Brunschwig & Fils Settee

Another highlight of Blogfest was visiting the Brunschwig & Fils showroom at the New York D&D building...what a gorgeous place! I went crazy over this amazing settee they had on display:

It had THE most beautiful fabric upholstery - it's hard to tell, but the pastoral scene has foxes! I am slightly obsessed with foxes and I love how this fabric takes the russet hue of their coat to create a pattern in oranges, dusty blues, ochre and browns. It's so beautiful in person! And paired with the lines of that settee...stunning!

Only problem is that I forgot to ask in the showroom what the name of this fabric is...anyone know??

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Waylande Gregory at Gump's

I've discussed Waylande Gregory's ceramics before - they are elegant and preppy with a slight ethnic feel...beautiful pieces that could easily be small family heirlooms. I recently came across an exclusive collection done for Gump's that is gorgeous.

The Shou Collection features Gump's signature insignia in gold adorned atop beautiful ceramic trinkets in orange, black, blue or white. These pieces are not at all inexpensive, but would make absolutely gorgeous hostess gifts for someone very special. Or the perfect collector piece to celebrate a special occasion. The orange and gold combination is killer.

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Chenonceau Bedroom

I love a serene bedroom and this one uses Schumacher's Chenonceau to perfection.

 Photography Van Chaplin, Charles Walton IV / Styling Buffy Hargett via Southern Living

Wouldn't this same exact room look just as fantastic with some of the other softer colorways too?

I think you know that I really, really love silhouette patterns in fabric and wallpaper. And to go with that, I am constantly enamored with spaces that stick to a duo-chromatic (that's not a word) color scheme of white and the background color. And yet I've never had the guts to do that in my own home. Most people are afraid of committing to color, but I'm afraid of committing to the lack of it!

Hope you had a restful holiday weekend!

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A Tour of Kravet's Studios

I interrupt regular Friday Crushing to bring you some pictures from the tour we took of the Kravet, Lee Jofa, and Brunschwig & Fils studios during Blogfest. This was absolutely my favorite part of the three day event. My jaw was literally on the floor from the moment I walked in until the moment I left...it was a fabric WONDERLAND. I was in a frenzy taking pictures on my phone, so these aren't great and they are out of order, but hopefully you'll understand the kind of gorgeous I was exposed to.

(Below) A hand block print with the actual blocks...can you imagine the process to create this fabric by hand??

(Below) That's Beth Greene on the left, Kravet's VP of Marketing. Blogfest is her team's creation and she was a lovely host.

(Below) The Brunschwig studio...you have no idea how gorgeous it was in there!

(Below) Showing us hand-coloring at Lee Jofa...

 (Below) These are outdoor fabrics! They were beautiful in person.

We got to meet many of the teams that work on these beautiful products and they each explained to us how they do it - it was FASCINATING. We learned how they design their showroom displays, how they design their fabrics, how they work with hand-drawings as well as computer software to achieve their looks, how they work with mills, how they work with their licensed designers...the list goes on. I was in a fabric fantasyland.

Have a fantastic Memorial Day weekend...see you Monday (or possibly Tuesday)!

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Blogfest Was Awesome

Y'all, Blogfest was awesome. I had the best time meeting bloggers, listening to industry insiders and DROOLING over Kravet/Lee Jofa/Brunschwig & Fils fabrics as we toured their studios. Not to mention this was all against the backdrop of New York City. And had I been smart and only worn flats all three days, the experience would have been even better.

I love this picture that was taken on the last day right before I left - I'm surrounded by some fabulous ladies and some new friends. First row left to right is Danika of Gorgeous Shiny Things and O'verlays, me, Barbara Franceski, and Kathy of My Interior Life. Second row left to right is Lisa of Lisa Mende Design, Kirsten of Kirsten Nease Designs, Cheryle of O'verlays, and Laura of Bright Bold & Beautiful. We had a great time chatting for three days straight.

An enormous thank you to the Kravet family - both the brand family and the actual blood-related family. Did you know Kravet is a family-owned business that goes back generations? We met many of the Kravet siblings as they were ever-present throughout the week and getting to know them strengthened their brand in my eyes. Really nice people creating beautiful products - always a great combination. Not to mention Kravet is at the top of their game using social media, apps and bloggers to reach their customer base...smart marketing department.

I took lots of (not-so-great) pictures on my phone of all the pretty things I saw, so I will be sure to share those with you soon!

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Gone to Blogfest

I'm in NYC for Blogfest this week! I'm really excited that I could make it this year and am looking forward to meeting lots of fellow bloggers and hearing from magazine editors like Margaret Russell and Newell Turner. We'll also be touring Kravet, Lee Jofa and Brunschwig & Fils - some of my favorite fabric manufacturers and the presenters of the event. And I think the highlight might be the visit to the Kips Bay Decorator Showhouse - that's where I'll be this afternoon!

Hope you have a great start to the week!

Friday Crush

Photos by Claiborne Swanson Frank via Vogue

I saved this gem of an image from my post about this amazing apartment. I really love this glass compartment coffee table and the overall styling of the image with pops of pink, red and silver against a zebra background of black and white. So eye-catching. Our own coffee table has see-thru compartments and I adore using it to store and display my favorite magazines.

Have a fabulous weekend...see you Monday!

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Bust Lamps

This image caught my attention - it's from the Captain Fairfield Inn in Maine, decorated by Rachel Reider. I saw it on The Pursuit of Style and the image is from Rue's holiday issue.

 Photo by Emily Johnston Anderson

What catches your eye in this space? For me, it was a couple of things - the rugs, the dark banister, the wallpaper and the great use of modern chairs in a complementary color.

But most of all, I loved those lamps!! I'm pretty sure I have that exact pair of busts that I bought from an Etsy dealer several years ago. Here, they look fantastic mounted on columns and wired as lamps. I have always wanted to turn an object into a lamp (and have several candidates in my own home), but I never thought to use these little busts. 

I think I'll keep mine as just busts because I love using them as decorative accessories, but I thought this bust lamp concept was great!

Have you ever had a favorite object turned into a lamp?

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Catalog Pick: Aztec Rug from Land of Nod

Savvy interior decor shoppers (like us) know that children's catalogs can be a great resource for finding accessories for the home - rugs, lamps, storage, even bedding. We have figured out that there are no Catalog Police that come to your door to make sure that lamp you bought is indeed going into your daughter's bedroom.

Land of Nod has become a recent favorite - they have some outstanding rugs that have caught my eye including this fun Aztec Rug:

Available in blue or purple,  this rug definitely has a youthful appearance, though I think the blue could work well in a casual family den. I really love the pattern and the mix of colors - both are great options for a bright family home.

Do you have a favorite kids' catalog that you like to peruse?

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Preppy at Home

The preppy aesthetic is quintessentially American mixing vibrant hues with classic design. I absolutely love the combination and I think many of us identify with this "look". I especially like to break out the prep in the summer months fully embracing its juicy colors and classic cool.

Since it's online launch, I've been stalking C. Wonder and it's vast collection of preppy wares...have you checked them out? I love this elephant plate:

And this equestrian bottle stopper:

And when we talk preppy, we obviously have to mention iomoi, which is likely everyone's favorite place to pick up some preppy with a decidedly whimsical tone. Right now I am LOVING these guest towels...I need them!

I devoted my ideabook on Houzz this month to all things preppy for your home...check it out!

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