Saturday, September 27, 2008

I like it when clients go on vacation!

This makeover has been in the works for a few months now. My clients went on a 10 day vacation so we have been planning and discussing and I've been shopping for quite some time in order to take over their home while they were gone. True to my commitment, I spent more time in their home than my own this week and it was well worth it! I have worked in this home before but have not yet done the one thing that I think is truly required when you truly decorate your home--PAINT!

Before I show you the before and afters, I have to give credit where credit is due--the homeowner found the bedding and picked the paints. I was going for a relaxed, spa like feel in the bathroom and my first paint suggestion was a soft green. Well she wanted BOLD!! Which I LOVE! Their past bedroom had tan everything with a white duvet so I didn't expect this drastic of a change, though it totally fits their fun, dynamic personalities. This is a HUGE change for them and I'm excited they decided to make it a true transformation! So get ready for ORANGE paint as well as Green and Brown from the new Ralph Lauren Metallic line! It is GORGEOUS!!!

Master Bedroom

Check out the plain white raised ceiling in the before-it's now orange! They are considering a corner sectional in the right area by the couch. I would like some creamy toned side tables over there and there is a large mirror to hang between this area and the bed if they decide to not change this area but I avoided the furniture cost as well as a large anchor in the wall until the decision is made.

She bought coordinating straight valances for the long window that matched the bedding which I could NOT live with so I asked her to give me just one of them and let me alter it and add drapes and she let me do my thing! That is a favorite trick of mine--altering something simple off the shelf that lacks in 'umph' and make it unique while adding some style!

Master Bathroom

This bathroom is large and quite unique with the tub in the middle of the room and had great 'bones' but was just non descript with the tan walls next to the tan tile. I edited their accessories, added pops of color and created display areas for the things that they needed on the counters. The phrase on the mirror raises your eye and really makes you see how large the bathroom is, though this was VERY hard to photograph with all the reflecting mirrors.





Here are a few areas in the bathroom that helped create big changes. One thing that I LOVE about the homeowners is they have things they truly love and like to see that hold personal value when others would perhaps put them away if they didn't fit into the room. One of those things is a clay tube of toothpaste and toothbrush that the husband made when he was little! It was on his counter so I put up a shelf in an empty area so it had a worthy home. And I love how it looks so great with the paint, which I wish I could say I thought of but I didn't, it just worked! This shelf needs another item which I will figure out on another day.


Guest Bathroom

They owned the beach inspired pictures so I used those and added a few accessories to tie in and look at how easy this change was!




Bar/Pool Room

This room was set up but didn't have much personality. We wanted it moody, relaxed and a great room for parties! ! This paint is SO dark that I couldn't get a good photo of the entire room so below the before and after are two pictures close up where you can see the shimmer and true tone of the wall--GORGEOUS!!!

The bar cabinet was full of alcohol and couldn't be closed so I found the shelves at Pottery Barn and they helped enable us to organize and close the doors. The shelf display can be changed out to focus on a different theme or even drink motif! I used what they had for now but plan to talk to them more about what they love to really personalize this for them. Here are a few ideas to use as a display:

  • High end liquors with several old fashioned glasses
  • Wine accessories with a gorgeous decanter and cork screw
  • Martini glasses with different mixers, a shaker and martini mixing set with a martini recipe book
  • Fun shooters (the kind that look like test tubes) with popular shot liquors such as goldschlager or you could display ingredients for a popular shot or shot you are serving like a B52 or Lemon Shot with the recipe displayed in a frame and of course a Shot recipe book which is more fun to read than actually use!
  • Unique beer steins with a display of your favorite regional or international beer

The ideas are endless!!


















Dining Room

This is right off of the bar so we chose to paint a niche to tie into the room and I also had to add shades to the chandelier to complete this area! There is also an entry area that we painted green and another bathroom that is also green and an office area that was painted brown but this post is getting long enough!


I enjoyed this week so much and love that they didn't see it as it was being done so they can fully feel the transformation when they walk in. It was a TON of work and their house was a MESS during this process between painters as well as myself working in the same space so I'm glad they were gone for that reason too! I wish all my clients would vacation for a week and let me take over as I think it is a rewarding process for everyone!


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Saturday, September 20, 2008

Tour of My Home

Welcome to my Home! If I were a Gardener, you'd want to see what my yard looked like, right? You can certainly see that I'm not a landscaper! That is on my list of things to do, I promise! Dentists had better have white teeth! And hairdressers should always have great hair! So I assume you wonder, how do I live? My #1 goal with my customers and with my blog is to bring beautiful living and functional living together and I would love to show you how I live.

We have been here since the Spring of 2007. I drew the plans for this house years ago and always had a 'vision' of what my dream home would look like. When we finally found land, I took my drawings to our structural engineer and we had blueprints done and submitted for permitting 2 months later! Nine months later, the house was done! You can do things fast when you know what you love and what you want. I enjoyed the process immensely and loved planning it all from the 'big picture' items to even the smallest details!

I'm still not done, but who ever is? In almost every room, I see things that I need to do or things that aren't complete in my opinion but I will go ahead and start this so you can see how it is now and as things change, I'll show you that as a project!

Because my goal is to always make something beautiful as well as functional, I will show you each room and then point out something "pretty" that was either a focal point or something I created for that space and then something "neat" that helps myself or my family use that space better or easier.

I will try to put up a new room every week until our tour is done!

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