Baby Maynard's "Nursette" Reveal!

So here we are. 11 weeks until go time and I'm finally ready to debut baby Maynard's "nursette!" Drumroll please...


Let me part our new draperies from the Shade Store (online)... And here is your first peak!


Just to give you a tiny bit of perspective... our little baby room is actually the "dinette" space off the kitchen where we USED to eat our meals. (We now have a high cocktail table in front of the sofa instead). When you only have 500 sf of living space.. you have to get CREATIVE!!! Here is the only "before" pic I have of the old dinette. It's dark but you can see the arch leading to the space.

We have a floating sofa in the middle of the living room and a full wall of storage for my design business. That door leads to the bath and bedroom at the back.

We'll start the baby off in the bassinet which was something I picked up with my mom from a Tiburon, CA. consignment store and drove home a few months back. The chandelier was an Ebay find that sparkles and glistens hopefully much to the baby's delight!


I found this great Thomasville faux bamboo armoire at a consignment store in Torrance called "Deja New" and negotiated a pretty great price to create a closet for my baby girl. It was a little shabby after years of neglect but it doesn't get much cuter than that bamboo trim running along the perimeter and I knew it had potential...

Here is the furniture in the "nursette," right before we painted and my adorable hubby removed the bottom shelf and installed a hanging bar for his baby girls new clothes.

And here it is post-painting with the raffia-covered-backing, hardware, and hanging bar waiting to be re-installed.


And at last... after several weeks passed, here it is painted, modified and raffia'd. Isn't it so cute!! It's even cuter filled with all the adorable infant clothing and gifts given to us by our amazing family and friends (THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!)...





And the little drawers, also filled to the brim:


And my all-time FAVORITE outfit.. You better believe there will be a photo session in this little shin-dig!


Lastly, the changing table -- also a consignment store pick up with a fresh coat of paint.


If only I could decide what fabrics I want to use for baby bedding, etc. I'm also working on what to do about covering up this door... stay tuned for that one or let me know your ideas!!

And finally... the parents to be... in just 11 short weeks!! (or something like that, I guess we'll have to wait and see.)





And last but not least... our first born, George-the-dog, (with niece Luciana) playing the guinea pig in our new Baby Jogger stroller which we couldn't be more excited about. (thank you mom and dad, I love you!!!)

Cabana Comforts

Remember this teaser blog when we shared some images of a soon-to-be-completed project at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA? (That's me wearing my Galaxy hat next to the poster advertising the coming suites.)

Well, here are some of the after shots at last! The point of this project was to provide premium Home Depot Center clients an alternative location to their regular seats, where they can enjoy tasty bites, drinks and watch the ongoing game below. The views are GREAT and it is a fun place to see and be seen. (I LOVE the topiaries so much!)

Photo by Manolo Langis

The cabanas are rented out for a fixed price which includes food and beverage options and the privacy of your own personal & private game-side seating. They are the perfect place to entertain or be entertained! Adjacent to the Cabana Lounge is the garden seating area. This area offers a great spot to sit al fresco for large or small parties. There is a live feed of the game on the big screen TV so you won't miss a beat.

Photos by Mora Photography

The cabanas are nice and neutral. They enhance the existing architecture of the Center and keep patrons nice and cool.

Photo by Manolo Langis

Hope you'll get to enjoy a game or 2 this weekend or whatever makes you happy! Happy Weekend.

Summer Slumbers: Bedroom Facelift

Tah-dah! The mirrors have settled into their new home...

Once the new mirrors were painted and hung, I decided that I wanted to change up the room a little. I guess I'm feeling fresh and summery and was looking for a brighter space! I really love the color of the mirrors, it is so cheerful. To compliment the green mirrors, I bought some ikat pillow covers in a coral and ivory pattern from eBay, and I absolutely LOVE them! 

A perfect bit of unexpected color...

I originally only bought a pair so I could decide on more if I liked the quality (they were coming all the way from Uzbekistan and I had no idea what they'd be like in person). Such a great purchase (seriously, you can't beat $30 for the pair!), and thus there are more in the works for my living room. ;) Lastly, I swapped out our duvet cover for our old ivory one. Such easy changes (and cheap!), but the room feels new and fresh!

~The Before~

{sorry about the white balance in this photo, should have fixed it!}

~The After~

So, back to the mirrors! We were worried they were going to be overpowering, as they looked HUGE when we hung the first one. But, once they were both in place, I was pretty smitten. What do you think?

PS. This room is a great example of how you don't need to spend a lot of $ to freshen up a space.

     Mirrors - $20/pair at estate sale
     Paint - $10
     Pillow covers - $30/pair
     Duvet cover - $0 from linen closet

     Heavy-duty 75-lb picture hooks - $6/pair....did I mention how heavy those things are and that I live in earthquake country!

Long-Awaited Mirror Reveal...

Some of you may remember the mirrors I scored at a local estate sale...

Well, I have finally got around to painting them and hanging them in my bedroom. After a very light sanding I did an extremely fast prime job. Funny but I kind of liked the haphazard look of the blue-grey primer, messily brushed on the mirrors...

I had originally thought of painting these mirrors with a matte blue-grey paint (perhaps why I was drawn to the prime job!), but I ended up going with a yellow-green to keep things in the room more cohesive. I chose Savannah Green by Benjamin Moore and also went with a gloss finish - total change of plans! :) 

Because I loved the worn, aged look of the mirrors in their primed stage, I decided to apply the yellow-green paint with a dry brush "technique". I didn't fuss about getting the paint to cover perfectly, and liked how the blue-grey primer showed through in some spots. (Note: the color is more accurate in the above photo, these ones below show the color MUCH subtler than it really is)

I LOVE the layered paint effect. It adds so much more dimension, texture and interest to the mirrors! Lastly, when the mirrors were dry, I look fine sandpaper and lightly distressed some of the raised edges to reveal the dark wood beneath. Et voila - mirror perfection!

In-room photos are coming this week, so be sure to check back!

Hope you all have a great day tomorrow with your fathers and/or husbands!

Rael's Nursery

Here are a few photos of the nursery I designed for this sweetie...

I've mentioned earlier that we are currently living in a blah, carpeted apartment and are not allowed to paint our white walls. Oh, and did I already mention the lack of architectural features? When creating my daughter's room I had a few parameters that I didn't like, but had to obey. One, no painting. And two, it had to house my desktop computer and samples. In order to fit everything in and not stare at ugly office stuff from the doorway (I always like the bed/crib to be the first thing I see in a bedroom), this was the floor plan I decided on...

Once the floor plan was finalized, I thought about a starting point. I found this amazing "Rosie Babe" quilt from Monaleisa on Etsy, and the color scheme was set. I love the traditional coziness a quilt brings to a room, but especially like how this particular quilt was made of adorable bright and modern fabrics. This perfect mix of traditional and modern became the focal point above the crib...

I've starting collecting Rs to hang near the doorway and really like how they look together. The fabric and metal ones are from Anthropologie, the white wood version from Kohls, and the craft paper from Jo-Anns. The Morigeau-Lepine crib was a hand-me-down - I love its rubbed finish, straight lines and storage drawer (hidden by the crib skirt). Above the crib I hung a bird mobile from Pottery Barn Kids. I love mobiles that hang almost invisibly from the ceiling and move very slowly...

We went with a yellow dresser from Ikea because I liked the straight lines and the large drawers. It was also the PERFECT size to house a wide change pad and baskets with diapers and creams. To keep all these items from moving around on the dresser, my husband constructed a rectangular frame which we painted yellow and attached to the back of the dresser with metal brackets. I swapped out the top drawer's pulls and replaced them with green glass knobs from Anthropologie. This made the dresser look a bit more unique and feminine. The original photo-collograph print "Fan Training" above the dresser is by printmaker Erik Edson and is one of nine prints in a series inspired by old dictionary/encyclopedia illustrations.

I purchased custom (extra tall) wildflower wall decals from Byrdie Graphics on Etsy because we weren't able to paint. I really, really love the way they turned out - perfectly girlie without being too babyish! We wrapped them around the crib, and even onto the mirrored closet doors. In fact, I think my favorite flower is the dandelion on the mirror (pictured above). I think these are a great way to add color to a room without painting, and there are some adorable designs out there for kids' rooms.

My big splurge was the Luca glider from Monte Design. It is so comfy yet compact, and will work in any bedroom after the babies have grown up. I would definitely buy this glider again! I tested my sewing skills by making the dupioni silk curtains, and found the garden stool perfect for holding some books at Costco. 

I think she likes her room...

Poppies at Play - Parade of Home

Growing up with parents who were always designing and building - new house, new cottage, etc - I was dragged to many parade of homes. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, it's where one or more houses are designed by various decorators, designers and architects and their work is showcased to the public. I wonder if my parents ever thought I would become an interior designer and my brother an architect?! I guess we were definitely influenced!

Lately I've been enjoying the Pasadena showcase houses but I was just made aware of an online parade of homes...blogger homes! Check out Parade of Homes on Poppies at Play - what a fun way to sneak peaks (legally) into other peoples homes and be inspired!

Every day four bloggers' homes are showcased, so be sure to revisit daily! Oh and they are holding a linky party on Saturday where you can upload a photo of your favorite room in your house. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's photos!

Enjoy!

Manhattan Beach Kitchen UNVEILED!

This Manhattan Beach Kitchen exudes warmth while still capturing the essence of beach living. These fun Spin stools from Crate and Barrel sum up the client's design sensibility; fun, functional, clean and always young-at-heart!

Over the course of the past 9 months, GEORGE I.D. has had the privilege of working with the most wonderful couple, on a dream home project in Manhattan Beach. When the couple first interviewed GEORGE, they expressed a desire to keep the interiors light, bright and simple. They wanted warmth but not the feeling of stuffiness that sometimes accompanies it. They smartly decided that Mediterranean architecture was most suitable for the Los Angeles climate (sea air takes a toll!) but they did not want to sacrifice a light, airy, beachy-feel for the interiors.

From studs:

To drywall:


To designing millwork (guided by the patience and expertise of Tom from Holly Cabinets) and nervously awaiting installation:


To shopping slab yard after slab yard...


...before finally deciding that Caesarstone was the right choice for this kitchen... (Pebble caesarstone for the wall countertops and Organic White caesarstone for the island and "Waterfall mosaic tile for the backsplash) :


To selecting stain and paint colors (we stained all of the downstairs millwork in Zar's "Chestnut" and painted the kitchen cabinetry with Dunn Edwards perfectly chalky-white, "Milk Mustache.":

To shopping fixtures for the kitchen and prep sink, like this Hansgrohe model which we ultimately selected:

To fine-tuning the hardware... we went with these totally cool 3" modern cup pulls in Satin Nickel from Top Knob:




and these sleek satin nickel 1-1/4" cabinet pulls (also Top Knob) for all of the doors:

To installing carefully planned out appliances, like the subzero refrigerator, 48" Wolf Range, Wolf double ovens and warming drawer, GE beverage center, and the impressive Modern Aire kitchen hood:


and then to watch Dutko Flooring install the drop-dead gorgeous hardwood floors, at long last (!):



Here are some photos of a 2 of the 4 baths prior to finishing touches:






It has been a long road but a very gratifying journey. The clients are moving into their beautiful home this week but there is still much to be done! The bedrooms were all carpeted yesterday and we have begun shopping for furniture and window treatments.


Time to get back to work!!