Wintry White

Just as I believe that black, charcoal gray and chocolate brown help to ground a space, using white helps to refresh a space.  Here are a few white accessories that I think would look good in just about any space.

Viva Terra

Viva Terra

Carnegie (fabric)

How about a little black and white together?  Viva Terra.

West Elm

West Elm

CB2

Flower Art from Chiasso in Chicago.

-Sara

Home Office Envy

Image from http://www.philipgorrivan.com/port_city.html

Oh how I would love to tuck into an office like this.  I’ve loved the wall-of-books look for quite some time – isuwanee has a bookcase of the day feature that often confirms this love.  I wish that the windows in my home didn’t tend to be located so close to the corners of my rooms – I would love to build a wall like this.  I suppose for now I’ll have to settle for living in pictures.  My only addition would be a warm area rug (not too big – I wouldn’t want to lose that gleaming hardwood!).  Perhaps something like this

Felix rug from Crate and Barrel, or this

more budget minded option from Target.

What’s in your dream office?

-Kim

Currently Loving: Mod Lamps

I came across these lamps at Crate & Barrel just now and had to share them.

Aren’t they great?  These bright cubes of color may just do the trick lifting the winter doldrums!

-Sara

Oh Wisconsin

It’s almost February.  It’s cold here.  And dreary.  And if it’s not dreary/foggy/rainy/snowing….it will be sunny, and 14 degrees.  (That’s actually the forecast for Friday, and that’s the HIGH.)  It’s difficult to feel inspired when you’re riding a wave of vitamin D deficiency, but I’m trying.  The image above, which hopefully links to Kindred, is my winter desktop image for the second year in a row, and it helps.  It’s so simple, and so warm looking.  Also, it makes me want to knit, which I am slowly learning.  (My husband is thrilled, because it means I bought a ton of yarn, and tangled it into a giant knot when trying to wind it into a ball, and got frustrated, so he was nice enough to untangle it without strangling me with it.)  I also plan to adopt someone’s grandmother so that she can teach me more than the absolute basics.

-Kim

What do you do to keep inspired in the depths of winter?

My Dream Dining Room

When my husband and I bought our house, I bought furniture because we needed it.  Since we didn’t have a lot of money for said furniture, I had to buy what I could afford and not necessarily what I really wanted.  Sure, I found pieces that I liked in my price range, but if I had had more money I definitely would have bought different things.

Our furniture is holding up three years later, but I find myself dreaming about the pieces I hope to buy someday.  Call them our permanent pieces rather than starter pieces.  So far I’ve got our dining room furniture picked out.

First of all, The Table:

 

My dream table is simply a beautiful slab of wood.  I’d like the legs to be more refined than the ones shown here, but you get the general idea.  I was really excited to find the maker of this table, as he is located in Illinois and harvests trees from his own forest.  Granted, he (David Stine) is in southern Illinois and it’s about a six hour drive from where I live, but that’s a doable weekend trip!  Now I just need to start saving.  Otherwise, there is an affordable version that I also like sold at CB2, click here to see it.

Next, The Light Fixture:

 

This light fixture is from Viva Terra and I have been coveting it ever since I saw it–originally I really wanted the darker color, but now I’m leaning towards the white.  I think it would be beautiful over my future table. 

Finally, The Chair.  For the chair, I just want something very simple and classic so as not to compete with The Table and The Light Fixture.  While I love the nubby fabric shown on this chair from Crate & Barrel, I’d probably want my chairs to be leather so they’d be easier to clean up. 

I also love this chair, but could not copy the picture.

Guess I’d better start saving!

-Sara

Currently Loving

What’s this?? My ipod headphones wrapped neatly around my ipod and not snaking around every other item in my purse! It’s a miracle!

…Actually it’s my nifty new ipod case from the talented Angie of Byrd and Belle. I love the wool case cushioning my constant companion from (more) scratches, and the leather strap is a tailored touch (that smells good too)! I’d held off on getting a case for almost a year because I couldn’t find anything that really appealed to me. I love this one not only for looks and functionality, but I love that I’m supporting a local (in terms of LEED standards – she’s within 500 miles) artist. Plus I’m feeling a particular kinship toward her since she’s formerly in my field and was a victim of this crummy economy – but she doesn’t act like a victim at all. She took a crummy situation and turned it into a thriving small business, with write-ups everywhere from Etsy to the New York Times to Lifehacker.

Thanks Angie!

-Kim

Turquoise In Action

Recently Kim wrote a post about 2010’s forecasted hot color, turquoise.  Here are just a few images I’ve come across using turqoise while trolling around the internet.  The first two images are from Elle Decor:

That gorgeous wallcovering is a Stacey Garcia design carried by York Wallcoverings.  The last image is from West Elm:

Be sure to check back as I’ll be posting more images of this great color as I find them!

-Sara

Comforter follow-up

The article isn’t online yet as it’s in the most recent issue, but Real Simple magazine (one of my favorites!) did a Road Test article about comforters this month.  Their featured “Best Nondown Natural” pick was the Plumeria Bay Mulberry Silk! They also have a lot of other great suggestions, including FOUR that can be machine washed.

-Kim

Enlighten Me

I have this vision for a corner of my living room……cushy rug on the floor, armchair large enough to curl up in, maybe an ottoman, side table, shelves wrapping the wall above…and a lamp that would actually provide enough light to read without straining the heck out of my eyes. The ambient lighting in most living rooms is not directional enough to make a great reading nook without really leaning in to the side table on which that lamp probably sits. In my particular case, a ceiling mounted pendant (or pretty chandelier if I could only get my husband on board) will not work, as this corner is where I like to put my Christmas tree. Best to have something more easily moved. Therefore, I’m keeping my eyes open for the perfect floor lamp. Below are some of my inspirations! (they should link to their respective websites.)

I’ve definitely got a thing for this Bauhaus arc light from CB2

The counterweights here add an interesting touch.

I like this, but it might remind me too much of my studio desk lamp from college…

-Kim

One Designer's Inspiration

Personally, I find it very difficult to start any project without some form of inspiration, whether it is a certain product, color, pattern or theme.  So I am always interested in what inspires other designers.

In this case, designer John Saladino, used the famous Vermeer painting, Girl With a Pearl Earring, as inspiration behind his design for a Manhattan show house featured in Veranda.

I think he captured the quiet stillness of the painting quite well in this soft and elegant space.  I love all the grays and taupes he used in this space–they are my favorite colors to use in interiors.  They are very sophisticated, clean colors that act as a great neutral backdrop for the rest of the space.  And they have an edge over white in that they are not white!  White certainly has its place in spaces, as do off-whites and tans and beiges, but it’s nice to mix things up once in a while and use a gray instead.  It’s a very beautiful, subtle alternative.

My favorite image of this space is the stairwell leading up to the second floor.  I need to file that one away as inspiration for my dream house!  I also love, love, love the weathered wood floors found throughout the space and am quite sad that I didn’t think of refinishing my own wood floors before we moved in as it’s too big a chore to do now!

-Sara