Look Alikes VII

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After I saw the above photo, I thought, This will be great for my Look Alikes series.  I think pinned a bedroom just like this.

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And then I went to my built-ins pinboard and found this.

Anyone want to offer an explanation?

Update:  Traci Zeller of Traci Zeller Designs sent me an email.  "Mystery solved," she said.
Here's the link she gave.  Thanks for clearing up the confusion, Traci!

Organizing in the Kitchen

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Look closely on the left and right of the kitchen counters and you'll see a pretty display of utensils organized by type on round trays. I love the way this looks.

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Here's the same idea from last year's House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year.  The idea is to keep a glass of spoons on the counter for quick stirring and tasting as you cook.

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Another similar idea.

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And another.  I love that there are no plastic utensils here (it's a goal to get rid of mine) and that they're separated by type.  Love the texture the tray provides here. 

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The above photos have been floating around on Pinterest and have inspired me to do the following in my kitchen:

I love my glass Weck jars -- a gift from my aunt last summer.  They're wider than a typical Mason jar at the top and hold a bit more.   They make a pretty display of things I use frequently. 

This little collection of baby spoons is perfect for a quick scoop of sugar for tea or sprinkling on oatmeal.  And they're small enough to keep in the jar/canister if you want. 

 On another organizational note, the dried nuts and fruits I keep for quick kid snacks were threatening to take over my cabinet.  I was already using clothespins to keep them shut, but needed to organize them.

So I snagged this small basket from elsewhere in the house and layered them in.  With a permanent marker to label the contents, the clothespins work double duty to keep the bags closed and as a way to quickly spot what I want.  P.S.  You can see that I never painted the inside of my cabinets.  If we owned instead of rented, I probably would have painted the insides too!


Update: A great big thank you to the anonymous readers (Mom?, Sister?) who nominated and voted for this blog in Apartment Therapy's Best Home Design Blog annual contest. You can vote for and nominate your own favorite blogs. I've already nominated and voted for several of my must-reads.  To find mine, you'll have to scroll way down the bottom of the list. :)


 

Composing Photos: Styling to tell a story.

Here's another post in the Composing Photos of Interiors series, which focuses on styling.

This post was inspired by you all -- from your many comments in my last post. You all told me that what you appreciate about some styling is the feeling that someone actually lives in these beautiful spaces.

  the gardener's cottage said... 

..i think the reason why these photo shots appeal to me to much is b/c they bring the element of livability to the rooms... 

 casey at loft and cottage said... 

 ...These shots with things on the floor are some of my favorites--helps the eye move but also helps the room feel more real somehow, more lived-in, especially the pets!

Heidi @ Decor & More said...

...I always love the photos that feel as if someone has just stepped out of the frame. 

The photos I've included below are all styled to tell a story of the 

people who live in them.  

Or perhaps the idea is for you to imagine yourself living there.

Let's look at some common themes.

1.  This is where we eat.

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The story:  A leisurely breakfast of toast and coffee in a beautifully unmade bed.

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The story:  A late breakfast with the weekend the paper.

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The story:  Breakfast for the whole family.

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The story:  Breakfast for a young and hip couple.  

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The story:  Breakfast for two/three?  There's tomato juice.  Maybe last night was a big night.
   Look how the napkin is casually placed on the chair.  Perhaps to bring the eye down?


Are you sensing a mealtime theme?  It's harder to find styling showing lunch or dinner.

2.  This is where we work.

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The story:  A place to pass the time while perusing old books.

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The story:  A comfortable and pretty workspace for two.  

Or perhaps a client/designer space to meet and discuss ideas.

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 The story:  A clean, spare space -- like a fresh sheet of paper -- to write.  Perhaps a novel.

 3. This is where we prepare food.

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The story:  Making lemonade for the guests. 
Notice how the tea towel partially obscures the dishwasher.   It also brings in a another element of the coral color.  There's great  movement of the eye here, I think.

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The Story:  Family fun in the kitchen.  On the menu for dinner?
Pizza that they'll make together.

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The story:  More breakfast being prepared here.

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The story:  Fresh ingredients are out for a gourmet meal about to be prepared.

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The story:  The cook is just in the from harvesting in the garden.

4.  This is where we arrange flowers. 

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The stories all pretty much the same in this theme, so I'll refrain from commenting. 

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5.  This is where we relax and have a good time.

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The story:  teatime and backgammon.  Notice the placement of teapot and game on the floor.

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 The story:  kick-off your shoes and cool down on the screened-in porch with some iced tea and peaches.  Not hard to imagine in which part of the U.S. this porch resides.

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The story:  Ready to watch the game with beer and chips.

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The story:   A mug of tea, a game of chess, and some reading is the only agenda for the afternoon.

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The story:  Thanksgiving, of course.  In the barn, of course.
I almost didn't include this West Elm photo.  But I liked it because the ad is for the table.  What better time of year to sell tables than before Thanksgiving?

6.  This is where we clean.

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The story:  Dreamily hand washing the china, crystal, and silver.

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The story:  A spotless kitchen with an uber clean floor.
How Scandinavian.

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The story:  Martha lives here.

7.  And now for the oddballs.

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The story:  You know, just sittin' around in the parlor havin' a Coke.
This one cracks me up.  Who would ever think to style with Coke?  Guess it matches the pillows.

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No real story to be told here.  But if one must be told, then it is this:  It is utterly too difficult to pick which white bowl will next be filled with flowers. So while we think, we might as well have some rosé and nibble on tangerines.  And perhaps kick around a wooden sphere.  
(Really wish I had found this photo in time for my styling the floor post.)
Strangely, this is my favorite styling in the entire post.  I love the way everything looks together. 

A few things to note:

• Notice how these stories romanticize the act of eating, preparing food, working, and yes, they romanticize cleaning too.  As for arranging flowers, that's always romantic. 
• Scroll back up and notice which colors are predominately used for styling.  Either that, or I'm subconsciously attracted to this particular group of colors on the color wheel.
•  These are the stories I invented as I viewed the photos.  We are all meant to create our own stories for how the rooms are used, I believe.

Look Alikes VI: The Cheater's Edition

I'm cheating on this one because I'm pretty sure they're the same porch.

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Notice the styled shot with the casually placed pots on the ground.  
This photo says, Sit down on the comfy chair, read the paper, relax.

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Here we have a tighter peek shot.
This photo says, Welcome.  Come in and see what's inside.

You can see more of designer Ken Fulk's Napa Valley cottage here.

Does anyone know which is the more recent version?

Do you like one more than the other?

Update:  Many of you pointed out that the first photo looks like Pottery Barn.  And it is!  Who knew?  Interesting that so many prefer the non-Pottery Barn image...

Things that Caught My Eye

Here's a post of random things that have gotten my attention this week. 

One

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The above photo may not be new to you, but it was to me.  My jaw hit the floor when I saw this on Two Ellie.  (It suspect it was published sometime in the last three years, after my twins arrived on the scene two months early and when I subsequently lost all interest in interior design in my all-consuming desire and duty to keep them alive.)

 My jaw also dropped when I realized all these fabulous pictures I kept coming across on blogs and Pinterest belonged to one man, Mark Sikes.  His house was recently featured in House Beautiful, but you can see more pictures on this post at Habitually Chic.

After I posted about using decanters as a vase for single stems of flowers, I noticed that the two above photos had similar vases.   I'm not claiming at all to have come up with this idea.  Rather, I think these images subconsciously burned themselves into my brain, and I couldn't help but copy!

my photo

Two

I do love kitchens.  I hope you don't mind me posting about them all the time.

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 Check out this peninsula made from an antique piece of furniture!  Here's another view of it in what I deem to be a kitchen with pure personality and sense of self -- if a kitchen had a sense of self.

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Yeah, I think this kitchen has a sense of self.

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And boy, is she a beaut!

Three

More kitchens, You All.

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 Not enough room for deep counters doesn't mean you can't have full-sized sink. 

I have a special place in my heart for teensy kitchens.  I once had a kitchen even smaller than this, if you can believe it.   I could stand at the sink, and turn and stir something on the stove, and then reach into the fridge without taking more than one step.  It was one of my favorite kitchens to date.  Wish I had a picture...

Four

One more.

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  What is this place?  Is it even a kitchen?  Whatever it is, it is captivating.  The stainless steel sink with built in drainboard, the marble backsplash, the pretty metal shelve above it...  

The thing I love most, however, is that cool paper towel holder.  Do you think the swing arm rods are attached?  Where does one even find such a thing? 

Look Alikes V

Purrrty stripes...

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 I have to disclose that I got the idea for my occasional Look Alike posts from Nicole of the blog

I Hate to Alarm You. 

Nicole is an artist living in Washington D.C. and she begins the week with a "Monday Match" post, where in her words,

"I post an image of an interior that reminds me of a work of art either in its palette, composition or mood."

Here's one of my favorite editions of Monday Match.

 

photo credit: Jean-Marc Palisse. Designer ?

 

Frida Kahlo, Le Due Frida

Here is what Nicole wrote about her choice for the match:

This room reminds me of Kahlo's painting not only because of the obvious references to human organs, but also because of the mirror as a symbol of self reflection, and the two chairs (red and blue) as stand-ins for the two sides of oneself. I also like that Kahlo's palette is a keyed-up version of the interior's palette, and that both images include a set of outstretched hands.

If you are thinking, Yeah, but Camille, your Look Alike posts are imbecilic compared to Nicole's, then you are correct.

If you enjoy interiors, arts, and smarts, you should check out Nicole's blog.