Look for Less: Metallic Vases.

30 Jan

So this one may be a stretch: I’m literally saying you can get the “look” for less…but not the size or the exact finish. Nonetheless, this one will save you over $1,100.

You heard me right.

This is Kelly Wearstler’s Gold Ball Vase. It’s gorgeous, inside and out. And on the bottom where her logo is. It’s 10” in diameter and 15” high, so it makes quite a statement, too. And not to hate on Kelly Wearstler, because I adore her, but this one is not for the masses: it costs $1,125. So, there’s that obstacle to get around.

Gold Ball Vase by Kelly Wearstler, $1,125 (image via Kelly Wearstler.com)

 

But lucky for you, Anthropologie makes a lovely, albeit much smaller votive, for $8. That’s right: for the price of two coffees. It’s called the Silvered Hobnail Votive, but it’s much more gold/bronze in person. Its measurements are 3.5” in diameter and 4” high.

Silvered Hobnail Votive from Anthropologie, $8 (image via Anthropologie)

 

…and what do you know? I used it to style a shoot last week. Gorgeous, if you ask me. You wouldn’t even know that I used an $8 vase amongst very, very expensive tile. Except that I just told you. Shoot, I guess the secret’s out.

 

So budget aside, which do you prefer? I am a huge fan of a rugged but glamorous finish, so I may just prefer the cheaper vase. How convenient!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

 

Color Friday is: Red! RED at Arena Stage, that is…

27 Jan

Last night I was treated to a performance of Red, the acclaimed Tony Award winning play that just opened at Arena Stage. The play is about Mark Rothko, the Russian-American, abstract expressionist painter who was active in the mid 1900s. You know: the colored squares guy.

(image via Arena Stage)

I don’t refer casually to him as “the colored squares guy” to be sinister or suggest his work is silly. In fact, I’ve come to really appreciate and enjoy many of the seemingly mundane subjects of abstract expressionism over the years. In the play, Rothko’s character discusses his paintings as being highly vulnerable objects that pulsate, glow, and he even goes so far as to suggest that they have emotions. This hour and forty minute long show has only two cast members, and focuses on the relationship between Rothko and his fictional assistant, Ken, as he works on a commission for the Four Seasons restaurant in Philip Johnson and Mies Van der Rohe’s Seagram Building; three of these paintings are on view at the National Gallery of Art right now. As the title if the play may suggest, the works are largely in red tones.

I chuckled when Rothko’s character mentioned that he rued the day that his paintings would grace living rooms as decoration, or that people would pair his thoughtful, serious color blocks with chips from the Sherwin Williams fan deck. I can’t say I recommend matching art to your throw pillows, but as a designer, I advocate some semblance of purpose or cohesion. I’m guessing he wouldn’t like these much:

(image via Design Crush)

The art history student in me was thrilled to hear the names of so many artists: the characters discuss Caravaggio, de Kooning, Matisee and others throughout, and if you are at all familar with the history of art you’ll be reminded of many favorite images (and appreciate the dialogue on a much deeper level). They talk about what red means to them, what black represents, and what white connotes. There’s back and forth between the men about different shades of red that lasts a few minutes, and the color theorist in me was thoroughly entertained. There’s a gorgeous set, wonderful lighting, and real painting action happens right on stage mid-performance. If you sit in the front row don’t wear anything you like too much (you’ve been warned).

(image via Arena Stage)

The discussion of the point of abstract expressionism — more specifically, Rothko’s work; or to generalize, art on the whole — is a central theme. Rothko, as the artist, obviously has a stake in making his work mean something important. His assistant, on the other hand, suggests that “Sometimes, you just want a f*cking still life.”

Feel free to form your own opinion sometime over the course of the next five weeks: Red is running at Arena Stage, in the Kreeger Theatre, until March 11th 2012. You can purchase tickets here.

 

Arena Stage provided the tickets to this performance.

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Ask JGB Interiors: How Can I Use “Fun” Fabrics?

26 Jan

And here we have another edition of Ask JGB Interiors…this time it’s about textiles.

Lovely bright ikats from Brunschwig & Fils. (image via Elle Decor)

Dear JGB,

I’m obsessed with fun, bold, graphic fabrics and see them everywhere. But they are really really expensive, and it costs a lot to get a custom upholstery job done. What can I do? I want them in my house!

– Crazy for Textiles in DC

Dear Crazy (no offense),

I love this question! You’re right: custom upholstery jobs are expensive. I often remind clients who have an undesirable chair or sofa that reupholstering it can cost almost as much as a new piece! That said, there are ways to go about getting your favorite patterns and prints into your home for under, say, $400. My first recommendation to to go small. Ballard Designs does wonderful work on semi-customizable pieces (meaning you choose from their fabric offerings, but most are lovely). For ever-so-slightly more, they’ll upholster using your own fabric (it’s called COM – customer’s own material. Ask about it.) I love the tiny Classic Footstool, and a pair can be yours for about $300! Seriously! Here are two options that I love:

On L: Domino Green is $153 each. On R: Canopy Stripe in Black is just $149 per stool. (images ia Ballard Designs)

Another route you can go is to learn how to sew. Admittedly, I cant, and I don’t plan to in the near future, but it sure would make a girl’s pillow, window panel, and duvet cover budget open up quite a bit. If sewing just isn’t in the cards, you can try to reupholster some pop-out seats yourself, or even take a stab at iron-on hem window panels (beware: this is dicey and the back won’t look nice. You’ll want to use a liner, most likely.) Try this chair seat tutorial via Simply Salvage for help. You’d be surprised how many $150 a yard fabrics become accessible once you have no labor costs.

You can do this. Probably. (image via Simply Salvage)

Has anyone else brought otherwise cost-prohibitive textiles into their home, by being creative? If so, leave a comment!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Find(s) of the Week!

25 Jan

Yesterday I was browsing Crate & Barrel for some quick finds and a few things jumped out at me. JUMPED, I tell you. I was excited to see some truly great items.

First was this gorgeous Grey City Map. I’m showing New York, but Chicago and San Fran are also available. Each is $199 and measures 21” w x 27” h.

New York City Map, $199 (image via Crate & Barrel)

 

Second was this “And” Pillow. For $29.95, it’s a steal! It would be perfect sandwiched in between two other pillows.

"And" Pillow, $29.95 (image via Crate & Barrel)

 

Finally, I am loving this Grey C Table. I adore C tables to begin with for their utility and small footprint, and for $59.95 you can not beat this one! It’s also available in a bright blue, lime green, and white.

Grey C Table, $59.95 (image via Crate & Barrel)

 

Just a few Crate & Barrel basics to get you through your design dilemmas. Remember, it’s totally fine to get your furniture and accessories from catalogs: it’s about curating them to be a unique mix, and occasionally throwing in some truly unique finds. (I know that’s a difficult task…that’s why I do what I do!…)

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Sneak Peek: A Beautiful Blue Bathroom.

24 Jan

How many times have I said I was going to be taking project photographs “soon.” Then a lot of time went by. And I didn’t. Maybe two times? OK, ten.

Well yesterday I styled and photographed a few fantastic rooms, and surprisingly many of them turned out quite well! Here’s a sneak peek of a bathroom I worked on in 2011. I mentioned in my A Designer’s Year in Review post that I’ve come to really enjoy designing bathrooms, and this one was a huge part of that! (You can actually even see a little progress photo of it in the montage.) So here it is: enjoy the views! 

 

Have you ever seen such a fun, fancy shower in a second bathroom? This one has beautiful tiny glass tiles from Sicis from floor to ceiling!

 

Even the back of the toilet is beautiful. And the backsplash is lovely, if I do say so myself.

 

See that light? Perfection.

 

Hope you enjoyed the Sneak Peek! Coming up: another bath, a bedroom, and a kitchen! What fun!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Color Friday is: Matte Black!

20 Jan

Basic black is beautiful. It’s dramatic, masculine, and can be both sophisticated and playful. While I love a glossy black finish as much as the next glam aficionado, I also have a huge soft spot for matte black. The flat finish of a matte black object is easy to keep looking good (no fingerprints!) and it plays well with shine just as well as it does with rustic woven baskets. It’s also the finish of a chalkboard, which you know I love. Have a look at these matte black finds below; many of them you can craft yourself using some DIY blackboard paint (I like the one from Benjamin Moore)! Enjoy!

Clockwise from pendant at top: Noir Pendant Lamp from CB2, $249 (image via CB2); Nars Eyeshadow Compact in Nightbreed, $23 (image via Drugstore.com); Benjamin Moore's Chalkboard Paint, $18.99 (image via BenjaminMoore); Morten Table Lamp by West Elm, $149 (image via West Elm); Architect Desk from CB2, $149 (image via CB2); West Elm Storage Baskets, $39-$59 (image via West Elm); Cast Iron Skillet by Lodge, $10-$60 (image via Amazon.com); Ottavio Vase by ZGallerie, $69.99 (image via ZGallerie); Stoneware Vessel by John Ward from Moss via 1st Dibs, price on request (image via 1stDibs)

 

I should point out that two of these items are, to me, examples of great product design. The Nars compact is one of my favorite  “things.” The almost rubbery black case is soft but firm to the touch, and it wipes off beautifully if you get fingerprints on it. Combined with the sleek text, its matte black finish is something I love seeing every time I pull it out of my drawer. Also, the Lodge cast iron skillet is a staple in my kitchen. The perfect matte black finish becomes a little shinier and browner over time, and if you don’t already have one you’ll love using it for everything from frying chicken to sauteing peppers – I promise.

Have a great weekend!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Mmmmmmac and Cheese!

18 Jan

Both the men in my house love mac and cheese, and I do too. And by “mac and cheese,” I mean real, homemade, from scratch, with butter, macaroni and cheese. Any pasta shape will do.

The Geometry of Pasta by Jacob Kenedy and Caz Hildebrand (image via CuratedMag)

If we’re being honest, my son and husband like the boxed version of mac and cheese a lot too, but I have never been able to justify sprinkling gelatinous powder over mini elbow noodles and calling the resulting buttery, orange concoction real macaroni and cheese – it’s isn’t, and the homemade version takes the same amount of time because you can make the cheese sauce while the pasta cooks. (Full disclosure: this isn’t to say that the infamous blue box has never made an appearance in our kitchen, it definitely has, but I cringe to see it. Every time.)

My favorite kind of mac and cheese to make is a baked version. It’s actually very simple: just cook your pasta a little al dente (because it will continue cooking in the oven) and while it’s boiling away make a roux (roughly equal parts butter, flour, some milk) and stir in your cheeses of choice. I almost always use cheddar, sometimes mozzarella, sometimes provolone, and often fontina for a smoky note. When the sauce is uniformly melted mix it up with the pasta and put it all in a casserole dish. I top it with thinly sliced or grated cheese (sometimes the same cheese that’s melted in with the noodles, sometimes different), bread crumbs, and grated parm and pop it in the oven to brown. It takes about 15 minutes more than stove top version, and it’s great. That said, you can definitely stop at the stove and just go straight from pot to plate; I do this a lot, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss the crunch and complexity of the oven-baked version.

But last night, I had this great idea for a cheat…

While the sauce was resting and the pasta was still cooking, I took some leftover grated cheddar and parm and thew it into a nonstick pan. Just a thin layer. It melted into this awesome “cheese chip” that was crispy, crunchy, and intensely cheesy. See?

It’s kind of like when you’re making a grilled cheese and a little bit of  yellow creeps out of the sandwich and crisps up in the pan (who doesn’t love that part?). I sprinkled bread crumbs on the melted cheese, and the oils that bubbled up from it kind of crunched and crisped the bread crumbs, too. JUST LIKE when you bake a mac and cheese casserole in the oven. So three minutes later, I had a topping for my stove top mac and cheese that evoked the extra touch of an oven baked dish, but took no extra time (and no actual oven). Here’s what it looked like with the “cheese cracker” crunched on top.

Yum, am I right? I served it with a green salad with a balsamic vinaigrette (in my opinion, cheesy richness needs something acidic for balance, and balsamic is just right). What do you think? Think you’ll try this trick?

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

 

Vintage Frames!

17 Jan

I love accessorizing with a few thoughtfully placed vintage items, and I find that frames are one of my favorite things to use. They come in all colors and sizes, all kinds of materials, and they are pretty cheap in the grand scheme of accessories. You can often find bundles of antique frames in thrift or antique stores, or sold together on Etsy (which saves you the hunt of trying to put together a coordinated frame collection!). I once got a group of three white frames at an antique store in Tennessee for about $20. I still use them. Here’s one that I recently styled for an article on vintage pieces; I think this would be perfect for a teenager’s room!

One of the challenges with frames like this is that they often have no back or hardware (see above!). If this is the case with your recent find, you can always take the frame to a local shop and have them work their magic. For a more cost effective method of displaying your frame, you can just attach you own hardware and display it au-naturale like the frames below.

As you can see, a little spray paint never hurt anyone. (images via L - HGTV, R - sfgirlbybay)

 

Another image I saw this weekend that I just loved was from a favorite site of mine, Design Sponge. It’s the upstairs hallway from Sarah Fowlske and James Milward’s home in Toronto. You can see the rest of this lovely, typography-heavy abode here. This image of the virtually grayscale hallway is just perfect!

Monochrome minimalism at its best! (image via Design Sponge)

 

Finally, though this isn’t a frame it evokes the idea of using a frame to store jewelry. I am totally enamored with the way this home uses a strip of simple wood and hooks to display colorful beads at the top of the wall! This idea could be easily emulated on a smaller scale with a few frames rigged to hang your beads.

A neat, non-traditional take on molding. (image source unknown)

 

Do you have any creative uses for old frames, or good places to find them? If so, share in the comments!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Urban Graphic Maps: Hi and Low.

16 Jan

I’m a big fan of graphics: type, maps, logos…all of it. I’m especially a big fan of text- or shape-intensive maps, so naturally I love Ork’s city posters; they range from about $20 to $30 depending on the type of printing you choose. I own the DC version in gray and white. It was $27 and measures 18” x 24.”

Frame from Target; Poster via Ork Posters.

I came across this beautiful graphic map this weekend, which is by Bo Lundberg. It caught my eye for its use of color and it obviously reminded me of Ork’s work (I mean this in a complementary way, not in a “you’re copying them!” way, of course).

"Manhattan" by Bo Lundberg (image via Stampa)

It’s a map of Manhattan, and part of a series of other places; “Manhattan” however, is really the only map that evokes the Ork aesthetic. Others are less recognizable as maps, and some aren’t maps at all .Prints are available from Stampa, starting at $100 for an unframed 8”x 10” and going up to $800 for a framed 18” x 24.” You read that right: $800. 

Ork’s Manhattan is equally lovely, and you can snag one for far far less: $22 – $27. There are six colorways and two printing options. For you NYC folk, there’s also a greater New York City version.

"Manhattan" by Ork Posters (image via Orkposters.com)

What do you think? Do you prefer one print to another, or are you over the whole text-map thing already? I can tell you I’m definitely not over it yet, and I’m thrilled to see them thriving.

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Thirteen Mirrors for Friday the 13th!

13 Jan

Today is Friday the 13th. Whether you find that spooky or silly, I thought it would be neat to feature thirteen great mirrors:  an object that conjures up feelings of superstition for many. Enjoy them…just don’t break any!

1.) Swedish Mirror, $614 (image via Layla Grayce); 2.) Ballard Designs' Round Leather Mirror, $449 (image via Ballard Designs); 3.) CB2's Round Pool Mirror, $99.95 (image via CB2); 4.) Oly Studio's Bubble Mirror, price on request (image via Oly Studio); 5.) Wisteria's Antique Peacock Mirror, $1199.50 (image via Wisteria); 6.) Bliss Studio's Chained Mirror, $438 (image via Layla Grayce); 7.) Jonathan Adler's Queen Anne Mirror, $595 (image via Jonathan Adler); 8.) West Elm's Steven Antonson Mirror, $179 (image via West Elm); 9.) Z Gallerie's Devon Mirror, $199 (image via Z Gallerie); 10.) Recycled Magazine Mirror via Great Green Goods (source unknown); 11.) Bungalow 5's Green Charlotte Mirror, $580 (image via Bungalow5); 12.) Baker Furniture's Biomorphic Mirror, price on request (image via Baker Furniture); 13.) Wisteria's Round Seaside Mirror, $299 (image via Wisteria)

 

If you’re missing the traditional Color Friday post, see my previous spooky posts on blood orange here and here. CF will return next week!

Have a great weekend!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

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