Eclectic Vintage Color, Part 2 -- the Dining Room

Hi, and happy holidays to all!!

Welcome to Part 2 of my "Eclectic Vintage Color" home showcasing the Dining Room. I discussed the KITCHEN as well as project goals in Part 1 here, so check that out if you want a refresher.

For the BEFORE PICS:

And the AFTER PICS:

We started with an existing blue/gray handmade paper wallcovering we chose to keep. As in the kitchen, we continued the bamboo floors and painted the trim white. My client had inherited a beautiful vintage Henredon dining set I thought would be lovely and fulfill her vintage-love, so we reupholstered the chairs with a modern yet vintage inspired F. Schumacher fabric. We selected orange to bring in warmth, contrast with the blue walls, and give the room energy. We kept the existing and truly amazing chandelier. I believe it is a vintage Venini! Definitely a keeper! 

Bringing in more light and dark orange to coordinate with the chair upholstery, custom silk draperies with a darker accent trim were incorporated. For the wall, my client fell in love with a textile art piece found on Etsy, utilizing hand dyed fabric strips, and strengthening our blue/orange concept.

My client had purchased the artist made metal mirrors quite a few years earlier while traveling. At that time, we put them in the dining room, knowing someday when we revamped the dining room, they would be incorporated, and they worked out splendidly!

The small pillows made for the two extra arm chairs incorporate all of our colors...light and dark blue, light and dark orange, and tan hues from the floor.

For the floor, the perfect wool rug...again incorporating all of our colors. The beautiful artisan vase my client loves, now blends in with the new color scheme back at front and center in the middle of the table.

I hope your holidays have been pleasant and your New Years is fabulous!! XXOO Susan

Knowledge is Strength: Pantone's Color of the Year 2014, Radiant Orchid

It seems Pantone, the world-renowned authority on color, has surprised many in the industry with the selection of Radiant Orchid, 18-3224 as the upcoming Color of the Year. The PANTONE® name is known worldwide as the standard language for color communication from designer to manufacturer to retailer to customer. Need a color to match exactly from one end of the globe to the other? Pick a Pantone color!

Last year's color Emerald served as a symbol of growth, renewal and prosperity. This year's color Radiant Orchid is an invitation to innovation, expanded creativity and originality. Cheers to that!

Radiant Orchid is quite a unique color. At first I thought "Wow, where would I use that"? Perhaps a powder room, child or teen's room, as a small accent color...which surprises me because the last thing I ever want to feel is limited by color. I like to believe I can use color anywhere, at any time, depending on adjacent colors, what proportions have been used, and the values (lightness and darkness) or chroma (intensity of a color) used. So I started doing a little research and looking around for inspiration. Best thing to do whenever a road block starts creeping in!

I ran across this lovely view of famous designer Kelly Wearstler's office on Instagram today. Lo and behold, I see Radiant Orchid!

Gorgeous artwork! Pinterest/Jeannie Mills – Aboriginal Art Centre – Anaty 1105 “Bush Potato”

And of course, nature will always give you the most exquisite color findings.
Pinterest

 Pinterest

 I love this this room, the purple and orange combo, the ethnic vibe. It's fresh yet warm at the same time. Pinterest

 Ditto with this dining room! Pinterest

A little retro mod to balance out the selections. Pinterest

 How's this for a funky barn?! Pinterest

And of course, all I had to do was look above at my blog header to see a more saturated version of Radiant Orchid in this foyer I designed. In fact, I found two other rooms where I used versions of this year's Pantone color!

Not quite as unique and unusual an application as I had initially thought. How many other areas in your life can you bring in this type of questioning and conclusion? Challenge yourself. Knowledge is strength.

Later gators, Susan 

Island Project

Hi,

I know I have been so delinquent in blog posts this summer...it's been very busy in the design biz so that's a good thing, huh? I keep telling myself just do a quick little blurb with one pic just to keep it going, but sometimes that's just not enough of an incentive.  However, I'm not giving up on that idea yet!!

Here are some pics of a fabulous project I am currently working on. So far, we have the custom 108" long ( yep it's a biggie!) Caperton sofa with F. Schumacher burnt orange velvet installed, and the Bernhardt cocktail and side tables. Both tables are new pieces for Bernhardt and I love them. Need I say so did my clients' grandkids, as the first thing they did was crawl back and forth through the large hole! Stay tuned for more -- lots to come!!

Toodles!!!!!!

Susan

Pink, Orange and Yellow

I am just tickled pink, yes pun intended, about my Honeysuckle perennial this year!  The blossoms are just popping up everywhere.  The hummingbird moths are circling around, and boy are they cool, with horizontal and vertical striped bodies.  You can see one in the picture above towards the top.  I couldn't get a close-up picture that wasn't blurry, so I grabbed one off the web.

  Aren't they cool? It is called a White-lined spinx moth (Hyles lineata).  I thought for sure it had to be a hummingbird with its super fast wing speed and because they often make appearances around the plant as well, but then my daughter, all of very bright 13 years of age, pointed out..."no mom, birds do not have antennas".  Hmmm...little smarty pants...and of course, she's right.

I love the flowers.  So exotic with splays of petals in colorful pink, orange, gold, and yellow.  Almost sherbert like colors -- so I thought...hey! let's look at rooms using the same color combos!

Love the addition of the chartreuse!  Ellen Grasso Inc design, photo by Danny Piassick

OK, remember these soft blue curtains for future reference... Elle Decor

What I wouldn't give for an office like this?! The Donghia fabric on the back of the chairs is one of my favorites.  I used it in a foyer below. Artistic Designs for Living, Tineke Triggs

Susan E. Brown Interior Design, photo by Lisa M. Bond

Stunning simplicity, with just enough color to warm it up, but not sacrifice the minimalist feel. Studio One-off Architecture and Design

Did you keep in mind the soft blue curtains from before?  Look again!  Soft blue brought in with pink and orange.  I like it!  pj hollyhocks design

Feeling the need to wear sherbert colors?  Look no further!  A summer shoe just for you!  JCPenney

Aahhh, my backyard again...  serene and relaxing...  Susan

Add That Punch!!

Good Morning!!  I wanted to share two things with you this lovely, albeit getting colder, morning -- One: I love this room pictured below!  It is so eclectic, so many different patterns and colors, and yet, it all works because it it carries a "feel" throughout the room even up to the ceiling.  What initially caught my eye in this room was the orange throw at the end of the bed and the orange border on the blue/gray quilt.  What a wonderful and easy way to add a very focused punch of color to a room, huh?  I like it!!!

Oh, and the second...  I have a bathroom on a magazine COVER!!  OK, you've probably received a press release, seen it on Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, or somewhere else, but I just couldn't help myself blurting it out again!  Also, a wonderful 8 page article with more rooms inside the magazine -- SPACES Twin Cities!

***Cheers!  Susan***

Splash of Orange

Hi!  Recently saw this pic of a bathroom designed by Tobi Fairley and wanted to share.  Without the bold orange stripes, it would still be a wonderfully designed bathroom, but the orange stripes (so simple to do, you can see a small corner of a lower stripe below, but you could get by with even one stripe) really unites all of the elements in the bathroom making the whole design more unified, more interesting and fun.  Enjoy!

*** Susan ***