Friday, September 30, 2011

Vous-pouvez accepter moins?

While in Paris, I have come to realize that almost once-a-day, I fall in love. So far this week it has been the architectural model stairs, the teeny-tiny-tomatoes, the incredible bakery down the street, les cartes des légumes (vegetable note cards!), a polka-dot blouse (sadly not in my size...) and today-- I have encountered yet another heart throb. Zut alors!


I mean seriously. It's almost ridiculous how cute this is. It is biggish too-- about 21" wide, so it's no piddly piece of art we're looking at here. It's a lucky thing that I don't have any kids yet, or I would have been completely defenseless against this "gravure" (aka. etching.) Priced at 120 euros, I had to hold my ground against temptation, however I definitely liked it enough to attempt a good haggle... "Vous-pouvez accepter moins?" (Can you accept less?) I asked in my sweetest, mangling-french accent... One glance at the piece and the kooky french lady with the 1950's glasses and a huge bright-red plume of hair replied, "Le prix est ferme." (That's french for "No dice.")

Quel dommage! 

Maybe it's for the best really, since I was on my bicycle. Almost 2 feet of art strapped onto the back of my bike as I went bobbing-and-weaving through Paris rush hour did sound a little precarious anyway... (Who are we kidding here? I totally would have made it work...) 

Check out the other hits I saw in the same shop... 




These two lovely "gravures" of outlandish birthday cakes were 80 euros for the pair, framed and all. I actually think that's a pretty good deal... if I was a richer woman. (Sadly, I'm not.)


I liked this little table too. Personally, I need another shabby-chic end table like a hole in the head, but I thought the pale blue trim paint job and matching blue glass handles were pretty charming. Clearly that was not going on the back of my bike, but I thought it was good for future inspiration, and might inspire one of my readers too. I'd say that's a project in the making! 


If any of you are struck by the glory of the lovely things I left behind, you can reach that kooky woman yourself, here.

Check back in soon to see what other wonders I unearth in 
La Ville de Lumière! 

À bientôt! 

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Renovate Paris: L'Art Pour La Cuisine?

I stopped into a little shop near Saint-Germain-Des-Prés this afternoon, and picked up these terrific note cards. Originally, I thought they would be perfect to send home letters to my friends and family, until I looked at them all together and I realized...... They'd be great framed all together! Have a look:




You have to admit, they would look pretty fantastic hanging in a kitchen... maybe in my kitchen! Another great souvenir-turned-decoration to bring back to New York! C'est excellent! 

Au revoir, et à bientôt! 

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Some truly delicious photos from Paris!


I know this isn't really related to interior design or home improvement per se, but I came home from the market this morning with such a beautiful bounty, I had to post a couple of photographs... They're so tempting looking, I wondered if it wouldn't work to frame the photos and hang them up in our kitchen... Talk about an affordable souvenir!



I guess I could use this moment to emphasize what a terrific "accent" a big bowl of fruit or vegetables can be in your kitchen. They can introduce a bright splash of color into the room, and encourage healthy eating to-boot. Talk about multi-purpose! Check out these images from these interior design big-wigs and you'll see what I mean...

Lemons! 
Apples! 
More apples! 

Yow! Apples AND grapes! AND they sprang for bread in this one...

Just so we're clear, I AM NOT suggesting you decorate your kitchen with loaves of bread or menacing looking bread knives, but there is no reason why you can't find design-inspiration in beautiful things from unexpected places. And the real perk of all this gorgeous fruit: pile it all up in a bowl on your counter, and then you'll get to enjoy how it looks while you're also enjoying how it tastes.  


Au revoir from Paris! 
Check back soon for more news from here!

Monday, September 26, 2011

Vous ne devinez pas...

... where I am!

I'll give you a few of hints:
-Baguettes, berets, and bicyclettes are all thought to be popular accessories here...
-The locals seem to cringe when you try to speak their native tongue.
-Some of America's most creative minds have come here to live and work...
-One of the most famous paintings ever lives in a museum in this city...
-C'est la ville de lumière!

Oui! C'est vrai! Je suis à Paris! 
I have actually been here for almost a week, but John and I decided we'd disappear in Paris for a bit, so my apologies for being M.I.A.


It is no secret that Paris is brimming with beautiful shops and picturesque streets, but I thought I would try to keep you up-to-date on what's happening in Paris right now. 

John and I stopped by a little book shop on the edge of the Bastille, selling intricate to-scale models on wooden staircases. They ranged from 120-200 Euros, but they're drop-dead wonderful, so I'll forgive them that gigantic price tag.


I originally saw a collection of these architectural model staircases at The Cooper Hewitt Museum in New York, and they've stayed with me ever since.

The ones on display at that exhibit were even more spectacular-- check out the ones shown below:


So, you can imagine my genuine surprise when I decided to buy one for myself... I guess it was the "you only live once" mentality, but I took the plunge, and can't wait to get it home and unpacked. 


John captured my very shocked face as I emerged from the bookstore, carrying my miniature staircase. Notice how I cling desperately to my now-empty wallet. 

If you want one of your own miniature staircases, Ballard Designs sells a reproduction for a hefty chunk of money too. 

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

HOLD THE PHONE! After-Dinner-Design How-To-Tutorial!

Hang onto your hats people, because we're doing a tutorial today. If you're here reading After-Dinner Design for viewing-pleasure-web-candy only, this step-by-step project might not be to your liking, but if you're here in a learn-by-observation capacity, TODAY IS THE DAY!

Side note: Did anybody else already realize that the acronym for After-Dinner Design is A-D-D? 
Too bad it isn't O-C-D... that would really be more fitting. : )


What are we building, you ask? Why VALANCES of course! 

How To Build Your Own Window Valances: 
Tools for this project: 
-6-pieces of wood cut to size
-Drill and 1 1/2"- 2" screws
-Fabric of your choice
-Batting (optional)
-Staple gun
-Screws or L-Brackets to mount valance


 1.) Start by measuring your windows and building your frame. My windows are 46.5" wide each (from the outside edge to outside edge of the molding...) so I bought a 48" long X 12" wide X 1" thick piece of wood (pine?) from Home Depot, and then 2- 12" long X 3" wide X 1" thick pieces for each side. This adds up to 6 pieces of wood total for the two windows (two - 48", four- 12".)

Are we all on the same page so far?

2.) Then John and I drilled the three pieces together so they overlapped and created a three-sided box. We used regular drywall screws for this, but wood screws would also work. (As shown in the picture at right.) This is the frame for my valance!



We're on a roll.  
3.) Next, I stapled on my batting. This isn't really a vital step, especially if you're using a bulkier fabric, but if you prefer a more pillow-y look, go for it! I literally bought a bag of batting from my local craft store, laid it out and wrapped it around each corner of the frame, hit it with a couple of staples to keep in place, and BA-DA-Bing, onto the next step...


FABRIC! 

Maybe you remember that I had a surplus of fabric left over from recovering the two chairs in our kitchen? I love this fabric, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to add more of it to our kitchen aesthetic.



4.) Cut fabric to wrap around frame and staple again. Remember when you're doing a project like this-- you can always cut off excess fabric, but if you make it too small, you just have to start over from scratch.


5.) Keep on stapling! Make your way around all four sides, folding over the fabric and pulling it nice and tight. Once you've finished, flip it over, and voila! Valances! 


6.) Putting them up proved to be a little bit of a challenge in our kitchen because there isn't a lot of space on the out side of each window. We decided to screw directly through the sides of the valances right into the window frames, which worked out really well. The fabric pattern disguises the screws, so you can't even tell that's how they're up!


Well check us out! We've got jazzy new valances up and things are really looking swank in Brooklyn! 


There is still more to come, so check back soon to see what else we're doing! The fun never stops. 

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Renovate Brooklyn! New-To-Me Danish Modern Desk!

Whoa-nelly! You're not going to believe this, but an incredible friend just bequeathed me the most remarkable teak secretary desk. It's svelte, it's graceful, it's practical. It's everything I'm not. Ha! 


No seriously, this is one hot desk. Take a look.   : )


 





















That stunner of a desk is now perching lithely in my kitchen, with my recently reupholstered desk chair rolled right up, and they're looking like peas-in-a-pod.

And all of that for a grand total of $20.00! 
($5.00 chair, $15.00 fabric, $0.00 gorgeous desk!)


Sweet! 

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Photo-Op on the Country Porch!

A few weekends ago, I decided to tackle the furniture on our screened-in porch again. The porch at Fox Ridge has always been an awkward space-- a little too shallow to make it comfortable, and a little too divided by the placement of the front door to make it useful.

That said, I decided to take another crack at it, and am totally chuffed with my results! (Ps. Chuffed is a slang English term meaning very pleased with yourself...) Not only does the porch now function much more comfortably, but it also lends itself nicely to photo-shoots, as demonstrated!



Wouldn't you like a glass of lemonade out on this porch? 
I'd say so! 

Renovate Brooklyn: Office Chair Reupholstered!

A few weeks ago, I picked up an old, mid-century style office chair at a yard sale. The back was a little busted up, and the seat cushions were made of worn and grungy black leather, but with a $5.00 price tag, I thought it had lots of potential. And if not, I could roll it out to the curb without much heartbreak or money wasted, that was for sure!

I plotted to recover the seat, repair the broken frame, and then recover another chair in the kitchen in the same fabric so they created a lovely cohesive corner of my kitchen...

Well, done and done!

A little wood-putty and a bit of dark wood stain later, plus roughly one-and-a-half yards of this gorgeous fabric, and I've got two "new-to-me" chairs that are brightening up the home-office corner of my kitchen.

I'm contemplating using the remaining fabric to build two window valances for another little POP of color, but I guess I'll have to see how busy the weekend proves itself to be...

I know, I know, it's been a while...

I really am going to get back into blogging about all of my D-I-Y antics, but I have been busy. BUUUUSSSSYYYYY.  I know I've said that before, but all of my previous "busy" was small potatoes in comparison to this busy. Whoa.

HOWEVER, I just encountered something I HAD TO MENTION, because they are so ludicrously charming, they simply can't go un-sung!

Take a gander... If you know New York or Paris, you'll love them even more, but I'm pretty sure anyone can appreciate these terrific visual simplifications of each beautiful city...






If it was legitimate for people over fifteen to make birthday wish lists, these would definitely be on mine. (Hint, hint, my birthday is next week people...

UPDATES ON THE BROOKLYN APARTMENT RENOVATIONS:

-Unbelievably beautiful new-to-me-handed-down-secretary-desk in the kitchen! 
-Mid-century desk chair reupholstered to match periwinkle kitchen cabinets! 
-New-to-me-handed-down-coffee table! 
-New smaller-dining-table-turned-chalk-board!
-Moving around all of our artwork! 
-Fully moved into office and 100% open for business! 

What if I promise I will get my act together soon? Then will you check back to see all of our progress? 

I know we're like the friend that always shows up late-- eventually you never believe they'll be on time-- but I really think this is the week. This ship is TURNING AROUND! 


Or maybe next week...

love, christina