Archive of ‘Design’ category

Casablanca Blue

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J. Crew casablanca blue necklace

Are you still gah gah for Yves Klein Blue? It’s such a gorgeous, gorgeous color, but I was feeling ready to move on and embrace something new for Fall.

Until I saw these stunners at J. Crew.

They’re calling it Casablanca Blue, which feels romantic and right.

Which is your favorite?

xoxosl

Living Room on Lucile

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Sarah’s savvy sister Julie pointed out we never share any pictures of our “homes” with y’all. While we don’t fancy ourselves interior designers we both LOVE pouring over shelter magazines, dreaming about paint colors and make our living spaces look nice with what we have on hand. Here are a few angles from my living room in Silverlake, CA.

LEH living room

Almost all of my furniture is inherited from family and friends. The sofas are hand-me-downs from college pals covered with white denim slip covers from Ikea (the slipcovers don’t fit perfect but they only cost $11!) The cow hide and the leather ottoman we use a coffee table belonged to my mom. She bought me those black side tables for my first apartment 10 years ago.

 

LEH art wall

Those chrome lamps are from Target MANY years ago but I updated them with new Target grasscloth lamp shades recently. The art on the walls is by Drew, my Dad and my brother Buck. My brother Bobby made the 2 redwood frames. The family art wall is one of my favorite parts of the room.

 

LEH living room book shelf

This leather chair is one of two in the set that have been in my family for at least 40 years. They were my Grandparent’s, then in my parent’s condo when I was a baby and somehow I have been lucky enough to inherit them (for the time being.) On the book shelf is a collection of cookbooks and coffee table books as well as 3 different editions of Trivial Pursuit for easy access when friends come over! The collection of cream candles in many sizes are from Ikea and Pottery Barn. The wedding picture was a gift from our talented friends, Stacey and Aaron White.

What family furniture do you treasure?

xo,
LEH

 

Paint Colors

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Rooms with white walls and black mantle

Image via.lonnymag.com Interior Design by Ashley Putnam

I love this room.  I love the colors and textures so much that it wasn’t until my third or fouth viewing that I even noticed that modern Christina over the mantle.  And I loved her so much I had to contact the woman who made her, the talented Lucy Kirkman, and beg her to make me a print.

Which she did.  How nice was that? (Now you can get one too).

You see, my aunt had a framed copy of the original over her couch and I used to just get lost looking at it.  I was so curious about the girl and whether she wanted to get back to the farm or had run so hard to escape it that she’d fallen, panting, in the waving grass.  I loved the scary sense of possibility it gave me, like I could be untethered from the life I knew at any moment just by wandering a ways away.   I get the same chills from Christina in Void.

But we were talking about color.  We’re moving in a few weeks and as much as I’d love to paint my walls a soft white or pale neutral like those above, our new apartment has zero architectural charm.  It needs color.

 

BLack walls and leather chesterfield sofa

Image: Chicago Home

Matte black walls look elegant with bright white trim, warm wood and leather.

 

Image: LonnyMag.com

Lamplight, books and brown velvet warm a cool blue.

 

Image: CreatureComforts.com

An all-time favorite palette, courtesy of the inspiring color blog Creature Comforts.

Yesterday I brought home samples I may have chosen more for their names than colors: Pearlware, Wishbone, Heavy Goose, Grisailles, Stout, Black Truffle, Intaglio, Pudding Mold and Bitume, which sounds romantic but means asphalt. They are all from the discontinued Martha Stewart line that produced our current living room color, Blue Hubbard.  I talked about that color here.  Though Angus was taken aback when he first walked in, he is now committed to Blue Hubbard and wants to repeat it in our new place.  But I want to play around a bit first.

So tell me, what colors did you paint your walls?

xoxosl

P.S. All these images are one I’ve collected on Pinterest.  Are you pinning?  It’s an amazing tool for curating your own personal library of likes. Request an invite here.

 

Charley Harper + Todd Oldham + Fish’s Eddy

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Charley Harper for Fish's Eddy

Charley Harper tray + plates for Fish's Eddy

Happy Friday, all!

I’m here to discuss dishware.  Marine-life dishware (fishware?) designed by the late modern artist Charley Harper.  Working with Fish’s Eddy in NYC, Todd Oldham designed these fun, summery plates, trays and glasses from some of his favorite Harper water images.  An American modern artist who passed away in 2007, Harper is famous for his brightly colored animal prints and illustrations.  His birds will probably look familiar to many of you, even if you never knew Harper’s name.

birds by charley harper

Cardinal Courtship by Charley Harper

 

But the plates aren’t even the best part.

Read this article and see if you don’t come away moved by what Todd Oldham did for his fellow artist.  The story of his relationship with the elderly Harper made my day.  Oldham single-handedly resurrected Harper’s career and renewed the artist’s sense of utility and pride at a time when he was nearly forgotten.  Oldham gave Harper a great gift and gave us some colorful art for our tables as well as a beautiful tribute book about the artist.

Happy Father’s Day.

xoxosl

The Weekend Dish: Deck Towel

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Happy Weekend Friends!

This hot weather has had us dreaming about lounging on toasty sand beaches or sipping iced tea poolside. Even a grassy picnic would satsify those first cravings of summer.

Norbert Deck Towel

Deck Towle- Norbert

Deck Towel by Buck Ellison just released a new fabulous color named Norbert. Vibrant red with crisp white stripes.

 

Deck Towel-Boudewijn

Deck Towel-Boudewijn

Boudewijn still has my heart…

 

Deck Towel-Francis

Deck Towel-Francis

and Francis…

 

Deck Towel-Gilles

Deck Towel-Gilles

Gilles too!

So hard to choose. Snap them up before they run out of your favorite.

 

xo,
LEH

Hand-Dyed Ombré Napkins

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Image: via OnceWed.com

Once Wed recently featured these delicate DIY beauties.  They’d add soft, dreamy color to a wedding table for sure, but my first thought was Easter brunch.

Image: OnceWed.com

Tie-dye is tricky.  One misstep and you land in cheesytown.  Once Wed gets it right with an otherwise all-white table and flowers in the same creamsicle colors as the napkins.

I love the blue.

What do you think?

xoxosl

Jane Ellison Design on HGTV.com

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Did you ever come home from elementary school and spend the afternoon rearranging the sofas around the living room? Did your family have a huge hall closet filled with silk throw pillows in a rainbow of colors for “seasonal refreshments?” My brothers and I certainly grew up thinking this was the norm due to our interior designer mother, Jane Ellison.

This week HGTV.com is featuring some of my mom’s interior design work! Two of her rooms are starring in the slide show of Asian-Inspired Design Ideas.

DP_Jane-Ellison-elegant-asian-style-living-room-blue-walls_s4x3_lg

An elegant sitting room-office with shockingly chic blue walls.

DP_Jane-Ellison-asian-style-breakfast-nook_s3x4_lg

A bright and airy breakfast nook.

To see more of my mom’s designs on HGTV you can check out her designers’ portfolio.

DP_Jane-Ellison-asian-style-living-room-bamboo_s4x3_lg

This living room (my childhood home) is one of my favorites.

Follow her simple design tips on Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/#!/jane.ellison4

She has ideas for even the smallest apartment!

xo,

LEH

The Look: Halloween Chic

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For you

For your table

"Dark Side" mercury glass votives

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Mummy "spirits"

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Bat place cards

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Snake plates

or

Right eye plate

Am I alone in thinking that eating off an eye is creepier than eating off a snake? Gives me the willies.

xoxosl

P.S. What Halloween character are you?  I’m Dracula : )

The Look: Balloons

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For you

For your table

A perk of aging: bright, floaty balloons thrill me more now than when I was little.

You?

xoxosl

P.S.  Wouldn’t this bit of balloon love look darling framed in a breakfast nook?

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