This is a PACKED blog post full of so much good stuff. Let’s get right to it.

Styling Breakdown

This photo is from a recent Install afternoon at our Crestwood Project. We have just a couple sources to share, but they’re all fantastic. Please note that we don’t share furniture sources until 6 months after a project reveal. So, as much as I want to share this amazing rug source…you’ll have to wait!

Source List

Duvet Cover (best price for this quality!!!)
End of Bed Throw Blanket
Sneakers (there are frequent 20% off sales…wait it out!)

Fashion Find

In April, I splurged on my first ever pair of Lululemon pants. I wanted something cute and very comfortable for a plane ride and I landed on THESE. I love the color. I am not a fashion addict or in the know in any sort of real way. But my girl Natalie Borton recently talked about how chocolate is the new color. My wardrobe is almost exclusively black, so I went for it.

Keeping Myself Busy

I am still listening to the book The Covenant of Water. Someone please tell me the juice is worth the squeeze. I have been listening for 14 hours and there is 17 more to go. And, I’m currently listening at 1.7 speed.

But, what I think you’re really interested in is my April vacation. A couple weeks ago, I did something very out of character and shared a quick Instagram story slide about my family vacation. I always get nervous about deviating too much from the foundation of interior design. BUT, I got a lot of follow-up questions - where did I go? did I like it? would I go back? I completely understand the interest. There are so many tropical, all-inclusive options and it can feel like a very expensive leap of faith to pick one.

I went to The Finest Resort in Punta Cana. It is an all-inclusive resort and that includes: meals and snacks (including room service), drinks, Kid’s Club and a nightly show (magic, “Las Vegas”, etc.). It doesn’t include some “club level” restaurants or the spa.

LOVED:

1) Huge bouncy mountain in the large pool and the matching small mountain one in the toddler pool. This truly provided endless fun.

2) Drinks. Surprisingly quality liquor, decent wine and delicious water from coconuts (slice off the top and pop in a straw).

3) Free Kid’s Club. This is an additional charge at a lot of all-inclusive resorts.

4) Snack options at The Sweet Shop (ice cream, fruit cups, fancy coffee, etc.) were available all day, a huge buffet was open continuously from breakfast through dinner, and several food trucks were open at varying times. These were in addition to restaurants that were open during classic meal times. As compared to a trip to Beaches in Turks and Caicos, this was a huge win. At Beaches we found there to be frustrating breaks in the day when no food was available.

5) Room service was included. Our beverage fridge was restocked everyday (alcohol, drinks and snacks) and room service meals and snacks were available 24 hours/day (although I didn’t try it at odd hours).

6) It was not crowded. We got “our spot” by the pool every day. There were cabanas open at the beach all day long.

7) It is a new resort so everything is notably new and clean.

DIDN’T LOVE:

1) The food was just alright. The breakfast buffet had everything we needed, including a whole section of gluten free options. But lunch was more of the same buffet or one restaurant option. And dinner had a variety of decent or meh restaurants. It seemed that the best restaurants were reserved for “Club Members” at an upgraded rate.

2) Big kid activities were lacking. The Kid’s Club was geared for kids between 2 and 7 years old. There was a large basket ball court, pickle ball court and tennis court area, but it was on the opposite side of the resort as the pool and ocean. So you either need to trust your kids or accompany them. Beyond this, nothing was geared to tweens or teens.

Local Fun

This month’s local fun is at our studio! We are hosting a stockroom clearance sale on Friday, May 17th. We are on a mission to clear out our stockroom before the summer and we will be selling several bookshelves of decor and a heck of a lot of pillow covers for 50% or more. Plus larger items like table lamps, frames, art and small furnishings. Last time we had a big clearance sale there was an early morning crowd that was a little bigger than our small studio could handle. SO, we are asking that everyone planning to attend between 9 am and 11 am sign up in 15 minute increments. We will allow 5 people to shop every 15 minutes. If you come between 9 am and 11 am and you haven’t signed up in advance we will kindly ask you to wait until there is an available slot. The sign out sheet will come out in a week on Friday, May 10th. If you would like to be included in the email to sign up, please add your email below.

DETAILS

Location: 590A Main Street in Lynnfield. The stockroom and studio are on the 2nd floor of the building. There is a large sign that includes “Gray Oak Studio” in the front of the building. In the center of the building is a glass door that says “Nikki Martin Team”. Go through the door and up the stairs!!!

Parking: Parking is limited in the front and plentiful in the back. Our door is at the front of the front building.

Caveats: CASH ONLY and final sale. This means no Venmo, no Paypal, no check, no credit card. Cash and cash only. All items are final sale and as is. Feel free to negotiate. We are here for it.

Bonus: There will be a huge handful of new products and best sellers that are not part of the sale. You can, however, purchase these for 10% by sharing the promo code: SPRINGSALE. And you can use Venmo, Paypal, check and credit cards for these purchases.

Extra Bonus: Our new items are currently on sale on our website and you can also use the promo code SPRINGSALE to purchase anything for 10% now and pick it up on Friday, May 17.