Wednesday, February 13, 2013

the wow factor

Whew! I am exhausted. Back from San Diego last night and the streets were still being cleaned from Mardi Gras madness. I had an awesome time in SD with my best friends and playing with my goddaughter Maddie. (only regret is we were too crazed to meet up with Sabra :(

We made lots of progress on Mad's room, even though we only did a few things, they were the biggest. First, her wall of closets do not have doors - they have been completely open. I had custom drapes made in chartreuse and we got those up - changes the entire feel from messy storage room to cozy bedroom...



Then we spent an entire day on the alphabet wall. It is so important, I think, for every room to have one standout focal point. In the nursery of course it was the custom bookshelf wall. In this room we decided to do an entire wall of alphabet letters framed and matted in different color mats. We had NO IDEA what we were getting into. I had Elizabeth buy the frames and mats before I got there. I helped her choose the colors over video chat. But then we had about 11 steps to go with putting the frames together, attaching the hanging mechanism on the back of each frame, choosing the color mat for each letter and putting them in the frame, plotting out the grid on the wall and hanging 26 frames so they are all the same space apart. I highly discourage you from this project if you see these pics and think it is an easy day of DIY.  hahahaha

But we love how it came out - immediately the room felt warm and fun and we all wanted to hang out in there all night!



So this chair (in the last pic), will be lime diamond print and the headboard will be the Chiang Mai...


We also put in the lacquer side table and installed a gorgeous lucite sconce - by WE I mean her hubby - thanks Matt! We still have several things to go, but I really cannot wait to finish this room and get some great pics with that alphabet wall in the background. I am truly proud of how it came out. Once we finish this room, we can finally move to the front of the house - we have been wanting to work on the entry for about three years!

We bought this brutalist chandelier several years ago on Ebay and finally got it up this weekend...


And here is the board for the entry - we have the brass chandelier up, and she already has a piano up there, the console is in, the sconces are bought and the ottoman is being recovered soon...


A personal confession: being an interior designer can be frustrating in many ways, just like any career. This type of job makes it all worth it. Working on the house of people I love is so much fun. I want them to have a home that is comfortable and as beautiful as they are. I want them to think of me when they see the things we worked on. I want them to live a long, fabulous life there and make the best memories surrounded by things that give them pleasure and make them feel happy.

What do you guys think about our alphabet wall? I hope you like it, because it is never coming down! haha
E

5 comments:

Elizabeth said...

It was SO worth ALL the hard work and it, like the nursery, is a room that I could hang out in all day. My heart overflows with love and gratitude for your brilliance in design, your radiant humor and most of all, your beautiful friendship. We love you!!!

Heather Peterson said...

Love the wall!
Being a veteran of major art walls, though, I could have warned you about what you were getting into. :)

I finally hung my enormous black and white family photo wall last week, and it was a 3-day endeavour. Yikes.

Can't wait to see it all together--it is obviously going to be fantastic!

Heather
loveyourspace.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

Welcome back! SD's Mardi Gras IS crazy! I lived out there for years but, honestly, only went to it my first year there...I think I partied it up hard enough that first time for all the years I was there! Btw...Hit me up the next time you make a visit out there...if you want to go to the zoo I may still be able to hook you up. ;)

xx

Elizabeth said...

Oh, Kecia, I forgot you lived there! I meant Mardi Gras in New Orleans - the big one! That's where I am from and I leave every year to escape it...E

Anonymous said...

That alphabet wall is FANTASTIC. That's what I call the mother of all focal points. I can't imagine the nightmare of hanging it, but so worth it in the end. And when the child outgrows the letters it can turn in to a frame wall of friends. SO GOOD.