Art Openings

Can you see the depth of the encaustic/wax

I love my adventures....... as an interior designer I attend a lot  of events for inspiration, research and, making sure I'm keeping up with the world changing around me.
The Westport Art Center had an opening this past Friday and what a wonderful "buzzing" event it was. Lots of  interesting people, great "nosh", bouncing music and, some bubbly. There was one photograph( I didn't take a photo, I don't know  why) that was of a dining room with old wall paper, a gaudy gold chandelier,  window treatments that were once stunning but now hanging by threads, broken mirrored walls, stained wall to wall carpeting, no furniture and, obviously hadn't been lived in for years.What was interesting and,  you may think we're crazy but, both my friend and I could "smell" the musty-ness  of the room and, how at one time it must have been someone's pride and joy. Very intriguing how we could "feel" the past and present by just looking at a photo.


Another interesting piece had beautiful lines. Look at the photo below... see how many straight lines there are going every which way and,  accompanied by the vibrant colors,  the clarity of the furniture and accessories this makes this piece very eye catching.  I tried to figure out  who's furniture it was, I think I know all furniture manufacturers ..ha ha but, come to find out the artist +Duvian Montoya took it right from a +Crate and Barrel catalog. The painting sold.

Duvian Montoya

Einstein's Ring by Nash Hyon

Einstein's Ring was  intriguing because of the depth of the encaustic used for the inner circle and, how I was  drawn to it  from across the room.

I had a conversation with the artist Nash Hyon and, she put her Einsten painting on hold for awhile because it was not coming together. Time give us the space sometimes that allows the inspiration to come forward. Therefore, Ms Hyon continued after a brief hiatus and viola.....Einstein's Ring

Hot  Dog by Pascale Beneteau

A little music always helps

Proud Elephant

Master photographer  Mary Harold

Art is the icing on the cake for making a house a home.
Visit your local galleries and see what inspires you. You may take a home a beautiful treasure that makes that special corner of your room come alive. Terri

Wool and Silk Rug Shopping

Window fabric is perfect with this rug

This week I had the wonderful experience of shopping for wool and silk area rugs with my client. I LOVE to shop for interior design products. It makes my hear sing that my client's home will be comfortable under foot, inviting, cozy and, sound proofed by using durable "heirloom" wool and silk rugs. Heirloom because these rugs can be passed on generation to generation. Look at how many antique rugs have  been purchased over the years. My client was concerned of high traffic with lots of grandchildren. Wool and silk rugs wear like iron and with various colors and patterns the unwanted can be hidden and easily cleaned. I always suggest to my clients to have the rugs(also furniture and even window treatments) Fibersealed. My story of fibersealing is, I had a white sofa years ago that was fibersealed  and  I (yes, I not my kids) spilled red nail polish on the sofa,  believe it or not it came right up......enough with the advertising.

A Soft compliment for the dining room 

 My client has several rooms that need area rugs so along with my large swatches of +Farrow & Ball paint colors that I specified for her home we went SHOPPING.....we found a beautiful broadloom that were making into a runner for the entry hallway that runs almost to the back of the home.... 27' x 5' ....it's a wool so therefore, will withstand entry traffic of mud, snow, and rain. It will also soften the long hallway, compliment the beautiful art work and, help with sound proofing. In the large living room which is opened to the dining room I had specified Blue/Grey colors on the walls. The client being very traditional over the years wanted a rug design of more transitional and not quite contemporary. To fill the large space we selected a 12' x 14' which  will "ground" the large room even though it will have two separate seating areas. The Dining Room is Hardwick White which is a deep green grey, the rug selected is a washed out looking antique but  has a slight transitional feel. The Dining Room is gorgeous! Wait till the Conrad Shade I ordered for dining room window is installed.......Im in love!! In the master bedroom we selected a contemporary "wave" design rug with a soft feel of oyster and a hint of pink/grey/taupe which picks up the color of the walls perfectly. The softness to the feet upon leaving the bed in the morning is the most important part of getting the right size rug in a bedroom.. You don't want your bed to fill up the whole rug and hide it, we could have also done 3 areas rugs around the bed but I like the look of one large rug...it "grounds" the whole space. I found the perfect faux sisal for the kitchen table area and a little runner in front of  the sink area... faux sisals are easy to clean, this one has a great design that compliments  the walls and gives softness to the feet.
 Here's to warm and fuzzy rugs and may our feet be always happy!

Conrad Shade for Dining Room

Faux Sisal for Kitchen

...send me photos of your favorite rugs

I love my job,

Terri

Colors of the Fair

We ventured to the Bridgewater Fair in Connecticut recently as a family outing. I'm happy my kids, now adults, still like socialize with us, especially if were paying..ha ha. The sights and colors of this small town agricultural fair

are so stimulating to me being an interior designer... I just want to decorate the whole world. The colored feathers of the various roosters, hens and, other exotic poultry are amazing, no wonder they used to embelish women's hats with them. Reds, brown, golds, auburn and, on and on. Next were the piggys....and they were pink, pink and, more pink. I'm not a big fan of pink, except Farrow & Ball's Middleton Pink and on Sept 9th a new pink color is coming out from F & B but, that's a secret!! Back to the animals. We actually saw a pig race, very cute. Long eared bunnies, black cows, brown cows, black and white cows and, a humongous(is that a word)Scottish cow. Their fur is meant to withstand the Scottish Highland cold winds, rain and, snow. There were also sheep hearding dogs, tractor pulls and "sooped"up rider lawn mowers which they compete to pull the most amount of weight. It's amazing to me what people come up with to do as a hobby/interest/ and all around fun. There was the "best of" tent featuring the best flowers, veggies, collections, jams, jellies all decorated with red,blue or, honorable mention ribbons. The best part of the day is eating, corn on the cob, BBQ chicken and, pulled pork. My husband promotes an eating contest..don t tell him but we always let him win. I love my little adventures around the world close or far and seeing new things, places, people and, COLORS that influence my interior design world. What would we do without color? We'ld just be black and white or maybe just grey...that would be awful. Look around your world and see what influences or inspires you. Send me photos or a little decription of your color inspirations. Home the most important place in the world....make it the best that it can be so you can live your best life. Terri






 



First Place Winners in the "Best of" Tent. I Love the Chicks and Hens as "Flora Hair" how clever and the coloring is beautiful.