Where I'd like to...

Entertain with a holiday party.

This chic room is the perfect blend of classic and contemporary. I love a well edited mix of furniture, lighting and art. I envision this home being used for gatherings not lounging. That gorgeous piano is just waiting for a musician. I've been putting off subscribing to Canadian House and Home {i guess I'm spoiled by the $12 yearly sub. rates in the U.S.} but this magazine would be the perfect replacement for the much-missed Domino. {what a great birthday gift..hint hint..to my relatives}

Images: Canadian House and Home, Aug. 09.

Paired down Perse..

Every time I leave the sandy Island of Nantucket, I'm ready for a life change. I dream of a casual home, a laid-back lifestyle {think no traffic, no parking meters, no fast food} + and an easy-going but {of course} stylish wardrobe. James Perse's paired down style fits the bill nicely.

Talk to me when I return from N.Y.C. and I'll tell you another story, but for now, I'm content working in my flip-flops and cotton sundresses for the balance of the summer! Happy Monday!

A little R + R

{A Peek at Nantucket}

I've made some time for a little vacation this August. A few days in the country + a few days at the beach! I'm off to Nantucket and have just returned from Vermont - I'll be back on Monday!!! Happy Summer Weather!!

+ a peek at Vermont style!

{ I would love a bank of windows like this in my "dream kitchen" someday.}

Images: #2 Boston Globe Mag., # 3 Coastal Living, #5 Country Living

Happy Friday - Baubles + Bubbles

Design IS and should be FUN! Add a bubble-inspired fixture to your home!! This top image from Orange would look perfect in my foyer!!

Images: 1st dibs, 1st dibs, 1st dibs, Pieces Inc. , Lum Lighting, Elle Decor, Caboche pendant, Le Klint pendant, Bocce Lighting, Bubble vase - would look great wired as a lamp!

How fun are these??

Pillow cases.. Sometimes a casual, masculine room is just fine with me! A clip from the home of Badgley-Mischka. {pillow cases - Leontine linens}

I just "heart" Leontine Linens don't you? I would have a tough time choosing between all their fabulous options..

Top Image: Elle Decor. Sept. 2009.

Where I'd like to ...

RELAX!
This space is so fresh and clean but has a hint of glamour and unexpected lighting. It's beautiful and not "overdone". Feels like the perfect summer time retreat to me!

Designer: Jessica Helgerson - her work is so cohesive, you have to check it out.

BOOK WORM..

{LACK before - coming soon - LACK after}

Like most interior designers {or design/home obsessed individuals} I never have enough storage for all my "stuff".. tear sheets, books, client binders, pretty things..So I purchased the ever-useful, affordable LACK book case from Ikea last week. I'm so excited to set it up, organize and display my objects. {pictures to come soon}. What I really love though, is manipulating dead space for floor to ceiling built in book cases! Here are a few favorites.

I know this is a bit of the "book" subject, but I don't know a woman {or stylish} man who doesn't need extra space for shoes + bags!

Images: Domino, Kelly Wearstler, Cookie, Design Sponge

Sunny Day...

It's so gorgeous out, but I've decided to get something done around the house today!! I've even taken a few moments to check out my favorite blogs.

I'm just smitten with this image!! Don't you just LOVE an art wall full of random findings! I DO { I also love a splash of yellow} - okay, now back to cleaning....happy saturday..

Image: Pink Wallpaper

Friday Finds - What I'm loving this week...

This light fixture from Pieces, Inc.. I've loved this since I saw it in Lee's kitchen via the Cottage Living Spread. Now if I only had the cash to buy it! Maybe I could make something similar. hmmm? I need a light for over my kitchen table. The ceiling is wired and ready to go. I just can't make a decision on a fixture. This one keeps popping up in my mind!

Wheat inspired lighting

Image: Downtown

The new "instant heirloom" collection from J.Crew. I've always been a fan of chunky "statement" jewelry, esp. when paired with an understated look.

Have a FAB-ulous weekend everyone!!

Hot, Hot, Hot..

Perfect day for a dip. I am running around this week like a mad person, so here's a quick post to cool you off! If my memory serves me correctly I believe I went to a party years ago and hung out by the pool in this third image. It's an old pool {think 1940's; behind an even older house}. This was a long time ago but I never forgot the simplicity of the pool and the beautiful view of the water beyond. Happy Summer Day!

Create a Jewel Box

Have a small kitchen? Work with it! Use shiny fixtures, glamorous tile, and unexpected color to create an elegant but inviting space!

This glass Mosaic back splash is stunning!

{Excerpt from a 2005 article in The New York Times - Design Section} Miles Redd's kitchen demonstrates these qualities beautifully. It doesn't get much more glamorous then this!

You may have seen this article - it's a bit old but his kitchen is still amazing and so are his tips.

Champagne and Mirrors
Glass countertops, glossy wood floors, and a silver sink: Miles Redd’s thirties-inspired version of the glamour kitchen.

The sink: From German Silver Sink, it traditionally came double wide. The new versions keep the S-curve but have a more manageable size. The faucet is from Gracious Home.
Decorator Miles Redd’s kitchen has less in common with the Formica-and-maple spaces of our collective youth than with the highly stylized bars of his neighborhood. It’s a drink-in kitchen—the fridge always filled with mixers and champagne—built for visual entertaining. “You know how everyone always ends up in the kitchen at a large party? My kitchen doesn’t feel like just a kitchen; it feels like an extension of the rest of the house.” It used to be somewhat more subdued—celadon walls, a bleached floor—but after he installed Chinese wallpaper in the foyer, Redd began dreaming of something more graphic. “I had been meditating a lot on black and white. It seemed right in relationship to the other elements of the house, as a foil to my pink living room.” And it references his favorite period, the thirties. “It is a Hollywood version of a thirties English kitchen,” he says. “I was inspired by the kitchens in Gosford Park.”
Why glass countertops?They’re hardly the most practical . . . In college, I had a cheap piece of furniture, and I had a piece of mirror cut for the top. I loved the way it reflected light, and that it gave the room sparkle. It works here—it is a black room with a black ceiling, but it never feels like you are in a cave.
Any other countertop surfaces you recommend? I like stainless steel. It has an old-fashioned quality, but at the same time it’s modern. I love stone. I love lava stone. I love butcher block in a country kitchen. I have used black granite in a kitchen, honed so it looked like soapstone. When you get into colored granite, it tends to have a Sopranos quality.
Favorite self-cooked meal?I’ll sear a steak. I’ll make roast potatoes and sautéed kale.
Favorite champagne?Veuve Clicquot is kind of standard issue around this house.
1) The appliances: Redd has a G.E. ice machine, a KitchenAid dishwasher, a Viking stove and Sub-Zero fridge (neither pictured), and a Miele washer and dryer. The Miele “really does clothes in a professional way. It doesn’t dry things all the way, so nothing shrinks. But do you remember Maytag dryers? The towels would come out all fluffy and hot, and I miss that.”
2) The wood floor: Painted white and sealed with an oil-based polyurethane, which has held up well. Chris Pearson painted the neoclassical star and stripes on the floor, Redd’s homage to his favorite American architect, David Adler.
3) The lights: Redd chose not to have under-cabinet lighting, and illuminates the counters instead with these thirties Venetian crystal lamps, bought at Tepper. “I like the idea of lamps in the kitchen. It makes it more like a room.”
4) The TV: An Aiwa. Redd could use it to watch the Food Network, but he doesn't, preferring American Idol. The door pulls: From Urban Archeology

Images: House Beautiful - Miles Redd, Elle Decor, New York Times