A whisper of summer ...

Tomorrow is the last day of the York Decorator Show House in Kittery Point. I am feeling a little sad! It went by far too quickly and I did not get enough time up there to really enjoy the visitors who stopped by my two baths and the other Trio Design spaces. The time I thought I would be able to spend with the other designers was also not enough. We will have to make up for it tomorrow evening at the Closing Soiree and Secret Garden Party! Show house tours are ending a bit early on Thursday (call ahead to confirm exact time) so if you are planning your visit for the last day don’t go out for a long lunch first! I will be back later with more photos from the show, snapshots from summer design events, some completed project photos as previously promised, and a few special announcements ... 

Birthday Wishes and Fairy Dust

My Birthday Surprise: London Calling

So today is my birthday. I should be taking the day off from social media, but I had to pop in to share a special gift I received. Yesterday afternoon I was on twitter and noticed that a bunch of people – many that I have met at various blogger events – were being introduced as being selected to travel to London to attend the London Design Festival.

Check it out! The London Design Festival

BlogTour by Modenus

11 people were named, all of whom had expressed interest in being on this very exclusive list. Several times a year, Veronika Miller of the interior design curated site Modenus, organizes these all-expense paid blogger participation trips as a way to introduce fabulous products and share design inspiration with bloggers who then share what they discover on their journey with their audiences. Pretty amazing, huh?

From my recent Brizo trip to Memphis (More on that later! Still working on posts!)

on left: my friend Barbara Elza Hirsch went to BlogTour in New Orleans in April

middle/right: Marilyn Russell and Laura Bielecki are on the list for BlogTourLondon

It was fun to see each blogger being introduced. Especially when I saw a number of friends from my recent trips with Brizo and the Blogger19 filling the coveted spots. This is very much like winning the blogger lottery! Plus it is an incredible opportunity to be exposed to cutting edge design while in the company of some amazing (and seriously fun!) people.

Then I saw my name in a tweet. What’s this? Something about a vote? One blogger (there is supposed to be 12) was unable to attend. All of a sudden there is an open spot and six bloggers have been selected as vote-in candidates. To see my name on this list came as SUCH a surprise! I felt like I had been handed a golden ticket! Honestly I never even put my name in the running to go as I have been sincerely fortunate this year to be able to travel to a number of blogger events that were also unexpected opportunities. What an honor to be chosen!

At Itta Benna in Memphis for the Blogger19 Reunion hosted by Brizo

Cast your vote before 5pm today!

So now I have until 5pm today to find out if my name ends up filling the 12th spot on the London BlogTour list. But you know something? I already feel like I have won something. I have been blogging for five years. I have written over 500 posts (hello, could have written that novel by now!) I have made some wonderful connections and real life friends as a direct result of engaging with the creative community I have found online. Just being selected and having my blog recognized for the original content I work so hard to create is the real gift. It makes it all worth the effort. Tonight I will eat cake with my family, drink champagne and celebrate the fact that doing what you love is its own reward. In the meantime, if you would like to vote for me, click here. Cheers!  xoxo yvonne

York Show House Preview!

 with Katherine Hawkins and Rosanne Palazola of Trio Design

After months of traveling back and forth to work on our four spaces at the 24th Annual York Decorator Show House, my Trio Design friends and I celebrated with the other show designers at a special preview party gala on Friday night. We were all very happy to ditch our painting clothes, get dressed up, and celebrate with a round of bubbly ... the hard part is over!

The view from the guest cottage at Secret Cove

This was the first time that we got a chance to see all of the transformed spaces by the many talented designers who are part of this year’s show. Watching bits and pieces of the rooms come together during our weekly visits built up a lot of excitement! Stunning furnishings, luxurious materials, freshly painted walls in seaside hues, dramatic artwork and fabulous light fixtures, have all come together to tell a new story for this seaside home. The resulting spaces, with their special touches and designer style, show just what can be accomplished with a lot of planning, dedication, and real teamwork. Having beautiful resources available for our use, like paint and paper from Farrow and Ball, fixtures from Designer Bath and accessories from Blue Peacock Home for example, made the job that much sweeter. While I can’t show you what’s behind all of the closed doors, I can share some sneak peeks and gala photos ...

SNEAK PEEK: In Syrena’s Bath, a sea fan and ocean coral fabric from Thibaut was my starting point. I paired it with rich, chalky paint colors from Farrow and Ball (from top to bottom: Borrowed Light, Manor House Gray, and Pitch Blue). This full-size bath coordinates with an adjoining teen bedroom filled with thoughtful details selected by Katherine. When you see playful shades of purple and lavender combined with lots of silver sparkle, you will know you are in the right place!

SNEAK PEEK: my husband John in a Trio Designed space.

I couldn’t have pulled it off without him! xoxo

Rosanne and I worked with Mary Donovan of Landry and Arcari to select carpets for two of our spaces. Mary has been by our side for many design shows! Rosanne’s “Poolside Portal” is really fabulous and the new carpet she selected for the custom install is the perfect combination of practical and pretty.   

SNEAK PEEK: accessories in the Petite Powder Room

If you like “runway-to-room” design translations, don’t miss the Petite Powder Room that I decorated based on the aesthetic of fashion designer Jason Wu. It is just around the corner from the show house kitchen and at the end of the hall in Rosanne’s Poolside Portal. Thanks to my friends at Brizo, visitors to the show can see the Jason Wu for Brizo matte black collection in real life. The collection is super glamorous, as is the wallpaper from Farrow and Ball

My Brizo traveling companion, designer Barbara Elza Hirsch (on the right), has decorated a very elegant screened porch at Secret Cove. In it she features mosaic work by tile artist Ariel Finelt Shoemaker (on the left). Their design collaboration is beyond lovely!

SNEAK PEEK: a glimpse of Barbara’s screened porch with vintage accents

with Katherine, Michael Nest, designer Frank Hodge,

designer Helen Hanan, and Dave Hawkins

Frank Hodge and Helen Hanan have both designed unique interiors for the show. While Frank’s study is right next to Katherine and my space on the second floor, Helen’s guest suite is on the other side of the house. It was fun to be able to meet up at the gala and compare design notes, since we didn’t often get a chance to connect while busy working on our separate rooms.

Friends at the gala included artist Susan Siefer (whose gorgeous commissioned works of art grace the halls in one of the spaces designed by Meredith Bohn) and my Blogfest 2013 companion designer Linda Holt. Linda loves color as much as I do, and no we did not coordinate our outfits!

SNEAK PEEK: the master bedroom suite by Pat Finn

Pat Finn of Finn-Martens Design and I have worked on a number of design projects together over the years. Her work always impresses me with its good Feng Shui. Just walk into her rooms and immediately you will feel relaxed! Her Secret Cove master bedroom suite (bedroom, bath, and screened porch with hot tub)  is quite the “after” and includes a few pieces selected from the Designer Bath showroom along with a lighting favorite from my friends over at Dunes and Duchess.  

There are lots of other designers involved and more pictures to come, but do try to make it up to Kittery Point before the show ends on August 15th. It will conclude with a designer auction at a Secret Garden Party and Closing Soiree. Super fun!

While up Maine for the preview party, my husband and I took the kids to stay at my mom’s cottage near York beach. We couldn’t let the weekend go by without a quick visit to Nubble Light, Kittery Trading Post and the Weathervane for seafood. Now that the show house has opened, I am planning to enjoy lots more day trips and summer travel, starting with a quick visit this week to Memphis, courtesy of the oh-so-generous team at Brizo. Stay tuned for updates on my reunion with the Blogger 19 and a special day spent with Brizo’s chosen charity St. Jude’s Hospital. I am excited to see what they have planned for us, and am so looking forward to seeing all my design blogging friends who will be in attendance. Over 100 of us are Memphis-bound, so it should be quite an experience! Follow us at #blogger19 on twitter for real-time updates throughout the week. And if you make it to the show house while I’m away, tag your thoughts on twitter with #yorkshowhouse.

I’d love to hear what you think!

Show House Countdown!

The 24th Annual York Decorator Show House opens this Saturday with a fabulous preview party planned for Friday night. We designers are just about ready for our curtain call! There have been lots of tidying up to do for the press visits this week, and behind the scenes marketing details to tend to ... I have been a bit busy! I will be back later with a sneak peek of our spaces, but for now, check out the show house progress blog posts from my partners at Trio Design.

FYI: Be sure to order your tickets early if you want to attend any of the scheduled events as they sell out fast. Regular admission show house tickets are available at the door for $20 and are not available online.

I know I promised a post on the International Contemporary Furniture Fair, so stop by the Designer Bath blog where I posted the top trends in baths that I saw while visiting. If you ever can’t find me here, that is where I am writing, unless of course I am at the show  : )

Kravet studio tour // Blogfest 2013 part 5

Aerin Lauder introducing her new collection of fabrics for Kravet.

On our last day of Blogfest 2013, we had the opportunity to visit the design studios of Kravet, Lee Jofa, and Brunschwig and Fils, which are all under the same roof in New York’s Flatiron district. One of our stops on the tour was a visit with the inherently stylish Aerin Lauder – granddaughter of Estee Lauder – who showed us her new collection of fabrics designed for Lee Jofa. Aerin is known for her lifestyle brand that includes beauty, fashion accessories, and home decor, all infused with her signature, effortless style.

“Estee was an incredible role model. She taught me the importance of passion, style, hard work, family and, of course, all things beautiful. Her dream to make women feel beautiful and special still lives on today. My vision is to create a beauty and lifestyle brand shaped for my generation and those to follow.” – Aerin Lauder

Aerin’s fabrics are a combination of stately traditional and modern playful, with an elegant look, sumptuous feel, and tell-tale gold thread running through most. I think they would be perfect for an historical estate make-over project that I am working on ... will keep you posted ...

Gold threads add a hint of Lauder glimmer to Aerin’s collection.

There are numerous interior design stars that have textile collections with the Kravet brand. Thom Filicia, Candice Olson, Alexa Hampton, Ralph Lauren, Barbara Barry, Barclay Butera, and many more. Why does a well established fabric house partner with interior designers? The answer is simple. When you think of these designers, each has a specific point of view and that is what you will find in their collections, which makes it easier for other designers and home owners to make decisions based on what they know they like.

Thom Filica for Kravet

Ralph Lauren imagery, mood boards, and fabrics

Coming soon to the Kravet label is Canadian designer and HGTV star Sarah Richardson. Look for her softly-colored fabric collections this fall.

Kravet offers classic furniture pieces that may be customized with their fabrics. I loved this work-in-progress pinboard featuring floor plan selections for a contract interior. 

current fabric trends and colorways

The history of fabric design as an artform goes back for centuries. David Toback, Director of Design at Brunschwig and Fils, shared with us the story of a particular archive-quality pattern that had been reinterpreted over the years in many different ways. A pattern may be translated on linen, cotton, silk, wallpaper ... with each differing slightly in appearance, but telling a similar story. If you love a particular pattern, it’s very possible to find just the right application of it to suit your needs.

from the archives to fabrics to wallpaper

The carpet studio at Lee Jofa was very interesting. The possibilities are seemingly endless on ways to customize a carpet, from color choices to scale of pattern to combination of materials from silk to wool to blends. The designers who work the pattern magic had me fascinated with their stylus, tablet and super size Macs. I could see myself doing this kind of work ...

pattern check on a large ink jet printer

Behind all the pattern making, there are traditional artists who actually hand paint some of the images that get translated onto fabrics and wall coverings. Such amazing talent!

The contract work that Kravet handles ranges from edgy rocker hotel suites to gracious table linens for the First Lady and so much more. If you have visited Disney World lately, chances are you have seen their work. Look at any pattern in a Disney resort and you will see a Mickey Mouse logo embedded in the design thanks to the art directors at Kravet.

a table linen fabric designed for a White House event

More highlights from the studio tour:

On the board at Lee Jofa: Fornasetti fish wallpaper

seen at Kips Bay Showhouse (shown here in blue)

Trims and window hardware: Kravet has it all.

bloggers recording the latest trims offered from Kravet

current trends in window fashions

The last stop on our very informative Blogfest 2013 Kravet studio tour was a glimpse at their couture line which is actually manufactured right here in Massachusetts. These fabrics are their most exclusive collections, influenced by the world of haute couture fashion, translating luxe runway looks into home decor ready materials. They were fabulous!

Thank you, Kravet and Blogfest 2013 organizers for showing us such a wonderful time in New York this spring and for providing a veritable month’s worth of blogging content! I will follow up later with a post on trends that I saw at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair. For now, here is a sneak peek of a recently completed client project of mine that included a gorgeous Kravet silk fabric used for the floor to ceiling window treatments. I was really happy with how they came out. 

Stay tuned for additional pictures of this living room and adjoining dining room redesign ... I plan to show more photos of my work as soon as I finish up my spaces at the York Decorator Show House which opens on July 13th. This summer show house nestled in a picturesque cove located in Kittery, Maine, is definitely worth fitting into your travel plans. Watching the other designers transform their spaces over the last couple of months, while I have been working on my own, has been such a fun experience. If you love on-trend design, beautiful textiles, and ocean-inspired color palettes, then you will not be disappointed! Let me know if you plan to attend – I’d love to see you on a day that I am there. Click here for tickets and show schedule.