i’m just seeing: trashy chic walls

today i pinned a bedroom image from a kelly wearstler design and it brought me back to the time when my sister and i did a similar treatment to walls in our bedroom with red hearts.  we could not afford wallpaper or have the least idea how to get it, but with all the red paper our few dollars could buy, away we went cutting till every sizeable inch of paper was used to create our wall love fest, a random display of chalky red hearts scotch taped to the walls.

who would have thunk a nine and ten year old could be so trendy 20, 30 or how ever many years (who’s counting anyway…) ago before someone else stole our idea? just kidding, kelly… i’m sure we thought the idea was stellar back then.  and as amazing we girls still are, today i would love to share someone who has completely turned our little girl folly into an idea that is high style.  let me introduce you to Payton Cosell Turner, the brain child behind the creative use of ordinary dime store (or for you younger tykes, dollar store) stickers.  her designs eschew sophisticated brocades, elegant damasks and intricately devised patterns.  truly delightful, don’t you think?

perhaps it’s the same naiveté that my sister and i shared to help her conceive her vision, i don’t know, but it sure does make me smile.  to see more on Payton Cosell Turner-yes she is the granddaughter of the late Howard Cosell – go to elle décor magazine.

happy sEEing and belEEving!

see be do: ikea’s new math

when it comes to buying uniquely designed furniture the contents of our wallet often are smaller than the price tags of our desired affections. Tight budgets then force us to opt for items that still leave us wanting for more. If you have had this experience, you might try to exhaust all your options to finally realize that purchasing from Ikea will give you the greatest common factor, affordability. Not that I have a problem with Ikea, oh no, I love their products and I am a huge fan of this mega retailer. I think maybe if I was the only person that ever shopped there, I would love it even more. Realizing that there are thousands of people with the same media unit in their living rooms skews my view. But, fear not my furniture friends, with some simple addition and corresponding creativity, I can assure you that 1+1=fabulous!

 + =

The Dombas wardrobe by itself has little design “tude”, but paired with a cool sticker from www.yourdecorshop.com will convince you that money does grow on trees. (idea source: from Livingect March 2010 issue, page 38)

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The Besta storage unit has the beginnings of high style in gloss white, turn it up a notch by adding various styles of bun feet from www.tablelegs.com (they will even make custom styles) painted glossy white and you’ll have your own custom creation for a fraction of the cost. (idea source: Multileg cabinet by Jaime Hayon from www.thefutureperfect.com)

+(x4)=

Here’s a simple coffee table idea, one Vika Amon white table top, 4 12” high rubber plate casters from www.castercity.com, exponential industrial cool. (idea source: coffee table from Boconcept)

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Re-upholster the two back cushions of this Karlstadt daring red sofa with a vintage floral linen print from www.tonicliving.com for a flower to the power union. (idea source: Mare Sofa from www.hivemodern.com)

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Here’s a credenza that’s so cute you might want to start your own line of furniture. Simply find a nice graphic and cut out the shapes from blue vinyl adhesive; stick to the fronts of the Bjursta-Sideboard, voila, geometry was never this easy! (idea source: teak sideboard from www.lucyturner.com)

see so good: tuft love

There’s a new love affair with a timeless favorite - tufted furniture is winning the hearts of modernists and design critics alike. Gone are the days when tufted furniture is reserved for the parlor or feminine styled spaces, these plumped and pillowed confections are more seductive than ever.

Riley Ottoman from Anthropologie – who can resist the charms of this bohemian modern number with a quilted pouf and acrylic base. $2,898.00

Moroso Klara 490 chair from stylepark.com designed by Patricia Urquiola – this piece is a tuft/no tuft balance of quirky sophisticated perfection with mixed textile options and simple lines, it’s a tuft act to follow!

Soho Tufted sofa from Restoration Hardware – I have enjoyed the vintage retro pieces introduced by RH, but this new line leaves me speechless, oh so 80’s inspired with a wink to it’s traditional roots, I am in love! $3995 - $7580

1-2-3 Lounge Chair in Deluxe Leather from Design Within Reach designed by Verner Panton, produced by Verpan. If love makes you do crazy things, than send me to jail right now! So masculine, feminine and vexed with modern timelessness. $4,300

West Elm’s Upholstered Dhurrie Slab is a break out of the box tufted ottoman, low and lean, great for small eclectic seating arrangements and paired with a small side table. Regular $299.00 sale $249.99

The Ava Tufted Sleeper Sofa from Urban Outfitters oozes velvety love, well of course it does, it’s part sofa, part bed, part vintage and uber practical for overnight guests, bah, bye futon! $699.

enjoy s88ing and b8ing!!

see so good: jude’s art in the yard

Scottsdale, AZ - 1970’s palm springs quintessential desert neighborhood

This house tour is all about the backyard - A delightful play of color and art, mixed with dash of quirkiness. It’s really quite amazing what was once a plain unremarkable space is now a low maintenance oasis that boasts a creative blend of zen, desert, cast-awayish wit and chic styling.

Before you set foot into the backyard space you encounter a quaint right of passage, a squeaky arcadia sliding glass door speckled with plastic flowers that bedazzle a view of the cozy covered nook.  Once outdoors, visitors discover indoor flourishes are not for the faint of art. I mean who hangs one-of-a-kind commissioned paintings outside, Jude does. As an art consultant, she assuredly recites, why not?

But it’s just not art on the walls that deliver a feast for the senses, bauble-like birdhouses, concrete planes, artificial turf, water and stone features, and even a blue guitar are all packed into this modest space. The various seating groups and materials work well separately as they do as a whole, doubling not only as a peaceful sanctuary but also as a rockin party yard!

Happy summer seeing!!

see so good: wallpaper treats

several months ago I came across an image in the September 2011 Elle Decoration (UK); side bar -my all time fav magazine in the entire world….  broken walls with contemporary furnishings and layers of antique and ethnic embellishments, is a delicious feast for my senses, who needs to eat when such yumminess lives within the pages of glossy confections!

okay, where was i…my point is that I have been hanging on to this image that keeps asking me to share it’s loveliness!  in a prior post, I shared some ideas about wall stickers and murals, “wall stickers so fun!”  but here are a couple other uses for wallcovering, very cool “treat-ments” for you.  enjoy!

above wallcovering from Cole & Sons – Geometric Collection.

and another yummy tasty “treat” was featured in the April 2012 Architectural Digest – Emily Summers Palms Spring’s home (to die for!!) feature a very clever idea, handmade wallcovering applied to a tv cabinet or shallow hinged box, aaaahhhmazzzing!

The wallcovering is from Porter Teleo, their website features lots of beautiful designs to nibble on.  sending you wallpaper love and kisses!!

see so good: to the maxx

the other day i went to tj maxx on a whim and was completely bowled over by the home furnishings that were in the store that day.  i actually had never seen such a great variety of furniture options and prices in the well, ummmm, let’s just say decade that i had been shopping there.  it was like a treasure chest filled with all kinds of goodies - upholstery, wood pieces, fun accessories and even a yummy cowhide rug.  this was too good to be true and i needed to share my new found pot of gold.

so away i went, snapping my camera phone like a mad photographer, when an even better idea formed, why not pull a whole room together!  what a wonderfully happy idea, especially since i had reigned in a lovely sofa and wood pieces that rival high end retail furniture stores.  the fun began and i staged the scene with pillows,  a concept for a clock wall and a color palette of plum, taupe and black.  there was no stopping me…like a scene from Saturday Night Fever, the wheels were spinning out of control…and the next thing i knew…

The Trammps, Disco Inferno (video from www.youtube.com)

okay, okay i’m back, but really, why not compare what i had found at tj maxx with matching (or close to it) brand name items, it was pure shopping genius, not to mention a super fun challenge.  i hope you enjoy “to the maxx” and for those of you who have $$$ to spare, check out “maxxed out” for the retailer goods!

  all the above from tj maxx, prices of some items as follows:

1. sofa - $699.99
2. black leather chair - $199.99
3. various clocks - $19.99
4. wood chest – ?
5. metal stool - $59.99
6. wood chair - $199.99
7. wood chair – $199.99 + fabric from Designer’s Guild to recover the end chairs (see no. 7 below)
8. column lamp - $39.99
9. table lamp – ?
10. pillow - $24.99
11. pillow - $19.99
12. accessories – ?
13. accessories – ?
14. coffee table - ?

sources and links to the above items…

1. Kensington Sofa from Restoration Hardware
2. Neptune chair in black from Chiasso
3. various clocks from Restoration Hardware
4. Ettore Console from Anthropologie
5. French sewing stool from Restoration Hardware
6. Louis XVI End Chair from Wisteria
7. Culswick (Phipps-Rasberry) fabric to recover end chairs (no. 6) from Designer’s Guild
8. slender rustic table lamp from Wisteria
9. Off-White Cotton Linen Table Lamp Shade and Prema Punched Metal Table Lamp Base
10. Vintage French Linen Pillow covers from Restoration Hardware
11. Hand Blocked Paisley Pillow from West Elm
12. sculpture from Global Views
13. Buffalo Horn Ring on Stands from Z Gallerie
14. Printmaker’s sideboard from Restoration Hardware
15. Carved Wood Coffee Table from West Elm

see ya soon [X] [X]!!

i’m just seeing: “tie dye for” grooviness

i’ve been loving the milder form of tie-dye fashion seen in clothing and also hair styles.  and as we know, what happens in fashion follows in home wares, which is why i’m dyeing to share this very fun look (wink, wink)!  the hippie movement in the 60’s most certainly was inspired by the ancient tie-dye technique that has been a popular expression of design in many countries for centuries.  but within the past few years, the new trend is a dip-dye technique, chic and subtle, and ever so shady… what can i say, it’s the alter hippie in me that laaahhhoooves this new interpretation!   so hold on to your faded and dyed socks my friends, cuz there’s some juicy stuff to see below, but before you sneak a peek i gotta share this “how to” from Martha Stewart Living especially if you’ve got a box or two of RIT dye (check out their site for lots of fun projects) you’ve been itchin to use.

ombre (which means shaded or graduated in tone; French meaning shadow, shade; darkness, obscurity) options are a close cousin of the dip-dye look  and are characterized by two or three colors within a close range.  there’s another version of this trend i like to call graduated grooviness,  which is a mix of ombre, dip-dye and a cleaner striated-stripey version of tie-dye.  so as i was gathering all my design inspiration for this post, the items that blew me away and circling back to “tie-dye for” is the line of furniture produced by SCHOLTEN & BAIJINGS, 2005 PHOTOGRAPHY: INGA POWILLEIT, 2007, titled COLOUR PLAID 05 (c).  i mean where have i been?  i can hardly believe this amazing design had escaped me…

…until now and i’m sooo happy to share with you more styles just as luscious, so without further adieu, i give you

 

sources:

1.    John Lewis Gradient Outdoor furniture

2.    Colour Plaid 03 produced by Scholten and Baijings

3.    Trift by Judith Seng from BLTD (betterlivingthroughdesign.com)

4.    Unique Rugs by Esti Barnes from Captivatist

5.    Do-Lo-Rez Sofa by Moroso from yliving.com

6.    Ombre 18” pillow from Z Gallerie

7.    Woven Ombre Placemats from Anthropologie

8.    18” x 36” carpet tiles - “Vertical Edge” from the “On the Edge”     Series Contract Carpet from Shaw Contract Group

9.    Louisa Sette from Anthropologie

10. fade print table mat in cucumber by chilewich

happy seeing and have a groovy day {g}{g}!!!