The Weekend Design: June 2010

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Celerie Kemble

I love this room designed by Celerie Kemble of Kemble Interiors. It, along with the rest of the Upper West-Side Manhattan apartment, was featured in House Beautiful in Spring 2009. The living room and casual dining room (I know--not casual by most standards) is comfy yet tailored; abstracts can bring such relaxed sophistication. I particularly love the couch area--see the gray walls?!
I was reading about the very talented Mrs. Kemble. With a designer for a mother, Celerie grew up in West Palm Beach, Florida. She studied English Literature at Harvard. One smart cookie, after school, her bio says she was energized by a "complusion for design and home improvement." Since then she has been designing and has been featured in everything (look at her press section). She appears to be quite the inspiration.

Her design philosophy is evident in her work: "In life as in design, it is not perfection you should be after. There's beauty in the faded and worn, the well loved, and the sentimental...After all, life has seams. Your home should be like a loosely woven fabric of desires, memories, practical, notions, and even compromises." - Celerie Kemble

Monday, June 28, 2010

Penguin Classics

Aren't these books delightful?! The design is impeccable--fresh and vintage and only $20 a cover. Isn't Jane Eyre just perfect? I love how Sense and Sensibility bespeaks propriety and restraint. Penguin hit the mark. See you tomorrow...

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Paris Hotel Boutique

Shut-up! This store is amazing--all the French and vintage goods your heart could desire. I've included some of my favorites below. I am seriously tempted to make a hasty purchase or two. Do you have a favorite? Check them out.

Inspiration Boards

I have been helping a girlfriend transform a space in her home recently. We stripped the room to its bones and started over with only a picture for inspiration. Having such a blank slate made me think about idea or inspiration boards. You know, those boards that the designers like Candace Olsen of Divine Design create while they flip through their over-the-top wallpaper and flooring books? I believe this to be the perfect way to approach design projects. Unfortunately, we oftentimes don't get to start from scratch. Rather, we rifle shot our problem areas by changing the pillows, a picture, or the paint on the walls. So, I challenge you--synchronize those not so blank rooms in your house. Define the sources of texture, color, form, and depth. Take everything down--all your accessories--and place them together in the center of your room. Make the normative analysis--this area should have texture, or color, or a picture, and then mix-up what you have. I bet you won't arrange it the same way twice. Change can be so refreshing.

I've included some examples of inspiration boards below. The board with the beads and hydrangeas was for one of the many christmas trees in the White House this past Christmas. The last board is the designer's vision for what could have created Audrey Hepburn's character Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's; so fun! A mood board is simply a place to collect one's design thoughts and get inspired!

Traditional Home

HGTV - White House 2009

Feature on Artist D'Ette Cole - Apartment Therapy

HubPages

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

The New Project

I've mentioned this little concoction to some of you, but now, to all, here are the details. As is likely obvious, I spend a lot of time on the internet perusing all there is to see. I spend time on Etsy, blogs, web-stores, newspapers, and magazines. I've decided I would like to get to know some of these amazing designers. And many of them, thankfully, are graciously conceding to do a little interview. In the coming weeks, I will introduce you to some fabulous women (and hopefully a few men) who have jumped head first into the world of design and antiques, jewelry, floral design, and home goods. I hope you enjoy their incredible stories. I've included a few pictures of their designs below. I've got a lot of work to do. See you soon!

Sky Blue

We've had a nice snap of breezy blue skies here in Orlando, so I thought I'd go with sky blue to celebrate! Something about Vintage Jane's Tin gets me--its been in my Etsy favorites for days! The photograph below is one of many at abby try again. She offers greeting cards as well; good prices! Fish's Eddy is a shop not to be missed just north of Union Square in Manhattan. They have the most quirky designs and a steady stock of American glassware. I included the sequins for the practically minded. Enjoy.

Blue Willow Tin - Vintage Jane's Etsy Shop

Victorian Floret Earrings - Sundance

bright flowers - abby try again

Eye Winker Opal Pitcher - Fish's Eddy

Rothko Sequins Dress - French Connection

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

The Power of White

Tomorrow I promise your color boost and details about my project (but only enough to whet your appetite!). But, 'til then, hop over to Elle Decor, I am loving their "Power of White" slideshow. In particular, pay attention to the way white can be manipulated to be light, airy, and feminine, or cold, calculated, and somewhat masculine (I said somewhat!). Check it out; it has a little something for everyone!

Gabriel de la Portilla

This was my favorite room in the slideshow. I think I'm destined to have a white table like that. Or, at least its nice to dream it is so. Good night.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

A New Project

Girls, I have a little project up my sleeve I think you will enjoy. I'm so excited! I spent this weekend pondering the details...I'm hoping to have the reveal early next week! I've been thinking about poetry today; who knows why. So, I thought I would share one of my favorites with you.

If all the ships I have at sea
Should come a-sailing home to me,
From sunny lands, and lands of cold,
Ah well! the harbor could not hold
So many sails as there would be
If all my ships came in from sea.

If half my ships came home from sea,
And brought their precious freight to me,
Ah, well! I should have wealth as great
As any king who sits in state,
So rich the treasures that would be
In half my ships now at sea.

If just one ship I have at sea
Should come a-sailing home to me,
Ah well! the storm clouds then might frown,
For if the others all went down
Still rich and proud and glad I’d be,
If that one ship came back to me.

If that one ship were down at sea,
And all the others came to me,
Weighed down with gems and wealth untold,
With glory, honor, riches, gold,
The poorest soul on earth I’d be
If that one ship came not to me.

O skies be calm! O winds blow free--
Blow all my ships safe home to me.
But if thou sendest some awrack
To never more come sailing back,
Send any--all that skim the sea--
But bring my love-ship home to me.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Monet, Claude, Sailboat in Le-Petit-Gennevilliers. 1874. Collection Simons. USA

Angie Hranowsky

Having included a peak into Angie Hranowsky's "Lakeshore Drive" Project, I couldn't help but share a few more pictures with you. The spread in Charleston Magazine was entitled "Mid-Century Glamour." I love it--the color, texture, and simplicity. Take notes girls, this gal has been featured in House Beautiful, Traditional Home, Domino, Metropolitan Home, as well as many other design magazines. (Can you believe two of the four magazines listed have recently closed their doors? Metropolitan Home closed its doors in December 2009. Domino closed its doors in March 2009).

Friday, June 18, 2010

Suzani

Early last year, I was reading Charleston Magazine and admired Angie Hranowsky's home featured in their Spring 2009 Issue. I noticed the pattern on the chair and bed, finding it intricate, but casual. Since then Suzanis have been showing up everywhere. Suzan is Persian or Farsi for "needle." It refers to central Asian embroidered textile fabrics. It commonly includes the round disk-like designs, with flowers and vines. This article from House Beautiful provides an interesting history of how the textiles were discovered, and the tradition behind these beautiful threads.

Suzani patterns are everywhere!

Suzani Fabric - Donghia

Suzani Embroidered Frames - Burke Decor

Decorative Pillow - Elegantouch's Etsy Shop

Suzani Red Invitations - Paper Concierge

Parker Chair - Crate & Barrel

Nurata Napkin - Anthropologie

An Education

There are only two ways to live your life.

One is as though nothing is a miracle.

The other is as if everything is miracle.

-Albert Einstein

Life, my dears, can become so daily. I find that learning goes a long way in exciting the monotony. Understanding the connection in things, their origin--the full import of their meaning--is energizing to me. Design is generous to its admirers in this respect. Trends play themselves out from fabrics to jewelry to paint colors to cars. For example, I recently read about a car company who has hired a slue of fashion designers to help them design their new body styles.

So, I thought I would inform all of you that, for better or worse, you are signing on to become educated about design. I'm going to do some research and inform us on the terms that denote different styles or particular forms. Rest assured, I am a very studious individual--I'll be an over-achiever fellow student of yours in our journey. Shall we begin?

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Navy

I'm about to run to help a friend re-do her family room. Tonight we are finishing the priming and taping...nothing worse than a hasty paint job. But, I couldn't forget your color boost. Here is a dose of navy.