I'm a Working Girl (Not that Kind)

I've been told that Beyonce has the same hours in a day as me, but I think she must have a secret twin. Or more likely a farm of mini Beyonce clones waiting in incubators for the next concert/video/diaper change. Check her dance moves for deja vu glitches in the matrix. In the meantime, I've decided to stop apologizing for my light posts and just pretend that no time has elapsed. Because we are good friends and that's how our relationship works -- smooth and easy as Beyonce's cheeks (both sets). Here's what's happening in the elaborately choreographed video of my life.

If you are following me on instagram (and why wouldn't you be???) you know that I recently completed this super sexy conference room for a client in California:

BAM! It is glamazing. Art is by the fabulous and very talented Meredith Pardue, the inlaid brass credenza is by Emporium Home, and the chairs are classic Saarinen numbers in black iris wool that my client insisted on... she was so right. She's an artist herself so she has great eyeballs. I'm hoping to see this in person and tour the rest of the office that we worked on. Many thanks to my sweet client for providing this lovely photograph.

Meanwhile, project Mid Mod is moving right along with its bad self. We finally decided on this huge enormous gargantuan Berber rug for their living room:

It even comes with a tiny human! Prepare your eyes for a whole lotta psychedelic upholstery up in here. I want to move into this house so very badly.

We stalled out a hair while choosing fabric for the Milo Baughman sectional I found at a consignment store:

To keep the pink Moroccan party front and center we're painting the wall Galapagos Turquoise and going with 40 (million) yards of WHITE fabric on the sofa. In a house with red wine, a dog, and an adorable eight year old. Suffice it to say I am being very very picky about the fabric quality and cleanability factor.

Speaking of said eight year old, how cute is it that she bid on and won this six foot tall bronze giraffe at auction all by herself? I mean... that kid is going to own Christie's by the time she turns 18. She's a star.

And speaking of fabulous auction items, a new client scored this incredible Mazzega chandelier the very same day:

This particular client is quite the character. When I walked into her house, every single thing was beige. Every. Single. Thing. Initially I wasn't sure why she wanted to hire me, but she is so funny and charming and down for everything and I seriously love her to pieces. My vision for this home is neo traditional and sophisticated, but with some signature weirdo items and fantastic paint colors sprinkled throughout. High hopes.

Meanwhile back at the ranch, crazy wallpaper law office got put on hold because a new baby got in the way. Those babies! Always putting a wrench in the works with their cute little faces and stinky baby feet. Is it wrong that a (very small) part of me wants another one? Don't tell Ben. Anyway, the office is close to completion but we had to get started pronto on the nursery, because BABY!!!

It's going to be good. I love people who love wallpaper.

Oh hey, here's a quickie pic of a completed bathroom I did for a client with a sweet vintage bungalow in a lovely hood:

The task was to gut the room but put it back in such a way that it felt classic and period appropriate. We're slowly working our way through the house, so hopefully I'll be able to shoot the whole shebang early next year.

And I finally got around to shooting this living room I finished last year for a young couple who are also having a baby... I'm working on their baby boho nursery right now. Because BABY!

And that is the end of my recent client project updates. I have several more soon to be completed projects but I'm holding out for finished shots to share. I can share that this happened:

Why yes, I did participate in Diffa's Picnic by Design event benefiting AIDS services of Austin. I was so flattered to be invited to design a table alongside some of Austin's best and brightest designers... not really sure how I ended up there, but I don't think I embarrassed myself too terribly. Many thanks to Jake and Kasey Holt for the photography, and to Gillian Bryce Fine Art for donating the most insane geometric objects that took my table from 18th century painting to David Bowie in Labyrinth. Dance magic dance!

Ok, now that I have recounted my entire summer of projects (not really) and everyone is asleep I think I can stop. Tomorrow I am off for Round Top Part Deux with the fabulous and sassy Sarah Stacey. Stay tuned for tales of our hijinx, including mimosa popsicles, denuded wallets, and oodles of purchases that will amaze you. No, really. I bought this last week:

Milo Baughman? Sonneman? Lightolier? Whatever it is, it's even bigger than my "baby." Wait til I show you the giant Memphis teapot I nabbed. Apparently I have scale issues.

Now I'm going to make like Beyonce and do 20 things at once while wearing fishnets and six inch heels.

Life is good.

Leos Rule

Over the past weeks I have started writing 500 amazing posts about art and design as well as projects I am working on, but then I get waylaid by said projects and this here blog suffers the ignominy of playing second or third or last place fiddle. Also I live in fear of rejection... what if my first post in forever isn't good enough? Truth is, it never will be. Stage fright is the thief of awesomeness. Whatever. It's time to get back in the saddle because a very important event has forced itself upon us and must be addressed. Today is my birthday. Who am I kidding? This is the worst day of the year. But there is one redeeming factor to consider, for it is the only time of the year I suspend my belief in reason and succumb to the whims and half baked vagaries of mysticism. I'm talking about astrology.

Logically, believing that all people born within the same arbitrary date set share similar characteristics makes zero sense. And yet... we leos do run in packs so it's easy to note that there is some common cross section. Pareidolia? Perhaps. But if you're a leo, see if you can check off these boxes with me: we are vain but generous. We are honest and loyal. We are bossy little jerks and we like to get our way because we are always right. We have good hair.

We also have the best sigils, and because we are king of the zodiac we get two! Everyone loves the sun, and everyone loves lions. Unless they are Lannisters.

I've had several of these things on the brain for a while now, things like Henri Rousseau everything. I need for my entire house to look like those paintings, and plan to move in that direction as soon as I have more than two spare seconds (and dollars) to rub together. And when I am finished executing that marvelous vision, I will put a giant honking brass lion door knocker on top and call it a day.

While you contemplate that deliciousness, I will be putting on face putty and nice clothes and maybe even high heels, and pretending that I am not old... at least not yet. Another year bites the dust.

At least I have goodish hair.

Palette Cleanser

Is it just me or are things looking really overdecorated lately? This might come across as a little ironic since I recently swathed a powder room in crazy marble wallpaper, but I can't help it. My eyes are tired. It seems like every room has to have trim and contrasting pattern and 75 colors and fully accessorized vignettes and statement furniture everywhere. I'm not judging, for I am most definitely guilty of all infractions. And don't get me wrong, I will always have a flair for the dramatic and a soft spot for this:

That is super weird. I love it, and I will always love wallpaper. But like I said, my eyes are bleeding from all the stuff in every picture everywhere and I feel an overwhelming urge to clean up the visual clutter.

AHHHHHH isn't that nice? Does anyone actually live here? Who cares?! It's all about organizing the room around one statement moment and then editing everything else out. Like a fine ocular sorbet.

White paint makes that easy. If you have great light and good architecture, white paint works. Personally I don't think I can ever live with white white whiiiite paint, because we have a lot of sheetrock and not a lot of windows. I might be feeling anti ornamental at the moment, but if you live in a sheetrock shack you're going to have to do some decorating.

Even dirty off white is more forgiving. This is a nice amount of ornamentalism for me. There is a lot going on here, but keeping things neutral and monochromatic lets the eye rest.

For those of us with yucky architecture and light, color may be a necessity. I don't think cleaning house necessarily means painting everything in neutrals and going gently into that good night. Robert Couturier is my homeboy because he knows how to let even a fancy room breathe. Bold color on the walls and wee pattern on the sofas dictates neutral art, no pillows (!!!), very little clutter, and curtains that don't pop. Matching sofas reduces the number of design elements in a large room. This is a space that could be translated to a real person's house for sure.

Or how about a mostly tonal room with zero pattern? So doable. The focus is all on the delicious yet judicious use of color. It might even be nutritious.

Same idea, but as a kitchen. Sexy, moody, interesting, and clean as a whistle.

I have to admit it is hard not to love a good white room, though. The architecture and textural elements here are layered enough to keep things lively, and that lamp is everything.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, a bright white Vistosi chandelier in an otherwise dark room has impact without punching you in the face. The paint color and furnishings are unique, but everything else is kinda blendy and nothing is upstaging the diva.

Blendy blendy, but not blandy. It's all about the floors and that bizarrely awesome chandelier.

This is like the good twin to my evil twin powder room. I really wanted everything to feel like it was chiseled from the same material. It might have helped if I had 10K to spend on marble, but I think I did ok with $300 spent on wallpaper.

And then there is this room. There are quite a few design elements going on, but the balance is good. I spy plenty of breathing room. It's clean and fresh and interesting. I want to live here. That rug!

Isn't it nice be simple sometimes?