West Elm Bath Collection

West Elm is always one of the first retailers to launch their spring collections (I mean here we are in December still!!!), and I recently got a sneak peak.  I love the new bath collection which is globally inspired from tradtional bath houses in Turkey.  I'm espcially fond of these bath mats as they are less "bathroomy" looking (if you've ever been a student in one of my staging seminars you've heard me preach "get the mat off the floor unless in use".  These however, are more like an area rug and the construction seems very durable......and they are machine washable! Whats not to love!

The Turks are world renowned for their super absorbent but thin woven towels called Pestemal.

I usually don't love too many of the soap pumps, tissue box holders etc., but this one really appeals to me.  Its clean lined, organic stone texture means it could really fit in to many bathrooms styles.  

Before & After Basement Redesign

Remember this post: whimsical modern
One of my recently completed projects was furnishing an entire basement living room.  The client had already made great use of the footprint by incorporating extra closets, a kitchenette, and a full bath. This new layout really put the "F" in function for the family of 6, however, there was no cohesive design scheme to keep organized on a daily basis.  The homeowner wanted this to be primarily a kid space for games, TV, art and crafts, but she also wanted to be able to entertain adults as well.  The jumping off point for the space were the Ikea blue and red kids chairs. Since it is a basement where natural light is limited,  I wanted to incorporate bright colors, graphic patterns and a sense of whimsy to the space. 


Before:

After:

The new layout separates the space into two zones.  The first zone above incorporates plush slipcovered chairs for easy cleaning for the adults to sit, read, or entertain.  We even incorporated a cozy little electric fireplace for added ambiance.  I also included two red vintage industrial chairs for extra seating or for using with the folding desks.

The second zone is the kid zone.  This area includes a rattan hanging chair, a chaise lounge, and the original Ikea blue and red kid chairs with customized cushions to play games, or watch movies.   To maximize floor space for the kids toys, I selected two wood stump side tables as opposed to a larger coffee table.

Did you spy the concealed support pole separating the two spaces?  We figured out a really fun and creative way to hide this, and I will dedicate a whole post next week to who, what, and how we made this eyesore a fun part of the design!

Genevieve Gorder for Capel Rugs

I very much admire the rooms of interior designer and HGTV host Genevieve Gorder.... not to mention she seems really down to earth.  She defnitely has a global bent in her work, but artfully conveys an eclectic feel without being too trendy.   She recently debuted a fabulous new rug line for Capel Rugs.  Marisa over at Stylebeat got these shots from her trip to High Point Market. I'm particularly fond of this emerald green moorish rug. I am already picturing it in a 3 season porch or sunroom with vibrantly patterned throw pillows. 

Who doesn't  love a good Chevron inspired print too!

Here's A Story...of A Lovely Dresser

One of my favorite things to do in designing a clients room is finding that special token piece, whether it's a pillow made of a hand printed fabric, a vintage lamp or a piece of furniture.  Sometimes that token piece adds a higher end feel to a more budget conscious design.  Sometimes it adds that one-of-a kind personal touch that no showroom or catalogue can replicate. I think that is what make a room feel really special.  


Here is such a piece I recently did in my client's daughters bedroom.  We decided the width of the wall really dictated a wider than normal dresser. We talked big box stores, but then the choices for finish would be limited.  Wood stain would darken the compact room too much, and white just seem a bit blah.  


As luck would have it, I found the perfect dresser on Craigslist almost immediately.  It had lovely traditional lines that complimented the vintage bed handed down to my client, and once painted, it wouldn't seem so serious for the pre-teen and toddler sisters sharing the room.

I selected a two-tone semi-gloss lacquer treatment for the dresser to liven it up.  To keep the room light and airy, I chose the body color to be one shade darker than the wall color, Sherwin Williams Enchant, while the drawers were painted Sherwin Williams Heavenly White.  Most of the original hardware was kept but sprayed silver, and I found some whimsical knobs at Anthropologie for the center drawers.


Here is the revitalized piece in the room:

In the next couple weeks, we will be finishing up a reading nook with a new window seat and wall mounted bookshelf, and I'll be sure to post more pictures of the redesigned room!

Happy Halloween....belated!

Happy Halloween!!! Better one day late then never, right!  It turned out to be a great Halloween day despite a weekend snowstorm that blew through (boohoo).  

It was Cowboys and Lions for 2011!

aarons pad

aarons pad by mrshadrick on Polyvore.com

LilSugar.com

I was thrilled to hear LilSugar.com wanted to feature my son's chalkboard table  project on their website! If you don't know about LilSugar.com, I highly recommend visiting it from time to time.  It's chalkfull (no pun intended) of great information on home, fashion, parenthood, and everything in between!

Check out the article here:

Some Contrast For A Quick Fix

With the Hurricane turned Tropical Storm Irene blowing its way through New England today, we are staying indoors and bunkering down for the day.  Its been a newspaper, movie, and clean-up the house kinda day.  I thought it also might be appropriate timing to fix a real eye sore in the house.....our back door.  This was the state of the sloppy-barely-primed-paint job our landlord had done at some point. Add to that a few years of dirt build-up:

Its bothered me since we moved in, but I just didn't think to do anything about it.  I finally decided to prime the door again a few months ago, and the new primer at least took care of the cracks and dirt showing on the door.  I figured at some point I would get around to selecting the right black or gray paint....The pantry needed something dark to ground all the stark white going on.  As luck would have it, I was at my local hardware store a few weeks back and decided to check out the "oops" paints they have from time to time.  Low and behold there was a little quart of charcoal gray sitting there calling my name!  I picked up the $5 can and thanks to Hurricane Irene, here is the finished door today:

I love my new door! Now if I could just snap my fingers and have the rest of the pantry freshly painted.......

Happy 1st Birthday Cora!!

We had a relaxing 4th of July weekend in the Berkshires in Western Mass at our friend's wonderfully rustic lakeside cabin.  Being that it is nearly off the grid completely with varied cell phone reception, and no TV or computer in sight.  What a way to get away.  

Cora had her must have 1st bday cake mug shots.  

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!  More celebrations ahead when we have our family party in Narragansett, RI this weekend.  We'll see how my beach themed party turns out: )


I have to add this final shot of Liam and our friend's little niece in the hammock. It could be a postcard!

Remember this dining room....

Remember these pedestals and dining room? 

Well, we finally got around to shooting some afters (during daylight hours), and I long ago promised a shot of the console table I custom designed using some salvaged old stone balusters from the Boston State House.  

I also have shots of the living room we were working on at the same time.  Again, I was working mostly with existing furnishings but we really changed the overall feel completely through accessories and paint.

Before:

After:

A Major Overhaul

Hello Blog....long time no see!   Apologies on that end.   I have had my hands full of all sorts of projects little and big as of late, but I'm really excited to share pictures of one of my favorites.  This project has been nearly complete for sometime now, except for a few final touches.  As you can see, this was a major overhaul. The wall to wall carpet has been replaced with handscraped wood floors.  A new window was added, there is now a vaulted ceiling, a skylight was added, wainscoting and wallpaper were removed, the trim was painted....you name it and it was done.  I dubbed the new look organic modern.  What is that you say?  I would define it as clean, simple lines and lots of natural textures - brick fireplace, rustic barn wood mantle, and oak floors with the wool shag rug.  The result: I'll let the pictures speak for themselves but I'm proud of the new look. 

Before

After

Before

After

Before

After

The piece of wall art shown above was found at a consigment shop and is actually an old door to a confessional, (my Catholic clients got a kick out of that) but I loved it for all its character!

Oliveira Living Rm

Oliveira Living Rm by MRShadrick on Polyvore.com