Kravet and a project in my furture

T-J Toile is a sensational looking fabric from Kravet depicting many of Thomas Jefferson's buildings. Being a Virginia native and TJ fan overall, this held real appeal for me so I spent a good deal of time searching for a non-blue colorway to no avail. The blue is lovely and authentic blueprint color but I don't see it fitting in with my decor anywhere.

I searched for other architectural prints only to be disappointed.

I took matters into my own hands.

At first I had an idea to buy an antique (pre-1800) map of Virginia 

to create my own Spoonflower.com fabric because I saw one several years ago that has been on my mind since. Everything was too expensive for me so I bought architectural prints--lots of them!

 So many goodies.

 

The first Temple of Minerva print I bought singly
and then I found this lot of 64. Jackpot!

The ones that I don't want I will most likely resell in my, now empty, Etsy store.

 Can't wait to create my own architectural toile in a more subdued colorway.

I hope it works.

library day

Alessandra Branca

When I was in grade school I couldn't wait for library day. I still love books and together with my husband, have amassed quite a collection.

Today I am meeting with a contractor about my plans for a library in my home--Yay!

I am just dying to get all of those boxes unpacked and out in the light of day.

I am thinking of having the tops arched as in the photo above.

I am going for a dark, moody, masculine space.

I am already thinking about how to style the shelves.

 I will not organize by color of the book spines.

I prefer a more organic arrangement.

The walls will be painted Chinese red so I need to decide on a paint color for the shelves.

I am leaning towards black...

just like this Alessandra Branca library that is my main inspiration.

Which would you choose?

Join me in my addiction, won't you?

Marrakesh table

I feel compelled to look at every side table on the internet these days.

I saw the "Marrakesh" table on Lonnymag.com and it was a different table. It was $250 and I almost bought it.

Moro table

It was similar to this "Moro" table but white and I felt I had to have it.

It is probably best that Lonny made it so popular that it went away but I keep going back to Plantation's side table page.

Linked table

Can you blame me? I just fantasize about where I could put them.

Corinth table

This Corinth table would make a lovely bar.

Lookout table

I thought the Lookout table was wood but it is bronze. I'll keep it in my mental file as a stylish, kid-proof option for someone.

Sigma table

I love this one too.

West elm table

This $129 number from West Elm has my attention as well.

And just to end on a weird note...

Bazaar tables

These fabric wrapped nesting tables at Urban Outfitters seem impractical. How would you wipe up a spill? I guess the college set embraces the patina of filth. Maybe they meant "bizarre" tables.

Urban Outfitters does have some cute furniture that is not so boring although I can't speak to the quality.

I really don't need another side table, although I have a spot for one, I must stop filling every empty spot in my home.

Why?

not my photo

Why do so many people buy HUGE, ugly, overstuffed furniture and cram it into a normal size room?

Yesterday I ventured across the street to fetch a tray left behind after the 4th of July and see my neighbor's new basement renovation. I am on the hunt for a contractor to build my library shelves and wanted to check out the workmanship.

I couldn't exactly say, "let me take some photos and criticize it on blog" so use your imagination.

The space plan was awkward, perhaps because of the plumbing and framing already in place. You walked in as through a backstage door, behind the wetbar to the room beyond and behind the theater seating in the screening room. All were filled with what I call "naked fat people furniture". You know what I mean, the overstuffed leather that reminds me of rolls of fat.

The tiny bedroom had a queen size bed and a dresser so large that it hulked over the bed in a very unwelcoming manner.

not mine either, just illustrating a point

The problem is that these are very nice people that I will be living near for many years to come and the asked me for some decorating advice. It is all brand new, so my get rid of it and start over won't fly.

My strategy is to keep my mouth shut and pray that they don't ask for any more decorating help.

Bargain of the week

This garden seat was a steal at around $80 from Overstock.com. I saw a similar one over the weekend for $235 in a D.C. boutique.

At the moment it is just a place holder in a bare spot of my entry hall that is filled with chinese blue and white porcelain.

It might be moved sometime in the near future. 

The adjacent living room and bath sport their own bits of blue and white.

Did you score any weekend bargains?

A fascinating old friend and her unique home

 I was returning to Central Virginia after bundling off the older kids to their grandparents and a vacation in Maine and on a whim I decided to exit the highway and take a spin through my grandparents old neighborhood. I lived there with my parents, grandparents and uncle in their larger house until I was two. When I was fifteen they moved into a smaller house across the street, more about that later.

To my surprise as was driving by their house on the verge of tears, I spotted their long time neighbor and friend, Miss Vivian, as she was known to me. I called out to her and she invited me in and we chatted about art and my family, who she misses.

She is a fascinating woman that I have known most of my life and an artist, now at the prestigious Torpedo Factory. Her style is impeccable  and her taste exquisite. She's had grasscloth wallpaper in her entire house since the '70s.

The finest Oriental carpets with a Noguchi table

a white slipcovered sofa and two brown Wassily chairs. She is not a trendy person...

she has had them forever. This is all paired with fine Asian antiques and a stunning, floor to ceiling art collection. All contained in a surprisingly modest home.

Which leads me to the second subject of this post. She lives in a Lustron home, like my grandparents did.

About 2,680 of these porcelain-steel  homes were produced in America between 1949 and 1950 by the Lustron Corporation in Columbus, Ohio.They cost about $10,000 - not including the lot.  The homes were shipped on a flatbed and required 350 man hours to assemble. Most were built on a concrete base. The porcelain coated exterior panels came in four colors: 'Maize Yellow', 'Dove gray' 'Surf Blue' and 'Desert Tan'.

As you can see from the floorplan, They are not the McMansions of today. 

All interior panels were of the porcelain steel which meant a commitment when it came to hanging pictures!

My grandparents only replaced the counters in the kitchen and removed the upper cabinets that separated the kitchen from the dining area. Miss Vivian has painted hers in vertical gray, ivory and beige stripes.

This is the Lustron living room. It speaks to a different generation's idea of comfortable living.

My grandparents put a mirror in the alcove behind the sofa, Miss Vivian has closed hers off and covered every inch with art.

Read more about this unique and disappearing bit of American architecture HERE.

Founding Father's Chinoiserie

Gunston Hall is an 18th-century Georgian mansion near the Potomac river in Virginia. It is the home of founding father George Mason.

It's Chinese room offers a unique look at 18 th century fashion and taste that is a close cousin of current Chinoiserie fashion.

 

The Federal style dentil molding is coupled with Chinese-esque motifs.

Note the pagoda shapes around the room.

It is particularly interesting to me that we were taught through films and other history lessons to think of colonial American decoration in terms of staid, conservative colors when in fact very vibrant colors were the norm.

Lack of differentiation between paints on the walls and molding and the absence of softs, i.e. curtains and carpet, are the most noticeable details that set it apart from contemporary rooms.

The lemony yellow color works nicely with the blue and white china.

 

I'd kill to have a dining room like this, wouldn't you?