You could say I’m like the proverbial cobbler’s children who go shoeless because their father is so busy making shoes for other people he doesn’t have time to make shoes for his own kids.  But in my case, it isn’t so much about not having enough time, but having too much product knowledge.

That may sound strange to you.. that knowing about so many products is a hindrance in designing a bathroom.  But I’ve seen so many fixtures, materials, vanities, etc. that I love, it’s hard for me to decide.  I’ve talked with other designers about this; just about every one of us has this “syndrome”.

(Don’t let this deter you from working with me.  I’m great at guiding my CLIENTS into make decisions!)

The layout of my the bathroom was the easy part.  The space is small, especially for a master bath.  It’s 5′ x 7′ plus a 3′ x 3′ shower stall.  I had two main objectives.  One was to not move the plumbing; so the new sink, toilet, and shower will be in the same places as before.  The second objective was to gain storage space.  Other than a wall-mounted medicine cabinet, there was no storage space in the “before” version.  So I’m taking out the bathtub (there’s a tub in the other bathroom) and having a 42″ wide vanity plus 7′ high linen cabinet installed.

The decisions that really held me back were the materials… counter top, floor tiles, shower tiles, and vanity finish.  In my next post, I’ll describe how I arrived at my final decisions.  And I’ll be including some photos as the project proceeds.

To be continued…

Reservoir Place - Before

One of my condo common area projects was recently finished: the refurbishment of Reservoir Place in Brighton.  New carpet was installed and the walls, trim, and doors were repainted.

When I started this project, the walls and trim were painted a dusty rose color.  So 80s!  And so not sympathetic to the building’s origins.  While I don’t have an exact construction date, based on the trim work and the occasional glimpses of marble baseboards (actually painted over in some cases) and the tile pattern on the floor (covered by carpet), my educated guess is the complex was built between 1900 and 1930.

(BTW, all the real estate listings for this property state the building was built in 1950.  And the information available online from the assessor’s office doesn’t list a date.  This property was definitely built before 1950.  I’ve come across this type of date misinformation a number of times for different buildings.  I’m not sure why; I’m guessing it has something to do with either building renovation dates or with the assessor’s database input.  If anyone knows the answer to this, I’d love to hear it.)

Reservoir Place - After

Getting back to the topic…  a brown carpet with a small pattern was selected.  Once the carpet decision was made, it was time to pick paint colors.  I offered three dark color options for the trim and two off-white color options for the walls.  Of course, because the walls and trim had been painted two fairly similar shades of dusty rose for 25+ years, the residents were surprised by my suggesting contrasting colors.

But the end result is exactly what the building needed.  It’s a timeless and sophisticated look.  The new paint colors also enhance the brightness of the halls, without the added expense of changing out the lighting.

This photo is a perfect example of how well this solution works.  My client Greg recently built out his unfinished attic, creating a bedroom, living area, and bathroom.  Not being afraid of bold colors, Greg chose the complementary colors of yellow and purple to use for accent walls in the new space.  The yellow (Benjamin Moore Yellow Marigold) is in the living area and the purple (Benjamin Moore Cabernet) accents the bedroom.

Separating the bedroom and the living area is a hallway flanked by a clothes closet on the right and a laundry closet on the left.  Greg could have painted the hallway white – the easy way out – but I suggested he carry each of his accents through to the opposite space.  Ah, but with six feet of the eight-foot-long hall  being double doors on each side, if those doors and frames had been painted in the “standard” manner of matching them to a trim color, the visual impact would have been ruined.  So I told Greg the secret of making objects disappear… paint them the same color as the walls.

And look at the results.  Greg’s thrilled!  And so am I; I love happy clients!

“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”

While I doubt Steve was talking about interior design, his quote rings true for interiors.  What good is a space that is aesthetically pleasing, but isn’t functional for its intended purpose?

IdeaPaint In A Home Office (source: IdeaPaint website)

Go ahead, write on the walls.  It’s more than okay – it’s encouraged – if you’ve used IdeaPaint, a paint system that dries into a dry-erase surface.  What a great idea!  With whiteboards costing an arm and a leg and not always available in the size needed, IdeaPaint offers the perfect solution.

You can use it at home – think kitchen or playroom or home office.  You can use it at work.  Can’t you just visualize all the walls in a conference room as a whiteboard.  Hey, why stop at the walls?  Why not turn the conference table into a dry-erase surface?

The idea for IdeaPaint came in 2002, while the founder John Goscha was a student at Babson College, and the company is still Massachusetts-based.  We love local!!  After several years of R&D, the product hit the markets in 2008 to rave reviews.

I haven’t tried it yet, but I have my kit, and there’s a wall in my office that’s just calling out for IdeaPaint.

Today’s interior design quote, which I whole-heartedly agree with, is by Albert Hadley.  In an interview with Interior Design magazine, he said his goal “is to help clients realize more than they thought possible within the framework of their own tastes.”

Albert Hadley has been a designer to some of Mrs. Astor’s 400 and  Fortune 500 CEOs.  As the above quote implies, Hadley worked in a variety of styles.  For over 30 years, he was a business partner with noted designer “Sister” Parish.  In 1986, Hadley was inducted into the Interior Design Hall of Fame.

To learn more about Albert Hadley, here are some links:  an interview in New York Magazine and his Interior Design Hall of Fame profile.

Each of the 14 cottages is decorated by a different interior designer from the Kennebunkport area, and each has a different theme/style.  The Hidden Pond website has great photos of each cottage, inside and out, along with decor descriptions.  Periwinkle, for instance, is described as “tropical vibrance in Maine” and Thank You is “summer camp all grown up”.  (If you make reservations far in advance, you’ll have more options in selecting a cottage of your choice.)

I stayed in First Light, which is described on the website as “a modern, breezy style”.  I was drawn to this cottage because of the turquoise accents and the absolutely fabulous daybed on the screened-in porch, where I spent hours reading, relaxing, and socializing with friends.  Most of the decor in First Light was straight out of West Elm, literally, which was fine; I like West Elm.

Other cottages’ furnishings and accessories come from a variety of places; some are one-of-a-kind pieces, some are antiques, and some are from home furnishing chain stores.  While the decor of each cottage is different, they all have a full modern kitchen, a dining/living area, two bedrooms, two full modern bathrooms, a fireplace, a screened-in porch, and an outdoor shower.

I’m truly impressed with all the thought that went into the design of all aspects of the resort, including the logo and website.  SO clever!  Everything is covered… the fresh baked goods and hot coffee left on your porch each morning;  the “farm” where you can pick vegetables or flowers for your cottage; the nightly bonfire where you can toast marshmallows and sip Chardonnay; the swimming pool with private beds/cabanas; and the “spa”, a tent in the woods where you can have a massage in a nature setting.

If you’re thinking about a getaway that’s an easy drive from Boston, Hidden Pond is worth considering.  And be sure to tell them you heard about the resort on this blog.

“…our objects, bibelots, whatnots, and knick knacks say the most about who we are.  They are as honest as a diary.“

Now back to business.  I’ve decided to regularly  post quotes by famous interior designers on the blog; quotes that reflect my design philosophy and, I hope, will encourage and inspire you.

The first quote is by legendary 20th century designer Billy Baldwin (NOT the same Billy of the famous Baldwin Brothers!):

“Be faithful to your own taste because nothing you really like is ever out of style.”

Like many of the food establishments with lots of sidewalk frontage, Sugar Heaven has an outdoor eating area .  But this one really stands out in the crowd.  The seats are colorful butterflies and the tables are flowers.  The look is so playful, I just had to go in to find out where the furniture came from.  The sales associate said she didn’t know where it was purchased, but she did say the furniture was originally white, and they painted it the wonderful rainbow of colors.

Doing a little research once I got back to the office, I found out the furniture is from Flower House, a manufacturer in Michigan.  According to their website, the pieces are available at many of the national chain stores.  While the butterflies are pretty in their original white cast aluminum, the painted chairs and tables at Sugar Heaven are true attention-grabbers.  Brilliant!

I can see using these inside as well as out.  They’d be perfect for a playroom with a forest theme or a girl’s bedroom for a tea party.