Isn’t that deer so interesting;;  I love it!  It looks like Wilton Armatele but its from Pier One… I really wanted to buy some caribou horns I saw today but they were too tall for the ceiling;(..I love horns and hides I must admit, I guess I am a little Texas after all!  But only when mixed with things like these urns below..I really wanted this trio from a nearby antique store but we went for larger and more vibrant reproductions for a console in the conference room.. You can never go wrong mixing in blue and white to lighten up dark, masculine (this is a heavily ”male” office;;) spaces…Blue and white continues to be one of my all time favorite things!

Ignore the sofa and painting in the background..These photos are all from my blackberry obviously!;;  This antique store was full of great stuff..awesome selection..next to a TJMaxx on Memorial in Houston, in the Nottingham/Kirkwood area..right outside of the tollway..near Memorial Drive Methodist Church..wish I knew the name of the store..you should check it out if in the area..great stuff..

Stay tuned for more on The Office!

Y’all are going to love this house. It is located in the Hill Country near Fredericksburg, Texas. The homeowner is a young wife and mother living on family ranch land dating back to the 1840s, that’s Republic period for y’all that speak Texan! The wonderful old home was built in 1898. She is looking to freshen up the interior while respecting the heritage of the old house and her family. This is right up my alley..I’ve loved working on this project and wanted to share some photos of the house with you…

Here is a sampling of our inspiration boards for her kitchen/dining, lighting,  fabrics… 

This is small space living but I for one hope this family stays in this amazing little house and doesn’t build…this kind of charm and history is hard to recreate! There is a trap door to the cellar in the living room…she says her Grandmother kept “canning” down there until just recently! The big floral is a possibility for drapery panels to soften around the fireplace and french doors.  (We have another fabric in mind that she is actually favoring over this one but didn’t want to show because she hasn’t ordered yet;;) Her current chairs are toffee check from Ballard…she has a collection of horses (pictured below) similar to the Wisteria horse, they may go on the mantle. 

A lot of the accessory suggestions are just for feel, she can find something similar in a local store or in her own closets, the mood board just provides direction. This is how this online design consultation “thing” works. Homeowners simply email me pictures of the room, sometimes the exterior or things they love in their home, along with photos of items they think might work like Amber did above and we just engage in a email firestorm frenzy to determine what will work and where and “move it an inch to the left..to the right” until things look fab!

Hope you enjoyed this peek around Amber’s unique home and the process involved in an online design consultation!

Bottom line, Hyacinth likes quirky, eclectic and modern.  But not Kelly Wearstler glam modern.  No sir, we like cows mixed in with our modern style.

So we talked back and forth, I showed her Cole’s 2008 Cottage Living spread “The Art of Improbable Mish Mash” and we have found common ground! Hyacinth is all about “mish mash.”

In fact, we’ve got so much “mish mash” going on… this might be the number of bottles the Design Team empties before we finish this room!

Just kidding.  We love you Hyacinth.

And I can’t wait for y’all to hear soon from the two other team members, Layla and Melissa, about this room. They have some amazing talent and philosophy!

Stay tuned.

{Photos from Cottage Living, 2008}

The kitchen before:

and after..

You may be thinking “oh another white kitchen” but you have to admit it looks so much better. The second I saw the first picture I had visions of open shelving or cabinets, white paint, beadboard, and a cute window treatment…I suggested that Amanda and Jon keep the black counters..they work just fine for a starter home, that alone saved them so much money..we are so thankful they are black right Amanda?!

The couple, along with the help of their dads, were able to install a new faucet, upper cabinets with extra molding for drama, install thebeadboard backsplash, paint the bottom cabinets, new hardware AND wood floors…WOW! 

Love the bamboo shade..we are still looking for the perfect fabric to make something simple to hang high above the shade to make the window look taller and also plan to make long panels on the glass door…and look, she has already hung the rod…oh to be twentysomething again and have all of that energy!;;

And Amanda did all of this while planning her wedding AND working for NASCAR..yep you heard me right, she works for NASCAR (notice the cookbook)..Amanda IS the new South!;;

Well done y’all…stay tuned to see more from Amanda and Jon’s new home..they are such hardworkers and so very nice.  Oh and did I mention adorable?!  The wedding was so pretty. Love the colors.

 God bless you with a beautiful life and happy home. Thanks for letting me help with your nest!

{wedding photography by Elizabeth Wiggs}

Actually they are not slips, it is upholstery..sometimes that works better!

Oh how I wish I had a before picture of these chairs..they were nice but very, well stuffy..the new slips, from Beadboard Upcountry in Brenham, Texas, did just the trick!  What was once prissy and formal is now classic and casual, while maintaining the integrity of the chair…the little flange and big pleats are just right…and the linen..perfection!  I can’t wait to show the rest of this room..very fun..just like the homeowner!

and thanks Maryanne for all of your help!

{blurry photos shared via cell phone and an excited client’s texts messages after delivery! thanks Christy!}

and i will be offering “gift certificates” for your holiday gift-giving convenience;;..either an e-version or i can send a cute little “somethin somethin” in the mail to wrap for that person who has everything;; contact me for details.

{and arent these calling cards so cute?? from a great seller on Etsy! check here.}

Kate lives in a traditional home in Connecticut. She works at a day school and her husband commutes into NYC daily, they have an active family and busy schedule. Kate has commitment issues when it comes to design..she likes everything..this is something i understand so we totally get one another. SOOO we are working on her entry..the walls are a nice creamy butter, slate tile dark floors, pretty railing and she wants the entry to set the tone for their home..on a tight budget for this space but we want to achieve a nice traditional,interesting look…so we are brainstorming and this is what we’ve come up with so far…i love the light, it is on sale right now at PB…she is unsure because she has some brass fixtures in other areas of the home..i say SO WHAT..go for the new finish…the prints and other little accessory ideas from Nell Hill are a great value..she has so much more in her online store now..check it out…

Why the leopard flats?? because Kate sent me a picture of her room and i could see her little shoes peeking out on the edge of the image (and i actualy think a touch of leopard would be great in here..maybe a tortious frame or box or little pillow or seat of a side chair)..so funny…i LOVE my clients.

IN fact, can i just tell yall what a fun bunch of people email me for help.they are funny, have great taste, many are working or busy at home moms and yall all just really inspire me. they dont care that my blog posts and/or emails have typos and lack capitalization…they know i dont have time to proof and/or i am typing while i am holding a baby..so they dont care..why? because many times they are too…and when they see an email dated at 4 am they smile and think to ask why i was up so late “did the baby not sleep”…they understand if i dont reply right away because of something at school or a sick child..often they have to take a break from the design process for the same reason..in fact, they even occasionally tell me “get off the internet and go rest or snuggle with your babies” my clients are the greatest. THANK YOU! I love that they are interested in creating a beautiful home for their families but at the end of the day, their priorities are in awesome order and if they have to leave it for a few days or week to give care to kids and family they are ok with that..they are patient in creating their homes., that encourages and teaches me so much..so thanks for allowing me in to your homes and for being such dedicated moms and women!

ok so back to Kate, we are not using this black cabinet, she has one similar and the blue and white transferware..just there for an idea..we need to find a big cheap blue and white repro bowl for keys and such or a blue and white stool to beside the her little black cabinet.

oh and Target has those leopard flats for $20 if you dont want to buy the Tory Burch;;

{note: i dont know why my polyvore is saving so small..if anyone is an expert please email me.i have played with this program a lot and thought i had it down but i have hard time getting things to “stay big”}

SO funny, after i posted the fabric ideas for Sarah, she sent me this picture of her “sample stash”..some of the same prints!! We are still searching for the perfect thing..she is ordering samples and we will tape them up (she will tape them up and then she will send me a picture) and then hopefully the winner will be clear…we will choose one large print for the drapes and one or two accents to go with the fabrics she already has in the room.

I am stil looking for a multicolored toile i have seen before..not new, maybe discontinued.,it looks like Waverly “country life” but with bright multicolors…very tight print (medium to large scale..no white open space) if you know the name of this fabric, please let us know..

in the meantime, a few more options…all from Calico Corners.

first is La Mare…so fresh

and let me tell yall, the samples you can order online (only $7) from Calico are AWESOME..a really nice size (18″ square i think) in fact if you have a solid sofa you want to spruce up this is a great way to get fab pillows for a wonderful price…you can order these samples online or in the store. they also have the little swatches and you can still borrow grommet samples from their stores i think but i strongly recomend these large samples!

one more…

have a great weekend..next week i hope to do updates on some nurseries and talk about photo walls!

and so do I, so it makes it a joy to work on her family room. She is looking for just the right fabrics for new sofa pillows and other accents..even drapes.

this is her sofa fabric from Calico Corners.

the above toile might look just great..she has butter yellow walls and great existing roman shades (yellow silk buffalo check!)I think long panels will look so great layered over her silk shades!

and here is her existing chair (also from Calico) with pretty fabrics..the pillows are nice but like i said she wants to freshen up, they seem a little predictable to Sarah..of course that is the great thing about fabric..just a few yards can totally change your look and really breathe new life into a room…

We are also thinking about YET another cute fabric on her parsons chair(not shown)? so here is yet another toile (from duralee) and a great accent fabric with bugs, her kids will love this..arent these just great, both found here just gorgeous and unique!

mixing fabrics can be crazy..there are several different “rules”, a check, a floral, a stripe, large scale, tiny scale, stay in the same colorway..yada yada..whatever…if it is too contrived looking that defeats the purpose of mixing..but it can get too crazy so there is a fine line..it does take work but it will be worth the effort! Hope you like some of these Sarah! Of course they wont all work but we will find the perfect combination so that she loves her family room (even the carpet..that is another blog post!;;)

[NOTE: the pottery barn bird pillow two posts below is apparently very elusive..i cant find a link..i have found it on their website (obviously) but now cant find it and neither can several readers..this also happened last week.i thought it was sold out and then it reappeared, i posted about it and it is gone..so fyi..just call them i guess if you really want it, not sure if it is in the most recent catalogs..it is $49 or $59 if i remember correctly, the cover only...it actually might look pretty in Sarah's leather chair!]

these are available from Ballard Designs…either by the yard or we can have them sew them up into pillows and panels (yes Ballard can do that for you..any of their fabrics can be made into just about anything.love ballard!)..