A huge shout out to my fave design stars Susie and Heidi Bauer of Rock Scissor Paper who recently turned me onto the gloriously Post-Modern (PoMo) design of the 1984 LA Olympics by the very colorful Deborah Sussman. I'm obsessed - I wanna go back to the 80s. I mean 1984 with Marylou Retton? C'mon Mar... And guess who else came on my radar in 84? Yup, Madonna!!!
As my quarantine house painting project draws to a close, it’s time to pop back inside and check in on my Living Room. Because of the cathedral ceiling height, I had to leave this room to the professionals as well.
In keeping with my clean, modern Scandinavian look, I went with Benjamin Moore’s Decorator White on the walls and White Opulent for the trim. I really like the 2 contrasting whites. Why no color you may ask… Well, it was gray before and I wanted a brighter change.
I’ve coined my interior “Mid-Century Mountain,” I better copyright that. In addition to some great vintage items, I’ve collected pieces and furniture from some of my favorite brands with a retro spin…
Urban Outfitters, Design Within Reach, West Elm, CB2, Crate & Barrel, Jonathan Adler, Patch NYC, Annie Poon, Cardboard Safari, Muji, Crosely and IKEA… Quite the melange. But my fave is still the pink horns from Cody Foster.
The next chapter of my Coronavirus / Covid-19 pandemic quarantine home improvements project (wow, that’s a mouthful) was painting and redecorating my 3-season front porch.
This porch is one of my fave rooms in the house but it was beyond dirty. I think because it’s so wet in my area and the room isn’t totally air-tight that it gets really dirty and moldy. I was at the paint store and this guy said to just wash the walls with bleach and it would kill the mold. Aside from the stinky smell, he was correct. I barely had to wipe down the walls… The bleach just annihilated everything and left beautiful walls that barely looked like they needed painting. But I forged again… Besides, I wanted a slight color change.
Here’s the before. Not too bad, just a bit shabby.
One side bleached the other moldy.
Look at that beautiful fresh painted floor.
PPE more for the bleach than covid-19.
For the walls and trim I went with Benjamin Moore Exterior, White Dove (OC-18), Semi-Gloss. The floor is Benjamin Moore, Floor & Patio Latex, Light Gray and then there’s the ceiling, which I did in Benjamin Moore, Icy Blue (2057-70), Flat. And here’s why…
The existing ceiling was painted a light blue and I always wondered what that was all about. Was is supposed to evoke sky? Well, I did some research and here’s what I found: It’s called Haint Blue and it’s a tradition of painted porch ceilings blue in the South - originally created from crushed indigo plants.
From Wikipedia:
Originally, haint blue was thought by the Gullah people to ward haints, or ghosts, away from the home. The tactic was intended either to mimic the appearance of the sky, tricking the ghost into passing through, or to mimic the appearance of water, which ghosts traditionally could not cross. But while the enslaved Africans of the Low country and their descendants believed in the protective power of haint blue, the cultivation of indigo to produce the dye energized the 18th-century transatlantic trade, thereby increasing the enslavement of Africans.
As Gullah culture mingled with white southern culture, the custom became more widely practiced. The use of haint blue has lost some of its superstitious significance, but modern proponents also cite the color as a spider and wasp-deterrent. However, the color has not actually been scientifically shown to stave off bugs.
Once the painting was done, it was time to sass up the decor… I kept what I had but took out some of the wicker chairs to highlight the 2 vintage Eames chairs I have. They also compliment the orange Jonathan Adler chair. And then I brought out the 2 Lilly Pulitzer for Target lounge chairs. And doncha love that orange pouf from CB2?
And in my little dining area, I put my Bea Åkerlund (Lady Gaga and Madonna's Stylist ) for IKEA crown bowl as my centerpiece surround by fun thrift store floral art.
And the after image… Can you feel the HAINT?
2017 was an incredible year. Thank you to all our amazing clients, friends and family. We did some incredible store window displays, some transformative interiors and are working on an exclusive Bike Rack design for the City of Kingston. With 2017 being so amazing, we can only expect great things from 2018. Stay Tuned...
Ace Hotel, Portland! 🏞🌳🐻 #PDX #inspiration #coolinteriors
