Outdoor Furniture For Thought

I've been getting inundated with catalogues lately, and they are all heavily marketing outdoor living....something we truly look forward to in New England. I thought I'd point out a few pieces that caught my eye.

First, the Rutland barstool from Ballard Designs could be great used as much for an outdoor space as indoors. They are rust-resistant so no need to worry about leaving out in the elements. To make it extra inviting, I would love to see a colorful cushion custom made for the seat to complete the look.

This next bench at Grandin Road is a classic based on the design of renowned architect Edwin Lutyens. However, the price is much less than what I typically see for this style bench at $249! It would be great in a garden corner, or placed on a front porch of a classic Colonial house. I love the pop of red, although it comes in a pretty peacock blue finish as well. I

Something a little out of the ordinary. Susie Coelho has a new line out for Grandin Road. This whimsical little "Rose" bench would be equally fitting for a beach cottage or a modern ranch style home.

Colorscope

I was at one of my favorite stationery stores today, Papersource, and came across this brochure for their stock card sizes (not shown). However, they brilliantly added a "colorscope" to the front of the brochure, which definitely caught my attention. They have paired colors with certain personality traits. Take a look and find out what your favorite colors say about you!

Inspired Nest: Liam's Offi-like table

Inspired Nest: Liam's Offi-like table

Client Designs

Here is a room from one of my clients who really just wants to "finish out" the room. She is using existing upholstery items (a red loveseat and sofa), area rug, accent tables, as well as some of her own antiques which include an exotic wood cutout trunk and piano (that plays itself!). However, what is left to do is accessorizing to complete the space and taking it to the next level with some quality textiles. The inspiration point is actually in the framed etchings of the universities they attended. They both grew up and attended schools in Rhode Island, and the husband wanted to incorporate them with some new etchings of the graduate schools they attended. Without getting overly themey, my goal is to create a room that relays geographical location of where they attended schools and live: Rhode Island otherwise known as the Ocean State. Here my plan of attack:

This is a formal living room and a place they will entertain guests, so it needs to feel formal and traditional. I would like finish out the seating area with a traditional Louis XVI armchair upholstered in a fresh graphic pattern for modern appeal. This would also help break up the all the red in the upholstery. I would like the keep the accent tables as is, but add a full length tablecloth to one side table in a vivid Celerie Kemble floral: Hot House Spark. Next, the existing rug is great but slightly small for the room. I will be layering a 9x12' natural seagrass rug with black border in order to add some natural texture to the room and create a cozier feel. (Design tip: if using alot of red in the room, using textured neutrals helps to balance out the vivid color without becoming overwhelming.) The room is also quite dark as is. To get more natural light into the room, I proposed new linen drapes in a caramel color installed beyond the window frames and all the way up to the ceiling as well as adding a red coral chandelier, and a round mirror hung the opposite wall of the windows. For added symmetry and color, two peacock blue gourd lamps will flank the larger sofa and this will help frame out the artwork we will be adding. Finally, for some finishing touches, we will add a mixture of throw pillows in camel velvet and the Celerie Kemble print as well as an oversized clamshell for the coffee table. Stay tuned for after photos!

Healey Formal Living by MRShadrick on Polyvore.com

Liam's Offi-like table

Finally, I'm happy to post these after pictures of Liam's new modern craft/dining table, and I've included the before picture again since its been a few weeks. I will say he eats at it more than he crafts at it, but I couldn't be happier with the FINAL product. I actually went through a process of sanding it down three different times and applying the chalkboard paint after each time to get a nice smooth finish. I have found some Ikea childrens chairs that I think will work well with the table, and plan to purchase them soon. See them here.

Inspiration:

Before/After

Cozy-ing up a large bedroom

I have a client who recently hired me to help finish out her townhome. We started moving furniture around in her master bedroom and the bed ended up fitting best on a large, and I mean large, empty wall near the open staircase leading downstairs. She really likes the new floorplan we implemented, however, she doesn't like the open feeling of the bed right next to stairwell.

My solution: add privacy and/or storage, which they desperately needed despite the room size, all the while keeping the bed cocooned between some built-ins. Here are some images that show different ways of adding storage and a cozy atmosphere all at the same time.

Image courtesy of Coastal Living

Image courtesy of Domino Magazine, designer Celerie Kemble

image courtesy of Domino Magazine, designer Adrienne Neff

Image courtesy of Domino Magazine

Master Bedroom Retreat

First, apologies on the delayed "after" pic of Liams new table. As it happens I used leftover chalkboard paint that wasn't sealed well after I last used it....about 7 months ago. The result? The paint went on a bit goopy and streaky. I need to sand it down to get rid of the streaks and then I will apply another coat of BRAND NEW paint. Liam has been loving his new table at any rate. Learned my lesson on that one.....

Now on to some eye candy you can actually look at! I recently finished doing a master bedroom in Rhode Island. The busy family of 5 moved into their "forever" home last year and have been patiently waiting to get settled into their space before deciding to undertake some major redecorating throughout the house. First on their list was their master bedroom. The wife loves a contemporary feel with classic lines, and luckily the husband was happy with whatever she liked! One of her favorite colors is blue, which ended up being the starting point of a relaxed and luxurious master bedroom retreat.

Take a look at the lackluster before:

Ho hum walls, hand me downs not worth keeping (words of my client) and some bedding that has been well loved.

The Design Board:

Now for the after:

We completely revamped the room with new furniture from Potterybarn, Crate & Barrel, Boston Interiors, and Art.com. The only special orders were the two euro pillows with handprinted fabric from Galbraith & Paul (well worth the wait!!!) and the custom king size Filmore headboard from Boston Interiors. Even the silk duponi drapes were ordered stock from Potterybarn and then hemmed to the correct length and hung on drapery rings for a custom look.