Merry Christmas

well i am taking some time off to enjoy being with my family and my baby on her first christmas! i hope everyone has a wonderful holiday and that santa brings you everything you want and more! merry christmas y'all- love pinkwallpaper

i have been tagged....

I was tagged by carolina eclectic. Thank You! Here are the rules.
Link to the person who tagged you and post the rules on your blog. Share seven random and or weird things about yourself. Tag seven random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

1. i like to listen to the same song over and over again until i can't stand to hear it any longer...

2. my favorite outfit is a black patagonia puffy vest, seven jeans, and my cowboy boots

3. when i was pregnant i was put on bedrest (pure hell) and so i watched the entire series of felicity (i had never seen it before) and now i feel like they are my bestfriends...i miss them so much...

4. i could eat mexican everyday

5. i am a really messy person...i drive my husband insane b/c i can live in complete chaos and be fine (i think this is my way of rebelling from my mom making me clean my room everyday before i went to school)

6. i am scared to try the boots over the jeans trend even though i have a new pair of boots that would work perfectly...

7. i am in need of a major makeover...sometimes i dream of stacey and clinton showing up on my doorstep and telling me that they have a visa card w/ my name on it....

i am tagging brillant asylum, girl meets glamour, house and life, j'adore decor, suzanne marques,
the scoop, sgm.

orche

i love it when i stumble across something that takes my breath away; orche does just that. this company offers a line of furniture, lighting, and accessories that are beautiful. the lines on the pieces are modern with elegant, classic propotions. the company is headed by british couple harriet maxwell macdonald and andrew corrie and you can go to their store in nyc (462 broome st. to be exact). i love the earth tones that are found in the upholstery and the sleek wood finishes. another thing they are famous for are their beautifully handcrafted lighting. i inquired about this company and immidately got a response back (thanks dana) to see if they worked with the trade. it seems like they are very designer friendly.

pickled white oak

one of my favorite things about having this blog is that i feel like it keeps me in the "know"; i am challenging myself to want to keep up with the latest and greatest, as well as educating myself on things that i may not have known previous to this....which leads me to today's post on pickling... i think we are going to be seeing a lot more of the "pickled" look in wood finishes. it seems like the weathered, distressed, almost drift wood look is where designers are heading- and i love this. maybe it's because i live in a beach town but i love the soft, gray hues that are given off by the wood and the rawness that it produces. i guess i am kind of over the really dark stained cabinets and this is my way of opening myself up to a new evolution of wood cabinetry. i adore this kitchen done in the pickled white oak. it is so clean and crisp...something that i find myself gravitating to much more in design. pickling is definitely not limited to cabinetry; it looks amazing on furniture, applied on floors or ceilings (oh, love it on the ceilings).

i was intrigued on how they actually do the pickling stain to the wood so i researched it a little. it was created to make new wood look old or "dusty". stainers took the wood, generally oak, and created a formula...take a handful of rusty nails and soak them in vinegar for 3 days; this would produce a gray solution that was then applied to the raw wood. today, they have come up with a much more calculated approach to pickling...it involves primer and paint thinner. either way, the look is gorgeous and i think something we will be seeing a lot more of....

making small spaces work best for you....

some people see a small space as an obsticle but what you need to know is that you can make the smallest space a perfect opportunity to make a major design statement! one thing that you might keep in mind is going monochromatic with your color palette...too many colors in a small space may make it seem choppy and broken up. I think an all white color palette looks amazing...i love using a crisp white for everything...try Ben Moore navajo white. to create dimension use a flat sheen on the walls, a satin or semi-gloss on the trim and to step it up, try a gloss on the ceilings! this gives added depth and texture to your space. you should also try to capture as much light as possible; keep the window treatments simple like side panels which allow the maximum amount of light to enter the room. Also, reflective surfaces like mirrors, polished solid surfaces, or shiny finishes like chrome give added light. Avoid a lot of visual cutter from bulky furniture. This would be a good time to play with furniture you can see through. Another benefit of a small space, means you might be able to splurge on some lavish materials you otherwise couldn't afford...like marble countertops, or an elaborate backsplash, high end appliances, wallpaper, etc. so take your small space and tackle it with beautiful design elements...then sit back and close your eyes and pretend you are in your upper east side apartment and it makes everything seem so much grander!

backsplash envy (well actually entire house envy)...

suzanne from simply magic totally makes me envious of her kitchen backsplash tile, custom designed by her super fab design team woodson & rummerfield...i noticed this little beauty in a display of her christmas card. i emailed her and told her it was amazing and that's when she informed me that ron and jamie had this ann sacks tile custom colored green, gray, and white for her space! the top pic is a view of her entire kitchen/ dr/ lr space. lucky lady! i read in one of her previous posts that her husband had mastered the art of tile installation...wonder if he installed this? btw, great talent to master. tile installation can get pricey, especially the decorative, art inspired tiles that are now available. finding someone who has this talent is a true gem! (you can check out other pictures of her house at w & r, it is to die for...love the powder room wallpaper!!)

a coat of polish...

(picture Southern Accents Dec. 2005, Miles Redd)

i love it when people share experiences or things they have learned in the industry. that being said, courtney at in(side) the loop left a very informative comment on my painted chairs dilemma: I JUST had a refinisher come out and look at 3 antiques I recently inherited from my Dad's side. When I mentioned "painting" them, he almost fell over. HOWEVER, he also thought they would look better "painted" but he educated me. Lacquering does not mean it has to have a high gloss...it's just a finish but it can be matte or shiny. That said, it costs a bit more to have your furniture professionally lacquered but if you ever wanted to strip it and refinish the wood, it comes off very easily. If you were to paint it, paint would always be in the wood and you'd never be able to get it back to the original condition.

this led me to think more about this process...i love the look of lacquered walls and furniture. it can be placed in a tradition or modern home and is virtually timeless in it's appearance. it is an extremely labor intensive process therefore, the professional painters can charge out the you-know-what to achieve this look. a quality lacquer paint job should allow you to see your reflection in the sheen of the paint! this can require up to 30 coats....but man, you cannot replace the beauty of this look. walls look magnificent in both candlelight and day light. i did research to see if there was a DIY way out there and came across this article...basically to sum it up- NO, consult a professional and your accountant when contemplating lacquer to grace your home.

i love this...

the idea of a family style bathroom featured in House and Garden...great for children who are sharing bathrooms. i especially like the idea of everyone having their "own station". my husband and i could benefit from this...he always leaves a glob of toothpaste in the sink and i get water everywhere when i wash my face!! i especially adore the long drift wood top that the sinks sit on...kind of makes you feel like you are at camp!

i'll take one of those grown up rooms...

i remember being pregnant and showing my husband this picture and saying "i want our nursery to look like this"...you should have seen his expression; he was like "are you kidding me??" he couldn't get past the chairs. i still love this nursery and i think it's the juxtaposition of the david netto crib w/ the ornate antique side chairs and exposed pipes in the ceiling. i don't know, sometimes i think it's nice to have a "non- baby" nursery. i think that this is definitely a baby's room but i like the grown up aspects of it and the fact that the homeowner simplified the baby items. i think sometimes we can be too influenced by the "babies r us" crap and think that you must have all of that stuff in order for the baby to survive. we have it, however, i keep the ugly stuff in the closet and only display the "prettier" baby items like her manuella duck or the dwell baby blocks, the bla bla mobile...maybe that is the same technique this homeowner used and if the photographer shot the other side of the room we would then see the elmo, winnie the pooh, baby einstein, leap frog, dora toys scattered all around...but somehow i doubt it.

bronze, the classy way of saying brass....

i can't believe i am writing about this but brass is creeping back into the design world. some of you may say "did it ever leave"...well, if that is what you are thinking- YES, it left! you must be one of those who are holding onto that chandelier that came w/ the house when you bought it in the early 90's. i think that if you put the word "antique" in front of brass- antique brass, it makes the word sound so much better. brass is something i associate w/ the 80's and early 90's...but lately, (can't believe i am saying this) i am loving some bronze/ antique brass looks . you will be seeing it in hardware, which is pictured above (thanks beach bungalow8). i love the way it reads in this kitchen and the light just screams cool. lighting is another place it will be found... and you will also see this finish in a lot of furniture design. i adore this lona design console in pale pink with bronze accents. so, i guess we must give brass...let me clear my throat- bronze/ antique brass another look. and forgive those nice people who have hung onto their beloved 80's brass chandeliers.....

is it really a sin...

to paint a precious antique?? i have loved these painted chairs since they appeared on the cover of Charleston Home last sept. which brings me to my dilemma...is it okay to go there...there begin taking an antique that has been in your family for decades and painting it!! my finger tips sweat a little just thinking of that thought!! i am all about painting an antique that you pick up at the local antique mall but what about one that has meaning and a past w/ your family??!

i think that my DR chairs would look amazing lacquered like these...maybe in a chartreuse color. the chairs are gorgeous as is, but they don't give me the pizazz i am looking for in this space. my mom said to do it...but we haven't even told dad that it might happen, and those just happen to be from his side of the family- i am scared to even go there...dad can't really let items go to easily...in fact, he built a barn on some land of ours, just to house our unused furniture. i am also plagued with the dilemma of "will i ever regret doing this"?? as my neighbor says, you can always have them refinished down the road...well, lets hope we win the lottery by then!!

BUT sometimes i think i would love to just not have those chairs at all and replace them with these....that's the problem w/ being an interior designer...there are so many possibilities that its hard to actually make up your mind!! HELP!

why can't i be oscar??

lately, i have been having this epiphany that i can do anything if i set my mind to it...well i want to be oscar...aka the man with that spray can featured in the picture! (ha, for people that know me, they would get a real chuckle out of that!) i don't know if it is me reading style court's guest blog this week (she is doing the best posts), but man i am obsessed w/ wanting to find the perfect flea market bargain and making it something sassy like Lee from Pieces or Ruthie from Chapman Radcliff. and i think if i had this spray can and of course the gas station shirt w/ my name on it, i could create some real masterpieces!! we have a garage and my father-in-law has that spray can tool...why couldn't i. i called my husband at work yesterday and said, i want to paint our china cabinet! he wasn't too excited about this idea (maybe b/c our garage has the bookshelf that he built over thanksgiving still sitting in it needing another coat of primer and 2 coats of paint...but wouldn't it be so much easier if we sprayed it) i also want to paint my DR chandelier, our LR armoire, and my foyer console....i need to be oscar. plus, i think you look a lot cooler w/ a spray can vs. a paint brush!

make me a bird....

i think it was from forest gump and jenny was standing in the fields and said "lord, make me a bird so i can fly far, far away"...that's how i feel about my office...better yet, make me a bull dozier. my office is utter chaos!! there are fabrics, wallpaper, random papers, and magazines EVERYWHERE! it is not a pretty site at all (thank goodness clients don't see this part).

I need a major room makeover. i would love for ruthie sommers to come and wave her magic wand and "poof" this beautiful imagine appears....is that too much for a girl to ask??

OH MY christmas tree...

well, isn't that great, my tree decided that it wanted to be the leaning tower of Pisa this AM... luckily, i saved Christmas and rescued it. i had to do a little speaker phone action to my husband at work in order to save the crazy thing. it was about to eat my wing chair and then the floor! we thought we would be ahead of the game and bought this super- duper tree stand that swivels so if you have a crooked tree trunk, it doesn't matter...well that thing swiveled a little too much apparently last night...

you better watch your back martha...

because the darby's don't play around!!! seriously, i think we did pretty darn good! and the best part was that my husband actually got into painting one of them. i did the cream background reindeer and he did the chocolate background reindeer. not that it's a competition...but come on, mine is the best! hee hee. anyways, this was a lot of fun, easy to do and makes a great statement when you walk into our house at Christmas time! oh, and i also did the snowballs...don't know if they are blogger-worthy though but i like them none-the-less!!

christmas time is here!!!

so since its officially christmas time- as of tomorrow, i will now begin to write posts relating to my FAV holiday. if i can beat this cold, my husband and i will begin to decorate tomorrow. it's total chaos when this starts- mainly b/c of the outside lights. we always try to come up with some awesome way to do them and then they end up being incredibly tacky and shorting out our power b/c we have too many lights connected together. two years ago, we actually caught the bushes on fire...who knew it wasn't good to leave the lights on in the rain? i almost peed myself when i saw the sparks....luckily,it ended very quickly.

i am trying to reinvent my interior christmas decor...my problem is, i can't remember what all i have until the boxes are down from the attic. i was thinking this year i would try to step it up a notch and paint this adorable reindeer that was featured in domino last year....yea, don't hold your breath but it is a great thought. i mean, i really think i can do things like this and then i buy the supplies and the excitement fizzles. or i think it would be cute to do a series of reindeer parts like these cards and hang them in a grouping. i'll give you an update on monday....

i wish i had a jack and jill....

i absolutely love using an element like this industrial sink from kohler to think outside of the box for a jack and jill bathroom. while it maybe a little pricier than your standard sink, the impact that it gives off will be worth it. plus, you save by not having to outfit a vanity in the bathroom. i love what designer jackie terrell did to the underside of the basin...painting it avocado green! how much fun is that? if you are interested in this look but think that it's too expensive to achieve, check out local salvage stores...you might stumble across an old one which would make it just that much more fabulous!

the color that is everywhere...

as i flip through magazines the color that is really standing out to me is gray. i see it used in a ton of design elements right now. i use to feel like this color was cold and i couldn't imagine using it on the walls but i have a new outlook on gray. it seems so peaceful and pairs beautifully with blues, browns, corals, etc. i will say, i tend to lean to the brownish/ gray version of the color...i think that the added brown pigment gives off a warmth that makes the color not seem as well, how do you say it- gray! i was thrilled when a client/ indecisive friend of mine wanted to use the color. we looked at a ton of paint for her walls. we wanted the house to feel neutral but not look like a "spec home" where the walls seem like an institution. i can't wait to see how it reads on the walls.

another great thing about the color gray is that it looks absolutely beautiful with marble... marble on the counter top, on the bathroom floors, or as tile in a shower. i've looked at a lot of wood flooring lately and the darker shades tend to have purplish gray undertones in it- they are gorgeous. this color also looks great with another trend right now, metallic. so if you are in the market for a change in paint or a new color exploration, try gray....you'll be in for a pleasant surprise!

diamonds are a girl's best friend....

so every time i get a new Cottage Living, i get another inspiration. last month, it was fran's letters (which i need to show y'all) and this month it's kitty's dining room. i love the diamond wall treatment....however, i think it's over my head. the homeowner, kitty, did this by hand, three times until she finally got this result- which i think is stunning. i would go absolutely crazy trying to perfect this look. for pete's sake, i went crazy trying to paint 6 letters...can you imagine the stress i would be under! plus, it's all about the straight lines, good painter's tape, and math. i love the white and chocolate...my dining room would look more like a tiffany's box b/c it's robin's egg blue and i can visualize the diamonds in white....my husband would kill me...i can see me now, on a ladder attempting to get a straight line...yep, this project isn't going to happen. but way to go kitty!

Happy Turkey Day!!

who wants to waste their time reading a blog when it's thanksgiving holidays?? i hope everyone has a wonderful time eating lots, drinking lots, and spending lots of quality time w/ your family!! i can't wait for everyone to get here! see y'all next week! loveage!

bubbles and wine can totally clear my mind.....

after my daughter had her meltdown last night, i needed some time for ME....what do you do when you need time to veg? my husband thinks i have turned into an internet nerd...i love searching it for ideas, reading other people's blogs, celebrity gossip, etc. but after 2 hours of crying (just b/c she could) i wanted to relax. my poor husband took the brunt of the crying...which i hate b/c he only has 2 hours with her when he gets home from work and when she is crying bloody murder, it doesn't make it pleasant. especially after working all day in a place which in my mind is identical to the office.

so you ask what i was doing while my sweet hubbie tried to calm our daughter....i cleaned our bathroom. i think that this is quite possibly the worst job anyone can have and to have your background music be a very unhappy baby, only makes the job that much more painful. now, i NEVER voluntarily offer to clean the bathroom...but i knew that i wanted to soak in a bath after our screaming kid was down and so i had to "do it for the family". my husband and i hate cleaning the bathroom so much that when we got married, we hired someone to help us clean it. unfortunately, when i decided to start my own company, that was the first thing that had to go.

so back to my story, my way to veg is a bubble bath. in the winter, i love to take a bath every night w/ lots of bubbles and to read my magazines. last night, i giggled to myself b/c i felt like "the reverend" on run's house...(ok, i love mtv- it's out in the open now). you know you have seen the end of the show, where he sits in his bubble bath and types on his blackberry about the lessons he has learned from the day's events....good thing i don't have a blackberry b/c who knows the things i would have written last night! this is the time of year to give thanks- therefore, i am thankful for a sleeping baby and a clean bathtub....

my evolving taste....

it's so funny how your taste evolves over the years being in the interior design business. i started working in interior design back in college. i worked at a well-known design firm downtown for 7 years before taking the plunge (well maybe cannonball) into starting my own design company. now, it's safe to say that Charleston can be very traditional. it's a town surrounded by its love for historic preservation and we take pride our historic homes. so there was a lot of swag and jabots going on in window treatments...something that made me want to throw up (and still does make me a little queasy). i remember my boss laughing at me b/c i hated them so much! and balloon shades- oh my, those were just terrible....maybe it was the application of them in a lovely chintz or some stuffy floral. i use to think that osborne and little would always be my favorite fabric company and i would never grow tired of my Manchu wallpaper. granite was the best thing since sliced bread and that distressed wood was really a "hot" look...flame stitch use to make my skin crawl and contemporary was not even in my realm of thinking for design....

it's just funny how things change...i laughed at myself last night when i was laying in bed looking at House Beautiful. i fell in love with a house done by betsy burnham (love her) and i actually liked the window treatments that at one time would have made me cringe. i think they are so classic and peaceful....i would never have suggested something like this for a window treatment two years ago; maybe not even two weeks ago. but staring at this picture made me realize how my taste has evolved and how everyday, i learn something new about my style and love for design....i can't wait to see where i am in twenty years...probably loving the swag and jabot look b/c you know, that's the thing w/ design everything old comes back in style (ummm hello, 80's fashion..did you ever think it that could make a comeback??)

Oh my gosh, KELLY WEARSTLER did an interview for PW!!

i am soooooooo excited that my number one design hero agreed to do an interview with little ol' me!! kelly wearstler is the mecca in the design industry...in fact, i think she could be the 8th world wonder!! thanks so much kelly for taking time out to do this interview! this truly made my year!

Q: What inspired your draperies at the Estrella, the crisp white panels with the exaggerated Greek key motif? You must have an amazing seamstress!
A: The Greek key is such an iconic form, so I went for a neo-classical meets post-modern-in-the-desert aesthetic. I chose to keep color way black and white because it feels so crisp, airy and refreshing – perfect for Palm Beach.

Q: I love the bookshelves in the Viceroy study, how did you come up with the concept of doing the shelves on a diagonal?
A: My goal was to present the books in an unexpected way. When we were actually fabricating the prototypes, they were laid on their side and looked more interesting than just straight on, so that’s how the design came to be.

Q: What do you think is the most overdone trend in design right now?

A: Looking as if you bought all of your furniture in one place is so overdone. I know people find this to be an easy way to decorate, but choosing pieces you love from a range of sources creates a richer, more textured look.

Q: Describe your ideal client….
A: My ideal client is someone who has a program and a vision, but trusts the designer to run with it - that’s why they hire a designer in the first place. I like a client who has something to say and something to give because they’re the one living in the space.

Q: What do you miss most about South Carolina?
A: The people, they’re just so nice. (i agree)

the saks of baby stores

if you want to know what makes my heart melt, its b. braithwaite. i fell in love with this baby boutique when it was featured in southern accents last year. i loved it so much that i drove to atlanta just to go there and buy my baby's crib. the store is gorgeous and why shouldn't it be...it's creator is nancy braithwaite who has been an interior designer for 35 yrs before starting the store. she and her daughter chaffee, decided to open a baby boutique after going on a shopping trip to paris(i would kill to go on a shopping trip in paris). the layout of the store is amazing....very classic and sophisticated. a lot of baby stores can be junked up with whimsical aspects, but not here. the "nurseries" are set up in a monochromatic look, beautifully showcasing each of the contemporary cribs they offer. one of the best parts about the whole experience are the beautiful topiaries that you are greeted by at the entrance of the boutique....a huge teddy bear and rabbit. it is truly a pregnant woman's shopping dream....if you are ever in atlanta and are craving some baby bliss, stop by b. braithwaite!

my desk chair...

so i have had my desk chair for 3 yrs now and it still remains how i bought it- with ugly white (well dingy white) damask fabric on it and around the arms the fabric is actually unattached from where i had my upholster look at it so the horsehair is exposed. i am not a damask kind of girl...well maybe funky damask but definitely not traditional. i love my chair...the lines on it are amazing...i call it a lady's chair b/c it hugs your body when you sit in it. it is an antique that i purchased at a flea market with all intentions of reupholstering it and placing it in my LR. however, once i started my own design company it became my desk chair (no staples roller chair would do). i have always known that it would be recovered and look fabulous one day. it has just had to sit here b/c upholstery is expensive, especially in c'town b/c everyone seems to jack up their prices.

i am so excied about the fabric that i have chosen to use on my chair. i have been in love with geometrics since i received the very first domino magazine. i just drooled over the camel back sofa that ruthie sommers had in her house (now i think its in her amazing store). i contemplated using that fabulous lee jofa fabric but with all of the wonderful geometrics out there i decided on china seas aga. it gives me the amazing geometric pattern that i am in love with. and to throw a twist into the chair (and to save some cash), i am going to pipe the double cording and back in either a pink, kelly green, or tourquise linen fabric. i cannot wait to see the results. i went with the brown and cream colorway b/c it will easily go with the rest of my house if i ever want to pull it out when company arrives. now all i have to do is save for the small fortune it will cost me to have this done....but xmas is only a month away...maybe santa will surprise me....

Chloe Warner takes time out for Pink Wallpaper....

i am so excited that i have my first interview to share with y'all!! this month's Domino featured chloe warner's house and i emailed her on monday and asked if she would do a Q & A for me and she said yes! she was so super sweet about the whole thing (i love down-to-earth designers, sometimes i feel like this business can go to people's heads). so here it is, pinkwallpaper's first designer interview.....a huge thanks to chloe for taking the time to do this :)

Q: How does it feel to be called “a breakout designer” by Domino, a publication that I feel like has totally dominated the design world for the 20/30 yr olds?
A: Honestly, I can't imagine the thrill wearing off. It was a big goal, and to have achieved it feels amazing.

Q: So many people think that being an interior designer is so glamorous! I often find that funny when I think of all of the non-glamorous things that go along with the job…can you describe your typical day?
A: I usually make coffee for my husband and myself, and start the day catching up with my huge stack of magazines. By 9:00 I am on the computer checking emails and returning calls, and lately I have gotten to spend a lot of time designing, playing fabrics, and sourcing furniture, which has been great. On a bad day I spend a lot of time following-up with contractors and delivery-people, double, triple, and quadruple checking things. My least favorite days are when I have to be an enforcer. My most favorite are when I can have lunch with Valerie and Tyler in my office, and the phone rings the right amount.

Q: What is one trend you wish would go away??
A: Coral - but only so I can start using it again in a few years.

Q: When looking at your bedroom, it looks so well put together! I had no idea that was an Urban Outfitter headboard until I read the side notes…often people our age cannot afford the services of interior designers; do you have favorite “budget friendly” tips for people who would like the look of a designer inspired room?
A: Anthropologie.com and UrbanOutfitters.com both have furniture sections that can be unique and attractive, and the turnover is high so I don't worry too much about the looks being everywhere, like I do with an IKEA piece. That said, one of my favorite tricks is to apply beveled-mirror tiles to plain pieces - the dresser in my bedroom is actually from IKEA but now that it is mirrored it looks very glam and not IKEA at all. Unfortunately, I still had to put it together. For people with more patience than money, this is a great solution. Our firm (redmondaldrich.com) offers a room-in-a-binder service, where for a flat-fee we design a room including palate, finishes, furniture, accessories and everything, and include the retail sources where everything is available. Execution is left up to the client to complete as they are ready. It is still pricier than not decorating, but it keeps prices out of the stratosphere! (that's crazy that Chloe mentioned this b/c i am about to start this service with my design firm)

Q: Lastly Chloe, what would you say was the one aspect of design you could not live without?
A: My books! I am a junkie at the bookstore, and use them for everything; for inspiration, guidance, decoration, and to make me look smarter than I am.

can't get enough of chloe, check out domino for a virtual tour of her house...

can i get a light...

while there are so many things that make me happy, the andrew reflector is up at the top. i was lucky enough to use them in the downtown house i featured two days ago. they looked amazing against the old charleston brick. urban electric is a to-the-trade lighting company that started here in charleston. the showroom use to be located on historic King Street and i loved going in there and being captivated by the creative window displays and beautifully designed lighting. i just received their new catalog and as i was flipping through it, i saw that Tom Scheerer was one of the lighting designers....as you can see to your right, he is one of my new design heroes. chloe warner told me about him on monday when we were exchanging emails. if you haven't taken a look at urban electric, i think its time. the lights speak for themselves... they are gorgeous, current, and classic in their appearances. here are some others to drool over if you have a second: gunston, hightower, paraply, the quarter, and sheridan...as always, beauty does not come without a stiff price tag but these are really worth it.

no pink pumps here....at least not this AM

you know, i'm not going to lie...sometimes i have nothing to write about. so i decided to scroll through my inspiration book and i ran across this page which i have loved for the past year and a half...i decided to look at the picture closely and i started relating it to my life....

first i will touch on the obvious- the room is wonderful. great use of the popular lulu dk "chant" fabric on the DR chairs. and as y'all should know, monogramming makes it better, so i love the wing chair with the table! the floors are a beautiful ebony and i love the detailing down the leading edge of the draperies.

but this AM as i looked at this picture, i decided that it makes me mad b/c when i relate it to me and my house, it couldn't be further! so i pictured myself sitting on the floor like this "model" looking mom and this is what i saw...me in my grey velour sweat pants and an orange hoodie (that i wore when we painted our porch so it has white paint splattered all over it) sitting on our light oak floor (which is covered in our golden's hair)...my hair, nothing close to graceful...piled up in a messy ponytail desperately needing highlights (i am suppose to be blond)...oh and those beautiful sex in the city looking shoes- those should be replaced by pink jcrew bedroom slippers. than i see my cutie 5 month old, she isn't wearing a starched, white boutique dress but rather an old navy onesie (and underneath it she has one sock on b/c we decided her feet were freezing at night and that's the best we could come up with- you ask why one sock, b/c when my husband changed her diaper this AM, one fell off and he didn't put it back on). lastly, i move on to my room...we do have somethings in common...a seagrass rug- hers is missing the stain from my golden. we do have a table with chairs but mine is an antique set that belonged to my great aunt- it squeaks if you bump into it...and the fabric on the chairs are a horizontal stripe that is a silk (why??) lastly, the one common thing i can smile and proudly say i have is lulu dk. i splurged and had draperies made with moondance and have a leading edge detail....

so maybe my life isn't too far from this picture...minus the fact that she has showered and her kid has hair....happy tuesday!

my own work...

laura from the scoop asked if i had any of my own work to share so i thought i would show this house i did in the downtown historic district. it was an amazing house with an equally amazing client (don't you just love it when that happens). unfortunately, the house was never finished b/c the owners decided to sell it before moving in. here are two shots of the project...

the main area was all one room w/ tall ceilings and i love the exposed old charleston brick wall w/ the earthquake beams running through it. we renovated the kitchen (you can see part of it on the right of the pic); it was really a dark room with black cabinets and stainless steel counter tops. we repainted the cabinets, added the frosted glass, replaced counter tops w/ granite, added the mosaic tile around the bar surround, and did all new appliances (the refrigerator was just divine, a sub zero with the glass front). the floors were brick (not old, but were new brick) and my client felt like it was always dirty so we replaced it with travertine.

my client was a young, business woman who had amazing style so deciding on the furniture was a fun task. she was always very polished and so it was nice to see that the furniture reflected her image. she wasn't afraid to be adventurous so the powder room was wonderful. we used the metallic cole and son's woods wallpaper in the small space. it was a great project that i was super sad to see end.

"fran's letters" are taking over my life....

so i have been telling you about this diy project that i am working on and here is the inspiration. on tues i sat down to read my cottage living and fell in love w/ "fran's letters". thinking the project would be a piece of cake, i decided i would do my baby's name on this one tiny wall that has been white since the nursery was completed (i was waiting for something to inspire me).

well, kudos to fran b/c her letters rock....mine, not so much. i cannot tell you how many hours i have spent for 6 measly letters that i am trying to get to look anything remotely like fran's....

right now, fran is not my friend (although if we lived in the same town i think we might be). my husband walks into the baby's room everyday when he gets home from work...looks at the progress of the letters and says things like "they look good" (with a high voice which means he is lying) or he suggest ways he would have done them so the lines of the letters would have been straight...i think "thanks a lot, where were you 7 hours ago?!" so, i am off to work on those stupid letters that my baby will not even care about when she is finally old enough to even realize that i spelled her name...i am sure by that point she will want to repaint the entire room with barbie or something......

the bubble chair

does this chair not turn heads? it was on the cover of the august Charleston magazine and ever time i see it, i love it. (i ran across it again when i was doing my magazine clean up a couple of days ago!) i have this obsession with acrylic and lucite and the bubble chair just makes my heart putter (so does the price tag). originating in 1968 by designer Eero Aarnio, this chair is still just as amazing nearly 40 years later!

*the color is off in the cushion and garden stool; its actually this great chartreuse green that really pops not that mucky green it scanned in as.

happy halloween stripes...

so i don't know about y'all but i have a hoard of magazines that i live by, reference to, stock pile, trip over, drool over, etc. this week my hubbie had a breakdown about my beloved magazines. they are taking over the house (literally). when they do this, i go through them and put them in piles: "keep" for decorating, "keep" for hoping to make me skinny, "keep" to see what fashion is in style, "keep" for current catalog shopping, "keep" b/c its our town's lovely magazine, "keep" so i can cook that one day... than there is the "give to the neighbor" pile (she doesn't get mags, can you imagine life w/out such pleasures??), "give to my mom" pile (she is a closet celebrity gossip fan), and lastly, there is the "throw away" but rip out all of the pages that i might possibly want to see again in the future....which brings me to this picture....

i have a notebook of my ripped out "fav" pages of inspiration from all of the leading design magazines. i love my notebook, i look at it often and wish that i had these spectacular clients that would lead me to design such impressionable rooms (if any of my clients are reading, i do love my great clients). so it was this notebook, where i stumbled over this halloween striped wall. It's from Elle Decor (can you believe i ripped the pages out of that magazine). i think it was a combination of this picture and domino's email newsletter, that gave me the courage to do my own stripes in my daughter's nursery. anyway, that could be a blog in itself....but i thought this would be fun to share this halloween inspired paint palette and confess my obsession w/ magazines. sorry, for my randomness in writing...if you have any solutions to magazine pile-up's, saving me from future argument w/ my hubbie about my beloved magazines, or just want to tell me to not write run-on sentences, feel free to comment....otherwise, i want to wish you a very spooky happy halloween!!

i am not martha...

so i totally hesitated in showing y'all this but i said that i would so here it is. our 2nd annual pumpkin carving happened on sunday night and here are the results. as you can see everyone else used a pumpkin stencil and then there is mine (top one, in case you couldn't tell). i wanted to be martha stewart and try something creative and original...well, unfortunately my pumpkin is awful. you know, i am an interior designer and so i thought i would just be gifted at this whole pumpkin carving thing...not so much. for those of you that are confused (believe me, my husband and neighbors got a huge laugh out of mine) i was going for cute "dots"....i started out great (i thought) by scalloping the top edge of the pumpkin. then i got out the drill (real funny, me w/ a power drill) and things were still going okay. i did a little four dot design in the scalloped edge part. the next step is when my neighbor sabotaged me and told me to use a drill attachment to make the big holes (it was the attachment you use to make a hole in the back of your armoire for the tv cables)....and that's when everything went terribly wrong. poor, poor pumpkin. i disgraced it and martha! next year i'm going back to the pumpkin stencil....

*side note- using a drill on a pumpkin causes mad chaos in the kitchen...pumpkin guts go everywhere!

super white

so i went on an exploration for granite yesterday at A & S (a local distributor for all of the granite and marble in the c'town area). it is insane how many varieties of granite there is out there. the client i was scouting for prefers granite, so i walked up and down this huge warehouse accessing the situation. i wanted to find something that would work well for her but may not be your "typical" granite. that's when i stumbled upon super white (of course, i have no idea its real name; companies tweak the stones names so you can't shop around). i love this granite b/c it has gossamer veining like a marble. it doesn't have the flakes or "fish scale" appearance that you see in the a lot of the granites. i was so happy to find this, it gives you the durability of a granite (stain, scratch, and heat resistant) but the beauty of a marble.

O & L delivered

well i met with the grizzel and mann rep yesterday and as always, osborne and little gave me some good staples for the upcoming season. i will have to say that i saw a ton of black....there was a lot of it in the backgrounds of the fabrics and in the wallpaper collection. and i am not going to lie- i like it!! for a girl who was sold on the robin's egg blue/chocolate brown color combo three years ago, i was relieved to see the new color palettes. there is still a ton of that blue color out there though. i loved the vintage II wallpaper by O & L, the pic above is one selection from it (i love the acid yellow and plum color combo). apparently, vintage I came along while i was on bed rest, so i will have to backtrack and take a look at it. liberty (a division of o&l) had some good cut velvets. i love the art deco one featured above. if you are in the market for some fun fabs and wallpaper, check out O & L with your local interior designer.

i also got to see raoul....i love this company (even more than O & L, which i sometimes get tired of). they offer gorgeous linen prints that are very subtle, organic, and earthy. they had a lot of ikats and of course, unique botanicals. if you have the cash, this is a great company to splurge on! well, that's if for the rep meetings this season. i am excited about my new samples. when they come in, i'll share a few that are my favs! have a great thursday, i'm off to battle the rain and look at some granite. until tomorrow.....

disappointing rep meeting....

i was so excited about getting back out there and seeing reps again since i have been gone for so long. unfortunately, there wasn't much to get excited about with earnie gaspard. i felt like there wasn't a lot of change. ralph lauren's collection was completely blah, but they have never been one of my favorites. b. berger yuck and yuck again. quadrille's linen prints were cute....some ikat patterns and some remininsent to china sea (they actually overlapped in their appearances). one of my all time fav's, china sea had some good ones (two are featured above). but they weren't screaming "new" at all. the color palette's are the same...i saw a lot of navy and orange in china's collection. chocolate brown is still a very prominent color in all of the manufactures. romo had some fun fabrics and wallpapers but do you ever notice that their collections are always very similar to the ones previous....its like they take a flower and tweak it slightly and than there's the fall collection. kind of strange. i did like their wallpaper book this season. it had a lot of the geometric patterns featured in it...a two color flame stitch pattern that is done in a metallic could be fun in a powder room....anyways, that's about all there was to report from that meeting. i go see osborne and little today so hopefully that will be a lot more exciting! i'll let y'all know.

vintage baker chairs

does it get any cooler than these circa 1950's Baker chairs? The arms just kill me. gosh, they are just gorgeous....i am envious of the home that they will one day belong to.