Tea Room Mood Board

I've always wanted to design a tea room. This room would be highly meditational and would exude gentle, quiet calm. It would also be a romantic place where people only speak in whispers. Over the past few days I've been obsessing about grey, silver and low-scale furnishings. These would be perfect elements for a tea room. Here are my mood boards for this room.

Images clockwise from top left: tea tray and tea pot from Le Souk; Buddha fountain from Z Gallerie; tea cups from CB2; ottoman from West Elm (would need four of these to place around the table); rug design my own; low Japanese table from jtansu; Noguchi lamp from Room and Board - I think two of these in the middle of the table would be cute; I would buy various sequined slippers from the dollar store and line up by the door in put in a basket; salt and pepper shakers from CB2 - I would buy one for each setting and fill with cinnamon or chocolate. Anything that would be yummy in tea.

Various silver pillows carelessly thrown around the room. Clockwise from top left: top two pillows from Ebay; pebble collection from Brocade Home; Glamorama pillow from Pangaya (Pangaya also has beautiful floor pillows, and I adore their sea glass dishes even though they are pricey - but hey, they are art!); Sterling pillow by Phoenix at Super Comfort; pillow cover from Direct Silver Plus - omigosh only $9.99!). There were many more beautiful pillows, but I think you get the idea.

Now what about the wall color? Moody, romantic. Soft chocolate brown? Soft peach or salmon? Soft pink? Something flat from Behr, of course. Ahh. Another color to consider. My favorite way to occupy my mind.

Gray Inspiration and Low Scale

Yesterday I wrote quite a bit about how I love the soft feeling of gray. I also wrote about how I love low scale furnishings and accessories. Then I saw this image from Zara Home via decor8. I about flipped! What a gorgeous, sexy, cozy room! Love the Moroccan/Asian feel to it. The layout of this room would be perfect for a small studio like mine. The bed and sofa are one! I adore the wrap around headboard, the pile of pillows, the rug and the ottoman. I would love to find out who styled this room. It is amazing.

I would probably edit the chair, the box next to it and the branch. But that's just me. I like sparse rooms, and I almost always want to edit. That goes for almost every room I look at, including my own. In place of the chair I'd like to see a low bench with tea lights lined up on it. By that's my two cents, and keep in mind, two cents isn't worth much. It's still an amazing room and I adore it. Makes me want to curl up and take a nap.

Holly, thanks for always being an inspiration and for sharing this link. When did you say they are coming to the U.S.?

Tea Bowls

Oh dear. Here's another item to add to my list of obsessions. The tea bowl. I love them. It makes sense really since I love simplicity, Asian design and pottery. I also adore beautiful objects are functional and ceremonial.

Made by Brother Thomas available at Pucker Gallery.

From flickr user O2ma. If you haven't seen O2ma's flickr set, you simply must. It is a gorgeous display of thoughtful simplicity. Perfect for when you are having a chaotic day at work and you need to goof off and calm down.

Made by flickr user Nesting Emily.



Here's a modern spin by Susan Smith Clay at Etsy. I love it!



Tea bowls by Diana Fayt. These had been available at Diana's Etsy shop, and must have been very popular! They sold out quickly! I'll be watching her Etsy shop to see if more become available. Diana is a wonderful ceramist and artist. Her home page is here. Diana's flickr set is here and her Etsy shop is here. I admire Diana so much, she is so prolific, she is the breed of bird I aspire to be. An artist who supports herself with her art. Go girl!

Flickr Envy or I love Gray

I got such a kick out of Bijou Kaleidoscope's entry yesterday called flickr envy, I wrote about it below. The home she featured was certainly deserving of envy. Those of us who are addicted to design and home decor know this envy all too well. You see a home and suddenly you don't like your home anymore. You want to throw everything away and start over. You don't do that, but you think about it. The wonderful part is the home that inspires envy also inspires creativity and you do change something about the way you do things. Creativity is a marvelous process that continually folds back on itself.

I'd like to follow suit with Drey, and show my flickr envy. It is the home of Nadja Mueller, in designsponge's flickr set. I once had a yoga teacher tell me that grey was the color of depression, and I immediately rejected that notion. I love gray, and feel it has an almost spiritual or ethereal quality to it. Grey used well is calming and is beautiful used with silver. Don't believe me that grey is a beautiful color? Then check out the marvelous blog Another Shade of Grey. You will change the way you think about grey.

Nadja's home is an amazing study of grey and calm. She's got some great pottery too!

I adore those lamps. I wonder if she made the hanging lamp.

I adore empty spaces like this. So full of potentiality. I can picture Nadja doing yoga here while facing the windows. I would probably edit out that rug, but that's just me. That's one of my idiosyncrasies in the way I decorate - I don't really like rugs, but often find them necessary to reduce the chill. This rug is too bold in my humble opinion, but perhaps Nadja wanted a bold touch. And if you're going to use a bold touch, than what better way to do it than using hot pink? And never to be forgotten - this is her home, not mine.

The other thing I love about Nadja's decor is how she has lowered the scale of her furnishings and accessories. This is something I've been trying to achieve in my own decor. I love low scale, especially when combined with high ceilings.

Great vases. Love how she piles her books on the floor.

Gorgeous, just gorgeous. Look at that simplicity, but yet it's cozy. I adore that genie ceramic bowl on that table. Please email me if you know its source.

Adore the Jongerious vase and the large clunky beads on the floor. Perhaps these are prayer beads? I love the idea of having them on the floor, would make an excellent walking meditation or focusing tool. Walking by the beads is a reminder of the sacredness of home.

And here is the heart chakra of her home. Just look at that sofa! How gorgeous. Witty, yet soft. Wish I had some details about this sofa, perhaps she painted the cover herself?

This decor is a stunning achievement. I adore it. Nadja and Design Sponge, thank you for being an inspiration.

Perspective in Online Shopping

I adore the convenience of online shopping. Funny, I've only been shopping online for the past year. Like everyone, I guess I'm getting a little more techie every day and I wonder how I ever lived without the internet. Online shopping saves time and gas, although I do get concerned about the amount of waste generated by the packaging. Oh well, this is not intended to be a post on green thinking (that will come later).

This is intended to be a post on perspective and dimensional reality. As my readers know, I adore pottery. I have been wanting to order these beautiful glory vases from Z Gallerie for a while. I have a problem with perspective, though. Even though they give the dimensions, I can never figure out how big something is, and am sometimes disappointed because something is too small or too large.

The other day I was walking at an outdoor mall admiring Christmas lights. I was not shopping, but I stumbled upon Z Gallerie! I was stunned. Here was a store I knew only by its online presence, so I went in. It's strange to see a real store after only having shopped online. Much like the time I saw the New York subway. It didn't seem real to me, the movie version seemed real because it was what I was accustomed to.

Well, let me tell you. The glory vases are HUGE! I was glad I didn't order. Oversized vases are all the rage right now and are very cool done correctly. But they have to be in a minimal, organic environment with almost nothing else to compete with their kingly presence. And my place is way too small for these.

I adore the simple shape and the matte finish, though. Man. Wish they were about half this size. I tried to picture a home these would work in. Then today I discovered the totally-enviable home of flickr user hibbardjennifer via the marvelous blog Bijou Kaleidoscope. Warning: if you suffer from home-envy disease do not click Jennifer's link. Her home is gorgeous!

My gosh, look what's on top of her gorgeous mantel! The glory vases! She has really rocked those vases. Proving they do work in the right environment. I must say that is one groovy lamp. Like the glory vases this lamp requires exactly the right environment. Jennifer's decorating is a stunning achievement, but Jessie - so is your home! I mean no one rocks a kitchen the way you do! Don't hate your home! :)

Here are some more beautiful vases from Z Gallerie. Priced very affordably and with more economic footprints than the glory vases.

They also had some cool (very large) Buddhas.





I love this white Buddha fountain.

I stumbled into Secret Closet, another store I only knew by its online presence. I had been thinking about ordering the gallery vase online. I have been looking for a cheap alternative to the Pietra bowl that I wrote about here. I adore the Pietra, but it's just out of reach right now.

It was interesting to see the gallery vase in person. The vase in this shot looks solid. It's not. It's hollow. It is gorgeous, and the shape very elemental which I love. It's $50.00 which is still a little high, but much more manageable. Problem is it's not white and matte like it appears. It's off-white and shiny. Maybe that's okay since the shape is so wonderful.

Sometimes it is difficult to have a very specific aesthetic and a small budget. Wish I were a potter. But I am sure it takes many years to attain the skill that is required for the beautiful vases that I crave.

Display as Art, Vol. II

When I look at a beautiful room, my eye automatically gravitates toward the objects a decorator has chosen to curate. I've been writing a lot about my fascination for display, see previous post here.

When I design a room, I actually build it around the accessories. To me it is the accessories that speak of who a person is. But, it's not enough to just haphazardly collect. Collections done with restraint, where display and object interact, are a constant source of fascination.

I'd like to share a few more examples of what I consider superior display. The first is Julie and Andrew's home tour on Apartment Therapy.

Julie and Andrew's home is a fascinating study in curating. It is especially intriguing how they display either discarded objects, or every day objects as art. Things that are beautiful, but might normally be overlooked. Julie and Andrew invite you to take a second look at ordinary objects and to rethink what is aesthetically pleasing.

I adore the pipe, painted and mounted over the mantel, a discarded object turned into geometric simplicy. The objects displayed on the mantel are intriguing as well and unified by their common shade of white. Quirky, challenging and simple all at the same time. Notice how they've displayed objects, yet the look is not cluttered. A stunning achievement. The third picture demonstrates the power of repetition of a simple representation. I would love to sit in this thoughtful home and discuss art with the owners. Julie and Andrew, great job and thanks for sharing! Please take the time to see the rest of their home tour, I highly recommend it.

And speaking of repitition, OMG just look at this image from Ted Allen and Barry Rice's home featured in Elle Decor.

Here is proof of the impact of multiple simple objects. A display of moon lamps, be still my heart! Allen and Rice create a wonderful display, still achieving a simple, uncluttered look by sticking to a theme. I love the way they have displayed these lamps McElheney fashion and make a wall of light. I'm sure this must be stunning lit up, and may steal is idea.


This image is from the October 2007 Metropolitan Home. The home is designed by Betty Wasserman and is done beautifully and with soft restraint. I could live in this home. The objects that are displayed throughout the house are sculptural glass and ceramic vases and bowls, lending a minimal feel to the decor. I absolutely adore the recessed wall display in this image. The vases in those recesses make a stunning, but unobtrusive presence in the room.

Do you have an interesting way of displaying the objects that you love? Send me an email, I'd be happy to hear about it, and maybe I'll post your display here.

Shop Local. Shop Independent.

Last week I wrote quite a bit about display as art. See previous posts, here and here. Today I'd like to share with you a local store that really rocks display. The Clothing Brigade. Upon entering the store, I was greeted warmly and treated patiently as I gushed about the the explosion of art and display and the interplay between the two. The staff are are sweeties! How wonderful it must be to work with creative people!

The first thing I noticed upon entering was this gorgeous display by men's clothing designer, Dana Hardy.

I've been wanting to spray paint branches. Dana explained that the secret to the high gloss is enamel spray paint for appliances. Cool. I adore this, and can imagine how fun it would be to change the objects in the branches.

Next I noticed this fab light fixture. I want it for my dining room! Dana told me that her boyfriend made it. Awesome.

Creative display was everywhere. Vintage military suitcases and branches held shirts and hats.

Continuing the military theme is this amazing stencil work done by artist Brandon Vondrek.

Here's more of Brandon's work:

Creation is a necessity. Damn straight.

Coffee table with detail. Who doesn't want a brawny man on their table?

Brandon's work is obviously influenced by street art, but it's so much more than just that. His art is deep, thoughtful and tempered by local inspiration. He turns the inconographic image of the blue collar worker into art, much like the hip Communist propaganda currently being reinterpreted by Chinese artists. In addition, it is fascinating to note that Brandon uses metal as his medium. In a nod to his home town, Brandon has honored the tradition of the blue collar worker in what used to be a booming steel town.

This amazing screen print of Huey Newton of the Black Panther Party is by Sheppard Fairy of Obey Clothing. Images of revolutionaries are a staple in popular culture. In an earlier post, I wrote about a young man who was wearing a Che Guevera t-shirt. He explained to me that revolutionaries are motivated by great love for their people.

Okay, I probably need to add some yin to all this yang. They have cute girl stuff too. This cute little face was on a t-shirt, but I'd like to have her on a poster. As if the place isn't hip enough, here is some manga influence.

If you like pop culture, the Clothing Brigade has all the bases covered.

For Now

Remember the tulip chairs I found on the curb that I wrote about here?



I played with lots of different fabric, and finally decided that I would recover them in pink vinyl.

Here's what they look like now:

Another shot to add to the Incredible Changing Dining Area!

...

I started by applying primer. The very helpful person at Home Depot recommended Gripper by Glidden since I am unable to spray paint. It worked like a charm, so I decided my table needed a new coat as well. Work is very busy right now, so I won't have time to work on the set for a couple of months. Well, it just wouldn't do to have it looking not done, because I plan to have a couple of guests for the holiday season. So for now, I just added cushions from Target. Couldn't find pink, so got the next best thing. Red. I still intend to add high gloss white and pink cushions. But this works for now. I love my new chairs!

...

I am really pleased with the cost of this little dining area. The table cost nothing. It is actually three separate pieces found on the curb at three different times and then assembled. The chairs cost nothing. Glidden paint - $9.99. Two Target pillows - $9.99 each. Bottles on table, $.99 each at Salvation Army. Painting entitled "Red Sun" by me.

...

Ahh. It's good to be creative.

If Money Were No Object, Vol. II

Yoga Vasa and ETA Vasa by Guglielmo Berchicci. These are some of the most sublime vases I have ever seen. I adore them. Love the simplicity and gentle curves. I find these vases very sensual, and believe they must have been made by a tender hand. Handmade of fiberglass. Berchicci designs many beautiful things, including the fab lamp that I wrote about here.

Beautiful, sculptural handblown glass by John Pomp.


Friedl Kjellberg porcelain rice vase for Arabia. Available at Hi and Lo Modern.

Virtual Shopping

I'm doing all of my Christmas shopping on the internet and I love it! Here are some gifts I'd like to give or receive.

Ceramic pears from Chiasso.


Tea towel from Marimekko.



Scribble bowl by Diana Fayt.

Martha Stewart collander available at Macy's.

This falls into the "dig it but don't know why" category. I think this pillow is adorable! Available at Sprout Home.

Sequined pillow and floor pillow from Wake Up Frankie. This site is for teenagers, but I dig it! As my readers know, I'm really five years old.

Everyone needs a Buddha in their pocket. Available from Urban Outfitters.

Feng Shui desk set designed by Daphne Haefliger. I'm usually not into figurines, but these are so cute! Love the graphic nature of them. I think I need these for my desk to help me create new beginnings. Available at Acacia.

And look at this cute set! Hotei, the Wandering Buddha or sometimes called the Laughing Buddha. A reminder not to take ourselves too seriously. Also available at Acacia.