Mood Board Monday: a goth baroque interior

Someone once asked me if I could design a room for a client who wanted everything all in black. I told him I would enjoy the challenge. This concept was fun. I felt like I was Morticia Addams picking out beautiful things for my creepy old mansion.

Art by Nanfe

Art by xooxoo

Art by savodraws 

These are by Edward Gorey.

Mood Board Monday: a hair salon in shades of amber, copper, and gold

Another hair salon concept designed around an amazing chair. This one is reminiscent of the 1956 Eames Lounge Chair. I decided to continue the theme with warm shades of amber, copper, and gold throughout, with some playful leopard and cheetah prints and a fun graphic textile featuring ladies with beautiful Afros.

Art by Alvin Epps

Mood Board Monday: this bedroom is pretty in pink

I designed this bedroom around my You Are Beautiful, Too! comforter. It's colorful with an emphasis on pink. Floral motifs are everywhere. The pink chandelier and faux fur chair give it a touch of sophistication, while the patterns I chose keep the overall look whimsical and fun.

Artwork by Vashti Harrison

Mood Board Monday: bedroom in a half shell, turtle power

If you've been following this blog or have ever visited my art studio, you know that I am a longtime fan of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. So when I thought about designing some bedrooms for kids, that was the first character theme that came to mind. And with a wealth of TMNT merchandise to choose from, it wasn't hard to find accessories. But for the sake of being practical about the design of this hypothetical room, I decided to only get TMNT accessories and not furniture, because what if a kid is only going through a phase of being a fan of a character? Much of the furniture I chose is in varying shades of green, with a rugged, urban feel. The rest is also made of metal but has a distressed look. The fire escape shelving is ideal for displaying action figures. The bookcase is great for books and perhaps a TMNT vehicle or two. The cuckoo clock and bronze turtle shell wall art elevate the look.

Design Chicago 2019

I learned so much at this year's Design Chicago conference and saw so much beautiful furniture and fabric! Here are a few of my favorite things.

bathtubs from Victoria + Albert

Alta upholstery

fabric from GP & J Baker

Devon & Devon

Ann Sacks

Paris Ceramics

Christopher Peacock

Viking Range

Samuel & Sons Passementerie 

A. Rudin

Bentwood of Chicago

setup for the VIP Gala

One of the most innovative things I saw was this light fixture from Art + Alchemy. They took advantage of the properties of LED lights to create a piece that requires no wires.

Of all the new products I saw, the one that impressed me the most was from Moore & Giles. They have found a way to use olive leaves, a byproduct of the olive oil industry, to create dyes for their leathers that have all the benefits of vegetable and mineral dyes with none of their drawbacks. You can read about it here.

As always, I learned a lot, had a great time, and look forward to next year's event.