Inspired stylist and designer Kara Rosenlund..

I'm on holiday in South Carolina, although am squeezing in some work here and there... I have been surfing the web looking for some unique pieces for a design project  I am working on and I came across a room that was simple and crisp with perfectly selected and edited pieces. Of course, I am always interested in the person behind the design. The very talented Kara Rosenlund is not only a designer, but she's a stylist and photographer from Australia.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that this designer is only 30 yrs old! Good for her and I hope she inspires young women out there just as much as she has inspired me.

 

Her design is minimal and very relaxed, with a great eye for found pieces.. I like how she filled interesting containers with simple objects. The trick is to repeat one object, like she did with these conch shells, and collect in mass.  I  love the shutters she is using to make the wall appear much larger and they frame out the window beautifully.  Not sure, but it looks like this coffee table was re purposed from old doors and finished with a black honed granite top. Very smart combining old with new.

 

I love her all white kitchen and the way she uses earthy tones and adds light accessories. It looks and feels relaxed and not too complicated, but really... she planned this very carefully and I love that! Every piece has its place.

It's all in the detail..

 

Seriously... I need to find a ginormous mortar and pestle like this one. I would love to use one as a planter in my kitchen for an herb tree..

Hope you find as much inspiration in Kara's design as I have!

Enjoy..

A Schematic Life...

I was up late Saturday night, catching up with my favorite blogs and falling in love with new ones, when I came across these beautiful hand renderings...

Love, love, love....

Ahhhh... The long lost art of hand rendering without computer aid. It truly is an art form.


Anyway, back to A Schematic life blogspot... Michelle Morelan is the talented Illustrator/Interior designer based in Canada.

She also has an Etsy store where she sells her art work and her hand rendered cards.

I honestly haven't done hand renderings since I was in school and I absolutely loved it! Too bad no one really has a budget for them in real life.. but it's so nice to see that someone as talented as Michelle is passionate about her craft and lives it everyday. Such an inspiration Michelle.

I had to share..

Enjoy!

Richard Powers Interiors Photography..

Looove... is what I felt when I saw these rooms. The lavender sofas... mile high windows... ebonized herringbone wood floors...The shape and color of this modern headboard in a classical room... Searched and searched and found that Richard Powers is the photographer of these fab interiors. Just beautiful!

Enjoy...

Paula + Martha... NYC design duo

I was surfing the internet last night in search of some design inspiration. I came across this fabulous design studio, Paula + Martha LLC, based right here in NYC. Loving their design aesthetic! Every room room has an eclectic mix of modern and classic design elements... A perfect combination of old and new, with pieces so carefully selected for each space. I love how this design duo adds just enough color throughout by incorporating the perfect piece of art and accessory. It's all in the detail and I think they're right on...Enjoy!

Christopher Coleman Interiors....

I came across Christopher Coleman Interiors a little while back and of course, I was very impressed...Not only is he a talented designer, but he designs very chic and bold children's furniture too. His children's furniture is so sophisticated, I had to take a second look just to make sure I was reading it correctly...This Brooklyn based designer knows how to create a space that is elegant, full of texture with graphic sensibility... Just take a look at what he's done with this home gym above....If I had a room this, maybe I would work out more often...Enjoy!

My new home office/studio...

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! I posted on Friday and talked about moving forward towards having everything that I want...and why not, right? Well, I didn't have much time to post last week because I was working on my new home office/studio space. I thought you might be interested in seeing the progress.

OK..this was originally a dining room. Then it became the doggy room (my son calls it the doggy room). Then it became the office/dining room...then the "whatever"you throw in there room...We only eat dinner in this space on Thanksgiving...literally! My husband and the kids use the computer in here..I have my own laptop to work off of thank goodness!

By the way, I took this picture when my husband already started working on the book shelf, so everything is pushed to the corner. I really don't live this way...I did however manage to stuff all of my books into this one bookshelf and storage below. I also managed to stick the computer in there...So as you can see, we really needed to do something.

The point of this first step is for me to have a home studio to finally put my dreams into action.

As I push forward, I will be documenting my progress and certainly sharing the love...It's not completed yet. There are still small things I would like to add/change, but it is a start. I also had to do this on a SERIOUS budget...I'm talking under $500 for everything! So...Here it is..the beginning..Enjoy!

I put together a CAD drawing of the unit I wanted my husband to build..The plywood comes in 4x8 sheets, so I made the unit 8' high x 8' wide. That made this piece much easier for him to cut and it cost about $275.00 including the molding and the sheets for the back piece.

So much storage now...I love it! By the way...the liquor tray was in there when the space was a dining room...You never know when you might need a drink...

This corner is where that black cabinet was...what a change.

Gotta go...off to work!

From the desk of Lola...

I get so excited when I find a cool designer and I can share the love...Alexandra Loew was recognized by our beloved Domino magazine, as a "Top Ten" rising talent and she is the brainchild behind these fab interiors. The name is so catchy, isn't it? Turns out she's such a huge fan of the movie Charlies Angles and the mysterious "Charlie"... that she dreamt up her own fictional character "Lola". Hence...the inspiration for the name of her LA based design firm "From the desk of Lola". I fell in love with her design aesthetic immediately...Love your style..so glad I found you Lola!

David Wiseman...ceiling art

Hi my blogger friends...I'm so happy to be back! I had a wonderful and productive weekend. I was searching for some original content in the wee hours of the night and found this wonderfully talented artist, David Wiseman. Just breathtaking...David's sculptural art interprets nature in the most unique way. From what I can see his medium may be plaster, porcelain and bronze, although I'm not absolutely sure because there isn't too much background information on him. I do know that in addition to his commissioned work, he does bronze fireplace covers, lighting, vases in crystal and porcelain, as well as some unique children's accessories. His original pieces are available through The R Gallery in NYC. I hope to one day be able to actually use him on a design project...He is just incredible artisan..Enjoy!

At Home with Tibi founder...Amy Smilovic

I have been looking for design inspiration for my new home office and I came across these great photos of Tibi Founder, Amy Smilovic.. in her own fabulous office. I really love the inspiration board and wall below...It shows how similiar the design process is, whether it's for fashion or interiors. Amy popped up yesterday too when I was organizing my magazine shelves. I found a very worn June 2008 issue of InStyle, featuring Amy Smilovic's Connecticut home. I'm So glad I did, because the color palette is totally what I was looking for. I actually carried around that magazine last year for a whole month trying to match my roman blinds fabric to her yellow chaise. Since she popped up twice in two days, I just had to feature her.

Amy Smilovic is the founder of the fabulous Tibi clothing line if you don't already know. Her story is pretty inspiring. She founded her company in 1997, shortly after she and her husband moved to Hong Kong. Her husband was transferred there with his job at American Express. Amy was also an employee with American Express and continuing with the company would have met reporting to him! Read more about Amy's great story on Ladies Who Launch, you'll enjoy it. BTW...My InStyle issue that features Amy Smilovic's home is in such bad shape that I had to search for better pictures. Good thing...because I found Mark Lund. These beautiful pictures of Amy's home and her family were photographed by the very talented Mark, who is an interior lifestyle photographer. Click here to check out his blog...What great finds today...Enjoy!

Photos courtesy of New York Social Diary and Lund Photo