Mirror, Mirror on the wall. You are the fairest of them all!

Make the mirrors in your home more than something you want to look into, make them something you want to look at!

Mirrors can be more than the functional reflective surface you use in the bathroom each morning, it's possible that mirrors can be used in every room if you would like. They reflect light, expand rooms, enhance design and can be great conversation pieces or even works of art.

One of the most wonderful things about mirrors are the vast variety in size, shape and style that they come in. All of these things come into play when you are deciding on where you want one placed and how you want it to impact the room. Our golden rule of mirrors is that you want to reflect something beautiful in it! 

The most commonly used mirror is the bathroom mirror, but don't let the functionality of it overpower the possibilities of mirrors. Have fun playing with shapes, instead of a rectangular go with a circle, oblong or, something on the ornate side to add interest.

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

Living rooms, entryways and even dining rooms give you lots of possibilities. One spectacular thing is the size of mirror that these rooms can handle, having a large mirror brightens the room and expands the space dramatically!

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

In the pictures below the mirrors aren't functional as far as being able to look into it, but act as art pieces instead. It is apart of the design as a bold focal point with a beautiful, unique frame.

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

photo courtesy of Pinterest

This one is not so much a bold focal point, but a subtle part of the design. Still impacting but not  stealing the show.

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

In this picture the ceiling is mirrored. In a wide elongated hallway it is stunning, especially how it catches the reflection of the art on the back wall.
Another place a mirrored ceiling would be great to have is in a dining room above a beautiful chandelier, reflecting the light and the fixture.

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

Mirror collages are so fun and have endless possibilities as far as style, color, shape and quantity.

photo courtesy of Pinterest

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

photo courtesy of Houzz.com

 You can never have too many mirrors, the design of it all just needs to be thought out and the sky is the limit! 

What to do with all those May flowers...

We all know the saying "April Showers Bring May Flowers." Now what the question should be is what we should do with our spring flowers… Bring them inside of course. I love spring! All the colors, the sounds, the smells and flowers. Check out some fun pictures of spring flowers you can adorn your home with this month:

Unique Allium Blooms are so fun!
Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Using Black-Eyed Susans and other wild flowers adds a fresh touch.
I love how these are placed in different jars.
Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Daffodils are always a favorite of mine, they have spring written all over them.
Photo courtesy of Houzz.com

White Daisies thrown into a metal colander, I love it!
Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Gerbera Daisies are so delicate and simple, once again placed
into a mason jar for an easy spring arrangement.
Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Hyacinths come in many colors and have the most amazing
fragrance, great for your garden and of course in your home.
Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Tulips are in my opinion a classic spring flower!
It's fun to do a bold solid arrangement like the one shown above or
doing a multi-colored arrangement.
Photo courtesy of Houzz.com 

Lilacs are another fragrant flower and delicate as well.
Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Enjoy our May flowers and bring some spring into your home this month! What are your favorite springtime flowers?

MOTHER'S DAY DESIGN MAKEOVER!

Basement Kitchen Transformation

Back in February we starting working with new clients who just moved to Utah from California and needed to update their new house. One of the many projects for their new home was turning the basement kitchenette into a full blown kitchen for their daughter who was moving in with them. Before we met with them a contractor had already laid out the new kitchen plan and they didn't think they needed us to layout the kitchen.  Unfortunately, his play seriously lacked functionality in its layout, use of space and all over design.   Often times clients think interior designers only work on furniture and accessories, but one of the perks of hiring a professional interior designer is to space plan not only furniture, but kitchen layouts as well.  Luckily we catch things like this, and even luckier in this situation we were able to to review the plans and fix them before they were built, saving our clients considerable money.  We created a new and improved kitchen design for them and yesterday we were able to see the finished product!

The kitchen plan their contractor came up with.
Unfortunately this was a poor layout and did not meet their needs.

Our floor plan we created for them - a full kitchen design, just what they wanted!

Elevation of the west kitchen wall

 The plan the contractor came up with was only a kitchenette where their daughter really needed a full kitchen, plus having a full functional kitchen helps the resale value of their home as well as the fact that they can now market it as a full basement apartment.

Before...

After! 

Close up of the cabinets and laminate

We saved on cost by using simple, but beautiful, shaker cabinets and laminate countertops. Adding the crown molding and valance really dress up the cabinets and add elegance to the space. The bathroom door was squared off and we extended the hallway with an angled wall, making these changes gave us the space we needed to give them such a function kitchen. 

Before… 

After!

It is a huge transformation and our clients are very happy with the results, and to quote them "We came just in the nick of time!"

Cork! How…Where…Why

We are currently working on a sunroom remodel and our clients have chosen to use cork for their flooring. I'm so excited that they went that direction!  Cork is an eco-friendly renewable resource, it is soft underfoot, helps with acoustics and provides a unique look unlike other flooring products.

While I was at the flooring store selecting samples to bring to my client I was able to look at some actual pieces of Cork Oak bark, which is where cork comes from.

The Cork Oak tree grows in countries that run along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea; some of these include Portugal, Spain, Morocco, France & Italy.

Cork Oak tree after the cork bark has been harvested, you can see the layers of cork from past harvests. Photo courtesy of tree-species.blogspot.com

Cork is eco-friendly because of how it is harvested and used.  The cork bark is harvested every 10 years from the Cork Oak, and it is only removed from the main trunk and lower branches so it won't hurt the tree.  It is first used for wine bottle stoppers, afterwards the scraps are ground up, molded and baked in ovens to make other cork products, such as flooring.  Little to none of this product is wasted!

The benefits to using cork:

• Renewable Resource - need I say more
• Excellent sound absorption - for floor or wall application
• Soft under foot - great cushion especially for elderly people or young children
• Long lasting & easy to clean. It can be cleaned with a vacuum or a broom, the finish it comes with keeps it protected for many years. However it is not advised to clean with a wet mop, special cleaning products can be used for stain/soiled areas.
• Anti-Allergenic & it has natural insect repellent qualities
• Variety - cork comes in numerous patterns, shades, colors and sizes

Cork flooring in a wood plank pattern.
Photo courtesy of www.wilsonsinteriors.com

Solid cork flooring in this kitchen, this is similar to the look my clients floor will have.
Photo courtesy of Houzz.com

Love the rich color in this flooring!
Photo courtesy of corkflooringpros.com 

Check out the awesome checkerboard floor made from cork tiles.
Photo courtesy of corkflooringpros.com

Photo courtesy of corkflooringpros.com

Now here's an idea… renew old cork wine bottle stoppers into fun art!
Another way to reuse this renewable-resource.
Photo courtesy of projectrowhouse.blogspot.com (check out the blog to see how to make this)!

What a few hours of working with a designer can give you!

A year ago I met with a client who needed help finding inspiration for the design of her family room. In as little as six hours of designing I had a brand new family room planned for her. We selected the sofa, the love seat, the perfect pair of leather chairs, the pillows, chests and some accessories. I gave her the information and instructions on where to buy what and gave her the keys.

I had the pleasure of returning to her home last week to help her with a kitchen remodel she is working on and I was able to see what had become of her family room...I was ecstatic to see how well she was able to put my design to action and also to hear that she loved it! 

Check out the before and after shots of her project.

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

Close up on her new sofa dressed with those fun pillows!

These chairs were a great find and they go perfectly in the room, I love the trunk ottomans!

I'm so happy she loves her room and I'm excited to see the transformation of her kitchen! Here's a sneak peak before shot…isn't the blue tile fabulous? I can't imagine why she wouldn't want to keep it! Stay tuned for the afters.

Retro Chic

With the season 5 of Mad Men premiering on AMC the other night, it got me thinking about all of the retro design trends that this show brings back into vogue.  And what’s not to love?  Big beautiful shiny cars, fully done-up dresses, perfectly curled hair, and oh the set design, don’t even get me started on the set design - love!

AMC's hit series MadMen

If you’re not in the loop, the 60’s are back, well at least certain elements are.  And you should welcome them. With the popularity of this hit show many components of the 1960’s are back in vogue: Pantone’s color of the year is Tangerine Tango,home bars are back (can you see the MadMen influence?), and even technology apps like Instagram are huge right now. 

HGTV’s Taniya Nayak and spokesperson for Mohawk says “When decorating your space, throwbacks are certainly not style setbacks.”  In keeping step with contemporary trends, today’s homeowners are looking back to the decade’s far-out flavor to push their taste forward—and I even think we might even see a trend coming back of broadloam wall-to-wall carpet.  Especially for rooms with hipster owners who just bought their first home and want that retro chic vibe.  While I love hardwood floors, you can’t beat the warmth of wall-to-wall carpet on your feet especially in a cold climate like the one I live in.  Not to mention, it can certainly be nice on the budget.

contemporary living room design by seattle interior designer Garret Cord Werner

 Frieze carpet from Mohawk gives this living room a retro feel - one of the trends flooring companies are observing for 2012.  

A great way to pull in the retro chic vibe from the 60’s is to “always aim for balance, so try incorporating the bold 60s colors—burnt orange, smoky blue, chartreuse—through accent pieces in combination with neutral furnishings.” If you do choose carpet “which was big in the 60s, go for a hue that will complement the furnishings you own. Among the most accommodating colors are beiges, grays, or muted tones of blues and greens” Taniya Nayak says.

modern living room design by new york interior designer Amy Lau Design

Another plus of broadloom carpet is the fact that it is a green product; this new carpet of today is not your mama's carpet of the past.  In the last 50 years, advanced technology and an increased concern for the climate have led to carpets manufactured from recycled soda bottles as well as those made in part from corn sugar, like Mohawk’s EverStrand and SmartStrand carpets.

modern bathroom design by los angeles furniture and accessories SEE MATERIALS INC.

Other elements of the 1960’s is color blocking and bold, big patterns.  Nayak’s suggests taking “a few colors of the same carpet style, have them cut according to a desired pattern, and work with your local retailer to have the individual carpet pieces stitched together.” 

contemporary kids design by new york photographer Alexander Johnson Photography

Another great idea is to use some carpet tiles to color block.  Either way this will certainly give your space a custom look.

eclectic bedroom design by dc metro interior designer Supon Phornirunlit / Naked Decor

Are you loving the retro chic style of 2012?