RULES FOR A COLOR PARTY

November 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Last week, I shared a rather unique concept in “Have Yourself a Color Party”.

(If you haven’t already read that article, you might want to click here).

This is all about creating a Color Scheme, something that is fairly basic to almost any home design project.

Yet, how does one create a Color Scheme?

Broken down to it’s essence, it’s a simple matter of knowing which colors to invite to the “party”!

And yes, there are Rules.

 

Purchase a Color Wheel

A color wheel is a handy tool that can be purchased at any art supply store.

This is a great resource for educating yourself on color, especially if you are unfamiliar with terms like ‘complementary’, or analogous’, or the meaning of hues, tints and tones.

Brushing up before hand, so you can address your guests accordingly, is always a good idea.

 

Consider a Theme

What mood are you striving for?

A few words come to mind:

Sensuous  – As in slightly exotic, with  rich reds, browns, and gold

Nurturing  – Earth tones, in varying shades of green or brown

Contemplative or Serene  – A watery theme of cool blues and greens, mixed with neutrals such as taupe, beige, or off-white

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HAVE YOURSELF A COLOR PARTY

November 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Early in my design career, a client presented me with a challenge for re-designing her living room.

She wanted a new look, with lots of COLOR!

Per her instructions, she wanted to keep two existing chairs , one red and one blue, and replace most of the remaining furnishings, including the sofa.

(In design parlance, that’s what we refer to as the scope of the Project).

Did you catch the part about the chairs – one red, the other blue?

The real challenge here, was to connect these seemingly disparate pieces into a harmonious color scheme.

Well, I love a challenge, and every project has one.

It’s what usually gets the creative juices flowing.

It is also where the ‘Color Party’ comes in.

Let me explain.

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Do You Follow the Recipe?

August 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

This past weekend, we visited the Farmer’s Market.

Walking among the stalls, I was thrilled to see the colorful rows of fresh produce –a sure sign that Summer is here.

Later in the day, as I inspected my selection of fresh asparagus, baby beets, snow peas, and lettuces, I wasn’t sure how they’d be combined for the evening meal.

We ended up with soup.

I kind of tossed everything in the pot – well, except for the beets and lettuce. (Beets are probably not a good idea – they’d probably turn the soup red).

So anyway, I didn’t follow a recipe.

I didn’t need to.

The next day, as I was preparing a salad for a potluck dinner, I was following a recipe. That’s when I realized I was missing a key ingredient.

At first, I panicked.

Then I decided to make do with what I had, including my  Farmer’s Market finds from the day before.

It was strangely relieving.

And made me think about our typical approach to Rules and Following Recipes, and the like.

Specifically that, much of the time, it isn’t really necessary, although we might think it is.

Unless you’re a beginning cook, or new to the gluten-free lifestyle, being free to add lib in the kitchen is half the fun, and also wakens your creative self.

Designing a home is also a creative endeavor, and in many ways it is not much different from cooking.

You’re just working with a different set of ingredients.

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LISTEN TO YOUR HEART

August 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The dental assistant had a question.

“Is Teal in?”she wanted to know.

She went on to explain that she wanted to repaint her Master Bedroom and the color teal really appealed to her.

She just wasn’t sure it was the “in” color to use.

While I generally don’t hand out free advice, I couldn’t resist this one.

I told her to forget what colors are “in” and to paint her bedroom whatever favorite color she wanted.

It was her bedroom, after all!

A few days later, another acquaintance was lamenting the large amount of dark wood in her home – dark oak floors, kitchen and bathroom cabinets, and walls.

Her husband had suggested painting them.

“But,” she wondered aloud, “What happens if ten years from now dark wood is again back in style?”

She wasn’t asking my opinion, so I didn’t provide it, but here’s the thing.

Fads are just that.

They come and go.

What your heart and your gut are telling you – that’s what you want to pay attention to!

Your home needs to be about you and the things you love.

Whether you love teal, or your home is too dark and you want to lighten things up, I say – go for it!

Here’s another example.

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Soup’s On

December 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and sincerely hope that you were able to overcome any challenges in making your feast gluten-free.

By the time you read this, chances are the turkey leftovers will long since have been eaten.

But that’s OK.

I’d still like to share with you my very simple recipe for home-made chicken stock. If you can even call this a recipe.

Yes, it’s that simple!

Of course, this works just as well for turkey or any kind of bird.

I think chicken stock is incredibly easy to make yourself, although at times less convenient than store bought. The best part is that it is absolutely Gluten-Free.

And you won’t have to worry about reading labels!

Seriously, though, all you really need to pull this off is a chicken carcass or two.

Whenever we have a roast chicken for dinner, I remove the extra meat before storing the leftovers in the fridge. I also save the bones in a separate container.

Next morning, I toss the bones, some water and a few seasonings into my crockpot, and let the slow cooker do its thing for the rest of the day.

That’s the beauty of a slow cooker – it really frees up your time for work, or play, and you don’t have to do another thing for six to eight hours, or until the food is done.

In this crazy, hectic world we live in, what could be better than freeing up some of your time?

 

HOME-MADE CHICKEN STOCK

Bones & carcass from 1 Chicken

6 cups water

1 carrot, cut into chunks (or a small handful of baby carrots)

1 or 2 celery sprigs, optional

1 bay leaf

5-6 whole peppercorns

 

You can dig around in your vegetable drawer and choose some other add-ins, such as:

Onion, cut into chunks

Root vegetables, cut into chunks

 

Toss everything into the ceramic pot of your slow cooker, and set the timer for a minimum of 6 hours. Depending on the brand of slow cooker, you might need a little more time to really bring out the flavors.

Alternatively, you can replicate the exact same recipe in a pot, on the stove. Bring to a boil, and then simmer for 1 ½ – 2 hours.

When done cooking, set a large sieve inside an equally large bowl and pour the soup stock into the sieve. The point is to catch all the loose vegetables, peppercorns, etc. so you have a clear broth.

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SETTING THE STAGE

July 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

“All the world’s a stage”.  Shakespeare

 

Designing an interior is a lot like creating a stage set.  

A few weeks ago, I attended Pacific Northwest Ballet’s rendition of ‘Giselle’ – a truly lovely and engaging performance.

While gazing at the pastoral stage setting – meant to evoke a hot, summer’s day – I was struck by the similarities between stage designs versus home design.

The one is theatrical, strictly for show with the sole purpose of telling a story – with all its nuances and drama.

Yet our homes also tell a story.

The story our homes tell is about the people who live there. These stories may not be as exciting or dramatic as theatre, yet there is still drama – just drama on another level.

With this in mind, let’s explore how our room settings can be a little like a stage set – the only real difference being they house REAL people, not characters in a play.

 

Scene 1:  Your Inner Stylist

When the curtain rises at the theatre, we are instantly clued in to the story that is about to unfold.

This is achieved through a number of devices, but the first thing we usually notice is the stage set, which – when truly successful – elicits a delighted gasp from the audience.

The setting for ‘Giselle’ was clearly traditional. I felt as if I’d been transported back to the 18th century, landing in a pastoral scene straight out of a rococo painting.

Everything – from the set design, costumes and music – reinforced the traditional mood of the ballet.

(Another performance might have resembled a gentleman’s study, with a multitude of books lining the shelves, a sturdy desk front and center, and perhaps a mini bar off to the side – well-stocked to accommodate any guests that might stop by – tthe message conveyed here is one of ease and comfort, in true gentlemanly fashion).

Sometimes there are no props whatsoever – just the dancers and the stage. But as with the ballet, our homes invariably reflect the style that we are most drawn to – whether traditional, modern or somewhere in-between.

 

Scene 2:  Engaging Your Senses

This is where the Magic happens.

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