South Coast Bathroom Design Inspiration | White, Nickle and Taupe Colorway

I have found that my blogging is the most efficient way to put together a design board for a creative project. I spend many hours clipping digital images and sourcing the collection not only to present to my client, but to share with you as well. When it comes to a bathroom remodel it is quite a task to put together a collection of materials that will go into the finished design. I am not a huge fan of trying patterns with tile to create interest within a room. Instead, I prefer to use a range of materials in similar, or tonal color ways. In the end, I think that the finished designs have a higher level of both sophistication and visual interest.

I also like the idea of mixing old and new. In this bathroom project, you can see that there is a bit of "antique" in the rustic nature of the subway tile that will serve as the wainscoting to the room and the tile for the walls within the shower. I plan to use a modern and sleek glass door with nickel finish on the hardware. This will coordinate nicely with the nickel finish that will be on the shower heads and water controls. Instead of a tub, we are planning a larger, couples shower with dual heads and controls, in nickel from Kohler. As a special touch, the floor will be made from a collection of bleached sea stones that will add more tonal texture and wonderful feeling for the feet while my clients enjoy their new spa like master bedroom suite.

There is also a bit of antique in the use of a furniture style vanity. The floors in the room are currently oak and will remain so. I am not a huge fan of mixing a lot of different types of woods, so the use of an antique oak in the vanity will perfectly coordinate with the floor. I like the idea of a footed vanity instead of a baseboard of a toe kick to the design. I do think adding two bays of door style cabinets might both a better look and a much more functional design. I think that I may have to make a trip to Kitchen and Bath Details to discuss this design and adapting it to be both functional and beautiful.

I will finish the vanity with a clean, crisp, white carrera marble with an ogee edge. As another modern/antique juxtaposition, a polished nickel vessel sink and wall mounted faucet will provide visual balance and a sleek design flair to this exciting project.

Classic Interior Design | Creating a collection of lighting for the home

As I move along on a lovely first floor remodel and freshen up, the time has come to choose lighting fixtures which will be displayed through out the house. SO many people would choose the exact same finish for each light, or would be afraid to add a little patina and personality to this level of interior design. Given that this house is a classic Cape Cod style of home, I knew that I would not go the way of too antique or too glittery for the decorative and functional fixtures. It just would not work with the beautiful colors from lovely collection of fabrics that I have chosen to be displayed on the windows.

I think that adding these fixtures and removing the dated ones that are there now will be the finishing touch to the look and the palette that will receive all of the furniture an fabrics later on in the project. I am especially excited about using an easy transformation lighting fixture from Ballard Design that installs into an existing light fixture with out the need to hard wire it into place. While a bit limiting in the selections, the limitation is worth it to add a touch of flair to the kitchen on a design dimes instead of dollars. It is always important to consider where the hard wiring is in the ceiling before lighting fixtures are chosen. Running new lines, or drilling new holes can be expensive to patch up following the installation. I ran into this same problem in the foyer of this home. It is odd, but there is a small pendant light there, totally dated and hanging far too low. To replace with a modern and new fixture would still leave the fixture at an odd height. Instead I have chosen a very modern photographer's track lighting to run in the hall. I can see the family's portraits done by my friend Carinna Raznikov hanging there now, softly lit of course. Their bold black frames and crisp black and white images of a happy family will be the perfect pieces to highlight  the Nantucket red that I have painted the walls.

Natural Toned Interior Design Inspiration | Elizabeth Eakins Fabrics

 

I look at a ton of things on line. It seems that there is often a slight nuance of color that is missed. A shade can be the difference between dud and divine so I always like to get a first hand look when I am choosing fabrics and finishes for an interior design project. I love color when done right. I always take my cue from nature. If it does not appear naturally, then it never appears in my designs. One of my great sources of inspiration has come from the fantastic use of color at the design studio of the venerable house of Elizabeth Eakins. They have long been known for bringing the art of rug to a new level. The way that they mix colors along with their level of sophistication is an instant draw for me and my clients too!

I am lucky that I am a personal friend of one of the two principals of this firm. I have been lucky enough to have been invited not only to his sumptous family home in funky Yonkers, NY but I have also been lucky enough to stay at his families sea side "cottage" at tony Point O' Woods on Fire Island, NY. Everything that I have seen, I have of course loved. His family reeks of a natural good taste that totally appeals to me. Of course, there is a heavy use of his own fabircs and rugs through his spaces, but he and his wife, who also is a doyene of style, have chosen wonderful accents through out. Of course, once I see something it is forever embedded in my memory.

I have not grown weary from looking at the incredbile selection of fabrics that Elizabeth Eakins also offers along with their extensive and artful rug collection. The Fed Ex-Man just got here with a box of samples for me to peruse over for my lastest interior design project. I am drooling trying to narrow down the perfect choices for drapery, blinds and pillows that will fill the home that I am working on.

You know that I am going to show you the photos when I am done the project. Which fabrics do you think that you will see?

 

Retirement Party For Mom | At Home with Chad Michael Peters | Harvest Theme

I was ten when my mother went to work for The Massachusetts Department of Mental Health. For the past twenty eight years, she has worked tirelessly to aid those within our community that suffer from the ravages of deteriorating mental health. She is a hell of woman to have done this sort of work for so long. When my sisters and I got word that she had decided to retire, we knew that it was time to celebrate.

We are not flashy people as a family, but we do like the details. My sisters and I worked on pulling together the most important people in my mother's life and pouring some wonderful drinks and serving a savory yummy harvest dinner. Through my house, we arranged simple flowers and laid out snacks that my mother would love. The chocolate covered cherries were devoured within the first ten minutes of the party's start.

My mom's smile was beaming as it always is. She lights up the room and instantly becomes the life of the party. All three of her kids and two of her grandchildren working together to make an extra special day for her. She deserves this retirement and she certainly deserved to celebrate.....and that we did.

We love you Mom. Thank you for being you and guiding us through this life that can sometime be difficult. In the face of adversity, you have taught us to hold our chins high, to smile and to laugh it off.

A very special thank you to both Misty King, who is not only my favorite first cousin, but a heck of a photographer. Some of the shots that you see here are hers. And to my friend and colleague, Jennifer Williamson of Jenny's Cakes, for her elegant artistry and to die for cake. You both made my mom's retirement party extra special.

Historic Interior Design Inspiration | Village Homes, Marion, MA

For those of you who know me really well, you will know that this is the house that Kevin and I were married in. It is the home of my dear friend and soul mate, Sally Hunsdorfer. I see myself in her and I know that she sees herself in me.

We have travelled across the globe together. From sharing a sleeping bag on the floor in New Delhi to climbing to 12,000 feet of the Tengboche plateau, I have roared with laughter, shared in deep thoughts, reflected and have shared moments that are not done justice in a few lines of writing. She and her impeccable sense of style and grace have inspired me from the time I was 15 years old and I first met her. From then until now, there has not been hardly a moment in each of our lives that has not been shared with joy.

It is always a pleasure to be in Sally's house. She and her husband Peter have spent many years restoring and decorating this home which once was the school house for the village of Marion. Filled with collections and more collections and trimmed in subtle fabrics, this home always has something new and beautiful to look at. It is my pleasure to share it with you from behind the lens of my camera.

Many thanks to you Sally. Not only for your friendship, which I can call nothing short of divine, to letting my camera and readers into your fabulous home.

Interior Design | A gentleman's bath

 

Many people don't believe me when I say that for the good part of my early life I lived deep in the woods, with no phone, no lights and a small yellow T.V. that ran off of a car battery. Basically a Thoreau like existence The small cottage that we all lived in was homey and simple and was warmed in the winter with the heat from the stone fireplace. We of course had a bathroom in the house ....small, with gas burning camp lanterns and cold water only. With five of us in the house, one of us was often jetting across the yard to make our way to the outhouse, which served as our second loo. We bathed in the evening in a tin tub that was given privacy by a towel draped over the chairs. My mother would heat clam kettles filled with water on the gas stove and fill the tub for us to play and bathe in. Our time in would be based on how long it took the tea kettle to warm, so it could be poured over our heads to rinse the shampoo.

My mother would haul the tub out of the back of the house, dump it and start the whole process again. She is a hell of a woman and I give her immense credit for the Laura Ingalls Wilder life that I am sure that she never imagined or dreamed of. Like the rest of us, she too, made the best of it and learned to cherish and hold dear of those early years of our family.

As I have gotten older, of course I have gotten used to the creature comforts of life. Last night, after three years of work, I finally got the bathroom of my dreams finished. I am happy that I can use my creativity and good taste to cull and pick for my own interior design. I don't have the budgets of my clients, yet I want like anyone else to have beautiful things. I am willing to stop at road sides, barter, save, beg or borrow to find just the perfect things for my own home.....and yes, I too go to the likes of Target for accessories. I can hardly believe that I found the exact shower curtains that I had in my head done in a beautiful linen. The cost of two of them was a fraction of what a clear glass door would have cost. I always use two, drawn like drapes for a more sumptuous feel.

When I sit in my oversized tub, I am 6ft5 after all, I think and then I think some more. More often than not is about how lucky I am to have such consistency in the cast of charachters that have become the story of my life. My tin tub hangs outside my office and I think of my days growing up in the woods of Rochester every time I see it, or hear it banging against the wall in stormy weather, as it is doing now.

I want to take a minute to thank my best friends Tena and Jill at Kitchen and Bath Details for their help in this bathroom design. The cabinets, the loo and the accessories and hardware in shiny nickel are just perfect. I could certainly not ask for anything more. You both are like sisters to me, always there in your own special ways ready to share a laugh, I just love you both.

And of course, to my hysterical best friend David Mikina for artisan craftiness and meticulous attention to detail. You are always there when I need you ready with a glass of wine and a good laugh. I told you the first time that I met you, that you and I would be best friends for life. Doesn't it just kill you that I was right?

 

Interior Design Fresh Fall Flowers

 

In my world there is no difference between parties, weddings, interiors and even digital design. It is all about finding functional shapes in varying colors and putting it together in a stylish way that is in good taste. I have never thought that trends are cool, I like their influence, but in the end I like pretty classicism with a twist. My feeling is that no matter how dull a room, there is nothing that can be done to bring a room to life than with fresh flowers, it should bring all the color and forms together to one comprehensive and cohesive palette.

It is a great perk of the business that sometimes we have flowers left over from an order or after a wedding. I always try to take the time to take this benefit and have them in my own house for my family's enjoyment. I know that Kevin likes them but I am not sure about Daisy and Duncan, our adorable pugs. Today I took the time to finally get my foyer in order. One of my best friends, David was kind enough to trade me some glass vases for this amazing antique cabinet that now is the show stopper of the foyer. The chairs that flank the hutch have gone through a chain of friends as hand me downs. They have now made it to my house by way of my to die for friend, Sally Hunsdorfer. They usually have a little skirt on them in stripped yellow linen. Today for the heck of it I thought that I would see how they look with the new red bead board cabinet. Two words, loving it.  I hope that you enjoy it too!