Classic with a Twist

Christmas Ornament Favorites

How is your Christmas Tree decorating going??

We have found a few favorite ornaments around town that we had to share with you! Be sure to check back later in the week for pictures of my own Christmas decorations in my new house!!

1, 2, 3, 4.

Tuesday, December 11, 2012 Comments: 0

Thom Filicia - American Beauty Book Signing

Yesterday we were able to meet Thom Filicia at the Kravet Showroom for a book signing of his new book, American Beauty!

His designs can be found all over the Kravet showroom in fabrics as well as in our furniture line, Vanguard, through many amazing pieces of furniture!

American Beauty is all about his personal ranch home and is filled with Vanguard furniture and Kravet fabrics!

He left such a sweet note ;) And definitely shared our love of Vanguard!

Here are a few sneak peeks from within his book!

We love the Vanguard console pictured in the back of this image!

Such a fun event and lots to learn!!

Happy Friday!!

Friday, December 7, 2012 Comments: 10

Christmas Gift "Decor" and Wrapping in Style

If you can decorate your house for Christmas, why can't you decorate your presents as well??

It is time for the Christmas shopping, and ~~finishing up~~ starting the wrapping! As much fun as it is to decorate your home, making your gifts look extra special can be just as rewarding! As I sat on my floor, with several rolls of papers spread out across the room, ... I thought it might be a great idea to do a post about gift wrap "decor"!

Check out a few different DIY tips for GREAT Christmas wrappings!

Candy Cane Wrapping - Make your own with solid color wrapping and white ribbon wrapped around the box.

Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart

Dye Cut Decor: Personalize your gift boxes with initials!

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Snow Bunnies: Part of the gift can be used as the gift wrap as well, such as an ornament or other small item!

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Candy Cane Candy: Who doesn't like a present wrapped in CANDY?

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Soft and Sweet: Neutral colors, burlap and linen flowers and ribbons create this snow wrapped present.

"Buttons" : Add bits and pieces of the seasonal flowers and garlands to top off your presents.

Doodle your Gifts: Let the kids draw on thick paper and make a one of a kind wrapping paper!!

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Stamp away!! If you love to stamp, get-a-going on your favorite solid paper to make YOUR VERY OWN wrapping paper.

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Snowflake cut outs as the paper of choice.

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Happy gift wrapping!

Until next time,

Tuesday, December 4, 2012 Comments: 0

There's nothing better than "Crisp Black and White"...

(no arguing here baby,... call me:)

and that goes for your bathrooms too!

TCI and New York, New York are at it again-

A complete renovation of a guest bath in this

Uptown Beauty-

This black and white color scheme is classic,

contemporary, clean and won't ever be outdated!

The combination of custom tiles by Sonoma Tile Makers (sourced at Natural Selections)
really create the color palette in this bathroom.

The black painted crown molding (tough sell to NY, NY by the way) and coordinating
mirror frame help to create a bold focal point for your eye to catch.

The accent inset in the shower was a very custom and time consuming piece of this bathroom...

but WELL worth it for the outcome!
(I think the tile installer hates me:)

Along with the black custom cabinetry by Kraftmaid and floating framed, abstract art pieces....
all coming together to form a stunning black and white bathroom!

The waterfall faucet was also a special touch to the above counter basins by Kohler.

Where did we come from?

Here is the shocking Before and After!

Took it to the bare bones including a new cast iron tub by Kohler

Need a few other ideas of how to bring your bathroom to a designer "black and white" bathroom?

Here are a few tips!!

1. Wallpaper: This is a ~~old~~ new contemporary touch of boldness to accentuate walls.

2. Work with your tiles.

Find a specific black and white tile you love and form your concept from there.

3. Be bold with your wood.

Paint, paint! Don't be afraid to paint your cabinetry!

4. Be classy:

Stripes are always a fun, AND contemporary touch to bathrooms. Vertical stripes will help to
make your ceilings seem even taller ;)

One of my favorite projects... call us if you want one too!

Monday, December 3, 2012 Comments: 0

Client Project: Lucas Custom Build in Progress

Always a pleasure to spend time dreaming and designing with our sweet client, Ronda.

As you know, we've been working on this custom build in Lucas for quite a while now

which proves that extraordinary projects take detailed planning.

Playing paper dolls:) with mosaic tile strips, a dirty visit to the job site to confirm trim work and

wall texture as well a trip back to Antique Floors in Dallas where we found this gorgeous

Vanilla Onyx and laser cut decorative tile for the master bath combination.

Good things come to those who wait... and plan! It's a joy and privilege to work

with Ronda on her beautiful, transitional home.

Friday, November 30, 2012 Comments: 1

Client Project: Contemporary Fireplaces

I can't wait to show you this finished project!

Do you remember my client,

New York, New York?

We recently completed the photography session the full house renovation and we

will gradually share with you all the different rooms of the house!

Starting off, we reveal the living room of this stunning home,

and it's unique, custom fireplace surround.

A full room view helps to give you a feel for the masculine, clean and transitional style.

This beveled, stairstepping fireplace creates a stunning focal point for the room.

We flanked the custom wood fireplace with lounge chairs and bunching cubes

to frame out the style perfectly.

Want to see where this space started??

The Before

Do you like the look of a contemporary fireplace, but don't know where to start in the design?

Check out a few pointers below!:

1. Decide on a color scheme.

Do you want to create warm wood tones, or cool, grey stone colors?

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2. Create straight, clean lines in your formation.

When deciding on your mantel and style of your fireplace, be sure to stick with lines that form the style "contemporary". Clean lines, straight lines.

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3. Choose your material.

What would you like your fireplace to be constructed from? Stone, brick, plaster, wood?
Sometimes it is nice to go with a mixture as we did with the fireplace at the beginning
of this post. We mixed wood with tile.

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4. Floor mounted or floating firebox?

For an even more contemporary look, many like to create a "floating" fireplace by mounting their firebox a foot or so above the floor without creating a seat or step below. Another great option is to bring your fireplace and firebox all the way to floor as we did!