to say that #6 is my favorite out of these three. It’s such a large, bold pattern, but the gray behind it really brings it back to the reality of a nice, soft, family room rug. I like #5, too, but knew that it would probably be too modern for their taste. But the pops of yellow are fun.

And I heart #9. In fact, it might be my favorite out of all these possible rug options for the family room space.

Trying to please their neutral color desire while adding some texture and a bit of color, all three of these options would work well!

Subtle. Just like highlights.

I really thought that she would go for the rust-colored beauty of #13, but her favorite out of the whole bunch was #9 and this one, #14. The gold is very pretty and warm.

This whole experience has been fun so far! Rather than designing each room, we are going piece-by-piece from now on until the entire room comes together. It will be more time-consuming but this way will pin-point exactly what they want in the long run. I’m looking forward to the challenge!

Even better…I am headed there for a visit in April to help do some real decorating!

What things do you like so far? Which rug would you choose for the family room?

Patience Pays Off – Colorful Pants Edition

I’ve drooled over colorful pants for years but just couldn’t justify the price tags to get some good ones.

In the home-decorating arena, I can recreate expensive versions for much cheaper than the originals. But you know what? I can’t even sew on a button. So making some fun pants wasn’t in the stars for me!

My pant-less situation changed a few weeks ago when I was wandering through Marshall’s looking for some home goods. I rarely shop for clothes any more but can’t say no to some pillow shopping.

Shopping for pillows never makes me wonder if I look fat in them, you know?

I accidentally found myself in the clothing clearance aisle, and I stumbled upon pure colored-pant bliss.

Even better? They were on clearance and more clearance. When compared to the original store price tag of $59 a piece, I was thrilled to pay $10-20 for each of these beauties from Nine West.

For the price of one full-price pair, I got four.

You can check my Micah Math, but I think that I scored.

So they are ankle-length “skinny” jeans that fit me perfectly. And did I mention that they are pretty colorful?

Purple, emerald green (Pantone color of the year, yo!), sea foam green, and hot pink.

Yes, color.

I have learned time and time again that sometimes it’s worth it to buy the finer things in life. But I refuse to pay full-price. I was in shock in the dressing room when these were so comfortable and perfect!

And on clearance!

So I went back to the rack and found a few more colors in the same style. I can’t believe my luck today.

I haven’t worn the purple or emerald green yet, but the other two were down-right alarmingly beautiful. I am so tickled to add to my wardrobe for such a great price!

My closet has welcomed these four pairs of pants with open arms. It’s so much fun to find the perfect addition to so many shirts in there! I feel amazing when wearing them and was happy to give them a new home.

Maybe I should check that clearance rack more often, huh? The Marshall’s/TJ Maxx family of stores has never let me down.

Have you scored any happy findings lately?