Friday, April 29, 2011

"Enchanted . . . "



Greetings,

From a very groggy day at SMW Design. Been here at the office most of the day - on about 4 hours of sleep (from 4am to 8am!) but wanted to share some of my favourite images of this morning's wedding.

So - let's take things in some kind of order here -

The Dress.

I loved the dress.  It almost felt like a combination of two of my favourites, Grace Kelly's dress & the wedding dress from The Sound of Music.  (you can see them both here.) Traditional yet still modern.  And it highlighted her incredibly beautiful figure.  And the fact that it was from the house of fashion designer Alexander McQueen was a huge tribute to British fashion.  Well done. 

The Pageantry.

This might be one of Britain's major exports - lol.  All uniforms and marches and national pride - no one on Earth puts on quite the same show!  But, I also love the intimacy that was still clearly present in the service.  I've actually had the privilege of attending worship services at Westminster Abbey when I'm in London - and in fact - I usually sit just behind the musicians in the Quire seating.  And even though the space is clearly massive - the experience still feels amazingly personal.  

The Abbey.

Okay, coming from someone that regularly fills his home with multiple trees each and every Christmas - I just about lost my mind when I saw this.  Seriously.  It felt imaginative and brought an air of enchantment to the entire service.  Love. 

The Couple.

It all seemed perfectly charming.  And personal.  And at times almost humorous.   I wish them well - and hope that we all (myself included), get caught up on our sleep!

Cheers,
Scot

Chivari Madness

I have a real love for the brass chivari chair.

At the Parker...
parker_chivarichair


In Martha Stewart...
chivari_marthastewart


In Angeleno Interiors {designed by Jamie Bush}...
chivari_angelenointeriors
And that ceiling wallpaper is magical!

Thursday, April 28, 2011

"It's Just a Few More Hours . . . "



Greetings -

Well, I guess I'll see y'all on twitter or maybe facebook or somewhere festive in the wee hours of Friday . . .

Until then -


Cheers,
Scot

Jane's House: The Master Bedroom


Jane's House as of April 20, 2011

Editor's Note: This post is the second in a series detailing the design of my sister's new house. If you missed last week's installment for Jane's study, go HERE.

Well, the construction of Jane and P.W.'s house continues at a quick pace -- indeed, the exterior is all but finished, the drywall is up and the flooring is going down. As they've set a closing date for the end of the month, I'm going to redouble my efforts to finish the decorating plans for a few key rooms. This week, we'll be focusing on their master bedroom.
                            


The master bedroom is generously sized at 14' x 16', with a nice bay window overlooking the backyard, which will make for a lovely seating area for reading and relaxing. Like many couples, Jane and P.W. are looking for a balance of masculine and feminine, warm and cool tones and all on a strict budget! Moreover, they already have a nice bedroom set and are hoping to get a new look without investing in new furniture. Fortunately, this means I'll be working with some great basics that can act as the foundation for our new design.



Jane and P.W.'s existing bedroom furniture are from Pottery Barn's Valencia bedroom furniture line, whose classic yet clean lined pieces are stained a dark mahogany, as well as an existing white armchair and ottoman. These pieces are the perfect transitional building blocks and will add weight and balance to the lighter, more eclectic accessories and small furniture items that we'll be layering in to create depth, interest and personality.


Jane has her heart set on this soft modern Ikat print duvet set from DwellStudio. It's palette of grey-blue, greige and sand will be the jumping off point for the room. We'll pull out the cool grey-blue with the sheets a throw pillow for the white chair and the warmer greige for the walls, painting the room in Farrow & Ball's Elephant Breath, a color with interest and depth that goes way above simple beige.


The next layer will come in with accessories. The first task will be to swap out the simple oil-rubbed bronze knobs on the dresser and side tables with some gorgeous mercury glass knobs from Anthropologie. Yes, they're a splurge when buying in bulk, but they'll completely transform the pieces, bringing in the more ornate, traditional elements that Jane is so drawn to. 

Next, because this is a bedroom, I didn't want to get too crazy with color and pattern, opting instead to create interest by varying textures and materials. As the main furniture pieces are dark wood (as the floors will be), I wanted to create some balance with lighter accessories. A pair of alabaster table lamps bring in a classic material, while the modern silhouette echoes the simple lines of the furniture. A bone mirror over the long dresser will add interest and a feminine touch. A bone side table repeats the material over in the seating area, where we'll also add a leggy chair with a feminine print (in a not-so-feminine grey) to balance out the larger, skirted armchair. A small garden stool next to it will bring in a touch of metallic.

So here's the look all put together:--



Source list:
Elephant's Breath Paint (Farrow & Ball)
Valencia Sleigh Bed (Pottery Barn)
Emile Lamp (Crate & Barrel)
Mercury Glass Melon Knob (Anthropologie)
Valencia Side Table (Pottery Barn)
Round Bone Mirror (Wisteria)
Valencia Dresser (Pottery Barn)
Carly Chair (Crate & Barrel)
PB Basic Armchair (Pottery Barn)
Dotted Trellis Azure Pillow (DwellStudio)
Chinese Garden Stool (Wisteria)
Chenille Jute Basketweave Rug (Pottery Barn)
Pintuck Azure Sheets (DwellStudio)
Batavia Dove Duvet Set (DwellStudio)
Bone Side Table (West Elm)

San Francisco Decorator Showcase 2011–Sneak Peek

san francisco decorator showcase 2011
The stately brick Italian villa estate located at 2950 Vallejo Street is the site of this year’s San Francisco Decorator Showcase. The 6,244 square foot mansion sits in on one of the most coveted blocks in San Francisco near the Presidio and steps from the Lyon Street steps.

san francisco decorator showcase 2011 entry terrace
{Entry Terrace by Kate Michels Landscape Design}

san francisco mansion view of golden gate bridge
Originally constructed in 1927 by Gottschalk and Rist, the home provides breath-taking views of the Bay and Golden Gate Bridge. The image above was taken from the home’s living room.

silver gowns by james tarantino
{Master bedroom closet by James Tarantino}
The estate was purchased in the 1970s by Joseph P. Tarantino and his wife Nancy. They raised four children in the house, including fashion designer James Tarantino. Some of James’ beautiful gowns he designed are on display in the showhouse in the master bedroom closet.

san francisco designer showhouse staircase lantern
For the 34th Annual San Francisco Decorator Showcase, four floors of living space in home have been completely renovated with modern, high-end appliances and finishes. The kitchen and baths have also been completely remodeled and modernized. Over thirty designers from the San Francisco Bay Area have contributed to the spectacular showhouse. The details in this home are truly amazing. I was most impressed with the flow of the home. The harmonious color palette and feel from room to room is remarkable and not typical for designer showhouses.

The tour opens to the public Saturday, April 30th, but here is a sneak peak of some of the rooms:

san francisco decorator showhouse entry laquered walls
{Entrance Hall by Willem Racke Studio and Leigh Edwards Interiors}

Living Room with portrait Marchesa Balbi Navarra
{Living Room by Kathleen Navarra, Navarra Design}

kitchen clock tile backsplash range designer
{Kitchen by Tish Key Interior Design}

san francisco designer showhouse dining room gibson
painted floor black white grant gibson showhouse
{Dining Room by Grant K. Gibson Interior Design}

bedroom matt murphy san francisco showhouse
{Master bedroom by Matt Murphy Studio}

san francisco decorator showcase master bath tub
{Master bath by Val Fiscalini Designs}

wedding inspired seating room
french tufted daybed peach velvet
{“Going to the Chapel” sitting room by Josephine Fisher Interior Design}

san francisco decorator showhouse bathroom
{Bath by Chamber + Chambers Architects and Nancy Hammonds Design}

hanging bed organic earthy bedding
{Penthouse bedroom by Cathleen Gouveia Design}

Jonathan Hodges photography san francisco showhouse
{Rumpus room by Jonathan Staub and Marion Philpotts-Miller}

serene bedroom seating area chic
orange wallpaper bedroom seating area
{"Two Sides to Every Story" bedrooms by Lisa Bakamis and Jeff Schlarb - identical floor plans, with different color palettes.}

As you can see, this is an amazing designer showhouse. I plan on showing more details of the home in the upcoming weeks. But, if you are in the area or will be visiting San Francisco in the next month, I encourage you to go to this must-see design event.



SHOWCASE DETAILS:
San Francisco Decorator Showcase runs from April 30 – May 30, 2011. 
Showcase is open Tuesdays through Sundays and Memorial Day. 
Showcase is closed on Mondays except for Memorial Day.
Tickets are available at the door and are $30 for general admission; $25 for seniors.
Group rates available and must be arranged in advance by calling (415) 447-5830.


Room Love

Loving this room.
The Cole & Son wallpaper. The interesting chair. The zebra rug. The simple light fixture.
fabroom
design by Jamie Bush, featured in Angeleno Interiors.

Dots & Spots: Self-Restraint Edition

It took all my self-restraint not to buy these gold-dotted coffee cups at Kate Spade in Palm Springs. The main reason I held back was because we don't have one more inch in our cupboard. But these would make afternoon tea time so festive!

They remind me of Joy's gorgeous office {from oh joy!} that she posted earlier this month!

dotsandspots
Dots + Gold = Happiness

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Loco for Lotus

This sink {by Odegard, found via House Beautiful} reminds me how crazy I am for lotus flower goodies.

lotussink_housebeautiful


These lotus flower pendants, from Trad Home, were a brilliant idea for this dining room.
Screen shot 2011-04-27 at 2.51.19 PM


Get 'em from Horchow!
Screen shot 2011-04-27 at 2.43.53 PM

Interview at It’s So Fabulous! Blog & Gorgeous Children’s Rooms

Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of attending a Design Blogger Conference in Los Angeles. There I met some of the most amazing and talented interior designers and bloggers. One such designer and blogger I had the pleasure of meeting was Kimberly Grigg of Knotting Hill Interior Design and “It’s So Fabulous!” blog. Based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Kimberly is gracious, friendly and has a great eye for design. Here are just a few images of beautiful children’s and nursery rooms she has designed:

pink green nursery fairies
boys nursery canopy over crib green blue
attic girls playroom pink
girls twin beds with canopy designer
girls blue green bedroom designer


As a little girl, I would dream of having a canopy bed or playroom for my dolls like the ones Kimberly designed!


Today, Kimberly is interviewing me on her blog. She asked me some fun questions about myself and I have included one of the images from the interview below.

turquoise horse foo dog artwork

Hope you have the chance to check out the interview and visit Kimberly's fabulous blog!

Hello Sunshine!

As I said earlier this week, I've spent the last three weeks in-and-out of town, living out of a suitcase. I had a marvelous time, and I'm finally getting unpacked.

So of course I'm already daydreaming about where to go next! I'm not sure where it should be, but given that the inspiration images below get my heart singing, I think it involves being outdoors, enjoying the sunshine and wearing a caftan.

01_hat
Fabulous hat from Kate Spade


These outdoor images from House Beautiful have me wanting to jump away from the computer screen. STAT!
outdoors2
Garden design by Lisa Bynon. Those gates are insane.

More House Beautiful beauties.
outdoors


While sitting in the gardens and sipping Mint Juleps, I'll lounge in these gorgeous caftans...
By Lem Lem
Screen shot 2011-04-25 at 7.07.53 PM

Or from Calm nyc.
caftan
I'm ready to get my relax on again!