The Lichtenstein Look

Finally! It seems there's a home design trend that matches my unwanted yet rapidly growing Fisher Price menagerie (note to Kartell: please make stylish baby toys. Hurry). Collectors and art enthusiasts have long appreciated the pop paintings of heavyweight Roy Lichtenstein, but now it seems that Lichtenstein's style is increasingly interpreted through textiles, patterns and paint. Yep. Primary colors are back in funky fresh force, along with a cartoonish panoply of stripes, ben-day dots and blocky solids.

roy lichtenstein

Lichtenstein himself did a series of interiors in his trademark style, hinting at the shape of things to come. Funny that he even anticipated the avalanche of Warhol's Mao paintings that covered the walls of bazillions of featured homes this past year.

roy lichtenstein

This room styled by Jeffrey Miller owes more than a wink and a nod to the piece above. But you don't have to be so literal to reference the look.

christopher coleman

Of course, having a polka dotted ceiling like this room designed by Christopher Coleman helps.

tobias rehberger

And a glut of seizure inducing stripes can't hurt, right? Cafeteria designed by Tobias Rehberger.

india mahdavi

Obviously, what you really need is a giant stylized glamazon in the manner of Lichtenstein's famously blond heroines.

india mahdavi

The top half of this India Mahdavi designed restaurant is no less comic book chic.

max azria home

Not to worry -- you don't have to have a towering Barbie in your house (but what girl doesn't secretly want one?). Playful elements scattered here and there create major impact, as in this room in fashion designer Max Azria's home.

missoni home

Just try and stop me from swathing my next couch in these Lichtenstein inspired Missoni prints.

missoni shower

And I wouldn't be mad if my next house had a Missoni colorblock shower in it, either.

If you're feeling a bit overstimulated by all this crazy bizness, consider limiting the look to a simple painting by the man himself.

lichtenstein hostel

No, not like this hostel, which feels more tragic than comic. Although, note how easy it would be to paint a simple, similar mural in chic black and white...

roy lichtenstein

I was thinking more like this room designed by Vicente Wolf, where traditional furnishings are seriously lightened up by the addition of one of Lichtenstein's mod paintings.

roy lichtenstein

The flowers are killing me, but you get the idea.

roy lichtenstein

Personally, I like the pop look best when it's paired with contrasting elements. The Calder mobile in similar style and colors competes with the painting in Patsy Tarr's home.

jeffrey miller

On the other hand, there's nothing wrong with going full frontal on a small space, like this quirky vignette styled by Jeffrey Miller.

roy lichtenstein

And what better than a Lichtenstein bust to make a popping fresh statement. Yet another idea for the reinvention of Beethoven?

Chevronathon

Did you know chevron (no, not the gas station) is the new zebra? Seriously, it's everywhere. Exhibit A:

walnut wallpaper chevron

Walnut Wallpaper's amazing collection of wall coverings includes this hand printed beauty by Paper Mills, which is even named Zebra, although clearly it's a chevron pattern, right? I like this so much better than zebra (even though I do, of course, have the ubiquitous rug in my dining room) because it's less safari and more classic. Plus I totally feel like I could paint or stencil this (a la Karly, the stencil queen) on a wall myself!

Exhibit B: When I saw this post on Decorno's blog featuring House of Mann fabric in the grandest scale ever, I knew I was going to have to do some serious shopping research into this chevron business.

chevron canopy

I already see myself lazing away in this canopy while DH fans me with palm fronds and feeds me grapes... I have a feeling he probably doesn't share the same vision, but I may have to order some of that fabric for outdoor cushions anyway. House of Mann swears it's mildew and UV resistant, and since hemp is a renewable resource, it might temporarily assuage some of the guilt borne by my rampant consumerist tendencies. Probably not, though.

Exhibit... whatever: Once I started looking in earnest, I found that chevrons come in a zillion color combinations, some resembling Missoni from its heyday in the seventies, and some even produced by Missoni today.

chevron montage

Clockwise from top left: Pillow by Twinkle Living at Design Public, Lulu DK chevron fabric, Missoni's current offerings at Sak's Fifth Avenue, and a crazy awesome hooked wool rug from the American Country Home Store. Yep.

Although I am digging some of the colorful options -- especially that insane rug -- I really like chevron  best when it pairs one light tone with one dark one, because simplicity is the chevron's ace in the hole. Check out these amazing Madeline Weinrib Rugs. Don't worry. They're not expensive. They are ridiculously expensive, because Madeline Weinrib is an atelier, you see, and things made by an atelier (insert accent) cost a lot of money. Don't ask me why.

madeline weinrib

(Photo on right courtesy of Domino)

God, I really want that rug, but I'm not a millionaire... crap, I'm not even a thousandaire, so I may have to do as adorable deal hunter Nick Olsen did and whitewash a flatweave rug (like a dhurrie, sisal or seagrass) and then paint some colored chevron stripes on it:

nick olsen's apartment

(Photo courtesy of Bellasugar)

Love the navy, white, and oregano green, paint palette... and do I spy a hint of my new favorite color in there? Dreamy!

My last issue of Domino also featured this super cool chevron patterned urn distributed by Zocalo:

chevron urn

Hooray for the foray into 3D surfaces! The chevron does a great job of defining volume and classic black and white always works because it's graphic enough to be punchy, white still accommodating a range of decorating possibilities. This chevron has all the positive attributes of the beloved zebra print, but it just doesn't feel like it's trying so hard.