Do you have a favorite lamp?

Veranda

I went to the new Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams signature store in my area this past Friday and fell in love. One of the many, many things that caught my eye was their Nola Lamp. I am hoping that two of them are going to find a home in a master bedroom I am working on right now.

And it got me thinking how much I love lamps in general. I love them for their sculptural quality and the wonderful light and ambiance they give a room. Lamps are such an easy way to add a little decoration and are often just the perfect thing to finish off a room. Right now I am in love with anything with a white drum shade ... or black ... or pink! 

House Beautiful

This bedroom would not be the same without these beautiful lamps.

Elle Decor

House Beautiful

I thought I would show you some of my favorite 'affordable' table lamps that you can purchase online:

Possini Euro Design Asymmetry Table Lamp

Possini Euro Design Stacked Chrome Globes Table Lamp

Vanilla White Double Gourd Ceramic Table Lamp

Alexis Ceramic Table Lamp

Pebble Table Lamp

Mid Century White Ceramic Gourd Lamp

Mariposa Table Lamp

Haley Table Lamp

Spiro Table Lamp

Ummm... and I think I need to have this floor lamp!

Eden Floor Lamp

credit

What is your favorite lamp?

Symbols

We use symbols to represent things that are important to us, to show who we are, or what we believe in. They are reminders to ourselves and reminders to others. When my daughter got married this summer we used a lot of symbols. Their wedding rings for example, are a symbol of the faithful love and commitment they have promised each other.

Hayley tucked a photograph of her grandfather (my father) in her bouquet to symbolize that he is not forgotten and will forever be in our hearts (oh how I wish he could have been there in person).

We brought in the symbol of the cross to represent that even though they did not get married inside a church, God was with us. And to symbolize that Christ is our Lord.

People.com

I was inspired by the cross that George Bush had made when their daughter Jenna got married and I searched for a long time for a cross that would be just right for the barn setting. It needed to stand freely so that it could be placed on top of a pedestal. After a lot of searching I found just what I wanted at Inspired by Nature on Etsy except that it was a wall cross. I contacted Kent, the owner, and he was wonderful. He put a matching stand on the cross.

Another symbol that we used at the wedding was the Mexican wedding lasso, which symbolizes unity and oneness. Hayley and her sister, Griffin spent hours stringing and glueing each 'pearl' on a $3 plain lasso that we purchased. It turned out beautiful!

"The faithfulness of God is the unshakeable ground we build our lives upon." - Kay Warren 

Art Therapy 2

Previously I posted photos from an office I designed for Dr. Elle Walker, a licensed clinical psychologist who practices in Downey, California. You can view that office here. A few months ago, I designed her second office. When I first saw the space it was a one room commercial office with a large walk-in closet. I had two walls constructed to create a waiting room and a treatment room. As with her previous office, the flooring (carpet) and wall color were already in place when I came onboard and the new walls were painted to match. All the drapes and sheers came from Target. One of her requests was for a very comfortable chair to sit in while she is seeing patients. The soft leather Ikea chair is an extremely comfortable chair and she loves it. We took the two wicker chairs from the waiting room of her first office to cut down on expenses.

The artwork had all been done previously by Dr. Walker's daughter and I framed each one in Ikea Fjallsta frames. The Dr. really loved her daughter's artwork and yet she had never done anything with it. It made her happy to be able to see the art framed and hung on the walls, and it created a warm, homey environment to help put her patients at ease. It was also a very inexpensive way to decorate and the colors are fantastic.

Art Studio

One of my very talented sisters is an illustrator in Northern California (I have another very talented sister who is a photographer ... more about her later!). Deb illustrates for the children's market, including picture books, and also licenses her art on papergoods, ceramics and fabric. This is her with her beloved dog Ernie, who has since passed away. Mack is her new Airedale now. And just like her previous Airedales, he is the love of her life! Check out her artwork at Deb's Art Blog or visit her website and see how animals inspire her work! 

© Deb Melmon

© Deb Melmon

© Deb Melmon

Deb works out of her house and she needed a clean, uncluttered space where she could work. Her studio also needed to function as a dining room on occasion and a place where she could relax and watch TV or even entertain. She also has quite a collection of children's books and needed a place to keep them nearby so she can reference them as she works.

We started with the bookcase (Design Within Reach) - she saw it, loved it, had to have it. That set the tone (in color and style) for the credenza that we purchased next at an inexpensive Danish furniture store. Our inspiration on how to finish the room ultimately came from the furniture that she had in the room previously. It was too bulky to stay but it was a wonderful red leather sofa and chair; a great place to nap (for Deb and her dogs), and had even become part of her illustrations.

© Deb Melmon

So when we spotted the red leather bench (at an inexpensive office store) I knew it was the perfect way to symbolically bring in the red leather sofa and I love that it gave the room that 'library' feel. I placed the red boxes from The Container Store on top of the bookcase to add height and bring in more red (more storage too!).

Storage was a necessity as was having a surface for laying out projects or for entertaining. The credenza ties in perfectly with the bookcase and offers enough storage space to be able to keep invoices & client files and drawing & painting supplies out of sight. The comfortable but small scale chair fits perfectly in the room and can easily be moved out for entertaining & the top of the credenza can be changed without much effort into a drink or appetizer station or even a holiday buffet. (note: we were later able to move the large copier).

Deb's new studio is a refreshing place to work in, relax and watch TV or take an occasional catnap. And when necessary, it is easy to clear it out and bring in the dining table - creating an instant & beautiful dining space!

© Deb Melmon

What to do on a rainy day

We've had some lovely rain the last couple of days here in Southern California. Rain does not come often for us so it is such a gift when it does. It is a treat on a day like that to stay inside and putter around the house; clean out a closet, re-arrange the furniture or even just a shelf or two. 

I have a client who lives in Chicago. We have worked together for a number of years ... all long distance. She will email me photos and ask for help and then I will email her back a list of what to purchase and where to place it. One day, she said she needed a little lift in her family room, and she was unhappy with her bookshelves. 

So I had her empty out the bookshelves and send me measurements. I took inventory of what she had and then shopped from online from stores that I knew she had locally (Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, Z Gallerie for example). I sent her a list of what to buy and where to put each item.

After we de-cluttered the shelves, we added some new pillows to freshen up the room.

Sometimes thats all it takes to give a room (and yourself) a little pick-me-up. 

Tip of the day:  When you are unhappy with the way your room looks but you don't know what the problem is, take a photograph of the space and look at it - it will become more obvious. 

Art Therapy

This is a psychologist's office I designed several years ago. It was the client's very first office. She had a small practice and didn't need a lot of space, but she wanted it to be warm, comfortable and 'homey'. The office was very small and we had to utilize every inch of floor space, but it worked. She recently opened up a second office and I designed that as well (still need photos).

Both offices were designed on a very limited budget and in a very short amount of time and so we had to utilize stores that carry in-stock furniture. Most of the furniture and pillows came from Pier One Imports. The wall color and flooring was already in place when I came onboard. I purchased a few tables and accessories from HomeGoods and Target. 

In the second office, I used this super cute and inexpensive sofa from Pier One Imports (699.95 Abbie Sofa in chocolate)

I wanted to use this Josette chair from Pier One Imports (199.99) in the waiting room

But because of the limited space we used 2 of these instead (a good compromise):

We added a couple of zebra chairs for the treatment room (no longer available).

I used the Jonas Desk from Ikea in black-brown

And placed a white leather desk chair I found at HomeGoods with the desk.

Here are some of the pillows we purchased and the zebra chairs:

We used this runner from Target which worked as the area rug in the waiting room because the space was so narrow. My favorite part of the entire project: instead of purchasing decorative artwork to just fill up the walls, we used the client's young daughter's own beautiful artwork. I framed each piece using inexpensive Ikea Fjallsta frames. Using her daughter's artwork made it meaningful for the client and the colorful animated art was just perfect to make the new space feel 'happy' and youthful which suited the age of the patients she sees.