Mom and I spent a week in beautiful Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina giving a lovely family home a little rejuvenation! We were fortunate enough to have gorgeous professional photos of the finished product and I took lots of decidedly amateur ones as well. The following are some fun before and after shots and project documentation--some of these pics are professional, some of these are mine. You probably can't even tell the difference--JK:)
The before pics of the foyer:
And the after shots of the foyer:
So classically pretty--we used an antique console piece along with a gorgeous sculpture that set the stage for the rest of the living area--clean and elegant with measured injections of color and fun!!
And look at the great fixture we added, go back up and look at the old one if you don't remember because it made a tremendous difference--unfortunately these are my pix so you won't get the full effect but you will get the idea!
Master Bedroom Before Pics:
And the Master Bedroom After Shots!!!--
Sweet sweet kitty (not sweet sweet Connie, though she would love them too) LOVES Greek key and custom pillows
Love the secretary as a bedside chest.
I am still crazy about these lamps--they make this whole room brilliantly happy!!
Look at this beautiful bench--it just needed some floral RM Coco love. Every piece of furniture in the master bedroom belonged to the homeowner, save the chair and ottoman. These pieces required only reupholstering and special Lamb's treatment to bring out their own special mojo! Look how great the homeowners' iron bed looks with the new bedding! And the Karastan rug was lost and irrelevant in its previous location in the house--it LIVES and BELONGS in this bedroom and is a vital element of the design!!
Another of my favorite additions to the master bedroom is this reupholstered wood-trimmed sofa; the fabric was very well-priced and made this classic piece fresh and stylish in our new master.
I learn something new during every single install. The tulips in this arrangement had the most perfect droop when I arranged them. The following morning when this picture was taken and about 5 minutes before the professional photographer arrived they were standing straight up looking, well, there is no better word to describe how they looked than "erect". Not exactly what I was going for.
Pix of the family room before the Lamb girls hit the scene:
Wait till you see the after shot of this plaid chair and ottoman. You are gonna love love it!
And pay special attention to the button tuft chair, look for it below-remember I am a huge Elvis fan.
The LOVELY Family Room After Pix--perfect for its LOVELY family--
We all fell hard for the Maxwell raspberry swirl fabric on the chair and its striped companion on the ottoman!! And look at the original art by Sandy Hubler above the mantel; I could stare at that painting for hours.
Look at it, it is so beautiful I could lick it.
Here's that sweet button-tuft--all dressed up in blue suede. It is perfectly complemented by the Hubler art; I didn't actually plan it that way and never expect furnishings to perfectly match fine art, but sometimes Jesus loves me extra and it just works out.
Could this ottoman be more beautiful??
My furniture designer and upholsterer are geniuses--sometimes you must head for the hills to get to the true artists and artisans. And I do, weekly!:)
These lamps are actually from Norwalk--they are the perfect shade of blue, not baby, but soft. The teapot is one of many from a collection belonging to my client who is charmingly British. We used them throughout the living area for fresh flowers.
Pretty, huh?
Before pix of the Living Room
Get ready, because you are going to love the after shots, here they come!
We used all the homeowners' existing furniture, reupholstered a few pieces, added a couple of fantastic black floral ottomans, rugs, silk drapery panels and art and shifted everything around some. Note that we used the clients' desk as surface space for the sofa. It serves as a lamptable but is still completely functional as a desk. Mom & I love what is beautiful and functional. The result is stunning and chic but still so VERY LIVABLE and INVITING.
These wingbacks got pretty new fabric and some exquisitely decadent, delicious accent pillows. I loved using the blue wooden candleholders on the skirted table; the blue is an unexpected injection of color that just makes me, and most importantly our clients, happy:)
Another wonderful accent pillow, and check the series of prints over the desk--these are actually framed illustrations from an antique Alice In Wonderland book, so cool! I wish I had three more for one additional row!
It's hard to tell from my pix, but the colors are actually quite vibrant and beautiful
I am in a huge rug-layering mood as of late and I can't imagine a rug being any more beautiful as a layer than my all-time favorite metallic zebra print cowhide. This organic element added another shot of very highbrow fun to this space.
The artwork in this room is actually off the rack; it looks anything but! It is stunning and is accented beautifully by the antique brass sconces. This is a good shot of the floral ottomans. The whole room is just so lively and fun with just the right amount of easy elegance.
Last, but certainly not least, the before pix of the fine young prince's bedroom:
Wait for it, no here it comes!
We paid homage to this fine, precious boy's very British mama and his very American daddy by using vintage American and British flag fabric. The custom drapery panels are so much fun, blue denim and the red and cream stripe, repeated on the body pillows on the day bed.
Too fun using a much less refined hide in Sam's room. I love the juxtaposition of the natural cowhide and the red and gold abstract in a heavy black frame.
Vintage American and Union Jack flags--gorgeous and meaningful to this precious family.
Mom and I loved every minute of this long-distance project. We worked and communicated with the homeowners almost daily for six months. The result was a beautiful, unique and functional family home and a close friendship with a darling family. I LOVE MY JOB.
