Prepare yourself for serendipity, in partnership with SmartWater.

way back on november 18, 2010 i attended a dinner at the elle decor showcase house in san francisco. and on that night, i saw my dream chair. a vintage wire patio chair that rocked and swiveled, which had been re-purposed into a luxuriously unique lounge chair for indoor living with velvet cushions. that was almost two years ago, and i’ve been on a mad hunt for one ever since carrying around this picture in my head. on my flea market trip last week, quite serendipitously, i found not one — oh no. i found two!

i wasn’t even going to go to this particular flea market, but jordan rang me up and i rushed out the door to join her. had i not gone, my chairs would have in all likelihood found another home. i do this all the time with things i dream about having, go on these mad hunts, never quite finding the ideal i’ve set myself up for. and then, serendipitously, they appear out of nowhere. but, there’s also a bit of preparation involved in my treasure hunting.

no matter where i go, i always bring along my little design kit – tools that help me make the sometimes hard decision to buy. tricks of the trade, if you will. i carry a cute little pouch and inside i keep all the things i need — paint and fabric swatches and measurements from home; floorplans; my eyeglasses so i can read them; a notebook, pen and pencils for sketching out ideas and for notes i’ve taken about what i’m looking for. i carry my camera, or my iphone and this handy charger i found that charges up the life of my iphone by 50% should it run out of juice mid-picture snapping. that’s happened once too often for me, so this keeps me prepared for that inevitability. for some reason i carry my trusty vintage pocket knife, too. it just makes me feel like a real scout! the kit is easy and affordable to create and trust me, it comes in really handy!

This series of serendipitious moments is in partnership with smartwater. Click here to learn more.