Check out the Skirted Roundtable

I was so excited to be interviewed on the Skirted Roundtable by Megan Arquette, Linda Merrill and Joni Webb last week.  (Pictured in that order, above)  I'm sure most of you know, but for those of you who don't know  (my family if you're reading ;) -  the Skirted Roundtable is a weekly online interior design radio show hosted by Linda, Megan and Joni- megabloggers & interior designers.  They discuss everything from running a design business, to seasonal decorating, to magazine stories and bloggers along with interviewing an amazing stream of people in the interior design industry.  (To say that I am the least exciting/ known person they've ever interviewed is not at all an understatement, which is why I was really shocked/ thrilled when they asked me.)  

I've been addicted since the very beginning and it's really the only radio show I know of that broaches interior design and interviews interior designers regularly.  Like many of you, I find myself nodding along, laughing outloud and just being generally enthralled by the weekly shows.  I've left embarrassingly long comments on there because I just get so into certain topics discussed.  Anyway, you can imagine how thrilled I was when they asked me to be on the show... Excited and then seriously nervous because I've never been interviewed on a radio show before and typically hate to hear my voice even in an answering machine message.

But, in true Skirted Roundtable-style, I felt instantly at ease and comfortable with these ladies I've always admired- Linda, Megan and Joni.  Thanks so much to them for thinking of me & for taking the time to put the show together. 

If you have some time, I'd really love it if you could listen to the show.  I know many of you read at work (shhhh ;) so it might not be possible at your regular blogging time, but if you do get the chance, I'd love for you to check it out and to hear what you think of it.  You can go listen here: SKIRTED ROUNDTABLE INTERVIEW.  Thank you so much!!

My Little Man

Our little man #1 just turned 3.  Time's flown and you'd think things like cakes, icing, candles, etc. would get simpler.   I "bake" cake out of a box.  I love box cakes, esepcially the kind with the little colors dots inside the batter..  mm mm so good.  We had a really last-minute birthday party for Christian & invited some of our neighbors/friends over with their kids so I decided to do cake. It came out like this:

Yeah, haven't you ever hear of "Lightning Cake?"  I was seriously ready to serve the cake like this with icing on the side for "dipping" until my neighbor Melissa came to the rescue.  (I was at that point of 'who cares it tastes good they're toddlers and won't notice?' but all it took was a little push to get me going.)  First things first, Melissa fixed the mojitos we'd attempted with her secret recipe (dont' you love neighbors like that??) and then turned to look at my pathetic cake- "Ok, now we have to do something with that.  You said you wanted a car, right?"  So, enjoying the newly concoted mojitos, we got to work making a car cake & it was so simple of course:

{The car cake}

Christian was so excited when he saw it.  He's so into cars right now.  He said something about Lightning McQueen (a cartoon character-car) and I really didn't catch the rest, but I think that's 3-yr old for "I love it."

(Yeah, I know the icing isn't on the sides... we ran out.. Don't judge ;)

Happy birthday to my sweetie-guy. We love you.

ps- Just as I was finishing up this post (12 AM) I heard a knocking form his bedroom door & I went to get him.  He was standing there,  "Mommy, I choked up on my bed."  = vomit in bed.  yummy. 

goodbye Marija

Please keep Marija Stephens' family in your thoughts & prayers.  Marija of Holding Court passed away over the weekend, breaking many hearts.  I think I speak for a lot of us when I say that she touched so many people and reached out with an extremely generous spirit.  As I've read the posts today, so many of us bloggers have written about how excited we would get when a comment from Marija popped up- they were witty, thoughtful and always honest.  Whenever a question or issue arose in a blogpost she was one of the first to email a suggestion or an idea on how to fix it.  She was beautiful- both inside & out.  Her design sense, insight, intelligence and passion were incredible.  Marija soaked up life and affected so many people.  She is dearly missed.

Movin' Out

So things have been crazy as usual around here and we've decided to make some changes in hopes of getting some more quality time for our family and growing our business.  For starters, I think I'm moving the office out of the house.

{Suzanne Kasler's SIC office via one of my favorites, nest egg...  My office will not be this great, but I can dream}

It's been pretty tough running a business out of the house with an almost 3 yr-old and a 6 month old...  I feel guilty when I'm working because I know they want me, and I feel guilty when I'm hanging with them because I have work waiting for me right there.  Hopefully, getting the office out of the house will give me strict work hours and put a little bit of a chill on my workaholic tendencies.  My goal is to keep work at the office and then when I'm home, I can really just relax and be home.  I found myself wanting to go on vacations and get out of the house to relax and I realized that I now associate home with work.  (Not that I don't love work...  but I need my family time.)  I want home to be just home. 

I'm so excited about it and am 99.9% sure it's a 'go.'  As you can guess, I'm already psyched to do my new office.  The new office space is about to undergo a major renovation and the fun Victorian wing chair I found is the only piece I have squared away for sure (being reupholstered in a special fabric.)  My office will be pretty small so I'll need to pack in a lot of function in a small space.  I think I will have room for a massive inspiration wall. I've been reading Thomas O'Brien's American Modern and cannot wait to try out some of his ideas on it.

{Thomas O'Brien Image via Chic Coles, another favorite}

I hope you're enjoying this summer, and I am sorry I am so MIA-  Dave's home for the summer and I'm trying to spend as much of my free time with him & the boys as possible.   I truly love your comments and reading my favorite blogs- many of which I have yet to add to the new blogroll!!- but just have not been able to comment the way I wish I could right now. 


***UPDATE  MAY 2010***  I never moved out of the home office!! :)   It's been working out geat since my assistant came to work here & we have some more help with childcare.  wahooooo


 

Interior Design Graduates & My Meghan

Last summer I was lucky enough to have an amazing intern from my alma mater, James Madison University.  Her name is Meg Short and she recently graduated from JMU's interior design program.  She is such a sweetheart and tirelessly drew floorplans, helped source products, worked on design plans & boards, managed accounts and even helped entertain my toddler.  (She helped me with this project!)  She did everything needed, is souch a quick study, & was always a pleasure.  She's on the job hunt right now and she deserves to get snapped up right away!  (If I could, I would!!)

I'm writing this because I'm blown away by the number of talented design graduates who are looking for work right now.  It's a tough time to graduate and go to work in any field, but especially in this one.  I've been getting lots of resumes lately but am not currently hiring.  But, I'm really struck by the talent & drive and hard work these graduates have.  I feel for them and wish I could give them positions. 

{by Miles Redd via Belle Vivir}...  Just thought we could use a pretty pic

I'm often asked for advice from graduates and I guess mine is this: 
-If sending a resume via email: Make sure the email is personally addressed to whomever you're writing (and only them) and that the information pertains to them/ their firm.  We can smell the "general" query emails and much prefer something that includes an observation or compliment about us/ our firm.  (hee hee you catch more bees with honey! ;)  Also, I delete any mass emails thinking that someone else will respond

-If you can't get paid to do design work, work for free or for a low fee if you can afford it...  I did this when I first decided I wanted to get into the industry.  It's so cheesy but you're getting experience which is a crucial form of payment.  Once you feel you've learned all you can from a low or non-paying position, move on. 

-Hound people in the nicest way possible.  If someone says they'll get back to you and they don't, get back to them instead.  We remember those repeat emailers and I appreciate a reminder.  If I don't write someone back after saying I will, it's because it's slipped my mind.  As long as you're nice about it, we like it when you get back to us.

-Again, if your message is personal and feels sincere, designers will be more likely to send on your resume and letter to designer friends and keep you in mind for future open positions. 

-You can follow up with a phone call if you didn't get an email response.  A graduate called the other day and just had the sweetest personality over the phone and it made me want to help her find a job.

-Stay excited & be optimistic.  It may feel like forever away right now, but your time will come.  You will find a place and with hard work, determination & a constant search for knowledge, you'll succeed.  Don't ever let naysayers get you down and as cheesy as it is, believe in yourself.  There are days when you might feel like giving up, but don't.  (Hell, there are days when I feel like giving up!) It's normal (I think? ;) and it will pass.  You make your own future.


 

ps-  If anyone needs Meghan's info, please email me.  She's the best!!

Project: Family Hang-Out

 My clients, the Hart family wanted a living room that they could really live in.  Like I mentioned in my previous post on their dining room, they're an active family who love being outside, hiking, camping and spending time together so we really wanted an outdoors-in natural, fresh feel in here.  They're also musically-inclined and wanted a place where the damily could practice playing.  Although they do entertain, the initial function of their living room was to be a place where they can hang out, pay bills, do homework, play instruments and relax. 

Here's what the space looked like before.  It was a totally empty blank slate (how fun?!): 

 

And here's it is now:

When I initially surveyed the house, I noticed they didn't have many family photos and suggested doing a family photo wall in the living room because they wanted an extremely personal family-focused feel in here.  The problem was that they didn't have many family photos to create the wall.  

...So, this past Fall, I met with the family for a family "photo shoot" and I took a ton of pictures of them in the backyard.   We had so much fun "playing" in the leaves and even Whimsy, the family dog, got her close-ups. 

{The Harts}

They came out really well and I created this photo collage of all of the photos surrounding a natural "twiggy" sconce:

Mike & Debbi pay their bills  and the kids also do on homework here at the worktable:

{I love their family-passed-down-clock !!}

We chose a pen shell cocktail table: (This was the first element I chose for the space and used it as a springboard for the rest of the design)

And repeated the natural shells again in the capiz shell pendant over the work table:

I found this cool old lion painting in their garage.  I think he's prefect for the space and it was the last thing to go up.

I tossed this cool needlepoint throw of mine over the back of the loveseat for some added interest: 

 {It's a very tone-on-tone textural design in keeping with the family's natural, relaxed style}

The kids & I picked some pretty polar leaves from the trees outside the house and I had them enlarged on 3 and a half feet high canvases for the walls.  I thought it was a really personal way to "bring the outside in" since they love their house because of its wooded location. 

Here's a view of the second poplar leaf canvas:

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the before & after and thank you again to the Harts for trusting me to design your home!  It was so much fun!!

Hope you had a great 4th of July weekend and if you missed the first part of this project (the dining room), check out the previous post here. 

Client Project: A Green Dining Room

I don't have a before photo of this dining room.  (What's wrong with me?  You'd think I'd never blogged before! ;)  The only pieces in the room when I started the project were the old trestle table & chairs which I love.  My clients, Debbi & Mike, have 3 children- 2 at home a one at college.  They eat their nightly meals in the dining room and also use it for projects, homework, entertaining, etc.  They're an extremely outdoorsy & fit family and love camping, biking and hiking.  Their 70s house has large windows with beautiful views of the surrounding trees and if I didn't already call my house the "treehouse" I'd call this one the "treehouse."  Since they're so passionate about nature & the outdoors, I designed a room that feels textural, natural and filled it with with layers of greens and wood-tones.  

{Walls are painted in Behr's "Lion"}

I love the wax pillar candle chandelier & sconces.  They're simple and strong yet beautiful.

The curtains are an olive-colored paisley linen and we went with green tortoiseshell shades for a classic natural feel.  And, unlike me, Debbi can keep plants alive and I think they're perfect in here.

The oil painting was ours but now it's found the perfect home.  (It wasn't easy for me to part with, but it makes me so happy to see it here ;)  We chose Restoration Hardware's Printmaker's Sideboard and its massive size is perfect for dining room storage.  (Since Debbi & Mike also use their dining room to pay bills, some of the drawers are reserved for paperwork too.)

I set the table for a "summer dinner" and used glassware from Anthropologie.  (How gorgeous are the amber wine glasses???!)  I layed a massive squash leaf down for a fun take on a tablerunner.

Here's another view of the table:

I love the brass of the samovar (the huge tea pot) against the painting.  (I borrowed it from my grandparents because I thought it would look beautiful in here and now I think I need to find one for Debbi ;)

The dining room is a relaxed & subdued backdrop for whatever type of occasion is needed.  I think it looks just as beautiful when the table's bare.  (I'm going to want to keep coming back again to do more table settings.  (Knock knock! "It's me again to play dress up with your table!") 

Thank you so much to Debbi & Mike for trusting me & the design even when the wax candles nudged you a bit outside of your comfort zone ;) ;)   You're amazing and I can't thank you enough.

I hope you enjoyed & I'll be posting living room photos next week!  Have an awesome 4th of July!!!