New Prints from The Wild Unknown

My 2010 calendar from The Wild Unknown makes me happy every single day. Loving the simplicity of their newest prints, just released this morning.

Love: Pendant Lights

Just starting to dabble in the condo hunt again, and am noticing that every newish condo in DC is plagued by cheap pendant lights on the counter that usually divides an open kitchen from the living area.

The good thing is this is super easy to fix, and is certainly not a deal breaker. An ideal replacement would be two of these beautiful, crocheted (but large) pendants from Openhouse above -- which would work equally well above a kitchen table. I'm also loving the more affordable speakeasy inspired offerings from Anthropologie below.

Inspiration 7.30

Via Smoke & Ochre

(Inspired by) Acquaintance Cards

After listening to friend's Match.com horror stories, I'm definitely feeling wistful for the very tame (and sometimes mischievous) sentiment behind acquaintance cards, which ladies and gentleman looking for love used in the 1870s and 1880s. Consider it the 19th century version of a "poke" -- except it was probably less creepy - I mean, who else uses the Facebook Poke function besides creeps?

Either way, these are super cute, and ripe for a comeback -- but, perhaps in a different context.

Discovered here.

7.29.2010 INSPIRATION

Inspiration 7.29

Via Automatism

Inspiration 7.28

Definitely having an al-fresco dining moment and loving these sheltered looks.

Images via We Heart It, Apartment Therapy

Love: Bayan Hippo Sailor Tote

I know beach season is already half over, but I cannot resist this adorable, sunny little tote bag from Bayan Hippo. You cannot be in a bad mood if you've got that thing hanging on your shoulder. It's just not possible. (Available in blue, too)

Discovered on Oh Joy!

Inspiration 7.27

Lake houses conjure up a lot of bad images for design-lovers -- plasticky attempts at a log-cabin feel, wall-mounted talking fish and "memorabilia walls" from the T.G.I. Friday's school of decorating.

I really hate seeing hokey-"fishing widow" decor in a lake house because it seems like such a wasted opportunity to go for a more quiet, sophisticated look where the view provides all the wow factor you need. Simple furniture, a muted palette, candlelight...

I promise you won't miss Big Mouth Billy Bass...

Images via Sweet Paul, Canadian House & Home

Arrgghh, Why is it so hard to do your own space?

OK, so I thought I would share a bit of insight into this whole design process stuff and give you a personal glimpse into what  goes on even in the head of a professional, when faced with personal design decisions.  Here goes, don't judge me too harshly.  I am finally getting granite counters in my kitchen.  After years of selecting them for clients, the time has come for me to enjoy the beauty and ambiance that only granite can provide. (This might have happened earlier, but college tuition seemed to take precedence). So with that decision made, it should have been a quick jump to selecting the product, Right?  WRONG!!!  First I had to select a new sink, (under mount of course).  This actually wasn't so hard.  After research, I decided on a composite black granite double bowl by Elkay (one of the leaders in granite sinks).  The faucet also by Elkay has a real commercial grade look to it.  So far so good!  Now on to the granite choice.  What muddied the waters a bit here is that I needed to save the existing backsplash.  I actually like my current backsplash (it has a timelessness to it), but that really made an impact on deciding what granite slab would go with it.  So off I trotted to collect samples from the tile and granite suppliers.
Many of them looked great in the store, but when I brought them home the lighting in my home gave them a whole different look. Are you all listening?
Lighting plays a HUGE factor in every selection.  Finally selected a granite piece from a 12 inch square, with a name that I can't remember.  Step 2, go to the slab supplier to pick out the actual slabs that I would use.  Now if you have never had the opportunity to do this, it is an amazing experience.  But there is a 95% chance that the small sample you have will look NOTHING and I repeat NOTHING like the actual slab.   Now I wasn't silly enough to think this was going to be a quick process without emotional turmoil so I did bring along a friend with me.  It's important to note a couple of things here, my friend Amy is also a professional designer ( we have over 30 years combined experience) so clearly I was in good hands should emotion take over where good sense should prevail.  Did I also mention that Amy and I have the exact opposite in tastes!
So armed with backsplash samples in hand, and designer friend in tow off we went. As expected, my original choice looked  absolutely awful in a huge slab. So the selection process started over from scratch.  Wandering the vast array of slabs can be a daunting task, but my eye finally caught a slab that had everything  I needed (and everything my backsplash needed also).  Should have been simple from here right?  Wrong again.  The slabs came in polished and matte finish.  Oh what to do!  By now my decision making skills were sorely lacking (after all I am emotionally involved in this decision) and I really liked them both.  Here's is where professional assistance is most valuable.  After all, I had already asked everyone else down there, and it seemed to be a 50/50 split.
Amy was able to bring some clarity to the situation by asking me questions about the overall look that I wanted and present and future color options.
As we were pondering my choices, another lady walked by with that "deer in the headlights" look.  We explained that we were designers and offered to shed some light on her dilemma.  OK, creative juices started flowing, within minutes I was able to help her select the perfect slab (one that went with her current backsplash) in addition we were even able to select the perfect paint color options that would pick up on the  subtle colors in the slab.
So really what's the point of this story,  a couple of things, number one, it's always harder to do your own space because we are all  influenced by our emotions and our objectivity becomes muddled.  Number two, there are a ton of nice choices out there and you can't have them all.  You need to develop an initial game plan and stick with it.  Design assistance is invaluable when it comes to these two points.  I am so grateful that  I had someone to keep me on track and remind me of all the points that I share with my clients.
By the way, I decided on the polished slab and it will be installed this week.  I can hardly wait.

Inspiration 7.26

On another muggy Monday, I'm feeling inspired by cool whites, pinks and silvers, and lush, blooming hedges...Remember Spring? Yeah, that was nice.

P.S. I was beyond thrilled to pick up the August issue of the Washingtonian to find Department of the Interior named as one of the three best design blogs in the region, along with DC by Design and Aesthetic Oiseau! I'm so, so flattered, but now I've got to work extra hard to deserve it!

Images via Erin Ever After, For Stars will Rise Again and Plush Palate

Irene Suchoki & Weekend Recap

Sooo, what to say about this weekend? It was, um, a little toasty. And as a result, I spent a lot of time indoors with a fan pointed at my face, AC on full blast, dreaming up about a hundred unnecessary projects to take on around the apartment.

With all of the extra time on my hands, one thing I was able to accomplish was tracking down an affordable large-scale photo that will remind me of my Paris vacation without screaming, "I went on vacation in Paris and now want to cover my entire apartment in pictures of the Eiffel Tower."

I ended up purchasing the photo above of a tree-lined park in the Jardin des Plantes -- nicely priced at 20x24 for $125. The photographer, Irene Suchoki, has a great Etsy shop filled with dozens of similar dreamy photos of Paris, Italy, and other pretty places she comes upon in her travels.

Other than obsessively searching for affordable art on Etsy, I did make it outside for a dip in the pool, a late night adventure in Columbia Heights to new bar Meridian Pint (beertaps on the table = mind blown) and a trip to the Dupont farmer's market where I stocked up on peaches, plums, okra, greens and beautiful, purplish Cherokee tomatoes. I then girded myself for the walk home with Dolcezza Mojito sorbetto, and all seemed right in the world -- although in hindsight I'd attribute that to mild heatstroke.

So enough about my weekend, what fun ways did you come up with to beat the heat?

I Heart Antique Windows!

I have a ton of old windows. All different sizes and styles. I've made one four pane window into an awesome picture frame, used some in my yard and for fence decoration, and now my newest design... A fabulous dark bubblegum pink cork board for my office. I had no intention of starting this project today, but I was working on something for a client and I figured I was already covered in paint, so why the hell not? I chose a two pane window frame that had the glass broken out of it. I primered the whole thing (hardware and all) and then painted it a very girly pink. Sometimes I feel like Shelby from Steel Magnolias when she says, "Pink is my signature color". Not that pink is the only color I like, but I seem to be drawn to it quite often. Anyway, I picked up cork tiles at the craft store and I'm going to attach them to the back of the frame tomorrow. Screw in a couple of hooks and wire and bada bing, bada boom! Hello fabulous cork board. Welcome to the office! The point here is that not only is it friendlier to our environment to reduce, reuse and recycle, but your options are only as limited as your imagination is. Creating new things from old adds character and gives you one of kind pieces that NO ONE else will have. Happy crafting PDX!

Inspiration 7.22-23 (Trine Thorsen)

There are simply no words for how obsessed I am with every room that interiors photographer Trine Thorsen shoots. Absolutely, some of my favorite spaces...well, ever.

Etsy Fave: Faded Summer Memories from Jena Ardell

In my mind, summer memories look just like these lovely faded, polaroid-style art prints from Jena Ardell -- filled with sun-bleached settings, happy people, and curated collections of seaside ephemera, you can practically smell the Hawaiian Tropic through your computer screen. Purchase here.

Inspiration 7.21

Via My Little Things

7.21.2010 INSPIRATION

above images from Jeffrey Moss apt. dream.