Decorist: Michael’s Office & Guest Room

Happy Friday! I hope everyone is excited and gearing up for the holidays! As I mentioned on Instagram, we are in the process of moving so we plan to have a quiet Christmas here in LA before hitting the road to Lincoln, NE. Once things settle down, I promise to post all about this transition for our family. But in the meantime, I wanted to share some work I have been doing in the meantime!

I had a great client, Michael, last month that wanted a clean, bright, uncluttered home office space (for occasional work-from-home use) and comfortable guest room. He and his wife wanted a base of bright whites to make the space feel clean and fresh, while also acting as a great backdrop for some pops of color. They were open to many color palettes and ideas, so I chose to do two fairly different concept ideas to see what struck a chord with them. With only a queen mattress, the room was a blank slate waiting for us to bring it to life!

Concept 1: White with Natural Wood and Layered Soft Colors

(click image to enlarge)

“Inspired by your inspiration images with colorful yet sophisticated color palettes, this design embodies a refined modern vibe with a hint of a bohemian spirit, complete with a beautiful color palette of soft blue, rust, mustard, blush, ivory, beige, and bright white, as well as natural wood tones and metallic brass accents. The walls are painted in a crisp, bright white (BM Decorator’s White), creating the perfect clean, fresh foundation to let the color palette really pop. In addition, bright white accents (like floor-to-ceiling white drapes and a fresh white duvet) throughout make the room feel light and airy like your inspiration photos. The star of the show is the stunning modern abstract rug, which grounds the space, giving it personality and defining the color palette. The office side of the room is outfitted with a lovely natural wood desk with a mid-century silhouette, sky blue velvet desk chair, gorgeous piece of artwork, and a petite brass arc lamp. The perfect spot for working from home, the bright, airy space is functional yet minimal to reduce visual clutter. On the opposite wall, the fantastic white Moroccan bed is the perfect spot for visiting guests (or, let’s be honest, an adorable two-year-old who want to come hang with dad while he works!). It is flanked by breathtaking geometric jeweled nightstands in a washed wood and brass finish, as well as two beautiful ceramic and wood table lamps. Giving the room personality, coziness, and visual interest are the array of amazing printed and mudcloth pillows in hues of soft blue, rust, blush, and mustard, as well as a blush tassel blanket draped across the bottom of the bed and a crisp white duvet to let the colorful textiles really take center stage. Above the bed is a stunning landscape that helps tie in all of the colors in the palette. Finishing off the space is a magnificent oversized wood floor mirror (which is perfect for reflecting the light from the large window and for guests to check their outfits), luxurious floor-to-ceiling white blackout drapes, elegant brass capris shell semi-flushmount light fixture, and a mid-century planter with a fiddle fig tree to bring the outdoors in. This design walks the fine line between modern & eclectic, colorful & refined, sophisticated & fun, and luxurious & humble with an elegance that makes it a perfect oasis for working and hosting visitors!”

Concept 2: White-On-White with Pops of Bold Color

(click image to enlarge)

“Sparked by the gorgeous palettes of bright white-on-white with pops of bright color and contrast in your inspiration photos, this design embraces the elegance of layered neutral tones (bright white, ivory, and warm gray) with pops of high contrast navy, vibrant turquoise, and soft jade, as well as metallic accents in brass. Once again, the walls are painted in a bright white (BM Decorator’s White) to create a serene and crisp backdrop for the white-on-white effect and this dynamic color palette. The floating desk in the office space sets the tone for the whole room, with its sleek silhouette and upscale lacquer finish. Facing in towards the center of the space, the desk is complimented with a stunning duck egg blue velvet desk chair, sculptural dual head brass & white mid-century task lamp, and gorgeous piece of abstract artwork with a dynamic color palette. Once again grounding the space and setting the tone for the entire room, the incredible vintage-inspired turquoise Persian medallion rug runs the full length of the room, tying together the office space and the guest space. On the opposite wall, the lovely gray upholstered guest bed with brass legs is outfitted with the most amazing turquoise, navy, and jade (mudcloth, macrame, and textured) pillows, in addition to a new bright white duvet and an amazing white tiered fringe blanket at the bottom of the bed for layers and layers of white-on-white texture. On either side of the bed sit two lovely geometric patterned white & brass nightstands that feel regal and refined. Bringing a bit more of a free-spirited vibe to the space, a pair of dipped turquoise lamps grace the tops of the nightstands and a complimentary piece of large-scale abstract art hangs over the bed and captures the color palette of the room perfectly! Completing the space is a radiused bullet floor planter with a monstera plant for some greenery, floor-to-ceiling white blackout drapes to add to the luxurious white-on-white texture, a sculptural but humble white beaded semi-flushmount light fixture, and high-end brass infinity mirror for your guests’ convenience. Calming, fresh, modern, packed with cozy texture, and complete with a punch of contrast and color, this elegant design creates a perfect relaxing sanctuary for you and your guests to enjoy!”

The client and his wife very much preferred concept 1 almost as-is, but since it was going to function primarily as his office, he wanted to tweak it a bit to feel less feminine, primarily by swapping out most of the blush (he thought it looked great in the rug as an accent color but wanted to emphasize other colors).  Super fun, easy changes were made to emphasize the mustard and blues in the rug. Plus, they loved the bed from concept 2, so I made a couple substitutions to make the alternate bed work in the space! Here is the final we came up with!

FINAL DESIGN

(click to enlarge image)

“Setup Instructions:

For specific product placement, please refer to your floor plan and renderings.

• As soon as you enter the room, you will see your wonderful new office space. A stunning mid-century inspired desk with several drawers for storage takes center stage. A lovely velvet blue upholstered desk chair with brass legs, elegant brass overarching lamp, and large-scale watercolor artwork complete the workspace (which is all centered on the bed on the opposite wall).
• Centered on the opposite wall, a marvelous gray upholstered bed creates a perfect space to host guests.
• Giving the bed personality, texture, and coziness are an assortment of printed and textured pillows (please see the rendering for recommended placement), as well as a gorgeous ivory Moroccan pom pom blanket. These all sit on top of a crisp white duvet (since the weight and feel of bedding is a very personal thing, I have not included it on your shopping list).
• Flanking the bed on either side are two eye-catching white nightstands with white and wood ceramic bedside lamps.
• Centered above the bed and pulling the whole color palette together is the stunning large-scale landscape photo.
• For the convenience of guests, a full length mango wood mirror has been added to the wall opposite the window in the open space between the desk and bed areas.
• Giving the room life and lushness, a white ceramic bullet planter with wood stand houses a fiddle fig tree (consult your local nursery to make sure you are choosing plants that are suited for the light in the space. I based my recommendation on getting a good amount of natural light in the space) in the corner by the desk.
• A modern white and brass overhead fixture is hung in the existing electrical box centered in the space, finishing off the clean, sleek look.
• Finally, floor to ceiling drapes are hung around the large window to highlight it and also to provide blackout coverage when needed for guests. The curtains are to be hung with the rod centered between the window trim and the crown molding. The panels are the full 108″ so they will puddle on the floor by a couple inches. Also, the rod should be installed 8-12 inches wider than the window frame on each side so the panels can hang beyond the outside edges of the window frame. Once installed, if the curtains puddle too much on the ground for your taste, you may want to hem or hem tape the bottoms to size once the rod is installed (or install them directly onto the rod without the ring clips which will move things up a couple inches).”

After the final design was done, the centerpiece of the rug went on backorder (ughhhhhh! I hate when that happens), so we actually came up with an alternate final design with a similar rug. Thankfully it was an easy swap (and we swapped the throw too because it suddenly felt out of place with the new rug).

In the end, the client was very happy about both rug options and I think even decided they liked the alternate rug better! So all’s well that ends well! They were such a fun family to work with and hope they are already settling in to their new space, ready to (ignore work I hope haha and) host visitors for the holiday.

As for what’s next for me work-wise, once we have completed the move, I will be increasing the number of projects I take on so I am designing full-time while we get our feet on the ground! So if anyone is interested in working with me on one of their rooms, you can purchase a package on my Decorist page using my friends & family promo code Designer233073 that allows you 30% off!

Have a great weekend everyone and happy holidays if I don’t make it back here to share another project before then! :)

Decorist: Caroline’s Guest Bedroom

Happy Friday, all! It’s been a busy one around here trying to get unpacked and readjusted to our normal routine after the long trip. But we have no plans this weekend, so hopefully we can fit in a bit of relaxing around all of the remaining cleaning and loads of laundry!

As promised, I wanted to share the third project I worked on for my sweet client, Caroline, in the lovely old house in New Orleans. As with the master bedroom, she wanted this room to have an eclectic modern feeling with a hint of bohemian flair, tons of cozy texture, and a sophisticated color palette that flowed with the other rooms in her home. This room was a blank slate, with no existing items to work with (besides some AMAZING floor to ceiling windows if that counts!), which is always super fun! Caroline wanted a comfortable, functional, and gorgeous guest room to host the myriad of visitors that would inevitably come through once her little bundle of joy arrived. While her original thought was just a bed and some sort of clothes storage (as there is no closet), I also thought we should explore some additional seating, suitcase storage, and workspace options to make her guests more comfortable on their stay. So after selecting a couple of the staple pieces, here are the concepts I created for her.

Concept 1: Deep Indigo, Blush & Cognac

(click image to enlarge)

“Inspired by the neutral yet high contrast palettes in your inspiration photos, this design embraces the elegance of layered neutral tones (bright white, warm ivory, and sand) with pops of high contrast deep indigo and rich cognac, as well as metallic accents in brass. The walls are painted in the same crisp off-white (BM White Dove) as the rest of your home, creating the perfect clean, fresh foundation to let the color palette really pop. Setting the tone for the entire color palette in the space is the show-stopping medallion rug. A lovely washed wood bed is surrounded by your existing mirrored nightstands, as well as two plug-in indigo jute pendant lights. Centered above the bed is a jaw-dropping feather African Juju Hat, which gives the modern elegant space a hint of natural bohemian charm. Giving the room personality, coziness, and visual interest are the array of amazing pillows of deep indigo dye, cognac leather & velvet, sand mudcloth, and blush patchwork, as well as a striped indigo throw blanket draped across the bottom of the bed (which has a crisp bright white duvet). Not to be outdone by the incredible bed and rug, a jaw-dropping deep indigo and brass carved armoire sits on the wall opposite the bed and provides lots of clothes storage space for your guests. Floating next to the armoire is a lovely beige velvet chair for guests to sit, complete with a deep indigo pillow, cognac leather pouf ottoman, and beautiful piece of artwork centered above. Adding a few more convenient and comfortable touches for your guests, the room also boasts a gorgeous floor length brass mirror for outfit checks, as well as a white midcentury hall tree and bench (with two lovely throw pillows) for taking off shoes and hanging jackets, which also doubles as a suitcase station if needed with the cushion removed! These multi-purpose touches will ensure your guests have a comfortable and functional stay. No room would be complete without it’s eye candy, so the final touch in the space is a magnificent curved arch waterfall chandelier. Calming, fresh, modern, packed with cozy texture, and complete with a punch of bold contrast, this elegant design creates a perfect luxurious and functional guest suite for all of your friends & family already booking their visits to come meet the new bundle of joy!”

Concept 2: Denim Blue, Blush, Mustard & Natural Wood

(click image to enlarge)

“Sparked by your many inspiration images with colorful yet sophisticated color palettes, this design embodies a modern vibe with a hint of a bohemian spirit, complete with a beautiful color palette of navy, denim blue, bright white, blush, and mustard, as well as natural wood tones and metallic brass accents. To flow consistently with the rest of your home and create a fresh backdrop for the space, the walls are painted the same crisp off-white as the other rooms in your home (BM White Dove). Creating the color palette for the entire room, the incredible Persian rug takes center stage. An outstanding black metal Art Deco bed is outfitted with the most amazing dyed indigo, denim blue striped, blush striped & textured, and mustard patterned pillows, as well as a crisp bright white duvet and a rosy beige geo tufted throw blanket at the bottom of the bed. On either side of the bed sit two lovely textured modern white and brass nightstands, both of which have beautiful blush ceramic table lamps on top. Centered above the bed, you have a choice of a more bohemian navy ombre macrame wall hanging or a more modern framed beige woven wall hanging. Both have a handmade, natural feeling while creating an incredible focal point on the bed wall. Once again, not to be rivaled by the wonderful bed, a magnificent natural wood, white, and brass carved wood armoire sits on the wall leading to the bathroom and is the first thing you see when you enter. The armoire is flanked on one side by a denim blue armchair (complete with a blush lumbar pillow, striped denim square pouf, and a lovely piece of artwork centered above) and a full length brass mirror and folding, portable black metal luggage rack on the other, creating the perfect area for guests to store clothes, get dressed, relax, and make themselves at home. Another touch to ensure guests will have a comfortable, convenient (and productive) stay is the small natural wood and black metal writing desk with blush velvet desk chair and artwork centered above… now they can get a little work done while the baby (and you!) nap. A geometric capiz shell chandelier finishes off the space with a modern, natural, bohemian flair! This design walks the fine line between modern & bohemian, colorful & refined, elegant & fun, and luxurious & humble with an elegance that makes it a perfect oasis for all of your visitors in town to meet your baby!”

After reviewing these guest room concepts, as well as her master bedroom concepts at the same time, Caroline’s feedback sent this project down a super fun path! Usually the client loves one concept or blends the two concepts to an extent. As you recall, Caroline chose concept 1 outright for her master bedroom. However, there were elements of master bedroom concept 2 that Caroline loved and couldn’t get out of her head! So what she wanted to do was blend all three of the remaining concepts to create the perfect final design for her guest space! Here is the second master bedroom concept as a reminder:

So here is what she decided she wanted from each one:

I combined all of these elements together for her, made a couple more tweaks, and here is the final design!

(click image to enlarge)

“Setup Instructions:

For specific product placement, please refer to your floor plan and renderings.

• Creating two stunning, well-defined areas in the space, as well as creating a sophisticated color palette, are the pair of amazing Persian rugs. The 8’x10′ rug fits snugly in the area next to the entrance, while the the smaller vintage rug is centered on the armoire wall with the door leading to the bathroom.
• Centered on the larger 8’x10′ rug, a gorgeous washed wood bed is the centerpiece of this luxurious sanctuary! Floating on either side of the bed are two lovely parchment lacquered geo nightstands. A pair of blush ceramic lamps sit on the nightstands, framing the bed.
• Giving the bed personality, texture, and coziness are an assortment of printed and textured pillows (please see the rendering for recommended placement), as well as a gorgeous indigo and ivory striped blanket. These all sit on top of a crisp white linen duvet.
• Completing the bed wall is the spectacular framed woven wall hanging in a gorgeous rosy beige, which gives the space a modern yet handmade and natural feeling.
• Hanging on the inside doorknob of the entrance door from the hall is a perfect little tassel decor in tones of blush and cognac.
• Another wow moment in the space, a breathtaking carved wood armoire is centered on the wall with the door leading to the bathroom (and over the vintage rug) and is the first thing you see when you enter the room. Flanking the armoire are two halves of a marvelous indigo velvet tete-a-tete, creating a unique, elegant, and impactful his & hers seating arrangement around the armoire.
• Centered above each piece of the tete-a-tete are two complementary pieces of art from the same series. These help tie in all of the colors of the room, as well as create a nice balance to finish off the armoire moment. A planter with a pothos is perched on top of the armoire, breaking up the symmetry just enough!
• In one last convenient area for guests, a small natural wood and metal desk floats between the two windows on the wall opposite of the bed. A stunning large piece of blush artwork is hung over the desk and a dusty blush velvet desk chair with brass legs tucks right underneath. A gilded striped planter houses a ZZ plant on the desk to give the area a little life!
• The cherry on top is the stunning Capiz Chandelier! Since the ceiling is 120″ high and the fixture is 32.5″ high, I recommend hanging the chandelier right up at the ceiling to allow the maximum amount of clearance underneath (as guests will be walking underneath, so a 7′ minimum is advised). This will be 7′-3″ from the floor.”

I am really happy with the way it turned out! I think her guests will be wowed by both the elegant aesthetic and comfortable functionality of the space. It was so fun to work with Caroline on all of the projects we did together! What an exciting time to have purchased a home and are in the process of getting it all ready to welcome a new baby. Hopefully I made that process smooth and enjoyable for the mama-to-be! And as always, if anyone is interested in working with me on one of their rooms, you can purchase a package on my Decorist page using my friends & family promo code Designer233073 that allows you 30% off!

Have a great weekend everyone! :)