Nov 10

The beauty of black

Posted in black, Uncategorized

I’ve just got this thing for black at the moment. Wrong time of year really for craving dark spaces, but I’d love to paint a room black. And I keep wanting to buy black pieces of furniture – a library, a velvet armchair, a buttoned ottoman – but I have to be careful in my sunlight-challenged rooms with my black/brown floorboards! I just love the impact of black and also its grown-up-ness, if you know what I mean..

In other news, I was heading home today and was stopped by a big red SALE banner outside a fave furniture store. Ten minutes later I was loading new dining chairs into the car (finally, we can eat at the table instead of the bench!). The slipcovers are linen instead of my desired white, but I figured I can have some more made – or does anyone know about the possibilities of bleach on linen??

xx

 

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Oct 13

A peek at a before and after project

Posted in art, before and afters, black and white, pink, projects/ my work, rugs, wallpaper

Today is one of those days where I’m stuck in my office catching up on paperwork, making phone calls and sitting at the computer – not getting out and seeing much to inspire me! So I thought I’d share a couple of photos a client sent me of the progress being made in her home. My clients recently moved into a beautiful modern house, with gorgeous sandstone walls and water views, but wanted to inject a little more colour and punch with the decor. We also wanted to work with their amazing Aboriginal art collection. Here’s a before shot of the ‘adult’ living space, which centred around a painting by Minnie Pwerle:

And here’s a couple of progress shots with the key pieces in place. Apparently the hot pink rug is a big hit!:

In the bedrooms my clients inherited these slightly strange and dated upholstered panels as feature walls, which were recovered with wallpaper to tie in with the other decor choices. Here’s an idea of the bedrooms before:

and after:

My client had the idea of turning what was formerly the dining room into a smart playroom (keeping the large wall aquarium). Here’s what it looked like before:

Again, we wanted to work around a painting, this time by Gloria Petyarre:

and then with the new rug:

The following isn’t the world’s greatest photo but I also wanted to show you a pic of the progress in my clients’ bathroom renovations. I love the wall of black and white Moroccan – inspired tiles in the shower!

Have a great Thursday! xx

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Sep 12

Decorating with black

Posted in black, black and white, Uncategorized

I’ve posted about the beauty of black and its usefulness as a decorating tool before. Black against white (like against the walls and bookshelves above) in particular will obviously always have impact!

I adore this subtle use of black (above), paired with pale greys and neutrals. The striped rug adds a little extra punch where a flat pale rug might have looked bland and washed out.

Layered black and white photos with black frames looks sophisticated and masculine paired with classic architectural elements and glossy black woodwork – I’ve always been drawn to moody dark displays like this, I love it!

The framed black and white photos of bamboo tie in with the painted black geometric pattern on the floor (above).

Wow! Such a great idea to break up all the white and add some drama (above), and black working hard to highlight architectural details (below).

I absolutely love black-painted doors (I have mentioned this a million times before I know!). And this dutch-door is such a great idea- why doesn’t anyone have them anymore? Such a perfect solution when you want to let the light and fresh air in but keep children and pets from getting out. I’ll have to add this to my ‘building dream home’ file! – (though by the time I am able to build my dream home my children will probably be too old to need a a dutch door!)

More beautiful black doors from my inspiration files..

This picture (above) captures a little dream that I’ve had for awhile..a dark and cosy (but still sophisticated) country house with moody lighting surrounded by huge old trees. I think this dream has its roots in all the English period dramas that I was brought up on (and still love). And you might remember a tv ad for Victorian tourism that was on a couple of years ago, where couples were chasing each other through vineyards and barns, and end up in this fabulous country house with stone floors and antique rugs, leather couches and a huge fireplace (the house and room were only pictured for a second so a lot of this is probably imagined!). Anyway I’m rambling but that house has also stayed with me.

An old classic that always works: black and white chequered floor tiles (above).

On my more anti-clutter days I love Darryl Carter’s interiors (have you seen his book on the new traditional style?). Lots of neutrals and black and white, with a focus on every single piece being individually beautiful. I just love the mix of antiques, modern pieces and textures.

Love, love this black and white kitchen, with its black herringbone floors, black French doors, marble subway tiles and giant lantern!

 

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