Friday, March 29, 2013

Floral Friday just in time for Easter

I love spring for so many reasons, but flowers have got to be the # 1 reason. Whether you go to your local florist or pick up simple classics from the grocery store there are so many options to brighten up your day.

Sophisticated


Preppy and playful


Southern Style



And why not start your day with floral happiness

Have a wonderful weekend!

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Choosing the right paint color to create your own model home



Think buying a new house with all those bone colored builder walls is easy and fun, get to Benjamin Moore and paint away... Think AGAIN and again, and maybe again!

There are so many designers that say start from the ground and work your way up. Or find a fabric for your drapes and lets pick a color from there. While both of those options work in their own way it's important to know that the gorgeous model home you walked through before you signed on the dotted line was well thought out and planned by usually a whole team of designers.

One key point that makes those houses look good, is that the same color scheme pretty much flows through out the entire house, usually with the exemption of kids rooms.  So whether or not you have collections of art or a hand knotted rug from India that you absolutely love and are bringing into your new home. look in your closet and see what colors you tend to wear.


Usually we all tend to wear the same tones in our clothes with a few accents here and there. We have shoes that will mix and match with several outfits and very few coats.

  • Think of your walls as the coats. 
  • Drapes as shoes 
  • Accessories as all those fun, bold, necklaces and earrings in your closet
So before you rush out and paint one room or one wall. Think about a long term plan for the whole house take a week or two to think it all out, then go for it!





Sunday, March 24, 2013

Working on a project with your spouse this weekend?

After just Having a "heated" debate about how we should redo our family room fireplace and seating arrangements, I open my email and low and behold here's a great article from one of my favorite sites Houzz! Ahh just in time.



No matter how long two people have been together or how much they've endured in their relationship, few things compare to the challenges they face when it comes to redesigning the house. You may think you know your partner inside and out, but strange behavior may occur when you're making seemingly innocuous design decisions. Know this. It is totally normal but can be mildly alarming. To put it bluntly, if you aren’t the only inhabitant of your house, yours isn’t the only design style that counts.

I'd say that 99 percent of the time, redesign happens because one half of a couple decides they’re sick and tired of the way things look or feel. Usually it’s the nester in the pair who grabs the reins. A take-charge attitude can be a great thing, but keep in mind that whether you’re redoing one room or several, every member of your household should feel represented.

It can be nearly impossible to put aside personal prejudices when faced with your mate’s 1980s dorm room sofa. To you it’s an uncomfortable, ugly piece of garbage. To your partner it’s a reminder of being young and single and not caring what anyone else thought about the sofa.

Blending styles, tastes and needs can be tricky. This room shows how beautiful a mixed-style space can be. Adding a little bit of feminine with a dash of masculine creates an elegant and inviting room everyone can feel comfortable in.
Add to ideabook by A.S.D. Interiors - Shirry Dolgin, Owner
When Likes and Dislikes Don’t Match

My husband has amazing style. He's an art director and a graphic designer, and everything from the way he dresses to the music he listens to is cool. When we got married, I knew I’d need to combine my eclectic, vignette-building style with his clean and modern aesthetic. Moving into our first apartment, we didn’t have anything to sit on, so I bought two large chairs and called it a living room. My husband didn’t love the chairs, but that was OK, because neither did I. I knew they were temporary, so I wasn’t insulted.

As time went on I put up art, bought furnishings and moved things around — a lot. I loved the way our space looked, and I thought he did too — until the time we had an argument about the vintage coffee table. I loved that it was black and chippy and looked a little Gothic. He thought it looked like garbage. Ouch.

He pointed out that there was relatively little in the space that actually represented him. I was crushed, but I returned the table. I also took down several large pieces of art and replaced them with stunning works he had squirreled away in his design studio. I started asking opinions before buying, and when he questioned our “need” for something, I knew that meant he really didn’t want to see it in the house.

The room shown here is an excellent example of combined styles. It’s industrial, modern, playful, clean and eclectic. It’s also welcoming enough for the owners to host an intimate dinner party or a raucous Super Bowl Sunday. It feels like a combination of likes working together to create a whole home.
Add to ideabook by Jordan Iverson Signature Homes
Designing can be a very emotional process. You’re changing your day-to-day environment, making countless decisions, solving problems and spending money. There are few things more volatile than expenses in a relationship, and because decor is not always perceived as a necessity (it is for me!), setting expectations ahead of time is critical. Come to an agreement about the basic things such as color, texture and types of furnishings, and go from there.

This room has a fantastic mix of cool tones with a blue foundation. Maybe the pops of red represent one partner's favorite color, while the paneled wall was a joint decision. It's a true mix-and-match style that actually works really well.

Figuring Out What Works

Decide ahead of time what your objective is. Be it a quick refresh or a complete remodel, make sure that you and your partner are on the same page about the project's scope and cost. Unexpected meltdowns may happen during the design process, but you can minimize those by opening the lines of communication:
Decide what stays and what goes. If you’re asking your partner to get rid of things, be prepared to do the same. There has to be a clear give-and-take so no one feels that they’re being pushed out of the home or overrun with the other person's design decisions.
Make a list of things that require both partners’ approval, like a new television or dining room table. Larger purchases are usually a good rule of thumb. If it costs over X amount, both people need to agree.

Decide which items you’re both willing to concede on. If you truly don’t care about electronics but are obsessed with what they sit on, divide and conquer. Not everyone has the same love of throw pillows and picture frames, so figure out which things you can each contribute.
Learn to compromise. In a relationship you both bring unique things to the party. You might not love your partner’s Van Halen record collection, and he or she might hate Shabby Chic. Find a middle ground that you both can live with such as putting the records on display in the family room while working in a few Shabby Chic pieces in the guest bath.

Don’t confuse relationship issues with design dilemmas. A lot of pent-up aggression gets released during times of great change. Painting the living room walls shouldn’t degenerate into an argument over whose mother is worse. Don’t fall prey to stress and exhaustion. Get the rest you need and agree to table deeper discussions until after the redo.
Make decisions with love and respect. As much as you want to love your space when you walk through the door, your partner should love it just as much. Create an environment that reflects who you are as a couple and the life that you want to live. By keeping the lines of communication open, setting expectations and being willing to compromise, you can design a space that truly represents everyone who lives there.

More: The Art of Compromise




Saturday, March 23, 2013

Outdoor color schemes and styles

Replacing outdoor cushions can be a costly decision, especially if you don't want to buy new ones every year. Picking the right color (if your like me and change with the wind all the time) is a whole other ball game!


Last summer we decided to do with the Ballard Designs bright green sunbrella. We purchased. Great patio dining set and side chairs in a brown iron over 7 years ago that still look amazing! But the worn out brown striped cushions needed to GO! Ballard designs made all the green and white look so appealing that 326$ later...I still am on the fence! No turning back now, waaay past my return time, so now I'm picking pillows and a rug.

The Preppy Lime Green Look


                                                                    The Modern Lime Green Look

                                                                The Cottage Look with touches of green





Modern from Etsy




Traditional Black and White Ballard Designs


Transitional from Amazon

What outdoor color and style options are you going for this year? Do you change with the wind or are you pretty set in your ways? Never hurts to mix it up a bit from year to year. After all, there are outdoor fabrics from the super cheap to the outrageous, Sunbrella being in between. But all of those need to be replaced every few years!





Monday, March 18, 2013

A dog and design




After many years of convincing, and the pressure of my entire family, we adopted a puppy. I found him on an adoption site 4 treturous  not so long months ago. His beautiful blue eyes and short coat, his wet nose snuggling on my neck when we went to "see" him, sealed the deal. So a few weeks befor Christmas, we got a dog. Atticus, he was already named as part of the mocking bird book characters and we liked it!


Here he is a few weeks ago with my daughter Sophia. (Notice our son Jordan who the dog was mainly for is not any where around!)

Which brings me to my next series of photos. I had a nice coffee in the morning sitting area we used instead of a breakfast area, with these fabulous chairs from Z gallerie and bench from Ballard Designs.  Notice it looks fairly peaceful, until now...
Before...

Notice the lovely gate and old rug

And the destroyed chair.....

Not only has that roomed changed but pretty much the whole first floor! Thank goodness for the trusty old brown leather sofa, for once I'm not ready to throw it out. All pillows removed of course. Aluminum foil so he doesn't think he's king of the hill and lays on the couch. And of course a missing Pottery Barn Rug, due to frequent marking.....
Just lovely





Love to know anyone if else has shared in this decorating misery....

Saturday, March 16, 2013

National Cherry Blossom Festival

Even if you don't live in DC you can appreciate the beauty of the Cherry Blossom trees. It's a spectacular event that even allergy sufferers flock to see every year! The dates this year are expected to be March 20- April 14, the annual parade will be on April 13.


Check out some of these ideas to help bring a little bit of these beautiful branches into your home.





Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Ikat, chevron, trellis, damask...how to pull it together without looking like a mess!

I just came across from Susan West Cannon a great pictorial that shows right way to mix is all those patterns you like with out it looking, well ...like you ordered one if every pattern and couldn't return a thing!

 Working with patterns can be tricky and easy to get wrong! But when you hit that perfect cord of patterns, you can really knock it out of the park. 

 Although the chartreuse ikat print is pretty, over using it in this bedroom space was not a great design choice. I’ve talked about using appropriate patterns and balancing all your prints, so I’d thought I’d break down both a HIT and a MISS!
Balancing Act, Patterns
                                                                    Sources: Pinterest

The same principles apply to any space: Choose patterns in different styles and sizes while staying in the same color palette.
These ideas can be easily translated to bedroom fabrics, bathroom decor, and window treatments. If you are looking for inspiration on how to design, check out my blog category: Design Inspiration.
You’ll especially love this series on Claiming Your Inspirational Style- perfect for DIY’ing a space that looks like an interior designer did it.
Perfect Pattern Balance
                                                                  Sources: Pinterest
This space utilizes 4 different patters, ranging from curvy patterns to geometric patterns. I love how the stripes and geometric patterns are the perfect compliment to the curvy table and lamp. I love balancing both feminine and masculine prints. Without those patterns, the banding on the bedding and the end table wouldn’t mesh as well. Using a navy to Monaco blue palette creates a more “designed” feel. Using these patterns within a deeper palette creates a less matchy-matchy look and more coordinated space.
I’d love to hear about your pattern HITS and MISSES! If I can be a sounding board for your projects, please comment below.

 

Monday, March 11, 2013

Spring into Tar'ge for fabulous beauties for the home

Everyone loves Tar'ge (Target for those that have not quite embraced the awesome things you can find there). So next time you're in for some toilet paper and $1 section goodie bag fillers, check out some great new home accessories they just launched. With the styles anyone can afford to redecorate with today's trendiest styles and not feel guilty for throwing out that +Nate Berkus tortoise shell 2 years from now!

 






Sunday, March 10, 2013

Love it or Fear it, rooms with color to inspire...


65' in Washington DC has me ready for the beach! Ok, so it's a little early, but I have already put away all the gloves and hats and brought out a few things to spring up the house. Although I am tied down to the infamous "everyone has one with kids my age and now our crazy dog Atticus " brown leather couch.... I am working out a new color color scheme for the whole main level. Now when I say color  I mean my new neutral Greige and a few pops of color!


These rooms help those that love color and those that (uh um) fear it, get excited about spring and all it's wonderful colors.  You don't need to change much just a little to mix in your own style!


Color scheme
Wow ..how to dress up a blah Pottery Barn sofa.
| marissa waddell interiors










black + white pop of pink