Happy Birthday, Husband!

Ok, I have a lot to catch you guys up on, and who KNOWS how long it'll take me to do that, so let's just start with the most recent stuff: this weekend! Sunday was Oliver's birthday, so we decided to put aside most work-related things we knew we should do, and just enjoyed the weekend for the most part. As usual, we were exhausted on Friday night (these 60 hour work weeks make us tired!) so I don't have much to report there, but on Saturday we made a delectable brunch that included a special treat for Oliver: raisin scones and clotted cream (we are privy to The Devon Cream Company's English Clotted Cream). If you haven't slathered a scone with clotted cream and jam, you're missing out. I was introduced to it when I lived in England, and Oliver fell in love when we celebrated mother's day at Lady Mendl's Tea Salon a few years ago. Go have some; one little ounce will fulfill your daily requirement of saturated fat, so you don't have to worry about that! Whew!

Back in December, Oliver's parents gave us some old birdfeeders they weren't using any more and Oliver has been looking forward to refinishing or painting them ever since. This was the weekend! He decided to spruce up the yard with a bright red paint while I sat around in my bikini taking photos.

The birdcages:


Oliver does a light scuffing with sand paper blocks:


After laying out a plastic garbage bag, he got to spraying:


After letting them dry for about thirty minutes, he flipped them and painted the other sides:


We let them dry outside overnight, then filled them up with birdseed this morning before hanging them up:



After another yummy home-made brunch, we made our first visit to the Barton Springs Pool, a three-acre spring-fed pool in Zilker Park, framed by century-old pecan trees. A destination for Austinites and tourists alike, we decided we had to see for ourselves what the hubbub was about. We loved it! The water is clear and COLD (68 degrees year-round), which makes it incredibly refreshing, especially for 100-degree days like we've been having (which, by the way, we are LOVING. For real!). We set up camp near the diving board and watched some pretty impressive moves on breaks from our own dips into the water. We didn't take our own photos, but you can get a feel for it's inherent beauty from these photos:



Not bad, eh? After a couple of hours of sun, we headed home to get ready for a celebratory dinner at Austin's finest (and rare nationally recognized) restaurant, Uchi. We samples all kinds of delectable plates and were thoughtfully treated to a creative dessert in honor of Oliver's birthday. Here we are, feeling very satiated after dinner:

There's the birthday boy looking debonair in his no-socks-with-dress-shoes get up – very sartorialist – with newly-minted birdfeeder in the foreground:

The deck isn't looking all that debonair, but what can you do? We have a deck and that's good enough for us!

Thus ends one of our most luxurious and enjoyable weekends of late!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clotted_cream

Red, White and Quilted All Over

I know I moved to Austin and all, but that doesn't mean I've stopped caring about happenings in New York, I just don't report on them as much – there are gobs of stellar New York-based bloggers, afterall. Well, this exhibit is one I felt deserved a little attention because it's not one you might not stop into on your usual museum rounds. The American Folk Art Museum is sponsoring a satellite exhibit,  Infinite Variety: Three Centuries of Red and White Quilts, featuring 651 red and white quilts, on display at the Park Avenue Armory. Running from March 25 -30, the exhibit is short-lived, but free and open to the public. I'm sad I'm missing this one. Quilting has been catapulted from a crafty "women's work" kind of reputation to treatment as a fine art. The designs in this exhibition, assisted by the outstanding presentation, proves that quilting is, indeed, high art.

Photo courtesy American Folk Art Museum

Aside from the fact that this is the largest exhibition of quilts ever presented in New York City, the most interesting part is that the collection belongs to (and is on loan from) a single person. Joanna S. Rose actually owns more than 1,300 quilts amassed since the 1950s, but selected only the red and white ones for the show. The limited color palette surely allows for a much more in-depth exploration of the varieties and complexities of the textile designs.

Designed by Thinc Design, the exhibit consists of six 30-foot high cylinders, created from quilts, that surround a 50-foot quilt spiral. The curator requested that the quilts not be displayed by pattern, time period or geographic region, but rather in a manner that is visually exciting. I'v been to quilt exhibits before, and they always look the same: quilts hung on walls. This, however, looks phenomenal.


In an interview with the NY Times, Ms. Rose, who was heavily involved in the curation of the show, said she found inspiration in a line from Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra" when searching for an exhibition title:

Age cannot wither her, not custom stale
Her infinite variety…

As stated in the Times, the quilts have retained their "infinite variety" and have not turned "stale" with age.

For Ms. Rose, this show is a dream come true, and a birthday gift from her husband, both for her and for New York.

Exhibit images courtesy Thinc Design

My mom, who happens to be taking a quilting class right now (go mom!) went to the show and said it was spectacular, therefore, you should go see it. Still not convinced? Check out this video by Mary Kay Davis shpwing photos by the American Folk Art Museum. It's set to Chopin's Three Nocturnes, Op. 9, No. 3 in B Major (aka it's lovely), but if you're at the office and classical music streaming out of your computer will blow your cover, turn down the volume.


The Park Avenue Armory is located at 643 Park Avenue, between 66th and 67th streets). Remember: free and open to the public through Wednesday (tomorrow)! The museum is open until 7pm on Tuesdays, and 5pm on Wednesdays.

Harlem HOUZZ Tour

I don't usually post on the weekends, but I couldn't resist publishing this right away because I'm so excited! I recently wrote a quickie post on houzz.com, the site that allows you to find ideas from designers and DIY-ers all over the country. I'm so honored to share with you the wonderful story about our New York apartment (prior to our Austin move), Houzz Tour: Killy and Oliver's Hip Harlem Apartment: Color, Clever Storage and Editing Turns a Tiny Apartment Into a Gem, written beautifully by Houzz contributor Lily Gahagan.

This is by far the most in-depth look at our (beloved) former apartment, complete with small-space decorating tips and explanations of the driving forces behind our design decisions. Sending out a huge thank you to Lily and the Houzz team!

All photos by Frisson

Paint Palette Challenges and Triumphs

Image courtesy Veer

The mister and I have a full week ahead – we're painting our new house and moving in! If my posts get a little thin it's because we're busily edging, rolling and scrubbing drips off the floor (no doubt my fault). Oliver's parental units are going to help with the painting, so things should go very quickly and smoothly, as they are professionals.

It took a little more time for us to figure out a paint palette than we expected. I prefer to pull together a scheme with the parts and pieces – with upholstery, wall colors, bedding, furniture, accessories, etc. in one place, laid out so I can see it all and be certain it all makes sense together. Most of our belongings are in storage, so we don't have easy access to our things, which made drumming up a design scheme challenging. Because we've been a bit out of our element, we started choosing colors somewhat arbitrarily. We both had it in our heads that we wanted to use some kind of fuchsia somewhere in the house, but we we had trouble nailing down a palette based solely on our semi-random desire to incorporate a pink. We came up with a few decent options, but it just wasn't gelling.

I don't make solid choices arbitrarily; I like to have a reason for doing things, so I needed to take a step back and figure out what overall feeling I want to achieve with our paint palette was. I found the bouquet image, below, way back when we were planning our wedding and I was looking for color inspiration. For the wedding, we went for bold reds with classic black and white accents tempered by soft champagnes and pewter greys, so I didn't use the bouquet image, but I've hung onto it because I knew it would come in handy at some point.

Image via This Is Glamorous

The overall look is somewhat dark and moody, with the charcoaly-blue urn and deep purples, but the yellow, pink-ish and white highlights combined with that amazing leafy green softens it all up.

In scouring my inspiration file, I came across the image, below, that I think creates a successful interior based on the colors in the bouquet above in a bright, cheerful way.

Source unknown

The blue-grey walls and sofa pick up the light hitting the urn while the shiny black lampshade gives a nod to it's darkness. The rug references the varied purples and pinks of the flowers, the wood furniture and bamboo window coverings bring in the neutrals sprinkled throughout, while the yellow cushion on the stool, fluffy sheepskin throw blanket and the paper shade of the floor lamp pull in the bright yellows and whites found among the flowers. The green house plant obviously speaks to the leaves in the bouquet while the pattern on the toss pillow subtly pull in the patten and detail on the base of the urn.

Now that we have a sold jumping off point, we can get to work! We will certainly document the process, and since Oliver's parents are on board, I know we'll pick up some great painting tips that we'll happily share. Sadly, we don't have big bro Josh with us for this project, but maybe we can put him to work when he visits (kidding!).

Haute in Honeysuckle

I'm not sure how much stock I put into this "color of the year" business, but it's my self-proclaimed job to report on it, so here I am. According to Pantone's color institute, honeysuckle (a "dynamic reddish pink" that's pretty coral-ish) is 2011's color of the year, although it seems the group "forecasted" a trend that most designers were well ahead of, as various shades of pink have been everywhere for some time now. The New York Times did a Pulse piece on pink way back in March 2009 and more recently wrote about pink bathrooms, although the one they featured was pretty ho-hum. Two features in the Times tells me this isn't exactly new, but it's still a fun trend, so I'm not complaining!

I happen to love pink, but I know it's a tough sell for many. It casts a beautiful glow, making everyone look healthy, but my suspicion is that most fellas (and probably most ladies) aren't interested in living in pink full-time. As with all colors, the right hue in the right application makes all the difference. I don't doubt we'll see (even more of) an uptick in the use of pink in general this year, not solely "honeysuckle," which definitely has a feminine, even girly, bent. I think designers will boldly use all kinds of pinks in their projects. A wide range of looks can be achieved, from jazzy fuschia to serene rose-y gray.

Via SAS Interiors


Interior design by Sarah Richardson


Image courtesy Elle Decor


Image via Domino


Source unknown


Image courtesy House Beautiful


Image courtesy Elle Decor


Source unknown


Interior by Jonathan Berger for House Beautiful



Interior design by Grant K. Gibson


Interior design by Suzanne Kasler

Of course, the color forecast doesn't just pertain to interiors; it stretches across all realms of design–graphics, products, fashion, furniture. If I hit on all of those, this post would never end. Gotta edit. But, I couldn't resist sharing a few faves:

Letterpressed cards available at Hello Lucky


Fashion sketches via Pantone


Lonny's holiday issue showed some honeysuckle love, as did recent Veranda and House and Garden magazine covers


Cuisinart's Frozen Yogurt, Ice Cream and Sorbet Maker in Honeysuckle

We were right on trend with our color for The Studiolo's new identity:


So, how do you incorporate this color trend into your home if:
1. You don't want to overhaul the whole place because next year a new color will be announced
2. You don't want to over-commit because it's a tough color to use a lot of
3. Your boyfriend/husband/girlfriend/wife/pet has an aversion to pink and isn't buying it
4. You are slightly color-phobic, but would like to indulge in this trend (or any other trend, for that matter)

My advice: Use it sparingly! Bring it into your home in small doses:
• Buy a few yards of trim tape and sew (or hot glue) to curtains, shades or lamp shades


• Buy some new pillow covers for your existing toss pillows or shams, or a fresh throw blanket and switch out when you're not feeling it anymore


• Get a new shower curtain with a splash of honeysuckle, if it works with your towels and other bathroom decor.

Shower curtain from Anthropologie

• Use it on accent upholstered pieces that are in need of a rebirth, like dining chair seats or a piano bench.

Via House Beautiful

• Paint it on furniture frames that need a little pick-me-up. It can always be painted over if you hate it or tire of it

Via Apartment Therapy

• Stencil a pattern onto a wall using the color


• Buy one "statement" in a pink that speaks to you, and design the rest of the room around it in neutrals or work in a small-scale piece of furniture to your current collection for a little unexpected pizzazz

• For a more temporary use, buy some pink flowers!

Image courtesy Southern Accents

Last fall I painted a client's entry in Benjamin Moore's Summer Plum with much success:

Using such a deep color in a small space really packs a punch and was a super affordable way to transform this entry into a special space

I was so pleased with how that turned out, Oliver and I began to pull paint chips in various shades of pink for our next house, with a focus on fuschias. We'll be starting to paint soon, so stay tuned for our own use of pink, if we go through with it!

Our DIY Office Nook on Apartment Therapy!

There has been a lot of buzz lately about offices carved out of closets and other small spaces in peoples' homes. Oliver and I jumped on the bandwagon with photos of our own workspace and today it is being featured on Apartment Therapy! Thanks again, Janel!

As many of you know, Oliver and I work from home most of the time, and while we do our best to keep work and life separated, it's a bit of a challenge in our less-than-400 square foot apartment. Our living room came with a somewhat irritating-at-first nook due to a protruding section of wall that contains the "Sprinkler Control Valve,"complete with industrial signage. The nook when we moved in:

As it turned out, that nook was the perfect width for an Ikea table top. Oliver and I painted the gray walls and yellow and white stripes, then Oliver and handy brother of bathroom fame mounted the table top to the three walls and added one central support leg. Oliver and I hung two overhead shelves and painted it all Benjamin Moore Black Satin - a charcoal-y dark gray.

As I've mentioned before, Oliver is a master of organization, and it doesn't stop at paper; he has some experience with network architecture, so he can set up a fully functioning, but very self-contained wireless office. All the computer-related mumbo-jumbo is hidden neatly under the desk, and while we have office stuff scattered throughout the apartment, I've done my best to cover it all with home-made fabric remedies. We also mounted computer speakers and holders for rolls of trace paper, which I'm constantly using.

We didn't want too much clutter above us, but we couldn't imagine not utilizing all that vertical wall space, so the shelves actually hold our collection of vintage milk glass vases and bowls, which we used for flower centerpieces at our wedding. I thought I would sell them after the wedding, but I had become attached - it look a year to amass the collection (there is more) and I think they're so beautiful. So, I'm thrilled to have a place to display them! Some of the pieces even hold office supplies, so they aren't solely decorative. We found the little cut glass lamp at Target, and it works great for evenings when we're burning the midnight oil. We found the pair of vintage Pollack chairs at Two Jakes in Brooklyn. The clock belonged to my Grandmother and is by Syroco Inc., the company that essentially invented plastic in the 1950s.

Even though the office space is fairly pleasing to look at, sometimes we just want it to go away. For those occasions, we hung West Elm curtains on an Ikea track and can close the office when we have company, or when we want a visual barrier from work. The curtains also conceal that pesky Sprinkler Control Valve sign and soften what used to be a very ugly corner in the apartment. I made those new pillow covers just in time!