Interior Design Sense

It’s almost time for Easter brunch and while the kids are running around collecting Easter eggs and loading their baskets with candy you’re probably busy baking your honey baked ham and figuring out how to dress the table!’  Check out these great ideas from Martha Stewart.’  Nothing says Easter like’ jelly beans’ and baskets with’ tulips!

Simply pastel and perfect

Delicate dyed eggs vases

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However you decide to set the table, I hope you enjoy your egg hunts and brunch and most importantly’ your time with family.’  Happy Easter!

I’m currently shopping for the perfect bench to put at the end of the bed in my clients MBR and as I shop around I’ve noticed some very interesting styles and shapes.  I like the idea of pairing a traditional bench with a more modern bed and vice versa.  Take a look at some of the styles I’ve seen and let me know what you think might be the perfect  bench.

The 6 legged aubusson bench painted in an antique white (this could be great with almost any fabric)

The gold circe bench – Two of these could really make a great statement

Martha Stewart Ingrid bench – simple but sweet

Slightly more sophisticated with the gold leaf but beautiful nonetheless

If the bed is high enough I like the idea of a settee

Something that has a little detail on the legs

Love this antique double x-benchwith silver detailing

The Jonathan Adler Bergman bench

Todd Hase Aix bench from ABC Home

Domestic goddess Martha Stewart knows a thing or two about decoration hence no one can doubt the quality of the charmingly designed Martha Stewart Cut-Out Pumpkins. Selling at a discounted price on Grandinroad, these carved pumpkins are a must have this Halloween. Made of durable blend of polyresin and stone powder, each pumpkin features an unique and intricate pattern and has been designed for both outdoor and indoor usage. Given that its made of quality materials, the pumpkin will last you quite few halloweens and they will also stand up to the harshest of elements.

Post from Martha Stewart Cut-Out Pumpkins For Halloween

So my husband and I have been very hard at work on the nursery.  The first project I decided to tackle was this chest of drawers that I believe Bryce had in his room growing up.  It was in desperate need of some TLC, but I loved the lines of it and new it would be perfect to double function as a changing table.  

The color scheme for the nursery is lavender, dove grey, white, and gold.  The walls have since been painted “Ponder,” a fabulous grey/lavender by Sherwin Williams.  We nearly had a melt-down over some very FOUL smelling Eco paint but it seems to have since been resolved (my poor husband has already put on a total of three coats of primer/paint at this point with one to go to remove the smell).   

Now let me preface this before and after by saying I am by no means a DIY guru,  but every now and then I get the bug and can be very impulsive about starting a project.  Please, please, please excuse the terrible photos – my real camera currently has a broken lens. 

The prep work…yes, it was a game day, and yes, Hartley is proudly sporting her OU jersey. 

The first thing I do is sand the piece down with an extra fine grit sandpaper.  I selected “Nimbus Cloud” by Martha Stewart Living Paint in a flat sheen from Home Depot for the base color and start painting right away – no, I did not prime.  I used about a 2-1/2″ wide paint brush to apply the paint in even strokes.   

Coat one of paint goes on and I as usual start to panic (as I always do when painting furniture and only seeing the first coat).   I’m scared it’s too chalky-white.   

I decide to run to the paint store and I get a quart of “Dorian Gray” by Sherwin Williams for the top to give it some contrast.  I then apply a second coat of “Nimbus Cloud” to the entire piece and start to like what I see.

The next step is applying Rotten Stone to give the piece a more age.  I was nervous as heck to do this…I dabbed a mineral-oil soaked rag in the rotten stone and then wiped on, and then quickly off.  This took a while because I kept wiping too much of it off.  It is VERY subtle (impossible to see in an iPhone photo) but it really helped the piece not look so “flat”. 

I also found this gold wax stuff from Bering’s that I applied with my finger to “highlight.”  Can resist a touch o’ gold!

 So there you have it! 

I may even go back and add some more Rotten Stone.  I’m also still undecided about the hardware, but it works for now. 

So the following weekend (because I wasn’t tired enough) I decided to tackle our t.v. console with the same color but using a heavier hand on the Rotten Stone.  I love it!  You can see a before picture of my t.v. console here.   I had been dying to “neutralize” this piece for a long time but couldn’t decide how I wanted to refinish it.  Having left over paint in colors I know I liked sure made it easier.  I can’t wait to show you all the art work and vintage frames I’ve been buying like crazy for what will apparently be a gallery wall in the nursery since there is no real plan right now  

I think I could use a little dose of some gorgeous photography to get me out of the Thanksgiving-ate-too-much-long-weekend-is-over-already blues. You may recognize David Tsay‘s name of photos from the pages of magazines such as Domino, Martha Stewart Living, Cookie and Real Simple to name a few – and he was the photographer of the famous Betsey Johnson pink New York apartment spread that I still think is one of the coolest pads ever.

Reader request time. This one comes from Kelly: “I’m looking for inspiring kitchens that feature white appliances. We moved into a home in the suburbs of Chicago and stove in the house was a brand new white stove. When we replaced the refrigerator and dishwasher we also chose the more-economical-than-stainless white. Most inspirational kitchens feature stainless appliances but I would love to see what you come up with. I’ve only seen three good examples: One featuring the new Martha Stewart cabinets at Home Depot (the “Ox Hill” image in the gallery)…and this image from Canadian House & Home…and this image with white appliances and black cabinets.” I was excited to find images of white appliances for Kelly because when I had started thinking about how I wanted to renovate my kitchen, I kept coming back to the idea of white cabinets, countertop and appliances and adding colour simply through a backsplash or accessories. Here are many examples of kitchens with white appliances (including some all-white-kitchen ones) that hopefully will help Kelly figure out what to do.

Domino	LoftLife Magazine
Martha Stewart	Apartment Therapy
Domino	Jeff Andrews
design*sponge	Cottage Living
Décormag	AT Casa
Apartment Therapy	Eric Roth
Canadian House & Home	Kitka

Beautiful photos of beautiful rooms. What better way to end a frantic week! I love the light. Soft and dreamy. The photographer is Max Kim-Bee. Domino, Martha Stewart Living, House & Garden, Elle, he has shot for them all and it is not hard to see why. Soak all the beauty. Now if I could only soak in a tub like the ones below …

Martha Stewart and Omnimedia hosted a party last night for all the fellow bloggers who are in town for the BlogHer Conference this weekend and what a great party!  There were well over 400 bloggers in Martha Stewart’s office on 26th Street, mingling about, tasting recipes from Martha’s latest issue of Everyday Food, playing with the latest and greatest crafts products, getting fake lashes put on and blogging/tweeting while doing it all!  I myself passed on the fake lashes, but went straight to the crafts table to see what it was all about.

The punch around the page kit had to be my favorite!  How adorable is this hand-crafted stationary that take seconds to make.  It’s fun, cost effective and might even get your kids to write their thank you notes if they can have fun while doing it!

Want to paint your dresser or your wall in a faux bois?  It’s easy to do with Martha Stewart’s painting kits which are expected to hit stores in September.  Keep your eyes peeled and check her website for availability.  There are plenty of painting effects to choose from so whatever your style may be, I’m sure she’ll have the right tool!

Faux Bois

Herringbone

Now to the food..I was only able to sample a few things but can tell you everything looked amazing and well worth the time in the kitchen.  The first thing I tried was the Bistro Slider with pickled onions

Yum!

Grilled S’mores

So easy and fun for kids!

Another great idea for a party/dessert if you’re crunched for time or just want something different and fun – create an oreo cake on a cake stand for all your guests to pick apart.  You’ll of course want to have some milk near by..

Thanks Martha/Omnimedia for a great evening.  I look forward to trying new recipes and craft projects at home!

The 4th of July is around the corner and it’s time to throw together a quick, inexpensive yet chic table setting(s) and party decor for all of those guests that are coming over this weekend.  Don’t stress, stay calm and browse through some of these great and easy ideas to make your table stand out this holiday!  All it takes is a few arts and crafts, a quick trip to your local party store and a little baking..

These paper lanterns were made by the ever so creative Martha Stewart

Use red, white and blue tissue paper or wrapping paper to create whimsicle designs.  You can also cut out and make your own placemats using the same paper!

You can never go wrong with BIG, round paper lanterns from your local party store

Get out your white mugs and plates and splash the table with patriotic flags which can also be found at your local party store

Mix and match your napkins and placemats with your generic white china

Sometimes all it takes is a simple red napkin.  You could add a thick blue ribbon down the center of the table runner and voila…red, white and blue!

Look how gorgeous these carnation balls are!  Im sure you could find dyed blue ones as well and if not, you can dye them yourself!  Thoroughly saturate a 3″ sphere of floral foam with cool water and insert your short carnation stems until the entire sphere is covered.  How easy does that sound?

Dessert!  This is a sure way to decorate your table and get your guests to stay until the end.  Try the Barefoot Contessa’s recipe for flag cake.

Use blueberries and raspberries on white frosted cupcakes

Martha Stewart’s Red, White and Blue Desserts