CasaSugar

Home Library: Found Style

CasaSugar — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 08:30:10 -0700

Sometimes I like to revisit books that may be oldies but are definitely goodies, like Amy and David Butler's Found Style, published back in 2003. Since it's also prime season for antiquing and garage sales, it seemed only appropriate to introduce you all to a book that offers sensible, inspired advice on integrating "found" objects into your home. Amy Butler, whose fabric designs I love, brilliantly combines garage sale $1 finds with midcentury furniture, Pottery Barn accessories, and practical, Ikea pieces in this book.

Using simple guidelines, such as buying pieces that serve a purpose, taking your time to integrate your new finds, and focusing your design on your personality and needs for your home, Butler, along with her husband, document rooms in various houses (and gardens) that are both elegant and practical. With full-color photographs by Colin McGuire, the book is absolute eye candy for design junkies, and with the Butlers' sensible advice woven throughout the text, rather guilt-free candy at that.

View 5 Photos ›

Source

Home Library: Found Style

CasaSugar — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 07:30:33 -0700

I love incorporating found objects and beautiful old junk into home decor, but this style can easily look unkempt or chaotic if not done right. That's why anyone with a weakness for flea-market scavenging and junk collecting should check out Found Style: Vintage Ideas for Modern Living by David Butler and Amy Butler.

The charming, almost minimalist rooms featured in this captivating coffee table book offer some of the sleekest, chicest ideas I've ever seen for decorating with found objects. Page after page, Found Style presents clean palettes that balance vintage-y pieces with ultra-modern accents for rooms that are welcoming and novel. The publisher is currently out of stock of the book, but you can find a new and used copies on Amazon. To see a gallery of photos from Found Style, read more

View 7 Photos ›

Coveted Crib: Kate Walsh's Lovely LA Home

CasaSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:00:17 -0800

Kate Walsh's 1920s Spanish-style Los Angeles home is featured in this month's issue of InStyle, and I'm blown away by how glamorously laid-back it is. While elements like a Steinway grand piano, lush fur throws, and a 1960s Lucite console offer that prim Old Hollywood look you see in many celebrity homes, there is something really layered and livable about it that I found unusual. Turns out, Walsh eschewed her usual interior designer route and hired the set decorator of Private Practice, Melissa Levander, to put the space together. Come take the tour!

View Slideshow ›

Etsy Finds: Chic Chandeliers

CasaSugar — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:00:39 -0800

Store-bought chandeliers are no bargain, but they're also not one of those things you can "fake 'til you make." So, shopping at Etsy for vintage and handmade chandeliers is a great way to find high-style pieces at affordable prices. I did some digging, and let me tell you, it wasn't long before I found dozens of chic chandeliers. Take a look.

View Slideshow ›

Show Me Your Casa!

CasaSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:00:21 -0800

Add any new additions to your home lately? A new pendant light? Have you wallpapered? Bought a new coat rack? Whatever you're doing, I want to see it!

To learn how to join and post in the group, read more.

To join the Su Casa group, just follow this link and click "Join Group" on the right-hand side of the page. Once you're subscribed, click New Post on the upper right-hand side and choose what type of post you want to create. If you have just one photo and some text, create a text post; if you have a bunch of photos you want to share, select "gallery." The Community Help Group has a great primer on how to create a text post, so check that out if you've never posted one before. Here's a rundown of the basic process:

Su Casa can be found by clicking on See My Groups & Blogs from your member name drop-down. Once on the group homepage, click on New Post and choose the type of post.
Add a Title and the Body (content for your post). Don't forget to click the Check Spelling link and Upload an Image to make your post stand out!
In Advanced Options, add appropriate categories and tags. Click on Save Post and voila!

Source

Show Me Your Casa!

CasaSugar — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:00:04 -0700

Add any new additions to your home lately? A new pendant light? Have you wallpapered? Bought a new coat rack? Whatever you're doing, I want to see it!

Show off all of your home views, both interior and exterior, in my group Su Casa, where readers can share snapshots and stories related to home decorating, crafts, organizing, and gardening. A Su Casa post could be anything from a photo of a loved-one's home to a tiny nook you're tickled by. Think of it as a look book for home style. If I see something I like in Su Casa, I might ask you if I can feature it on CasaSugar.
To learn how to join and post in the group, read more.
To join the Su Casa group, just follow this link and click "Join Group" on the right-hand side of the page. Once you're subscribed, click New Post on the upper right-hand side and choose what type of post you want to create. If you have just one photo and some text, create a text post; if you have a bunch of photos you want to share, select "gallery." The Community Help Group has a great primer on how to create a text post, so check that out if you've never posted one before. Here's a rundown of the basic process:

Su Casa can be found by clicking on See My Groups & Blogs from your member name drop-down. Once on the group homepage, click on New Post and choose the type of post.
Add a Title and the Body (content for your post). Don't forget to click the Check Spelling link and Upload an Image to make your post stand out!
In Advanced Options, add appropriate categories and tags. Click on Save Post and voila!

Source

Home Library: Style and Substance

CasaSugar — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:00:59 -0700

For 20 years, Elle Decor's chic issues have offered readers ideas and inspiration for their homes. I've been collecting a giant stack of dog-eared Elle Decor issues for the last 10 years, so I'm excited to announce that the best of the magazine can now be found in Style and Substance ($45) by Margaret Russell and the editors of Elle Decor. I was thrilled to receive a (personally autographed!) copy of Style and Substance in my mailbox, and couldn't wait to review the book.
To hear what I think, and to get a sneak peek at some of the chic interiors featured in the book, read more.

The book's 240 pages are an embarrassment of interior decorating riches. Featuring inside peeks of the homes of everyone from Miles Redd and Sarah Jessica Parker to Yves Saint Laurent and Monique Lhuillier, there's plenty of inspiration to be found. Hundreds of spaces are featured, and each chapter is relegated to a different room, including living rooms; libraries and home offices; dining rooms; kitchens; bedrooms and boudoirs; bathrooms; children’s rooms; and terraces, gardens, and pools. Besides gorgeous images, the book also offers smart decorating tips as well as a source book that features Elle Decor editors' favorite shopping websites and stores. Style and Substance is a wonderful resource for armchair decorators of any style. With homes that range in style from bohemian to classic, there's something for everyone here. Margaret Russell writes in the introduction that

[Elle Decor's] most beloved design characteristics? Personality, passion, joie de vivre, and flair. It's true, our most dazzling stories feature people with fearless style who don't care what others think - and those who are curious, confident, and cosmopolitan will always find a place in our pages. We believe that luxury needn’t be expensive, and there’s no reason affordable furnishings shouldn’t be chic. And when offered a choice, we’ll take a bit of patina and wear and tear over brand-spanking-new decor every time.

I think that this is a timely decorating philosophy, and while we may not all be able to afford a marble-clad master bath or a custom-designed bejeweled chandelier, we can all aspire to create a more beautiful, confident, and chic home, and with Russell's tips, now it's a lot easier to do just that.

View 5 Photos ›

Casa Beta: Home Decorators Annandale Jute Area Rug

CasaSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:00:52 -0700

Jute/natural fiber rugs are a great versatile, nondescript choice for every room in the house when you're not trying to make a statement but rather just pull a space together. I'd been looking for one for a sitting area in my home, and found that the prices really ran the gamut. I've seen super-simple 5-x-8-foot sisal rugs for only $50, and thicker jute rugs like Pottery Barn's Flat-Braided Jute Rugs for $300. For such a faceless style, I really wouldn't spend more than $200. I like the thick cushioning of the more expensive jutes, but I've also found that some designs are too rough underfoot. So I'm definitely particular about them.

Home Decorators Collection recently sent me the 5'6-"x8'6" Annandale Jute Rug ($159, reduced $199) in Natural to review. Wondering what I think of it? Then read more.

I've found the Annandale to be a really high-quality rug. It's thick and durable, like anything you'd find at Pottery Barn and Crate & Barrel - always my comparison. But this one in particular is woven with both jute and chenille, making it softer than a 100 percent jute rug. This is definitely a plus.

I've given myself some time with the rug, and found that it stays in good form with foot traffic and vacuuming, both things that can cause many rugs to lose their luster. It also has a latex backing which keeps it from slipping and stabilizes the weave, so you don't have the added expense of a rug pad.

The rug also gives the space the casual look I was looking for, and instantly pulled the seating area together. So I would definitely recommend the rug to any of you on the hunt for that same effect.

My beef with the rug, though, is that it really doesn't resemble the product image on Home Decorators site - at all. The natural color is much, much lighter online than in person. Luckily, it seems to work in the room. But also the rug's weave looks only vaguely like the product image. Home Decorator's site does disclaim, "The digital images on our website are as accurate as possible. However, different monitors may cause colors to vary slightly." But really I think that's no excuse. Capturing candid photographs is no mystery anymore, and plenty of retailers seem to have it down.

Home Library: Downtown Chic

CasaSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 09:00:47 -0700

No academic course will teach you how to give a derelict house a gut renovation and turn it into a fantastically unique, high-style home. That skill comes with experience and serious design savvy, something which Robert and Cortney Novogratz accidentally learned they had.

After renovating their first home in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood 10 years ago, which then was a neglected, not-so-fashionable area, they realized they had a knack for building and decorating, together. Since then, they've renovated and designed numerous buildings in and around NYC, including an entire block in SoHo and a house in the country, and founded their own design powerhouse, Sixx Design. As a memoir of sorts chronicling seven of the couple's projects, the Novogratz clan - did I mention they have seven children? - published Downtown Chic: Designing Your Dream Home, From Wreck to Ravishing. Hear my thoughts on the volume when you read more.

The first seven chapters of the book each cover a house the Novogratz couple have renovated, including lots of before and after shots. The duo offer advice learned from each experience, such as how to handle contractors, tips for buying a wreck, how to make your house renter-friendly, and how to mix high- and low-cost furnishings.

While the book jacket says each project proves "time and again you can bring charm to any four walls - and do so affordably," it actually just left me with a sense of envy, and with the reminder that the word "affordable" is all relative. The pair do have a knack for flea marketing and using vintage artifacts and architectural treasures in a unique way, but having the time to do so is a luxury in itself.

The book is full of tips like taming bold colors with neutral furnishings and mixing modern pieces with regional furnishings that in theory are helpful and affordable. But in reality it's the Cappellini coffee table, the luxuriously upholstered bed frame, and the couple's extensive collection of artwork that make me want to "get the Downtown Chic look."

This book is definitely a treat to read. It offers a sneak peek into one family's wonderful life as well as lots of inspiration, but in all likelihood, it won't solve the everyman's design woes. But then again, I guess you can hire Sixx to do that for you.

Nice and New: Barbara Hulanicki Flock For Graham & Brown

CasaSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 15:00:54 -0700

Legendary fashion designer Barbara Hulanicki, who founded the iconic London boutique Biba in the '60s, is taking her signature art-nouveau style to the walls. She has created Graham & Brown's Flocked Collection, including five exclusive flocked wallpaper designs - Skulls, Ophelia, Shoes, Baroque, and Antoinette. Flocked wallpaper has a history over three centuries long. But like Hulanicki, it did have a heyday in the '60s and '70s, so it's a very fitting collection.

The papers go for $125 for a double roll, which is pretty reasonable for such luxurious material. Baroque, with a Victorian-inspired geometric pattern, and Ophelia, with a sophisticated floral pattern, are the most tame of the designs. Meanwhile, Skulls, Shoes, and Antoinette have more playful, eccentric imagery. Maybe it's just because Halloween is near, but I'm really drawn to Skulls. It has a mischevious quality that's almost shocking, because you don't recognize the pattern right away; I'd love to use it in a small dark corner of my home.

View 5 Photos ›