Chalkboard Wall in the Master Bedroom!

We're using to seeing chalkboard walls in kids' bedrooms, play rooms and kitchens but I have to say I absolutely love it here in the master bedroom of Wayne McGill and Chad Farquharson.

Beautiful pairing of colors in the bedding too.

Image via Style at Home, January 2010, photography by Kim Christie.

A Restful Stay at the St. Regis SF

A month later and I'm still thinking about the design of the bedroom I stayed in at the St. Regis in San Francisco. What I noticed: (1) light colors that were warm, (2) low contrast (3) warm, medium-toned woods. It all combined for a really restful, peaceful space. Has me rethinking my own bedroom and wondering about some changes I can make...
Loved the pull-out tray in this nightside table.
The view from the bathroom through pull-back sliding doors.
This photo was taken at night - bit more orange than in real life.

Hope you have a great weekend. On my list - FINISH the end table with the marbled paper.

Nov. 7th - really?

This morning I woke up in the dark and googled when daylight savings time would start. I was really hoping it would be soon as I'm not one of those people who does well waking up in the dark & having it stay dark for a while (Although I don't like having it get dark early either. Shortened daylight is a huge downside to fall and winter for me.) Anyway, we don't get to set our clocks back until Nov. 7th. Last year it was Nov. 1st. Sorry for the whining on a Monday morning. Hope these images from Maison Interiors make up for it.

All images from here.Speaking of sleep, here are some of the fun designers and bloggers I got to catch up with at Ronda Carmen of All the Best's SFERRA event at Timothy Paul Bedding. From left to right, designer Barbara Franceski, Stefan Hurray of Architect Design, designers Heather Safferstone and Sally Steponkus of Sally Steponkus Interiors and Daniela Shuffler of Aesthetic Oiseau.

SFERRA has launched a campaign called Lose Count to increase awareness that there are other important elements to high quality bedding in addition to thread count. Check it out here as there's also great info on putting together a beautiful bed.

Capella Kincheloe - formerly of Michael Smith Inc.

My friend Anne dropped by today with magazine treats, including the Sep issue of Atlanta Homes. In the What's Hot Now! section I noticed that Capella Kincheloe, formerly with Michael Smith Inc., had relocated to Atlanta and opened her own firm. In addition to traditional design services, Capella offers IDESIGN. This beautiful, restful bedroom was an IDESIGN project and if you check out the before pictures you'll see it's a complete transformation. Love the wall color, the taupe shades and the unique fabric on the bolster.

Just noticed the carpet at the foot of the bed that pulls in all the colors.
All three of these rooms feature an abstract painting that amps up the sophistication factor. The abstract in the room above is by Atlanta artist Tina Steele Lindsey. Notice how Capella propped the painting below in front of a traditional gilt frame.
Capella also writes a blog - A Curated Lifestyle. For more images of her work go here. If you're in Atlanta Nov. 27 - Dec. 12 you'll be able to see more of her work as she was selected as one of the designers for the 2010 Atlanta Homes & Lifestyle Christmas House.

(all images via Capella Kincheloe Interior Design)

I LOVE this Bedroom

I picked up this month's Traditional Home and was completely taken in by this sumptuous and sophisticated yellow and gray bedroom designed by Betsy Berner and Tara Sutphin of Berner Sutphin Designs for the Stately Homes by the Sea showhouse. The fabric on the walls and portiere is by Fadini Borghi - what a beautiful pairing of fabrics! Under the windows, the insets have been painted gray (more noticeable in the last photo) and the planted urn adds another layer of patina to this space.
The sconce, the stools, the display cupboard - I could go on and on...Love it all!


There are so many more gorgeous pictures available on their web site here (click on Portfolio, then Sheep Run's House), including the sitting room and the bath with it's Pierre Frey fabric and Venetian plaster wall treatment. The photography is outstanding and the close-up vignettes are their own works of art.

Last image: source Traditional Home, photography by Elisabeth McKay and Robert McKay, McKay Imaging Photography

Other images: source Berner Sutphin site, McKay Imaging Photography

Waking Up to This View

Waking up to this view could transform any Monday morning, even if you still had to head into work. This beautiful room is from the CastaDiva Resort on Lake Como, Italy. Image found at Nuevo Estilo.
15+ more minutes of stunning eye candy at the CastaDiva site here.

Happy Monday. Hope you had a great weekend.

Dreamy Seaside Bedroom

I'm stuck - stuck on the magazine Nuevo Estilo and this dreamy seaside bedroom. As I think about why I love it so much here's what comes to mind: the relatively unadorned white walls, the white washed wicker chairs, the metal X-base table and the gray sheet. For some reason I love that gray sheet.

The view doesn't hurt. Either one - the paintings or the ocean.
Usually not a fan of vessel sinks, but I like this one off to one side on this large bureau. It appears this part of the bathroom is open to the room, off to an alcove on the side. Notice the full curtains at the entry to the walk-in closet - a clever way to repeat the treatment at the sliding glass doors (in the first pic.)

And then this - this is high end outdoor living. To see more of this sophisticated home - click here. Have a great weekend!!

All photos by Nuevo Estillo, I was unable to locate the photographer or designer's names.

Mulcahy or Robshaw?

Which do you favor, Mary Mulcahy's Les Indiennes stylized, simplified take on Indian textile motifs or John Robshaw's colorful and occasionally complex patterns? For me, it's both. If budget were no object, I'd love a room mixed with patterns from both lines.

Les Indiennes now offers upholstered furniture - love these daybeds and chairs.






Gorgeous pillows from John Robshaw. I think the Spring 09 collection is one of the best yet with lots of happy pinks!

Valerianne - from Scottsdale to Vienna

This is the beautiful view you're greeted with when you walk into Valerianne - a luxury home finishings boutique that opened their second store in Vienna, VA in May '08. Walking through the store is a real treat as you are surrounded by beautiful bedding, accessories and furniture displayed in such a way as to get you pondering what you could do differently back at your own home! The owner, Aimee Wedlake, was in the Scottsdale store when I visited but want to be sure to say thanks to Trish for giving me great background info on the unique pieces they carry.
Valerianne represents over twenty designers - the gorgeous pillows on the bench from Bliss Studio, Union of Art, Anichini, and Aviva Stanoff ($140-300) are combined together for a custom design. The blue/gray pillow with the orange horse is actually an Arabic love poem. The horse is made up of the words. I love the mix of traditional and contemporary and the color combination.
I am completely in-love with this pink and brown Osbourne & Little wallpaper. The first picture is a better color match than the close-up below. Couldn't you see this paper rescuing a 1950's pink bathroom and taking it to a whole other level?

There are a number of unique hand blown glass lamps in the store. The clutches are original textile designs from two Chicago designers. Love the orchid in the cement pot in the background.
More gorgeous bedding - these pillows are hand made in India.

This faux potted orange tree is striking on this Oly bedside table. The pillows from Aviva Stanoff are really interesting - they are actual leaves specially treated and hand applied to the fabric.
An Anichini pillow - one of my favorite pieces in the store.


There are also a number of unique pieces of artwork in the store. The four botanicals are from a university in France in the 1800's and the piece just above is an original hand painted wallpaper rendering, circa 1900 ($612). Valerieanne carries Santa Maria Novella - a line from a 15th century pharmacy in Florence, Italy. The pomegranate is terracotta infused with the essential oil of pomegranate and the scent lasts well over a year! ($60)

Sorry for the poor photo but couldn't resist posting a pic of these cotton/silk blend p.j's (especially since Mother's Day is coming up) Love the pewter color - wondering if you could get away w/wearing the top paired w/a pair of slacks for an outfit you wear out??

Valerianne is located at 111 Church Street in Vienna, VA - look up from the sidewalk as it's in a lofty, bright space on the second floor. You could make an afternoon out of shopping there and at a number of the other great stores in that part of town.

Also - Thank you to Terri Sapienza for including my posts on the DC Design Center showhouse in the recent Blog Watch Picks to Click this week. I appreciate it! Also featured were Fly Through My Window, Pink Wallpaper and A Life's Design.

A Dreamy Child's Bedroom & Smart Family Office

More from the Washington Design Center's Spring Design House - Shazalyn Cavin-Winfrey of SCW Interiors created this dreamy child's bedroom. This space in the design house is fairly narrow and the built-in-bed with storage cabinets on either side was a great use of space. A pull out trundle bed offers an additional sleeping area. The interior's padded walls are upholstered with a really fun fabric from Cowtan & Tout. This room left me wondering if every house shouldn't have one of these nooks you can crawl into for respite and retreat, curled up with a good book or a few design magazines...


The painted custom cabinetry had a nice patina to it - which neither of these photos does justice to. The fabric was placed behind the cut out screens. The red cowboy hat is too cute!

Another very succesful room was the Family Office designed by Sandra Meyers of Sandra Meyers Design Studio, LLC. There were three separate functional areas incorporated into this room: a custom work space for four people to use at once, a sitting area and a desk space for the parents. This unique light fixture was a real hit. The work space is laminated with a wood grain stria.
Custom built-in shelving surrounds either side of the fireplace. Love the mixed red glass mosaic tile.





The glass desk is from McGuire by Baker Knapp & Tubbs. I am in love with the carpeting from Stark Carpet - beautiful.

Back to a post on book covers from last week - this one is fabulous!