During the last five years there has been nothing short of a revolution in wallpaper. Whether you are looking for a subtle tone-on-tone pattern or a bold statement, there is literally something out there for every taste and style.
For 60 years Graham & Brown has been crafting some seriously beautiful papers…or rather wall art…that immediately bring boring walls to life. Their patterns, while contemporary, reference the past with new colors and texture.

I know that some of you might be a little nervous to experiment with wallpaper, as it is much more permanent than paint, but when done properly the patterns can make your personality shine through.
If you have never used wallpaper before start with something simple. A small powder room is a perfect space to try something bold and brash. If you don’t want to commit to a full room, cover an artist’s canvas and lean it up against a neutral wall. Those who are willing to be really bold can wallpaper an entire ceiling for some serious impact.

Graham & Brown isn’t the only company that produces incredible modern papers. Today you can find everything from hand-painted versions to uber-contemporary styles in brilliant colors. Check your local wallpaper store, scour design centers, and do some research online. The key here is to have fun…lots of it.

Love This Story? Buzz It Up Here!

Stumble It! Save to del.icio.us Digg Email Facebook

Rich, velvety, cool, vintage, yet so of-the-moment, I have completely fallen in love with peacock blue. In homage to my last blog about Couture Interiors by Marnie Fogg, I picked up the latest issue of Vogue at the post office today, gasped when I saw Nicole Kidman’s dress on the cover, and knew that I had to write about the way this hue can (and should) be incorporated into your interiors.

A stunning Nicole Kidman is swathed in a custom-designed frothy silk gown with swirls of different shades of peacock blue, a hue once popular during the Art Nouveau era (approximately 1890-1905), but today is experiencing a massive renaissance in both fashion and interior design. Later in the feature she is shown in a form-fitting jacket and skirt combination, the perfect blend of cream and strut-your-stuff blue (above).

The popularity of this hue, in both fashion and interior design, has surged in the last couple of years, and continues to appear in both disciplines, whether in the spring/summer or fall/winter seasons. It is so versatile that you can use it to create a feminine vibe, imbue a more masculine ambiance, or a family-friendly tone depending on the pattern, color palette and room in which it is used.

This shade is bold and sophisticated, yet versatile enough to complement tobacco brown, burnt orange, black, white, cream, or other hues of blue, such as turquoise and navy. When paired with lighter colors this blue is more tranquil and casual. When fused with a darker palette it provides an ambience of grand hotels and turn-of-the-century libraries.

For example, in the photos, featured here in a 2008 issue of Domino magazine, a brighter version of this blue is used as an accent next to black and white interiors. This combination imbues the rooms with a family-friendly vibe.

In the living room photo from Southern Living (above), the color is featured in a more chic, traditional interior with a peacock blue silk wallcovering that creates a bold contrast to the bone-colored bookcases. The result is strong and sophisticated that is softened with pale, feminine pinks.

If you want to go all out with a deep hue, try painting a powder room with one of the colors above: Galapagos Turquiose by Benjamin Moore, 2. Oceanside by Sherwin-Williams, 3. Blue Lagoon by Ralph Lauren

Or, if your taste gravitates more towards an East-Coast nutical vibe, try the color in a striped pattern, such as in the photo below.

No matter what you decide to do with peacock blue, you can’t go wrong with a jolt of it here or there in your home. My apartment is currently swathed in a palette of browns, deep oranges, and various shades of green, but a pop of this exciting hue may be just the thing to update it for the coming months.

What will you do to update your rooms? Let me know so I can help you put together a home that is a perfect reflection of you and what you love.

Technorati Tags: peacock blue, new blues for interior design, hot design colors, Vogue, Nicole Kidman, Southern Living, Domino magazine, art nouveau, art nouveau blue, new color combinations

Love This Story? Buzz It Up Here!

Stumble It! Save to del.icio.us Digg Email Facebook

We all have our addictions. My mother (an art quilter) has collected thousands of fabric swatches. My best friend, hundreds of pairs of shoes. My personal addiction is books–seemingly harmless, but terribly unfortunate when it is time to pack up and move apartments.

On this week’s Saturday-morning jaunt to my favorite bookstore (latte firmly in hand) I came across a compelling interior design book by Marnie Fogg, a lecturer in fashion and culture at the University of Nottingham in England. Couture Interiors , $35.00, Amazon.com, examines the relationship between catwalk fashion and architecture, interiors and home design products.

Fogg reveals how the fusion between fashion and interiors is the result of several modern constructs, including the speed of manufacture, consumers who are increasingly more literate in design vernacular, and the dissemination of ideas via magazines and the Internet. Today, trends in interiors change as quickly as the fashions that roll down the catwalks each season.

So what does all of this mean to you and me? Well, take a look in your closet, then look at your home. Do you see a common thread? If you favor a casual, preppy, East Coast vibe, are your interiors decked in dark, clean-lined modernist pieces? If so, consider throwing in a few more bright, classic accessories, you might discover that you feel more comfortable in your rooms.

Or, perhaps your wardrobe is filled with edgy, contemporary pieces in blacks, grays and neutrals. If your home has more flower prints than a Laura Ashley catalog, it might be time to rethink those pink, floral draperies.

In short, it is important that your home directly reflect your personality and lifestyle. If not then you might as well be a guest in someone else’s house. The expression of your personal aesthetic is important, because if you don’t feel at comfortable in your rooms, then you will never feel relaxed. And, after all, what is home for other than maintaining a genuine reflection of happiness?

–By Kate Bailey

Technorati Tags: Couture Interiors by Marnie Fogg, interior design books, fashion and interior design, fashionable interiors, new interior design books, fashion and interior design, fashion design

Love This Story? Buzz It Up Here!

Stumble It! Save to del.icio.us Digg Email Facebook

Last week, I wrote a little about my trip to the BKLYN DESIGNS show in the Dumbo neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. What makes this show worth the trip is that, while it’s small, it covers the gamut of modern home design and has a little something for everyone.

Here are a few more of my favorite finds from the show:

For the decorator:
Jill Malek is a graphic designer known for her custom invitations, stationery, and packaging designs. She recently expanded her offerings to include home design with a collection of hand-screened wallpapers.

As I walked by her booth, what caught my eye were the beautiful colorings of her metallic papers. On closer inspection, you can see her unique patterns of flocking birds and transforming leaves. Her designs are subtle so you don’t notice the individual images, just a pretty canvas of color and pattern. A touch of metallic is great in a room to reflect light and add a little bit of sexy shimmer. I loved her maidenhair design.

Visit her website to see all of her papers.

For the kids:
Even kids could get in on the modern design game with the colorful and clever furniture from iglooplay by lisa albin design. They had lots of seat and table configurations, but I really liked their new craft/work table + chair. It’s made with resource-efficient molded ply construction and durable enough for contract use. The lime green finish is so playful and the removable divided tray adds a great practical detail. It’s also available in poppy orange!

Learn more on their website.

For the renovator:
If you’re looking for a new countertop or sink idea, I loved the custom concrete installations from oso industries. Of course, they have lovely gray and tan colored concrete available, but their 10 available colors also include a softer palette of green, blue, orange, and yellow. Very fun! For those of us not in the remodeling mode, I loved their rollerboy, below. On recessed wheels, this piece could easily be used wherever you need an extra surface. Try it as a side table, ottoman, or even a stool. It’s handmade with trowel applied colored concrete over the shell, so it’s actually quite light. It’s 19wx16.5h and costs around $575.

Visit their website for more options.

—Jennifer Kopf

Technorati Tags: bklyn designs, brooklyn, new york, dumbo, modern, kids rooms, wallpaper, countertops, concrete, iglooplay, lisa albin design, jill malek, oso industries, bathroom, table

Love This Story? Buzz It Up Here!

Stumble It! Save to del.icio.us Digg Email Facebook

Last week I braved a monsoon to check out Sonnabend Gallery’s exhibition on French decorating force Jean Royère, up through April 12. Although his body of work can feel a little uneven (occasional blobophilia mixed with gamine elegance), I was particularly enamored with a straw marquetry table, a pair of sculptural andirons, and a series of daintily proportioned metal floor lamps.

But my favorite part of the show was Parisian interior designer India Mahdavi’s peppy installation, which juxtaposes the sinuous furnishings against boldly patterned textiles and wallpaper by mid-century Scandinavian maestro Josef Frank. Luckily for fellow Frank fans, his boffo botanicals are still produced by Svenskt Tenn and sold at Just Scandinavian.

And if you can’t get to New York to see the exhibition in person (a must for Royère devotees), check out Wallpaper mag’s great slideshow of highlights. —Jen Renzi

A few more Royères:

And some fabulous Franks:

Technorati Tags: 1930s French design, French Deco furniture, Jean Royere, Josef Frank, mid-century Scandinavian style, 1940s Swedish design, botanical-print wallpaper, Sonnabend Gallery, New York, best spring art exhibitions, straw marquetry, India Mahdavi, Svenskt Tenn, Just Scandinavian, Wallpaper magazine

Love This Story? Buzz It Up Here!

Stumble It! Save to del.icio.us Digg Email Facebook