Happy Labor Day weekend!

Hooray for the three day Labor Day weekend! With fall weather nowhere in sight here in LA, I've still got outdoor goodies on the brain...

Here's some interesting furniture I saw via Interior Design





You can get these hanging chairs here. Maybe I should hang one of those from my avocado tree?

The previous owners planted some herbs in the backyard, but this summer's heat killed them off pretty quickly. The image below, from Natural Health Magazine, May 2008, makes me want to put some cute little potted herbs in the window box outside my kitchen window

Pots like the ones below (from Real Simple, June 2008) would dress up my front steps. I would probably go with pots like the inset image, from Design Within Reach)

What's for Dinner?

My days of wedding registry are long behind me, but that doesn't keep me from coveting new housewares here and there. Here's some flatware that make me consider renewing my vows with my man.

This relative of the "spork" doesn't seem comfortable for the mouth, but would look great on the table, no? These were designed by Gio Ponti - we stayed at his hotel in Sorrento while on our honeymoon in Italy, but I don't remember using utensils this groovy. (image from Wallpaper Magazine)This image of Hermes Equestrian silverware comes from Domino Magazine, but I have seen these in a family member's home. Maybe they won't notice if I start slipping them in my purse, one by one.

Kate Spade has always been great at bringing her style into the housewares department at Bloomingdale's. Here are some great options that weren't around when my man and I were walking around with our registry gun.
Quilted like a Chanel purse. Sexy.
Sexy and modern. Well done Kate!

A great European blogger, the Style Files, blogged about Elise Rijnberg and her beautiful flatware. Like the first flatware I mentioned tonight, these are more art than practical, but fun to look at nonetheless. I would love that tablecloth (but I guess I need a dining room table first).

tooth and nail...head

Shine Home



Hello all. I've got some delicious eye candy for you today. I don't want to bore any of you with a lengthy post about an obscure interior design subject. Since we are all mourning the end of summer, let's get cheered up by looking at some juicy photos with one of my favorite design details: NAILHEAD!!!!

sohaute.typepad.com

I love this banquette/sofa/loungey-chair thing. The large nailhead adds a great finishing touch to the piece.

Pattern on top of pattern - a very hot look this season in both interiors and fashion. It used to be that interior trends would follow fashion trends. Today it is more reciprocal - both worlds feed off of each other. But that's another day, another topic, another post.

This picture is somewhat difficult to see, but the nailhead on these chairs really accentuates the curve on the side and back of the chair. What a sassy combination of nailhead, fabric and unique furniture piece.



The use of nailhead is not limited to upholstery pieces. Look at it on this wall - the detail is very subtle, but it adds a wonderful touch of intricacy.




Many people see nailhead and immediately think of a large, worn leather chair in a lawyer's office. Nailhead can be used in many different settings and design genres. This picture successfully illustrates the concept of mixing traditional pieces with modern.




O.K., so maybe you don't want to nailhead everything in one room, but this sweet photo from Martha shows they myriad of possibilities when using nailhead.

Shine Home is a delightful home furnishings company that is SO creative with its use of nailhead. Check it out:

Aren't their pieces wonderful?



West Elm is even getting in on the action. Here are some of their recently released drapery panels:







The nailhead is on what is called the "leading edge" of the drapery, or the edge that leads into the window. I won't even charge you for that little tidbit of design vocabulary!

I hope these pictures have provided you with some inspiration. Nailhead is a detail that you can add in your own home - to the edge of your window treatments, along the arms of your sofa, even on a chair rail running around your dining room. Have fun with it, but be careful because those suckas are sharp!

Mas Wallpaper!

Back by popular demand, I've got more wallpaper! I've received hundreds of thousands of emails, so I must listen to the people. Ok, maybe that's an exaggeration, but my Auf Wiedersehen posting did start quite the conversation amongst the readers.

Here are some images of wallpaper-in-action, in case you need help visualizing how your pad will look all gussied up:

Above image from Elle Decor. I cannot even describe how much I love the metallic paint dribbled on the wall. This will somehow be making an appearance in our home.

This image from Domino Magazine . You don't have to let a little old door get in the way of glamorous wallpaper. A window though, that's a different story...

A friend recently brought up Fromental wallpapers (thanks Jenny!) See their wallpapers below, a great splurge - think of it as large scale artwork.

They have some really sophisticated color palettes


This one would be sweet in a little girls' room

These birds would also be great for a kids' room

Some of their wallpapers have BEAUTIFUL, unexpected, bright colors.



These wallpapers below are actually embroidered:
They even show the overall layout of all the wallpaper panels
If you can't afford an entire wall of a high end wallpaper but like the look, take a design cue from Jenny and frame a few panels like art, hang on your wall, voila!

Hey pinhead, nice Nailheads

While some may disagree with me, I think furniture with nail heads are classic. That being said, you CAN have too much of a good thing. See the below pieces of furniture. But please, use sparingly.

The nail heads are an unexpected detail on this West Elm Drapery


This furniture from Oly Studio looks classic, but at the same time the nailheads make it a little edgy and keep it from looking like Granny's furniture

This settee would look chic in a Spanish-style home

I also love this ottoman from William Sonoma Home.Don't forget to consider the finish of your other metals in your home when choosing your nail head finish (ie - chrome VS dark bronze). Oh, the tough decisions in life!

Spanish Tapas

A little nibble of Spanish tapas to start of your week...
As I mentioned while daydreaming of a nice Siesta, Patricia Urquiola is a name I see often while perusing for furniture on the Internet or flipping through design magazines. So I decided to look into her work a little deeper. She was trained in architecture in her native Spain (where I lived during my study abroad in college - I knew she and I were kindred design spirits)
See some of my favorite pieces below:



tropicalia chair




bohemian chair



caboche suspension - this is a light fixture I have admired for a while - so excited to realize this was co-designed by Patricia Urquiola!


smock - I love the leather detailing on this chair




fjord



antibodi


crochet rug - she understands my obsession with grandma-esque crafts.

pavo - a beautiful modern version of a Mexican equipal chair
Images above from Architonic


This chair was in this months' Wallpaper Magazine. Love the stitching details.

Her pieces are so sculptural. They aren't cheap, but fortunately for my wallet, a house would look like a museum of modern furniture if filled with her pieces. One of her chairs mixed with less expensive, simple, clean, modern furnishings (from West Elm or Ikea) would separate you from your neighbors. The Jones' will want to be keeping up with you.