a kitchen for Leila

Leila asked me to do a dream room for her. And of course I am designing a kitchen. I briefly toyed with a living room but I think Leila and I think cooking.

The perfect kitchen for Leila would be a very large open space with lots of windows and natural light. I am going with a Scandinavian sort of concept, since she is part Finnish, but I also think that style suits her. Very clean lines, no-nonsense, functional rooms. Perfect for a kitchen.

So this dream kitchen... A large, open space with lots of windows.

White cabinets, wood counters and a warm cream on the walls. This kitchen is a nice start. I don't like all the black in this picture, though. Not for Leila's kitchen. So just try to ignore all the black. And picture the walls a rich cream. Maybe even beadboard:

I like these knobs for the cabinets:

wide-plank wood floors:

a blue glass tile backsplash:this would be the focal point:
these lights would hang over a massive island:

with 2 or three of these stools to sit on and watch Leila cook:
this striped fabric would make nice, tailored curtains:
an old, scarred farm table:

these crisp white chairs:

with mismatched blue fabrics on the seats:


this sleek chandelier would hang over the table:
and this rug would go under it:
he would hang on the wall:
I would hang this cute print up, too, to remind Leila of her Mom's fabulous homemade bread:
not sure if Leila has this in blue, but she would have one in this kitchen:
and a ton of copper pots hanging from a pot rack:
a huge, rustic wine rack:

and a row of fresh herbs in the window over the sink:

So there it is. Not too flashy, but I think it would suit Leila just fine. What do you think, Leila?

this one's for Adrienne:

Adrienne's room doesn't have much color. Adrienne herself doesn't have much color. (Haha!) So the room is just white, black and red with a few punches of lime green. Short on color, long on style.

We'll start with this awesome area rug:

and then add a bright red sofa:

with some fabulous throw pillows:

these silk drapes look like pewter;
I think they are so beautiful:

an elegant coffee table:

some shiny end tables:
just in case your cell isn't charged:
add a pair of these:

and this to hold some of your books:
this lime green fainting couch,
in case you feel faint:

we could hang this little lady over it
just because she looks like you:

I just think these are cool,
(no pun intended)
hopefully your place has ac:

prop this against the wall to reflect the light:

I'd frame some rat pack albums and group them on the wall:

we'll stick some of these over against the wall,
you can never have enough seating:

Anyway, that's the beginning. I don't know about you, Adrienne, but I am totally digging this room, so I'll probably edit it a lot.

katherine's room

A few nights ago, Katherine sort of challenged me to design a room around her favorite print:


Well, actually what she said was, "I'll bet you could look at something like that print and design a whole room around it." And I have been thinking about it ever since. And so this morning, I searched online for the perfect elements for Katie's room. And here they are:

Wall color:
Curtains:
Rug:

Sofa:

some pretty blue pillows:
2 chairs:
with fancy throw pillows:
some pretty white bird wall decals:

and a huge K in honor of your cat:
for your books:

and for more books:
a writing desk:

and chair:
some lamps:
and a fun lamp:

and for your fashion magazines:
and lastly, a nice big mirror for applying lipgloss: