Bling in the Sink

Lately I've had friends pulling me into the bathroom.  (Are we back in high school?) What they're actually interested in is the bling in the bottom of my sink.

I love this vessel sink but I could do without the hard water 'ring' around the drain.  None of the hard water products worked.

  

So, for about a dollar at my local craft store I bought a bag of glass beads in a color way that complements the sink. 

The results are so great that I would use the beads even if I didn't have something to hide!  I just love it when design and function come together!

Inspire yourself.

Dawn

Repurposing a Lost Corner

This 6x8 area in a isolated corner of the living room has always sat without any real purpose or interest.  I fell upon this piece of mahogany furniture at a great deal of $250.  It is well made and has great lines.  It now anchors that area and gave me a starting point. 

I decided to reposition the artwork to above the piece to continue to give that wall added interest.  I then moved in an over-sized wing chair which doesn't have much personality (like some of my family members) so I may have to add on a fun pillow. 

 

I repurposed a lamp and table from a bedroom.  

*Designer's Trick* The lamp needed more height so I took a big book (you could use a sturdy box too) to elevate the lamp to a better height, making it a great spot for reading. 

Again, I brought in a piece of art that wasn't doing much in another space.  I find that when you rearrange pieces within your home, and even in my retail store, they look new and fresh again.  Your husband may start asking to see the receipts!

Stay tuned for the new plan of action- tackling the bookcase. 

Inspire yourself.

Dawn

Introduction

Hello.  I'm Dawn, an interior designer, business owner, mother to two college students and wife for 22 years.  

I suffer from an illness called Constant Creativity Syndrome.  The symptoms include not being able to stop my brain from thinking, lying awake at night puzzling over design and dreaming up ideas that are certainly not ordinary and often warrant some eye-rolling from my husband, workrooms, and craftsmen when they hear what's involved.  I'm convinced that in order to accomplish everything I'd like, I need 'peeps'- a group of people who will jump at my every word and complete all the tasks I don't have enough hours in the day for.  Martha Stewart's got her peeps, why can't I??

I am obsessed with good design.  I think things need to look good and feel good- the weight of a faucet, the feel of a fabric, the profile of a moulding.  I'm not much into rules- in truth, I think they're meant to be broken.  Surprising elements can come together and feel energetic and full of personality.  In order to make a space a home, it has to be a balance between function and you, with a dash of the unexpected.  Think Antonio from HGTV's Design Star a couple of seasons ago- hot pink birds.

So, I guess my motto is 'Always leave them talking.'

After design school, I worked from home for a while until about 4 years ago when I took it to the next level- a retail space just over the Jersey border in New York.  In the front half of the store I sell home and women's accessories.  This gives me the opportunity to create 'the new craze'.  Following my philosophy we have some different and unique things that you can't find everywhere.  Within the space I have my design studio where I'm surrounded by inspiration through my wall of fabric books and paint samples.  Our job as designers is to give people different design options to help create the space they're envisioning.  The only cookie cutters I like are the ones I bake with! 

This 'lifestyle' blog is something I've wanted to do for a while to share some of what goes on in this crazy head of mine, some of what I'm about.  And, if I get to become a younger Martha Stewart in the process, so be it!  I'll be posting some projects I've completed, creative ideas you can implement in your everyday life and rants and raves.  One of the next things I'll be posting in the coming weeks will be a bathroom renovation complete with an HGTV-style reveal so stay tuned for that! 

Inspire yourself.

Dawn