Mood Board Monday - Hosted by Pewter and Sage & West Elm - Brunch in Paris

Over the weekend I noticed a fun Facebook post from West Elm about a Mood Board Monday contest involving these amazing, fun designs from Patch NYC.  I am a huge fan of FB pages since I think it's a great way to get exposed to ideas, places, events that you might not run into otherwise {I'm almost ready to launch one too...}.  In this case, I was exposed to two great sites -- Patch NYC's website {so fun!} and the blog Pewterandsage.blogspot.com {so lovely!}.

I enjoy thinking about items and designs in the context of a room so thought I would just play around and have fun creating a room around a couple of these designs and participate in Mood Board Monday...and, here is what I came up with!

And my thinking behind my design --

I thought the bold, whimsical designs of the Patch NYC plates and pillows should stand out so I didn't want any other large, competing graphics.  At home, I love using plates that might really be for serving or sushi for meals so I am using the medium size butterfly plate for a meal plate.  I love brunch because I feel like brunch is asking for you to be more creative in your food, display, music, etc.  So this is a brunch in the dining room in my {imaginary} Parisian flat.  I've just found this French Kitchen Table from Crate and Barrel that I'm obsessed with which was perfect for this occassion.  If I was lucky to have a large eat in kitchen/dining area this would be in there with the linen couch for a relaxed atmosphere and a place for guests to linger with a glass of champagne {I also like using other non-wine/champagne glasses for wine/champagne} as the French doors are open to hear the hustle and bustle along the street.  To balance out the grays and the linen and marble, I found the rust color leather dining chairs -- they look modern and comfortable.  I really want to see the chandelier hung over the table with the jute rug and placesettings in a room -- it's just so stunning -- and the French doors with the pink hue in the glass really play nicely off of the chandelier.  There is a little bit for everyone - whimsy, antique, leather, comfort, surprise, light, subtlety. 

{Color Palette:  Soft white walls in Benjamin Moore Cloud White with some painted wood paneling + black and gray to ground the room + textures of glass, wood, linen, jute, marble + purple and greens in the chandelier and napkins for a bolder look + accents of white in the linen placemats, marble table top and curtains to keep the room light and the rust color in the chairs for luxury and surprise}

1.   {West Elm} Patch NYC Ceramic Entertaining - Butterfly - $14/each
2.   {Anthropologie} Hobnail Tumbler - Clear - $10/each
3.   {Anthropologie} Jempiring Napkin - $8/each
4.   {Williams-Sonoma} Hemstitched Linen Placemat - White - $60/set of 4
5.   {Horchow} "Retro Glamour" Chandelier - $2,050
6.   {Crate and Barrel} French Kitchen Table - $1,299
7.   {Design Within Reach} Antica Side Chair - Rust - $550/each
8.   {West Elm} Jute Boucle Rug - Clay - 5x8 - $129
9.   {Etsy - disegno Karina Gentinetta} Antique French Sofa in Linen - $8,995
10. {Wisteria} Wooden Tripod Lamp - $249
11. {Ikea} Stockholm Figur Curtains - $29.99/pair
12. {Oneofakindantiques.com} Pair of French Blown Glass Doors - $2,500
{BTW...for silverware I would use these from DWR -- the image looked a little out of place in the board so I didn't include it...}

Friday's Organizing Item

Today's Agenda:   I am recovering from some surgery on my leg that I had this week.  It's the first real surgery I've had where I was under general anesthesia and all.  While it wasn't fun and definitely not fun being off of my feet, I am actually enjoying this time to catch up on design magazines, overhaul our filing system from the living room floor and I love being able to spend the time researching so many internet sites and blogs for current design projects.  I'm very very thankful for my new job right now in that I can take the time to heal while working from home in my comfy clothes with my laptop and endless supply of HGTV, Ellen and The Bonnie Hunt Show to keep me company.  While there is no great time for surgery, this couldn't have happened at a better time and I'm making the most of the time to catch up on some things, including getting back on track with Friday's Organizing Item!  I'm hoping for a quick recovery so I can be back on my feet soon!

I have been helping a friend find a vanity and some other fixtures for her bathroom renovation.  This has made me think about how we use the vanity and the best use of space for storage in a bathroom.  Basically, I do not like the big old vanity where you can fit thirty rolls of toilet paper and thirty boxes of kleenex under or need to buy ten plastic drawers to (hopefully) keep everything organized.  I would love to install some combination of the Ikea Godmorgon series in our bathrooms.  The drawer system seems to make a lot more sense. 

But, since it's not the right time to renovate our bathrooms, I have found another solution to make the big old vanity more user friendly.  This.  

Now, I haven't gotten rid of the nice plastic drawers and containers under my sink but I do feel much better because I or a guest or my husband can easily get to the extra roll of toilet paper that I'm now storing in this ottoman without going behind a hair dryer, hair iron, extra shampoo bottles and a cadre of makeup bags to get to it, we know when we are out of toilet paper and I have all of my extra stuff easily stored in there -- qtips, cotton pads, razors, etc.  Easy to grab for me or a guest that forgot something.  See...

It a nice, neutral linen and takes up little space.  Would be nice to have two in a larger bathroom but one fits easily in ours.  And it's a nice place for husband to sit and drink coffee and talk to me while I'm getting ready.  If I ask really really nicely :). 

New @ Crate & Barrel

Today's Agenda:  Present a staging plan for the sale of an amazing large 1 bedroom apartment in Dupont Circle -- anyone interested??!!

I popped into the Crate & Barrel that is just down the street from us to do a loop to see if there were any interesting floor samples and/or new pieces.  No floor samples I couldn't live without but these new items caught my eye on the showroom floor and I think would look really interesting in a home.

French Dining Table

 

 Petrie Chair

Bedford Chest

Tailor Sofa

Allerton Twin Sofa Bed

Trace Apartment Sofa

London Recap: Chelsea Design Centre

This was top on my list.  I had no reason to go but to wander and get ideas.  Pretty great. 

But before I reached the Design Centre, I walked from Hyde Park to the Harbour...not really knowing what the building looked like or where I was going.  After a good 45 minutes and still no sign of the Harbour, I approached this massive warehouse.  Let's just say my imagination was starting to get the best of me...

But I made it!  And everyone was getting ready for Design Week which was just the next week!  So the energy was great {and without the crowds!}.

Inside!

I just strolled in and out of several of the showrooms for a couple of hours, thinking about how things were displayed and what I liked best, and grabbing samples where I could.  My top three showrooms were Cole & Son (wallcoverings), Mulberry Home (fabrics), and JVB Furniture (furniture).  Classic, beautiful and well made.  Check out the websites -- there are tons of samples of their work on line!

London Recap: Outdoor Spaces

We had beautiful weather on our trip!  So were lucky to find a couple clutch outdoor spaces...

"Our" rooftop deck.

 

View of Shepard's Market from Hotel. 

The patio at Gipsy Moth in Greenwich.  

 

Tasty...

{Quick -- check out the chandeliers inside Gipsy Moth!}

London Recap: Lampshades

Today's Agenda:  Posting my last few posts re London...They will be short and (bitter)sweet. 

Lampshades by Lush Designs

 

I will use these in a project!  

Just one would be stunning -- in a bathroom, child's room, a fun kitchen.

London Recap: Paul Smith

Today's Agenda:  Stamping + Embossing + Envelope Liner-ing (a verb??!)!  It's actually very therapeutic...Am excited too because I have found a new wrapping paper for an envelope liner for a set of Thank You notes.  And against a black envelope -- I think it will look very stunning...will post a week of stationery items soon -- am overdue!

You know that feeling when you stumble upon a beautiful garden, inspiring restaurant, a breathtaking piece of art or photograph??  Well, when we were out walking (for exercise), we happened upon the Paul Smith home store in London.  This frequently happens when we are out exercising -- I see lots of interesting things, I have to find strategic ways to pause -- drink of water, shoelace untied, falling (I haven't resorted to that yet...), husband catches on to stalling technique, I have limited time to store important notes like location and hours of interesting ____ (fill in blank, restaurant, store, museum).  I'm thinking that all this mental energy is burning more calories too?!?

Anyway, needless to say, I had no problem filing away the Paul Smith store and remembering to go back and check it out (now, finding it later on was a little bit tricky, but I'm getting better at just asking for directions especially since I was sans Iphone -- yes, very traumatic.). 

It was like being in a museum.  But not because you could touch everything.  Really like being in someone's home that had really interesting taste.  Not too stuffy.  Accessible but really special.  And everyone was so friendly that worked there.  I just wandered around.  Combed through the House Beautiful issues from the 1940s.  Flipped through books.  Lusted after jewelry.  Tried out most of the chairs.  Relished my complete high.  And the gentleman at the store was so kind to send me more information on a few of the chairs that I fell in love with.  To just have one of these chairs in a room would make it so special.  And the best part is that you can pair these amazing pieces with pieces from anywhere else -- antique store, mass retailer, your parents' attic.

Here's the description of the store from the website -- "9 Albemarle Street is situated in the heart of Mayfair, on the cormer of Albemarle street and Stafford Street, just off Bond st. The shop houses a rich and varied selection of original and unique antiques, objects art and curiosities sourced from around the world. While some are original pieces others are given a new lease of life with a Paul Smith twist."  Please, go check it out.  Read Paul Smith's blog.  And sign up for their newsletter for info re new products and projects at No. 9. 

No. 9, and some of its treasures