Long Distance Design: From Chicago to Pennsylvania

A recent client of mine moved outside of Philadelphia for her residency.  She has a great apartment with a lot of living space and needed help selecting most furniture pieces and accessories.  The living room opens up into the dining room/kitchen, which also needed to be designed.  The main living area needed to serve two functions, one for relaxing & entertaining and the other for a work/desk area, which she already had.

I love her description of style, which is modern but comfortable - definitely something that we can do!  She also likes deep plum colors with bright accents.  We achieved this by bringing in large furniture pieces with clean lines and introducing color through smaller furniture pieces and accessories.

I wanted the small dining area to feel like its own space, but we had to bring over similar color to keep the space flowing from one room to the next.  Space for dining is short, so adding in a double sided drop leaf table will allow for extra room for everyday needs & a larger table when entertaining.

If you have any questions about any of the items, just let me know.  If you're interested in Long Distance Design, click here to find out more information!

Bright, Bold Clock

The latest issue of CS Interiors (the same mag that featured Bien Living Design at the beginning of the year!) is all about color.  BOLD color.

This clock on this page really jumped out at me - it's bright, colorful & playful.  

At $50, it's totally affordable.  

OR, you could always DIY for around $5 it using free paint strips and a clock kit - if you like a project, try it out!

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I am STILL toying with the idea of this DIY clock that I blogged about months ago.  I'll keep you posted if I ever get my booty in gear...

CS Interiors is available for free as a digital e-zine - I highly recommend adding it to your monthly shelter mag reads!

Decor from an Unexpected Source!

Here are a few things that I've been coveting lately...and I think you'll be surprised to learn where they come from!

I still love geometric & trellis/lattice prints and these rugs are gorgeous.

 

Our living room curtain saga is still that - an ongoing saga - and these have been added to the list of contenders.

Damask is timeless and this graphic black and white is gorgeous!

These next couple of things would be great in the summer or at a beach house.

   

I have always loved capiz shells as accents...and you may or may not find these exact lampshades in my living room!

 So, do you have an idea where you can buy all of these gorgeous home items?

Pottery Barn TEEN!  Yep, these and many more great items can be found at PBTeen that can be used for any room in the home, not just the kids.  Happy Shopping!

Bye Bye Marimekko Wallpaper!

How sad!  I just read on the Always Mod Blog that Marimekko wallpaper has been discontinued!  I guess there is a pretty limited niche market for (sometimes) over-the-top & bright, always bold wallpaper, but I was still surprised to hear this. 

I guess the good news is that it is on sale while supplies last, so I say snap up a roll or two of the iconic Unikko pattern and paper the walls of a small bathroom!  I love large, graphic prints in small spaces.  I also studied the designer, Maija Isola, in college and am particularly drawn to her designs.

Check out more patterns here.  & buy today before it's gone!

How to Transform Books with Japanese Paper Tape

I've had this idea for quite some time now & I am so ridiculously happy with the results that I have to share them with you!

I have books.  Lots and lots (did I mention lots?) of books.  I also like to keep said books and lend them out to friends by the stack.  I also like to have my books out, but unless they are hardbacks, books can be ugly.  

I know this is an extreme example of ugly books, but it's what I am working with!

For example, as much as I love Simone de Beauvoir & Sylvia Plath, I also love me a James Patterson book des temps en temp.  I don't love the graphic, sometimes garish spine.  Usually, these books are stacked up behind everything else.  Here's why.

Not pretty.  As I mentioned before, I needed to spruce up our house for a certain photoshoot.  Even if this wasn't in the shot, I still wanted our place to look its best.  This is where Japanese Paper Tape comes in.

I purchased it at West Elm, of all places!

I chose a book and a roll of tape to get started.  Run a piece of tape along one edge of the spine, making sure to wrap part of it on the front/back so that everything that may be shown is covered.  Then, trim it along the top and bottom of the book.

Since this kind of paper tape is pretty thin, you'll have to determine how much coverage you want.  I like the sheerness of it, as it still allows me to see the title of the book.  I ended up using 3 lengths of tape for this one.  You could always use more & write the title with a metallic paint marker.

I stuck with blues and greens to coordinate with the rest of our living room and office.

So. ridiculously. easy.  I've been on a DIY crafty kick lately, as you can probably guess from the number of these types of posts (& I've got another one).  Again, this was EASY.  Perhaps because I had a little helper?

Okay, now it's time to see a side by side before and after of this project.  Such a difference!

As I mentioned yesterday, I tend to not follow through with my grandiose crafting aspirations.  However, I wanted to get our home in tip-top shape & on a budget.  So, I played around with a few different setups for the top shelf until I found something I liked. 

When I see these pictures, I can't believe I let the hideousness go on for so long.  Yikes!  I cleaned off the other shelves and pulled out books, picture frames, photo books and other small items that coordinate (& contrast!) with the space. 

Now, if only I could muster up the crafty/organizational energy to tackle this beast...hmm, maybe tomorrow :) 

I previously blogged about my favorite Japanese Paper Tape projects that I found across the web (you can find that post here!).  I am excited to add to the list!