Inspired by purple, white, and blue

Remember this image I posted of my little Mother's Day carnation?

I have been thinking that the vivid purple and white blossom and the blue and white porcelain cup was a very nice color combination.  In fact, it inspired me to make a little room design based on the color scheme.

Purple always reminds me of this dining room that appeared in Domino:

Obviously those purple walls steal the show, so almost everything else in the room is fairly neutral.  However, let's pretend that those curtains on the right actually frame a set of French doors that lead into a little sunroom.  What would that look like?

Since it's my imagination we're talking about, the little conservatory off the side of the house would look like this from the exterior:

Victorian orangery by Sunspace Design

And here's what the inside looks like:

Since this would be more of a room for just lounging, playing games, or tending to plants, I would include a white sofa with slipcover that can easily be laundered (and won't have any problem with fading in the sun).  The coffee table is an aluminum outdoor table from Restoration Hardware, and on either side of it I would place a beige Klismos chair with cool Greek key nickel tacks.  The blue side table is actually a midcentury chess set; mount the set itself on the wall and remove it whenever you want to play.  Underfoot, choose one of ABC Carpet's color reform rugs, which are made by redyeing antique rugs in more modern colors.  In the corners of the room, use the bleached wood side tables as plant stands.  The Robert Kauffman fabric brings together all the colors; it's a lightweight chiffon, so I would line the drapes for more body.

Sources

Rug - Color Reform rug from ABC Carpet & Home 

Blue side table - 1960s aluminum table and wall-mounted chess set from 1st Dibs

Side chairs - Greek key klismos chairs with nickel tacks from Global Views

Sofa - Ghost sofa-bed from Gervasoni
Purple pillow - Fern pillow by Fern Living at Gessato
Blue pillows - Pair of square teal pillows at Target
Coffee table - Outdoors aluminum klismos table from Restoration Hardware
Plant stands - 18th century Lion's Head side tables from Restoration Hardware (topped with white and purple orchids)
Curtain fabric - Robert Kaufman chiffon from Fabric.com, lined

Inspired by...snowy fields

As we drove across Kansas, Missouri, and Iowa on our way home from our family Christmas celebration, the clouds broke and the sun shone bright across the harvested fields.  The snow covered ground revealed where deer recently had made their paths perilously close to the holiday travelers.  Our son said, "Look, Mommy, reindeer tracks!"  If only...

I snapped this picture from the interstate.  I thought the combination of blue, white, and gold was really pretty, so I decided to turn it into a little "inspired by..." post.

This week I am turning the inspiration picture into a dining room.  Here's the room design:

First, I would paint all the walls and moldings a soft, very light taupe color.  Then I would paint the ceiling a pretty robin's egg blue to correspond with the sunny Midwest sky.  The dining table and bench have a whitewashed finish.  You could do two benches flanking the table with an armchair at each end, or only use one bench and place a couple chairs along the other side of the table.  Ballard Designs also has a nailhead cover that would be pretty on the Parsons chair form (without arms).  The slipcover I chose is a sturdy, elegant linen.  The chandelier is the most literal reference to the farm inspiration picture: it has a chrome frame with wheat etched onto the glass shade. (Yes, I know that the field shown in the picture is actually corn, not wheat.)

To set the table, I would use the Marimekko tablecloth, which looks like swirling grasses, topped off with simple white dinnerware and a couple of luxe finishing pieces: the cute Kate Spade navy accent plates with gold polka dots, and the timeless Stieff sterlingware (I really like this pattern!).  Just because this room design is inspired by the Midwest doesn't mean that it has to be really country or rustic!  If the Marimekko cloth is too modern for your taste, you could easily substitute a solid color tablecloth in gold, light blue, white, or beige.

Sources:

Dining table - "Provence" trestle table from World Market

Dining bench - "Provence" from World Market

Two arm chairs - Parsons armchair with Suzanne Kasler linen slipcover from Ballard Designs

Chandelier - chrome wheat chandelier from Linens 'n Things

Accent plates - Kate Spade "Allison Avenue" for Lenox

Dinner plates - Rim dinner plates at Crate & Barrel

Silverware - "Golden Winslow" by Kirk Stieff

Tablecloth - Marimekko "Lepo" from Crate & Barrel


Like seeing room designs?  Have an idea for an "inspired by..." post or another room design you'd like to see?  Leave me a comment and let me know!

Inspired by...the New Year's Eve ball

{photo credit: Times Square Alliance}

Today's room design inspiration is the famous crystal ball that drops in NYC Times Square to celebrate the new year.  Of course, the ball is only part of a huge spectacle that involves fireworks, confetti, bright lights, and crowds of people.

{photo credit: Countdown Entertainment, LLC, via Times Square Alliance}

To translate the spirit of New Year's Eve to a room design, I aimed for colorful and extravagant exuberance.  Here's what I came up with:

I used a combination of shimmery metallics and luxe materials (wool, velvet, marble).  A wool rug in various shades of blue grounds the room, and the blue velvet sofa picks up on some of the lighter blue tones in the rug.  A yellow gourd lamp and gold stool/side table add a couple touches of warmth to the room, and a multicolored throw pillow and watercolor provide some pattern.  Because it's a room inspired by New Year's Eve, we need lots of shiny things, hence the mirrored dresser, gold stool, and chrome legs on the coffee table.  The white marble top of the table adds a natural texture that is still polished and elegant, but a break from all that blue!  And the most important part, of course, is a sputnik chandelier to reference the New Year's Eve ball itself.

Sources:

(Click on the product names for links)

Hemera Series Sputnik chandelier - $748

Mister Knorr gold stool - £1,030.00

Contemporary Blue Velvet sectional sofa - $1,787

"Pay Attention to the Signs" original watercolor - $95

Yellow ceramic table lamp - $208

Blue Fusion wool rug - $290

Fireworks crewelwork throw pillow - $78

Clairmonte mirrored dresser - $977

Smart round marble-top coffee table - $300

Have an idea for an "inspired by..." post?  Leave me a comment and let me know!

New column: "Inspired by..."

I am going to be starting a new column next week in which I periodically post a room design inspired by a picture, color scheme, event, etc.  The first "inspired by..." column will be based on the Times Square New Year's Eve Ball.

The New Year's Eve Ball is a 12-foot wide geodesic sphere designed by Waterford Crystal.  The design you see in the picture above is the current version of the ball, made of crystal triangles and LEDs.  Before 2008, the ball was half the size it is now and had a combination of backlit crystals and Philips light bulbs.

{The New Year's Eve Ball - 2000-2007 design}

This design, to me, recalls the older versions with their strips of light bulbs.

{The New Year's Eve Ball - 1978}

Come back next Wednesday for a living room design inspired by the New Year's Eve ball.  Do you like this column idea?  Any suggestions for future "inspired by..." columns?  Leave me a comment and let me know what you think!

{All images from The Times Square Alliance}