Color Me Happy

This is a pretty cool idea for the non-OCD parent.

A funky ladylike abode: Nanette Lepore's NYC Home

With shelter magazines dropping like flies these days (RIP Met Home) I have started delving deep into my binders I have kept for years with tears from my favorite home spreads for inspiration. Like this article from Elle Decor awhile back featuring designer Nanette Lepore's New York Apartment.

I have said it before and I will say it again, there is a way to do white and make it look warm and interesting.

The different finishes and textures in these spaces keep it fresh, not sterile...

I hate to speak ill of the dead, but I have to admit, Met Home seemed to be featuring a lot of uber modern hospital room esque designs lately...

I love how the color palette is subtle but still offers continuity with the pops of green in each room.

And I LOVE this red kitchen! What a fun surprise!

I had filed this room as part of the same spread, but I still don't quite believe this is the same apartment, I love both looks, and I especially love that Lepore's vision and talents are not limited to working within a white palette. If I had a study I would do something very similar, really go for it with the wood panelling. And I love the quirkiness of the chandelier and Eva Peron portrait above the fireplace.

Lepore's Bedroom

What I especially remember from this spread originally: Her FABulous closet.

And adorable little girls room...

Not to mention this jewel of a patio?

I think I could handle NYC in an oasis like this.

SPRING into Fall...

One of my favorite blogs, Haven and Home, introduced me to my new Favorite designer, Kelley Proximire yesterday. She operates mainly out of the D.C. area, and her aesthetic is very preppy chic. Scrolling through her portfolio I stumbled across this stunning living room, remind you of anything?

What can I say, great minds think alike!

Now, in my humble opinion, this is how you do white.

The white walls and curtains give a pure, neutral background for the color to really pop.

The result is bright and summery and fresh, not sterile!

The details in this room are also incredible. The trim on the couch and the curtains, the lucite table? LOVE!

What do you think?

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. 

Standard Curriculum: House Beautiful Color Quiz

All the other bloggers seem to be doing it, so today I will don my Designers Hat and post my results to the House Beautiful Color Personality quiz:

Q: What is the first color you see in the morning?

A: Right now the white walls of our rental. 

Last year? Orange in my house in Houston. 

Year before, pink in Austin. 

Next year? Green.

Q:What color are your eyes?

A: Brown

Q: What color do you wear the most?

A: Probably white, I have about 30 white T-Shirts and am constantly in the market for a new one. Mostly because I stain, and ruin, white T-Shirts at an alarming rate.

Q: What color do you never wear?

A: Beige/kakhi

Q: What color do you wear when you want to feel confident?

A: I would say pink, or red, but the truth is I rarely wear pink or red. Probably brown, as in my favorite cowboy boots. Especially now that I am living up in the cold blue northern, wearing them makes me instantly feel at home. 

Q: What color gets you the most compliments?
A: Hmm I don't know...I tend to dress like a two year old child, so I get more "comments" than "compliments". When I asked my fiancee what colors he likes me in he said "Green or Blue prob." I do not believe I own many green or blue items. It might be time to go shopping.

Q: What color is your lipstick?
A: I don't really wear lipstick, typically my lips are a mix of whatever lipglosses/chapsticks are floating around in my purse, but the goal is usually a pinky hue. Swoonderful by Benefit is usually a good bet. 

Q: What color was your living room growing up?
A: I am not sure, I think Megalou might have been caught up in the Beige-Rage around that time. Currently my living room at my parents house is yellow. This bright yellow living room has been in my "favorites" file forever.

Q: What color was your bedroom growing up?

A: Pink, pink bow wallpaper at my first house, and then a slightly orangey-er pink stucco later on. I do not have images of either, but would have greatly enjoyed this room as a child- and as an adult.

Q: What color are your sheets?

A: White, always white with some sort of monogram. It's the southerner in me.

Q: What color was favorite crayon as a child?
A: Pink

Q: What color is your car?
A: Yellow. With Daisy Magnets.

Q: What color was your prom dress?

A: White, and slightly inappropriate.

Q: What is your favorite flower?

A: Pink Peonies. White peonies, like these gorgeous specimens from my future mother-in-laws garden do the trick as well. 

{Loving fiance brought me these gorge flowers from his mother garden, she never ceases to amaze me, judge, mother, and horticulturalist!?!?}

Q: What color makes you happiest?

A: Pink. Definitely pink. In (almost) all shades and all applications. While in the past as a single gal I was able to use my favorite color with abandon, I almost relish it more now that I have to sneak it into rooms without offending my husband-to-be.

 

Q: What color depresses you?

A: Beige seems to have become the go-to color for classy interiors. I hate beige and the word classy equally. This is what comes up when you google "classy" and "beige" together.

Q: What color calms you?

A: Although such dark colors usually do not find their way into my decorating, I really enjoy the look of a navy or peacock blue room, preferably with a high gloss paint finish. This room just looks like a fine, upstanding, American citizen.

Q: What color makes you grind your teeth?

A: I generally do not enjoy white. Yes, white can look pure and cottagey and beauteous with the right fabrics, textures, accessories, but if one more decorating magazine posts a picture of a cold white pod and expects me to marvel over the "design", I am going to have to direct them to the nearest hospital to marvel over a sterile, white, cold operating room. Same thing. I have not saved any images of said white rooms over time, because I dislike them, but I will post an image of white that soothes my soul.

There is absolutely nothing offensive about a bright, white dressing room:

I could be the Barefoot Contessa in such a crisp, white kitchen.

Clean, white bathroom? V. pure

Q: What color would you like to try, but are scared to?

A: If you have ever been to my house in Austin, you would know that very few colors scare me. Turquoise living room with watermelon red couch? 

{My Living Room in Austin}

No problem. 

Neon green dining room?

{My dining room in Austin} 

Absolutely. 

There are some colors, or rather shades of color, I am frightened of, but mostly because they are ugly. That said, the color I would most like to try but am scared to is a high gloss black. 

So...What have we learned through this little exercise? I really enjoy pink and bright colors, I do not so much enjoy beige/kahki. Surprisingly, I guess White is up there as one of my favorite "colors", so long as it is a jumping off point for showcasing other colors and accessories.