The Arrangements

The King’s Speech {Set Interiors}

Design Shuffle {Guest Blogging}

I’m honored and excited to be guest blogging on Design Shuffle today!  If you have been intrigued with online design and wanted to to know more about the process, pop over to their fabulous site to see the post. See how online design can give you access to an interior design with out the design fees involved.  This up and coming service allows you to design your room on your time & budget!

At Studio Ten 25, we call our online design service HOME AWAY FROM HOME! We would love to talk to you about putting the finishing touches on that unfinished room!

A few of my favorite Home Away From Home Projects

Black Chandelier & A Dark Side Giveaway

Today I am excited to feature BLACK-CHANDELIER.COM.  Robi from Black-Chandelier has taken the time to chat with me about how she started this gorgeous company online as well as her plans for the near future.

Take a better look at your design magazines, favorite blogs or local boutique and I’m pretty sure you will spot a black crystal chandelier. They are the statement pieces that designers and end users turn to when completing a chic or eclectic space.  www.Black-Chandelier.com was the first & is to date the only boutique designed to explicitly showcase Black Chandeliers & Sconces. Robi and her team take pride in offering customers the best price, quality and customer service.  As they say at Black Chandelier “We  invite everyone to step into the dark… explore a decadent selection of Black Chandeliers & indulge themselves in the brilliance of black. ”  ”Discover Your Dark Side!”

I turned to Black-Chandelier.Com when remodeling my office at Studio Ten 25. The piece I selected was a 5 light black crystal chandelier. I remember the day I received the package, I was so anxious to have it installed! In fact, I had my electrician over here the very next day!  See more details HERE.

All Images Via: Black-Chandelier & Studio Ten 25

And when I needed another show stopping piece for a client’s master bedroom, I went straight to Black-Chandelier. The chandelier was perfect for this room and it brought in romance, glamour and that extra bit of bling that I love so much.  We used the 7-light black crystal chandelier in the room.

All images via: Black-Chandelier & Studio Ten

Let’s see what lead Black-Chandelier.Com to “The Dark Side”.

ST25: You have been involved in the design industry for years, what inspired you to start Black-Chandelier.Com?

BC: Lighting has always been one of the most crucial elements in design… When we brought Black Crystal Chandeliers to the market… our clients were as captivated by their unique beauty as we were.  Because Black Chandeliers marry so well with a multitude of décor styles… their popularity was overwhelming.  The allure is totally mysterious.

Image: Crystal 4-Light

ST25:  When did you start the boutique?

BC: We have been bringing Black Chandeliers to our personal clients residential & commercial design projects for about 6 years now.  Our online boutique opened to the public in the spring of o8.

Image: Florentine 6-Light

ST25:  I love that you have recently expanded your product offering into Lamps! Do you have any other plans to add more fabulous pieces for the Boutique.

BC: Yes most definitely… along with adding more FAB styles of Black Chandeliers, Sconces & Lamps… We are also planning to launch our line of Black “One of a Kind” furniture pieces & accents.

Image: Crystal 7-light

ST25: How do you select the pieces that you offer in the boutique?

BC: Only our Top Sellers… the pieces that have been purchased and loved over and over by our clients and customers earn the right to be showcased in our boutique.

Image: Crystal 13-Light

ST25:  I have used Black-Chandelier.Com chandeliers in a few of my interiors projects as well as my own design studio, and have been extremely happy with the quality, price and great customer service you provide. Tell us about a few of your favorite client installations… pictures please!

BC: To be perfectly honest… They have all been our FAVS.  We have been blessed with the opportunity to meet… work with… & to be a service to… We are very grateful to each and every one of our customers and clients.

Image: Faconnable Window Display with Crystal 7-Light

Image: McDonald’s Crystal 12-Light

Image: Bloomingdales Ad Crystal 7-Light

ST25: As an interior designer, I am constantly being asked to provide samples so that my client can touch and feel the product. Do you have samples available or showrooms where designers can view your products.

BC: Because we have done projects in many major cities… if asked… we can usually direct a new potential client to a location where they will be able to see our Chandeliers first hand.

Image: Crystal 12-Light

If you swooning over these dark beauties as much as I am, then your in luck today! Black-Chandelier is offering free shades with the purchase of the following.  Just click HERE to see more details.

Here is a better look at the black chandeliers with shades. I’m loving the theme pieces too!

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Cleaning Out My Closet

I had finally had enough of my junky messy office closet this past weekend. I couldn’t even get the doors to close anymore and every time I tried to move something to get to something else…I ended up with a bigger mess.  I just couldn’t share the real before picture..it’s seriously embarrassing. Here was my end of the year solution, a little better but obviously still not working.

So, I did what any frustrated and unorganized designer would do…I called my mom. She recently moved and decided to take her existing Elfa storage system from The Container Store with her. There was a random mix of left over pieces so I asked her if she would be willing to part with them. FYI, my mother DOES NOT like to give or throw things away because “one day I will need them”.  It drives me crazy that she keeps everything, that’s why she needed the Elfa storage system to begin with!

After she gave me her “I told you so grin”, I headed over to my local Container Store and had them draw up a free design plan to make the most of my space. I gave the designer details of what I needed and she came up with a simple design to help keep me organized.   The total parts list was about $500 so I headed over to my Mom’s to see if she had any of the pieces I needed.

Things were looking good, we found about half of the pieces on the parts list. A few of them needed to be cut to size, so I packed them up in the car and headed over to have them cut and pick up the new pieces.  So..yes…I was very glad that my Mom had the extra pieces in storage. I was able to save $250 after the 30% discount they are running on Elfa.

If you have never installed the Elfa System, I highly recommend it!  The Container Store provides you with drawings, directions and all the parts and pieces to hang the system.  Once the main top rail is installed, everything goes together pretty quickly.

AND NOW FOR THE BIG REVEAL!

I’m pretty happy with the end result. I now have drawers to keep my fabric samples organized by color! I am also using the drawers to keep my loose stone and wallcovering samples.

I now have a place to keep my current project files, before they were piled up on the floor and always in the way.

My product catalogues, paint decks, and tile samples now have a real home and area easy to find.

Project Update / Rustic Tuscan

I wanted to share more progress and update you on this out of town project. I am beyond excited to see how everything comes together. The commissioned art pieces were recently installed and they look ahhmazing!  The pieces were named “The Experience”  and are the genius work of Dallas artist, Chris Judy. I worked with Chris throughout the four month process, you can see more of those details HERE.

As soon as you enter the front door, these stunning pieces sit on each side over the Regency Buffetts from Ebanista. Talk about making an entrance! Here is the view looking in from the Mediterranean style pool at night.

Here is a better look at each piece in the daylight. Looking forward to accessorizing now!

Let’s  take a look at a few more of the new additions. Back in October, I gave you a sneak peek of the pool area, main living room and some of the custom pieces in the guest casitas.

One of the guest rooms is almost complete! We are waiting on the accent pieces, art and the reupholstered “parrot” chair that my client loves.  The large Henredon bed was a piece that my client has had for a while, I love the arch and leather inset of the headboard.  We had custom bedding made in teal, gold and dark espresso browns. My favorite fabric is the Barbara Barry Poetic Plush in Cumin from Kravet, it really pulls it all together.

Since the bathrooms are all stone and Venetian plaster, I thought it would be fun to soften things up a bit. I used the Barbara Barry Poetic Plush again in one of the guest rooms to match the bedding…

And I decided to “branch” out with Eric Cohler’s Woods Print from Lee Jofa in the other bathroom.

I was happy to see that the new leather Chesterfield love seats from Old Hickory Tannery had arrived for the lounge area in the bar. They are very manly and will make the perfect place to guests to sit by the fire while sipping on a scotch. That’s how I imagine it anyway, I’m sure the guys will be drinking beer! This room will scream classic gentleman’s bar once all of the final pieces are in place!

We also received this hand carved console table from George Cameron Nash in the Dallas Design Center! It sits just behind the larger of the two sofas in the main living room.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today. I hope you enjoyed the sneak peak and I look forward to sharing more as things progress!

My Favorite Design Apps

I am always on the look out for fun iPhone apps that are related to design. I came across the new app from Kelly Hoppen and was beyond excited to see what it was all about.  So, I decided to breakdown and pay the $4.99 because  I love Kelly Hoppen’s  style and thought that after reading the reviews and seeing the app screen shots that I would go for it.

With features like videos of Kelly giving tips (over 40 tutorials),  step by step design guides and room by room “how to’s”  it looked promising.  Now, I didn’t go into this thinking that I was the target audience for the app but I was hoping to use it and walk away learning something from one of my design idols.  It’s full of great ideas and Kelly’s perspective on pulling together individual spaces in a room. It’s basic but not boring and I love being able to see her and hear her fabulous accent!

Looking for Apps that may work for you to help with day to day tasks or just wanting to be inspired?
Here are a few good app resources that I like to use.

Kravet’s edesign assistant that I absolutely love and use on a weekly basis! I can look up fabric by color, pattern or style number and can even check stock. This has helped me get the details I need while I’m with my client!

Houzz Interior Design Ideas. LOVE LOVE LOVE. It is almost as good as have the website in front of you. This easy to navigate and allows you to search for a designer by city, look up photographs by style or room and let’s you save your favorite images to your own idea book!  I can even see my own profile easily from the app! DON’T be fooled by other apps that claim they have 10,000+ photos…they don’t hold a candle to Houzz’s fabulous appp!

Benjamin Moore’s Color Capture App. It’s super easy to use and the color accuracy is pretty good. It’s FREE and can be very useful when trying to commit to a paint color.

Home Interior Layout Designer – Mark On Call. Very cool app! I love it but just can’t be patient enough to deal with it on my iphone. It’s a great resource for the DIYer looking to find the perfect floor plan, take images of fabrics etc and apply them to the pieces in the app and add a wall color to help with color corrdination.

Design*Sponge Podcast is ahhhmazzzing! I love that the topics range from fabrics to furniture and I always feel inspired after I have tuned in!

The Dwell Magazine App is one of the latest and it’s full of gorgeous photographs, events and the latest product trends.

Although there are a few Apps on the market that provide a few of the things I’m looking for…my idea of a great interior design app/apps would consist of the following five elements:

What would you love to see in an Interior Design App?
1. Quick calculations for paint, wallcovering and even flooring.

2. A quick guide for estimated yardage for standard furniture pieces, bedding and window treatments to make budgeting easy.

Image Via: Knol

3. A place to look up standard measurements like dining room seat height, sofa arm height and coffee table height. Sounds like simple details but being able to have a quick reference when your in a rush would be clutch.

Image Via: Decor Pad

4. If someone would create an app that allowed me to take images from my iPhone and move them into a client’s folder…life would be great. I find myself snapping tons of pictures on shopping trips and then I have to download and organize them later. Being able to access images in a client folder would be ideal for showing them what I found too!

Image Via: Studio Ten 25

5. An app that let’s you work by design style. I work with bachelors, newlyweds with mixed design styles and everything in between. I would love to have an app that was like an encyclopedia of design style. That way if I ‘m focusing on modern and eclectic pieces, I can search the app for important details that are unique to this design style. I long for more ways to stay organized and grab information quickly.

Image Via: Casa Sugar

A Quick Before & After Under $200

Happy Monday! Today I wanted to share a recent & affordable before and after project. These ottomans were originally upholstered in a dark green pinstriped velvet during the late 80′s. My client has had them sitting around and wasn’t even sure she wanted to recover them. She didn’t want to spend a ton of money but wanted to make a big impact.

From the moment I spotted them, I knew they would be perfect in the new living room configuration. I love the classic shape and the scale was perfect for her living room. Here they are before.

We selected this turquoise and brown graphic diamond pattern fabric with an ivory base. The price was great and the heavy weight of the fabric would be durable enough to put your feet up on.

Total estimated cost breakdown:
Ottomans: Free / Client has had them for about 20 years
Fabric: 4 yards @ $19.99 per yard = $180.00
Labor to reupholster each ottoman: $50 / $100 for both
For a grand total of $180!

 

And here they are now! These ottomans are completely updated and look beautiful in the living room with the new sofa and accent chairs!

 

And since we had a little extra fabric left, my client wanted to throw a few lumbar pillows on the sofa. I think everything turned out fabulous and for less than $200

I’m Takin’ it back to the 70′s!

Time for a little flashback! I love the memories I have of my early childhood even though they are mostly from photographs. My parents…well my dad…was very snap happy. He was always snapping pictures! I was an only child and the first grandchild so I can only assume that was the reason for the camera catching every moment.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m so glad I have them to look at now.

I though some of the decor from my childhood rooms needed to see the light of day. Let me prepare you with words like…..flame stitch, burnt orange, mickey mouse, shag carpet and retro wallpaper…It’s going to be interesting.

My mother was always into design on some level. She is a fabulous seamstress (self taught) and was always into the latest in fashion and design. You would never catch her doing projects around the house in sweats. Oh no, she always had her hair done and was sporting her Jordache Jeans!

Here she is painting

….and apparently annoyed that my dad was taking pictures while she was trying to hang this “fabulous” owl picture. I think it was furry.

I came across these pictures from my first room as a baby/toddler.  The crib was on one side of the room and my parents had a full size bed on the other side.  Green gingham was apparently all the rage in 1976!  That doll is a bit creepy don’t you think? My grandma thought it would make a cute picture to have the doll holding me.  I remember that needlepoint puppy pillow, we had it for years.

Here is the crib on the other side of the room. The mobile is super retro and that blue bird is huge. Do you think there was any lead paint on that crib?

So now I’m a toddler and looking stylish next to my “big girl” bed, nice gold side rail. All of the toys up on the window seal crack me up.

One of the first pieces of proof that I was ready to re-decorate my room.

We had to clear out the room to make way for the RAINBOW BEDSPREAD and awesome yellow floorlamp!! Wowza!

Here are a few of my favorite pics from our house.  Flame stitch sofa with needlepoint pillows! My mom LOVED flame stitch so much that she purchased a pink & lavender flame stitch sofa in the 80′s. I finally got her to recover it last year….I’m so not kidding.

Oh and it gets better! WALLPAPER!! Who knew it would make such a comeback? Loving the orange stripes and gold floral pattern in the bathroom.

So, after the divorce I had my own room at my Dad’s new house.  How about the flower make up mirror and kitten pics over the bed. Lovley.

I hope you enjoyed the blast from my past and the mini 70′s tour!  I have many more pics to show off soon, this time I’ll be going back to the 80′s and showing you my mother’s obsession for ceramic & porcelain tile!!!

Studio Ten 25 Is In The HOUZZ!!