Wednesday, January 30, 2008

i'm leaving on a jet plane..


ok...not a jet plane but an suv....don't know when i'll be back again....ok, i do but i'm not telling!!
i'm off to ADAC, pieces, and home for a little visit. peace out and see you soon!

** here is a little something to make you happy on your hump day...i dedicate this song to this secret crush i have...a tall, skinny guy w/ brown hair who sits in a cubicle....ok, its my hubbie! love you!!

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

triple threat (actually it's a lot more then that...)




laura kirar- don't mess w/ her! she is killing it in the design industry (better watch your back barbara). not only is she a super successful interior designer, she is most widely known for her killer furniture designs for baker. when her barrel lounge chair from mcguire was introduced, i carried around the picture and said that you could sum up my design style by this one piece of furniture. i still think it is amazing (i hate that it has knock off's of it). she is also one of the 3 designers for kallista- a high style plumbing division from kohler. you can add an ann sacks tile designer to her resume...and if that is not enough how about a lighting designer for boyd.

Monday, January 28, 2008

i'll have mine straight up...





i don't know what it is but my husband totally got it right last night when he said "you hate things on the diagonal". it's true, i am not a diagonal kind of girl. another revelation i have discovered is that i like balance and repetition. i think it makes a room feel unified. these rooms are perfect examples of just that....
suzanne kasler's room looks so well unified between the color coordination of the books with the frames and the balance of height b/w the bookshelf and the arrangement of the pictures above the chest. barrie benson achieved a gorgeous room w/ the awesome way she displayed this Hermes plate collection above the two leather club chairs. and lastly, this dining room by tom scheerer is just perfection. the repetition of the circular mirrors above the white unconventional wall shelves is so pleasing to my eye. it's strange, i am not a black and white kind of girl but straight on, balanced designs are quickly becoming my cup of tea.

Friday, January 25, 2008

viceroy...part 2

ok, so this is part two to my viceroy piece and i must say, the bed side of this room is a little challenging. to really capture the look of the bed wall you need a carpenter and a glass cutter/ mirror guy. i know, kind of a cop out but i looked for some cool mirror that you could play w/ to create this patterned wall and it just didn't excited me like the original. the bedding is all white so i went w/ an Italian sateen collection and for the grey blanket at the bottom of the bed, i went w/ cashmere. the sconce was way hard to find so i had to opt for a drake table lamp (you have to scroll down on the website to see it). i adore this company and think it still stays w/ the feeling of the room. for the accent on the shade, we will need to add a yellow banding ourselves...sorry. now the chairs, i searched and searched for something close to the porfirio armchair...i found this 60's style asian armchair which looks pretty close if we have to swap out something for the original. you will need to remove the nail head trim and add a kelly green linen fabric. but most importantly, you need to have the fabric embroidered before upholstering it....kelly loves the embroidery palace if you live in LA. ok, the last element i think we need for this room is the coffee table. i adore this 1970's vintage one and think it fits right in w/ ms. kelly's look. well, i hope you like your room...until i have the chance to actually visit it in person, this will have to do! have a wonderful weekend!

Thursday, January 24, 2008

make my room a viceroy one (part one) ....

ok who doesn't adore the wearstler? so i thought it would be fun to take her widely popular "viceroy" hotel room and recreate some of its key components...(please bare w/ me- i am not very computer savvy and i don't know how to display a grouping of pictures.)
one of the key items in this room is the wallpaper. it's a foil and has a cane pattern appearance- couldn't find that one exactly but i thought that this trellis has the same feeling so i went with this one. oh, and did i mention that i am tweaking the room slightly...mainly b/c i like this chair and think it would look great w/ the wallpaper but still follows the idea of the Chippendale design and of course we will upholster the cushion in a slate grey linen. now, this dog lamp is different b/c its a foo dog (but kelly likes the foo) and it has a black shade but i think it works b/c it echos the black in the desk. oh i guess we need a desk- you will have to add the marble top, sorry! and we need the decorative hexagon plates. let's do this phone b/c after all, at your house you don't need a button for the front desk. ok, that should keep you busy for a little while. tomorrow, we will tackle the bedside of the room!

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

if i sent you a letter....










i would write it on a card like this.... stationery has totally become hip and classic and my fav- geometric. i adore these preppy note cards and if i was better at writing them, i'd send all of you one! jack and lulu (love the name, although i think if you put lulu in any name combo you've got a winner) make divine note cards. they actually inspired my business cards after receiving these from my sister-in-law (bet you couldn't guess what color it is). all of the note card designs are fab but i picked the lime tiles and windowpane orange and pink to share. another great place to get hip note cards is fabulous stationery. i am a huge fan of the metropolitan collection...again b/c they are bold and geometric. i adore the huge print of the trouble 2 note cards and large text block on stax makes a great statement....its like "hey, you totally just got a letter from SHANNON". ok, w/ that corny comment, i'm signing off...peace out and get yourself some hip note cards!

Monday, January 21, 2008

recycling the past






this weekend i did one of my favorite things....hunting (not for animals) but for the "perfect find". i adore going to antique malls, flea markets, and salvage yards in search for some undiscovered jewel! if you are going w/ something in mind, you usually come home disappointed but if you go just to look, you come home with lots of goodies. you have to be in a mood to dig and not be scared to do this. i found a cool old military trunk and for $10 in was definitely my "perfect find".
when i got home from hunting, i was so excited about what all i saw, i wanted to look more. so i checked out some salvage yards online. i love recycling the past. it has a plethora of jewels at the click of your mouse. you don't even have to dig to find them! here are some of my favorites: these industrial carts have so many undiscovered uses- i think it would make a cool coffee table if you had a piece of glass cut for the top of it! this tudor style door is so amazing- if you were building a house, it is great to find a cool old door and have it incorporated into your home- this could make a cool side door or door to a pantry or powder room. i also love these beautiful, old tiles; this art nouveau tile is circa 1890's and would make a gorgeous backsplash in a kitchen- remember that you are not limited to just new tile when you are planning a backsplash, creating a truly unique backsplash from vintage tiles can make a kitchen or bathroom! these are just some teasers to share w/ y'all. this website is so wonderful and has so many possibilities if you are in search of a "perfect find".