Monday Color: Yellow

Inspired by the brave daffodils that poked through the still-frozen soil weeks ago, withstood the premature spring showers, and are now blooming brilliantly in front of my house, I have chosen their vibrant yellow hue as the featured color for my weekly Monday post. If you've read past posts, you know my own front door is also bright yellow, which never failed to lift my spirits every day of this seemingly endless winter. Oddly I don't have a photo to share, but have included two bold yellow interior doors below that give me the same inner joy when I look at them. I was happily surprised at the abundance of yellow design inspiration I stumbled across in my web searches, only a fraction of which I was able to share below. Enjoy!!























Images above:

1. An example of the guest rooms at The Viceroy Palm Springs designed by Kelly Wearstler, to which I once made a pilgrimage just to be surrounded by the spirited yellow, white and black color palette.

2. Vibrant yellow interior doors posted on Remodelista. For more inspiration as an accent color, check out their brilliant post here.

3. Barn-style interior door in the same yellow hue.

4. A sunny breakfast nook created by designer Palmer Weiss.

5. An innovative use of color on the risers of a traditional staircase, via design blog Live.Like.You.

6. A genius wall art idea: ceiling medallions dipped in yellow paint.

7. A shot of a wall in Superette, the restaurant that is solely responsible for making me want to visit Capetown, South Africa.

8. Bright yellow ceiling fan, available from Sears.com.

9. Recycled Veranda Planter in Sunshine Yellow from Amazon.com.

10. DwellStudio's Facet Rug in Cream/Citrine (8'x10' shown; other sizes available)

11. Carpenter Lamp in a hi-gloss yellow powdercoat finish from cb2.

Etsy Love: Bird Mafia

It's Saturday and spring has decided to visit us again! Birds are returning from migration, the air is fresh and my to-do list is getting lots of checkmarks today! My happy energy and spring fever led me to an Etsy shop called Bird Mafia today, where I promptly fell in love with every offering. Adorable printed organic cotton pillows (including ones shaped like assorted wildlife), organic cotton toddler tees, funky handmade scenic shadow boxes, and innovative coffee cuffs (the eco beer cozy!) are all equally lovable. Astonishingly, every screen-print and shadow box starts with artfully cut paper, the basis of Bird Mafia's intricate crafts.


This is the cut paper printed pillow that drew me to Bird Mafia initially: organic cotton Star Pillow in Marigold (also available in Teal).


"Ever Green I" cut paper shadow box featuring vintage maps.


Organic cotton Owl Pillows (also available in the shapes of raccoons and bears).


Handmade organic cotton Coffee Cuffs.


Organic cotton Kids Owl T-shirt (several other designs available).

Shop Japan: Yaginoyama

The pervasive news coverage of the catastrophe in Japan may have subsided a bit, but it's up to everyone to continue the prayers, the support and the generosity we've shown to date. So much more is needed. I heard on the radio yesterday that Gwen Stefani donated one million dollars to Japanese relief efforts. Amazing.

As mentioned in previous posts, I'm using my retail powers and blog roll to aid the cause (in addition to giving what I could monetarily through Global Giving). One quaint little online Japanese store called Yaginoyama has gained worldwide recent exposure, including a post about their wares by Anne Sage, editor of Rue Magazine and The City Sage. Click here for her piece on the unique retailer, who is currently giving 10% of every purchase to the Japanese Red Cross. Be sure to check out their website; it's adorable and minimalist in a way that only the Japanese have perfected. Here are a few of my Yaginoyama favorites:


Sora Tea Pot


Handmade pottery Jug


Soy Sauce Pot


SyruRo Tea Canister


Painted Wooden Childrens Plates

Monday Color: Honeysuckle

As some of you may know, Pantone, the world's leading authority on color, announces a "color of the year" every December. After consulting trendsetters in the home, fashion, and consumer goods markets, they boldly marked 2011 the year of Honeysuckle.

Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute® explains "While the 2010 color of the year, PANTONE 15-5519 Turquoise, served as an escape for many, Honeysuckle emboldens us to face everyday troubles with verve and vigor. A dynamic reddish pink, Honeysuckle is encouraging and uplifting. It elevates our psyche beyond escape, instilling the confidence, courage and spirit to meet the exhaustive challenges that have become part of everyday life.

“In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues,” explains Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute®. “Honeysuckle derives its positive qualities from a powerful bond to its mother color red, the most physical, viscerally alive hue in the spectrum.”

Eiseman continues, “The intensity of this festive reddish pink allures and engages. In fact, this color, not the sweet fragrance of the flower blossoms for which it was named, is what attracts hummingbirds to nectar. Honeysuckle may also bring a wave of nostalgia for its associated delicious scent reminiscent of the carefree days of spring and summer.”

I had to dig deep, but do indeed recall fond memories of the sweetly aromatic bushes that lined the driveway of one of my childhood homes. Most of the blossoms were white, so that is my most prominent association with the flower, but there were brightly hued fuchsia bushes as well. Last year's color Turquoise was more befitting of my personal decorating tastes, but a few months into the year and with the color heavy on my design radar in magazines and the vast blogosphere, I am starting to appreciate Honeysuckle's vibrancy and uplifting powers, although I haven't been bold enough to try it on anything more than my toe nails just yet!!



















Images above:

1. I love the simple pop of this pink chair, found on Style Estate.

2. Insight on this daring designer's living room, as quoted from www.bhoome.com: "In her own 1940s bungalow, interior designer Natalie Umbert opted for an eye-popping fuchsia—Benjamin Moore Royal Fuchsia 2078-30—after trying several neutral wall colors that she deemed 'forlorn'.”

3. Honeysuckle stands up surprisingly well in ethnic room schemes, especially when paired with an equally spicy orange as seen in this image from www.idesignarch.com.

4. A teen's room I designed using bold pink, punches of orange and crisp white in 2010.....before the trend hit!!

5. A pink-themed feast from Traditional Home.

6. A hot pink lacquered bureau from Chelsea Textiles featured in a recent Elle Decor piece, both in the magazine and online.

7. A hand-painted Balinese basket from The Loaded Trunk.

8. Hi-Light Task Lamp from PB Teen.

9. Hot Pink Brooke Rug from Madeline Weinrib.

Etsy Love: My Bearded Pigeon

With recent natural devastation turning a sympathetic focus overseas, the feeling of a global community is profoundly more present and real than usual. Before we all go back to our default single-mindedness within our constructed geographical borders, I wish to take a moment to appreciate this feeling and imagine how it would be if it were always like this. (Especially for us Americans, many of whom, I hate to say, behave as if there are no other lands beyond our shores much of the time.)

For today's Etsy shop pick, I found a seller who crafts organic cotton pillows emblazoned with maps of the world, various countries, states and even cities, bringing a quirky global accent to any room. My Bearded Pigeon is an Australia-based shop, specializing in these fun pillows. Featured below is a map of Japan and states from both coasts as well as a few picks from their non-map designs including an inspiring quotation on lined notebook paper and blank notebook paper. I love the simplicity and old school design feel of all of My Bearded Pigeon pillows.

Hide & Sleep

Remodelista's recent post on alcove beds was inspiring; depicting innovative space usage, emphasizing the modern trend toward comfort, and making me feel an afternoon nap coming on. Here are some of my favorites from the post, with a few of my own window seat and sleeping nook finds added in:


A modern bed at the Hotel Aire de Bardenas in Spain (from Remodelista).


A built-in reading niche by Piet Boon (from Remodelista).


A built-in bed in Minneapolis, via Dwell (from Remodelista).


A window seat hideaway found in Ideal Home UK, via Dwellers without Decorators.


The perfect place to hide from the world.


As seen on The Green Door.


Guest room alcove beds from Posh Posh.




The two photos above feature a living room I designed in Atlantic Beach, NY and a close-up of the window seat lounge.


A cozy spot for reading and afternoon tea that I designed for a Manhattan client.

America's Least Wasteful Cities

Naglene, manufacturer of a variety of BPA-free reusable containers, has created an intriguing website rating major American cities on their wastefulness. Check it out: www.leastwastefulcities.com. Not surprisingly, San Francisco takes home the prize, however I was interested to learn that New York City came in 3rd. This would be even more encouraging, had they not ranked 2nd in 2009 which either indicates an uptrend in wastefulness of New York City residents or simply that Seattle stepped it up big time. See the stats on NYC here. Either way, it sounds like my hometown of 14 years is leading the way in sustainable practices, being a part of the solution, as effectively as an uber-metropolis with millions of people in a few square miles can.

Here's the real kicker, you can take a personal wastefulness test by answering a few simple questions and see how you rank among others in the nation. I surprisingly ranked LOWER than the national average in my reuse and recycling practices. What?!? My guess is that the country's most active and eco-conscious are those that are going to the website and taking the test, therefore the millions of average households aren't even accounted for. Phew - I feel better. Sort of.

Pot Lid Fix

Another brilliant storage trick from Martha Stewart, solving the problem of where to store pot lids when space is limited. I nest several pots in my pantry cabinet and the lids just sorta hang out around them. But I love this ingenious solution and think I will bump this up on my growing list of DIY home projects. Click here for the full post.