A bit of a Blog hiatus

So I haven't written in a long while... Sorry about that.  We were planning on moving back to the good ole USofA, but we came back a little sooner.  I arrived back here June 30.  The blog will continue to be on hiatus until I get my life sorted out.  Mainly, I must find a job now.  If anyone knows of anyone that needs anyone, please let me know!!

In the meantime now that we are back in my parents' basement, I have been assisting them in a little redecoration!  Perhaps I can blog about that?  Well I guess I should go outside to take pictures of the walkway renovation.  

Thank you all for your understanding and hopefully a little job matchmaking?!  

Trend Spotting

**I wrote this article many weeks ago in May, but noticed a typo which updated it June 16.**


The High Point Furniture Market happened in April.  Unfortunately, I have never been to the enormousness that is the furniture mart in High Point.  One day...

I was lucky enough to go to AtlantaMart one July with a previous job.  That was the hardest I have had to work!  Ten hours of intense shopping everyday for a WEEK with so much thinking involved is not my idle shopping experience.  

But alas, as a retailer one must look to the Spring Mart to find your latest trends that your store "Must Have."  I do not follow trends and I would never tell someone to buy something because it is "in" for this year.  Instead, fill your home with things you love that make you happy.  If chevron stripes and things with birds on it make you happy, then buy it!

Basically what is the trend for Spring/Summer 2012 is EVERYTHING!  From the Belgian look with gray washed and linen; to super modern furniture; to things with birds on it; to tufted pieces; to PURPLE; to dragons; to elephants; to blue; to hand crafted; etc. etc.  To sum it up, everything in your current living room is on trend to what the market shows this Spring.  That's why I think trends are so silly!

You can read more and see more about the High Point 2012 trends here.  

The colors Blue, Purple, and the Pantone Color of the Year Tangerine are all colors from Spring/Summer 2012.  

Love the rich cobalt blue of this lamp. 

Perfect lumbar pillow for an occasional chair. 

Any shade of blue is on cue.  You will see later that handcrafted items are trendy too.  Always try to hit two birds with one stone right?

Really like this masculine leather chair.  I'm not a fan of orange, but I could do this one.

Now we know which colors to decorate with, how about furniture styles?

Funny you should ask because according to High Point, you can decorate with Belgian inspirations, Moroccan inspiration, Industrial, 50's modern, French neoclassical, Vintage, Classical, or Chinoiserie.  See what I mean you probably already have most of these items in your home?

Here's a taste of what's new from all these genres:

Belgian:

Such a pretty bed from Stanley. 

 Moroccan:

I like a pop of Moroccan in a room.  

 Industrial:

Industrial is sometimes too cold for me, but these barstools are nice. 

Modern:

Mad Men is still influencing our decor.  This tv console has a lot of interest. 

I can picture this chandelier going over a dining table quite nicely. 

French Neoclassical:

It would take the right client to throw in some French Neoclassical.  Canning, greek key, and inlayed wood I can do, a lion's head on the arms is a bit more of a struggle!

Vintage:

This is such a cute little chest. 

Classical:

Introducing Phoebe Howard for Sherrill Furniture. 

A different fabric on this chair and it could work in any room. 

Chinoiserie:

Next layer on some of their styles for accessories:

Chevron/Ric-Rac:

Trunks:

Natural elements/Grasscloth:

(Introducing HGTV furniture line.) You know this is a must for any room.  Glad to see it is still a trend!

Sea Life:

Birds:

Birds have been the big trend for the last several years.  At least this chair combines both Chinoiserie and birds!  Pretty colors too.

Men's Wear Inspired:

Hand crafted:

With the popularity of Etsy, it's no wonder that retailers want to jump on the handmade bandwagon. 

Elephants:

Nesting pieces:

Nesting tables are great to visually take up more space, provide interest, and have an extra table hidden away.  This is a nesting console with ottomans plus wicker!

It's always fun to see what is new out there.  There are several trends that I didn't cover in the post so check more out here.  Some trends I think I'll use more of are the storage trunks and nesting pieces (there were even some nesting bookcases!)  I would like to use more hand crafted pieces, but those can get expensive real fast.  I'm not a big mod girl so maybe I should try stepping outside of my comfort zone and throw a piece or two into my designs.  

Did you see any new looks from the Spring/Summer 2012 catalog that inspired you?

 All images are sourced from High Point Market. 

Master Bedroom

My Friday was spent installing the drapes for my lovely clients.  We had to install sheers and drapes in two bedrooms, with the master bedroom getting a valance as well.  You all know I love curtains by now.   Hopefully you will enjoy the space.


The clients are very happy with how the room turned out.  Happy clients make happy designers!  Their bedroom is now a calming and serene space, because nothing can make you more angry and stressed than when you live on the beach and have this view! 

The view from the Master bedroom.  Ignore the ominous looking rain cloud (it only rained a few minutes), it's usually picturesque and sunny!

While I am showing you their view, I might as well show you the new cushions for the outdoor furniture.  We are waiting on two lounge chairs.  They will be solid blue with lumbar pillows in the polka dot.

Two sofas have this pretty cobalt blue coral pattern.  Now that the cushions are there, we need to have pillows made in the yellow polka dot to tie in with the chairs.

They have quite a few of these swivel chairs in the happy yellow and blue polka dot fabric.

Now back to the bedroom:

Sorry this image is so dark, I lightened it the best I could before it went grainy.  Paint Benjamin Moore Beach Glass.

This pretty little chair has an ottoman that goes with it.  Still waiting on a pretty reproduction side table to go beside it.  On top of the table, will be a small brass candlestick lamp.

The bedskirt that you saw in this post is being altered, but you could easily have no bedskirt with the four poster bed. 

You can see their beautiful view out the window with the blue cushions on the sofa, but you can't see the drapes very well!  The sheers have a small gold pinstripe to add a little something something.  The panels on the side are stationary.  The window treatment material is the same stripe that is on the bedskirt.

Side note about the install: the valance is 160" long and we had to go up to the sixth floor!  The stairwell was too tight for it, obviously too large for the elevator. What did the installers do?  It was hoisted up to the condo... so glad I did not witness this!!  It made it safely up without a spot of dirt on it, incase you were wondering.  It's little things like this that you sometimes forget about when picking out fabrics!

Originally in the room, they were going to have an art wall across from the bed, but now the clients are wanting their tv back.  Next up is to find an appropriate credenza/console/chest, etc. that could work in the space.  

The clients are also going to have crown molding installed to make the room look more finished.  Because this room is so tall, we will go with a much bigger size molding than if they had 8' ceilings.  

Tip of the day: Crown molding is one item that many people don't think they need, but it does wonders.  However, when you do install it, people won't remember that you never had it.   Splurge and have it installed in your space and you will notice the difference.  

This concludes the tour of my clients' master bedroom.  I unfortunately won't be here to see the missing pieces for the space.  Hopefully they will send me pictures when they receive them!

Sneak peek

Today was install day for my master bedroom project.  It's not 100% completed yet, drapes still have to be hung, and a few pieces of furniture are on back order but here's a sneak peek of the room.

The client is very much into antiques and period pieces.  The room was designed around this new four poster bed that the client's first fell in love with.  Everything featured in this image is new.

Up close of new bedding and headboard.  Love both of the fabrics.

Not sure why I chose to take this picture at this angle!  I will take a new one pronto.  This shows the clients' existing chair covered in new fabric.

When I go back to hang the drapes, I will take more pictures. That way you can see the whole room.  It's a bit difficult to take pictures in there due to all the back lighting from the wall of windows that you can see behind this chair. 

I also made new cushions for their current outdoor furniture and they look so good!  I chose a cobalt blue pattern for the sofa, and yellow polka dot for the chairs.  I will take pictures of those when I go back because they look really happy with the white wicker.

I will also take a picture of their amazing view of Seven Mile Beach!  So beautiful!

Completed Renovation

My goodness... I can't believe it is already June 8.  Time is flying by, probably because I've been running around like a crazy lady.  I have been working on ten different things at a time, waiting for quotes from ten different people.  Isn't it great to be busy?  Always a good sign!


My bathroom and kitchen renovation was finished last week.  I was able to stop in Monday to take pictures of the place completed.  Though we had a little snags along the way, I am happy with the way everything looks.  

Here are the photos:

This is the guest bathroom.  It has a new tub and doors, new subway tiles with green mosaic border, new plumbing fixtures, and new granite countertop. (The picture makes the paint look acid green, but it is actually the existing yellow paint.)

Detail of the tile in the tub area with new Kohler shower head.

For the master bathroom, we removed the tub and installed a shower.  Floor to ceiling tile, new plumbing fixtures, and a granite countertop.

Master bath showing new granite countertop, sink and faucet.

Several pieces of artwork were selected for the space, from Etsy. 

In the dining area, I have already shown you the new chandelier, but this also shows another piece of art. 

For the kitchen, we removed existing tile that ran countertop to ceiling and surrounded the window.  New stainless steel appliances were installed, green glass backsplash, and new pendant lights replaced existing pot lights. 

Detail of the stainless steel appliances and pretty glass mosaic.  I want this backsplash for myself!  

For the design of the renovation, the client wanted to keep things budget friendly as it is not her primary residence, but rather on the weekly rental market on Seven Mile Beach.  She also mentioned that she would like to sell it in the coming years, so we needed to update it but not make it "trendy."  Most of the other condos in the complex have been renovated or are in the process of being renovated.  In these condos, floor to ceiling travertine has been installed in the bathrooms.  They all had an overall brown, dark feeling to them and we knew we did not want that for her condo.  I wanted to keep things light and fresh which is why I went with the white subway tiles.  To provide a little whimsy and color, the mosaic border was added in the tub and shower surround.  While the green glass in the kitchen is a current style, it isn't as trendy as going with something with lots of color and pattern; it will still act as a neutral in the kitchen.  Not to mention it's beautiful, right?!

The client likes touches of whimsy and we are in the Caribbean after all so we chose colorful tropical prints for her space.  New artwork was selected in the hallway, guest bedroom, living room, and dining room.  All came from artists on Etsy at the client's request.  For ease of transporting down here we went with canvas wrapped prints.  They bring a lot of cheer and life to the space. 

Next week, a complete bedroom installation before the client comes in on Friday.  The place is getting painted this week.  All of their items are here, just waiting on our delivery guys and drapery installer to be able to make time for me.  It's going to be a beautiful room, keep on the lookout for pictures!

What I have been up to...

Last week was a busy week for me.  The renovation I have been preparing for since March finally started and I spent a lot of my time at the jobsite.  The job was supposed to be completed Saturday... that did not happen.  However, it will be completed in the next couple of days.  We had a few set backs at the beginning, as all projects do along the way, but now we are going along swimming...  (Literally, it has been raining cats and dogs here and is to continue through tomorrow.)  However, it is always such a wonderful experience to see your designs come to life!

Anywho, here is what I was up to last week.

This gorgeous little chair came in unexpectantly early for a client.  We ordered two of them with a sofa in the coordinating green for her living room.  This will be starting point for the rest of the room.  Chair is by Lexington Furniture Ocean Club Collection.

 For another client, we painted this wicker chair that started out a forest green a cream semi-gloss.  Paint Muslin by Benjamin Moore.

Bathroom and Kitchen Renovation:

Isn't this such a pretty hanging shade light from Uttermost?  It provides great texture and interest above the dining table.  On the right of the frame you can see where we need to drywall and paint.

Here are the matching pendants (unfortunately they are not on) above the long peninsula.  Old tile surrounded all the walls in the kitchen  from countertop to ceiling.  New tile is going only beneath the upper cabinets to the countertop. 

 This little beauty will be our new kitchen backsplash.  Green glass 2x4 mosaic.  This tile was one of our set backs at the beginning!

The Bathroom: This was what the bathtub wall looked like Friday.  Need to go back to take finished pictures!  Timeless white gloss subway tiles with glass and marble accents.

 I will take more pictures of the kitchen and bathrooms once they are completed.  We also selected new artwork for most of the condo and hung that Friday and selected new ceiling fans.  Those aren't very exciting so I will not bore you with pictures of that.  


Up next is a bedroom makeover that I have been receiving pieces here and there every week.  All of the custom bedding and drapes should arrive Friday then it will be installation time!  I will get to put the bedroom together while the client is off Island which will be exciting for them to walk into for the first time.  It will be like designing for television!  I will keep you posted.  

This week

This week I have been lacking on the design inspiration for the blog.  Luckily I received the Rue Magazine to be able to write that last post.  Work has been a little on the slow side the last couple weeks.  Luckily I have my bathroom and kitchen renovation next week to occupy my time.  I've been a little down and out and think I need a vacation.

(source)

This is my first source of happiness... yummy plate of hot cookies!

I have been needing a Happy Place.  (Everyone at work I think needs to go to their happy place too.)  Usually my Happy Place consists of some place sunny, quiet and a beach.  Well I have that in my backyard!  We fully took advantage of that yesterday, but now it it starting to get a bit warmer so a palm tree is needed in my Happy Place.  


Now that I live in a tropical Caribbean paradise, I'm thinking my Happy Place needs to transport itself.  I think in my new spot, I want to go somewhere a little cooler where I can wear pants and *gasp* maybe even a cardigan!  Do some major sightseeing and actual shopping.  

(source)

San Francisco fits my wish list.  Steven and I are really wanting to go here together.   I have only been once and that was 2001.  Sign me up.

(source)

NYC also checks the boxes on my list.  Steven and I went here together in October during our month of not working... (that month turned in to 6 more weeks, but I digress.)  It is the perfect city for sightseeing, shopping, and eating.

I know it isn't right for me to complain or feel like I need a vacation; I live in such a gorgeous place.  In the words of Chandler Bing from Friends "My diamond shoes are too tight."  But sometimes you just need to get away, right?  

On the plus side, our move here has brought our marriage that was already close, even closer.  It has allowed us to spend a lot of quality time together.  It is a test being so far from family and friends that you must be able to rely upon each other.  Steven and I have been able to learn more about each other and really appreciate each other so much more.  I think a vacation from our "living vacation home" would only improve it.  When we do eventually move back to the States and start the hustle and bustle of "real life" again we are going to miss this time of togetherness.  We are so thankful that in the five months we have been here, we have gained so much.  

That's all I wanted to say today that 1) I need to go to a Happy Place and spend the rest of the week, maybe next week too. and 2) Steven and I have gotten so much closer. 

Sorry no design tips today.  Eventually I want to talk about lighting as a design dilemma and hopefully next week will update on the renovation that will be under way!!