Decor Galore

Have you had a chance to check out the newest issue of Lonny yet?  I think this third issue is the best by far, filled with gorgeous images and inspiring designers – if you haven’t browsed through it yet, you must!

Having lived with and decorated an apartment with my older sister during law school, one of my favorite stories from this issue was about Antonia and Victoria Thompson – two wildly talented sisters with very different design aesthetics.

{ Here’s another great thing about Lonny – you don’t have to be a professional designer to be on the cover of the magazine.  Cheers to that! }

After living in Manhattan their entire lives, the sisters decided to take the plunge and buy their first apartments.  Their real estate searches led them far and wide, but they ultimately purchased separate apartments . . . in the same building . . . on the same floor . . . with the same layout!

With an artist mother and extensive travels, it’s no wonder both sisters developed an eye for design.  Antonia, the younger of the two sisters, tends to be more impulsive in her decorating, setting out without a master plan and picking up pieces she loves as she goes along – the result is an eclectic, lived-in look with a somewhat masculine edge.  Victoria, on the other hand, takes a more meticulous approach to designing, identifying her key pieces and building a design plan around them for a look that is tailored yet youthful.

{ Living / Dining }

Many of the key elements of each sister’s space are the same – pattern (particularly zebra), splashes of turquoise, glass-topped coffee tables, furniture arrangement, upholstered stools (in zebra!) in front of the fireplace, and bold artwork.

{ Powder Room }

However, their tastes quickly diverge as Antonia prefers what the article’s author, Shawn Gauthier, describes as a “Parisian sensibility married to a chic eclecticism” while Victoria gravitates toward a “1950s Palm Beach vibe infused with a classic, mid-century vision”.

{ Kitchen }

This difference in design sensibilities is striking when their renovated kitchens are compared side by side.  Antonia’s is a picture of function and utility, from the hanging pots and butcher block countertop to the commercial-sized refrigerator – reminiscent of Parisian kitchens and industrial chic.  Victoria, on the other hand, injects a bit of glamour into her hard-working kitchen with penny tile and turquoise cabinet interiors.

{ Bedroom }

Both sisters designed soothing bedrooms, but Victoria’s is feminine and somewhat traditional while Antonia’s leans a bit more eclectic and muted.

{ Home Office }

From the floor plan above, it appears that both sisters have chosen to use their somewhat awkward dining areas as home offices – a great use of space as their living rooms are more than large enough to accommodate dining tables.

{ Bookcase }

Both sisters chose to paint the backs of their bookcases, a trend that really serves to highlight the styling of the shelves.  {Check out Averill’s great post on this subject for more discussion & gorgeous inspiration pics.}

{ Living Room }

Ottomans upholstered in zebra fabric?  Yes please!  These are girls after my own heart with their love of zebra and turquoise.

So what do you guys think?  They both created unique spaces that are filled with personality and special touches.  Do you have a favorite?

To see full-sized images of each sister’s apartment, click here for Antonia and here for Victoria.  All images originally from Lonny Magazine.

Our den isn’t totally finished yet (will it ever be?), but we’ve gotten to the point now where the den definitely feels like home, and like a reflection of us.

Bringing in bold turquoise and orange through placemat pillows and glass floats added splashes of my favorite thing – color!!  But what finally made the space feel like a real home was hanging our new art series on the far wall – a wall that was formerly sooooo blank and boring.

I whipped up those babies one night after getting a little inspiration from the chalkboard in this living room by Margot Austin.

Wanna make some for yourself?  Here’s how to do it:

1.  Round up the goods. You may already have most of the necessary supplies on hand, like I did.  Here’s what you need.

~ frames w/ mats, the number and color that you want (I used 3 of this frame from Ikea)

~ paint for your background color (I used my free paint)

~ a foam brush

~ a paint pen (I used a white one with a chisel tip)

~ a ruler

~ painter’s tape

2.  Do the prep work. Remove the mats and backing from the frames, and set the frames aside.  For this project, you’re going to use the smooth side of the particle board backing as your paint surface (you could cut down art paper or cardboard to use instead, but I think it makes more sense to just use what you already have on hand).  Use your foam brush and background paint to paint the smooth side of the particle board.  You will probably need several coats of paint (I needed 2), and let the boards dry between each coat.

3.  Bust out the ruler. I wanted each line of scribbles to look uniform, so I ran a line of painter’s tape around each side of the boards and then marked out the height of each of my scribbles and the space between each line of the scribbles.  To do this, I used the width of my ruler as the height of each scribble, and the width of the painter’s tape as the distance between each line of scribbles.  (Note: don’t put painter’s tape on the mat – it will tear away little pieces of the mat and look terrible.)

4.  The fun part! Here’s where you get to channel your inner child and start scribbling.  You might want to try out a few practice scribbles before you actually start painting on your “canvas” – you want to try to keep each scribble the same size and height so that everything looks very graphic instead of messy.

5.  Enjoy! This has to be the easiest art projects ever, but it’s also one of my favorites.  It was a lot of fun to do, and I think the finished product looks so awesome – fun and graphic and a bit whimsical.

So now that you’ve seen what we’re rockin’ out at our house, what’s hanging on your walls?  Are you photograph-type people, or do you prefer framed art?  Or maybe it’s a collection of your kid’s cutest doodles?  Spill the beans!

FYI – I hung these art panels on the wood paneling the same way I did here.

This post is shared with The DIY Show Off, Thrifty Decor Chick, Between Naps on the Porch, Cottage Instincts, Making the World Cuter, Twice Remembered, The Girl Creative, and A Soft Place to Land.

I don’t know about you, but my ceilings are white.  And made of drywall.  And completely devoid of any detail, except a little crown molding around the edges.

Can you imagine looking up at these ceilings every day?

{ Barry Dixon }

{ Barry Dixon }

{ Barry Dixon }

{ unknown }

{ Phoebe Howard }

{ Sherrill Canet }

Yeah, I think I could get used to that.  Maybe one day I’ll get it into gear and spiff up my ceilings (although they could never be anything close to these stunners).  What about you guys – are your ceilings plain white, or gussied up?  Do you like the look of fancy ceilings?

Oh goodness, this weekend I gave the design side of my brain a little treat and spent some time perusing the portfolios of some awesome designers.  I swooned, I drooled, I plotted impromtu house calls, and then I tucked my favorite images away for later inspiration.

Here are a few of my faves:

{ Angie Hranowsky }

{ Brooke Giannetti }

{ Huntley & Co. }

{ Vanessa de Vargas }

{ Elizabeth Dinkel }

{ Palmer Weiss }

{ Margot Austin }

{ Bonesteel Trout Hall }

I don’t think I can pick a favorite.  What about you?

Guess what?  I’ve revamped the Inspiration page so that you can find what you’re looking for in a jiffy.  Check out the changes here.

Today I’m feeling very snowy, probably from the combination of all the fabulous snow and ice I’m seeing while watching the Olympics and the foot of snow that Dallas got on Thursday.

{This is what it looked like outside my front door}

Isn’t it just gorgeous?  I know a lot of the country has been dealing with too much snow, but this snowiest day on record made our neighborhood glow and the sound of snow falling is so incredibly peaceful – in short, I loved it!

I thought I’d share with you a few beautiful spaces that make me feel like snuggling up in front of a crackling fire.  Touches of sparkle through silver, glass and mirror add an icy glitter, while soft grays, snowy whites, and dreamy blues evoke the calm feeling that follows a snowfall.  You’ll notice that all of the cool tones in the spaces are kept from feeling cold and unapproachable through the use of warm woods, dashes of bronze and gold, and soothing tans.

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Do you have a favorite?  And have you been as glued to the Olympics as I have?  I can’t wait for some of the alpine events to start tonight . . .

For pictures of even more inspiring spaces, be sure to check out the Inspiration tab under the header.

I recently made the switcheroo from Image Spark to Flickr because I was flabbergasted (flabbergasted, I tell you!!) when I ran out of space on Image Spark with no way to store more images – what a bummer!  Anyway, I paid the $25 bucks or so for unlimited space on Flickr (so worth it) and now I’m a happy girl.

I bet you’re wondering, “Um, what the heck does this random post have to do with me?”  Well, I’m glad you asked!  (Okay, you didn’t ask, but just go with it).  I’ve added a new page to IGTBH that is literally filled to the brim with fabulous goodies that I’ve gathered from all over the web (along with the original sources), from DIY tutorials to stunning kitchens to breathtaking bathrooms.  And the best part is that I’m constantly updating the page with fresh new eye-candy, so you’ll be treated with a whole new slew of inspiration each time you check it out.  Yay!

Anyhoo, to get in on all the inspirational goodness just click here or head on up to the “Inspiration” tab under the header.  Can’t wait to hear what you think about it!

Before the football bonanza begins this weekend, how channeling your inner crafter and trying out some of these fun projects?

{Apartment Therapy}

1.  Make everything more festive with a dotty garland.

{Living With Lindsay}

2.  Add a touch of sparkle to a bare wall with framed button art.

{Little Green Notebook}

3.  Use a little twill tape to sass up a ho-hum photo mat.

{High-Heeled Foot in the Door}

4.  Get a little wild with zebra print vinyl decals.

{Three Men and a Lady}

5.  Leave everybody floored with your custom artwork.

{Pure Style Home}

6.  Do touch ups on the go with pre-labeled, portable paints.

{The Artful Abode}

7.  Dye a boring lamp shade the perfect color.

{Little Green Notebook}

8.  Turn your mini-blinds into a fab, custom roman shade.

{How About Orange}

9.  Make reading even more fun with adorable, printable bookmarks.

{Design*Sponge}

10.  Put your old wine bottles to good use with hanging wall vases.

Think you’ll give any of these projects a whirl this weekend?  Which one is your fave?

I had high hopes of finishing a project from this list while watching the Lost season premiere last night but . . . that didn’t happen.  Shocking, I know!

So, instead of a little DIY project I thought I’d share with you some of the bar stools I’ve been lusting after for my future kitchen.

Move me right on into this one.  A bubble chandelier and limed, exposed brick?  Yes please!!  The industrial LEM precision stools are the perfect touch, in my opinion.

I also love them in this cottage-inspired kitchen with their little slipcovers – and you’ve gotta love those painted, striped floors and schoolhouse light fixtures.

Even though these chrome and black leather stools may be just a little too modern for my own kitchen, I do love them – don’t you?

I love everything about this kitchen, and the understated Emeco aluminum bar stools are the perfect touch.

The little pop of green added to these Bertoia wire mesh bar stools adds so much life to this space and plays off the trees through the window.  Yummy!!

And these lucite bar stools had me at hello – aren’t they so elegant?

If you’d like to add some similar bar stools to your space, you might want to check out these fab options that I dug up on Overstock (just click on the images to be taken to the source):

Could you see any of them in your kitchen?  I’ve always wondered if a backless bar stool would drive me crazy – do any of you have backless bar stools and, if so, have you been driven batty?  I hope not, I think I’d like to give it a whirl in my next kitchen!

My grandmother had amazing collections from her travels, everything ranging from beautiful seashells to thousands of arrowheads.  She was a cool lady that had an eye for interesting and unique artifacts.

I’m lucky to now have bits and pieces of a few of her collections, including her assortment of antique glass floats.

These floats were tied into nets by fishermen in Japan and Norway to keep their nets afloat.

I tried to wipe them down before placing them in the vase, not realizing that the sand was ground into the glass after years of floating at sea.  Now that I’ve realized that, I’m really appreciating the journey these little guys have taken.

A few of the floats even have some seawater inside of them, trapped after seeping through microscopic holes in the glass!

I like that they give our guests a cheerful greeting at the front door.

I only wish that more of them would fit through the mouth of that vase!

This post is shared with Fireflies & Jellybeans, Tales from Bloggeritaville, Remodelahics, Poppies at Play, Finding Fabulous and My Romantic Home.

Do you know Sarah Richardson?

I’ve admired her interior design work for some time, but I’ve only recently seen one (yes, she has more than one!) of her television series – Sarah’s House, which is now airing in the US.

Have you had a chance to watch Sarah’s House on HGTV?

Truly, Sarah’s House is a show after my own heart – now in Season 2, the series follows the Canadian designer as she chooses a home and then flips it – complete with unbelievable staging.  As a Realtor, fellow flipper and lover of design, I don’t think a TV show could get any better than that!!  It’s really inspiring to follow Sarah through her thought process, from how to renovate each room to sourcing furniture and accessories to the big reveal.  And I think you’ll find that the spaces Sarah designs are completely liveable and approachable while avoiding an overly “designed” look.

This is the Toronto home that Sarah chose to conquer in Season 2 – which she purchased for almost $700,000!

In the episodes that have aired thus far, Sarah and her design sidekick, Tommy, have completely swankified the second level:

The boring nursery . . .

. . . soon became this darling nursery (and I don’t use the word “darling” very often).  Ikea drapes paired with a snuggly chair upholstered in cheerful polka dots provide a fun, gender-neutral color palette for this space.

I think it’s particularly smart that Sarah chose to install a picture rail in line with the top of the window frames (with sky blue paint above) to bring the vaulted ceiling down to a more kid-friendly and cozy height.

And, of course, the whimsical alphabet is an affordable and easily-replicated design element that adds tons of character (and an opportunity for learning) to the room.

The home office began just as bland as the nursery . . .

. . . but is now a modern, upbeat space with a hint of femininity brought in through the floral fabric on the bulletin board.

I find that the still shots of these rooms simply don’t do the spaces justice – you should check out these episodes to see the rooms in their full glory.

The master bedroom definitely benefited from Sarah’s decision to steal 27 inches of space (on the left-hand side) from the neighboring nursery.

And I bet you never saw this gorgeous space coming, did you?  I certainly didn’t.

The entire color scheme for this master bedroom was pulled from those fabulous floral curtains in cream and gray.  The headboard was positioned below the low point of the vaulted ceiling so that one would have a feeling of space and height while lying in bed.

While I don’t know that I could ever be disciplined enough to commit to such a tight and subdued palette, it really is divine, isn’t it?

I always love the look of chandeliers in bedrooms, particularly master bedrooms, but I just don’t think I could take the plunge and part with my ceiling fan – even so, I’m totally tempted to nix my fan after seeing this room!

I am curious, though – does Sarah sell her homes furnished?  If not, it seems odd to devote such a large portion of the budget to furniture (some of it custom) and accessories that will, ultimately, need to find new homes.  Does anybody know?  Have you had a chance to check out the show and, if so, what do you think of it?

* There’s more to come for this series but, since most of the episodes haven’t aired in the US yet, I don’t want to spoil it for you!

Sarah’s House airs on HGTV at 8:30 p.m. Eastern on Saturday nights.  Images courtesy of HGTV Canada.