Spring Colors

In my post below I mentioned how much I love the colors for Spring 2018. I'm obsessed. Hot pink, pale pink, orange, peach, chartreuse, teal. I even love mixing saturated colors with pale colors. If you're trying to cheer yourself up after the long winter, add a pop of color to your place. You might even trying experimenting with a color you wouldn't ordinarily use. You'd be surprised how an unexpected hit of color freshens up a tired room. And it need not be expensive.

Have you noticed how cute outdoor furniture has gotten? I'd use any of these pieces inside. I really love the ceramic turquoise end table, I'd like to have that in my home.

Tropical prints are really hip right now. I'm not usually one for trends, but I am digging this palm leaf patterned rug. I fear I am becoming a maximalist. Images from Brylane.  BTW, I hate blogging on my Android, I don't know why I can't get my text to wrap left.

My brother and I went to Target tonight. Aren't these pillows divine? I  haven't been there in a long time. It was great to see things in person that I usually only see online. However, I was having sticker shock as well as sensory overload, Target has a lot of beautiful things for the home. I'm especially in love with their Project 62 products, but their prices have gotten high.  I did see a lamp that is haunting me, though....

A Color Story, Part 3

Here's a color scheme that I've been falling in love with and that is mint green, lavender and lilac. With pops of hot pink, of course. Every room needs a shot of hot pink in my opinion. It also gorgeous with with pale blue added.  The uber glamorous New York apartment of jewelry designer Marie-Helene de Taillac via Architectural Digest is a superb example of this color scheme.

Notice the use of both a lavender chair and a lilac chair. If you're interested in the difference between these two colors, please see my post below.

Ahh.  Divine.  I love those silver globes.

Gorgeous lamp. You know I'm a sucker for a blue glass lamp, especially if it resembles Murano. (To see more blue lamps, see my previous post.)  Images via The End of History. BTW - if you are a lover of glass and ceramic vessels, you need to check out The End of History. I can't believe I haven't done a post about their shop yet, but it is definitely on my list of places to visit next time I'm in NYC. Ha, listen to me sounding like a jet setter!  This is a wish of mine that may be coming true. Stay tuned.

Here is another fine example of this color scheme. Love the colors and the mid century modern feel to this room. Green sofa with mint green pillows. Wish there was a lilac pillow on that sofa! Aqua chair, blue chair and fuchsia chair. Seems like a lot of color, but it works because the room is so airy and there is a lot of white to balance the colors. Also, by keeping pattern to a minimum, you can get away with using a lot of vibrant colors.  This image is one I've had in my inspiration file for a long time, from the now-defunct Metropolitan Home.

Shop Local, Part II

My second stop on Black Friday was the new location of J. Paris Designs in Cuyahoga Falls. This was a particularly gratifying experience. Just what shopping should be. I had been to J. Paris Designs' previous location, so it was exciting to see the store grow. The lovely owner, Jessica, and I chatted it up. We talked about repurposing, art, decor, color, etc. It was great fun! Everything that Jessica puts her hand to turns to gold. Not only is she a great artist, but she is a great businesswoman. So exciting to see a young woman know herself so well, and to be so brave. Jessica is a great example of following your dream.  She's doing what she loves and making it happen. Jessica, you go girl! There were so many beautiful things in the store, I was there for a while. I should have taken more photos, but don't worry, there are photos on J. Paris' website, and I plan to go there again soon!

Look at this dresser!  Swoon! I hemmed and hawed about buying it. It perfectly fits my modern aesthetic, my love of gray and would look great in my bedroom. The price was reasonable too. I am totally in love with Jessica's take on ombre.  The drawers are done in a light to dark ombre.  The handles are the exact opposite, done in a dark to light ombre. Genius!  I never would have thought of that. I agonized over my desire for the dresser and my desire not to spend money (what am I doing shopping?). I measured the dresser, discussed layaway and delivery terms with Jessica. Walked around the store and seriously debated the dresser in my mind. I may be moving (yes, again) and am trying to hold off on buying anything big. I knew full well the dresser wouldn't last. I didn't buy, and it sold that night.  Ah c'est la vie. It makes me happy to know that someone is loving it.

This piece also caught my eye.  It's a bit ornate for my taste, but I am so digging that deep turquoise color and the skillful application of paint. Jessica and I had fun arranging these gorgeous pillows on the chair. This piece didn't last either. In fact, a customer who came in just a few minutes after me bought it.

This lovely gray cabinet is done by one of the vendors of the store. Even though I'm not really into the washed look of shabby chic any more (this was a look I did for a long time), it's a great piece. I found myself fantasizing about arranging my tea pots and pottery collection on it.

Now here is something more my style, and I dearly love it.  Love the retro look and the simplicity of this desk. There was so much I wanted in this store, including some of her fab fixtures which I neglected to photograph - oh well next time.  I did buy a couple of unexpected items for my apartment.  So, of course, this prompted another rearranging of my apartment.  Stay tuned, I will show you my new stuff in an upcoming post.

I Love .... Acrylic!

I feel like my apartment is done, I like it simple and sparse.  But... I'd love to have an acrylic piece!  I adore how well they fit in a small place, as they take up no visual weight.  I especially love them on white floors, so airy they appear to float.  Here's some lovely acrylic pieces.

Love the acrylic Louis Ghost Chair designed by Philippe Starck.  Image Louise Roe.

The Victoria Ghost Chairs (also designed by Starck) look perfect with this industrial table and white floor!  Swoon!  Image via sfgirlbybay.

Cute acrylic console serves as a desk and fits neatly under a set of stairs.  Brenda & Harry's Contemporary Coach House via Apartment Therapy.

I love the idea of putting a table runner on this acrylic coffee table to add a dash of color.  House to Home.

Ghost chairs and an acrylic coffee table!  Be still my heart.  That hanging lamp is pretty amazing too.  Lamps Plus.

This is one of the most fascinating dining rooms I've seen.  I hope you will humor me, I simply must dissect it.    The acrylic chairs are the perfect foil to the heavy wooden table.  A perfect combination of hard and soft.  Look at that gorgeous white console!  I wonder if this is a custom piece, I'd love to have it in my entry way.  Of course, I'd pile pottery on it.  Its severe geometry is complemented by that totally fab lantern.  Perfect gray walls.  A very discerning eye created this room.  Daymon's Open Plan with an Open View Rental via Apartment Therapy.

I love a traditional chair reinterpreted in a non-traditional material.  Typically, I find a wing back chair too heavy and stuffy.  Not so when it's made of acrylic!  I love the airiness of this room.  And check that hanging light.  Too fab.  Lex & Lynn's Not Boxed In via Apartment Therapy.

Got Legs? Part Two

In my post below, I featured a beautiful apartment where all the furniture has legs.  I love the look of elevating the furniture from the floor.  It makes a place look airy.  That's why I am in love with my Danish sofa.  I adore ottomans with legs and bookcases with legs.  Turns out I am not the only one obsessed.  Here are some great ideas if you need add or show off legs in your place.

I love this idea!  Custom legs for Ikea furniture by Pretty Pegs.   Those pink ones are pretty sweet.  Would be fun to make a coffee table using those.

I've been seeing this look a lot lately, where it looks like the legs have been dipped in paint.  I especially love when it looks like they have been dipped in a neon color.

Also love the look where the legs are exposed.  Kind of like the chair is wearing panty hose.  Sexy.  Above two images Koskela via My Attic.

Here the top of the leg is left exposed.  Love the injection of hot pink with the the wood and neutral color scheme.  Image via The Style Files.

Here the top of the leg is painted the same color as the table top, and the bottom is exposed.  I love the white and the peak of the real materials the table is made of.  I adore this table, I'd like to have it for my work desk.  It's not often I see a table I like as much as the Parsons.  Image via Koskela.

Designer extraordinaire, Anna from Door Sixteen is a master at injecting hot pink into her mostly black and white home.  She painted these legs on her sofa.  I'm thinking about copying this idea.

Here's another great idea called the Tick System by designer Jacob Schenk.  The legs are wire sculpted into a pure form.  They can be easily hooked onto any piece of wood to make a simple looking table.  Another great idea in sustainability.  I love them.  I hope we will be able to get these in the U.S.

OTT Girly Decor

Dear readers, I've been loving all white rooms, and have been seeing a lot of romantic neutrals that are intriguing me.  I had an all white post prepared, but you know how it is.  Stress sometimes takes us in a different direction.  It's been a very stressful week, so let's have some more clean, girly fun shall we?  We'll save the all white rooms for tomorrow.   Here's some over the top decor from my inspiration file.  Many are ideas I'd like to use in a studio apartment, and of course, feature pink.

 Shoot Factory

Here's a great idea if you live in a studio apartment.  Make the bed a feature.  Love the curtains and pillows.  So romantic.
 

 The Novogratz

I am loving anything over sized these days.  Love the over sized pink chairs, love the Debbie Harry (one of my idols) art.

 Alex Fulton's Flirtatious Use of Crazy Color via Apartment Therapy

Just when I thought I didn't like red!  Love the color of this wall, love the painting.

 Bolig Magasinet

Is it possible to be in love with a refrigerator?  Yes it is!  I've already professed my love for the Smeg fridge (see previous post here).  It's especially fab in pink!  And dig that hot pink floor.  Yum.

 Fabulous Mess

I love this 70s molded fiberglass set.  So gorgeous, can be used inside or outside.  I could see these in a modern loft.

 

Wall Art Design

I love big wall decals!  This seating area is so cute with the round sofa, pink pillows and white floors.

Karim Rashid 

You already know I love me some Karim, he's one of my favorite designers.  I need to do an updated post on him.  He's amazingly prolific and he loves pink.  I really dig that pink sofa.  I love how his furniture doesn't reflect any specific time period.

Have you noticed that the best lamps are sold in the UK?  I need this spindle lamp from Habitat.  Here's some cute pillows I saw at Target the other day.  Love the sculptural details.  Love the cool gray combined with the hot pink, but I didn't buy them.  I have enough pillows - if that's possible.

Metallics!

I adore metallics and definitely want to include some in my decor for Fall.  I want to use more cool colors.    Grays, silvers, blues and lots of fun metallics.  By now, you are sick of hearing me talk about the Novogratzes, but I can't help it!  I love their work!

Did you see this stunning apartment they decorated on their show on HGTV?  I adore it.  It's like they plucked it right out of my mind.  I adore the combination of blues and the metallics.  I've written many times of my love for silver on this blog (see previous posts here).   Here are some silver accessories I'd love to add to my apartment.

The Audrey Chair from Chiasso.  Drool.

 The Grace chair would work well too.  Also from Chiasso.

Ottoman and pillow from Chiasso.  Candle holders from Z Gallerie.  I already have the perfect vase from the yard sale I described below.

OTT Decor and Tons of Color

Dear readers, I have a ton of pictures in my inspiration folder that I'd like to share.  You already know that I've been obsessing about color and OTT decor for some time. For Fall I'm thinking of going in the completely opposite direction.  I am anxiously looking forward to cooler weather, and that leads me to think of cooler more relaxing colors. As you know, I've also been obsessing about gray for a long while and am itching to paint an apartment in a sultry gray.  But for now, I thought I'd have a last summer blow-out if you will.  Here's a bunch of cool ideas and over the top color.  Hope you enjoy!

 

I love a monochromatic room!  This room is intriguing, although I don't think I could live in a red room.  I could probably live here if it were all done in a lighter pink though.  What about you?  Could you live in a red room?  I do dearly love the pillows and the modern lamp.  Wallpaper is having a huge resurgence, but I'm still not completely sold.  I think I was traumatized by the time I ripped all of the wallpaper out of an old house.  Ripping wallpaper is a nightmare!

If I were going to go monochrome, I'd prefer blue.  Perhaps I'm just more drawn to the cooler colors.  I love this room, love the funky sofa.  The paint treatment in this photo is a lot easier to change than wallpaper if you get tired of it.  Notice the pillow, it's the gorgeous pillow from Yoskay Yamamoto that I wrote about here.  Go Yoskay!  Above two images via Living Etc.

Oh boy.  They are really selling the wallpaper thing hard.  I must admit I love this look, although I know I'd grow tired of it.  Here's a couple of options if you are wall-paper challenged.  Do a stenciling treatment instead, or buy a big piece of wallpaper and frame it.  I adore the Asian lanterns with the Honami ceramic stools from Anthropologie.  I need a couple of those.  

If you're digging the Asian thing (as I am!), here's some cool pictures courtesy of Jo at Desire to Inspire.  Jo recently snapped these pictures of Freedom's Summer range at a show in Sydney, Australia.  I'm glad she did - I think they are fab!  I love the bench and console table.  Also really love the lighting.  I think that's a pretty easy idea you could do at home with supplies from World Market.

I've always loved the look of mismatched chairs and this is a particularly great example of the look.  Love the colors and love that they are all vintage. Image Wes Bennett. If you love sleek, industrial and repurposed furniture and lamps, you gotta check out Wes' shop.  It's awesome.  I love his profile too.  He reminds us that our purchases on Etsy help "fuel the rise of the creative class."  Dig it.  I'm all for that.  I think this look needs to be amped up with a totally awesome chandelier.

Speaking of funky, repurposed lamps, how do you like this "the birds and the bees" chandelier?  This is a pretty fun idea.  I saw this in a small shop on Bainbridge Island when I was in Seattle recently.  The owners embellished a cylinder lamp with birds and bees they got at a craft shop.  They told me you never know how the lamp will look because they change it on a whim.  Image by Peggy.

Even though I'm not a fan of wallpaper, I'm in love with large decals.  I love the graphic punch of this one against the black wall.  By the way, I don't see any indication that the accent black wall trend is going away any time soon.  Not that trends really matter anyway.  What matters is that you love your home and have fun with it.  Image Roger Davies.

Let's face it.  Flower art has been done to death.  The only way to make it fresh is to make it big!  I love this big peony in an entry way featured in Martha Stewart Living, May 2011.  The peony is from a mural designed by Eric Beare and is available at Murals Your Way.  They also do custom murals, but it doesn't look like they are cheap.

In keeping with my continuing love of the Novogratzes, here is another wall treatment I love.  A collage of fashion photography.  This is something I've always wanted to experiment with.

I told you, wallpaper manufacturers are selling it hard.  This wallpaper is too groovy.  I'd love to see it paired with a couple hot pink Queen of Love Armchairs by Moro-Pigatti.  This fab chair is a reinterpretation of the classic Louis XV.  I adore reinterpretations of classic furniture, done in unexpected materials and colors.   Wallpaper image This Next via Lovely Black and White.

I always love large art in a room.  I prefer to see a large piece rather than a grouping.  But here's another idea I like.  Notice the one patterned chair in an otherwise mostly neutral room.  This is a great way to use pattern and make it pop.  It's not too much and even though the chair is very colorful, the room still looks simple.  (I miss Metropolitan Home, don't you?)

Decor, for me, is really all about juxtapositions, and here's another a cool one to try.  Forget modern sofas.  Head to vintage stores and grab that granny chic sofa.  Then pair it with industrial looking, unexpected coffee tables and lights.  The crate in this photo works well, as does the modern hanging lamp.  Notice the pop of color comes from the sofa and almost everything else is neutral.  Image Design Sponge.

If you're not feeling sure what colors you want to live with, here's a great idea.  Pillows!  Pillows can be easily changed on a whim and they add great texture and luxury to a space.  I prefer to keep pattern to a minimum, but these work because they are all in the same color scheme.  I also adore the modern reinterpretation of the Warhol classic above the sofa.  Image via Apartment Therapy.

Well, dear readers, what do you think?  Do you see any ideas here you'd like to try?