interior paint colors: 2007-07-08

Pop Paradise

Who else but Lisa Perry could envision a pop art paradise in a former monastery on Long Island. Originally published in Hamptons Cottages and Gardens, her family's home has been transformed with "bright, primary colors, glossy surfaces and playful minimalism". The LOVE pillows can be found at Calypso home in New York.

Maimekko pillows dress up custom sofas in the "sunset room" above. I think I'd sit in there no matter what it was called!

While George Nelson bubble lamps look like sculpture hanging above the Tucker Robbins dining table and Eero Saarinen chairs. Hope their guests don't drink too much at dinner and fall into the exercise pool!

Photographs by Martin Sobey

Quiet and spare: A beautiful style.

Beta-Plus is a publishing house located in Belgium. Their books are simply beautiful to look at, which is a good thing because there's not much in them to read. Each book is themed like: Country Living, City Houses, Timeless Renovations, and Exceptional Gardens. Be forewarned, they are very expensive picture books. But, what exceptional pictures! Usually there is only one picture per page and since only a few houses are featured per book, you really get a sense of the house because so much of it is photographed. Very few places in Houston carry the books - I've only seen them in two places - which makes their web site all the more vital.

Note the design of the door.

The majority of houses pictured are in Belgium, it seems and that in itself is puzzling to me: I never knew so many wealthy people with exceptionally good taste lived in Belgium. After a while, the names of the architects and interior designers whose work is featured in these books become familiar. Apparently, it's a small family of professionals who work on the houses and gardens featured. The pictures are hauntingly beautiful, very quiet and spare, like the interiors themselves. Oversized furniture, huge accessories, and no clutter seems to be what goes for chic in Belgium.

Oversized elements in a foyer.

Antique versus ultra modern in a bathroom.

Large antique dining chairs. Slipcovers are everywhere in Belgium.

The Paris apartment of children's wear designer Cordelia de Castellane is a a colorful and modern mix of luxury and frivolity that definitely doesn't take itself too seriously.

Photographs by Pascal Chevallier

This is one of my favorite images from the Aerin Lauder Zinterhofer profile in Vogue Living from Fall/Winter 2006. It was shot by Eric Bowman at the Hamptons house that once belonged to her grandmother, Estee Lauder.

I live in New York City and rarely drive, but if I did, this is exactly the car I would buy!

Coconut Company

250 Hudson Street

New York, NY 10013

212-539-1940

While out today, shopping for a client (certainly not for myself!) at Area, a beautiful Houston interiors store on Kirby Drive, my eyes feasted on this site. It made me think of all my new blogging friends!!! Nice, isn't it?

To me, celebrity hairdresser to the stars, Sally Hershberger, epitomizes hip downtown New York style so I was surprised to find out she has a Beverly Hills home and even more surprised that I love it!

The white backdrop perfectly sets off the warm wood of her vintage furniture and her enviable art collection.

Above a 70's Warhol hangs proudly in the hall, while an Italian Chandelier hangs above a vintage photo of Marilyn Monroe below. I love how the colors compliment each other so subtly.

Photographs by Robert Tractenberg for House & Garden

If there is one book that is prized above all others for it's beautiful cover, it's Osa Johnson's I Married Adventure. It's part of my library above and is often styled for magazine shoots like the Vogue photo montage below.

Besides being chic and pretty, it's actually a great read! Martin and Osa Johnson lived an extraordinary life of travel and adventure that is still to this day inspriring. Just recently, American Eagle launched a clothing line called Martin + Osa, based on their fearless exploration.

I found my copy of I Married Adventure from a book dealer but there are always editions to be had on eBay. Get your copy today and be inspired!

My Design: Inspiration for a Bedroom

A project I am just starting on is a bedroom suite for a couple who have remodeled their house in stages. Last year they added a new kitchen and family room and this year, it's a luxiuous sleeping and bathing space off in a wing all by itself. The area is huge and we are starting from scratch. The husband is adament about the headboard: no upholstered ones (my current favorite), and no canopies (another favorite). Headboard shopping today is truly boring. There are a few different styles out there and the rest are just variations on a theme. Tacky. Multitudes of ideas were rejected by them, but one headboard did finally fit the bill: reasonable yet rich looking and unique enough, but still beautiful. It's from Baker Knapp and Tubbs. This is it:

Here is what the room looks like today. The beams will be light, the floor is very dark wood. There will be a limestone fireplace mantel and dark wood bookcases flanking the walls on both sides of the hearth. They both really like blue and thought they wanted aqua, but once they saw this one fabric, the entire room took off on a different direction. There will be a sofa facing the fireplace covered in a gorgeous Marine blue velvet. The drapes will be cocoa colored silk. I was just informed today by Monica that I will need 40 yards of drapery silk. And that's after cutting the order down from 3 widths to 2 widths of fabric. A cocoa colored wool damask by Nancy Corzine is the duvet fabric. There will be a rush seated bench at the foot of the bed with a linen blue/cream striped cushion on it. Still up for discussion will be a center table with rattan covered stools underneath. Two area rugs: one natural, one patterned. If it was up to me, I would just run seagrass throughout or a striped blue and cream dhurrie, but my clients don't always listen to me.

Here are the fabrics I will be using. The damask was the inspiration fabric. Do you see the new Jasper fabric on the right? Yes!!!

In my mind, this picture of a room from Michael Smith is exactly how I want it to look. I going to lobby for a chandelier, but I don't think they will agree. Wish me luck!

While I was perusing the House & Garden Web site, I came across a very interesting Q&A session with designer Kelly Wearstler.

Kelly is one of my favorite interior designers and is definitely always habitually chic...except maybe when she crimps her hair but she's so talented that I might just let her slide on that one.

I'm obsessed with House & Garden magazine! So obsessed, that I end up buying it on the newstand before my subscription copy to arrives, because I can't stand to wait! One of the perks of living in NYC is that many of the new magazines arrive on the newstands before other cities. (This is actually not a perk to my bank account.)

The August issue was no exception. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to have it. The cover with Carolyn Murphy's home in Venice Beach is so beautiful. Not only do I want to look like her but I want to be her and live in her "chic bohemian hideaway"!

I'm glad I checked out the article on the House & Garden web site because this photo of her vanity wasn't in the magazine version.

Photos by Eric Cahan for House & Garden

My First Post!

Hello! Welcome to Habitually Chic!

I am a stylish young woman living in New York City and working for a top interior designer who also owns a small gallery. I am constantly surrounded by habitually chic people, places and things that I have been dying to write about so I finally decided to take the plunge. I have been reading a lot of other people's blogs recently and realized that although so many of them are wonderful, few are based in New York with the access that I have to so much great design and inspiration.

While everyone was dying to see the new Charlotte Moss townhouse, I was walking past it everyday on my way to work and surveying it's progress. I read about people dying to meet Albert Hadley. Guess what? I have! And he works right across the street! I get to see him everyday! And if I get excited about these things, I thought others might too!

I am inspired by so many beautiful things and experiences that I am excited to share them with others and I hope you enjoy them!

The August issue of D Home (Dallas) landed in my mailbox today (I really don't remember ordering it, but I'll take it). Anyway, the title on the cover is "Go Preppy." All the articles feature very preppy interior designers from Texas and LOTS of pink. There's even a quiz on being Preppy. It's really a charming theme this month and I don't remember them doing themes before, but it's possible.

D Home is a great local design magazine, something that Houston doesn't have. The columnists are first rate. I even featured one earlier here, David Feld who wrote a hysterical column of the overuse of coral in interior design. Their web site is superb too and a great way to peruse old issues if you have the time. There are a lot of quality designers who never get any national press, so local magazines are a good way of discovering them. I try to pick up different "local" magazines whenever I'm at a newstand. Here are a few pictures from this month's Preppy Dallas. Enjoy!

Notice the children's portrait - a la Warhol does Preppy!

I love the way West Elm and Brocade show their daybeds for outdoor porches.

I stumbled on this web site today: Interior Design Quotes

Pick your designer for handy quotes or pick your topic, such as "dining room" or "accessories" and see who said what about it. Bloggers may be the only people in the world who would use the web site, but, you never know!

According to this web site, here's what Charlotte Moss had to say about decorating: Decorating is like math, a game of adding and subtracting.

Look at this picture of her bedroom and tell me, what did she possibly subtract???? Aw, that's ok. That's why I love her - the more the better!

One day, as soon as a client lets me, I'm going to steal her idea of a gorgeous antique mirror on an easel instead of a full length dressing mirror. Genius!

Notice the mannequin with tonight's dress on it, waiting to be worn. Who do you think actually puts the dress on the mannequin?

interior paint colors

Laman

Pop Paradise

Books: Beta-Plus Publishing

Modern Chic in Paris

Vintage Chic

Habitually Chic Store - Coconut Company

Eye Candy for the Bloggers

Sleek and Chic

Habitually Chic Book of the Week

My Design: Inspiration for a Bedroom

Q&A with Kelly Wearstler

At Home With...Carolyn Murphy

My First Post!

Preppy Does Dallas

Quotes from Interior Designers

Followers

Arsip Blog

Other Site

About Me