Quilted

I've been kind of into quilting lately, when it shows up in unexpected place, like these leather chairs from overstock, kind of like a Chanel handbag (only cheaper! ha.)


This quilted headboard is underscored by the simple quilted-silk coverlet (I almost bought a remnant of black quilted silk like this for the guestroom headboard, but ultimately decided it would be too dark.)

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A geometric quilted version of the ubiquitous garden stool

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And this insane vanity. (Okay, in this case there's a fine line between "tufted" and "quilted" but I'm just going with it.)



Last time I was at S.R. Harris, I asked for some samples of quilted silk. The Russian guy who always thinks I'm crazy gave me the teeniest sliver of this pink one, (it's $60 a yard, well minus 50%, but that is WAY high end for this place.) It's not really for any specific project, I just felt like I had to have it.


The woman who mans the registers was a bit more generous with her cutting of this green woven-look quilted silk, which I would like to put on the headboard in a guest room, if I can get the "client" on board with the project (Mom?)

The scans totally don't do them justice, but believe me, they are gorgeous.


And so, when the most recent House Beautiful came out featuring this crazy sunroom, where the designer Rob Southern had this salmon Brunschwig & Fils chinzt hand-quilted for all the upholstered pieces, I nearly died and went to heaven.




So old fashioned, yet somehow fresh, and, of course, pretty over the top.

Maybe I'll get myself some quilted chucks to satisfy the craving, for now!

Sliding Scale: Galvanized Garden Chairs

I remember first falling in love with the "1934" chair many years ago, in the Sundance catalog (which I inexplicably received at frequent intervals). Over the years, they seemed to pop up now and again, and while I never actually had a place to use them, I felt awfully tempted when they showed up in a Home Decorators Collection catalog for just $99 each. Now, they're officially everywhere: all the major retailers seem to offer their own version. I thought I'd round 'em up, just in case you're interested. (Plus, I think they'd look awesome in my aunt's kitchen; this way, she doesn't need to do the research.)

From most expensive to least:

Design Within Reach, Marais Chair, $250

Sundance, 1934 Chair, $245

Pottery Barn Tolix Cafe Chair, $225 (currently on special for $199)

Crate and Barrel Lyle Chair, $199

Home Decorator's Collection Garden Side Chair, $99

Overstock.com, Silver Tabouret Stacking Chair, $197.99 for a set of 4 (today's price!)

Some of these come in other fun colors, but I still love the classic aluminum. So. Did I miss any? I bet there are more out there....And I'm still partial to the original Sundance version. What's your favorite?

Happy Accidents

I've been slowly but surely thinking my way through design for the girls' room, and in the process I ordered a great looking and super inexpensive cotton pile rug from Overstock.com. I was inspired by this photo from Domino (We inherited a similar shade of blue on the walls and I already have raspberry microsuede for headboards and love the total effect)



as well as an outfit that Clio loves to wear which includes a white top with black stripes and a red sequined heart and a tiny floral print skirt (which in my mind translates to Liberty of London for Target bedding or accessories, though of course I missed my moment on that and would have to shell out for it on ebay one piece at a time. I never do things the easy way, do I?)




So I was really excited to find a 5x7 black and white bold striped rug for only $100.

Now, I was initially skeptical about ordering rugs online. You can't feel the pile, you can't really see the color, and the pattern could show up much more (or less) pronounced than it looks in photos. But I ordered one for the basement with great success, and found that I was hooked. There is just so much VARIETY on overstock, the prices are uniformly reasonable, shipping is fast and practically free, and you can search by size, color, pattern, style, material, and price point, which is really tremendous.

Well, fast forward to last week when my black and white striped rug arrived, only.... it was BROWN and IVORY. Damn internet. Seriously, under no circumstances could this rug be considered in the black family, and the color scheme just sort of felt muddy and, well, wrong in the girls room.

But guess what? Inspiration struck and I tried the rug in our bedroom, where I must say, it looks fabulous.


Don't you think? I have been using an old sheepskin rug in there, which I was kind of digging, but my grandmother's white upholstered boudoir chairs will migrate back into the bedroom when the living room loveseat arrives, and that will all be a bit monochromatic for me. The fun thing is that I NEVER would have thought to buy this rug for this room. So much brown. So much strong, graphic pattern. Just proves once again that more is more.