3 Week Room Makeover: Chimney Peak Living Room Reve

I've never had a problem with lighting a fire under my butt when necessary. Give me a deadline and I'll give you a finished project. Bottom line, I can get crap done. 

I will say though, that this rush request definitely forced me to be on my A-game. I had just finished two projects and was in the planning staging for my next when I received an inquiry in mid-January about designing a room for a young couple that had just moved to Frisco. She wanted it to feel like home asap -- by asap, she meant as close to the end of January as possible which would be a two and a half week turnaround.

Ok. Challenge accepted. 

Her custom home had beautiful architecture and moldings, and was already painted a neutral and creamy ivory -- the perfect foundation to build on. Since this project was purely decorative and styling in nature (meaning no structural or permanent changes needed to be made) the hurried timeline wasn't as much of an issue since contractors and installers didn't need to be involved.

The living room opens up to a large kitchen and these two spaces made up the home's core. She wanted the living room to be fun, interesting and adult, with lots of layered textures and patterns. And if possible, a slight nod to the beach since her and the hubs both grew up near an ocean. Oh, and she wanted color, lots of color. When I asked what stores and styles she was drawn to, she quickly responded ZGallerie and then went on to be very specific that the Pottery Barn style hurt her soul a little bit.

Now that's funny. And right up my alley.

For those of you who want the deets on each piece...

I used a variety of textures and materials in this design: navy leather ottoman with acrylic legs (which I am straight up jealous of!); a faux cowhide rug on top of a woven diamond rug; a bold print navy armchair with bright smaller printed throw pillows; leather nail head side table with a glass apothecary style lamp; gold metal leg end table with a black high gloss glass top. Vintage coral botanical prints line the two opposite walls with a framed ocean-like water photo on the fireplace mantle and some nautical accessories to tie in their nod to the ocean.

Yep. It's been a good year.

Its officially been one full year since I left my previous career and turned this interior design side gig into a full-time business and let me tell you, WOWZA. At the risk of my very limited mushy sentimental feelings coming out, this year has been one the best of my life. My ridiculously cute daughter turned 1, we bought a new house, my adorable niece was born, and this business has thrived (thanks to my supportive husband and awesome clients). Seriously, I couldn't ask for more.

This past year I've gotten to design for a myriad of clients, spaces, and styles: 9 living rooms, 3 nurseries, 4 offices, 4 master bedrooms, 3 guest rooms, 3 dining rooms, 2 kitchens and have styled countless other spaces. And it has been stupidly fun.

Now, I'm not a "people-person" by any stretch of the imagination, but my clients have really been one of my favorite parts of this business. Every one of them have been so different--style, personality, needs, wants, and budgets--and I have so enjoyed getting to know each of them. When you're designing someone's home, you get to know them really, really well, their quirks and lifestyle. I'll be honest, it's a blast when I have a client say "do whatever", allowing me to create a design from scratch. But with the rise of platforms like pinterest or houzz many of my clients have a very clear idea of what they want, so when I get to collaborate, I truly think it creates better designs.

Since I didn't have a blog when I first started, below is a "reveal" of one of my first projects. The goal was to create a sophisticated and charming country aesthetic without it being masculine or woodsy. And this project, of course, kept with my typically neutral color palette, bringing the interest and style through its pops of color, texture, and patterns.

Thanks to all of you who read my blog and have supported my business! Happy New Years and cheers to next year and many more designs!

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

Urban Rustic Retreat: Bishop Arts Project Reveal

Dallas' Bishop Arts district. 

It's a place all the 20- and 30-somethings are dying to live, having become widely popular in the last few years thanks to its unique art scene, restaurants, ridiculously cute historic houses, and close proximity to downtown Dallas. It's the type of place that simply makes you "cool" by association. The type of cool that rivals those of us living in suburbia.

Ok, maybe not that last part. My delusions of grandeur for my 80's house in the 'burbs sometimes slip through.

I digress.

All of these things made it the perfect place to call home for some of my clients. They own a fast-pace, long-hours business in uptown and, quite frankly, work their little tails off. Their design goal was pretty straightforward: create a retreat with bright clean lines and little rustic nod. 

Alrighty, enough talking. Picture time! Oh, and thanks to the incredibly talented Britt Latz photography for these photos. Because, really, I'm only as good as my disposable camera.