Bold Kitchen Design

Hello! Hello?? Anyone still out there?? 

My apologies for my long absence. I've been working on lots of design projects and have not had time for blogging at all. Lately work has slowed a little so I have some time to blog again!

Unfortunately a lot of the projects I have been taking on are not what you would call "blog worthy". Mainly space planning and floor plan redesign- CAD work and construction documents. It's what I like to do but doesn't make for a fun blog post. And some of the freelance work I've been receiving is assisting other designers with their work (finish and furniture selection, bathroom redesigns, ect!). So I haven't felt comfortable sharing that on my personal blog.

But- a while back I helped a couple who are finishing out a their shop space into a second family "hangout area". Their children are older and the couple wanted them to have a place to hang out with their friends. The building will also have a guest bedroom, office space, kitchen and theater. Pretty cool!

The layout is pretty basic but the kicker was that the couple wanted to use red stained cabinets from Ikea. They loved bright colors and wanted a fun space since this is a extra relaxing area not their formal home.

In the first scheme I went with a neutral wood floor, bright blue accent wall, antique tin ceiling look backslash, bright red pendants and other fun lighting.

The second scheme I went a little different with grey flooring, another bold paint color and other fun accents:

Pretty fun I think! Different from what you might expect in a kitchen.

Another area they wanted help with was a bathroom in the shop. They wanted to use a blue bathroom cabinet they had seen and fallen in love with so I centered the bathroom around that. Again they wanted a totally different color scheme and feel for this room.

And Option 2 with a different sink cabinet:

This couple wanted different bold paint colors throughout the space- which is a fun change from the norm. What do you think? Do you like a colorful home or is neutral throughout more your taste?

Capturing Your White Whale

That's what I feel like- like I've finally tracked down and reeled in a piece of furniture I have been lusting after for years- like since college. I don't know if Captain Ahab ever caught Moby Dick- I actually have not read that monster of a book. But I can imagine his plight. Always looking, keeping his eyes peeled every moment for an opportunity to catch his prize.

That's kind of how I was about Eames Chairs. I've talked a lot about Eames furniture on the blog before. It's an obsession that started in design school and grew after interning at a Herman Miller Dealership. I loved the  modern look and all the bright colors. But what I've always wanted was a genuine vintage piece to call my own. And if you know me I also did not want to pay big bucks for it. ;)

Non-Traditional Christmas Decor

This weekend was our towns' Downtown Christmas Open House. It's a big deal- all the little shops downtown are open on Sunday for shopping. So since I am new to the scene (I have a booth where I sell my goods in one of the shops) I had to decorate my space for the occasion. 

I wanted to do something Christmas-y but not the usual evergreen, ornaments, gift wrap affair. I racked my brain some and came up with an idea- coffee filters! Cheap, disposable, and customizable. 

Easy Breezy Dip Dye Curtains

Hello All! I hope everyone is having a great Labor Day Weekend! 

I'm finally back with a DIY project to share with you. Way back in the day; when we first moved in to our rental here in Oklahoma, I shared our kitchen dining area with you in our house tour. I had a few ideas to spruce it up and succeeded in changing up the light fixture but progress stopped there.

Until Now! Check it out-

I'd been wanting to try dip dying ever since I saw some inspirational ideas on Martha Stewart a while back. I mean, the last time I had tie dye'd anything was in Girl Scouts a gazillion years ago. I've been wanting to make some curtains for this area for a long time so I went forth and conquered! 

I was a little intimidated because of the possible mess and Smurf Blue stained hands but the process wasn't as scary as I thought it might be.

I started by buying some some cheap twin size sheets at Walmart to use for the curtains like I've done before and got to work. I hemmed the sheets to the length I needed and cut open the large top hem so I could string the curtains onto the rod.

Then I gathered my supplies for the dying. I found a great tutorial from Rit Dye here. Basically all you need is fabric dye, salt, water, a large bucket, rubber gloves, a spoon, and a plastic drop cloth to catch drips.

Then I used rubber bands to cut off the parts I didn't want dye'd. Notice how I have 3 sheets? I bought an extra one for possible mess ups (which I did end up needing). 

Then I mixed the dye according to the directions on the bottle while trying really hard not to spill any in the kitchen before carrying it out to the garage.

Then just let my fabric soak. The directions say 10 minutes but I left it in for about 15 minutes to achieve a darker shade of blue.

Next I hung the curtains out to dry. I had to take a sneak peek during this process- I was worried my rubber bands weren't tight enough and that the blue dye may have seeped through. But in the end my worries were unfounded! And luckily my hands were spared any blue dye.

Here they are hanging in our kitchen!! I like how they are light and airy, casual and fun. I like the softness they bring to this wall. Something it desperately needed.

The cost for this project was practically nothing. The sheets were $6 each and the dye was only $2-3 and can be found at your local grocery in the detergent section. I bought mine at Walmart. All the other supplies I had on hand. 

And the overall dying process didn't take as long as I expected- maybe an hour. That included the mixing and dipping. It took a while to get the rubber bands placed where I needed though.

So if your looking for one of kind, unique, and inexpensive curtains this technique could be for you! 

What do you think? Have you ever dye'd anything?