One Room Challenge: Week Four -- Art Show

Hi friends, welcome back to Design Crisis for my latest installment in the One Room Challenge! If you'd like to catch up on previous weeks, please click HERE. If you're already caught up, then you know that last week hammered nails into the coffin of my marble Saarinen dinette dreams. Keywords: fire, brimstone, inferno. I was pretty bummed, but you fine people left so many kind comments and suggestions that I just want to thank you from the bottom of tired and overwhelmed heart. Know that I am cooking up multiple scenarios and basically decorating three rooms simultaneously until I know for sure what will work out in time, but rest assured that the finale will include a table... or perhaps just a Moroccan style pile of floor cushions. I kid, I kid. Or do I??? Let's not talk about my dumb table, or lack thereof. Let's talk about art. Let's talk about how I have 26 pictures worth of stuff to show you, and that's AFTER I edited the selections down. I need to edit again, and obviously I really need to clean out my garage.

While other things are busy falling into place (I hope), I decided to browse my ginormous collection of art to find the best and brightest selections for the room. This lady is one of my favorites. The frame weighs at least 500 pounds and the vintage needlepoint is magical in its softness and coloring.

I just wish it were bigger... It doesn't fill the space as well as I'd like, but the mix of old and dirty with new and crisp does it for me.

So pretty. So sweet. I so do not have a daughter, and I bet my two sons are jealous of this beatific mother who does not look the least bit haggard or unkempt. I suspect she dares not feed her child cereal for dinner, either. There are words for moms like this.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, I have this vintage Vasarely poster in dire need of reframing. Acid trip acid wasp, for sure.

Yeah, baby. I can feel my brain getting all swirly and I like it.

Meanwhile, how j'adorable is my vintage Mark Sabin print with that nutty Robert Allen fabric?

I think at the very least I need to reframe so it doesn't infringe on the curtains... also not loving the horizontal on a vertical wall.

Then again, I'm not loving this vertical abstract painting either. It veers a little too Palm Beach against that wall color.

Old dirty prints. I'm down with ODP (yeah, you know me), but maybe these are a trifle too old and dirty to command such a central space.

These on the other hand... these are cray. I bought a set of vintage Alan Davie lithographs off ebay for a song, and they're pretty awesome. The framing would be tricky, though.

But are they too cray? Will that flying, ahem, object disturb the digestion of my more delicate dinner guests?

Speaking of, is this too much? I do think that a grouping of small pieces provides a nice foil to the low hanging blobbiness of the chandelier.

 

 Another random ebay purchase, this portfolio of prints from the 1962 Seattle World's Fair shows depicts the evolution of science over the ages. These prints are WEIRD. The print quality is superb, though.

And finally, I have this behemoth of a mirror designed by Gio Ponti. It goes with my Italian Sciolari chandelier and Italian chairs, but is it too... Italian?

That's not even possible, right? This sucker is very large and very heavy, though. Securing it to the wall would be a challenge. And is a mirror the best way to finish the space? Do I go for more light or more color? Does the pretty arched panel of the mirror look weird with the ugly arched panel of the door?

Also, I have two other stellar mirrors (LaBarge!) and tons more art. Anything could happen, and everything is dependent on the dreaded table and seating and fabric choices. It's the decorating domino effect.

Out of curiosity I'd love to know your thoughts, but please don't be offended if I don't take your advice. If our government is any indication of speed and efficacy, then decorating should not be a democratic sport. I aim to run something more of a benevolent dictatorship. It's for the greater good.

So that's what I've been working on for the week. Please stop by my fellow challengers to see where their projects stand. There are only two more weeks left to go...

 Calling it Home

Chinoiserie Chic

Classic Casual Home

Cottage and Vine

Design Addict Mom

Design Indulgence

Design Manifest

The English Room

The Green Room Interiors 

Henhurst Interiors

Little Black Door

Maddie’s Nest

Mix And Chic

My Notting Hill

Pawleys Island Posh

The Pink Pagoda

Shelter

Simple Details

The Vault Files

Robert Couturier is My Homeboy

You know what is even more exciting than paint drama? Yesterday Robert Couturier left a comment on this post. I know I just casually typed that all deadpan like, but my heart is seriously trying to escape from my chest right now. The only thing keeping me in check is the restraining order that will most assuredly be issued against me should I become a little too rowdy whilst proclaiming my undying love for RC. Still, the man is a design god so it's not like I can just pretend that I'm not scrawling "Mrs Robert Couturier" over and over inside my "special" notebook. Here's why:

I am obsessed with his sculptural sensibility. The man understands space and how to create an element of surprise.

He knows how to make tradition fresh and livable.

He mixes and matches eras effortlessly.

Rest assured I am taking notes for my own suburban English mini mansion (all 2350 sq ft of it) -- how to strike the balance between overdone and underwhelming?

I think an aubergine sofa may be in order.

Thank you, Robert Couturier, for making my day year.

[Architectural Digest]

Virtual Vacation

Good morning, Monday! Thankfully I am ignoring your lame ass by vacationing with my good buddy Shohreh, who's down from the Big D to show Austin who's boss. Should I hang my head in shame and apologize to all you fine readers out there, feeling more than a wee twinge of guilt because I know you're busy rubbing the sleep from your eyes while typing away on coffee stained keyboards, or should we all go on a vacation together? I think I know the answer to that "question," so let's get going on our fantastic voyage. Next stop: Milan. Who's with me?

The five star Boscolo Excedra Hotel, should meet our needs, right? It's just a humble little establishment of 154 rooms, but I think we can make do.

Ok, so the Boscolo's custom made Meritalia furniture, 4,000 led lights, and Gio Ponti-esque design, make a drag queen look demure, but since we're hoofing it all the way to Milan, I figured we should go for broke.

Silly me, did I neglect to tell you about the ginormous harlequin sculpture in the middle of the hotel? Well, it is easy to overlook, but I know how much you love a good carnival, so I thought I should mention it.

So here's the plan: after we check in, we head up to our rooms to check out the accomodations.

It looks flea free -- I think we can make do.

Then we head to the spa to unwind after our long trip. I say Marco! you say Polo! Whatever, you can't hide for long with all those mirrors keeping tabs.

Oh look, there's a champagne bar beside the pool... tank up, ladies (and gents), it's going to be a long night. Be sure to check your reflection in the Tom Dixon pendants for cute hair and lipgloss on your way out.

Downstairs we'll dine on Italian delicacies... and more booze.

Wheeeeeeeee, riding the merry go round is fun! Wait? That's not a ride? I could have sworn it was moving.

I suppose we could retire to our rooms to sleep off the booze, but let's not kid ourselves -- sleeping is for old people.

The night is young, and who knows what it will bring? No, really... what will it bring? Apparently the Boscolo urges you to leave with a lasting souvenir of your stay.

It's ok. I won't judge.

(via Yatzer)