Thursday, June 19, 2014

Client updates


Here's what I've been up too...

Still working on a first floor reno some of the finishing touches we added are these x benches for a punch of hot pink!

 
 
They're flanking a console in my client's dining room
 
Fabric is by Robert Allen to the trade
 
 

I have a new client and we're using this wallpaper as our jumping off point for her living room design. Yep, I'm a lucky gal:)

 
You may recognize this wall covering from this image

Meg Braff Interiors
These awesome chairs were delivered to another client for their family room

similar here


These chairs will be placed on the opposite wall of this room which is slowly puttering along:)




Slow but steady progress...
This is where we started.


Bought myself an original art piece that I first saw at a booth at a fundraiser by fabulous artist Janine McGuire.



Months later it was still available at an art trunk show.
So I bought it!

Here it is in my house. So lucky it was still available.



Speaking of art ... need some ideas for your walls?

Check out my past post on how to make your walls sing!! Read it here.

For more info on the above artist email me and I can get you her contact info.

I'll be signing off for a few weeks! Talk to you again in July.


Thanks for reading!! XOXO
 

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

The secrets to making teenage girl's happy!

Well if I knew what made teenage girls happy I'd bottle that right up, sell it, make millions and buy a villa in St. Barth's.
 
 I can however, attempt to make a teenage girl happy by zhushing up her room a bit:)

 
 
In addition to divulging some of my sources,  I thought it would be fun to discuss how I go about designing a space and use this room as an example... 
 
 
If you want to see the before and after pictures of this room first you can go here.


 
When starting a design plan, I usually begin with an inspiration piece usually it's a fabric, sometimes its a rug or even a piece of art. That inspiration piece comes from the client.  In this case I used the clients pinterest board and found this image.
 
pillows by Caitlin Wilson
 
I also found lots of animal prints and ghost chairs. We have one very stylish teenager here!
 
Now I didn't use any of the above fabrics in the room but I let them be my guide in creating a color scheme. In this case turquoise, pink and grey. I also wanted the room to feel fresh, young, crisp and not too trendy and well-edited.
 
 Okay, moving on, I remembered this fun little rug from Dash and Albert that I've always wanted to use. It reminds me of ice cream ---  I think it's the name - the Neapolitan.
 

 
I also found this colorful print by Britt Bass
 
 
With these pieces in place the other elements just fell into place.
 
I definitely wanted to include an animal print but I didn't want it to be overpowering and I wanted to keep with our turquoise, grey and pink color scheme --- luck would have it she had pinned this on her board as well.
 
 
 
I think she was dreaming of built-ins but if I forgot to mention there was a VERY limited budget for this room (meaning nothing custom) which I was totally on board with because what if our client changes her mind next week, right? And to boot this room redo was accomplished in less than four weeks as a surprise for this lucky gal!
 
So instead of papering her whole room in this Thibaut wall covering we chose a focal wall where her bed would sit and we then painted the rest of the room in a coordinating color... silver drops by Behr. Her dad in fact lovingly painted the room for her!
 

In addition to the "pretty" I equally take into consideration the function of the space.
 
This room was going to be used for 1) getting serious about homework and 2) getting serious about hitting the town with friends:)
Hence the desk/vanity situation I have going on.
 
 
 
Here is where she can sit and do her homework and with the large mirror above can blow dry her hair, apply makeup and primp!
 
I absolutely love this desk by Pottery Barn and the large mirror above was found at Home Goods.
 
 
 
All the accessories on the desk are from the Container Store. The silver lamp was from the Land of Nod and the large turquoise flower art also another Home Goods find.
 
 
The draperies are from Pottery Barn Teen with black out lining.  I know first hand that teenagers like to sleep in so this was chosen on purpose. The bedding is also from Pottery Barn.
 
The quilt, and black chevron tray? Home Goods. I like to always have a touch of black in every room!
 


 
 
 
Headboard from Ballard Designs $199, lamps from Home Goods and vintage bedside table from Vintage Home in Paoli, PA.
 
The toughest part of the room for me was choosing the art. Art as we all know is personal to everyone but I didn't over think it too much and went with fun pieces!
 
 
The colorful macaroons came from the
Paper Source just a sheet of wrapping paper that I framed.
 
 
 
The grey piece came from Home Goods and the ice cream print came from the Land of Nod.
 
Now I did lie a teensy bit and did customize a few things. Her euro shams were monogrammed at Tibbar Tibbar in Wayne PA.
 
 
And wanna know the secret to making your bed pillows look lush and full? Use two pillow inserts!! Honestly, it's life changing.
 
And the turquoise pillows found on the bed and ghost chair are this custom fabric avail to the trade .
 
Robert Allen's spaced out
 
 
There you have it!
 
Here's the before
 
 
And the After
 
 
 
 
 
 
Are you still reading this?
My gosh good for you! This was a LONG one...
 
Thanks for hanging in there!! xoxo
 
Don't forget to follow me on instagram
 
 
 
 

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Father's Day Gift Ideas!

I know I promised sources for teen girls room- next time --you can read more about this room here.
 
There are more pressing matters at hand such as...
Father's Day is coming up - are you ready?
 
Is there a golfer in your life?
I purchase a lot of coffee table books for styling and if I know my clients are golfers I always include the following books...


 
I used these recently in this vignette
 



 No golfers?
No problem.
You can find something for everyone here...
 
Philadelphia's own
Mike Balitsaris'
 

They carry an amazing line of hand-crafted, American-made leather goods.
You can read more about their story and collections here.
 

Here are some of my favorites:
BYOB wine carrier


 
Aspen Carry On
leather saddle
 
 
Exclusive to Apple
Avery Sleeve
Bay Bag

Nica thong


 Bifold

Beautiful craftsmanship and every piece is unique.

So do yourself a solid and check out their website here!

And if you purchase any of their pieces you will be in very good company...Dylan McDermott is one of their clients!
What are you waiting for? Get shopping!! xo
 


Monday, June 2, 2014

Teen Girl's room ... A Before and After

I had the pleasure of surprising the teenage daughter of one of my favorite clients with a bedroom makeover.
It was going to be a surprise and had to be completed in less than six weeks so no custom furniture or draperies were possible and the budget was going to be tight bc as we know teen girls like to change their mind on a whim!

So here are the pics. Next time I'll discuss how I went about the design and some tips on how to get a similar look on your own!

The Before
(It was Big Brother's room)






The After




























  







Stay tuned for more details in the next post!
To purchase a ghost chair with monogram please contact me at kraussteph@yahoo.com!

Thanks for reading!! xoxo


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