A CONDOMINIUM REDO

Second Condo BR After

Occasionally I get to help someone with decorating a condominium.  Usually it’s an out of town client who needs to “spruce” up a few things.  The budget is always slim and the client doesn’t want to put the best things into a rental condominium because many renters don’t take care of things.

In December, I received a call to take a look at a long neglected condo apartment and propose a plan to bring it up to meet the rental agent’s approval.  I made arrangements to check it out and my mind churned with all the possibilities.  My client needed help with paint colors and new draperies and suggestions on whatever else I thought needed to be done.

Let’s stop for a minute and think about why you would never call a professional to help you with something like this.  You might automatically assume that a pro would tell you to throw everything out and start over.  Yes, with this unit you could have thrown everything out.  But I like to go into a unit and look for the items that could possibly be reused, fixed, recovered or touched up instead of throwing it out.  There were 2 very good and like new sleeper sofas in a calming blue/green color.  There was a nice leather reclining chair in each bedroom.  The master bedroom needed new furniture but there was a bookcase unit that I moved to the dining room to serve as a hutch.  And there were end tables and a coffee table that, while old, were certainly still serviceable.  By proposing that the client keep all of these items, it was an instant savings for her.

I selected some bright and cheerful paint colors for the entire unit and proposed new draperies in an off white cotton duck, floor to ceiling and black out lined.  I’m an advocate for properly designed and installed draperies on rods that traverse easily with wands and no cords.  Custom draperies are costly but if you invest wisely the first time around, you will get a good life out of them.

Now let’s talk about the second bedroom where the furnishings had certainly seen better days.  Since my client’s budget didn’t allow for replacing 2 bedrooms worth of furniture, I needed to get creative.  There were two full size beds with outdated headboards and mismatched chest and nightstand. I located the matching nightstand to the chest elsewhere in the apartment and moved it to between the two beds.  Then I found fabric to make some quilted covers for the two headboards and a matching valance for the window.  These coordinated nicely with the two quilts she had found on sale at a local store.

The client shopped online and locally for accessories and artwork nd I helped her with her online selections, returning some pieces of art that were too big and reselecting more appropriate pieces.  The outcome is a beautifully redesigned unit on a budget.  When the rental agent went to inspect the unit to put it on the rental market, she was thrilled at the results!  And I must say, it did turn out beautifully and I had so much fun!

So you see, working with a professional can often save you money.  My client was so tired of shopping for accessories that in the end, she let me finish the job.  Until next time, have a happy decorating day!

 

A SATISFYING DAY!

Yesterday I finished installing beautiful new draperies for a long time client!  What a beautiful home she has and now her windows are beautifully dressed!  Even her husband thanked me and commented on how nice everything looked!  He is an avid hunter and we found a beautiful blue and beige toile depicting a hunting scene for stationary panels in his office.  We stood there together as he pointed out all the wildlife and dog varieties on the panel of fabric!  What a treat that was for me.  Today I am going back with a few accessories!  It is true, draperies are the icing on the cake!

AMERICAN MADE

                        WE DO WINDOWS! 

We do windows so you don’t have to!  If you are like many of my clients, choosing the right window treatment is a confusing process.  Window Treatments are very important

because they serve lots of functions, the first and most important being privacy.  Down here in the South light control and heat reduction are also important factors when choosing a window treatment.  Lots of people don’t want to close off their view but leaving your windows open to the sun’s harmful rays can damage your furniture, fade your fabrics and ruin your antiques. 

 For blinds and shades my preferred dealer is Hunter Douglas, the leader in development of innovative window treatments.  Hunter Douglas offers a lifetime warranty on most of their products as long as they are installed in the original window by the original owner.  The quality of their products is second to none and I prefer to provide a blind or shade to my clients that is going to last and do for them what it is supposed to do.  The old adage, “You get what you pay for” is certainly true when purchasing Hunter Douglas products.

How do you know which blind or shade to choose?  Hunter Douglas provides lots of information on their website but I like to go over the pluses and minuses of a product before a client purchases from me.  You must first decide what you want your new window treatment to do.  My older clients (and that includes me) prefer ordering motorized window treatments, especially if they have a lot of windows that are hard to get to.  We don’t want to be climbing over furniture and reaching around corners to pull cords that drag on the floor.  For honeycomb shades, Hunter Douglas has no less than 4 pull options.  One is included in the price of the shade and the other 3 are surcharges added to the price. 

If you want your windows to simply be beautiful and privacy isn’t an issue, selecting a beautiful fabric and having it made into a valance or pair of draperies on a decorative rod is the way to go.  That can also be a challenge for the homeowner, finding the right fabrics to go with what you have.  A visit from a professional decorator who has access to many fabrics and the knowledge of what’s available in the marketplace can be very helpful.  I love to help my clients pull it all together with the use of the right fabrics and treatments.  Sometimes it is very difficult to find a particular color, like blue for example, but with over 5000 fabrics I can always find a few options.  Blue is a favorite color for many Americans but blue is not one of the popular colors in the market place at the moment.  Thus, fewer fabrics to choose from.

 So if you have a window treatment dilemma, I’ll be glad to help.  Call me at 850-244-2255 or e-mail me at stearnsdec@cox.net  Until next time, have a happy decorating day!

AFRICAN AMERICAN QUILTS AND THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

I’m a decorator and sometimes I make good friends with my clients.  My friend Pat is a beautiful black woman and she was first a client.  Through her, I have learned a lot about cultural awareness and  customs.  I took a quilting class last summer and then decided to make a quilt for Pat.  Here is the story of what I did and why.  Enjoy!

AFRICAN AMERICAN QUILT MAKING AND THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

             A griot (pronounced GREE oh) is a West African Storyteller who is trained to memorize records and tell stories about births, deaths, marriages and cultural traditions in the African village.  We all became familiar with the Griot when we watched Alex Haley’s ROOTS and saw Alex meeting with the griot in the village of his ancestor, Kunta Kintah!  It is through this century’s long tradition that we learn about the Underground Railroad and how quilts and the messages they conveyed, helped the slaves to escape to freedom. 

            I have always loved to sew and have been interested in quilt making for a very long time.  I have dabbled in the craft and I collect books and magazines featuring articles on quilts.  In the late 90’s, I was cruising around on Amazon.com looking for something to read on quilting and sewing when up popped this small book, HIDDEN IN PLAIN VIEW; A secret story of quilts and the underground railroad!  This got my attention because I’ve also been interested in slavery and how life was for people in those days. 

             The book HIDDEN IN PLAIN VIEW describes the author, Jacqueline L. Tobin, and her encounter with an African-American woman named Ozella McDaniel Williams in Charleston, South Carolina.  Ozella had a booth full of quilts at the local street market and while Tobin was looking at them, Ozella said, “Did you know that quilts were used by slaves to communicate on the Underground Railroad?”  From that point on,  Tobin researched and wrote this book.  I devoured it, was fascinated by it and tucked the information away until it came back and spoke to me last summer.  I decided to take a quilting class at the local store, Sewing Center Around the Block.  While looking around the shop at the beautiful fabrics, a pattern book caught my eye.  It was called UNDERGROUND RAILROAD SAMPLER by Eleanor Burns, a dedicated quilter.  In the introduction she describes her encounter with the book HIDDEN IN PLAIN VIEW and how she had always been interested in the Underground Railroad as well. I picked up that pattern book and went home with it. 

             I loved my quilting class and I rekindled my love of sewing and quilt making.  I decided that I would attempt to make an Underground Railroad Quilt for my friend Pat.  It just seemed like the next logical project for me.  I would hone my quilting skills and create a meaningful gift as well. Once in November, while taking our neighborhood walk, Pat and I were talking about quilts and she said that maybe I could make one for her some day.  Little did she know that I was frantically working on the Underground Railroad Quilt, managing to finish it on Christmas Eve, just in time! 

             There has been some consensus from scholars about the validity of this legend, whether quilts were actually used as messages for escaping slaves.  But going back to the traditions of the griot, and how African-Americans learned by talking to each other about legends and lore, it is not hard to believe that this could actually happen.  There are few surviving quilts from that period as proof.  However, it is known that slave women were skilled seamstresses who helped their mistresses with quilting and sewing for the household.  They would make quilts for their own families out of feed sacks, worn out clothing and fabric scraps.  Quilts were necessities for warmth and shelter and after being washed many times with harsh lye soap, they would fall apart. There is history about an African-American woman, originally a slave named Harriet Powers.  She communicated with the world through an oral and visual history of quilts, using narrative themes of events in her life.  (taken from STITCHED FROM THE SOUL by Gladys-Marie Fry)

            Harriet was skilled in the art of appliqué, which is a technique where small pieces of cloth are sewn to another piece of cloth to create a figure or story.  This technique was brought by male slaves from Africa who were skilled in the art of appliqué and the slave women continued this type of needlework.  It is through Harriet Powers’ quilts and history that we can understand how the oral tradition of telling stories is recorded by slaves who were not taught to read and write. 

            There are fifteen quilt sampler blocks in Eleanor Burns quilt pattern book.  These blocks were derived from the oral history knowledge and story of Ozella Williams.  Each block gives a message to the escaping slave on where he should go and what he should do next.  This history derived from HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT goes like this:

 “The monkey wrench turns the wagon wheel toward Canada.  With help from Jesus, the Carpenter, follow the Bears’ Trail through the woods.  Fill your baskets with enough food and supplies to get you to the Crossroads.  Once you get to the crossroads, dig a log cabin in the ground.  Shoofly told us to dress up in cotton and satin bow ties.  Follow the flying geese and birds in the air; stay on the drunkard’s path.  Take the Sailboat across the Great Lakes to the North Star above Canada.”

What’s New in Design for 2011?

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MARKET REPORT 2011

 In January 2011 a designer friend and I attended the Atlanta Market and it was fabulous!  We were mainly interested in the furnishings, accessories and area rugs so we spent our time in those sections.  The new color for 2011 is washed gray!  Much of the furniture was in a washed gray finish or unfinished and rubbed.  There were a lot of farmhouse type tables and benches and large hutches and mobile islands for the kitchen.  Painted furniture in pastel colors and very distressed finishes was also abundant.  There was less black than in previous markets and as I mentioned gray was everywhere.  In one furniture showroom, half of the hanging upholstery fabrics were neutral grays, ivory, beige, white, cream and ecru.  We could see the trend of neutral furnishings combined with accent colors in accessories and lamps. 

In the bedding showrooms, beds were more luxurious than ever with piles of pillows, duvet covers and lots of details.  Natural linens and organic fabrics were prevalent, along with upholstered headboards and ottomans, benches and canopies.  The bedroom look featured romance and luxury!  Pillows were adorned with ruffles and roses.  Pieces of frayed fabrics were attached to the pillows with buttons, emulating a flower! 
We saw neutral fabrics paired with dust ruffles in vibrant colors.  Teal and a new color called plum raisin took the stage as accents!  Think gray and mauve from the 80’s!  Pink is coming back but in a new hue!  In one lighting showroom we saw a glass plum raisin lamp with a matching plum raisin shade.  It is a beautiful grayed purple with a hot pink undertone. 

In accessories, birds rule!  And I mean small birds like sparrows, wrens, and chickadees adorning candlesticks, lamps, finials, and plates.  Birds were featured in artwork and hand painted onto fabrics and pillows.  This is the year of the bird.  Even the chandeliers were shaped like bird cages or hanging twigs with birds perched on the branches.    Metal wall hangings in different shapes and sizes were hung on walls next to artwork.  Faux silk topiaries and really good looking silk trees were nestled nicely in the corners of the rooms!  It’s time to throw out all of your existing greenery and replace it with something new and fresh.  When it comes to metal finishes, silver and pewter are still big but there was quite of a bit of bronze as well as gold making a comeback! 

It was a wonderful fast and furious 2 days.  We went to a few gift and accessories shops including Vera Bradley.  I wanted to see the new quilted designs that Vera was offering this year.  And I found out that for a mere $5000 you can open an account with her.  That’s a lot of purses!  It will be fun this year to see the new styles and colors as they emerge!  Until next time have a happy decorating day!    

      

 At right is the washed sleigh bed

from Kincaid Furniture in their Home

Coming Collection, New in 2011!

IN THIS ECONOMY

IN THIS ECONOMY

I am so tired of those three words, “in this economy” that I am eliminating them from my vocabulary.  Instead I’m using something like “Let’s Move Ahead” or “Look to the Future”.  As an interior decorator with an established 26 year business, I can say that the last two years have been trying.  I work from home and I’ve actually enjoyed some down time but now it is time to get back to work! 

I live in Northwest Florida on the Gulf coast, right in the path of the horrendous oil spill that threatened our beaches.  All summer I watched the tears and the anguish as our residents battled with lost revenue over cancelled vacations and lack of tourists. 

A funny thing happened right after the oil well was plugged!  The phone started to ring for appointments and I had a very successful August, 2010.  It was like a cloud was lifted over the entire county and people wanted to start living again.  This trend has continued into the fall and I hope it stays that way. 

At any rate, my husband and I decided to do some much needed renovations to our home, and NOW.  Not later.  We contacted Sue Botelho with Waterstone Mortgage in Fort Walton Beach, Fl and she helped us to find an incredible interest rate to refinance our home.  We thought, instead of taking money out of an IRA, why not let the home pay for itself!!! 

So now, we are getting new windows and doors, a new garage door, pavers in the courtyard and driveway and some minor interior improvements.  The best part is that I get to redecorate!  I won’t be able to use the same  window treatments on those new windows so I’ll be getting new ones!  My specialty!  I’ll keep you posted on the progress and even include a picture or two, before and after.  Until next time, have a happy decorating day!

TOP DESIGN COLORS FOR 2010

It seems like a write a lot of articles about color but colors change so dramatically now, it is hard to keep up with them.  PANTONE is the recognized global authority on color and provider of professional color standards for the design industries.  So when PANTONE speaks, we designers listen.  PANTONE has recently announced that Turquoise is the 2010 color of the year!  This makes my heart sing, turquoise being my favorite color and one I wear quite often. In fact, last year I painted my master bedroom turquoise and this year I used that color for new towels and accessories in our newly renovated hall bath!  I’m right in style!  PANTONE describes turquoise as “combining the serene qualities of blue and the invigorating aspects of green, the color evokes thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and an escape from the everyday troubles of the world, while restoring our sense of wellbeing.”  Let’s think of our own Gulf of Mexico and our beautiful beaches; don’t we feel an escape from the world when we walk on the sand or frolic in the surf?

What happens if you don’t like turquoise?  You’ll be happy to know that most people like pops of color and prefer using safe, timeless neutrals, such as beige and tan, for the major elements in a room.  So you will find plenty of neutral fabrics and colors to choose from as well.  The hottest new neutral on the scene is gray and the winner of our annual dream room contest was a living room painted gray with a gray sofa and accents of orange! 

Colors come and go so quickly now that designers and homeowners are using fashion forward hues in pillows and accessories that can be easily changed. Home fashions follow the fashion industry so the next time you walk through the mall, note what the popular colors are in clothing.  You’ll be seeing them in the home soon after.  

Trends for 2010:

            Punches of bright color against neutral tones.

             Large bold patterns, geometric forms and plays on traditional patterns.

             Eco-friendly products and buying decisions 

A mix of contemporary with traditional elements such as an antique chair with a vibrant contemporary patterned fabric.

 Metallics, crystals and a bit of bling in fabrics and accessories. 

Modern Artwork that is original.  

What do you do if you don’t like these trends?  Don’t worry, Fabrics, colors and patterns stay in the mix for a number of years so I can still find you a colonial floral pattern in your favorite colors.  Until next time, have a happy decorating day!

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Master Bedroom with turquoise, cream and brown accents

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