August 2017
"What stores do you shop at as an interior designer?" This is the numero uno question I get from clients and friends. Unfortunately, the simple answer is: Everywhere.
End of blog post.
...
Just kidding. The more complicated answer is that several of my regular stores are not open to public and are "to the trade"/certified professionals only. This basically means I get pieces straight from wholesale and then resell them to my clients at a discounted price from their MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price) -- resulting in a win-win for everyone.
Yada yada yada, right? That doesn't help you know where to get a rockin' new area rug. So, now that we got all that boring detail out of the way, I'll share my go-to retail stores. These are regular ole retail that have either great prices, awesome quality, and/or unique pieces (and some even have all three of those! #winning).
Here are some of my favorite retail stores in nine primary home decor categories.
FURNITURE:
Joybird - Mid century modern, affordable, GORGEOUS, and well-made. I.LOVE.THEM.
Wayfair - They have pretty much anything your heart desires at a huge range of prices. I work with them a lot and their customer service is one of the best.
The bed, side tables, and side chair in my Urban retreat project all came from Wayfair.
Bassett - A little pricey, but you can customize each piece with so many fabric choices and they have a really killer selection of pieces.
LIGHTING:
Shades of Light - Oh man. I use them all the time. They have A TON of options in all styles, ship so fast, and have fairly decent pricing.
Hanging side lamp in this Romantic Master Bedroom project is from Hangout Lighting.
Hangout Lighting (Etsy) - They have some really interesting, modern, and industrial handmade lighting options. Price points are really good.
BUILDING MATERIALS:
Floor & Decor - I used them for all my home renovation materials. They carry most of their inventory in stock which means you can pick it out and take it home the same day. Prices are competitive and they have a thousand percent better and more options that Home Depot or Lowes.
Old Texas Wood - This is a newly discovered favorite in southeast Dallas. They have a huge warehouse of reclaimed antique wood floors and barn wood from all over the U.S. and can do the install for you as well. AND their turnaround time is, quite frankly, unmatched. Like within a week. WHAAAAAT??
Here's a little teaser for my "coming soon" feminine toddler room reveal. The wood wall is from Old Texas Wood. They scoured the warehouse and lumbar yard for me when I asked for pink boards :)
FABRIC:
Spoonflower - They have so many fun (and by so many, I mean THOUSANDS) patterns in nearly every color combination. I could browse for hours. Want dancing unicorns? Got it. Llamas wearing beanies? No problem.
Spoonflower fabrics from my Cedar Hill nursery project
PRE-MADE CURTAINS:
West Elm - They have both classic and modern patterns and ship quickly. Fair prices.
Urban Outfitters - More whimsical and bohemian style.
DECOR:
Hobby Lobby - Yep. Good ole Hob Lob. There hasn't been one single install that I wasn't at Hobby Lobby the day before, stocking up on all their random crap goodness. Their decor accessories are so stinking affordable.
Homegoods - While the messiness of these stores look like my child's bedroom and frustrate the hell outta me, they have insanely cheap prices and I rarely walk out of there empty-handed.
At Home - Throw pillows. Rows and rows of fluffy goodness.
WALLPAPER/DECALS/WALLCOVERINGS:
The black and white forest mural in my Urban Rustic Retreat project is from Murals Your Way.
Walls Need Love - Not a huge selection and a bit pricey, but modern and colorful. All their options are for removable wallpaper (which is REALLY easy to install by yourself).
Spoonflower - Everything I said above about their fabric options? Yep, they all come in wallpaper too. Removable or glue backed.
Murals Your Way - GREAT prices. Removable or glue backed, and you can use your own photos to make a mural.
Anewall - Their wall coverings and murals make me drool. Like water dripping from the mouth drool.
RUGS:
ECarpetGallery.com - I get asked A LOT where I get my persian rugs from. This is the answer. They sell on ebay too which is how I get their lower or sale prices.
RugsUSA - Great prices, large selection of styles.
Lulu & Georgia - They have a really unique inventory of rugs. Every heard of modern southwest? Whimsical southwest? Or tribal patterns with colors like blush and mint? Yea. They have it. (Good prices too)
ART:
Minted: I love using Minted because it directly supports the artists, but has a large selection of paintings, drawings, charcoals, photography, etc. Really beautiful stuff and good prices. They offer frames for their pieces too, but I don't recommend them. A bit cheap looking.
Zgallerie - This is my go-to for inexpensive but expensive looking artwork. Large inventory and the stores carry most of their inventory in stock. Their frames are a little dingy too, so you you often have to find one that's not dented, but the selection of art and cheap prices make up for it.
That's it. All my favs wrapped up into one little (actually ridiculously long) blog post. Hope that was helpful in all your shopping endeavors!
...By the way, none of these are sponsored or anything. I really do just like these stores.