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Fresh back from my visit with my “pink lady” in Atlanta, I had an amazing trip.  Exciting, productive and FUN. We worked and played hard.  After long days at the house and various other design related destinations, we ended the days with the best food Atlanta has to offer together and the stress of the day dissipated with our first glass of Proseco:)

I was so pleased to see the renovation coming along so swimmingly, and with the handsome and capable Duncan in charge, why wouldn’t it be?  The subs I met were top of the line: professional, knowledgeable and polite—to the point of referring to me repeatedly as “M’am.  Courteous, yes, but making me feel like an old hag!:) I need to remember my upbringing down south and get over it, now…

The house is looking great, on schedule and final finishes are about to be installed.  As expected, a slight hiccup occurred. Client forgetting to tell me about a wall between the kitchen and family room being removed was a detail I was glad to learn about.  In fact, we turned on a dime and ran over to ADAC  and COMPLETELY re-invented her Family Room textile composition.

When this happens, I try to embrace it rather than get panicked.  Why bother?  The challenge needed to be met and we DID it. Result?  I am actually more thrilled with the second scheme than I was with the first, and that says a lot.

Lunch at The Hungry Peach was a real reward.  Let’s just say it ain’t no Au Bon Pain… (Boston Design center, are you listening..?) Let me mention how amazing this design center is: AMAZING.  Frankly, I could have used another 2 days exploring the Atlanta Design Center has to offer—many lines I had never seen and a prolific and progressive display of cutting edge design sources.  For those of you who think the south is behind the north, well think again, honey.

Curious about what we accomplished in 3 hours flat?

Take a peek:

I know, where the hell have I been?

It appears I am on an extended “sabbatical”, yes, a sabbatical—that is what i will call it. This implies I am not gone, just off doing something important somewhere else, which is EXACTLY the truth. I am busier than I ever anticipated with client projects, new initiatives and of course, the girls being home and needing me.

When will I be back on track? Dunno. I hope to each day, but it will happen naturally, just like the blog came to be. So please check in, soon I hope to be posting loads of new project snippets from near and far.

Meantime, I was on a mission to find zebra hides for a few clients and found a treasure trove at Jayson Home and Garden— the zebras are all faux, which is nice for some, and there is a rainbow of cow hides to choose from—I never knew cows existed in so many colors, in fact.

Even a faux leopard, which could be an interesting addition to a moody space like a den, library or office.

But, if you are looking for a hide, look no further, here you go:

 Images via Jayson Home and Garden

In design (and in food), I find that mustard is a tough sell. I can’t count the times clients tell me they hate the color mustard. The same holds true with food; mustard is the kind of thing you either love or you detest it…

I am a mustard lover, myself. I love it in food, I love cooking with it, and I really LOVE it in design. It pairs well with navy, chocolate, turquoise, purple, magenta, grey—you name it. Call it gold, deep yellow, ochre, call it whatever you want—but please don’t count it out!

Because it’s an “off” color, I find that mustard can enliven an otherwise clean clear palette and give it, well, some “spice”. I suppose that’s why it’s called mustard…

Images via Osborne and Little.

Are you bored with me telling you client stories…?  I certainly hope not.

My latest inclination is to blog about real life stuff rather than pontificate on Pinterest images—it’s what inspires me now!  And what a great way for me to test my theories than to use you folks as my laboratory—my “think tank”….

Anyway, this particular family of 6 lives on their sofa, a gigantic, but very attractive pale dove gray colored sectional with no pillows on it as of yet.

The room is taking on a global boho-chic kind of feel, in a good way.  Drapery is an Indian-esque pink, red and chocolate print that she had already selected. So, I thought I would come up with two options, one for colder months when velvets and chenilles are warranted, and a lighter, but none less bright— option for warmer seasons, where linen and cotton play well.

The thought was to work with the raspberry, magenta, and brown, but to bring in playful sidekicks like teal, acid green and orange to mix it up a bit and have some fun.  Otherwise it is too matchy, and you know how I feel about that.

Both work; one is heavier and the other lighter.  Do you have a favorite?