The Shining--Patterns

Hello, hello!

Last night my family and I watched the movie The Shining with Jack Nicholson, and Shelley Duvall, remember it?  Actually it was my 13 year old daughter's suggestion that we watch the movie, if you can believe it!!  It wasn't quite as horrifying as I remember when I was younger (of course, not that much younger ~~ tee hee :)  It's really about the last 10-15 minutes it gets gruesome and scary--the rest is a huge build up.  All I could think about through a lot of the movie were the sets, particularly the awesome carpets!  As soon as it was over, I immediately got right on line googling images from the 1980 movie.  Talk about history repeating itself.  The patterns and some of the colors are currently very popular within the design industry right now, and of course, I was in love with them!  Let me show you!

 This was the main carpet throughout the Overlook Hotel in the movie.  Isn't that awesome, and that pattern is sooo popular right now.  It also totally makes the space, granted I would have added a bit more color to the pale, cool walls going down the hallway.

This was the fancy ballroom/party room with gold, textured walls.  Look at the carpet pattern again~~the scale is magnificent!

This pic is a bit dark.  Sorry!  I think you can still see the purple/green rainbow arcs, large scale patterned carpet, can't you?

And this was the men's bathroom!  It would be a wonderful commercial bathroom even in a large hotel today.  Interesting how modern it is when the rest of the hotel was so elegant.  I wonder if that was intentional for some reason as part of the subliminal messages.

And here are some examples of carpets and fabrics today:

 Sheets from The Company Store

 Designers Guild fabric

Carpets from Vanderhurd

 Sara Gilbane Interiors/Travel for Design

Vanderhurd carpet

 Amanda Hammond

 Candice Olson for Kravet

Thom Filicia for Kravet

I thoroughly love the bold expression and repetition of patterns!

~~ Susan ~~

Groovy! Flower Power!

Recently I came across a discovery I had forgotten all about.  Some wonderful hand me downs from my mom.  Super GROOVY draperies and bed linens I had when I was a tween from the early 70's.  My mother had redecorated my bedroom to fit right in with the times.  You know, "groovy man" and "sock it to me"!  At the time, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In was a huge television hit and we watched it often.  The Smothers Brothers were also big with their "testing of television's limits".

I remember she had painted three walls a bright yellow, and one wall a royal blue with a two foot yellow wave through it!  I recently told my kids I was going to redecorate our Study with these items.  Can't say they jumped for joy...boo hoo...guess it had its "15 minutes" of fame in my lifetime!  Check it out man!

 

My favorite part is the Beatles "look alike" head shot!  What a trippy room that must have been!  Hmmm...all starting to make sense now...

Like ~~ Out of Sight man!

Symmetrical Grounding

I am a huge fan of both symmetrical and asymmetrical vignettes.  They each have their place in creating balance and a unified space.  However, there is nothing like symmetry to really ground an arrangement.  Symmetry exudes strength and really creates needed visual barriers separating the grouping from the negative space typically on either side.  Below are some examples of symmetrical vignettes:

Eileen Kathryn Boyd

Tobi Fairley, House Beautiful, Swank Lighting

The Enchanted Home Blog

Mita Corsini Bland watercolor of a Jeffrey Bilhuber space

The Enchanted Home Blog

 Decorista Daydreams

Keep yourself balanced!

***Susan***

Stillwater project finished!

Cheers!  I have recently finished, so to speak, a whole house project in Stillwater.  Are we really, as designers, ever finished?!  I know it's so hard for some people to understand the innate quality of being an interior designer.  There is no "off" button~~which is fine with me--it's my passion.  I am moved and enthralled by exciting environments and fun, funky, and unique designed products.


We are still working on a few small finishing touches in this residence, but for the most part, the main vibe of the place is intact!  We, as in myself, Hagstrom Builder, and Denny Claridge, the architect, designed this lovely new home in an open floor plan style for ease of having many grandchildren and family members visit as well as to accommodate a disabled homeowner.  The intention was to create intimate and inviting areas within a French Country style space with a nod to Asian.  Below are some of the pics of the living room, dining room, and kitchen.  If you've already seen the pics on other sites (website, FB, Linkedin, etc.), well, enjoy again!  Other room pics to come in the future!

 Dining Room

We used the client's existing dining table, chairs, and buffet, but made new cushions for the chairs.  The wall is blue grasscloth by Thibaut, drapery fabric by Ralph Lauren, hardware by Orion, and the chandelier is by Cyan Design.

 Living Room

In the living room, we purchased all new except for the two creamy white bergere chairs which we reupholstered in a Kravet chair fabric and the rug, which was our inspiration for the room's colors.  Because we had a large TV on one side of the fireplace and watercolor art on the other, we didn't want yet another image, or similar size piece, over the fireplace.  I hired Kelly Ludeking, a fabulous metal artist, to make custom bronze candlesticks, which are stunning!  The hand manipulated bronze and hand rubbed finish is truly incredible!  Kelly has done many wonderful pieces for me in the past including a Pool Changing Room vanity and a pendant light.  See here.

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The drapery fabric is Fabricut and the console bronze sculpture is my client's.  Sofas are by Lee.  The stunning two color, distressed console as well as the cocktail table are by Sterling.  The two ottomans under the console are custom and I had them upholstered in the coolest fabric from Pollack, one of my fave fabric manufacturers.  It is a vinyl that gives the appearance of silk.  I have seen it on a tufted king size headboard as well, which is initially where I became aware of it.  I thought for sure it was silk until I went up to touch it!  One of the best illusions around!  See the close up below, which still doesn't do the fabric justice!

 Living Room

~Sterling Collection cocktail table, rug client's own, Kravet chair fabric, Sunbrella sofa fabric, Fabricut pillow fabric, pottery bowl by local MN potter Lee Love

 Living Room and corner of Kitchen

Kitchen/partial Sun Room

Cabinetry by Preferred Kitchens in White Bear Lake, MN.  Peek into the sunroom where we had a custom sofa and chair made.  Stool fabric by Sunbrella.

Well?  What do you think?  Questions, comments...???!!!