Sweet Swedes!

Dormer

Gorgeous Chandelier

I love look the look and feel of Swedish and Belgian design. It is always so light and airy, refined and elegant, but casual and livable at the same time. It seems as if I am hearing all my client's say they want some sort of Swedish influence in their home, steering well away from dark heavy designs like beefy furnishings and bedding and choosing to simplify their home and I think, their minds too! A few of my favorite pieces from avidHOME to bring in the look without the price tag of the real antiques without sacrificing the look! Although some are French inspired, the washed finishes of these pieces lend themself nicely to Swedish design.

As featured in Veranda magazine below, our cast iron finials look great on a mantel

Column Top

French Estate

Here is a sample of some of my current work - I have been running around the past few weeks trying to accessorize a model home that I am doing for a builder. This French estate is located in the heart of Preston Hollow in the Dallas area, most of the homes in this area have certain restriction on how far they need to sit back from the street and lot sizes that need to be maintained, so the area almost feels as if you aren't in the hustle and bustle of Dallas but really you are and everything is so close! This home is a palatial 14,000 square feet and includes a living, dining, great room, huge gourmet kitchen, theater, etc...the list goes on. I had a very limited budget on the furnishings and most of the items have been reused from previous models so please don't judge too harshly - and it is not quite finished. There are a few tweaks that need to be made! I will posting more photos in the next week or so as I finish the house up.

Houston: Antique Destination

After jetting down to Houston this weekend to visit some family, I had a couple of hours to kill and immediately ran down to Alabama St., where there is shop after shop of some of the South's best antiques. Houston's take on antiques is more casual than their Northern counterparts I am sure, but I think most people like living in a more casual enviroment that doesn't look like a museum and having to constantly live in fear that their kids (or themselves) are going to break a priceless antique. I thought I would share my pics from my quick stops along the way...enjoy!

Of course I had to put a sunburst on here - and brag about our collection as well! This one was huge and had an antique silvered convex mirror.

I love bullseye mirrors above beds and fireplace's - may be cliche by now...but it is timeless and will always look great!

(I have a source for some little ones at great prices that I am trying to update our site with.)

I think I am going to call the shop and see if they still have these exquisite trays, they were a robin's egg blue with gold etching and are so wonderful. The patina on them is fabulous!

I also fell for these Greco inspired French wood lamp bases. I picture these petite lamps in pair of chests perched upon a stack of antique books.

And last but not least, a beauiful French display cabinet. I have retrofitted these several ways for clients including changing out the glass and adding antique mirror fronts, or just keeping the glass and adding antique mirror to the back to bring in the light and make collections sparkle. I have also changed the glass out for wire mesh with fabric behind it in a little girls room to hide a TV - it turned out so cute!