Where do you put the accent color?

I recently got to go see this client to take on the dining room and to fluff up the office as a guest room.  It was a simple order: keep the black and ivory diamond rug and tan walls, bring in a neutral upholstered bed, crisp hotel bedding, and a pop of red -- the outgoing sofa was in a ruby hue and my client liked the effect.

So, where do you put the red?

On curvy lamps (to mimic the shape of the headboard)?

On side tables for a bigger punch?

Or keep it to the pillows--easiest should you change your mind and want to go for green on a whim.

Neutral organic modern global bedroom, 2 ways

We've been working on my brother and sister in law's house (living room and dining room are almost done, kids rooms are almost done), and recently decided to refresh the master bedroom until they are ready to replace the furniture.  We did new paint (grey-lavender), new bedding, lamps for the bedside tables, and new (cheap but pretty) curtains.

Yesterday I couldn't help myself and put together two schemes using the new paint and bedding but swapping in furniture.

I love the results!

What would you choose?

Enjoy the long weekend!

Living Room Refresh 3 ways, 2 more ways

I'm working on a quick project with a fun client to help pull their home together to love even as they consider selling.  In fact, this is their first house, and they have almost sold it several times in the past few years; as a result they have a hodge podge of first-house hand me downs and inexpensive furniture bought to stage it.  We rearranged some things, determined what to keep and where they could spend minimally for maximum impact--and made sure they loved the new pieces enough to take with them (Eventually), while keeping them inexpensive enough that if something didn't work in the new house, it wouldn't be a major loss.

The main goal was to work with the block print upholstered chair, the couch, leather ottoman, candelstick lamps, and the existing red pieces.  I made suggestions for a pair of slipper chairs, new rug, textiles, and art or mirrors.  Three different looks:

We also contemplated swapping the corner chair (which we borrowed from the basement) for a leather investment piece, which allowed us to go crazy with color, as the client was inclined to do.

Sometimes I really love quick little projects!

Where do you put the pattern?

This living room has been slowly evolving.  We have all the furniture and lighting in place, as well as custom window treatments and shelves, a revamped fireplace, and a wallpaper accent.  While I often start with textiles, this time we have sort of backed into the rug and throw pillows.  I have been envisioning something neutral and sophisticated, with texture or subtle pattern.  The client's husband suggested that we do a "crazy" rug.

Behold, one living room, two ways:

CRAZY RUG!

Neutral rug with bolder pattern and color on the pillows.

The crazy rug is at a great price point, making it possible to use it as a current accessory, rather than a long-term investment.

What would you choose?

Mixing and matching with a red jenny lind bed

Fixed elements: Aqua walls, maskros paper pendant, red jenny lind bed, red felt heart pillow.

Mix up the textiles for a fun 7 year old: go!

Hope you had a lovely long weekend!

Reconciling what you love with the look you want (Styling up a kitchen)

Most of my projects tend to focus on decorating--furniture and fabrics--more than fixtures and finishes.  Lately I've been doing a bit more work on the "shell" of spaces, and it's really fun to think about the foundational pieces!  So often I am thinking about how to hide or make the best of existing features or to create a look that the client loves in spite of those things.

Here's an interesting question:

What do you do when you ARE starting from scratch but can't quite reconcile the things you love with the look you want?

I am advising on a kitchen project right now and my client wanted a modern farmhouse look (the house is in fact on a farm), but fell in love with cherry cabinetry.  She worried that the cabinets would play against type (lots of urban apartments put them in in the 90s), but I believe it is all about what you DO with those cabinets.

Here's some inspiration.  Hard to find, with white kitchens reining supreme for some time now!

House Beautiful. See many more gorgeous pics here.

Farmhouse sink and beadboard backsplash

Okay, yhe cabinets are white but the island is cherry!

My client chose cherry cabinets with a simple shaker profile.  As the name suggests, farmhouse sinks are a great first step in going for that farmhouse look.  Flooring, backsplash, hardware, and lighting all offer opportunities to push it farther.

Look one: Modern twist on the classics.

Subway tile gets a twist with two sizes mixed together, and classic iron bin pulls go modern with an elongated profile.  A painted checkerboard floor (on the existing, beat up wood) is like classic marmoleum, but better.

Look 2: Vintage Charm

Gauged slate floor feels like an old French farmhouse, and the rippled enamel light shades add to the vibe.  Hammered metal hardware and herringbone subway feel artisan, while the Windsor stools and wire chandelier are truly timeless.

Look 3: Schoolhouse Eclectic

This one goes a little schoolhouse or nautical, with milk glass pulls, penny tile back splash, and over scale caged pendants.  Either floor works here, and the red stools pop against the fresh white accents.

What do you think?  Did I pull it off?

Styling--Liz Caan Kitchen three ways

The other day I shared my obsession with heart art, and used an awesome kitchen by Liz Caan as an illustration.  When I was writing the post, I could not initially remember in which magazine I had seen the kitchen, so, naturally, I googled it.

Though various internet machinations, I ended up finding several versions of this kitchen--each with different art.  Amazing how one painting can change the feel of a room, no?

And what looks to be an earlier iteration of the space:

Here she uses a mirror in place of the art and a bell jar lantern in place of the visual comfort star flushmount.  The floors are much more traditional, a little bit "country," and a cheeky framed poster hangs where there is now a wooden island.

Don't you just love seeing the way spaces evolve?  Which is your favorite?

The Story of a Project: Design Boards

Picking up where we left off yesterday:

For her living room and dining room, my client chose from a selection of floor plan options.

Her choice?  Casual entertaining.

We knew we were taking our colors from this rug, 

and she also had an amazing tree-slice coffee table that we decided to keep.  

I shared the dining room options on the blog here.  This was the final:

Since the living room is open to this space, the two rooms had to play nice.  We decided on a couple of key elements before I even started sourcing: grey sectional, natural fiber rug layered under the silk one, and white linen curtains.  From there it was a question of where to put the color, and pinning down a "look."

Look 1: Slightly Coastal

This one has natural wood elements to play off the vintage coffee table, and crisp white, glass, and nickel for clean contrast.  One strong pop of coral is fun and fresh.

Look 2: Modern Organic

Here the color palette emphasizes teal and black, and the accent elements are more streamlined in shape but incorporate rustic finishes.

Look 3: modern pop

The most contemporary, this look has classic mid-century lines on the console, chair, and lighting, ans slick finishes and bright coral to contrast the natural textures.

I won't make you guess: Look 3 was the winner.  BUT, we changed a lot when it came time to implement months later.  Tweaks up next, tomorrow!

Reader design dilemma: Working with a traditional red couch

Nicky writes to me with this dilemma:

"I am stumped and can't find anything online (including pinterest/ mod boards) to give me direction for this crimson couch.  Red always seems to be the accent color, not the statement piece!  I love the looks of Pottery Barn and modern farmhouse style."

Here is what she is working with:

Nicky has some great pieces to work with and a clear direction, but so far the space is really only half decorated.  The first thing to do with a piece like this couch is to accept it.  No use fighting it, right?  Luckily, the lines work great for Nicky's intended style.  In such a small space, I would keep a tight palette to work with the couch, and bring in interest through shapes and textures.

First up: wall color.

Nicky is not loving the yellow, and while I agree it is a little too much with the couch, I think she is on the right track.

Working from the diamond pattern in the couch fabric, and coordinating with the existing carpet, I would choose more of a warm beige or ivory.   I would just be careful that it did not match the carpet exactly--go  a little darker or lighter to create contrast.

Benjamin Moore Creamy White

Next up: Window treatments.

To connect the two rooms and bring some balance, I would do floor-length drapes in both spaces.  Some people shy away from drapes in an eating area, but if you hang them just off the floor they should not get gross.  I would hang linen drapes in a neutral color, something that becomes tonal with the walls.

Finally: Let's bring in some furniture!

This look feels most appropriate to Nicky's style and current lifestyle, with two small kids in the house.  A Pair of leather club chairs and weathered wood tables will simply patina with use, and bunching tables plus side tables are all moveable, creating flexibility for littles who may want to play on the floor.  The palette is really limited, but leather plus cowhide plus copper plus iron plus weathered and whitewashed woods = totally interesting.  There is also a little beaded motif running through, with the nailhead trim on the leather "B", a bead detail on the white drum table, and a perforated look to the copper lamp.

Later in life as the kids grow, Nicky could graduate to a more elegant and traditional space, while still sticking with the same tight color palette.  A wing chair, turned side tables, and armless slipper chairs are all classic and elegant, and the blanket-stripe rug and block print art keeps it from getting too formal.

OR!  How about going the other way?  I noticed that Nicky has some suzani-looking pillows on her couch, so even though she has self identified as modern farmhouse, I thought I would throw a more global-loving, cozy English look in there as well!  Suzani rug, super tufted chairs, a well-traveled trunk, mismatched bamboo tables with elegant ceramic lamps....you know I love this look.  :)

For more inspiration on how to let a red sofa shine, check out this recent post on Sadie and Stella.  Changes the way you think about red, doesn't it?

Hope this helps, and have a great weekend!

Working from an inspiration room

Land of Nod

We all use inspiration photos as we figure out our design schemes, especially in this day of Instagram and Pinterest.  But how do we interpret that inspiration into our homes?

I'm working with my brother and sister-in-law on their new house, and for their 18 month old daughter, they love the look of this space from the Land of Nod catalog.  Since it is from a catalog, we could simply copy it, right?  

Well, no.  (I mean, where's the fun in that?)  Our space has mauve carpeting, oak trim, and it lacks the multi-paned windows looking out on sunny palm trees.  Plus, we are possibly going to use my sister-in-law's childhood furniture, which has that sort of 70s french look, AND we bought fabric for their old house that we saved once they decided to move.  We can use this for curtains:

So how do you get the vibe of that room in a different space and with some pre-determined elements?

To me, it's all about creating a sense of whimsy and a bright, fun mix of color and pattern, but remixing the original elements in a fresh way that works for our space.

This one is probably truest to the inspiration, with the wicker headboard, prominent chevron upholstery, "frame" bedding, and a fun floral, jut moved from the rug to the pillows.  (The Elephant hamper is in there because I have an extra.)

If they want an upholstered headboard for snuggling, the whimsical wicker can move on over to a chair.  You can't tell from the photo, but those euro shams are covered in tiny little hearts, and this one has the actual bedding from the inspiration, along with glass ball lamps.

Finally, this one goes a little more boho.  My sister in law is partial to anthropologie, and to me this takes the Land of Nod room and puts a bit of an anthro spin on it.

These are all really "sketches" as we get into planning, but good for direction, no?

What do you think: do these do enough to evoke the original, taking into account our constraints?

How do you interpret inspiration images?

Dining/ Office two ways

Folks, I am in one of those "something's got to give" moments, and clearly it's the blog that is taking the hit.

My volunteer commitments are out of control at the moment, and my family is making their discontent known.  This weekend my five year old delivered an envelope (addressed, by the way, to Hethr, not "mommy") with a wrapped drawing inside and a note that read as follows: "Dear Mommy, I think we should do more things together."

It will be so.

Right now I am very lucky to be working on one space in an amazing 1970s home, filled with light from enormous windows and all sorts of quirky layouts and interesting features.  The room is technically a formal dining room, but used as a homework space for the kids and sometime-office when mom works from home.

We talked about looking at options for a round table with 6 chairs or a rectangle table set up like a desk, with one big comfy "executive" chair facing a pair of more kid-friendly chairs.

Here's what my client did not choose:

Similar palette, similar vibe, different layout and all different pieces.  Both honor the home's vintage while still feeling current.

What would you choose?  Hopefully I will share my client's choice, if I get the a-okay.

Oh, and did you miss me?

Say yes!

Fluffing

Preamble:  Today is the FOURTH day this month that schools are closed here for dangerously cold temps.  As in, the high today is projected to be -6.  The low?  -22.  Those are raw temps before any of that wind chill nonsense.

So let's talk about cozying up a bedroom, shall we?

Lots of designers don't "fluff" a space, bringing in textiles and accessories, but I have to say, it can be pretty satisfying, and the gratification is instant.

I have a new client who has a solid set of Pottery Barn furniture and a pale grey wall color that she likes, but her space lacks personality.  She contacted me to bring a little life to the room.  She wanted the room to feel cozy, finished, and not too feminine, and she didn't want a lot of stuff.  She was VERY open to color palette and look, so I put together 4 boards with fairly different vibes to see where she was at.

Calm and fresh:

warm and Cheerful:

Modern and masculine:

It's amazing how different these spaces can feel based simply on textiles and accessories.

None of these are the direction we ended up going....hopefully we'll have a before and after soon--just waiting on the linen roman shades!

If you're local, stay warm.....

Floral headboard two ways

I've been noticing more and more patterned headboards pop up on flash sale sites One Kings Lane and Joss and Main lately.  I keep ogling them, even though we do not need any new headboards around here.  When one popped up in major on-trend watercolor splendor, I thought it would be fun to design a room--or two!--around it.

And so: Girly glam

And cheerful country

I love how completely different these are, working from the same starting point.

And I have to say, I am in love with this country-ish design.  It's not normally my thing, but I am really craving bright, fresh, cheerful looks these days, and lots of YELLOW!

What do you think: would you ever go for such a statement headboard?  (Or would you leave your options open and drape a textile over a smaller print, kind of like this?)

Also, I'm loving cafe curtains right now.  They don't have to be overly country kitchen when done right.

Two Ways: Patchwork Rug

Oh, folks.

You know, sometimes I just get hold of an idea and I can't let go.  Did you ever have a worry stone?  It's like that: I just keep rubbing away at it, but for all the rubbing the thing stays whole.

After obsessing about the use of patchwork in Kathryn Ireland's work, I did a little round up of patchwork products.  And maybe it would have stopped there, except I saw this room in the portfolio of designer Brooke Wagner.

See what she did with that patchwork rug?  Well, I just had to give it a try.

Haven't done a "two ways" post in a while, so here we are.

I like the idea of letting even a neutral patchwork rug stand out by keeping the palette simple and the shapes sculptural.  In the above, the black is a nice contrast to the softer greys, and every shape is interesting without adding too much busyness or competition, and the wood tables warm things up.

Then again....

sometimes the more the merrier, right?  Here a rug patched from overdyed vintage kilims is accent-sized to keep the color in check.  The furniture shapes are interesting (and fairly traditional), but the palette is consistently quiet.  All the better to shout with accessories, no?  Each and every fabric relates to the colors in the rug, keeping things just this side of cuckoo.

I never would have thought about a patchwork rug for myself....but now I'm kind of digging it.

What do you think:  tight palette with high contrast, or full on color?