giveaway guest post!

Happy Thursday abode lovers! Today I have super exciting news-- I have a dear friend who is guest posting as well as doing a GIVEAWAY! Erin just released a fabulous book called The Last Beholder that me (as well as my friends) CANNOT put down! Get ready ya'll, and welcome Erin!

Hey Abode Lovers (can I say Lover?)! My name is Erin and I have the joy of working my 9 to 5 with THE Laurel-Dawn of Abode Love. You know what that means? It means I am constantly bugging her and Katie Beth (from The Good Stuff) about how to decorate my house or why they are wearing colored jeans again (guys! it's a thing!) or asking them to point me in the direction of the nearest fancy houseplant. Y'all have no idea how fantastic it is to work next to these paradigms of fashion and interior design. Seriously. I'm essentially a twelve year old boy when it comes to that stuff, so I'm really reaping the benefits of this friendship. 

The reason Laurel-Dawn is letting me talk to you today is because I wrote a book. It's a novel about two step-siblings who journey to far-away places and who also happen to have weird powers. It's called The Last Beholder. LD wanted to give away a couple of copies, and I was like...yes. But why would Abode Lovers honestly care about a random book of fiction written by the random co-worker of their favorite blogger? 

You bring up a good point.

What does The Last Beholder have to do with all the great interior design that Laurel Dawn posts on Abode Love? Well, let's explore that.

Our characters in the book, Gus and Wallis, are basically filthy rich. Well, their parents are, which, when you're 13 and 11, is basically the same as being rich yourself. I thought it might be fun to show you some of the incredible inspirations that we used for their house in the book, yes? And then, we're gonna give away a book or two, because who doesn't like free stuff?

The Exterior:

Our two main characters, Gus and Wallis, live in North Carolina, where Gus's dad is a fourth-generation banking mogul. Y'all know that's old money, so we decided to base their house on one of the loveliest and fanciest homes we know: The Biltmore. It's basically a castle, because honestly, what could be more fun than having free reign of this monstrosity as a child? Here are some other fabulous exteriors that I wouldn't turn my nose up at:

The Library:

 Wallis and her tutor, Mrs. Sloane, are in the library a lot, because Wallis just can't be trusted in a normal school setting. While these libraries are OUT OF CONTROL, wouldn't it be amazing to be in it? It's like Beauty and the Beast, minus all the Stockholm Syndrome.

Secret Nooks and Crannies:
If you're going to live in a house that's essentially a castle, it's got to have secret passageways. And, wouldn't you know it, Gus and Wallis manage to find a couple of those?! Here are some of the nooks and crannies we based our own nooks and crannies on:

 

Wine Cellar:
One of the crucial scenes in The Last Beholder happens in the wine cellar. I love a wine cellar, y'all. They are so mysterious and full of possibilities. As a child, those possibilities include hi-jinks and adventure. As an adult, they include a 25 year old bottle of wine or two.

General Fanciness Reserved for the High Brow:
There are just some things that fancy people have that the rest of us do not. The 1% lives it up, and we get to pin their treasures on our pin boards. 

So now, we're gonna give away some books. All you have to do is leave a comment below telling us the house from a book or movie that you would love to live in. I think for me, I'm going to have to say Uncle Diggory's mansion from The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. There's a magical wardrobe in it, so it automatically wins. 

I'll let LD take care of the details of this giveaway, but even if you don't win, you can buy the book at thelastbeholder.com/store/ or download it rather cheaply from Amazon for Kindle here. I hope you had fun traipsing through the home of Wallis and Gus!

Thanks so much Erin! I'm telling you what abode lovers, you're going to love this book. I mean, love it. So-- as Erin mentioned above, leave a comment below and one person will be chosen at random by Friday October 12th! I will contact the winners via email! Have an awesome Thurday Abode Lovers!