My Secret Sauce

{Image from here}

I've been feeling pretty overwhelmed at work lately.  (Along with the entire team here.)  We're busier than we've ever been, which is amazing, but with the time required for me to think about my own house (which happens on nights and weekends) I'm feeling almost tapped out mentally.  We're working with wonderful clients on both smaller and large-scale projects, all of which are really exciting, and we're also working on a few upcoming magazine stories (and photoshoots) with Southern Living, Better Homes & Gardens and Luxe Interiors.  We're doing a One Kings Lane Tastemaker Tag Sale and have a crazy two day shoot beginning this morning at our place.  (We had to remove every piece of furniture from our living room and kitchen last night to turn it into a photo studio for our goods... more on that later)  We're launching a brand new website at the end of the month with our go-to-web-girl Emily at indieshopography and we're also going to be offering online decorating services again, so I'm putting everything together for that.  With all of this good stuff, comes the growing pains, which I'm feeling hardcore.

{image from here}

I'm also noticing a general "busyness" in the people we work with, which obviously affects us too and can slow things down on our end.  Our contractors, our workroom, artists we work with and our vendors seem like they're busier than ever.  It's so great for all of them, but I know the growing pains are there too... Many of them have recently hired new staff to accommodate the increased demand.  (Yay for things really picking up!)

But as exciting as growth spurts are, they can be a little scary too.  You suddenly look around and realize that no matter how many extra nights or weekends you work, you're never going to get to it all.  (In my case, this really means our personal home design is what suffers.  Time ticks away and I'm worried we won't have what we need when the photographer comes to shoot our house the first week of August.)  You realize your kids miss you and you miss them even more.

So...  what do I personally do when it gets like this??  First, Dave & I start to reassess what needs to be done in our business.  We realized we need more help.  A couple of weeks ago we hired an intern, Daniel, who is pretty much Dave's assistant, and the extra help has been amazing.  We're good friends with Daniel's family (Dave taught English with his mother and his older sister has been babysitting our boys for years- we love her!!) and Daniel was one of Dave's students.  We knew we needed someone insanely hard working and willing to do a wide variety of things like printing, errands, organizing files, and making pick-ups and drop offs and moving furniture.  

Now that we have Daniel on board, we are loving the extra help, but we're still not working the way we need to be working.  Dave & I have been throwing ideas around but we knew we needed our secret sauce as things continued to get more overwhelming over here.

So, no joke, my secret sauce is a person...  Julia!!

I found out about Julia Molloy, and her company, Molloy Management this past January when I was looking for ways to streamline our business and to get inspired.  I wrote a blog post  mentioning her & the company and we ended up connecting.  I enrolled in her Business Blueprint Program, and we've taken our studio webware training through Molloy.  One of the most helpful aspects of working with Molloy for me, is the web chats I have with Julia.  She's truly a design business guru  (honestly, she's a straight up business guru who's specialized in design businesses) and we discuss everything from client services to workflow processes, to websites, to future goals, to branding.  She is a wealth of knowledge and sees so clearly where to take things.  Along with knowing what's up and what needs to happen, Julia is one of the sweetest, funniest, most charismatic & genuine people I've ever met.  You can feel her excitement when you talk with her.  (It's funny, I've never even met her in person but feel like I have!! :)  I never feel like she's judging, only assessing and guiding/ helping. She's completely transparent and truly wants to help her clients and wants the best for them.

Julia works with many of the industry's big wigs, and many of her clients keep her a secret because they don't want to share her with the competition.  As you've probably seen from my blog, I have a pretty open attitude when it comes to competition with other designers...  I don't really feel it.  I believe that we're all so different and that different clients are right for different designers.  I feel like a client who hires a designer friend of mine was drawn to that designer because of what she saw in him or her... or because of their past projects and experiences...  or because of a pricepoint... a personality.. whatever it may be.  We're all completely unique.  It seems silly to covet a client who doesn't covet your services.  It's just pointless.  The only designer I would ever really feel in competition with would be myself, because I'm the only person who has what I have & who does things the way I do them.

(I'd only be scurred of THIS ;) ;)

So... I'm sharing some of my secret sauce with you.  And that's Molloy.  Yesterday, I was able to catch up with Julia (I try to keep regular appointments with her but as things got crazier over here, I fell behind) and explain to her where we're at and get some great advice.  She helped me get some clarity & perspective on where we're at & on what's going on.  (Looks like we'll be hiring, so stay tuned.)  Much of what I need to work on comes right from our company operations manual we received from The Business Blueprint. This thing is THICK (like hundreds of pages) and outlines every little bit of our business.  It's worth so much and is truly a handbook or manual on each and every aspect of your business.  I have yet to go through and tailor the handbook more specifically to our company (I'm going to work on it this weekend) but it's a gold mine of information on how your company should/ could run.

{They teach all this good stuff}

What I love about Molloy, is that Julia provides help and advice to all different types of clients.  From celebrity designers to the one-man/woman show, Julia wants to (and can) help.  When I first came across Molloy, I thought that their services would be way beyond our reach, but Julia has put together specific programs in a variety of price points so that everyone who needs help can get it.  One of her newest programs is a VIP Membership where clients pay only $75 a month to have access to their tailored collection of design business documents, methods and procedures, along with training videos and webinars.  I think it's a really great way to get started in the right direction & I wanted to let you know about it because I've gotten so many emails asking for business advice & about how to get started in this business.  And, if you're not at the point yet where you can do something like the VIP membership, I've found Julia's blog to be insanely inspiring on its own.  It's so information-packed that I go back to it whenever I can to try to take things in and get some perspective.  

I'll keep you posted on all of our changes & growing pains around here.  My talk with Julia was really helpful last night & I feel so much better with a plan in place.  It's tie to refine it and get going.  For now, I'm in the process of tailoring our Operations Manual so that when we do bring in our next employee- very soon- he or she will know exactly how we like things around here.

I have to run but wish me luck today as the One Kings Lane photo shoot started about 5 minutes ago in our living room!!  I'll be instagramming like a banshee today!!

ps- I'll tell you about my Grandma Maestranzi's Secret  Sauce another time ;) ;)    (The best bolognese EVER.)




If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.
Also- if you're interested in our new position, please stay tuned while we define the new role & necessary qualifications, and get ready for you.  We're not at the point yet where we can receive and look at resumes, but will be sure to announce when we are.  Thanks so much!!

A Parsons Chair Facelift

Now that we're mostly finished with construction at our new place, I'm knee-deep in decorating decisions!!  Our new house- although still a 70's contemporary- is so different from our last house so much of what we had is either going or being reworked.  In our last house, for example, I had lots of chairs, but in our new house, we needed more sofas and now have an excess of chairs. In our new dining room- which is a fairly small room nestled in the middle of the house- I plan on using our old parsons chairs:

They're from Ballard Designs & I'll be honest, a couple of them are a little creaky but we already own them so I'm working with them.   (They are on casters and are super-comfortable and after a long day, I like to eat in the dining room because sitting there just feels so good...  and you can sort of roll to where you need to be instead of walking. haha.  for real.)

The chairs are okay but our new house is so laid-back that they just won't work as-is.  They're too tailored & "pretty" feeling for what I need now. 

Anyway, I've ordered a soft & nubby stonewashed linen to have new slipcovers made in a style similar to these: 

{Dining room from one of my FAVORITE houses EVERRRR by Kay Douglas in House Beautiful}

I love how the slips break on the floor slightly and that linen wrinkle is just perfect.  I'll be prewashing mine and because the fabric I've selected is stonewashed, it will already feel broken in before we even get started in that department.  (Not that we wouldn't get there quickly ;) ;) 

{This isn't the actual fabric but it's a similar-looking one I found here}

 It will feel so much more relaxed than the box pleats and piping our chairs currently have:

I'm off for the day but will be back later this week to share behind-the-scenes details on our One Kings Lane shoot that's taking place tomorrow & Friday.  (I've always wondered how they shoot those white/ backgroundless photos and it looks like we'll be getting a crash course!!)




If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

We're doing a One Kings Lane Tastemaker Tag Sale!!

I'm thrilled to announce that we'll be doing a One Kings Lane Tastemaker Tag Sale the week of August 18th!  One Kings Lane is online marketplace that launches daily sales (most lasting only 72 hours) where designer & luxury items are sold at deeply discounted prices (up to 70%!!)   To shop, you actually have to sign up and become a member.  In doing my own house (and clients' homes) I've found some amazing deals on really unique things that I couldn't have found elsewhere.  Their Tastemaker Tag Sales consist of selling designers' personal collections of furniture, art, acessories, etc.  for the 72 hour period.  Like many designers, I have amassed a collection of things that I love and need to part with.  Whenever I come across something I love for a great price, I buy it.  Many of the things I buy get placed in clients homes, are used for photoshoots, in my own home, or in showhouses...

But nevertheless, with our recent move, it's time to have a bit of a moving sale & say goodbye to some of my loves.  (And I'm parting with many of them at rock bottom prices to make room in our storage unit. ;) In the room above from the DC Design house, we're selling two of my Madhatter Chairs (I designed these wing chairs from an old Victorian chair I found and changed the lines of... I'm also parting with the antique model chair itself) which both have a Jasper floral on their backs (Retails at over $200/ yard) ... pillows, curtains, accessories, and the gorgeous vintage Moroccan lantern that hangs in front of the window.

I have photoshoot props, like these amber glasses...

...and these massive glass vessels...

Much of what we're parting with used to live with us in our last home...

Remember the Albrecht Durer wall mural we hung in our dining room? (below)

We carefully removed it & attached it to fresh wax paper before moving, hoping we could find a spot for it in our new home, but we don't have the room.  I get emails about this piece at least monthly so I'm hoping it will find a good home with one of you.  

We're also parting with my comfy living room chairs, whose fabric I had upholstered on the reverse for a soft, relaxed feel:

I'm also saying goodbye to the antique gilded chair with the bird's feet (on the left of the pic above) upholstered in green velvet along with many of our accessories and art work.  It's bittersweet.  

I have lots of botanicals...

{Crystal chandelier too!}

...furniture....

...mirrors...

{okay I'll be honest, this one's still a 'maybe'...  I'm looking for a place for it ;) ;)  The gorgeous pillow on the bed is for sale. It's practically brand-new as I pretty much only ended up using it for photos because I was afraid the babies would ruin it.  I "stored" it for when they were older, but we keep having more babies haha)

Our beloved vintage kitchen table and chalkboard will be included in the sale...

...Along with the white ware & ironstone that I don't have room for...

I have tables, birds, urns and lamps...

...And of course, more botanicals...

This week, we're busy having pillows sewn in my fabrics too!!! :)  

One Kings Lane is sending a photographer to our house to shoot everything this Thursday and Friday so we are up to our eyeballs in moving furniture and cleaning, polishing & shining everything for its close-up!!  I'm honestly not sure how we're going to get everything done in time, but I know somehow we will.  Please send good thoughts our way;  I'm pretty close to being overwhelmed right now.

One last thing I want to mention: If you refer a friend to One Kings Lane, you get a $15 credit towards your next purchase and they get a $15 credit towards that same purchase. (!!!)  If you follow this link and join One Kings Lane, and eventually make a purchase,  would both get credits towards our next OKL purchases. (!! SO sign up so I can feed my addiction shop!! ;)   Referring friends will do the same for you once you sign up.  (And I should mention that you can adjust privacy settings so you're only being emailed when you want to be.  I have a MAJOR email problem with over 100 emails coming in a day, and One Kings Lane is not one of them.  I resisted joining for so long because of my email overload fear but now see it wasn't an issue.)

I'll keep you posted and will be sure to share a behind-the-scenes peek at the photoshoot this week.  I'm actually off right now to another photoshoot at our clients' home!! Have a good one.


 
Ps- If there's anything you see in the pics that I didn't mention that you're interested in, please let me know.  Thanks!!

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

The White Box Challenge

 A month or so ago, one of my super sweet & talented blog friends ("blog friend" is going to be added to the dictionary soon, I'm sure of it ;) Bryn of Bryn Alexandra of the popular blog Bryn Alexandra Interiors  invited me, along with a few other bloggers, to participate in her joy + revelry "white box challenge."  The idea was that we would all receive a surprise gift in the mail (who doesn't want that?!!) to style in our own way for photos we'd share on our blogs.  Even though we'd all be receiving the same gift, it would be fun to see how differently we all used it.  Our readers would then receive a 10% off coupon code to be used towards any purchases.  Joy + Revelry is a new online store where bloggers have set up "shops" selling carefully curated items in their shops.

Anyway, when my white box challenge gift arrived in the mail, I was surprised to see that it was actually a white box.  Too funny.

I'm using mine on the nightstand to as a little corral for my jewely & the hair bands that seem to accumulate there:

The white box's beautiful lucite lid keeps me from hoarding because I want to be able to clearly see what's inside:  

It's the perfect little modern touch for the rustic dresser we have beside our bed:

And, since I'm the procrastinating blogger, I'm also the last one to post, so I thought it would be fun to share snippets of the other bloggers' white box challenges with you.  (And I didn't peek at these until I was all done, promise!)

I love what Stephanie of A Brooklyn Limestone did.  It's the perfect place for the remotes!!!  (I may have to change uses now ;) ;)...

{To view Stephanie's full post, click here}

I also like Chassity of Look Linger & Love's white box photos.  I love how she's hung her art over the bookshelves with library lights!!! So pretty & fresh:

{To view Chassity's full post, click here}

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed our different takes on the same little white box.

What would you do with yours?

To check out Bryn's shop, click here.  She has some really great things you'll love!!!   To see out the actual white box, click here.   Thank you so much to Bryn for including me & congratulations on the new endeavor at joy =+ revelry!!!  And don't forget to use the coupon code for 10% off: BRYN_WHITEBOX_10



If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

Pretty Little Friday

So... you remember my client who loves bright & bold color, right?  Well, we installed her new dressing room yesterday and I just had to share a pic I snapped of her incredible shoe collection.  If you follow me on instagram, you've probably already seen my pics, but for those who don't, here it is:

With the way the room is set up, the shoes now feel like art.  They sparkle from across the room and you immediately want to walk over there and start touching them.  (Especially me!! We wear the same size!!!)  And when I say "shoes" these are not just shoes... These are shoes.  

I fell in love with a few pairs (leopard @ bottom left and black lace heels two over from those)  but was blown away by a pair of pail pink feathered stilettos  (middle right) and I think the feathers would look like pretty little flames going up your ankles.  (In my daydream of wearing them, I'm also capable of walking in them ;)

I didn't even get the boot rows in this picture, which rival the heels in "Oh my, I want these"-ness.

We're now waiting on this beautiful Cole & Son wallpaper to arrive for the walls...

... and I cannot wait!!  I'm off for the day but thank you so much to my sweet client for letting me help put together her dream dressing room.  It's been so much fun!!!

Which pair of shoes is your favorite?



If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

Clients' Master Bath Before & After

In the clients' home I shared with you last week, I also mentioned that we did their master bathroom.  I took some photos of it to show you the "before & after" of the construction.  We're in the process of adding towels & accessories & things to the walls so I'll be sure to share when it's truly finished. The original bathroom was large but my clients weren't loving its functionality (or lack or it) or the materials.  Here's what it looked like before: 

{The tub butted up to the side of the shower, which had a glass surround with a thick chrome frame.}

{My clients didn't need a sitting vanity area but preferred his and hers sinks.  We also saw that there was a big chunk of wasted space in the corner between the counter tops.  My favorite thing about the original bathroom was that the toilet was in its own room & we kept it that way.}

We decided upon a palette of pale blues & creams and worked with our friend Mike Carr of CarrMichael Construction to design the new cabinetry & layout. We settled on timeless fixtures and I was thrilled when our clients said "yes" to painted shiplap walls.

Anyway, here's the bathroom now:

The shiplap walls add so much warmth and texture to the bathroom.  It feels so much more substantial now and has that slight coastal eel that my clients love.  We had them painted the same color as the ceiling.  The pale blue floors are made up of 4x4 tiles which we had laid in a brick pattern.  

I'm a tad obsessed with their new soaking tub:

The polished nickel hardware is just so substantial and pretty in 'real life.'  (I took this photo before we hung the natural woven shades, which add a warm wood element to the room I love...  and more importantly, privacy ;) ;) 

The shower surround is now a frameless glass one (our clients selected clear glass) so it takes up so much less visual space in the room.  It was tough to get a good photo:

When I'd originally presented this design, we were planning in having a percentage of cream 4x4s mixed in with the pale blue ones.  I'd done something similar before & had loved it but when the tiles arrived and were laid out in the bathroom for approval, it just wasn't right because there was too much contrast between the creams & blues.  It looked a crazy person had designed it!! (Which I guess is true ;) ;)  We quickly ordered more blue tiles & of course the project was held up slightly because of it.  I felt really terrible but my clients were very understanding.

For metals, we used a combination of polished nickel & antiqued silver.  I like to mix metals so that rooms have a bit more interest & are a bit more relaxed feeling.  I think rooms with mixed metals just look a bit more effortless & stylish than ones where everything matches perfectly.  

I'm in the process of scheduling photographer (and good friend!!) Helen Norman to come & photograph my clients' home because she will do it so much more justice than I did!! :)  As soon as I have those pics, I'll be sure to share them so you can see the difference. But I hope you enjoyed what you did see!!  Have a great day & stay cool.   (AC broken here = really fun!! ... But honestly makes me feel very fortunate for being able to have AC.)

To view the rest of my clients' home, go here.  

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

We're Really Moving In!!!

My eyes will barely open right now (honestly, the left one's kind of twitchy this morning too!)  but I am SO HAPPY because this weekend we got to truly unpack and move into our house!!!

{A pic of a part of the boys' section in the new library...  I doubt it will stay looking like this for long although right now I've been a bit of a psycho about it:  "Ok, Christian, you've finished with a little golden book.  See the books with the golden spines?  They all go here."  Poor child. }

The guys finished our bookcases in the upstairs loft this Saturday and we stayed up all night to unload all of our books.  (The shelves are packed but for the most part, everything fits with a little bit of room to grow our library.)  Buried in our garage amongst the books were the boys toys, things for our kitchen, clothes and tons of other random things we'd been missing.  Here's the fallout:

{Don't worry Mom, it's not going to the landfill}

Our books have never been so organized (My husband- a former English teacher- broke our books down into American lit, English lit, world, etc. and I had fun taking stock of all of my herb books, junky fiction and and design books.   The boys have their own - super-accessible- section and even Louie has baskets for his board books at the very bottom.   I had a little room to fit in some of my favorite natural things that we've collected over the years like a huge crystal geode we found at my favorite antique store, shells & coral we've collected on vacations, feathers, cool pieces of wood, etc.  Everything is right where we need it and it feels so good!!!)

We're at the point now where we're emptying out the garage and will be pulling the car in today!!!  ... And I'm staring at an island full of random stuff that I don't know what to do with but that I'm not sure I can get rid of.    That last pile takes the longest but I'm leaning towards getting rid of most of it just so we can breath again.  

This is so freeing.

Have a great Monday & I'll be back with more pics!

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.