Thursday, August 25th, 2011
A common challenge for me is dreaming up the perfect piece (for an interior or my wardrobe), sometimes based on a sketchy memory of having seen something like it somewhere once upon a time, sometimes just completely invented. Then I have to try to find it out in the real world. I can drive myself bonkers with this search because of course now I know EXACTLY what I want and I don’t want to settle for less.
Recent case in point: I want an etagere (basically this is a bookcase with no side or back panels, often they taper towards the top) for an otherwise wasted odd corner of a room. I see the ideal version with sides that curve on each tier, and I want it brightly colored. I can draw a quick sketch to show someone, but finding an example image is much more effective. The open shelves on an etagere are great for decorative displays of stacks of books, small boxes and little decorative items.
So I scrolled through my digital image library (I don’t have time to go through my stacks and stacks of magazines and piles of hard copies of design images) and managed to find one example! Yeah!
See it in the back left corner? The open shelf on the right side is an etagere too, but I don’t want that gold leaf finish and rectangular shape.
I was soo excited to find it along with sources for the items… but wait, it’s for SIMILAR items.
Here is the Tall Curvee Shelf from House Eclectic that they recommend as a similar item. It is only available in black or white, but even more of an issue is the fact that it’s only 38″ high. Grrr.
Another option would be this Lia shelf by Oly Studio . It’s close, but doesn’t come in any bright colors. But I could make the white version work.
Here’s an example in a good height (67.75″) with a tapered shape, but no curves. I could live with this, and the antique red or black options are nice. But I want deep orange or kelly green. I want to be playful. This is a little too traditional in this shade of red for the room I have in mind. It could skew Asian influence or cottage in other settings, which is great.
Available in only black iron, this has a bit more whimsy with the top detail, but the black iron doesn’t feel right for my space.
This limited edition piece by Jonathan Adler has the fun punch of color and the mod styling is great. But the price is high for a piece that’s not supposed to be the star of the room, but the funny supporting character.
So, I’m still on the hunt. I’m sure I’ll find something that will work, but will it be the piece in my vision? Maybe not. But will anyone else really know how it differs from that vision? No. Will it still be fabulous? Absolutely.
Of course, if it was an important piece in the room that I didn’t feel like compromising on, I can simply design the piece in my head and have one of my custom furniture guys make the perfect piece for me with the curves, dimensions and color just right for my project. Sometimes that’s what it takes to get the right piece that makes the whole room come to life.
And that’s the reality of what I do. It’s the vision I have for that great piece that’s going to take the room to the next level that the client would never have come up with on their own, and the ability to track down items that will bring that vision to life.
But I’m still searching for that short sleeve wrap dress I saw in a dream the other night…. =)
Photo source: Inspiration room by Catherine Brophy for Real Simple, October 2010.
Tags: Ballard Designs, bookshelf, display, etagere, House Eclectic, interior design, Jonathan Adler, Oly, storage, twin cities
Posted in Design & Home Living Tips, Inspiration Boards | No Comments »
Friday, June 17th, 2011
Sorry for the radio silence lately, but I’ve been in the midst of moving both my home and office (since I have a home office) and the packing, moving and unpacking leaves little time for fun blog posts. I’ve been thinking of things to say to you and share, just waiting for the time to post. So here is a post that’s been formulating in my head for weeks.
Your home should create a great first impression, and a front door/entry that suits your home and your style is a great place to begin. Here are doors and entries I’m loving for their style, color and/or details.
Front door by Erin Loechner of design for mankind. I love the cohesive modern styling of the hardware and house number. The color is fabulous. And the “Hello.” frosted on the bottom of the side panel? Genius. (This has been my computer backdrop for a few weeks – which is a long time for me.)
The letter (and photos) from the editor in the May 2011 issue of Dwell magazine made me happy because I do the same thing: use my camera to document the details of a city other people wouldn’t bother to photograph. I photographed doors all around Boston and Cambridge on a visit a few years ago and turned it into a composite that I loved. Too bad the file size was so enormous the photo lab couldn’t seem to print it. But I still plan on making it work one of these days! (It turned up in the move but I haven’t found it in the boxes yet.) The result is original art that tells a story about your trip in an unexpected way. Plus look at all those great door knockers above. It’s so clear that they inject tons of personality into a small space.
Here are a few photos from a recent trip to Philly to prove my point.
Great door!
Love the mix of materials at this exterior structure on the Liberty Bell plaza.
Great woodworking details on the sides of the staircase at the Pennsylvania State House (aka. Independence Hall). Why photograph the room where they signed the Declaration of Independence when you can study the carvings on the stairs? (Though I did photograph the room because there was a great mix of Windsor chair styles.)
Pat even held up traffic so I could take this picture out the car window on our way to dinner at Pumpkin. (I’d change the wall color if I could and paint the stars over the entry is a slightly different shade to help them pop without becoming the focal point. Charcoal gray exterior and light-medium gray stars?)
Okay back to other facades I’m digging.
I love the rhythm of the facade of this house designed by Tina Manis and featured in the book “Brooklyn Modern.” Slowly move you eyes up the facade and notice how the wood boards get closer and farther apart in a different wave motion on each section. What a beautiful way to add interest using only one material.
The value of a face lift for the front of the house is clearly illustrated in this project above by interior designer Jessica Helgerson and her husband, architect Yianni Doulis, featured on Design*Sponge back in July 2009. It’s so much more inviting and open with the planter replacing the tree. The horizontal lines of the house are carried through in the windows on the new front door and the wood on the planter. The light and house numbers fit the new look.
How great is that wood slat screen created by The Brick House? Adds so much personality to an otherwise plain white home. Note the consistent style of the house numbers, light fixture and planter. Check out this post for details of her plans for the front yard to complete the look.
Do you get the gist of what I’m saying?
What inspired all this facade talk? Well, my new place has a similar mid-century vibe to some of the places above (it was built in 1953) and a front door with 3 horizontal windows. But the door has seen better days and I’m itching to paint it a bold color and repaint the cedar shakes on the exterior. I’ll have to do some photoshop renderings and get your opinions, but I’d better get back to unpacking and leave that project for another day.
Have a lovely weekend!
Tags: door, entry, front door, photographs
Posted in Design & Home Living Tips, Inspiration Boards | 1 Comment »
Saturday, May 28th, 2011
I just bought a new house, which was a bit of a crazy idea since my husband and I were both swamped with work when we stumbled across this house and we weren’t even house shopping. But it felt like it was meant to be ours, so we went for it. Of course before I could be sure it would work for us I had to visualize where EVERY piece of furniture would fit in the new space. Crazy? Do you experience the same thoughts when you move?
At least I knew I wasn’t the only crazy one in the family because my husband (who is a landscape architect) had to design the entire backyard landscape plan before we even decided to buy the house. Well, at least that helps explain how we are well matched. A pair of crazy, detail-oriented designers who excel at Excel spreadsheets.
Anyway, the point of this story is that I have been working on the design for the new place since we made an offer, and with 2 weeks until the move I’ve started honing in on specific details. The latest? Lighting for the living room.
There are sconces on two walls in the living room that throw the balance off in the room. They provide some general lighting now, but by converting them to adjustable arm sconces they could offer valuable task lighting on both sides of the room.
Here’s an example in designer Francis Costa’s home.
This Wall Sconce with Three Rotating Arms by Serge Mouille I found on 1st Dibs is the kind of piece I had in mind. However the more than $7,000 price tag is not really worth it to me, no matter how iconic a piece it is. (I’d rather buy a Womb Chair and Ottoman for half the price.)
So how can I achieve the effect of a wall mounted light fixture with adjustable lighting that can extend farther than the average bedside wall sconce at a reasonable price? Here are a few options I’ve found so far.
Here is one of my top 2 favorites so far. “1940s Architectural Boom Sconce” by Restoration Hardware is designed to allow the light to articulate in multiple directions a nice distance from the wall. At $450 it’s a steal compared to the Mouille fixture.
The No. 214 wall lamp by Bernard-Albin Gras available through Holly Hunt is another great option. It has two points of articulation on the arm plus it can be moved up and down the bar. The bar is rather long, so you would need to have the right space to let it breathe (visually), but at $485 retail it is very competitively priced compared to it’s rival the Restoration Hardware Architectural Boom Sconce. I’m sure someone can (or already has) made a hack version of this using a clip-on desk lamp and some plumbing parts.
Another option from Restoration Hardware: the Atelier Wall Sconce. Although it is only $239 and has that great caged industrial vibe that I love and has been really popular lately, I don’t think it will extend far enough to meet my functional needs in the new space. But it would be great as a wall mounted bedside lamp. I love that look, it opens up space on the bedside tables, and allows you to direct light where you need it.
Another visually interesting option is the 1940s Train Station Swing-Arm Sconce from Restoration Hardware. I like the lines and how it highlights the vintage style bulb. But with the extinction of incandescent bulbs impending, I can’t in good conscience purchase this fixture. Plus it only swings left and right, and that certainly doesn’t meet my needs for this project. ($160)
I know there are other good options out there, I just haven’t thrown myself into the search full force. But I’m keeping my eyes peeled as I’m searching for lighting solutions for my clients because you never know when you are going to stumble across the perfect piece.
Have you spotted any great lighting solutions lately? If lighting is a challenge you are dealing with, don’t be afraid to ask Fox Interiors for help!
Tags: interior design, lighting, living room, sconce, swing-arm, task lighting
Posted in Design & Home Living Tips | 4 Comments »
Wednesday, May 11th, 2011
I discovered the online shop Pot + Pantry via another blog today and had to share (thank you City Sage!)
There are so many products in this shop that we had in my parents’ kitchen growing up, and frankly most of them are still in their kitchen. That is a testiment to their quality craftsmanship, which we need to remember to value in our disposal society.
What are my favorite flashback pieces?
My mom used to make rosette cookies at Christmas every year (before she decided they were too tempermental) and this Vintage Nordic Ware Rosette Iron for only $16 would allow me to continue that tradition with my kid(s). Or I could just borrow my mom’s. But if your mom doesn’t have a set to share you could buy this and start your own tradition!
My mom picked up a saucepan similar to this Descoware Saucepan in Berlin when they lived there in their 20s. She got it for a steal because it was meant for a left handed cook. 40 years later it’s STILL difficult for us right handed cooks to use. Not sure if that’s worth 40 years of frustration, but it still performs very well.
Thanks to this shop I now have a brand name to go with this iconic mixing bowl. You might recognize this vintage Texas Ware Confetti bowl from Rachel Ray’s 30 Minute Meals show on the Food Network. Unfortunately the bowl we had was used for a very different (but necessary) function. There was a lot of throwing up in my childhood, and it’s helpful to have a designated bowl for said function if a person wants to be able to lie down with an emergency backup system. This bowl was our designated emergency backup system. Sorry if that’s too much information or if I ruined your memories of your favorite pancake mixing bowl. Every family has it’s stories, and that’s mine.
So go and check out Pot + Pantry and find some beautiful new or vintage pieces to incorporate into your own kitchen and start some new stories of your own.
Photo credits: all photos courtesy of Pot + Pantry.
Tags: Kitchen, kitchen tools, Pot + Pantry
Posted in Design & Home Living Tips | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 4th, 2011
Last week I featured the Octavia Headboard by Serena & Lily in a girl’s bedroom setting. This week I want to highlight how that headboard could be used in an adult or teenager’s bedroom. Depending on what style of bedding you select. a room can exude a playful personality or subtle sophistication. It’s all about the mix and match.
First option: The classic Octavia headboard in Navy Linen with nickel nailhead trim is given a fresh, modern twist with graphic prints. Dwell Studio’s Labyrinth duvet set in Dove reminds me of a snake charmer, and their Masala sheets in Citrine provides a pop of unexpected color against the neutrals.
Option2: Here I played the greek key inspired detail in the nailhead design against a loosely drawn Greek Key duvet set by West Elm. I was feeling playful when I chose the Red Star sheets from Serena & Lily to complete the look. It feels a little like the stars & stripes with all that navy, white and red. Or maybe it’s conjures up a bedroom that feels like you are in Greece and looking at the stars in the expansive sky over the ocean. What feeling does it inspire in you?
Option 3: This is a softer look than the 2 previous combinations, but the stripes keep it graphic. The Pewter Linen Octavia headboard is not as bold as the navy version. I wanted to use Dwell Studio’s Draper Stripe sheet set in Poppy with a duvet cover that might be a bit of an unexpected pairing. So I first chose the Parachute Duvet set in White from West Elm (upper right corner). The ruching of this airy cotton creates a lot of volume and a relaxed feminine effect. White sheets with a colored edge or subtle dots would be a more obvious pairing. But I like how the poppy stripes anchors the floaty duvet and makes it more guy friendly.
I couldn’t resist including another version with West Elm’s Stripe Duvet set in white and feather gray. The width of the stripes on the sheets in narrower, which allows the two stripes to work together. Can you tell I like a pop of color against neutrals?
Option 4: The headboard remains in Pewter Linen but a new combination of bedding provides a very different look. Here Dwell Studio’s Peacock Duvet set in Dove has a more traditional styling than previous selections, but the color palette and scale keep it modern in sensibility. Pairing this duvet with Dwell Studio’s Gate sheet set in Azure has been a favorite combination of mine since they introduced it. But I wanted an alternate option for sheets since it is always nice to be able to tweak the look of your bedding. I selected the Dot Print sheet set in Mushroom from West Elm to pull out the soft browns in the duvet cover. Without seeing the two sets in person I’m not positive the colors are right together, but this is illustrative people, so don’t kill me if they don’t work, ok?!
Option 5: Finally, switching up the Octavia headboard to Antique Gold Burlap with Brass nailheads creates a more classic traditional style. The Bativa Duvet set in Citrine by Dwell Studio is a modern update of the Ikat pattern that is so popular in interior design right now. The soft color palette keeps the room from feeling too formal. The coordinating Masala sheet set in Citrine blends in here rather than serving as a pop of color as it did in Option 1.
I’m sure I could create an alternate option for the final headboard color option… but I ran out of energy. So why don’t you create one and show it to me?
So which option would you choose? Or do you prefer something completely different? Bedding shouldn’t be intimidating to select and it should definitely be washable. Beyond that, anything goes. A duvet cover is often the largest expanse of a pattern in your home. It can be switched seasonally or whenever the mood strikes, unlike a the upholstery on a sofa or chair (though slipcovers can serve the same purpose). So don’t be afraid to go for something bid, bold, unexpected or just a little out of your comfort zone.
Photo sources: All product shots from each company’s website. See links for more information about each product.
Tags: bedding, bedroom, duvet cover, Dwell Studio, Octavia headboard, Serena & Lily, sheets, West Elm
Posted in Design & Home Living Tips, Inspiration Boards | No Comments »
Friday, April 22nd, 2011
Picking paint colors has got to be one of the most challenging design decisions most people face. Even though a gallon of paint ranges from $20 to $75 for the premium collections, it seems harder for people to take a chance with paint than with a piece of furniture that costs many times more.
So how can you get more confident in your paint selections? Listening to advice from professionals who deal with this on a daily basis is always a great place to start. So how do you access advice from these professionals? Start with a great resource like “House Beautiful 500+ Favorite Paint Colors” or “House Beautiful Colors for Your Home: 300 Designer Favorites.”
Culled from the pages of House Beautiful magazine, these reference books complie the best paint color recommendations from interior designers. Rather than just show you the best browns or blues, each designer explains the color and what undertones there are in it or how it makes a room feel. There are also selections based on type of room (bedroom vs. entrance) and sun exposure (north facing vs. south facing). These are the kinds of details that help you understand how color influences the feeling of a space and therefore why certain colors work best.
As you can see from the table of contents above, they have pulled together a lot of color information to get the wheels turning in your head. Not sure what your color personality is? Then take the quiz! Prefer neutrals? They have it covered.
I love how they even feature an example of one of the colors as used in a real space by a designer. Since the color chips they show are not always true to the paint chips you will find on the paint deck when you look at them in person, it is helpful to see the colors in use.
I think of these colors as a great starting place and then I work with the paint decks from the different manufacturers to find similar colors (if the color rendering in the magazine is too different from the paint chip). I believe in ordering larger sheets of paint chips (Sherwin Williams and Benjamin Moore provide samples to designers of all their colors, up to 8″x10″ in size) and taping them up on the wall for days at a time so I can see how the colors I’m debating between will look at different times of day in different lighting conditions. Trust me, this makes a big difference! That hint of pink undertone in that creamy ivory at night might turn ballerina pink in the daylight.
Small sample pots of paint are a wonderful evolution in the paint industry that I believe help take some of the panic out of paint color selections. Paint swatches (2′ by 3′ is a good size) of each color on the wall and see what they look like throughout the day and night.
And when you finally commit to a paint color, don’t skimp out on the painters tape, roller, or paint base. Use quality materials and it will result in a quality finished product. After you’ve invested all this time and energy in picking a paint color and then painting (or hiring someone else to paint) it would be a shame to have a less than fabulous finished product!
I just bought a new house so you know I’m going crazy picking paint colors and plotting new color schemes and floor plans. Embrace the fun of it, the ability to transform the feeling of a room in a weekend, and to have a fresh new space for very little cash. I hope this has taken some of the fear out of painting for you. Need additional tips? Just ask!
Tags: 500 Favorite Paint Colors, Benjamin Moore, House Beautiful, interior design, painting, Sherwin Williams, tips, twin cities
Posted in Color Pulse, Design & Home Living Tips, Reading List | No Comments »
Colleen Fox Slack | email: colleen@colleenfoxinteriors.com | phone: 612.868.0348
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