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Recently on Pinterest…

7 Jun

It’s been a long two weeks. Between work being busy and tending to a sick kid’s mystery illness (he’s fine…no longer a mystery) I haven’t have much time to blog. One thing I have been doing though, is pinning things to Pinterest. At first I regarded it as another site to demand my time, but now I’m finding it more and more useful. I still feel the same way about Twitter though, which is to say, I find it redundant and pointless and a tedious effort. (Sorry, tweeters.)

Here are five fun things I’ve recently “pinned.” If you like them consider “following me” on Pinterest!

 

An unconventional, super neat mantle-scape:

Recently on Pinterest...

 

A kitchen island with personality:

Recently on Pinterest....

 

A celebration of imagery from the Dutch Postal Service:

Recently on Pinterest...

 

15 DIY crafts you can make from a paper box!

Recently on Pinterest...

 

And last but certainly not least, this cake roll:

Recently on Pinterest...

 

Please follow the links thru for proper image crediting, as well as how-tos and more info on these fun projects.

Have a great weekend! Mine is already filled with clients, swim class, a baby shower, and a TRUCK TOUCH!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

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Monday Color Explosion!

20 May

If there’s any day that deserves an explosion of color, it’s Monday.

Don’t you agree?

 

Color Explosion Monday!

1.)  Pillow  2.)  Towel  3.)  Dress  4.)  Chair  5.) Painting  6.) Tray

 

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Rainbow Church Wins the Weekend!

11 May

This is the coolest thing I’ve seen in DC in a while. We spotted it this morning, on the way back from Pentagon City (we took a little detour thanks to the race).

Rainbow Church Wins the Weekend!

This is the work of painter Alex “Hense” Brewer, an Atlanta-based artist, who was commissioned to paint this vacant church at 700 Delaware Avenue, SW. The building, formerly Friendship Baptist Church, was built in the early 1900s and was designated a historic site about 10 years ago. The painting was done in November of last year.

Here’s another shot of it, courtesy of the artist’s website.

Rainbow Church Wins the Week!

And another (via Miguel Martinez and Alex Brewer via WJLA.com).

Rainbow Church Wins the Week!

We need more of this stuff in DC.

I LOVE IT.

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Artist Brendan O’Connell paints Walmart interiors. He makes them look fantastic.

28 Apr

Brendan O’Connell, an American painter born in Georgia but now residing in Connecticut, likes to paint the interior of Walmart stores.

Brendan O'Connell paints Walmart

 

In addition to sweeping scenes which capture – pretty accurately – the bad fluorescent lighting of these vast warehouses, he does a lot of vignettes that prominently, though sometimes very abstractly, feature grocery store branding that we’ll all recognize. I’m a sucker for branding; food branding especially.

 

Brendan O'Connell paints Walmart

 

R.I.P Wonder Bread!

 

Brendan O'Connell paints Walmart

 

I really love this highly abstracted painting of a Crisco cooking oil display, which you may also recognize if you frequent a grocery store as much as I do.

 

Brendan O'Connell paints Walmart

 

According to his website, his work ranges from photo-realistic to abstract expressionist painting (which is what I’d say is most fitting to this series), and he studied his craft in Europe before returning home to America. His wife is also a painter, so that must be a house with very adorned walls!

You can purchase originals here.

 

(All of the images above are via the artist’s website, which is linked to throughout.)

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Another Instagramed View of Durham.

21 Apr

The other weekend my husband and I got away for a much-needed trip to Durham, North Carolina. We went for his law school reunion, but we really enjoy the town, so we spent time visiting places we love and enjoying the awesome weather. Last summer we took a similar long-weekend, during which I took a lot of pictures with Instagram. So I decided to carry on the tradition for this trip as well.

The town is filled with lots of old (mostly tobacco) warehouses which have been converted into any number of new uses: housing, communal art space, restaurants, and other creative adaptive-reuses. Here’s the side of one of the old buildings, featuring one of my favorite combinations: candy and soda.

Durham 2013

Another old building, this one a showroom for Organic Transit, which sells what I like to describe as a space-aged green golf cart. They were parked out front one of the days we were there, but I didn’t snap a picture that day. I adore the signage.

Durham 2013

 

 

An old building in the middle of downtown. Loving the green…

Durham 2013

 

 

…and you know I’m not lying. Look at my pants:

Durham 2013

 

 

Not all of the architecture is so hipster-y. The Carolina Theater at night is pretty classic.

Durham 2013

 

 

And the new Cupcake Bar and The Parlour, and ice cream shop, are pretty cute. Here’s a shot of the exterior of the cupcake shop – prime real estate on a prominent corner, plus a very “apple store” aesthetic – and a shot of the neat art inside The Parlour.

Durham 2013

Durham 2013

 

 

Of course I can’t resist a photo of a dilapidated public health building. This is what Instagram was made for.  Not sure why, I just think it’s beautiful.

Durham 2013

 

 

But all else aside, you can’t go to Durham and not go to Parker and Otis. Because candy. That’s why.

Durham 2013

 

 

Can’t wait to return again!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Eggs in Every Color…an Easter Craft Round-up!

29 Mar

Coloring eggs this weekend? Here are five fun methods to try for all skill-levels.

Pantone Eggs (via How About Orange). Easier than you thought!

Egg Dyeing Projects

 

Sprinkle Eggs (via Studio DIY). An egg after my own heart…

Sprinkle Eggs!

 

Marbelized Eggs (via Camille Styles). Not food safe, but totally gorgeous.

Marbelized Eggs!

 

Wax Patterned Eggs (via Martha Stewart Living). Because is it really a craft round-up without a MSL project? No, it’s not.

Wax Patterned Eggs

 

Rubber Cement Swirls (via Parents). Genius, and reminiscent of my 80′s childhood with the rubber cement.

Rubber Cement Eggs!

 

As a relevant aside (is that a thing?) I read on Slate this week that the correct way to boil eggs is to immerse them in a pot of water, bring it to a rolling boil, then turn the heat off and let them sit there, covered, for 10 minutes. Not 8, not 12, just 10. Apparently this allows the yolks to cook-through completely without making the whites rubbery. Who knew?

Have a great weekend!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Super Mario Inspired Metro Map!

19 Mar

Graphic designer Dave Delisle has created a fantastic map of the Washington Metro, in the style of Super Mario Brothers. It even includes the new silver line!

 

Super Mario Metro!

 

You can purchase a print here. I’m pretty sure I’ll be getting one for my public-transit-obsessed son.

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

 

Pink and Green Picks!

18 Mar

Pink and green is a super classic combination (I could tell you about it via the tile floor in my childhood home…but I’ll save that for when I find photographs one of these days) but it’s often depicted as a extremely pop-ish or overly sweet. Not that there’s anything wrong with that approach, which is beloved by teenagers all over the world, but I want to point out that it can definitely be done in a way that is both a little more refined, a lot more subtle, and quite a bit less girly.

Here are five pink and green items that caught my eye because they take a typical combo and update it a bit.  I especially love the globe! Enjoy the round-up!

Pink and Green!1. Globe  2. Jar  3. Hoodie  4. Art  5. Sofa

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

Beautiful Details.

8 Feb

My week has been filled with lots of little tiny perfect details.

For example, I visited a client this morning whom I have been working with on small projects for quite some time, and I just had to take a picture of the gorgeous architectural detailing in her Logan Circle row house.

This is the top of the beautiful built-in mirror above her mantle.

Beautiful Mantle

I don’t think I’d noticed until I looked at this photo that it has an “M” on it before! It’s very high up.

Here is another view of the whole thing. It makes me so happy.

Beautiful Mantle

 

Yesterday evening, when I was playing with my son, I decided to take on a quick but very gratifying 2-minute craft project. I found myself sitting on the floor with his (formerly mine) little tiny wooden rocking chair and a few rolls of washi tape. Wheels started spinning, and a few minutes later this is what I had:

Rocking Rocking Chair

I kind of love it. Such a small change and easy but it created a big impact.

 

And finally, this is the other small but uplifting detail that I’ve been coming into contact with daily – no, hourly…and sometimes every ten minutes. Cough drops.

Well Designed Cough Drops

Yes, they’re silly. But they truly do make me feel better in the midst of my constant winter cold.

So there you have it: a historical mantle, an old rocking chair, and some drugstore cough drops all have one magical thing in common: great details that are beautiful and inspiring.

Design really does make a difference, and often, it’s all in the details!

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

A Masterpiece!

18 Nov

Well, not literally. But bear with me…

My son is sweet and a little wild and can be incredibly focused. I had always imagined myself as the mom of a little boy, and then I got him, and he is a wonderful one. But sometimes…just sometimes…I look at his pint-sized lady friends and am envious of one thing: they color. A lot. And well. And for sustained periods of time. They just sit there, quietly, and they color. We don’t do that in my house.

Instead we play trucks. And shoe repair shop. And we dance. And then we get in our “truck” and go to the “shoe repair shop.” Which leads to photos like this, in which I am wearing running shorts but you can’t tell…

 

At least this was the case UNTIL TODAY, when I asked him to draw me a picture of our family. And then he produced this out of nowhere:

 

It’s called “Daddy, Mommy, Me, and Neuman in a swimming pool.” Neuman is our cat. I can safely say that all four of us have never been in a pool together.

I am so proud!

Save this stuff, guys. Not all of it, but some of it. And frame a few of your kids’ art pieces…they’ll be the least expensive thing on your walls, and they’ll make you smile.

 

Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.

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