It All Started at Scott Antique Market

I recently met Tim Hammond of Poor Richards Antiques in Pensacola, FL while he was visiting Nashville, TN. He is a fun eccentric guy with a lot of interesting stories. One story that caught my eye was about his friend Mark Sage, owner of Bobo Intriguing Objects. Tim explained that Mark Sage and he used to sell antiques together at Scott's Antique Market in Atlanta. Tim's known Mark for years, well before Tim and Mark gained their reputations for wonderful objects and furnishings. It's amazing to think that their success began in a booth at Scott's Market in Atlanta, and it really made me appreciate that beautiful stories and objects can come from little and sometimes nothing. I thought that this was a wonderful story and wanted to share it with you as well as their wonderful work! Tim's website is under construction, but you can find his beautiful work at Poor Richards Antiques (1200 North Ave. in Pensacola, FL/1.850.324.3610). Here are some of my favorites from Mark Sage at Bobo Intriguing Objects.

Family Room Redesign: Design Concept

The design concept for my father-in-law's family room redesign is a modern take on an old Kentucky horse farm house. The room will function for conversation, entertaining, relaxation and as a home theater. The color and materials palette will be a mix of navy blues, warm browns and cremes with pops of burnt orange. There will be a mix of old and new--oriental rugs, modern vases, antique horse racing prints, warm leathers, herringbone patterned fabrics infused with solid textural fabrics and clean lined furniture. Here is my inspiration palette:

Keep visiting my blog to see how this family room redo turns out!

Family Room Redesign

My father-in-law moved into a new home over a year ago and isn't been happy with how his previous furniture fits in his new family room. He asked if I could help redesign his family room and of course I said YES!

Here's what we have to work with...........

So, now that you've seen the room, let me tell you about the challenges:

• Existing red walls must stay
• Room needs to seat at least 12 people for entertaining
• Carpet stays for now (hardwoods to be installed at later date)
• Room must function as an entertainment/living/family/conversation room
• Need to use some of the existing furniture
• Coffee table must stay
• The right set of double doors must be functional (i.e. no furniture blocking them)
• Room needs to feel masculine yet colorful (think Montana mountain home meets the Florida Keys)

Now that you know the challenge, do you think that I can do it? Visit my blog tomorrow to see what I've come up with for the design approach and concept!

Vacation Inspired Room

As promised, here are some vacation inspired rooms! Every vacation is bound to have inspiration to be had from the patterns, architecture, landscape and colors. Here are the results from my vacation to Santa Lucia. Enjoy!

Elle Decor, designer Kristen Buckingham

Pick a beautiful pattern from your vacation to install in your kitchen floor or add a rustic wooden farm table. Both the rich wood and colorful tile make this kitchen unique and add a lot of interest.

Elle Decor, designer Heather Tom

Adding an outdoor addition to bring the "indoors out" might be a wonderful way to increase the value of your home as well as give you more living space. What makes this outdoor space beautiful is the Spanish influenced materials. The terra cotta tiles, wooden beams, plaster walls, lush vegetation, wrought iron chandelier and a neutral palette paired along with a transitional dining table and chairs make you feel like you're dining in Santa Lucia or somewhere in Spain.

Metropolitan Home, designer Doug Meyer

Maybe you already have an outdoor space that needs "sprucing". Painting your existing chairs a bright vacation inspired color and re-upholstering the seats are inexpensive ways to enhance what you already have. Adding a fun patterned outdoor rug and a couple textured fabric bean bag chairs is a great way to add more interest while sticking within your budget.

Elle Decor, designers Caitlin and Samuel Dowes

Installing a bright tile floor to an outdoor patio and adding two or three different fabric pillows to an outdoor sofa are easy ways to enhance your space.

Elle Decor, designer Michael Moloney

Adding a neutral patterned wall covering is an elegant and inexpensive way to add interest to a room--the wall becomes a focal point and acts like a piece of art.

Elle Decor, designer Waldo Fernandez

If you are thinking of adding a family room addition to your home, this might be the Santa Lucia inspired room of which you've only dreamed. The wooden beams, terra cotta leather colored chairs, patterned Persian rug and neutral palette make this family room comfortable, unique and functional.

Elle Decor, designer Jonathan Adler

One of the easiest ways to bring your vacation home with you is use your vacation photos as art! Shoot, print, frame and put on your wall. While each piece of art is different, this bold patterned rug focuses your attention and pulls everything together.

Elle Decor, designer Gregory Bisonnette

Buy a vacation inspired patterned quilt and use it on your bed. I like the contrast of the two patterns from the quilts and the rug. This is another easy way to enhance your room.

Elle Decor, designer Roger Davies

Pick a bold color and repaint your walls like this monochrome banquette niche. The tiled floor and fabric wrapped pendant fixture over the table help soften the boldness of the red walls and base.

Elle Decor, designer Nate Berkus

Adding a lush wall covering to the walls in a relatively neutral room is a great way to add interest without cost. The palm leaf pattern is an easy way to bring your vacation home with you!

So now that you've been inspired, pick you're favorite vacation and start remodeling away. It's easy, fun and a great way to add interest to any room!

Bring Your Vacation Home with You

I recently went to Honduras, and I fell in love with Santa Lucia, a village outside of Tegucigalpa. How couldn't someone adore the beautiful tile patterns, bright vegetation, white-washed plaster buildings, terra cotta tiled roofs, cobblestone streets and Spanish architecture of the city? I got to thinking, how could I bring Santa Lucia home with me? In a room of course!

Below are some inspirational photographs that I took of the village. Stay tuned tomorrow to see how to incorporate Santa Lucia into a room!

Virtual Vacation

Everyone needs a place that inspires and restores them. For me, that place is Leiper's Fork in Franklin, Tennessee. I've had a wonderful opportunity to work at Old Hillsboro Antiques with owner Robin Rains of Robin Rains Interior Design  during the last few months. I wanted to share its beauty with you. Unfortunately, the store is closing at the end of the July, but I'm sure that I'll return every now and then to enjoy the peace that it offers. Thank you, Robin, for this fantastic experience!

custom rocking chairs made by tennessee chair company www.tennesseechairco.com

a view from the back porch of Old Hillsboro Antiques

Old Hillsboro Antiques

It's Hard to Name a Blog

I've recently started my own interior design business, and I wanted to create a blog that would inspire me along the way.

First things first--a name. It's hard to name a blog. I want the name to communicate an enjoyment of life's beauty in ideas, places, objects, interior spaces, art and architecture that are old and new--antique yet modern. It needs to allude to the communities that have inspired me--namely Aix-en-Provence, Manhattan, St. Louis, Atlanta and Nashville. Lastly, it should show that the most beautiful things can come from nothing...once restored, renovated and repaired anything can be wonderful.

After much thought, I decided on la vie en rose. The French phrase roughly means seeing life through rose colored glasses or seeing life through pretty hues. The name pays homage to the French singer, Edith Piaf. She sang and performed the song in 1945. Although she had a life of hardship, Piaf left a beautiful legacy through her voice and the lyrics of La Vie en Rose. Louis Armstrong along with many other musicians have sampled Piaf's song, and it is still heard today in movies and modern venues. The lyrics explain that life can seem sweet when seeing it through the lens of beauty. My hope is that you will join me as I search for the fullness of life in all things beautiful.