wave fabrics

 Last month's Traditional Home featured a really vibrant and colorful house in Chicago by designer Melanie Elston. The whole house is pretty cool, but the living room is my favorite. The windows, walls, and floors are perfection. And did you see the chair upholstery? 

Here's a closer look:

 Amazing, right? The fabric is "New Wave" in Capri from Old World Weavers.

Canadian H&H

Here is the same fabric, this time used for curtains in designer Steven Gambrel's front room.

I love the colors and the playfulness of this fabric, but it is expensive and trade-only and thus unattainable for a lot of people. I found some similar fabrics retailing online:

Schumacher's Zenyatta Mondata in Peacock $118.75/yd

Schumacher's Ric Rac in Pool $118.75/yd

Robert Allen's ZigZag Layers in Tide $56.70/yd

Still expensive, but quality upholstery fabric usually is. I think any of these prints would look beautiful as upholstery, curtains, pillows... anywhere!

top 5 metal bed frames

Upholstered bed frames and headboards are all the rage right now. But I still love metal beds, too! These are my top picks:

1. Maison Canopy Bed | PB Teen

I am crazy about this bed! It is so refined and whimsical. What little girl (or big girl) wouldn't love this princess bed?

2. Oak Park Bed | Ballard Designs
This bed is super traditional. I love it for kids, because it's a bed that can grow with them for a long time.

3. Diego Bed | Oly Studio
Will someone please buy this bed and invite me over to visit it? GORGEOUS!!

4. Lillesand Bed Frame | IKEA

I like the rounded corners on this bed and how they soften the vertical slats.

5. Maison Classic Bed | PB Teen
Look familiar? This is the non-canopy version of the first bed. I love the lines and the openness of the frame.

These are my picks, what are your favorites?

americana

I can hardly believe the 4th of July is only one week away! I can't wait--it is one of my favorite holidays. I love fireworks, parades, food, and classic Americana: stars and stripes, red and blue.

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For more inspiration, follow me on Pinterest!

best of pinterest: june 20-24

If you haven't started using Pinterest yet, START. It is soooooo amazing for finding and storing inspiration. Here are my favorite finds from this week:

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catch me @ ten june!

I'm guesting at Ten June today for Michelle's Genie Series. I'm sharing two yeah-right-I-WISH dreams and one that I actually hope to have someday. Click over to Ten June to find out what!

3 easy tips to refresh your decor for summer

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I am very much a seasonal person. For as long as I can remember, I've made a sort of ritual out of swapping and storing my clothes each season. (It's like getting a present every season, try it!)

 

For the most part, my interior decor isn't incredibly seasonal. But there are a few things like to do to keep things fresh and interesting. Here are a few simple, cheap, but really effective suggestions for sprucing up your home for these hot summer months:

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1. Swap your drapes for light linen or sheers.

Light drapes swaying in the breeze... that is one of the ultimate relaxed, summery images. Switching your usual drapes (even if they aren't very heavy) for super light, gauzy sheers can open the room up while keeping the visual interest and texture.

 

I like plain sheers, and these Matilda curtains from IKEA will do the trick for next to nothing--$25 for the pair! Really, you can't say no to that price. 

 If you need more visual interest, you could easily customize the IKEA panels with some decorative trim.  Or go for a patterned sheer like these beauties from West Elm.

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2. Change up your art.

Some of my photos have been in the same frames in the same places for so long that I don't even notice them anymore. It makes such a difference to actually notice the decor in your own house, and switching out the pictures and art every so often does the trick.

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For Summer, I like family photos and art that are very clean, simple and bright. Botanicals and watercolors are favorites, and there are tons of well-priced options on Etsy. 

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I've also toyed with the idea of swapping some or all of my black picture frames for white ones. That would definitely make a difference!

3. Get a new scent.

Scents are really strong memory-triggers for me. I love having a new smell to associate with each great season. My favorite pick for summer is Capri Blue's "Volcano." It is great because it is light and summery, and I have good memories associated with it because it smells like Anthropologie! That store has a ton of great candles in general, so if you need some scent inspiration, go sniff around Anthro.

 I'd like to try Duchess Kate's favorite Jo Malone Orange Blossom scent sometime, too.

Happy Summer!

coral + purple

It seems like I have seen a ton of celebrities wearing this color combo recently, usually in a bold, colorblocked, 80s type of look. I love the colors, but prefer a more classic look. Here's a softer, more elegant and playful take on the trend.

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For more inspiration, follow me on Pinterest!

my wedding

This weekend, my husband and I will celebrate our second wedding anniversary! I thought it would be fun to share a some of the details from our little wedding.

We were married in the beautiful Nauvoo, Illinois LDS temple.

My dress was all ivory lace and beading, with a ruched chiffon wrap at the waist. I still love it and wish I had a reason to wear it again!

My bouquet was of blush garden roses, pink Hypericum berries and willow branches tied in ivory shantung silk. The bridesmaid bouquets and the boutonnieres and corsages for the groomsmen and parents all matched.

We had our luncheon reception in the garden of a historic bed & breakfast, the Ellis Sanders House.

 My mom and I created all the stationery. We used my favorite black-and-white striped grosgrain to tie around a little treat. It was so hot, we may have died without the fans.

  

 We lined the table with candelabras to give some height, but I somehow have no pictures of the table. I had the idea to use the bouquets as part of the tablescape. We had to stash them somewhere while we ate, so why not work them in? Genius, if I do say so myself.

The cake was chocolate with vanilla buttercream frosting and fondant that was pressed with lace to mimic the lace on my dress. We served it with ice cream.

Though it's not about to be featured in Martha Stewart Weddings, I loved my wedding. We were only engaged for 28 days (crazy, I know!), so needless to say, we kept things very small and simple. But it was elegant, happy, and very me--everything I wanted it to be.

Have a wonderful weekend!

modern industrial craftsman

Today I want to share a mood board I created for a client we shall call "my Dad" (who is, in fact, my Dad). My family's house is in Utah, but Dad works in Washington state so he has a condo there. 

The condo is a modern, northwestern take on the craftsman style. It has a very open floor plan and beautiful ocean views. My dad wanted something very minimal, neutral and masculine that fit the look of the condo but with an industrial bent. This is what I came up with for his living and dining space:

I think we stayed pretty true to both the style of the space and my dad's style. Everything is still coming together, so I'll share bits and pieces as it comes along!

top 5 favorite pendant lamps

If you ask me, lighting is a make-it or break-it part of a room. Have you ever seen an otherwise fantastic room with only the overhead lighting that came with the house? That lack can ruin the ambiance in a serious way. A room needs all sorts of lighting (task, overhead, spotlight, etc.), but today I wanted to share my top 5 favorite overhead pendant lamps of the moment:

1.
Sausalito Drum Suspension | Troy Lighting $592

This is my absolute favorite pendant of the moment. It is a great size, shape, and style to fit in many different places and is super chic!

2.

Capiz Lotus Pendant | Worlds Away $372

This pendant is feminine and breezy. Pottery Barn carries a similar capiz pendant--it's just a little smaller but also cheaper at $200.

3.
Calhoun Glass Pendant | Pottery Barn $149
Mmmmmm I love this one. It's industrial and kind of sparse, but still warm. Plus it uses a filament bulb, so extra points for that.

4.
Large Country Industrial Pendant | Circa $1,260
Another industrial style, but this one is much sleeker and shiny. I like the mechanical look. I probably won't be using this one any time soon, though... it's pretty spendy.

5.
Grayson Chandelier | Oly Studio $2,650
And the spendiest of them all, this drum pendant is so fantastic. I love the color on the inside. So glamorous.


These are my picks, what are your favorites?

ink + chartreuse

I love preppy color combos (read: navy + anything). This inky navy looks great with a bright, golden green. And that blue door is killing me.

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two persian rugs

I normally gravitate toward simple geometric rugs, but lately I've been really drawn to more traditional, intricate styles. I am particularly crazy about the Sarafina rug from Ballard. Traditional and interesting, very old world. The steely blue color is perfect.

The 8' x 11' Sarafina rug (above) costs $1,000--which I know is expensive, but isn't a terrible price for a large, well-made rug. But this Costco rug is kind of a steal-- $480 for an 8' x 11'! I love the colors and it has especially great balance between warm/cool/neutral tones. 

nate berkus associates chicago

I hardly know anyone who doesn't think anything Nate Berkus touches turns to gold. Same goes for the designers at his firm--I love just about anything they produce.

These photos of the Nate Berkus Associates offices in Chicago are awesome. It's no wonder they create such cool spaces, considering they work in such a cool office. I loved reclaimed industrial loft spaces.

The wall of shameless self-promotion is a little much for me, but it gets a pass because it's Nate and I love gallery walls. This one is finds the ideal spot between perfect spacing and spontaneity. Most of the things in this photo are from Nate's HSN line. I hope they bring back that gorgeous mirror!

tour: swannanoa palace

I discovered the most amazing thing this weekend. I heard about this cool big house at the end of a private road in the Shenandoah mountains and I thought I'd take my husband out to see it (sounds like the start of a horror film). It turns out that the house is open for public tours a few weekends a year, and this was one of them!

The Italianate mansion was built in 1912 by a soldier/politician for his wife. The exterior is white Georgia marble and the interior includes (among other things) Italian Carrera marble, authentic Tiffany glass windows, and gold plumbing. Its 52 rooms total about 23,000 square feet.

This place is absolutely incredible. I can't describe how weird it is to walk into this mostly empty, completely opulent yet decrepit palace. We could wander wherever we wanted in the open areas, and most amazingly, they didn't care at all if anyone touched anything. The woodwork and marble were so intricate and perfect, even 100 years later.

The plaster, paint, and textiles haven't held up as well. I can only imagine how magical everything must have looked when it was shiny and new.

The ballroom ceiling. Breathtaking, even in its tattered state.

I loved the Arabian smoking lounge. HELLO awesome chandelier and elaborate crown moldings. It's so cool how well the paint has held up for 100 years.

One of my favorite rooms was the breakfast nook. The hand-painted wallpaper, gold molding, and soft afternoon sunlight called my name.

It also appears that someone lives there. It is so tragic to see such an incredible estate become a dumping ground for old office furniture and tattered newspapers. Supposedly the plan is to restore the palace and convert it into a luxury B&B. But the most recent (and only) restoration project took place more than a decade ago.

Tragedy!

But so amazing to visit.