Inspiration & Translation: Abejas

I do not pretend to be any great decorator or artiste. I have a passion for decorating, sure, but I have no formal training and very little experience. I am the first to admit I rely heavily on higher decorating powers for inspiration. That said, I have been fortunate enough to be able to experiment with decorating under the tutelage of some very talented people, and have learned a few things along the way. 

As many of my fellow post-grads get their own places for the first time, I have been asked for decorating advice by a few of my friends. I reiterate, I have no formal training and very little experience, but here is my little "how-to" guide to plagiarizing the work of more gifted individuals, and making it my own.

I usually start with a single image which I use as my inspiration. This can be anything, a piece of art, a fabric, a pillow, a page from a magazine, that will serve as the jumping off point for the entire room. I will continue to showcase examples of how this works in posts I will dub "Inspiration and Translation". 

First up, Abejas!

When it came time to decorate my house in Austin affectionately known as "Abejas", Spanish for "Bee Hive" chosen for the yellow exterior as well as its residents, The B's (Bailey, Bella,

& Bernie):

 I used this page from Domino Magazine as my inspiration for my entire living space.

The turquoise on the bookshelf became the wall color in my living room and kitchen.

The green from the wall behind the bed was used in the dining room.

And the watermelon accent colors on the bed served as the inspiration for the couch and armchairs in the living room. 

The translation might have been super literal and unoriginal, were it not from the fabulous fabric options provided by the Designers Guild, namely Osbourne&Little:

The fabrics we were able to find and use for the window treatments, pillows, and furniture as well as some of the accessories I acquired over time really made the place unique and interesting. 

Since the house had an open floor plan where each room flowed into the other, we made sure the colors carried through as well. In the living room and kitchen we drew on the green from the dining room in the window treatments, and vice versa in the dining room. 

All the bright colors made for a super happy home, it was really hard for me to pack it all up when it came time to move on, but I know the cute girls living there now are enjoying Abjeas in all of its fabulous neon glory!

P.S. The "we" I refer to is the very talented, very patient, Lori Trahan Doran who has helped both my mom and I in all of our decorating endeavors for the past decade or so. She has impeccable taste, can do everything from traditional to neon (see above), will design a space in its entirety or help you execute your vision, and is completely pleasant to be around. If you are in Houston and could use the help of a design professional, I would highly recommend her services.