More of Gwyneth's kitchen

So I imagine most of you have seen her spread in August's Vogue issue

  (the pictures I used from there I got from Style Chronicle  The source of the other images I don't remember.)

Please just check out a few more images of her kitchen without her in it....almost still as beautiful!  Have you ever seen so much marble?  And I remember (I think from her interview with Oprah) that her favorite appliance is a steamer.  I believe that is what you see on the right of the picture.  So smart to steam leftovers instead of microwave!

Wouldn't you love to see the view from here?  I found these pictures months ago when I was renovating and looking for some inspiration from my style guru.  She hired some set designers to do her family's Manhattan apartment.  (No, I don't remember the duo's name. Please email me if you have it and I will give them due credit!)  I do remember this space is 4,400 square feet...in NY!  Can you imagine?

(update:  thank you, Lissa!  The designers are Roman & Williams)

The designers used this vintage door to create a swing in her living room.  I wish I could find more of the apartment mansion.  She wallpapered everything.

Where do you think this kitchen is?  (via Goop)  She can make simple square tile look amazing.

A marble-covered vent.  Too lovely.

I do love her!

On a personal note, little Wyatt is doing great!  Here he is playing ball in his little hospital gown.  Thanks to Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta...the best hospital for kids.  They are so loving and comforting.  Thanks for your prayers....Julie

(Oh, and just looked at my Vogue again...seems that appliance is on the other end of the spectrum...deep fat fryer instead of steamer!)

Living Room Reno: Before & After

1. After some new craftsman simple moulding,

2.  Removal of seagrass wallpaper (which of course is the thing these days!)

pause:  all of you young girls out there...save everything.  All that stuff in UO these days; the jellies, puffed sleeves, acid-washed leggings...are all things I have done before.  Whatever you are wearing now your daughters will want one day.  Trust me.  You have no idea how many compliments I get wearing my grandmother's clothing--not kidding!

3.  Removal of fireplace insert & increasing hearth's opening size

4.  Removal of carpet & installation of oak hardwoods

5.  Removal of '70s stone and addition of some local Tennessee rumble stacked stone

6.  Addition of red oak mantel (this was a doozie!  took several men more than one day...and loads of rebar)

7.  Addition of tongue & groove on the ceiling & 1x2s on the wall for texture & depth

8.  Addition of fireplace sconces ($5 each....Anisa found them on clearance at Progressive Lighting & I love them like they were $300 each!)

9.  Addition of articulating lights on the ceiling for mantel & recessed for rest of ceiling

10.  Loads of Ben Moore's White Dove semi-gloss...

We have this:

(most photos today are from Brad's photo shoot!  credit:  Crosby-Twiss Photography 

my photo

11.  Installation of my favorite light in the house...this antiqued mirrored number from The Paris Market in Savannah.  Our car was already packed since we were on a trip to Hilton Head, SC.  But Chris saw my face and knew I was gone--it was coming home with us.

tongue & groove

art by Anisa Darnell (bet she'll do one for you, too!  I got the idea from Blueprint Bliss 

More angles of the room:

Room before cut out from kitchen to living room

12.  Cut see-through

13.  Ripped down former railing and added new, custom one:

For this home, we loved everything to be thick & square

14.  Removed doors from entry to LR

15.  Added the interior glass-paned door that leads to bedrooms  (far left of picture above)

16.  Added new fiberglass paned door that leads to the walk-out (we wanted real wood, but they talked us out of it due to massive morphing over time)

no pic of door

more befores:

17.  Removed panelling and chair-rail from room

a shot of "during"....I can't imagine how some of you live through one of these without moving out!  We were so lucky to be able to stay at my kind MIL's lake house.

18.  Added recessed lighting, this birdcage pendant, and a sconce on the stairwell

(note to renovators:  Do as much lighting as possible when the electrician is there and on-the-clock.  If you say, "nah, we'll get to it"...you know how that goes.  Mark "x"s with tape all over the house so they can knock it out.  You can always switch out and change fixtures later, but it is nice to have the holes cut (and sometimes repaired) while the workmen (or ladies!) are there.)

a picture of the stairwell

And I leave you with this image of our picture shelf in the living room & a picture of our youngest.

If you do pray, please say a prayer for little Wyatt for he is getting ear tubes in the moring.  He is also having his 2nd birthday party this weekend, so I'll share some pics of the festivities later.  Thanks again for all your kind words about Dad.  Of course I am really grieving, but it is so nice to have this outlet to think about something else for a while.

Julie

Southern Living Idea House in Louisiana

I just got my Sunset, Country Living, and Southern Living all in the mail on the same day.  Don't you live that?  There are so many images I need to share!

For any of you who don't live in the south...I thought I need to share SL's beautiful Louisiana Idea House for 2010.  Enjoy...

(don't you love that lighting in this spa bath?)

I am obsessed with "tile" entry rugs!  Is this not fabulous?  Don't you think that always choices that are the riskiest usually are the most spectacular?  I want a client to let me do this one day.

what a perfect exterior

peg board entry!  Complete with Hunter boots.

pause:  I told you I got some, didn't I?  Chris asked if they are decor or clothing...

SL is getting funky...I like!!

gorgeous galley kitchen with banquette

Do you love this mirror?!!!  A decorative artist did the wall...not wallpaper!

dreamy outdoor area with Ballard seating

this chandelier in the master bedroom is a mixture of sea urchins & ctystals!

OK...this is the GARAGE apartment!

the bedroom in this apartment

What a great house, no?

more at

Southern Living Magazine 

One more thing....look what arrived Saturday!  Can you have real love for an unreal object?  I think so.

Julie

You Know Her...Now See Tia Zoldan's New Pictures & New Blog!

I imagine you have seen this amazing image from Cottage Living magazine.  I have always loved this picture...and I have been inspired by every room I have seen that Tia Zoldan designed.

I am thrilled to show you some images from her home...redecorated!  And please go visit her blog, which doesn't disappoint:  The Roof Over My Head 

I am not going to label or interpret what style I see in these rooms.  They speak for themselves.  But I am blown away...

I asked Tia a few questions about design, life, and inspiration, and this is what she said:

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Julie:  Tell us a little about your start in design.  Was your first job in the design field?

 Tia:  I started out working in store design for J. Crew.  I studied anthropology

in college but always had a passion for art and photography and interiors.

I slowly started doing work for friends and then started making the

transition into really making it my full time job!

Julie:  What are your favorite design books?  Who inspires you?

Tia:  My favorite design books:

Some of my favorite designers have come out with such gorgeous design books!

My favorites are Celerie Kemble, Jeffrey Bilhuber, Suzanne Kasler, Michael

Smith and of course Kelly Wearstler.

My favorite art books are Elizabeth Peyton and Francesco Clemente and I

absolutely love the Vogue Living books, I wish they would come out with

more!

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pause:  are you breathing after seeing those chairs?

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Julie:  How do you deal with the designer's dilemma of listening to and pleasing a client, yet staying true to your design and doing work you are proud of?

Tia:  Well, I must admit, in the beginning of starting my own company I did a lot

of work that was mostly to please my clients, which always made me laugh

because the reason someone hires you is because they like your style!

Once I was able to have enough projects under my belt that represented "my

interior style" I was able to be more confident choosing which projects I

really wanted to take on.

Julie:  Tell us a little about your family and your community.

Tia:  Myself, my husband and my 2 daughters (8 and 10 years old) reside in

Hancock Park (which is in Los Angeles.) Hancock Park is a beautiful

neighborhood in the city that is made up of mostly historic homes that were

built in the 1920's. 

My husband and I grew up in L.A. (we actually went to

high school together) and when we were deciding where to buy a house we came

across Hancock Park and fell in love with the neighborhood instantly!!

We have been living here for 10 years.

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pause:  If I ever show you a picture of my den and I have stacked books like this...don't call me a copycat, please. 


 That fabric....those silk pillows.....Tia...please post about the art in your home, too!

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Okay, I was going to split this up into a Part I and Part II...but I just can't.  Patience is not my strong point and the rest of her pictures are too good. 


Are you ready to see her family's kitchen???  I thought so.

I have to comment again...that corbel under the counter...the single light over the farmhouse sink...the original art above the backsplash.  There is such a soul to this house.  Don't you just want to grab a pinot noir, sit on that bench and chat the night away?

Obviously the same room as the introduction picture from years ago.  

Don't you love to see designers grow and evolve?  She exhibits the same love of color and the world's objects...yet there is a maturity (in a good way!) and a confidence in her current design.

One of the prettiest girl's rooms I have seen.  The soft bedding, the fun pillow, the window treatment and the sconce!!

Her home is really getting me fired up to see Eat, Pray, Love too! 

 I feel like traveling when I look at her rooms.  (I love that there is one sconce here and not two...I feel like she decorates with her gut)

Don't you remember seeing this dream outdoor room and pool before?  

Are you in love?

Am I over the top?

Maybe.  I'm okay with that.

Thanks to Tia for sharing her home with us and please go visit her on her blog The Roof Over My Head 

I am certain that even successful designers still love readers :)

(Thanks also for letting this be my first interview.  I loved it)

one more thing...when I added her blog to my blog roll I spelled it wrong and deleted the entire list.  I can't remember them all!  Please email me and remind me if I deleted you, thanks