Alice In Wonderland Window Display

I took this picture in the Design Center almost a year ago, and because time seems to be flying at top speed in my world these days, I'm just getting around to posting it now.

It's a vignette of Alice in Wonderland made of fabrics, wallcoverings and trims.  I love it, though it's a bit eerie.  I guess the movie is strange enough that it totally makes sense.

Also, aren't the dog pillows the cutest?

On My Desk :: A Touch of Gray...

...or more than a touch, but it's perfect to post on a gray, rainy day.

This material set is from a conference center I worked on last year.  I have switched jobs in the meantime {twice} so I have no idea if the project was ever completed, but I love the materials anyway.  The palette was grays and whites, though the wall paint isn't in the photo.  The shimmery wallcovering was planned for niches with a stone topped credenza and nice lighting.  The matte fabric was intended for a moveable wall.

I selected some beautiful glass chandeliers as well, but the ones I selected were over $10,000 each and that was not in the budget {I made a trip to the high rent district to find them, obviously}. 

I really hope some day I can pop in and see if the renovations were completed, I work nearby and I have gotten really good at talking my way past security guards...it's a great skill to have.

John Robshaw for Duralee

Back when I was working next to the Design Center, I spent a bunch of time walking through the showrooms and checking out the new fabrics and wallcoverings.

 I enjoyed seeing the Duralee window display with John Robshaw fabrics.  The round shape of the coral pillow is perfect for that fabric pattern, and the wallcovering reminds me of the fabric on this bedspread.
 

My favorite pattern, other than the floral on the wall above, is this one.  It's oversized and if I didn't have more fabric than I need at the moment, I would certainly want it for myself.  It would go really nicely with the lamp I currently love.

Making Lemonade

You know the saying about making lemonade out of lemons?  Well I'm working on it.  I mentioned last week that my commute was long and difficult, and I want to spend the days, or at least the weekends, hiding in bed {as shown in the dramatic re-enactment below}, or catching up on sleep.

This is actually the situation I encounter every time I change the sheets.

Fortunately, for my sanity, I decided that since I am working next to the design center, I'd go see what was new.  I found the new Jonathan Adler line of fabrics for Kravet.  The exuberant use of color in this line was a sure way to snap me out of a cranky mood.

I'm considering using the middle fabric below to make a slipcover for a chair I want to reupholster.  It's actually fairly reasonably priced, and then I can do it myself.

 

  

Duralee is another place I like to stop for cheerful prints and bright colors {I was obviously in no mood for neutrals on this visit}.

This lab print just plain makes me happy.  It comes in yellow, chocolate, and black too!

What do you do when you are cranky or stuck in a place that drains you of all your energy?

On My Desk: Herringbone and Geometrics

I thought I would start an occasional post about things "On My Desk".  Things I have been working on, things I am considering, and finishes I am hoarding because I want to find an appropriate place to use them.

The two finishes below literally sat on my desk for a couple of weeks keeping me company before they got the boot.  The geometric carpet is in the running for an elevator lobby, I'll know the verdict on it this week, but I really hope it's a yes.  The large orange herringbone was for a chair I would like to reupholster.  I have decided to go with the brown colorway {if I use it, it's a bit pricey so it's still just being considered} so you'll probably see it's buddy in a later post.

If only I could figure out how to photograph it well.

Melin Tregwynt

As the summer goes on, I get more and more tired of the heat and humidity.  I've taken to dreaming of fall and these beautiful wool pieces by 100 year old Welsh company, Melin Tregywnt.  The quality of these was impeccable and I'm in love with that polka dotted pillow and adorable bunny.  They would be perfect in my future Montreal apartment where the winters get to -20 degrees Fahrenheit. 

I realize this could be considered insane but I willingly went outside in -40 degree weather in Quebec City in February one year and then stopped for iced coffee on the way back. I wouldn't want to do it every day but I much prefer it to summer...

Camilla Meijer

I apologize for being like the weather channel lately {and only talking about things WAY after they actually happened} but at least no one reads my blog to find out if they will get a foot of snow dumped on the ground while they are at work.

As usual, my picture doesn't do these wallpapers and textiles from Camilla Meijer justice.  I am in love with the owl print and the bird print you can kind of see to the left, but my favorite is this pattern. and if you look closely at the book on the floor you can see that I was excitedly flipping though and had found my favorite.  As the last wallpapers I posted on were, these are based on drawings by Camilla. 

I also got a bit of a crash course in British slang during our short conversation and I tried really hard to keep up.  I'm pretty sure I figured it all in the end but I really hope my being slow on the uptake didn't show.

Grow House Grow

I accidentally stopped putting up my ICFF and Kip's Bay images, but there's no time like the present to get back on track.

One thing I noticed at the ICFF was that there were a lot of hand drawn fabrics and wallcoverings.  Grow House Grow was one of these. If I remember the story correctly, they are actually illustrations of stories Kate Deedy's {the artist's} mother used to tell her growing up.

It makes things so much more meaningful than "I drew it because it's pretty" which is not wrong but just doesn't have a compelling story behind it.

Fabric Hoarding

I've been at it again, I've been fabric shopping.  I found a new store and I'm very excited.

I purchased a bag at the Limited last winter and started using it in February and it lasted until May before it started falling apart. I might have bought it for 40% off but that doesn't mean it should only last 4 months. Super junky. So....I decided to make a bag of my own and started scouting for leathers. I'm a vegetarian so it was strange to shop for hides but I promised to name mine so I feel a little better. Plus, it's best to use all the animal if you're going to kill it anyway so I'm helping out {right?}.  They had a whole table of hides for $49.99 each - apparently they started out at $50 but people were rushing the table and snatching them all up since they thought they cost $5 each.  That would have been very funny to see first hand....

It's entirely possible that the bright gold piece came home with me for a tote bag or maybe this.

This gunmetal and fuschia are for my bag - the fuschia is for the lining.  I'm still trying to figure out exactly what style so I've been pinning all sorts of bags that I like in order to select one as sewing inspiration {or inspiration for someone else to sew if I'm being honest}.

I loved this green 'alligator' velvet fabric.

And they have a giant bin full of buttons!  It's about 8' long by 4' wide so it's pretty huge.  I'm not sure why this bin makes me so happy since I have no intention of ever buying any.

Ana Romero Textiles

I love this beautiful patterns by of the Ana Romero Collection I found at this year's ICFF.  Sold as pillows and other accessories, this fabric is some of the nicest silk I have come across in a while.

I love the chevron stripe in the pink and the pattern made into wallpaper for the booth.  I would love to see these patterns sold as fabric by the yard some day and was I was told it was a possibility for the future.

Sequins & Chambray

I am still recovering from my trip to Manhattan.  I tried to take the train much more than last year but both Javitts and the Kips Bay Showhouse were out of the way and I like to walk a few {or 30} blocks after getting out of the car in the morning.  When I'm there, I really understand why people don't leave their small neighborhoods.

I went down to Chinatown grab some Chrysanthemum tea for my sister since she mentioned she would like some and got stuck in crazy crowds.  I guess people really like cheap knock-offs.  There was also a "parade" of sorts about to happen and as I was getting annoyed that I couldn't move where I wanted to I overheard someone say, "What is this? A standing still parade?"  That kind of made my day and mostly made up for the 7 different trains I had to take to get down there and back to the Upper West Side.

I went to the Garment District first thing and found myself some sequin trim and pink Italian cotton {with a chambray look to it} and plan to make bags for my nieces with it.  I have been determined to find some sequined trim for a while now so I was happy to find it in the first trim shop I visited.

My ultimate goal is to find a trim place that I actually enjoy going to, there really aren't any good ones in Massachusetts so I've been looking around on my travels.  This time I went to Top Trimmings and, while the older people there were very pleasant and were able to help me find what I wanted in the color I wanted, they had a sort of surly younger person there who didn't make the trip as enjoyable as it could have been.  Previously I went to Pacific Trimmings and, due to a communication gap, I wound up bargaining down the zippers I bought to less than half the price they were marked and they cut them to the size I needed.  I'm still not sure how it happened.  It wasn't a bad place but I'm still looking for one I love going to.  Any suggestions would be great!

On the other hand, the fabric store I stopped at is now my new favorite, I could have stayed in there all day!  I stopped at Paron Fabrics and they have a lot of nice fabrics a lot of which are French or Italian made and they had quite a few designer cast-offs or extra fabrics from their lines.  There was nothing super expensive {well, at least not Design Center expensive} but there were a lot out of the price range of the money I had with me.  I'll have to go back with more cash one day since they have some nice wools.

Blue Velvet

I know, I know, enough velvet already....but I just can't resist.

via Style by Emily Henderson {photographer: Tery Lyn Fisher}

I have a bunch of meetings this week and one the end of last week so I spent all last week working, working, working.  I wish my chair was this comfortable but instead I have this one.  I love it and it's comfortable but it's not a cushy arm chair, and I still have to redo the red vinyl fabric {that's on my someday list}.

New Pillow Fabric

While I'm anxiously waiting for my sofa to be reupholstered, I have been searching through my fabric scraps and pillow covers to see what I have that will work with the new sofa fabric.  I have this amazing red cotton velveteen that works well with the Robert Allen floral I have to make draperies {someday}.  It's super soft, though not as soft as the navy blue cotton velvet I have, and will look nice against the brown sofa fabric.

I also picked up some pillow covers a while ago made out of the Romo fabric.  I was so sad when I found out the fabric had been discontinued.  Not too long after, I found these pillows on Etsy and was happy again.  The flowers were red instead of the orange I had originally wanted but that turned out to be a good thing.

via Ellie - B Designs on Etsy

It was good because I have the aforementioned velveteen.  No, I wouldn't put those pillows with the drapery fabric but it will still need to work with the Romo pillows.  I'm so indecisive about what I actually want things to look like {probably due to being exposed to so many beautiful fabrics} and I'm thinking of finding some fabrics to make a "winter" set so I can have a different feeling in the living room for the winter.  In addition, apartments in the Boston area tend to be old and have super drafty windows.  I would be able to line one set of draperies to keep out some of the winter cold.   So, I'm thinking I might make a long lumbar pillow or a bolster of some sort out of the red velveteen that can stay year round. 

And, because that wasn't enough, it also works well with the scrap of Sanderson Maia fabric I have in my scrap pile.  Enough for me to make a pillow.  Sadly, I forgot to pick up some cording material to make a welt around the edge last time I was at the fabric shop but I'll get it when I go back.  I need to find some nice quality inserts eventually to so this pillow will probably wait until I have that accomplished to get the measurements perfect.

I love how the birds look like they are almost unfinished sketches of birds.

Hopefully someday soon I'll get this all pulled together.  I may decide I'm too cheap for two sets of curtains or wind up with a place too small to store them.  I have time now to decide though so I'll figure it out.

Someday.

Changmai Dragon Display

I love the combination of these three popular Schumacher fabrics and the darker mocha colorway of Changmai Dragon that isn't seen quite as often.

I have to say though, that the blue fabric on the throw is my favorite color in the window.  This combination would make a great soothing bedroom color scheme.

{photo: jeanine}

Duralee Window

Early in October I found this Duralee window display and noticed it had a nice fall fabric combination that doesn't scream fall.

Purple, orange, yellow and a hint of blue is a nice color combination for the transition to fall when you don't want to acknowledge it's really happening.

Unfortunately around here that's not possible because we've already seen this.

That was a driveway.  It's in the 60s today but there's no denying winter is on it's way and fall seems to have been mostly lost somewhere.

{photos: jeanine}

Fabric You Can Smoosh Your Face In...

...or is it smush?  That word hasn't yet made it to the dictionary I used.

Anyway, that is the description from Martyn Lawrence Bullard about his new fabric line.  I have to admit I didn't make it to the showroom after his seminar to check it out in person {eventually I will} but in pictures it looks quite nice.

via F. Schumacher

via F. Schumacher

via F. Schumacher

via F. Schumacher

It's a combination of huge prints and smaller plains.   Either of these would be perfect to reupholster my armchair in if only silk was appropriate around children {I have 6 nieces and nephews and need fabrics that I don't have to worry about}.

Alhambra in Taupe/Ivory

Alhambra in Earth/Natural

He also has a new book out that someone sitting near me had and was flipping through. I'm pretty selective about design books but this one looked good from what I could see.  If only design books weren't so expensive...

Duralee Window Display

I was at the Design Center the other week and saw that Duralee had updated their window.

I love the fabrics on the front pillow on the chair and the floral pillow on the floor.  It's funny that I almost never go into the showroom even though I really like their fabric selection.  The last time I tried to go in it was about 15 minutes before closing and that was not nearly enough time to browse {especially since I needed things for a client meeting the next day}.

{photo: jeanine}

More Romo

So I posted my dismay over Romo discontinuing of one of my favorite fabrics, and here is another that I love.

It's actually the floral wallcovering below found in Serena's bedroom on Gossip Girl.

I used to visit the showroom to "check on" this one.  I might need therapy, don't judge me.

{images: CW via Nest Design}

Fabric Hoarding

So I recently found a local shop that has super cheap fabrics that are actually worth buying {there are plenty of places where it's hit or miss and usually I miss, but this one so far has been good}.

I stalled for 2 weeks before finally going back and buying this blue floral Robert Allen fabric.  It's a bit more serious that I usually go for but I couldn't stop thinking about it.  I bought 12 yards thinking I would use it for drapery in my new place {and once I get my sofa reupholstered} and the whole 12 yards cost about the same as a pair of drapery panels from West Elm.

I got to thinking about what I would put with this fabric if I did buy it and realized I just happened to have a yard of this yellow chevron fabric for pillow covers should I want them.  For the price I can afford to have a set of winter draperies and summer draperies, which is good since I have some pillow fabric I'm dying to use that totally doesn't go with this.  This is where my fabric hoarding tendencies come in. 

The other fabrics are these Romo fabric memos that I've had forever thinking I'd buy some actual fabrics some day since I lovethemsoverymuch.  Unfortunately, while I've been making up my mind to get them {they are super expensive} they have been busy discontinuing the line so unless Romo has a secret stash they want to sell {or donate} to me, I'm working with two small pieces.  I thought it would go nicely with this houndstooth fabric that was in my pile {yes, you will see me on tv soon}. 

I know this is a terrible photo and I need to wash/iron these fabrics.

If that's not enough, I also bought a few yards of this Dwell Studio fabric because they had it, it was super cheap, and I've always liked it.  It may go on a chair but I'm not sure.  Not the best strategy for a fabric purchase but I'll find a use for it, I hope.

{photos: #1&2 - jeanine, #3 - Calico Corners}

Rapture And Wright

Rapture and Wright is a great line of fabrics and wallpapers that is graphic but in a soft sort of way {I don't know exactly how to describe it but that is the word that comes to mind}.  They are all hand printed and can be made with custom colors which is helpful.  Sometimes it's so disappointing to have a fabric you love not available in the colors you need.

{photo: jeanine}