Category Archives: Pillows

05.14.12

The Problem With Interpretation.

You say purple, I say blue.

I am so happy with the way E’s walls have turned out.  I ended up paying my go-to painter Corinne, to do the walls because I honestly had no idea when I was going to get to it.  At first I felt like a failure because I love doing things myself and feel like I should be like all of the other bloggers who do EVERYTHING themselves.  Then I realize that I have a full-time job and two kids and I would rather spend the weekend playing with my kids that painting a room.  Thus, the decision was made.  Here is a teaser picture (taken with an iPad) while in progress.

Obviously, these pillows were a huge part of my inspiration.  I saw them and just had to have them.
Next up.. I was looking for a bench that would be the perfect size for her bed.  At first, I insisted on a storage bench, so I scoured HomeGoods to find one.  I came home with this leather one, thinking I would reupholster in it a beautiful purple velvet.
However, the gorgeous purple velvet that I wanted was far more than what I wanted to spend on a bench for a six-year old so I continued my search and found this. 
Perfect, right?  And who can beat the price!  SOLD.  So I bought it and it showed up at my doorstep the next day.  Only problem is that it wasn’t purple as advertised… it was clearly Navy Blue.   

Looking a little more like this 
BUMMER.  Can you say false advertising?  When I called BJ’s they said that the color is actually Navy, not purple.  As you can see they have now edited the posting to more accurately represent the actual product.  That doesn’t help my situation.   They now have a p-i-s-s-e-d six year old to deal with.

03.21.12

Design Philosophy: Naomi Stein.

Today I am launching a new series here on KKL titled Design Philosophy.  It gives you an intimate look at some of my favorite designers and their design process.  The inaugural post is from one of my favorite ladies; Naomi Stein of Design Manifest.  I am sure you have seen her amaaaaazing loft as Naomi is taking the internet by storm.  Take it away, Naomi!



Hey guys, it’s Naomi from Design Manifest. When Krista asked me to come over and talk about my home I thought it was a good chance to talk about color and pattern.  I’ve been really fortunate in that my loft has gotten a lot of attention.  It has been featured on Design Sponge, several international/online magazines, loads of blogs and I’m guessing it’s been pinned a time or two.  Pictures are nice, but I like to delve a little further into the thought process behind the design.  I wrote a bit about my furniture and theme selections over on Small Shop, but I’ve never really talked about color and pattern mixology. 

 
So here it goes… color, pattern, and my loft. 

I’m a white wall girl, through and through.  Yes, the loft is a rental with soaring ceilings, so that helped cement my decision to stay white.  But on top of that, I like crisp bright spaces that are speckled with color and pattern.  This is what I went for in my living room: white walls, cream rug, linen sofa and a big ‘ole pillow party.
 
 
Early on, I chose pink and blue as my theme in the place and I later added black for a little drama.  For my pillows I really lucked out on fabrics- both the solid velvet and flamestitch were cheap remnants scores.  A stripe and a chinoiserie-themed pillow (It’s actually Goddesses) were an easy way to mix in variety.  I love a toile/ scenery type fabric to mix up geometrics and other patterns!  I also don’t like both sides of the sofa to match exactly.  Mix in two similar pillows but change up the size or pattern, or both!
 
 
Even though I’m a self admitted white wall girl, sometimes you need a little drama.  My first action step in decorating my loft was painting a dark, depressing alcove adeep blue.  I loved the way my pink desk popped against it and I felt it did a good job of cementing my color theme without overwhelming the whole loft.
 
 
A small space is a great place to go bold.  Just make sure to balance it out with lots of white and a little wood to maintain a natural element.  My grandmother gave me this painting that just happened to feature my color scheme: pink and blue!  I thought it was a great fit in my loft, but wanted to make sure I didn’t pair it directly with blue and pink elements as I don’t like my spaces too matchy.
 
 
Instead I perched my favorite bench (covered in David Hicks La Fiorentina) under it and filled it with pillows that complemented the art but didn’t feature the strong pink element.  Mixing patterns here wasn’t an easy task. I didn’t want to use geometrics as I felt that would detract from the bench.  I lucked out when I found silk and velvet ikat scraps.  Ikats are abstract enough that they go with just about everything.  When mixing, make sure you vary the size, scale and color.
I thought long and hard before wallpapering a nook in my living room.  It was an odd hollow area on a brick wall and I knew I needed a statement piece there to give it a purpose.  The pattern couldn’t be too crazy, though, because I really wanted to use fun pillows on the sofa.  (See above.)
  
 
I opted for “the birds” or Paradiso by Nina Campbell.  I felt the animal theme was organic enough to mix with other patterns and the colors were close to my pinks and blues while not being too matchy-matchy.  Yea, I know I said that above- but not matching was a big focus of mine!
To balance out all of that pink and blue, I opted to leave some areas “color-less.”  My dining area is basically all black and white with a pop of red in the antique suzani tablecloth.
 
 
Keeping the colors simpler allowed me to be a little bolder with my patterns.  Black and white chevron is more subtle when its set against black dining chairs.I applied the same color story in my bedroom, but avoided bold, bright hues.  This room is for relaxation, so I wanted the overall feel to be more calming.  I didn’t hold back from using patterns though.  I love the way my perky, geometric Caitlin Wilson Pillows play against my batik dyed bedspread!
 
 
And sometimes I just let the ART do the talking.  I purposely asked Nicole to feature pink and blue in my painting to coordinate with my space.  But I also gave it it’s own dedicated area to stand out.  I painted out that black background to really help it pop.  (You can learn more about it here.)
 
 
Ultimately I broke a lot of design rules when planning out my color and pattern scheme.  I used a lot of colors (pink, blue, black, red.)  I matched my art to my interiors.  I layered patterns on top of patterns.  I think that breaking the rules and following your intuition is essential to a good design. 
 Two rules I would stick to?  
1.  SCALE!  Meaning your pattern repeats should be varied.  Do a big pattern, a little pattern, a solid and a geometric.  And they don’t all need to match.  A couple can match and a third can be odd man out- it’s more interesting that way.
2.  Edit your COLOR!  Meaning, you may need to take some away.  I love color, but often times less is more.  Each time you bring in a new color element, you lessen the impact of your other elements.
Oh dear, did I get too chatty?  I hope that helped you think about mixology a little.  Happy Decorating!
 
xo,
Naomi

03.15.12

Chartreuse and Gray.

Lately I am seeing more of this color combo popping up.  In moderation, I really like it.   Here are some of my favorite spaces in this palette.
Here’s how to get the look.  While some of these are higher end items, never rule out some of my favorite design tools: HomeGoods, Spray paint and a whole lot of creativity!
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

02.23.12

Home Goods Homerun.

I was feeling a little down on HomeGoods after the holidays as the place seemed cleaned out.  But I had a few projects which warranted a visit, and I am happy to report that they have restocked and my local store is chock full of great buys.
Beautiful Suzanis.
LOVE this purple rug.
 How great would this be in a little girl’s room?
I would love to paint this.
How great would these look reupholstered?
Moroccan tables galore.
This would look fabulous painted a bright color.
I am a sucker for apothecaries.
Gorg!
$500 is a little steep to pay for a chair that I’d turn around and reupholster, but I’ve got my eye on this baby for a markdown.
Great side table.
I am in love with these pink velvet benches.
Two of these in an office?  Yes, please.
Lotus flower chandy.  Looks a lot like this baby.
Pair of Ikat chairs.
Couldn’t resist this lamp at $18.00. This DEFINITELY needs a make-over, but it’s got good bones.
I came looking for two lamps that would be perfect candidates for our living room.  Tune in next week for their new look.
I bought this lamp because I loved it so, but it’s really, really tall.  I am desperately looking for a home for it, but it wasn’t cheap, so I may need to return it.  Sigh.