Accent Color Interiors on Bookcases and Cabinetry

 

from Design Actually

I think this is a great DIY idea for adding personality to a room. Simply painting the interior of a shelving unit an accent color can add new life to an otherwise boring furniture piece, and it can really highlight whatever you might be displaying on those shelves. I've got a couple friends who have recently purchased new homes with ugly kitchen cabinetry, and I've recommended removing some of the wall cabinet doors and adding an accent color in the back of the open shelves, just for fun.

source unknown

source unknown

source unknown

Ana's bookcase from Design*Sponge

Cecille's home from Design*Sponge

Melanie's kitchen from Design*Sponge

Sharon's Nursery from Design*Sponge

Inspiration: Modern Staircases and Railings

A while ago I was helping a client plan an open-riser modern staircase and railing.  I collected these images for inspiration.  This was long before I thought about starting a blog, so unfortunately I did not save any of the photo sources, but I want you all to be able to drool over them as much as I did anyway.  If anyone really wants specific info on any of these I'd be willing to search around for its original source.

 

(I took this one.  The stair material is 3-form, and it's awesome!)

Park City Kitchen

I thought I might share a project in Park City that I recently completed through Arendal Kitchen Design.  The cabinetry is stainless steel and maple, which, combined with the natural elements of the stone, granite, and rustic wood floors, create a great "mountain modern" look. 

The cabinetry is from Wood-Mode.  The custom stainless steel floating shelves and island accents were a fun challenge.  The shelves needed a strong hidden bracing so they'd be able to support the weight of heavy pots and pans, and they also needed to be able to accommodate the built-in task lighting.  I worked with Ray Bird and Kingdon Sheet Metal to get all the components just right, and our installers made it all fit together perfectly.  Scandia 360 was the general contractor. 

Our "new" kitchen light

Sometimes hand-me-downs are a blessing, even if they're a little worn...

Now I'm not so sure about the bulb... we've got a standard bulb in there now, but do you think I should switch it up for a different shape?  Thoughts?

Free Downloadable Printable Art!

I just discovered Feed Your Soul: The Free Art Project.  Check it out here.  They feature free art that you can download and print for your own personal use.  What a great (and inexpensive) way to add some color to your space!  Many of these are great for nurseries (see previous post), which is where I stumbled upon this site (thanks to goodfoodgoodfriendsgoodlife).

Here are a few examples of some of my favorite images:

Nursery Inspiration Photos

Before any of you get all crazy, this post is NOT for my own nursery - it's for my friend Rebecca.  Though after going through all of these photos, I have to confess that I'm excited for the day when I might get to design my own nursery (and fortunately I've still got a LOOOOONG time to think about it)!

from cococozy

from dooce.com

from 86'n it

from scottsdalemoms

from scottsdalemoms

from younghouselove

from younghouselove

from 6th Street Design School

from Caitlin Creer

source unknown (sorry!)

source unknown (sorry!)

from Design*Sponge

from goodfoodgoodfriendsgoodlife

from goodfoodgoodfriendsgoodlife

from hashai

from younghouselove

Repeated elements within these photos (and elsewhere) that I LOVE:  yellow cribs, handmade mobiles, cutesy chandeliers.

Have fun with this Rebecca.  I can't wait to see what you end up doing!

Kim's Bathroom Makeover

I just saw this post on Desire to Inspire (one of my top 5 favorite blogs), and I had to repost it here.  Here's an example of what paint, accessories, and a little creativity can accomplish.  It's quick, relatively easy, and inexpensive.  And it looks great.

Here's her bathroom before:  standard, dated, and boring.... blah

Here's her bathroom now:

She added a basic chair rail, painted, and replaced the faucet, light fixutre, and accessories.  She also installed a peel & stick floor on top of the old vinyl.  She painted the cabinet and added a curtain in place of the 80's style laminate doors.  It looks HOT (helped by the awesome yellow Eames fiberglass shell chair!)

This isn't a long-term solution (I would never suggest peel & stick flooring in a bathroom for any period of time), but it definitely makes a huge difference.  Don't you agree?

You can read the entire post (with more photos) here.