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Archive for the ‘DIY’ Category

Paper Pretty

Monday, March 28th, 2011

A while ago I ordered a FABULOUS piece of art for a client from Furbish which happened to simply be an amazing piece of handmade lace paper mounted and framed. When I perused the new items from West Elm I spotted a similar work and was reminded of how much I love this simple, abstract look.

Natural Curiosities sells a collection of framed handmade paper works that I also covet. The grey one makes me particularly weak in the knees.

But these pieces would be easily made by taking a trip to a local paper or art store a perusing for a decorative paper. I found a couple on Amazon (click images for links) and Kate’s Paperie that would look fabulous framed. And when you do it yourself, you can pick a great solid color paper to mount these on the coordinates with your decor! How fabulous would these light colored papers look on dark burnt orange, navy or red? Just pick up a can of spray mount, spray the back of the decorative paper and affix to the solid background. Pick up an affordable frame at Ikea and you are all ready to go! Since each piece will be different, making a series of three would be GORGEOUS.

Posted in DIY, art | 12 Comments »

Sneak Peek Perfection

Thursday, June 10th, 2010

Did you guys see this fabulous sneak peek on Design Sponge yesterday? If not, pop over and take a look. It’s the studio/home of Susan and William Brinson in NYC. He’s a photographer and uses the space to shoot so some of it is very bare bones and open, but the details that are there are amazing. It’s such a fabulous mix of vintage, collections, modern and DIY you can’t help but feel the bohemian creativity just oozing out of each room!

My favorite is the bedroom- that yellow duvet, those WINDOWS, the gorgeous deep blue lamp, the antique furniture… I just love it!

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I cannot get over this 100 light DIY chandelier they crafted themselves. It is GORGEOUS. Plus the gallery wall set off by the black wall color is simply divine. Black walls are my new favorite thing in the world. Next to puppies. And Twilight.

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Yet again, an argument for black walls. The knives look like art when against it!

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Here are some items that remind me of this space, so you could get the look on your own:

The Dwell Peacock Citrine duvet set. I am OBSESSED with this bedding.

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A double headboard like this one from Wisteria.

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Paintable embossed wallpaper, just like they used (and try my new favorite black paint, Martha Stewart’s Florence)

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The Edison chandelier from PB isn’t quite a rockin’ as their insane DIY one above, but it gives you that industrial look of exposed bulbs!

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These vintage style suitcases from Target are great for those who don’t feel like scouring flea markets and eBay for a set.

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Posted in DIY, crazy awesome | 14 Comments »

Head(board) Case.

Thursday, March 11th, 2010

I always get questions from clients about placing beds in front of windows. In some rooms, there is no alternative to putting a bed right in front of a window. So I thought I’d show a couple examples of how to make this work along with some other random thoughts on treating the wall behind the bed.

If you hate the idea of a bed in front of a window, you’ll want to conceal it. One way to do this is to layer window treatments to make it as cozy as possible. This image from Lonny below is a great example- by having a roman shade made of bamboo (kept down) flocked by long panels of curtains with tall, statement bedside lamps makes that wall feel purposely designed– not as though you are trying to hide something (even though you are).

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Another thing to do is to embrace the window. Treat the window like a headboard itself, or better yet, a work of art hung above the bed. This picture is a perfect example. again, long drapes are KEY here- you need to frame the window to make it look like the placement of the bed is on purpose, not a last resort. Also, the curtains then give you a solid background to place the lamps in front of.

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This might be my favorite treatment of a window behind a bed! This person installed a floor to ceiling sheer on a ceiling track to only slightly conceal the window, but also making a very ethereal, cool backdrop wall for the bed! I absolutely love it! The curtain makes the ceiling seem so much higher and filters beautiful light into the space (that baller chandy doesn’t hurt either).

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Sometimes the bed is JUST wider than the wall in between the windows in a bedroom, but the does not mean you can’t still put it there. The picture below shows how balanced it can look even if the proportions are a bit off.

bd2fdd5945c4 Another great way to conceal a window is by using a large folding screen behind the bed. I adore folding screens and think this is a great use for them, window or not! The genius DIY queen Jenny over at Little Green Notebook made this one from scratch all by herself (learn how to do it here).

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Some more screens as headboards:

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And just because we’re talking about this area of the bedroom, I have to mention my new favorite composition of hanging art or tall mirrors behind each nightstand instead of over the bed! I just used this on an e-design project (yes, I do remote e-design) hanging framed tall panels of wallpaper beside the bed, behind each nightstand and the using a sunburst mirror ABOVE the bed. LOVE LOVE LOVE. :)

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