Client room with a view

Just had this awesome wall mural installed in my client's son's bedroom. This room is in the basement and gets very little light. The mural has helped to add some interest and brightened up the space. My clients are avid skiers and outdoorsy types, so I thought that having a mural of a mountain was very appropriate. The bunk beds were already there, I added the mural and the bedding (ikea).

This photo doesn't do it justice, and it really doesn't look like the bad murals from the 1970's that everyone used to have.  I'll try and get some better photos soon.  In the mean time, here's how the room looked when I started.

The mural is on the wall where the bed is above.  We moved the bed to the other wall.  The changing table/chest of drawers has been sold.  Curtains have been hung and a simple cherry desk that was being used elsewhere has been positioned under the window.  Again, huge impact for a small amount of investment.

Client Project Update - Transforming a guest bedroom for less than $500

It's not high design.  It's slightly run of the mill.  But it is a huge improvement over what was there before.  My clients initially decided to not do the guest room makeover due to budget constraints.  But when I assured them that they could get a lot of bang for their buck, and convinced them that they could totally transform their lack luster guest room into a calm and soothing oasis for their guests for less than $500, they saw the light.

Here's the before:

Sorry for the dark photo, but it is in the basement, off the family room.  The good news was that they had some terrific faux bamboo furniture (which I'm still trying to convince them to spray paint a glossy white).  As someone described it to me, it looks like a motel.  I say it looks like granny from Florida.  Anyway, the bed set is staying as is.  The wall color, carpet and window blind also had to stay the same.  So I decided to choose a white and navy colour scheme with a pop of colour in a contrasting pillow. 

Here's the after:

I added the large bed pillow to add some plumpness and colour to the bed.  What I would really love to see is a slightly smaller lumbar pillow in chiang mai dragon fabric.  

But at almost $100 a pillow, I don't think I could convince my clients of the value.  Maybe down the road.

Here's the breakdown of the budget for the project:

Lamps & Mirror - T J Maxx - $181.62

Curtains - West Elm - $83.34

Comforter & bed pillow & cover - Target - $53.39

Sheets & white coverlet & shams- Smiths Marketplace - $89.72

Curtain rod - Country Curtains - $57.95

Grand Total - $466.02!

If you'd like me to help you transform a room in your house or just want to bounce some ideas around, just give me a call.

Have a great week-end!

Silver Chandelier - Yay or nay?

I have a new client, yipee! Well actually I have 2 new ones, and I'll tell you about them in good time. But all these new clients are giving me a serious excuse to stalk all of my favourite vintage resale stores. And I am finding some absolute treasures. Roman thinks I'm going all grannyfied in my interiors, huh, what does he know, he's only 10! But I really do love the classic lines of some pieces that I've come across recently.

Case in point. Look at this amazing chandelier. It looks like solid silver. It even has that silver tarnish look. I tried looking for a silver mark but couldn't find one (it may be silver plated though). It weighs an absolute ton. And it's only $100. But sadly I have no need for it yet. I'm thinking I might have to rent a storage unit.

I just did a google search on antique silver plated chandeliers and this beauty came up.

Wow, that's over $3000!  Still not sure if the one I saw is silver plated, but it certainly looks similar, non?  Should I buy it?

Battle of the Home Offices Update

So it's been over 2 years since I threw down the challenge to the hubby to design the best home office.  Originally Damian was going to have a say in his design.  But I couldn't let him do it and completely took over!  He did though end up being a great laborer and did all of the work including laying the floor, framing, installing windows and doors, drywall, painting, cabinet installation, electrical.  You name it, he did it.  And it looks great.  I haven't posted pictures before because it's still not finished, but as with most projects, it may never be.

Here's a reminder of how it looked before:

Here it is in progress:

The garage doors were removed and replaced with two sets of french doors.  It's a long story, but you couldn't drive into the garage anyway, so replacing the door doesn't diminish the garage's functionality.

And here's how it looks now:

As you can probably tell, the majority of the furnishings is from Ikea.

The sconces and white lights are from West Elm.

The red office chairs are from Staples.

The wall was painted with a dry erase paint.  The boys love to draw on it also.

Well we are British, so why not have a London bus picture?  The clocks show the times in England, Salt Lake City and Tokyo (all the places where Damian and his partners work).

Damian's Lego Sophwith Camel.  He'd been asking Santa for this for a couple of years.  He finally managed to buy it for himself in the Lego Store in New York.

Damian's self-help book section!  As well as his toys.

Of course it used to be a garage, so where else are we going to store the bikes!

And here's a picture of my home office which I know you've seen a gazillion times before.

I think I succeeded in designing a non-girly workspace for Damian's new business and a totally girly space for me!  Which do you prefer?

Chairs from One Kings Lane

Just stumbled upon these cool mid century modern inspired chairs on One Kings Lane shopping site. And can you believe that they're only $469! If you like them, I'd hurry because the sale ends in 2 days.

Realestalking...I could totally Kelly Wearstler this house!

I bet you didn't know this but I used to be a Realtor and still hold a license, albeit on hold. But I still stalk the realty listings like nobodies' business. You would not believe the recent listing that I came across. It's like Gone With The Wind meets Mother Dearest, but set in lush grounds that are totally taken care of by the HOA. I think I about fainted. And you wouldn't believe the price, only $625K. Well I do know that's a lot of money but you can't usually buy sh*t around here for that much. And when you compare it to Kelly Wearstler's Beverly Hills home that she had on the market recently for something like $40m, well, then it's a drop in the ocean.

Take a look:

Seriously! Built in 1932 with marble floors, grand entry way, brass railing, I die!

And below are pictures from Kelly Wearstler's home. Similar, non?

I'm really tempted to call the Realtor tomorrow to have a look. This would be a great home to do some serious killer interior decor in!