Lotus & Fig: New Homewares

the paz pillow from crate & barrel

Not sure when I last set foot in Crate & Barrel. In recent years, I've seriously curtailed my window shopping. Much easier to keep what you make if you steer clear of temptation, right? But I may have found my 2014 birthday present! It encompasses so much of what I love in color + texture + pattern. The watercolor designe makes it seem like a rich silk, but it's actually printed cotton. Maybe I'll get rid of (sell off) all my other throw pillows and add this to the couch. Move forward with a lighter load and a fresh update at the same time. 

Maybe...

Single-Girl Style: Robin Roberts' NYC Apartment

 

good housekeeping's spread from june 2012

Since she's been in the news lately, it seemed like a good time to take a quick peek at the Good Morning, America host's livingroom. Robin Roberts did a covershoot for Good Housekeeping that indicates a lovely, ladylike space. Too bad we didn't get a full tour. The article specifically mentions a show-stopping view of the Hudson River. 

Surely, we'd all like to take a gander at that. 

In Print: Bold Color

eye-popping graphics, adore home (feb 2012)

Much gratitude to the overseas online magazines out there. While we're shivering through deep winter (shrieking, when the wind is fierce), they are serving up gorgeous summer rooms and bright, uplifting color. I'm thinking of making "it's summer somewhere" my new catchphrase.

Fuschia + Aubergine: City Chic Ottoman

The new Shops at Target collection from Patch NYC includes this jewel-toned beauty which encompasses some of autumn's very best aspects. It's rugged, plush, cozy and colorful. (Feels like it has a bean bag filling.) A delightful bit of plum/pink decor!

Psst... Seasons Change

photo credit: micasarevista.com

This is how I'm feeling now: trapped between summer brights and fall jewels. Between light 'n airy and chunky 'n cozy. Guess there'll be no Indian Summer this year. 

Oh, Autumn, I'm not ready for you yet...

Color Story: Sparkle & Fade

bandidas starring salma hayek and penelope cruz

I don't know anything about this movie, but it seems to be a comic romp set in the Old West. I stumbled across this screencap a year ago and found the colors striking. I'm guessing these saloon gal/showgirl costumes aren't entirely accurate. The combination of teal, orange/hot pink ombre, and so much hot pink seems a bit out of place. But it also makes for an arresting image. The glitzy masks and skeleton top hats. And behind all the brights you have the earth toned wall painted in traditional patterns on weathered wood. 

It just kind of works. 

Rooms on Film: L'Auberge Espagnole/La Poupees Russes

the end of innocence: youth, beauty and casual sex in barcelona

If you've read some of my other Rooms on Film posts, you know that I enjoy the odd foreign flick. IFC Channel is pretty damn great on that score, especially when it comes to French films. It has served up a sort of random and surprising peek beyond Hollywood into some very different notions about storytelling and... other sensibilities. (If you've ever sat through Mon Ange, you know what I'm talking about.) So, two fun flicks that feature cute, casual homes are "L'Auberge Espagnole," 2002 (The Spanish Apartment) and the sequel "Les Poupees Russes," 2006 (Russian Dolls). 

Starring Frenchman Romain Duris, we follow a college grad as he goes to Barcelona to learn Spanish and Finance in a year-long exchange program. Along with his half-dozen roommates from all over the world, Xavier gets up to some hilarious hijinks most involving infidelities of some kind. If you ever get the chance, you really should catch them. There are scenes that will make you lay down laughing no matter how long it's been since you were that age. You just sort of relate fondly to their absurd predicaments and attempts to grow and learn.  

Retail Odyssey: DVF Studio at BB&B

summer paisley: go ahead, scream down deep in your soul

So I swung by Bed Bath & Beyond in search of a certain moisturizer. (They tend to have the best prices on drugstore items.) Since I hadn't been there in a while, I decided to browse the entire store. ...And discovered that Diane Von Furstenburg is doing a dedicated homewares line (bed and bath) just for them called DVF Studio. And it be pretty as hell: 

Fuschia + Aubergine: Edgy Bathrooms

 rock star glam: bright, shiny, chic, cool, a little modern and a little messy 

This bathroom looks like the exact right 'mission control' for a girl who'd rock a flowing goddess gown in deepest purple and fuschia edged in shiny metals:

And a couple more options perfect mix of sparkle and glam for an edgy goddess to handle her ablutions...

Color Story: Four-Part Fave

We're all familiar with the perennial summer combo of hot pink, bright orange, turquoise and acid green. It's a combo that never gets old, and the permutations are always exciting. So, even though I'm not at all ready for spring yet, it is pretty nice seeing the new retail offerings in this colorway. 

anthropologie's delightfully feminine ranunculus swirl shade

Fuschia + Aubergine: A Ladylike Rug

urban outfitters' vine flourish rug

Put on your dancin' shoes! Here's a rug that fits my brand-new obsession with Emma Stone's custom Lanvin perfectly. I really wish it fit my apartment, but I already have my large rug, and the two just don't mesh. So it's just a crush for me (for now). And who could deny this? It's very easy to care for with that typical woven cotton of Urban Outfitters rugs. The damask is a lively, feminine pattern energized by the two rich colors popping against each other. You could play this one uptown or downtown. 

Fuschia + Aubergine: Canvas Decor

canvas wall art from target

Emma Stone's fabulous Lanvin gown at the Golden Globes is so inspiring I've been looking all over for that color combo. Word is the colors were much richer in person than they appeared on film (this from Kelly Osborne on E!'s "Fashion Police.) I can believe it! Turns out, I didn't have to look very far for more. Not only do I have the Moroccan patterned wall-hanging above, but also the pink boxes below from IKEA. Sadly, I never got the purple ones. Kept putting it off and they were discontinued. Too bad, the pink is a searing shade, both incredibly bright and incredibly saturated. The deep dark purple was the perfect companion to ground that sophisticated pink.

Single-Girl Style: The "Sexy Afro Glam" Vibe

Not too long ago, while cruising around Flickr, an image of this room caught my eye. It was in Aphrochic's photostream and over on her blog she had announced the small-screen debut of her wallpaper, The Vibe, on HGTV's Secrets of a Stylist. Being a love-slave to hot pink and all, of course I was desperate to see the episode. Sadly, it has not yet aired. But the show's host/designer, Emily Henderson, recently posted a link to the episode online.  

The phoenix which Henderson dubbed "Sexy Afro Glam" rose from the ashes of this drab box apartment. And naturally, I screencapped the hell out of it for closer inspection:

Some things are so very worth the wait!

Exotic Beds: Global Designs for Fall

The time to snuggle is now. The days are short, evenings are chilly, the heat won't be on for a month. Already I'm slipping into winter tendencies having grilled cheese sandwiches and cocoa for dinner. After which I want to retreat to my cushy, soft bed with a good book and nestle under piles of colorful blankets. And the fact that it's fall and jewel tones are in season does not alter my desire for brightly colored, well-patterned bedding. Thank heaven for brands like Echo who bring it like it's already been brung.

My favorite new collection, Mayan Geo, features my favorite colors, hot pink and orange, on an excellent tribal pattern. This looks like it would mix and match well with any John Robshaw you've got laying around.

all good things: echo brand mayan geo

Color Story: Ice Pink & Mocha Revisited

The sight of the new House Beautiful cover both thrilled me and threw me for a loop. On one hand, it sizzles (as do all their covers, am I right?). The earthy tones jibe so well from the salmon pink title and throw pillows, to the cool brown wallpaper and that wonderful pink painting. On the other hand, this cover took me back about ten years to when I first started thinking about decorating my apartment properly. 

After visiting for the first time, a friend suggested my little studio was juvenile and in need of a full upgrade. Her plans were too much for me at the time, but that discussion did pique my interest. I started looking at design magazines and considering furnishings. For a few months it looked like some lovely Oriental silk bolsters from ABC Home store were going to be the inspiration. (If you're a New Yorker, you know that quite often they carry very affordable items and have great sales.) The shiny cool shades I deemed "ice pink" and "mocha."

Since that color scheme was never put in place, who's to say if it would have been right for me? But man was it pretty in my imagination. And now House Beautiful not only brings it back, but breaks it down! 

Source: House Beautiful

Color Story: Jewel-Toned Walls

When Kimhas7cats from Desire to Inspire first painted her kitchen cabinets pink, it was like a revelation. Not only was the independence and ownership of that choice inspiring, it reminded me of a long-ago visit to a classmate's home in grade school. I was struck by the fact that the kitchen was done in white and sage green, right down to the linoleum tile. It was airy and fresh and...the sage complemented the red-haired family. 

Since Kim's bold move, I am somewhat drawn to similar spaces where they're just putting it out there, allowing that color choice to lead to more bold and stylish choices that elevate the whole home beyond basic functions. 

It really is your thing. Do what you wanna do!

kitchen cabinets in a deep rich, pink! the windows keep the room so light that it can bear this level of saturated color