My Second Love: White

Showing posts with label White. Show all posts

White Walls

Yesterday we had the painter here to talk about painting our bedroom and Edward's future big boy room. My friend, who was over earlier, asked eagerly what colors we were using. I was like, "ummm Linen White for Edward's room and the same color as our trim for our bedroom (Benjamin Moore Simply Irresistible)." She laughed, "you and your white walls." It's true. All I want are white walls. I'm so boring.

But I love white. I wear it a lot. I gravitate toward ads with a lot of white space - I know, random, I was an advertising major. I can only sleep in white sheets. And I feel like white walls only serve to highlight beautiful pieces of furniture and fun accent colors, especially blue and white. I don't need all my walls to be white. In fact, most of my walls were perfectly papered or painted when we bought the house. But it seems to be the best choice for these rooms based on what I want to do decor-wise.

So here's my pitch for white. Notice the rooms with beautiful wood pieces. I have a whole pin board devoted to white & wood, that's how much I love it.

via TG Interiors

Lonny

Traditional Home

via Cote De Texas

Suzanne Rheinstein

Mark D. Sikes in House Beautiful

All of these spaces soothe me. Of course, this totally may be a function of the post-Christmas need for simplicity. I know, I'm not alone in that. Just watch. Come March, I'll be freaking out, "I neeeed color!!!!" And you'll be like, "Lady, pull it together! You just spent the last 6 months complaining about the color assault on your eyeballs."

Speaking of color, next week I'm going to reveal my selection for Belclaire House Color of the Year - the color I need now (Remember when Southern Accents did that series. sigh....) Any guesses? Hint: not white sillies.

Ok have a lovely day!

Lonny Love ~ Small Space Inspiration

Yesterday, the December issue of Lonny arrived in my inbox, and when I got to the small studio apartment of Matthew Knowles, I stopped to go back and read the print next to the pictures. That pretty much never happens. I don't have time to read magazines, silly. But, of course, Matthew Knowles just happens to be the general manager of Charlotte Moss's interior design firm and I always break for Charlotte Moss and her peeps. Whenever her name is mentioned in an article there is something to be learned.

I had the tiny dorm room that I featured yesterday on my mind and this apartment offered a similar classic, layered look, but as a study in neutrals. I loved it and had to share it with y'all.

I love what he did with his desk area and the use of white and texture as opposed to bright colors. I always marvel at people who can have white living quarters in Manhattan. When I lived there, I always came home so dirty. But I'm sure anyone that works within the sphere of genius that is Charlotte Moss is also protected by a special anti-dirt force-field. That's just how I imagine Miss Moss works. Like she can look at you and make you clean with her eyes.

To see more, visit the new issue of Lonny here.

P.S. I am really a fan of Lonny photographer Patrick Cline's work. I don't know what it is, maybe the lighting, but he seems to have a definite signature style. I really need to take a photography class, you know in all my spare time.

Trad Home Spring 2012

Morning y'all! I'm back from my self-imposed time-out. Last week was rough with my little munchkin having pneumonia and then my husband and I got a touch of the flu. I'm happy to report we are all healthy finally. I had my college girlfriends in town for the weekend and we took off for Columbia, MO on Saturday to relive our college days. I might be an old bubbie, but I could not get over the outfits these young ladies were wearing. Lots of mini-skirts and Kelly Bundy dresses. It was really just at this one bar, but there were lots of cute girls dressed as prostitutes. We always laugh because when we were in college everybody wore "black pants and a cute top." I'm sure we pushed the envelope of good taste as well so I won't judge. Anyway, it was a superfun weekend and just the break I needed to feel like myself again.

Sunday, I needed some couch time if you know what I mean, so I had a chance to look at the Spring 2012 issue of Trad Home (Traditional Home's toe-dip into the world of digital magazines). Here's what I liked:

Loved these rooms by designer Allison Hennessy, especially this entryway.

Kip would love this outdoor terrace. He loves outside, golf and brick.

While a little more contemporary than my taste, I do love the mix of textures and the soothing colors in this bedroom by Tamara Kaye-Honey:

Sunny, happy rooms by Grant K. Gibson, a designer I've admired for awhile now. (Love the blue door peeking from behind the window in the kitchen below)

Timothy Whealon designed this fresh lavender and white bedroom, which might be my favorite room in the entire issue. It was just a small image and not part of the New Trad Designers round-up, but I loved it the most.

I also really liked the bedrooms in this South Carolina beach house designed by Birmingham designer Tammy Connor.

All of these rooms are so fresh and light, which I tend to migrate towards more than dark and heavy. Overall, it was a good issue, although looking back at my post on the first issue I think I liked that one better. If you want to check out the Spring 2012 Trad Home see here. Hope y'all have a great Monday!

See my roundup of favorite rooms from the first issue of Trad Home here.

Houses I Like ...

When I see a pretty white house, I get the same sort of endorphin high that I get when I lay my eyes on this picture:

Just sheer, utter joy and happiness combined with a tiny hint of raging jealousy that it's not mine.

Today, I'm mourning the "contract pending" status on a house I've been eyeballing for months. It certainly wasn't mine to lose, but I felt a sort of ownership over it as I was the one who visited it daily on various real estate websites and gazed at it lovingly, imagining all of the painting and wallpapering I would do to make it pretty again. But alas, it wasn't meant to be. So I'm going to take the high road and show you houses that are better than that house because I never wanted him anyway.

I know this is lazy of me, but all of these houses can be found here, on my Pinterest board appropriately titled Houses. I clearly have a thing for white houses. Do you have a certain style of house you find yourself admiring over and over? I'd love to hear about it!

Random Obsession: Landscapes on White Walls

My little sister is obsessed with Buddy the Elf. My other sister went through a phase when she was around seven years old where she was obsessed with all things Tempur-Pedic. My brother is obsessed with food. Ok that's not weird, but if you ever see the look in his eyes at a restaurant as the waiter arrives with his food, you'd think otherwise. Anyway, none of this is really relevant, except that I am having a random obsession moment that is apparently normal in my family.

Landscapes on White Walls. I don't know why. Maybe it's a desire to have a clean space. Yep, it definitely is.