Bring Home the Beach!

It is that time of year again... we are all getting beach fever! If you can't get to the beach as often as you would like, bring the beach home. These coastal designs will inspire you to incorporate this easy breezy style into your home.

You can get these looks by adding a splash of green and blue to your room or go with a nautical look with red and navy. You can't go wrong when it comes to making your space as relaxing and care free as walking on the beach. It can be your own vacation at home!!

~Cassie

2010 Color Trend Prediction....

Okay. So here is my color trend prediction for the next year or two.

GREEN. YELLOW. GREEN-ISH YELLOW.

Or a combination of them all.

Here are some examples of way you can use these fantastic colors,

whether boldly or for just a splash of color.

Enjoy!

Get out your color wheel and pick out your favorite,

Karen

Who says books can't be art, and art can't be books...

My dream is to one day have something like this...


This is the "bookcase to heaven."








For your guest room: How about a convertable bookself bed?







Find a good book, a great chair, and then, find your happy place!

~Karen

Get Inspired...

Ever need that little push? Some sort of motivation for that really great project you just can't seem to finish? Or, maybe you just want to open your mind to new, fun, creative, and functional design ideas and just don't know where to turn?
Well, I have news!
Our Birmingham ASID (American Society for Interior Designers)Chapter along with The Southern Institute for Interior Design at Virginia College(I know, a mouth-full, right?)has a great day of seminars, activities, and shopping just for you!



On Thursday, May 13th from 6pm-9pm and Friday, May 14th from 9am-12pm, we will have Professional Designers, Instructors, and Senior students presenting fun, simple, and creative how-to's on the following:

-Color Forecasting (Don't be afraid of color!)
-Home Staging (Perfect if you are selling your home or just want to impress you friends!)
-Accessorizing (Oh, the difference a great accessory makes!)
-Weekend Fix-ups (For those weekend projects you are too afraid to tackle, BUT YOU CAN!)
-Repurposing Vintage Items (For that one thing you don't know what to do with!)

We will also have decorative items, furniture, and repurposed items for sale.
Door prizes and special gifts from the Southern Institute for those that attend.

This would make a great mother's day gift! Treat her or yourself to something special~ You deserve it!

Grab your friends and come get inspired,
Karen

Sitting Pretty

It is amazing the treasures you can uncover in storage! My mother and I found this chair years ago in my Great Grandmother's attic. It was faded, torn and extremely worn...but had great bones!! After my unsuccessful attempt at a custom slipcover, I decided to get it professionally reupholstered. While it was a splurge, it was definitely worth it. I found a fabric in a modern color that updated the traditional style of the chair.


Before



The apple green velvet coordinates with other colors in my living room. Since green is favorite color, I knew it would be a fabric choice I could live with for many years. A bold pattern would also have been a good choice to bring new life to this old chair.


After


The cost of the reupholstering was around $275. The great thing about refurbishing an antique chair is that the quality is far superior to most pieces of furniture made today. The wood is hard and sturdy and will last forever. I have shopped at salvage stores and antique malls to find more pieces like this one. I recently found a great chair at The Salvation Army for $5!!! I plan to get it reupholstered as well. With a price like that, it is worth putting some money into it in order to create a custom piece of furniture that reflects your true personal style.

Do you have a tired old chair cluttering up your attic or garage? Find a fun fabric and breathe some new life into your space with a great refurbished piece that you will love for years to come!!

~ Cassie

Ready for some Local Vintage Shopping?

Well, fellow Birminghamians, how about this?



My best friend Rachael (UrbanEdenAl.blogspot.com) for the past few years has created what she calls "Roadside Relics." The name says it all. Once a year local vendors, artist, and a few friends get together and set up in her front yard, which is now located in 5 Points- Southside.
In a nutshell, it's basically a yardsale, but with a catch. It's all vintage, reclaimed, or re-purposed items with a function!

Here's a tiny portion of some fabulous finds from last year!

With that in mind, this year is going to be BIGGER and BETTER! Industrial Chic Furniture, re-purposed window art, architectural crosses, ski nostalgia, and vintage, vintage, vintage! Here's a sneak peak at some of the fantastic handmade items:



Hand made jewlery by Rebekah Blocher (rebekahblcher.blogspot.com) I mean, they are to die for... well, almost!



Taylor and Jeslyn Anderson have created chalkboards out of out windows pieced with reclaimed wooden trim, pillars, and metal!


Need some storage? How about an old card index file from Rachael's collection?


Maybe a coat rack made form old molding or a candle holder made of molding and mason jars?


Soulful Silhouettes by Yours Truely!


Vintage Books! This is a great way to add color and pattern to any room~



And my absolute favorite: Hanging Light Fixtures made of old screen doors and coffee sacks by Jay and Graham Yelton!

There are so many wonderful things that I could show you, but you will have to wait and see for yourself! Come visit Roadside Relics Saturday May 1st in Southside. Meet the local vendors and artist and support them. You might just find that special treasure you have been looking for!

Grace and Happy Hunting,
Karen

Mad Men of the Mid-century...

What do you think of when you see this picture? If you are me, then you would think of the popular TV Show "Mad Men." If you did, then you would be completely right in thinking so. That show is based off the mid-century time period (40's-60's), which is actually when these men (above) truly thrived!
Listed from left to right(sitting in their designs): George Nelson, Edward Wormley, Eero Saarinen, Harry Bertoia, Charles Eames, and Jens Risom, where a part of what, we designers, call the Bauhaus Period. Bauhaus was a architecture and design school where these great men lived and studied- becoming geniuses in the design world. They created what we know as the "Modern" look. To this day, their designs have influenced and changed our worlds, our homes, and the way we look at things in more ways than you have probably realized.
With that said, let me show you a little of what they have done. I bet you have seen them hundreds of times and just didn't know!

George Nelson: Bubble Lamps

Coconut Chair

And, most iconic design, The Ball Clock



Edward Wormley:


I love this next one! Check out the couple about to use the sofa bed!


Eero Saarinen: Most famous for his Tulip Chair

However, he was a fantastically influential architect

And, he designed The Gateway Arch in St. Louis!


Harry Bertoia: The Wire Chair



Charles Eames: Charles and Ray Eames- the husband/wife duo- are some of my favorite architects/designers!

The famous Eames Lounge Chair!

Pretty Pastels!


Jens Risom:

He created Prefab vacation homes. You literally bought it in a box, took it home, and built it!

The end result:

Another of his modern architectural designs:


So, there is a tiny bit of designs from a few of the Mad Men of the Mid-century Modern history! They inspire me to keep being creative. You never know who's design will make the history books?
Next time you are antiquing, thrifting, or surfing the web and come across a piece of the above furniture, think of where and who it came from and how that one design has influenced our lives in our homes and hearts for centuries(and more to come!)

Happy Hunting,
Karen