Interiors Archives - Page 3 of 21

The Big Bathroom Remodel: Hexagon Tiles

April 4, 2013 By Paola 9 Comments

We were stuck for quite some time deciding on tile for the bathroom.

Aside from wood, nature doesn’t feature very strongly in our house, so all the natural stone and marble options didn’t seem very much in keeping. Glass on the other hand seemed almost too contemporary for a craftsman house, so it quickly became apparent that ceramic tiles were the way to go.

We didn’t, however, want to default to subway tile walls with a penny tile floor, although we do find them very American and charming. The bathroom we are remodelling is a later addition to our 1912 house and it probably makes sense to go for real Americana in the original downstairs bathroom.

{via Apartment Therapy}

In the end we were inspired by this bathroom on Apartment Therapy that we found via Pinterest, and fell in love with the large size hexagon tiles, which seemed both contemporary and a bit different but still timeless and in keeping with the rest of the house.

Much intensive searching online later, and the only 4 inch hexagon tiles we could find were these beautiful matte handmade Savoy tiles, made in the US by Crossville Inc, which come in a range of neutral colours, including white.

{via Crossville Inc}

So that’s what we went with, and the floor was finished yesterday. Delighted doesn’t even begin to cover it. It looks spectacular and we are THRILLED.

Onwards and upwards. It’s finally all starting to take shape.

The Big Kitchen Remodel: Buying a Retro Fridge

March 28, 2013 By Paola 44 Comments

I’m a firm believer that when you’re doing a room (or planning an outfit for that matter) that you should have one striking architectural feature, or piece of furniture or art (or clothing or jewellery) that acts as the focal point of the scheme, adds the wow factor and provides an anchor to build everything else around.

Unfortunately our boxy rectangular kitchen has not a single architectural feature of merit, and it is difficult to create a wow factor out of cheap Ikea cabinets. So that left the fridge as the only real possibility.

Our Big Chill fridge in a finished kitchen

Sadly most fridges available here in the US are either white or stainless steel boxes – gigantically huge, fabulously functional in a way that European fridges can only dream of, and boring as hell. After a great deal of online research the following are the only interesting fridges I could find, all retro-styled. Wouldn’t it be fab if a fridge manufacturer could come up with an eye-catching contemporary fridge design?

First of all I thought of getting a Smeg fridge. I had one back in London and they are so ubiquitous in the European design world as to have become a bit of a cliché. But for some reason THEY ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE T TO FIND IN THE US.

West Elm has started selling the small standalone Smeg fridge in a variety of gorgeous colours, but these are tiny even by European standards.

Teeny tiny Smeg fridges

Smeg does manufacture bigger fridge-freezers which would have been perfect for us, but they are NOT available in the US. This is criminal Smeg US! Get with the program!

Smeg fridge-freezers out in the wild. Though not in the US obvs.

Since we definitely need a freezer, I searched for retro-style fridge freezers and came across NorthStar fridges made by Elmira Stove Works in Canada. It’s important to note that both these fridges and the Big Chill fridge we bought are just retro cases screwed on to a cheap white box fridge (Elmira uses Amana fridges) so they’re by no means state of the art when it comes to internal features. We liked the look of the Northstars very much, but since they are imported from Canada they work out even more expensive than the Big Chill. Here’s a great discussion outlining the pros and cons of Northstar v Big Chill.

Very cute and expensive Elmira NorthStar fridges

Big Chill Fridges are based on Whirlpool white box fridges. I have to admit that it was a difficult decision to spend so much money on what is merely a tarted up $800 fridge – as it was being delivered up our stairs I was given a graphic illustration of just what we’d bought, as all the fancy panels were unscrewed and removed so it could get up the stairs. But once seen I had to have it, and we are delighted with its prettiness.

Another Big Chill fridge in a finished kitchen

Seems to me thought that there is a huge gap in the market for some manufacturer to produce a nicely-styled colourful, CHEAPER fridge-freezer from scratch though. What do you think?

Check out this fabulous post (with extra fridgeporn) from Nicole Balch of Making It Lovely for advice on how to style the top of your retro fridge. Fortunately since we have a cabinet over our fridge, I do not have to make these difficult styling decisions.

Monthly Trend Report: Metallics

March 25, 2013 By Paola 1 Comment

Here’s the lovely Tina Ramchandani again with her monthly interior designer’s trend report. This month spoke to me loudly since my favourite colour is SHINY and we’re sort of considering somehow making the space around the toilet in the bathroom gold or silver. (The Husband and I may have been drinking too much when we discussed this.)

{via from top left Interiors By Studio M; Trendir; Pinterest; Mimi and Meg; Pinterest; Pinterest; Pinterest}

Hello again! It’s Tina of Life in Sketch, here with your Monthly Trend Report. Spring is just around the corner and the weather is getting warmer. I’m in the mood to redecorate, and I’m sure you must be too.

It’s always nice to see what’s in trend, and what trends are about to pop up so we can decorate our homes accordingly. After all, we want our spaces to be the envy of all our neighbors! Today I’m going to talk to you about metallics. While this isn’t exactly a new trend, it’s something that’s stood the test of time. We seem to see metallics popping up more in the spring and summer, don’t you think? I see more wood pieces in the winter, and maybe because metallics appear lighter they seem the pop up in interior design as the weather gets warmer.

You can use metallics in several ways. You can install a metallic wallpaper but if you decide to go this route be careful. Too much shine can be overwhelming, so you may want to install this in a small room or area, like at the back of a bookcase. I like to find metallic side tables, which will add a little bling to my room. Horchow has a great selection. If you’re willing to search, you may be able to find fabrics that have a little sheen, or metallic threads sewn in. This will give your room a very luxe look!

Do you have metallic accents in your space? What do you think of this classic look?

Kitchen Remodel: Progress At Last

March 22, 2013 By Paola 7 Comments

After a few weeks when it seemed like nothing much tangible was happening (though I knew a ton of stuff was happening behind the scenes) we’ve suddenly made huge progress in the last week.

The big news is that, not only do we have primed white walls and ceilings, but the floor has been laid. I am so pleased with it. I was a little worried that it would be too dark but I think it is warm and inviting and will hopefully look even less forbidding when the whole symphony of white above it fully unfolds.

Here is what the ‘symphony of white’ is going to look like. I realise you can’t see any difference at all between any of them on your screens, though they are there. I have to run off now to a meeting at the Minx’s school, so I think we’ll talk about whites in another blog post.

The other big news is the arrival of a jolly green giant this morning in the shape of our new Big Chill fridge (of which more too next week). And it fits into the space we left for it! Much excitement all round here as it slid smoothly into the allotted gap.

Again I am delighted with it. It was a ridiculous amount of money of course, and it’s huge design blogger cliché, but I do think it gives the room a focal point and the green reflects all the light in the kitchen and appears less sickly than it seemed from the sample.

All hugely thrilling, I am starting to see light at the end of the tunnel.

Kitchen and Bathroom Remodel: Paint Colours

March 15, 2013 By Paola 9 Comments

So today is a momentous day in Kitchenlandia (and in Bathroomlandia too).

The whole shebang is going to be sprayed with white primer and we shall finally be rid of the burnt orange and baby poop coloured walls and the tongue and groove ceilings should fade into oblivion.

I am SO excited.

There hasn’t been much to report the last couple of weeks, as much time has been spent working on the electrics and plumbing and new shelving and drywalling etc. But now instead of destroying stuff, the contractors will actually start rebuilding and we should see it all start to take shape.

We (by which I mean the Husband, with me backseat driving) have been using some fabulous free 3-D drawing and planning software called Google SketchUp and this is what we’ve come up with so far.

The floors are going to be a dark brown laminate. I wanted to have something dark to ground the space and was initially drawn to dark cork, but was told that dark cork (which is simply dyed) was very susceptible to visible scratches and scrapes. So laminate it is. We’ve chosen one which looks a bit knobbly and distressed, to go with the old fir floors in the rest of the house (though I couldn’t bring myself to match their horrible orange colour).

The counters will for the most part be a nice matte white honed quartz from Pental. Blew our budget a bit with that choice but I needed something lovely and neutral after all the year of forest green laminate.

For the sticky out island bit to the side we’ve chosen some walnut butcher block. Again it was rather more than we were expecting to spend, but it will be fabulous for baking bread and making pasta (and for taking food photos). There will be a hinged piece at the end to add extra countertop space when I’m cooking.

We’ve managed to include a pull-out larder cupboard and a rolling aluminium appliance garage on one wall which I’m super excited about and the big mint green monster you see is the retro style fridge which will be delivered next week, of which more then.

We’ve also extended the shelves on the back wall. These will be stained to match the walnut butcher block.

So now I have to choose paint colours. I am tempted to just paint everything white, but a little scared that it will end up looking like a clinic, what with the white cabinets and counters. However, I have a lot of colouful kitchenware which will go on the open shelves, and we do have the big green fridge to contend with. But still it’s tempting to do something whacky with the back wall with the shelves on it. Or at the very least a soft mint green. What would you guys do?

If we do go for all white, can you recommend a nice soft white you’ve used recently? Especially if you’re in the Pacific Northwest with our grey winter skies and dazzling summer light (kitchen faces south and west). I don’t think I’ve ever painted a wall white in my life. (Oh and ignore the greyness of the SketchUp pics. It’s just trying to render shadows.)

Just in case you’re feeling nostalgic, here’s a final glimpse of the burnt orange walls and wood ceiling.

And of the baby poop walls (and the bizarre mural of fir trees they were hiding) in the bathroom.

Please be nothing that the ghastly glass bricks in the bathroom have GONE and a lovely new frosted window is in their place.

Go Love Your Room: The Edris House

March 5, 2013 By Paola 1 Comment

By great good fortune it was Modernism Week when we were in Palm Springs. Of course I wasn’t organised enough to book many of the house tours before they sold out, but I did manage to wangle a place on the tour of the Edris House, built for Marjorie and William Edris in 1954 by the renowned Palm Springs architect E. Stewart Williams.

It’s not a particularly large or grand house, but is a quite magnificent specimen of mid-century modern desert architecture with all the interior fixtures and fittings still intact and the most breathtaking views. We were lucky enough to go there on an absolutely perfect blue sky day and here’s what greeted us.

Come and have a peek inside.

The charming owner J.R. Roberts has kept all the original fixtures and incorporated his own furniture and art, all bought with the house in mind.

I found the kitchen, with its original cooktop and ovens particularly fascinating. I suspect the previous owners of our house were going for a similar effect in our monstrous kitchen (because of course that makes total sense in a 1912 Craftsman house).

The ceilings almost made me rethink my aversion to the wood panelling in our kitchen and bathroom. Almost. (I think it probably helps if you have amazing floor to ceiling windows with incredible views).

And here’s the lovely owner JR, who considers himself to be more of a custodian than an owner of the house. Mind you, you would be happy and charming if you had a huge walk-in bar at your disposal.

I found this fabulous video of him talking about the house.

Tour of the Edris House from Marilyn Chung on Vimeo.

Photoshop Week at CreativeLIVE absolutely kicked my butt literally, since we were sitting on the most uncomfortable chairs known to man and I was terrified of my piriformis syndrome returning, and figuratively. Who knew that Photoshop and Lightroom could be so riveting? If you are any sort of photographer it is probably worth you downloading at least a few of the courses. All the teachers were without exception fabulous – patient, thorough and clear, with an incredible breadth and depth of knowledge. It was a quite mindblowing experience for me and I know my photography will never be the same again. I can’t recommend it highly enough (and can’t believe how lucky we are to have CreativeLIVE here in Seattle).

Go Love Your Room: The Parker Palm Springs

February 25, 2013 By Paola Leave a Comment

Dear hearts I am BACK - full of eggy breakfasts, date shakes, sunscreen-induced acne and beautiful memories. We had an absolutely fabulicious time.

I have MUCH to share with you. By a triumph of meticulous planning (or possibly fantastic good luck) Winter Break this end happened to coincide with Modernism Week in Palm Springs. Of course, most of the events were sold out before I got my act together, but I did manage to go to one or two fun events, which I will share with you later this week.

Through a triumph of very bad planning however, our flight back from LA coincided with the Oscars, so I still haven’t watched the ceremony, though I understand from Twitter that it was all, how shall we say, not good.

As a result though mirrormirror’s usual in-depth Oscar coverage will not be happening this year. I am desolate, but I hope you will be able to cope.

Instead, here are some pretty pictures of our room at the Jonathan Adler-designer Parker where we stayed for three nights.

The other reason for lack of Oscars coverage is that tomorrow I start six days of intensive Photoshop training courtesy of Creative Live as a member of their live studio audience.

My Photoshop skills suck big time, so I’m very excited to learn from the masters. Catch me on the live broadcast any day this week (except Thursday). Let me know if you’re watching and I will wave!

Oh and here is previous coverage from the Parker a couple of years back. It hasn’t changed a bit.

Monthly Trend Report

February 20, 2013 By Paola 2 Comments

Dear hearts, Tina is back with her monthly trend reports! Do say thank you by showing her lots of love on her blog.

Hello mirrormirror readers! It’s Tina of Life in Sketch, back again with a Monthly Trend Report for February. Today I’d like to chat about the Sputnik Chandelier. I’ve had my eye on this type of lamp for about a year now, and it’s holding steady as one of my favorite chandelier looks! I know you’ve seen these around, but may not have identified them as Sputniks. Sputniks come in all shapes, sizes and heights. Some are very close to the ceiling and some hang much lower and take up more space. Some have long, pointy bulbs, and some have round, globe shaped bulbs.

{via Loft Life Mag}

Although the sputnik is trending right now, it’s not a new look. The original sputnik style lamps were made in the 1950s and 1960s, soon after the launch of the Russian Sputnik satellite. (Interesting note: the Sputnik was the first artificial satellite to circle the Earth.) Some of the first designers that created the sputnik type lamp were George Nelson and Gino Sarfatti.

{via Steven Gambrel}

The sputnik lamp works well in many settings. The one that comes to mind first is a “Mad Men” look of the 1960’s, because that was the way the lamp was first used. However, since it does come in many different shapes and styles you can pick the perfect sputnik for your room! There’s a wide cost range, too, so you can definitely find something that fits your budget. On the lower end of the spectrum, IKEA has come up with it’s version of the lamp which will cost you $90, and ZGallerie makes one for $300. Design Within Reach makes a satellite lamp for $1325. If you’re willing to spend a bit more you can find some originals and replicas at 1st Dibs.

Sources: Furnnish // Desire to Inspire // Elle Decor // Architectural Digest // Paloma 81 // Design Within Reach

Whatever your budget, you can definitely get this look, which I’m sure is here to stay. I’m curious, do you have a Sputnik chandelier in your home? If not, are you thinking of getting one? Do you love the look or hate it?

Kitchen Remodel: Cabinet Decisions

February 18, 2013 By Paola 6 Comments

The first decision we had to make when it came to the kitchen was choosing the cabinets.

In the end it wasn’t a particularly hard decision – I wanted them to be white and they had to be from IKEA, since we wanted to spend what budget we had on things like countertops/worksurfaces (and fancy fridges, but that is another story).

We also had to take into account the age and style of the house. The horrible upstairs kitchen is essentially an 80s(?) extension on a 1912 craftsman house and the room itself has nothing particular to recommend it in the way of architectural features or mouldings. Which meant that we couldn’t go too modern, otherwise it wouldn’t look good with the rest of the house; and we couldn’t go too folksy, firstly because I’m just not that kind of a gal and secondly because we’re not exactly dealing with a charming country kitchen here.

As far as I could see that narrowed down the choices a lot. The Lidingo kitchen would be lovely if you DID have a charming country kitchen, but it was a little too fussy for this remodel.

{via Ikea USA}

I dithered about the high gloss Abstrakt – probably my fave – for a bit, but I think they would be a bit too space age for the rest of the house. It’s also one of the pricier options, and I was a bit worried about chipping the gloss finish. They sure are pretty though.

{via Design Crisis}

The panelled Stat might be a good choice if you didn’t already have a hideous panelled ceiling.

{via House to Home}

Which left us with the Adel cabinets. The lines are clean and modern, and classic enough to fit in with the rest of the house. I dithered about these a little – they’re coated with melamine and I was worried they’d seem too ‘plasticky’, but in the end they were the only option that really seemed to make sense.

{via Houzz}

I do admit to being hugely swayed by this lovely remodel which used them.

{via Little House Blog}

So there you are. Which ones would you choose? Remember you’re not allowed to say you hate the Adel doorfronts, because we have ten tons of Ikea boxes sitting in our basement, bought in the 15% off sale just before Christmas, and I would cry.

Here’s how the kitchen is looking at the end of week one. Yes, those are cabinets you spy being assembled.

We’re off to spend Winter Break in Palm Springs to escape from the carnage and so I can work on my massive Vitamin D deficiency. When we get back next Monday the bathroom demolition will start. God help us all.