Dining In Style

Dining Rooms and Nooks can be very high impact places in a house's design, depending on their location.  I recently completed some refurnishing of a client's Dining Room and Nook.  The Dining Room was directly off the entry and turning the corner into the Kitchen you look directly into the Nook, so these are highly visible spaces.  It's important that these places are not only functional for everyday eating but also for entertaining.  A lot of social gatherings center around food so the eating areas get a lot of exposure. 

Here is the dining room with it's stunning long table that comfortably seats 10.  One of the design parameters was that 10 placemats could lay nicely on the table without overlapping.  Luckily, this room was the perfect size to permanently accommodate the long table (128" long).

Dining Room

Dining Room with custom tablecloth

 Adding correctly proportioned art and back cushions to the existing benches made the Nook a more inviting space.  Previously, a line of throw pillows were used to cushion the back but they made it difficult to slide in and out.  These fixed cushions supply a small pop of blue color on the buttons that is accented throughout the home.

Nook with custom tablecloth, pillows and back cushions

With family or friends, my clients can now dine in style!

Photos by Rebecca Ward

Color Seasons

Each December, Pantone publishes its color of the year, which I usually am prompt to report.  They also release each season's colors.  Pantone mostly dictates to the fashion industry but there is usually a quick trickle down into interior and home fashions.  The colors we see in our fashion magazines we also want to see in our shelter magazines and on the shelves of our stores.

I recently took a look at the Fall colors to see an overview of what is currently showing now that we are already in to September and then a look at the Spring projections.  I found them to be very similar, naturally but the subtle differences do reflect the change in the season:

Fall 2012 via Pantone

Spring 2013 via Pantone

Spring has left out the browns and greys and has a more crisp yellow and blue tones.

Do you pay close attention to the seasons' colors or do you stick to your favorites?

White Hot

I have been very attracted lately to "white hot" interiors and photos.  Bright Whites with saturated indigo and fuchsias.  The contrast of hot and cold colors is very refreshing, bright and cheerful.  A cool splash in the pool on a scorching day. 

I remembered that I had this book by Tricia Guild.  While this book is over 10 years old, I think her color principals in here are still pertinent.  White is timeless and never out of fashion.  Such beautiful, exotic imagery and text throughout the book.  The photography is captivating.  I find myself drawn to them often for inspiration or just to refresh my eyes - like sorbet cleanses the palate.

How do you feel about "white hot" interiors?

Photos by Rebecca Ward

Looking Good

I have been reviewing my finds from my trip to Las Vegas Market and still am finding a lot of inspiration from these great items.  Let me share some of the good looking pieces I am loving:

Which is your favorite?

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Photos by Rebecca Ward

Design: Sacramento

I haven't done an installment in this column for a while but I found something worthy of noting for Design: Sacramento - I only wish I had noted it earlier!  Listen up my Sacramento readers!

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If you love design and are looking for something fun to do tomorrow, Sunday the19th, head to midtown and join the Design Rides on their bike ride around midtown's design hot spots!  They will be stopping in one of my favorites, Scout Living.

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If you can't make it this weekend, like me, they have another on planned for October 14th.

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What a great idea!

Photos via Facebook and Scout

New Ravenna Mosaics

I have been drooling the past few minutes over these fabulous tile mosaics.  They were too good to keep to myself.  After checking my inbox for new product emails I casually clicked through to this one and am glad I did!  The photos speak for themselves but be sure to visit New Ravenna Mosaics to see all the great inspiration!

Via New Ravenna Mosaics

Via New Ravenna Mosaics

Via New Ravenna Mosaics

Via New Ravenna Mosaics

Via New Ravenna Mosaics

Went To Market

I made a whirlwind trip down to Las Vegas to see what's new from my vendors and then find some new vendors. Success on both accounts! I just wish I had more time to spend there, but alas, with all my client projects I could only afford to spend two days out of my busy week down there.
Besides visiting showrooms and taking a few CEUs, the market kept us designers well fed and entertained. Monday night had a circus in the breezeway complete with carnival food.
I will go into more detail about my great finds at market in the posts to come. In the meantime, have a great weekend!