New England Finery Winter Issue!

New England Finery Winter 2011 : cover photo Michael J. Lee Photography

The winter issue of New England Finery is now online! Filled with inspiring images of entertaining at home, it is my gift to you this holiday season. Since we are all so busy at this time of year, it is a mini-version at about 50 pages.

New England Finery Winter 2011 p16 : photo credit Yvonne Blacker

fabrics available through Calico Corners

Bold images and graphic patterns are paired with minimal text, because who really has time to read between gift shopping, package wrapping, treat baking and party hopping?!

New England Finery Winter 2011 p30 : photo credit Yvonne Blacker 

And in the event that you need a secret “easy” recipe to serve up this weekend, consider giving my “Confection Cake” a try. It is so simple to make (the little ones can even help) and I think it looks really pretty! The recipe is on page 30.

New England Finery Winter 2011 p25 : photo credit Eric Roth

Design: Gerald Pomeroy Design Group

Florist: New Leaf Flores 

Happy holidays, everyone! Whatever you celebrate, I hope you get to spend lots of quality time in the presence of your favorite people. Enjoy!!   xoxo  yvonne

Master bedroom preview, part 2

Our current master bedroom is used in this photo
as a backdrop to showcase a pillow collection
that I designed for a seaside home.

I spent last week researching final choices for our new bedroom. I still love this color wall – Benjamin Moore Crown Point Sand which is kind of tan, kind of greenish – but I plan to go with something a tad whiter since there is less natural light in the new space. Although now that the room is completely plastered, it actually looks pretty bright up there. Even so, I have been seeing so many great all-white rooms in both design magazines and on the web that I would love to have one in our home as well.

My top color choice right now is Benjamin Moore Marscarpone. It is a bright creamy white with a touch of yellow that will help to give the room a sunny disposition even with just one window. I am planning on keeping many of the same fabrics that we currently have (reduce, reuse, recycle!) This tea-stained stripe was used to create our custom bedskirt – which I love – and would not feel right about replacing.



Here is the skirt with a sample of carpet. If we decide to go with wall-to-wall (less $ and/or labor) this medium taupe will ground the space well.



This lighter version looks kind of blah to me. Plus with the light walls there will not be enough contrast. Also, our headboard is tan linen and I would rather go with a darker color on the ground. Our top choice would be pre-finished hardwood which my husband could actually install, so the price without having to pay for installation just might work out for us.



This dark stained oak is our top choice right now. It would look appropriate in a 100-year old home.



On top of the hardwood, I would use our existing wool carpet. Here is just a peek of the border (the carpet is all rolled up after coming home from the cleaners, so I could only grab this little shot). It alternates squares of creamy white with greens and golds.



Most of our bedroom furniture is Swedish Home from Ethan Allen. The creamy white wood finish will blend in with the wall color, which will make the space appear larger than it is.



This chandelier from our current room will move with us. I love it even though it does not give off a super amount of light (we will add additional layers of light next to the bed, and in the corners of the room).



This piece of white washed furniture has been with me since my first apartment at twenty-one.
Wherever I go, it follows!

Our current coverlet is neutral in color. It has always been a little small for our king-size bed (even though it is king size, go figure!) so it might end up on the foot of the bed and I will look for something in the same color family but more generous in scale.



I have a pair of zebra striped down-filled pillows from my design inventory that I will add to the mix.


Plantation shutters from Smith & Noble

At the window, I am thinking that a shutter would be a nice choice, allowing us light and privacy control.



My second choice would combine drapery panels (made out of tan linen, perhaps?) with a semi-sheer panel created out of this vintage hand-printed fabric. We often have deer in our backyard so I liked the reference to the world outside our window. I have been saving this fabric for something special, and I am thinking our new room would be a good place for it!

Inspired by ... Barclay Butera

My autographed copy.
As promised, I wanted to share with you some designer words of wisdom from the Barclay Butera lecture last Tuesday (October 27th) at the Boston Design Center. First, I have to say, Barclay was California-handsome dressed in a gorgeous cinnamon-orange blazer that contrasted beautifully with his signature colors of navy blue and crisp white (which when he stood in front of the image below during his slide show, it was a perfect example of the value of adding that punch of contrasting color.)

Kravet fabrics as shown in Living in Style by Barclay Butera


A photo-op at the Kravet showroom.

Besides being blessed with boyish good looks, Barclay came across as being very gracious and soulful. His presentation on “Decorating in a New Economy” actually addressed concerns that many of us have today ... how to stretch decorating dollars in a respectful way and still achieve satisfying results that make both designer and client happy. While his lecture was geared toward the design professional, the same strategies can be applied by those who decorate their own homes.
Come home with me ... I am loving
“Poppy” from the Hearst Castle Collection
designed by Barclay Butera.

One of my favorite tips was Butera’s recommendation to change a look of a room by simply adding new accent pillows. I don’t know how many times I have had to explain to my husband why I love pillows so much, but Barclay totally gets it! A dramatic fabric on even one new pillow can completely change the look and feel of a space. I always say a great pillow is like affordable art that is available to most, regardless of budget commitments.

“Monkey in Tree” from my collection of
designed accent pillows, now available
at Beth Hylan Design Studio.

One comment in particular that Butera made struck a chord with me ... on those mornings that you may not be feeling great, maybe work is slow or you are just having an off day, sit down and take out some nice stationery and write a note to someone to thank them for something that they have done for you. I thought this approach of practicing gratitude says a lot about who Barclay is and how he tries to live his life. No matter what is going on around us, there is always something to be grateful for.


A Butera-designed room from Living in Style,
actual photo by Andrew Abrecht Photography

After viewing the many photos of Barclay’s work in both his presentation and his book (he stated that he has many more in his personal archives ... always take pictures of your work!) I would have to say his style is warm, textural, and classically bold with grand gestures in both scale and pattern. I was so inspired by his love of combining prints (as he mentioned, he is known for his ability to “layer” patterns) that a couple of days later I left the house carrying my favorite zebra print handbag while wearing a leopard print scarf (I never would have mixed animals before, but Barclay does it so well that I had to try!)

Vintage scarf passed down to me that used to
be worn by my very stylish grandmother
(more on her in a later post).

In case you want to achieve the Barclay Butera look for yourself, here are a few more designer tips ...

Don’t be shy ... dining room by Barclay Butera
taken from his book Living in Stylephotographed by Miguel Flores-Vianna

• Tip #1 ... pick up a copy of his book. I felt like I was holding my breath turning the pages. The rooms are that beautiful.

• Don’t be afraid to mix patterns, styles, periods or places: Shells can reside in a room even with animal prints. As Barclay defines it, it is okay to combine Beach with Mountain or Desert with Town & Country.

• Don’t overdo it with a theme (just because you have animal prints or say antler chandeliers in the room, doesn’t mean you have to have signs like “Deer Crossing” hanging on the wall).
• Textures are the key to hard to resist interiors (leathers, furs, stone, natural wood, etc.)


Large orchid seen in one of the BDC showrooms.

• A large orchid plant is one of Barclay’s all time favorite natural accent pieces (I counted about 36 of them in his book.)
My decorate-like-a-pro tip: pick up one or two orchid plants at your local Home Depot and combine them in one big ceramic pot. Add some moss from your backyard if you are lucky enough to have some and voila – instant style!

• When at all possible, put a great lighting fixture in your space. It will get noticed.

• Tall white pillar candles and glass hurricanes blend with any decorating style.

A favorite of mine as well.


• And most importantly, rooms are meant to be lived in ... enjoy yours!

Here are a couple more fabulous patterns that we saw at the BDC after we were “Butera-inspired” ...


Me running into an old friend ...
Sebastian Carpenter Design lamp
at Blanche P. Field showroom
at the Boston Design Center.

My friend Linda in one of her favorite showrooms.

I am planning on recreating this stylish look for a piece that I will put in the Studio. Look for it soon! And when you get a chance, visit Barclay’s blog to read more posts on how he lives with style.

Inspired by ... celebrity designers

I love this color combination of a strong red with a grayish blue background (see flower arrangement in my last post). I took this photo at Studio 534 in the Boston Design Center which was host to Kathryn M. Ireland for her book signing on Tuesday, November 3rd.

While some people are fascinated with sports figures or high-profile celebrities, I find myself getting giddy over seeing “design stars” in person. I really respect what it takes to make it as an accomplished designer in this business, whether one is designing for big movie-star type budgets or for homes that are more modest in comparison. For me, being able to design for others is like being commissioned to create a work of art. My client’s home becomes the canvas, and I get to play artist. It is an honor (and pleasure) to be invited to make someone’s house “a home.”

Today at the Boston Design Center, Kathryn M. Ireland spoke on Easy Elegance and Comfortable Living, The Art of Creating a Home. She was there to promote her new book titled Creating a Home, which is also available online. Check it out (and definitely visit her website) to see some of her amazing work with textiles, patterns, color and scale.

Interior design by Kathryn M. Ireland
photographed by Miguel Flores-Vianna
as seen in Veranda magazine, Sept. ’09

Ireland’s visual language is well studied and appeals to the artist in me who loves bold patterns and vivid colors. She is known for her Bohemian chic approach that combines California’s easy living with the grandeur of world-traveled influences. Although she is a huge fan of saturated color combinations, she is also able to achieve the same richly varied look in a more subdued color palette (when asked!).

Fabrics from her newest collections.

Despite the fact that I was just a wee bit jealous of her well traveled life (Ireland used to take her three boys on trips and they would ask, “How many planes is it going to take to get there?” while my husband and I are basically afraid to plan a long – a.k.a. over 20 minute – car ride with our brood of four boys), I did appreciate her take on fearlessly surrounding oneself with color and beauty. Although after just peeking around the corner into my family room, I think we have achieved the same result as my boys apparently had a battle with a purple feather boa from the Halloween costume bin ... and the boa lost.


This pattern Fez Palm in Olive Green from Kathryn Ireland’s newest fabric collection would be right at home in one of my boys rooms, which boldly incorporates all of these colors (some day I will post images from it when it is “photo shoot” clean ...)

I am sure I could probably learn a lot from Ireland on how to live a stylish life while surrounded by a bunch of boys, but I did not have the luxury to sit down and chat with her today. She did share some funny stories, however, about making a huge outdoor trampoline that did not jive with her design aesthetic mysteriously disappear while her boys went to school, and I especially liked how she admitted to offering one of her reluctant sons money to participate in a magazine photo shoot since this is a trick I have been known to use around December 1st for holiday photos.


While my friends and I were waiting to meet with Kathryn, I had the opportunity to say hello to one of my favorite designer-bloggers, Erin Gates from Elements of Style. She was hard to miss as she is model gorgeous and was dressed very stylishly even for the Design Center (sorry, I wasn’t ready with my camera this time, and besides she probably thinks I am stalking her!) Be sure to visit her blog to read her take on today’s lecture since she mentioned that she would be posting about it, too. She has a refreshing take on this business of design that I find laugh-out-loud entertaining. She is also great at spotting design trends, and I predict she will soon be setting them, too.

Below are a couple of pictures of other designers who have inspired me lately ...


Nancy Faye Glass of Glass House Design and Linda Hentschel of Renaissance Interiors who I met through our design collaboration at The Stevens Estate in North Andover. (I had them pose today in front of the New England Design Hall of Fame Allee of Trees – just for luck). They have both been very generous in sharing their design stories and advice with me (plus we have a great time going to events like this together).

Check back tomorrow for my post on last week’s lecture at the BDC presented by Barclay Butera ...

“Barclay and I” at the Kravet showroom
or “I love this job!”

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A peek inside ... Boston Design Center

Everyone always asks “what do they have inside the Boston Design Center?” Here is just a tiny sample of what I saw while visiting the showrooms yesterday to attend Design Boston. A couple of friends and I sat in on a number of design seminars (Recasting Historic Colors for Contemporary Settings sponsored by Farrow & Ball, Choosing Luxury Furnishings sponsored by Grange, but sadly missed Textiles 101 sponsored by Donghia since we were sitting in dreadful traffic on the way in to Boston.) Upon entering the building (filled with eight floors of the best luxury brands in the design industry) I couldn’t help myself from stopping to admire the landscaping ...

If you have empty spaces in your yard that you just don’t know what to do with, consider planting large groupings of perennial grasses. They are dramatic throughout several seasons and require virtually no maintenance. These also look great in containers and can be left out all winter to be enjoyed again come early summer. I love how they sway softly with the breeze.

The outside is in.

Had to post a pic of one of my favorite “I want to be in there” rooms at the BDC. JANUS et Cie has to-die-for quality outside furnishings. I found myself longing to take some home for my garden room.
Maybe next season???

Inspiration in a bag.

With registration, we each received a shopping bag full of product showroom brochures. Love the yellow and black graphics! Inside I found:

Cybele is the official magazine of the BDC. You can view it online or order your own copy of this quarterly publication that covers “the local design industry, special events, new products and design trends.”
Kinda like my blog, no?


Great textures and colors on a postcard
featuring pieces from Powell & Bonnell.



How cute is this complimentary pad of paper? I grabbed a pencil as well from the Osborne & Little showroom, who had their own bag of drool-worthy images from some of their product lines (Designers Guild and Nina Campbell were favorites of mine). I saw a lot of traditional settings covered floor to ceiling with BOLD colors, patterns and fabric combinations in the 2009 collections. Velvets, silks, pattern on pattern, and almost circus-like embellishments went from
“not difficult to imagine ...”

Orsetti trims from Designers Guild

to “I’ll need time to think about that
... but I think I love you.”

Find these stunning images and more
like them at designersguild.com

If you aren’t quite sure if you can handle this much juicy visual stimulation, how about adding a dramatic flower (like the one on the low cocktail table above) to punctuate a space as I did in this bath that I designed for my last home ...

Round, lavender alliums are a photo-stylists favorite.

This image on a brochure for Osborne & Little reminds me of a stylish bowl that I selected for a client’s home a couple of years ago ...


More graphic boldness from Villa Romo
through Webster & Company.



I had to smile when I saw Nina Campbell’s Sylvana Swan Lake collection ... it reminds me of my high school senior art project (now be gentle — I copied this painting from a card and my mom still has it hanging up for all to see) ...



Graceful style that anyone could live with
from A. Rudin at M-Geough

Still feeling design shy? Try accenting a classic piece like the chair above with a brightly colored silk pillow like this one from Designers Guild (unless you have young kids, then just forget about the silk for a decade or so!) ...

Letourney Cocoa

Of course, walking through the soothing-design-magazine-like atmosphere of the BDC made us crazy with I-have-to-have-that-desire, and if I can’t have it, at least give me something good to eat ...


Gorgeous for fall: sweet potato vines, ornamental kale,
mums, and towering palms combine to create a
dramatic centerpiece under the luncheon tent.

Lunch was served al fresco by The Catered Affair (and sponsored by New England Home magazine — thank you!). The food was delish and the presentation was oh-so-stylish. I had orzo pasta with finely chopped vegetables, and an apricot chicken salad (yum!) on fresh greens. Both were served (separately) in these great double old fashioned cosmopolitan glasses. I am thinking of ordering a set or two for myself to serve small bites of great food or end-of-the-day cocktails. I think my kids would get a kick out of pasta presented in one of these ... and I will serve myself a lemon-drop martini while I am doing my back-to-reality dishes!

Image from Wasserstrom.com

How to fill it ... click here. Cheers!