{Home} Accent pillows?

24 Wednesday Sep 2014

Posted by Karen B. in Accessories; details, Collections & Accessories, Decorating, House and Home

Tags

I grew up with ~~throw~~ accent pillows on the sofa in our family room so I followed my mom’s lead and have had my share of pillows adorning chairs and sofas. Most of the time I love the added pop of color and the cozy feel they impart in a room, but I have noticed that guests often seem uncomfortable with too many. They’ll carefully place them aside. The fabulous styles and fabrics available today have me rethinking some of my existing pillows.

I have collected some examples of rooms that benefit from pillows. Share with me your thoughts on the topic.

First I’ll share my pillows…the room below is our reading room. This picture is older as we’ve changed out the rug. The window seat seems a natural for pillows since very few people sit in the window. The ladder back chair has a kidney pillow that I usually remove before sitting with my feet up.

Our love seat in that room has a couple of pillows and then Madison, who is convinced that this is her sofa. This room receives little use, except by me when I want to read in relative quiet.

Lastly, this is our family room sofa, the pillows are a chennile fabric and down filled, so they are comfortable but most guests place them aside. I confess, after a long day, this is where I relax in front of the television, head on pillow, prone position. 🙂

Pillows are definitely eye candy that add to a room, but maybe they do less for a comfortable sit than we like to think?

I love the symmetry of this room from the twin lanterns over the kitchen table to the matching pillows on the wonderful sofa.

I really like the pillow with a bit of vintage silk on it. In fact the pillows that are made with vintage/antique tapestry and other fabrics always catch my eye.

I love the room below, wall gallery, side table accents and the day bed made useful by pillows. We’re shopping for a day bed for Olivia [granddaughter] visits. I will probably do something similar so that when she’s not visiting the day bed can look a little more like a sofa. Does anyone truly sit on a day bed? Without plenty of pillows the seating is usually too deep for me. I end up looking like Lily Tomlin’s Edith Ann (does anyone out there remember her character on Laugh In—did I just date myself?)

{Charles Faudree}

This Nate Berkus room has a variety of pillows and an eclectic look…I really like the doors and giant mirrors. I digress, the pillows on the sofa are all different, in this room that seems fitting.

{Nate Berkus}

This is my kind of comfort, earth tones, rich leather chairs and plenty of light. Again, there are pillows in all but the wooden chair on the right.

{Photo by Roger Davies}

For the room below the accent pillows are the icing on the cake. Visualize the room without the accent pillows…boring, right?

{http://billybesonco.com/portfolio/lakeside-living/ via http://www.talkofthehouse.com/for-the-love-of-red/}

I appreciate the simplicity of the blue and white—used in traditional stripes for the pillows. It fits the location of the home (look through the French doors, a bay or shore line is the view {heaven}).

{Ferguson & Shamamian Architects}

This lovely living space is in the home of Jill of forever cottage. If you’ve never visited her blog, prepare to be inspired. I love her use of accent pillows, and pretty much everything about the room.

{Jill Hinson}

So, what do you think? Are you a fan of accent pillows? I sure am, even if they might be in the way occasionally.

Enjoy the rest of your week.

{Home} Small spaces

17 Wednesday Sep 2014

Posted by Karen B. in House and Home

≈ 43 Comments

Tags

Small spaces

House Beautiful annually devotes their July/August issue to small spaces. Sometimes these spaces are practically closet-sized small.

We live in a single story 1,725 square foot home. By most standards, this is considered small. I used to think we’d remodel and increase the size, maybe go up, we never did. Now the house seems to be the right sized home for our needs and really always was a comfortable size as we raised our family. Our youngest son, now an adult, was born within a year after we moved in 30+ years ago! {Time flies, doesn’t it?}

Any time there are articles on small spaces I’m sure to pay particular attention. Not just for the ideas on maximizing storage, but for design inspiration and guidance on the best way to create the look and feel of a larger space, while enjoying the comfort a smaller room brings me.

Here are some of my favorite small space rooms.

The large painting below makes the space feel larger. The raised, beamed ceiling also gives you the feeling the room is larger than it really is.

The Brooklyn studio below is only 425 square feet of space. Zach Motl, a window designer for Ralph Lauren, said his goal was to make “one room feel like five”.

I love the look of a well-placed banquet. It’s always pretty and practical for smaller kitchen nooks. If I had a space for this arrangement I’d copy it exactly.

Kitchens, at least for me, are a critical area when finding places for all the stuff. I’ve pared down many times, but when you have the dish collecting challenge disease, taking advantage of every inch of possible storage is essential.

The Amy Meier kitchen below makes use of hanging a few plates on the wall, this room has always been a favorite. Great work on a small kitchen.

Another favorite designer that seems to know how to bring out the best of any space, but especially smaller spaces is Dan Marty. One of the first introductions to his work (for me) was his bungalow in Corona del Mar. It remains a favorite where ideas and inspiration for my own home emanates from.

This dining space was in a later Marty home. I like the double duty the armoire is providing.

The kitchen must be a little short on space based on the proximity of the kitchen table to the cabinets. I think it’s stunning because of the beauty of the table and chairs.

{Photo by Frances Janisch}

This sweet bathroom in a Balboa Island cottage, is a great example of how a light-filled room helps with minimal space. Our bathrooms are tiny as well. Maybe in the late sixties builders didn’t think bathrooms were important?

{Photo by Victoria Pearson}

This is the guest bedroom of a 1,440 square foot bungalow. Designer Stephen Shubel said in his interview he wanted the house to feel like you were on a boat. The bed certainly carries off the idea of a berth. I really like this room, I don’t think I’d enjoy making the bed each morning. 🙂

Tommy Smythe, Sarah Richardson’s trusty cohort in design, has always managed to make smaller spaces live large.

This mirrored door does what designers have always told us mirrors do for a smaller room…it creates an illusion of a larger room through reflection.

A great collection on display always makes me heart sing, and it makes the size of a room irrelevant to me!

Another clever use of a mirror in a cottage kitchen.

I like the job this display shelf serves…a place to display family photos and architectural interest for the wall.

This is a wonderful way to extend storage space when a piece of furniture wouldn’t fit on the wall. You have it built into the wall. The vintage/antique shuttered doors make it appear to be a piece of furniture while proving great display and storage for the room.

{Tidbits and Twine}

How do feel about smaller, cottage sized homes/rooms? For some they can be claustrophobic, I have always loved the cozy feel of a smaller space.

{Garden, Home and Party} A return to the party. Outdoor Rooms

10 Wednesday Sep 2014

Posted by Karen B. in House and Home, Outdoor living

≈ 37 Comments

Tags

outdoor rooms

I’m back and ready to pick up where I left off. Some of you read my post about (and were so supportive of) my hiatus from blogging [read: writers block]. Its surprising what a little mindless relaxation and rest from a hobby will do for you. I was so touched by all of your kindness and encouragement. Thank you! ♥ Karen

The Real Work

by Wendell Berry

It may be that when we no longer know what to do
we have come to our real work,

and that when we no longer know which way to go
we have come to our real journey.

The mind that is not baffled is not employed.

The impeded stream is the one that sings.

Thank you, Anita of Castles, Crowns and Cottages, for the introduction to the above quote. It truly made me feel better about writing and the ideas required to feel creative.

My vacation gave me time to ponder what I want the blog to be about and I’ve decided I really do enjoy writing about home interests. Nothing all that deep, I’m more about the fluff of it all. I tried imagining me writing about other topics but it always came back to the uncomplicated fact that when asked, “what interests you?” the answer was elementary. Gardens (both working in and learning new things about); my home (making the occasional improvements and tweaking, always tweaking, this and that); and entertaining friends and family therein. These are what brings me the most pleasure. Simple, right?

So…for a new post after a long vacation I decided to share some inspiring garden rooms, as I refer to them. Summer is near its end but here in Southern California we will ~~suffer~~ experience heat through September.

When I was growing up I don’t recall there being the vast array of options for creating rooms outdoors the way they exist today. Did we have a patio? Absolutely. Did we have a table and seating for outdoor dining? Yes, indeed. My dad grilled all through the summer months. But would you have looked at this space and imagined some of the additional comforts and decorative bits and pieces we now include in our ‘outdoor dining rooms’? NO.

{T&G}

So, these are a few of my favorite dining spaces and a few outdoor living spaces as well. I’ve included an image of my current patio and the newer pea gravel space under the cooling shade of two very large Ficus Benjamina trees. (Are roots an issue? Yes they are. My gardener takes great pains annually to cut off the roots that creep out from about a 5′ radius of the trees base and that seems to stem their destructive ways). He also strongly recommends that we prune the 2 trees often, this gives them a reason to put new growth at the top, not at the roots.

So, without further ado…here are some wonderful outdoor spaces that can give us one last relaxing sigh as summer heads out and fall comes into focus.

{BHG}

{Libbey Ranch, Ojai}

{Enchanted Home}

{Emily Followill Photography}

{Providence Design}

{Enchanted Home}

{unknown}

Finally, truth be told, I wouldn’t mind this outdoor experience as well. I know I’m being naive, I’ve never lived where it snows and I’ve been told by some with experience in such weather conditions, that it would only take one brutal winter in the east to cure me of the romantic notions I have about snow!