Journal

On the books

Sorry for the blog silence recently.  Been super busy with various committees (chronic over-volunteering), new design projects, lots of hardware orders (yay!), and new showrooms. I sort of took a rest from DIY projects but I do have a few things that I've been noodling around which I'll probably start in the next month or so. First off, there is this linen closet at the top of our stairs. Our... Read more

Woman’s Day Spread

So here is the actual Woman's Day spread (you'll have to head out to your local newsstand if you want to actually read the text).  I would say the photos and content are pretty much true to life (granted I do wish I owed some of the stylist's props).  I love how they did a "Get the Look" section and that the featured some of my hardware!  Thanks again Woman's Day! Read more

Woman’s Day Is Out!

If you've been follwing me on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter then you know how excited I am that our feature in Woman's Day Magazine is out.  We shot it back in July (here are some behind the scenes shots from a previous post) and the final results are in!  The feature is really great and I can't thank the crew at Woman's Day enough for their hard work, from the stylist, photographer and hair and... Read more

Fall Update

Apologies for the blog silence these last few weeks. It's been BUSY around here!  On the design front, one of my residential jobs is wrapping up, another has started back in and I'm working on a fun bar project in New York City.  I will definitely share more with you on those projects as things move along.On the hardware front we've added new showrooms to the hardware line: Folger and Burtin the... Read more

Stylin’ Mamma: Soft Like Leather

Fall is a transitional month here in San Francisco, with temps ranging from upper 50s to upper 70s over the course of a single day (the marine layer, and all that).I am trying (tryyyyying!) to curb the shopping after doing a small wardrobe re-vamp over the summer, but I couldn't resist these "vegan" leather shorts. For September and October, they will work with the last of my summer tan; once... Read more

Lamps on Chairish

Do you remember these awesome orange lamps that I had in our LA living room?I got them at an antiques mall in LA and had new shades made for them.  They really worked well in the scale of our space at the time.However, there just isn't a space for them in our house here. I'd tried selling them on Craiglist but they are so specific and also a bit nicer than your typical Craiglist find (as in more... Read more

A little garage makeover

Lately, now that our interiors have hit a certain stage of "doneness", I've been itching to get outside. I did some planting at the fronta few weekends ago and plan to plant some bulbs later today. I've also been thinking about how I'd like to dress up our backyard in the future. Similar to the house, the garage is sided in vinyl so we can't really paint it. However, I've been considering dressing... Read more

Stylin’ Mamma: Travelin’ Light

Summer travels by plane, bus, and car have had me searching for the PERFECT black dress. You know the one: won't wrinkle, will be comfy on the four-hour drive to the mountains, can be styled appropriately for dinner in East Hampton...the Do-Everything Dress. With my suitcase packed for our two-week vacation and 55 minutes to go before picking up the kids from camp and hitting the road, I set out... Read more

Table Refinishing Project

A while back I blogged about my client's living room which I've been working on.  Here is the concept board from a while back.You can see on the left hand side a photo of a table that she'd inherited from her mother. We knew we wanted a sort of washed finish on this to coordinate with some of the other items in the room like the settee. Well, it's sort of amazing how much people will charge to do... Read more

Digging in the Dirt

Now that our interior is mostly complete (for now that is - until I decide I can't stand my office or the basement), I've decided to focus my energies on some inexpensive upgrades outside. Our landscape in the front yard was seriously lacking. There is a nice cherry tree, some laurels and azaleas in front of the house and a beautiful hydrangea net to the porch that you can't see, but there are no... Read more

Goin’ Back to Glen Arbor

As most of you readers know, this blog has followed me through the renovation of our house in LA on Glen Arborand now our house here in NJ. One of the things I never got around to doing in LA was the kitchen. There was so much potential with the 1940's glass front cabinets and the vintage stove. Before we left, we slapped on a coat of white paint and changed the hardware to freshen it up. But I'd... Read more

Stylin’ Mamma: Monochrome

Greetings from August in the City by the Bay!  Those of you who've traveled here on a summer vacation (or read any Mark Twain, for that matter) know that while these may be "summer-casual" months at the office, they are also foggy & windy months at the park, which is why most of us default again and again to denim. A recent foot injury has me re-thinking footwear to accommodate arch supports... Read more