Design Diary Archives - Page 11 of 19

Design Diary: Back Bay, the Day After the Day After

It finally hit me today. I slept in, wandered upstairs, and just kind of sat at my computer, with that feeling in my stomach. Thankfully, my husband had been able to come home last night, for a bit of family time—being reunited is good—and for a few hours of much needed sleep. He left again before dawn. The boys seem fine. The one that was in the area during the explosion takes refuge in the amazing law enforcement and hospitals we have here. He is energized by the presence of the police, the National Guard, and the SWAT vehicles. (Boys.) School reopens tomorrow. Baseball practice went on as scheduled tonight on the Boston Common. The Public Garden is in bloom. People are moving through. #BostonStrong

All was quiet on Beacon Street as I left my house this afternoon.

Walking towards Newbury Street on Exeter, like I do every day.
But today, there are a couple of abandoned blockades on Marlborough.

The major media team vans are parked on the Comm. Ave. mall.

News crews are set up in the middle of the street.
Anchormen’s noses are powdered.

Not much traffic.

School reopens tomorrow.
Teachers and parents met today about how to talk to the kids about it.

On Newbury, businesses are open, but access towards Boylston is blocked.

The sign said “Street Closed”, but the camera doesn’t pick it up.

Walked one block on Newbury to my CVS.
Behind, on Boylston Street,
is the Crate & Barrel and Starbucks near the second blast,
which you likely saw on TV.

Picked up and dropped off my husband’s shirts at the dry cleaners.
Normally it’s not something he’d dream of asking me, but in this case . . .

Turned around and walked down to Dartmouth.
Not particularly crowded, despite the gorgeous weather.

Plenty of tables open at Stephanie’s today.

People left flowers at the intersection of Newbury and Exeter.

Strolling towards Dartmouth.

A group of policemen in front of the Newbury Street Starbucks.

Some news activity at the corner of Dartmouth and Newbury.

A sign like that of dearest Martin.

And of course, cops here too.
That’s Old South Church to the right.
Across Boylston, with the flags is the Boston Public Library.

Boston is still beautiful.

Headed back home. Trees in bloom on Comm. Ave are lovely.

A little later I head to Boston Common.
National Guard (I think) in camo.
Police cars from as far as Cape Cod are in the vicinity.

SWAT truck is undeniably cool. And scary.

He runs off to baseball practice, undeterred by the spectacle.

I walk home through the Public Garden, which is blissfully free of all that.

The willows are surely weeping today.

But the trees still bloom.

Design Diary: Stephanie Sabbe’s (Big) Small Style

I’ve been acquainted with Boston interior designer Stephanie Sabbe for a while, but just recently got the chance to formally collaborate with her. (I did run into her outside my apartment one day—we recognized each other from our blogs!) I wrote “Made To Measure” about one of her projects, a 1,000-square-foot South End condo, in the newest issue of Boston Home magazine. Doesn’t she look great? Can you believe she was really, really pregnant in this photo? Stephanie had her baby last week. Congrats!

Stephanie Sabbe

Doctors Christine Liang and Andrew Bond, who purchased a1,000-square-foot South End condo in the summer of 2011 after considering a larger house in Jamaica Plain, knew that in order to make their urban choice work, they’d need to be efficient. That they’d also be frugal was a given. Interior designer Stephanie Sabbe, who spent seven years designing commercial office space, immediately understood the couple’s mindset. Sabbe points out, “Corporations pay rent by the square-foot, so efficient space planning is key. Similarly, city apartments are too expensive for people to not be utilizing every square foot to its maximum potential.” Working with a few pieces they already owned, including the living room sofa, Sabbe balanced thrifty buys and cost-saving, crafty solutions with custom designs and a few well-placed splurges to create a space with an effective floor plan and a look that’s anything but big box.

The main challenge was to create a formal dining area without overwhelming the space. After “a lot of studying with masking tape on the floor,” says Sabbe, they realized they’d need a dining table that was narrower than standard ones, but not as skinny (or high) as a console. Striking out on the retail front, Sabbe convinced the clients to spend a little more for a custom piece. Sabbe commissioned Jim Sears to weld a metal base and Cambridge-based Harvard Glass to cut a 30-inch wide by six-foot long glass top.

The couple requested a reclaimed barn wood table, but Sabbe convinced them that glass was the smarter choice, being less of a “visual space eater.” Bond says, “She was firm about the table, and totally right. We love its airiness.” Sabbe assembled an eclectic mix of seating options around the piece that all but disappear when not in use. A pair of chairs from IKEA stand at either end, while two ottomans, also from IKEA, and a handmade bench by Providence-based Darn Good Barn Wood, spotted at the SoWa Open Market, tuck under the long ends of the table. The low profiles keep the line of vision towards the city view free and clear.

In the kitchen, Sabbe recommended just a few enhancements. She used magnetic blackboard paint on the side wall so things could be tacked up there rather than the fridge, which faces the main space. They added a pair of Vintage Farmhouse Caged Pendants by Junkyard Lighting, doing the work themselves. Also, a new industrial style faucet scored on Overstock.com. At the kitchen counter are machinist stools, which swivel down from bar to table height, and allow two more people to squeeze in when needed. The copper wall clock is from Pier 1.

Sabbe created semi-custom hybrid slipcovers for the IKEA armchairs in the dining area by attaching the long skirt from the company’s HENRIKSDAL slipcovers to its NILS seat covers. Excess fabric became lumbar pillows for each chair. The ottomans are SOLSTA PÄLLBO footstools (only $15!), with leg extensions added on, and slipcovered with IKEA curtain panels.

You’ll recognize the West Elm chevron rug, a steal on sale that Sabbe snapped up knowing the homeowners would be psyched, along with some throw pillows. They already owned the sofa, which works just fine. They added the trio of ceiling lights from Barn Light Electric, which cast pretty shadows on the ceiling. The concrete style Elements coffee table is from CB2 and the table lamp is from local design shop Lekker.

Bond spent a month priming and painting a vintage Dansk credenza in their garage parking spot. “The BMW owners on either side of me were definitely nervous when they saw the chartreuse paint,” he jokes. The couple, who are huge Craigslist fans, found the piece on the site for just forty bucks. The floor lamp is from IKEA, the black leather armchair they already owned, the artwork around the TV is mainly from the SoWa Open Market, and the used books are from the Brattle Book Shop in Cambridge.

Sabbe is the first to admit that she used a number of mass-market retail pieces here, but her expertise lies in her ability to pair them with other budget-friendly finds to create a space that hums with personality. “We wanted a collected look,” she explains, “so it was important to set the tone right away, in the foyer.” Luckily, the grass cloth wall covering was already there, costing the clients nothing but supplying plenty of hearty texture. In need of a super skinny table to fit the narrow space, the homeowners tapped Darn Good Barn Wood for a reclaimed wood table. Above, Sabbe hung another piece of Americana, an eagle-topped convex mirror in order to break up the linearity of the hallway. A framed painting, a sketch from an antique shop, and the “I Love This Town” print from Etsy complete the tableau.

The couple purchased a new bed, a floor model from Crate & Barrel in Cambridge, but—and Sabbe agreed—saw no need to throw out a perfectly good, if not dull, plain white duvet. Sabbe asked a seamstress jazz it up with a solid chartreuse border, and also had her make matching drapes. Custom coordinating Schumacher pillows add extra polish. The sconces, which the homeowners installed themselves, are by Visual Comfort.

The black and white photos above the bed, which make a punchy, graphic statement and pick up on the gray tones in the striped West Elm bedding, are photos that Liang and Bond took on their travels. Sabbe used Photoshop to make them look like Polaroids, then spent $30 at Kinkos to have them printed and laminated. She used wooden trouser hangers to hang them on the wall. Crafty girl!

Photos 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 by Bob O’Connor

Does someone in your house often misplace the remotes? Think about getting extra replacement remote controls to have hand, just in case. Store them nearby in the credenza or bookshelf, with the DVD player and such.

Design Diary: Lisa Kreiling’s Gorgeous Townhouse

I first saw the work of Boston-based designer Lisa Kreiling of LTK Interiors almost two years ago at a South End Urban Showhouse organized by Ricardo Rodriguez. I was beyond thrilled when Rachel Slade, editor of Boston Home, assigned me a full feature (cover story, no less), about the four-story, 2,200-square-footSouth End townhouse Lisa shares with her husband and his two kids. Her former boss, Jeffrey Katz, did the architecture and Cheryl Katz and Kevin Musumano from the studio helped with some design choices. You can read the full piece, “City Slick”, but first, look my spread below. (Images, as indicated by Maine photographer Trent Bell. Others par moi.)

s u m m e r 2 0 1 2

photo by Trent Bell
The living room is an eclectic chic mix of old (sofa), vintage (chairs), inexpensive (coffee table), and treasured travel finds (rug). The wood floors were dark when they bought it, but they stained them another two or three coats, darker still.

Nude watercolor by Marie Schlect, the mom of a stylist Lisa worked for in New York years ago. She had it framed at A Street in the South End. Lisa uses Boston-based Joaquim Schmidt to hang her artwork.

photo by Trent Bell
The chandelier, which is hung in the corner, super low, is from Charles Spada in the Boston Design Center.

photo by Trent Bell
The red velvet sofa was her husband’s “from forever ago.” Oddly, her parents had an identical one when she was growing up! The line drawing is by Cocteau, purchased in Paris. It took them forever to decide where to hang it.

photo by Trent Bell
A sea urchin lamp from Mohr & McPherson in the South End becomes a natural design object. She calls it her “pet.”

photo by Trent Bell
The framed drawing, by architect Jeffrey Katz, was a wedding gift.

A World’s Away bar cart, purchased at Hudson in the South End, is tucked in the corner. She jokes that the art over it is very manly—two boxers and a bullfighter.

photo by Trent Bell
OK, design lovers, name that chandelier. Yup, from Workstead in Brooklyn. The table is Danish modern from her mom, and she bought the vintage chairs years ago from Abodeon in Cambridge. The upholstery is vinyl, so she drapes sheepskin over them, and jokes that she buys a new one every time she goes to IKEA. The mirror was a street find from when she lived in NYC and the buddha is from Red River Trading in the South End. Look at the entry at the right. Love the bue walls!

The abstract artwork is by her husband’s friend, Gary Koepke.

One of the reasons Lisa fell in love with the house was the old cracked skylight with chicken wire glass. Sadly, the glass needed to be replaced.

photo by Trent Bell
Lisa arranged postcards, photos, and kids’ artwork on the second floor landing.

photo by Trent Bell
Her stepdaughter’s bedroom has a bright Marimekko comforter and IKEA pendant.

A shot of the gir’s desk and Shepard Fairey poster. I didn’t take a photo of the boy’s room, since he was home sick from school that day.

The kids bath.

Another work by North Fork painter Marie Schlect hangs on the fourth floor landing.

photo by Trent Bell
Two vintage dressers stand back to back in the closet/dressing room. She bought the mirror online from Wisteria. The linen Roman shades add a touch of softness.

The master bedroom has bookshelves expertly tucked into the corner.

The master bath is done in 12×24 Dolemite tile with a very milky honed finish. The floor tiles are slate, some honed, some not. They added a skylight to the space, which she says, “Changes your life.”

photo by Trent Bell
The kitchen is on the ground level, which they gutted. She always knew she’d do her kitchen in white subway tile with black grout. The floor is painted with Farrow & Ball deck paint in “Arsenic.” The Kubus farm table is from Lekker, and the Thonet chairs are actually cheapie plastic.

The kitchen leads out to the garden area. They blew out the back wall, replacing it with windows, painted in black. Notice that the baseboards throughout the house are also black, on the recommendation of her former associate Kevin Musumano. (Sorry my computer is in the photo!)

The outside space, covered in pea stone. Uplighting makes it feel like a room at night.

The open floating shelves displays white pottery, inspired by Cheryl Katz’s collection of Astier de Villatte pieces. Peek around the corner and notice the wall with the clock—it’s painted with blackboard paint (also Kevin’s rec) to give the space a defined end point. The Rohle faucet was a splurge.

Portraits of Lisa’s two stepchildren.

The walls of the downstairs powder room are lined with walnut flooring. The ceiling is gold and the sconces from Urban Electric.

Local carpenter Andrew Trainer built the shelving into the exposed brick wall. The window seat is topped with a custom linen covered French mattress, another splurge. She covered the ottoman with a piece of Madeline Weinrib carpet that was left over from a client. The leather chair is from Anthropologie and the sconces from Restoration Hardware. The rug was purchased in Morocco on their honeymoon.

Design Diary: Jr. League Show House Boston

The 35th Jr. League of Boston Show House in the Potter Estate in Newton closed on Sunday. I didn’t make it over to see it in person, but I rounded up a bunch of gorgeous photos and sketches. Many of the rooms were done by designers I’ve often collaborated with on stories for local publications. Many thanks to photographer Michael J. Lee for sending over a whole batch of images. If any other designers who participated in the show house have photos or sketches of their rooms, feel free to email them to me and I’ll happily add them here.

BATH RETREAT

Design by Ana Donohue

Photograph by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

GUEST BATH

Design by Janet Marena, JTM Interiors

Photograph by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

THE BATHING ROOM

Design by Stephanie Rossi, Spazio Rosso

Photographs by Greg Premru

– – – – –

LADY’S ROOM

Design by Elizabeth Benedict

Photographs by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

MASTER BEDROOM SUITE

Design by Kristen Rivoli

Photographs by Greg Premru

– – – – –

KID’S ROOM

Design by Andra Birkerts

– – – – –

GIRL’S BEDROOM

Design by Mally Skok

Photographs by Eric Roth

– – – – –

THE FOYER

Design by Dianne Ramponi Interiors + Susan Welsh Design

Photograph by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

GUEST ROOM

Design by Hilary Bovey, Bovey Steers Design Group
Photograph by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

POTTER’S ROOM

Design by Marilyn Macleod, Lee Design
Photograph by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

LIBRARY

Design by Theo & Isabella
Photograph by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

CONSERVATORY

Design by Gerald Pomeroy
Photograph by Michael J. Lee

– – – – –

According to Wicked Local here are some details from two other Boston designer friends from whom I haven’t had a chance to get photos yet:

Paula and Kate McCusker of Theodore & Company converted the home’s former chapel into a blue and cream formal but relaxed living. They removed the old altar to expose a bay window for extra light. Artwork included a graphic black and white work by Picasso.

Kate Maloney Albiani designed an adorable nursery with tiny painted fairies on striped lavender walls. Details include double glass pulls on the built-ins, a poem made from old-fashioned reading cards, and a closet filled with tiny clothing.

Design Diary: Hearst’s Designer Visions Showhouse

I wish I could have made it to New York for this year’s Hearst Designer Visions show house. It is set in a brand new warehouse-to-condo conversion building in TriBeCa. They paired each magazine with a designer—Matthew Patrick Smyth for Elle Decor, David Rockwell for House Beautiful, and Antony Todd for Veranda. Then, the spaces were used as sets for two short films produced by The 48 Hour Film Project. Here’s a look at the rooms.

E L L E D E C O R

Matthew Patrick Smyth

Smyth fashioned an ornate 19th-century door frame into a headboard, fitting it with a gray mirror and mounting it with a Venetian painting.

California Closets

Raoul Dufy Feuillage wallpaper by Hermès.

Living room with black walls and statement mirror. Check out the feet on the ottoman.

Sleek Perimetric hood by Jenn-Air; grey crackle Soleil wall tiles by Ann Sacks; Sandpipe cabinets and handles by Poggenpohl.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

H O U S E B E A U T I F U L

Architect David Rockwell, Rockwell Group

Peruvian mirror

cork floor tiles line the walls

media room

art pottery display

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

V E R A N D A

Antony Todd

The walls are painted in Benjamin Moore Blue Danube.

Color Preview Collection Silver Fox by Benjamin Moore paint; drapes are Arles by Dedar; linen bergère armchair by John Rosselli Antiques; Old Bronze Burke floor lamp by Hudson Valley Lighting.

Walk-in closet by California Closets. Done with Lago® Italian Pietra finish with wenge backing and horsehair-colored, leather-lined drawers.

Walls are painted in Silver Fox by Benjamin Moore; drapes in Pavillon fabric by Dedar; two-cushioned Etienne sofa, Gregor side tables, and Hart chair upholstered in Dedar’s Rataplan, all by Ironies; Claremont Old Bronze Wall Sconce by Hudson Valley Lighting; floor lamp by Rose Tarlow; Cocoon Bell rug by Merida.

Mirror glass tile backsplash wall by Ann Sacks; Countertop in the River Series Grey Amazon Leather® Texture by Silestone by Cosentino; +ARTESIO Terra Matte Kitchen Island Cabinets and Handles by Poggenpohl; leather barstools from Restoration Hardware; Rolling Bar Cart by Antony Todd; red gingham dog bed & bowls by Wagwear; appliances all by Jenn-Air.

In the media room dainty slipper chairs and tiny tabourets are paired with a low-slung custom sofa and a seven-top 21st-century cocktail table. Walls painted in Benjamin Moore’s Night Shade camouflage the window casements, which allow the art to stand out.

P HO T O C R E D I T S
Rockwell Group: Photographer Thomas Loof for House Beautiful, 2012.
Antony Todd: Photographer Max Kim-Bee for VERANDA.
Matthew Patrick Smyth:Photographer Björn Wallander for ELLE DECOR, 2012.

Spread the style:

Spread the style:

Spread the style:

Spread the style:

Spread the style: