Archive for August, 2008
Dana’s Design Dilemma
When we heard that Dana was looking to swankify her new living room/office, we couldn’t wait to spice up her space. Here’s her letter:
I’m looking for some of your budget savvy advice and your fabulous design eye. I’m having a design block over this new space. Just moved 3 months ago and we have a living room/office, that opens upon our dining area (which is a total blank slate). My husband is in real estate and his passion is golf and I practice feng shui while parenting a little toddler. We want the space to reflect us and not look entirely like a catalog, we are a blending of many styles: casual, cottage, creative, updated-traditional. I shop at Pottery Barn often and love Williams Sonoma Home, so those stores would reflect us most. The sofa, chair, desk and bookcase must stay because of budget (and I love my chair and bookcase)!!! Looking forward to your reply. -Dana
The multipurpose room (and Dana’s multifaceted style) inspired us to explore a soft, soothing palette that strikes the perfect balance in her space. So without further ado, our handy dandy moodboard:
Here’s the moodboard breakdown.
Read the rest of this entry »
Sarah’s Design Dilemma
When we heard Sarah’s plea for a young, hip and modern kitchen, we couldn’t wait to cook up something stellar for her space. Here’s her letter:
I am so excited to get your advice. I love your style, and the moodboards I’ve seen look awesome. Here’s my dilemma: our kitchen is small with very limited counter space and we need more. We have 3 kids 3 and under, and just don’t have the time or budget for a large remodel, so we thought we could live with it by doing a little mini makeover. I’m thinking that we can lose the small pieces that surround the room. (we eat in the dining room so we don’t need the table or the cart that the trash is under). I’d like to create a recycling center and add another Simple Human trash barrel next to our existing one for cans and bottles (paper is in the hallway). I’d also love to change the paint color, but it has to work with our gray-green laminate countertop and the cream colored floor tile. Our style is definitely casual modern and I love cool colors and would like to keep the room light and bright. I had the idea of adding an island with storage (Ikea’s Varde Base Cabinet) to the middle of the room, which would give me added storage and more counter space. I’d also like to paint the cabinets (but need a color suggestion), replace the cheap beadboard backsplash and I wouldn’t mind a countertop suggestion, as we might be able to do it in the future. I want the kitchen to be young and hip and fun. Can’t wait to see what you come up with. Thanks! -Sarah
The potential is evident (those stainless appliances! ample room for an island! a great working triangle!) so without further ado, our hip and modern moodboard makeover:
Here’s the moodboard breakdown.
Read the rest of this entry »
Reader Redesign: Kitchen Eye Candy
When Jen sent us pictures of her fantastic kitchen transformation (all the way from England!) we couldn’t wait to share ‘em. Here’s her letter:
I absolutely love your blog and find your style so inspiring. I wanted to share my latest project with you as I am so pleased with it. I created a wall of colourful pictures in my kitchen and I love how it turned out. I am a photographer so all it cost me was the price of the prints (they are 8×12 inches each) and the frames were only $8 a piece. Thanks again for all of your inspiration! -Jen
Here’s the blank slate before:
And the good-enough-to-eat afters:
It’s amazing what a few cheap frames and some tasty kitchen related artwork can do. Check out the gorgeous close ups of each image here. Yummy! And keep those before and after pics coming our way. We eat that stuff for breakfast.
