A New Home!

My blog has a new home!  I finally hired a professional to give my website a much needed facelift and it was the perfect time to move the blog on over.  If you follow me, please find all my old and new posts here starting in May...

http://jennifertaylordesign.com/blog/

Hamster vs. Wheel

So much going on around here, some days it's hard to keep up!  I'm so blessed to be busy and even more blessed to have such great clients.  This week I took one of those clients (who happens to be my niece) to the fabric store to help select fabrics for her new room.  My sister and her family are moving to Arkansas this summer and yes, I'm super sad!  To help ease my sorrow, I've jumped in feet first helping them with their new house.  It's beautiful on the outside, but the inside definitely needs work.  We have a long list, but first is paint and new light fixtures.  Oh, and getting rid of that awful Bama red in the bonus room!

The house on Bird Dog Pointe is finishing up, just in time for the parade of homes in a few weeks.  I've been working hard on putting together the design plan for the furnishings and I can't wait to present them next week.  Here's a sneak peak at a few fabrics in my design plan for the family room and the kid-friendly keeping room off the kitchen.

Finally, in addition to my client load, I'm redesigning my website, blog and business cards.  It should all be ready to go "live" next week or at least in time for the parade of homes.  Now, back to my lists!

Can I Have This Dance?

This week I did one of my favorite things...installed a bedroom for a little girl!  Little spaces are the best.  Clients tend to be more open to color and pattern and we usually have a young one chiming in on what they want  This was the last untouched room in the house since my clients built it a few years ago.  Their youngest daughter was finally ready for a room of her own and requested "ballerinas" as her theme.  As you can see we were working with a pretty clean slate...

My first step in a room design is to always a create a furniture plan.  What can we fit in here?  The client needed a larger bed so the room could function as a guest room, clothing storage, a place for books and a cushion for the window seat - on a tight budget no less!  So, we agreed to invest in the bed, dresser and window seat cushion, but then stretch the budget on all the details.

So, to Target and Home Goods I went and presented this design plan to the clients.  Everything was quickly approved and off I went to finalize the details and get the orders going.

And here is the final result...

 

My clients weren't home when I was there and just a few minutes after I left, I received this text...

 

   

Reason number 9,446 that I LOVE MY JOB!

Progress at Bird Dog Pointe

It's been a busy week, but the highlight was yesterday.  I visited my Bird Dog Pointe project and am thrilled to see so many of the finishes going in now.  This home will be featured in the Parade of Homes in May, so it's got a little special place in my heart.  Plus, my client is a dream!  She has two young boys and came up with the best idea for their bathroom tile. 

Here are a little sneak peaks of what I saw yesterday.  Lighting and counters go in next week, then floors and faucets.  It's going to be beautiful!

I'm Still Alive!

I can't believe it's been so long since I've written on the blog.  To give you an example of how busy I've been, I honestly forgot to wash my hair in the shower this morning.  I was thinking about my day and literally, forgot.to.wash.my.hair!  

Work has been really busy, but life has, too.  The month started with a great conference in Atlanta (more to come on that later), tons of activities with my son, a trip to New York City for spring break and getting my work schedule ready for our upcoming The One Week Boutique later this month.  I'm not complaining - only justifying my lack of commitment to my blog.  Is it working??

My client from Atlanta just hired me to furnish some rooms in her new house, so I'm super excited about that.  The house is really coming along and will definitely be ready in time for the Parade of Homes in May.  I love having a house in the parade and am looking forward to seeing all the selections come together over the next few weeks.  I met with her at the house last week and the cabinets were just starting to be installed.  Look at this detail we added in the kitchen island for her furry child...

I also installed the last piece of art in another client's sitting room last week.  She's a vibrant grandmother who really wanted the room to reflect her and I think we succeeded.  She had a number of family pieces that she wanted to keep and a coffee table she loved, so with some great fabric and color, she has a beautiful new space!  

The first two photos are how the room looked before and then you can see the process of how we got to the final product.  What a difference a little color and fabric can make!

Chez Sois {take six}

My client is in!  The remodeling phase of Chez Sois finished up last month and my client has officially moved into her new place.  I received this email from her after her first night..."It's just amazingly gorgeous to wake up to, and I do appreciate all of the talent and knowledge you have put into making it an incredible place to live." How great is that?  It's just a wonderful reminder of how blessed I am to be doing a job I love.  

I wasn't able to get in to do any formal "after" photos as she started moving in before everything was 100% done.  But, I was able to get a few shots with my phone that I'll share today.  I plan to have professional ones done as soon as all the furniture is installed.  I promise, it will be worth the wait!

The fireplace wall turned out better than I imagined.  We added some beautiful trim details.

The kitchen is a perfect mix of design and function!

The powder bath is definitely a jewel with it's cobalt wallpaper.

The new master bath is a delight in travertine!

The staircase sets a tone for the rest of the house and you get a peak at the new wood floors.

This isn't the best picture of the balcony railing, but it's all I have at the moment.

Here is a little BEFORE shot of the above window looked before we created the balcony.

Brass is back!

I know!  I've been trying to fight it, but brass is definitely back in a big way in home furnishings.  This is definitely not the 80's shiny brass or the antique brass, but a soft, colored brass.  I'm working with a client now who is loving the brass for her lighting and I couldn't be more excited to see it all come together.  Here's a little sneak peak of what we are loving today...

 

In addition to lighting, I found these other beauties online today that I had to share...

If you are ready to add a little brass into your life...give me a call!

Decorating 101 - Easy Bathroom Updates

It's been a while since I've done a Decorating 101 post, so I thought I would try and bring it back with giving you all some easy ways to update your bathroom that doesn't require a paint brush, a tile saw or any heavy equipment.

My bathroom has been extra cold these past few days.  It's on the corner of the house, has tile floor and I can't seem to keep it warm without making the other rooms 98 degrees.  If I ever get to build my dream house, heated floors are in my future!  

One idea that I really love, but have not had a chance to try, is layering mirrors.  Most of us have a plate glass mirror above our sink.  Instead of taking it down and replacing it with a decorative mirror, why not just use both?  The large mirror helps open up the space more and gives you plenty of area to see all those gray hairs, then the pretty mirror gives your bathroom a little style.

Photo Credit

These frameless mirrors from Ballard Designs would be easy to hang and would create a more seamless transition between the two mirrors.

If you have a traditional tub/shower combination and need a shower curtain, why not try this easy update?  Instead of one, purchase two and stack one on each side.  Is your tub not always neat and tidy?  Then, just close them up and enjoy the fullness the two shower curtains bring.  When doing a custom shower curtain, I always want at least two times the width of the tub.  Using two curtains gives you this and a little more.  

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Another shower curtain idea, which I recently did for a client, was taking a ready-made shower curtain and adding a fabric band along the bottom.  This does two things - gives you extra length and a design detail that's all your own.

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Rugs are another way to bring in some color, personality and warmth into your bathroom.  I like using runners in front of sink vanities.  The longer rug seems to work better than using a lot of scatter rugs around.  I would suggest keeping the traditional bathroom rugs in front of your shower and tubs, so they can be easily washed.  You can find stylish runners at Target or Home Goods for a really reasonable price.

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Another trick I have found that was pretty and functional, is using a tray on your counter.  I am lucky to have a lot of counter space and the tray helps break it up, along with keeping my every day products all together.  Even if you don't have a lot of space, a tray can still help keep you organized.  

Most of us wish our bathroom trays could look like this!

But in reality, they will look like this.  See how much better all these items look when they are grouped together instead of being scattered on the counters?  Great idea for the man in your life!

Finally, PLEASE don't do this with your towels.  Just keep them neatly folded on your towel bars.  Make sure you wash the ones you don't use on a regular basis because the dust can change the color.  I say that from personal experience!