KMD Interior Blog

I just got back from three very exciting days at High Point Spring Furniture Market. The best way to describe it: Disney World for the design trade. The Furniture Market is a twice-yearly event in High Point, NC where home furnishing and accessory manufacturers congregate to display their new lines and designers come to drool. It takes both a determined spirit and some very impressive time management skills to see it all but trust me, like a kid in Disney World, you make it happen. Comfortable shoes are always the first thing I pack and it is because of those comfortable shoes and an iPhone that I’m able to share with you a representative sample of some of the best highlights from High Point Market 2013 along with some of my reactions and musings on each piece.

1. Maze End Table from Regina Andrew

Loving the shape of these tables. Very fun! Right away, I picture these as night tables in a teen bedroom.

2. One Step Paint from Amy Howard at Home

I am beyond excited about this new One Step Paint product. Say goodbye to all the prep work in refinishing furniture because this paint let's you get straight to the repainting. Now to find something to refinish…

3. Botanical Prints from The Natural Light Company

Such a striking wall display! The detail in these prints is nothing short of amazing. Very rich in feel without a rich price tag – love that!

4. Cici Obelisk in Crushed Shell from Made Goods

How about the crushed shell finish on this piece? Absolutely stunning!

5. Edward Ottoman from Gabby

The old European look was everywhere this Market and it shows in this eye-catcher of an ottoman by Gabby.

6. Small Globe Chandelier from Eloquence

Continuing with the old European look, this chandelier from Eloquence literally pulled me into the Eloquence showroom for a closer look where I discovered it's also available in two additional sizes!

7. Bama Gueridon Accent Table from Lucy Smith

Such a cute end table! Like jewelry, it's the perfect little something to complete a look. Did I mention it comes in an array of finishes and can even be topped in a mirror or antique mirror? Plus, you can tailor it to fit almost any project.

8. Finial from A&B Home

Love at first sight is the only way to describe my connection with this finial. I didn't stand a chance after taking in the detail.

9. Taupe Garden Vase Table Lamp from The Natural Light Company

I love the detail on the base – so elegant!

10. Wolfgang Chandelier from Mr. Brown

I'm in love with the fretwork frame and the Gesso finish detail, hard plaster finish over wood. A favorite, for sure!

Disney World, see?

Hugs,
Karen 

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.

Earth Day has me thinking 'green' so I decided to pull together a list of some of my favorite eco-friendly decor and furniture discoveries from a variety of sustainable sources around the web.

(1) Pottery Barn – Carlisle Upholstered Sofa, made from organic cotton
(2) HomeTone – Wine bottle vase, a DIY project
(3) Fab Habitat – Lhasa Orange & Violet rug, woven from straws made up of recycled plastic
(4) Forma Living – Gustave Teak Tables, made from recycled teak
(5) Green Depot – YOLO Colorhouse Interior Pain, Green Seal certified, VOC- and carcinogen-free
(6) VivaTerra – Classic Dresser, made from reclaimed Douglas fir from a razed building
(7) Bambeco – Jackson Timber Lamp, made from repurposed elm
(8) Uncommon Goods – Hand-embroidered accent pillow, handmade by fair trade artisans in Bolivia and Peru
(9) Kreme – Folk Flower Wallpaper in Black, made using eco-solvent and low VOC wallpaper
(10) Design Public – Brave Space Design Bamboo Stagger, made from bamboo (Fun Fact: Bamboo grows at a rate of 12-14 inches/day – very renewable!)
(11) Etsy -  Burlap Brown 3D Wall Art Canvas, made from recycled burlap

Earth Day is the perfect reminder of just how easy it can be to lighten our load on the earth simply by shifting our decorating decisions towards more sustainable materials, or maybe that's just the interior designer in me talking. In the green design world, we operate on the following three principles when creating a sustainable space: recycle, reuse, renewable.

The list above illustrates just how beautiful those principles can be in action. For more ideas, wander your local antique stores, research who in your area is reclaiming and reusing wood or other materials in their designs, support your local artists, boutiques, woodworkers to cut down on transportation fuel emissions and chemical-use and if you're the ambitious type, repurpose your own furniture and home goods. With Pinterest and so many other sources of DIY inspiration out there, anything is possible.

Happy Earth Day!

Hugs,
Karen 

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.

Imagine this: It’s nearing 6 a.m. Your part of the world has yet to awaken. The sun is just beginning its daily crawl across the heavens. You throw on some comfortable clothes, forego the makeup, sweep your hair back, and head out the door for an activity that will surely calm, focus, invigorate, and energize you for the day ahead. Welcome to my new yoga routine! I’ve only recently started at a gym minutes from my house but am already seeing and feeling the benefits. I have come to absolutely love it. 

Just last week, I gleaned an unexpected lesson from this new yoga routine. The instructor, Kym Swank, asked me to do something I haven’t done in probably 30 years – a handstand. Kym asked us to move our mats to the wall, carefully explained the next steps and then had us put her instructions into action. Suddenly and without warning, this unexplainable fear welled up inside of me resulting in a very pitiful attempt to complete the move. Noticing my weak attempts, Kym asked me to kick up again. I tried, the fear still alive and strong. I was seriously holding back! I knew it too and I also knew all too well why.

What I’ve come to love about yoga is how it really makes you think about each move and what you are capable of and then by design forces you to push just a little past that. As I was trying to kick up into the handstand, I realized I had felt this fear paralysis before. The memory of an 8^th grade gymnastics tryout came flooding back. I had the full attention of the coach I was trying to impress. He asked me to kick back into a back walkover on the balance beam. Despite having done back walkovers hundreds of times on the floor beam, the added dimension of a raised beam absolutely terrified me. Like Kym with the handstand, the coach knew I could complete the move on the beam. I was the only one who didn’t. I allowed fear to seep in and consume my confidence. I made several attempts, already failing before I had begun, and repeatedly let slip an “I can’t” right at the crucial moment of decision – to do the walkover or succumb to the fear. I let fear win and inevitably the coach gave up, walked away, and my name did not appear on the team list at the close of tryouts. That interaction has literally haunted me for years because I knew I could do that back walkover, beam or no beam, coach’s full attention or not. I let fear stand in the way and sabotage something I really wanted.

Fast forward a “few” years and here I am at a 6 a.m. yoga class, staring fear in the face once again. Over the years there have been so many times when I've failed to step into something I wanted to do because I allowed fear to stop me. This time I made a different choice. With Kym spotting me and a memory of 8^th grade past reminding me of what it feels like to let fear win, I kicked up into the hand stand. It was the most incredible feeling. Not only did I feel myself push the weight of my legs up into a full extension but it I literally felt like I was pushing through the fear that has been holding me back for so long. I felt myself say “Not this time” to the fear inside. It was energizing. It was a game changer. It was a moment that made right the memory of 8^th grade gymnastics tryouts.

All because of a handstand in an early-morning yoga class, I am taking a different approach to addressing fear. I have a new sense of confidence and faith in myself. I now know, with unwavering confidence that I can push through the fear and accomplish what I really want.  The experience opened me up to how powerful our thoughts can be in keeping us small or allowing us to be, have, and do all that we can be, have and do. I bump into fear all the time while working with clients, They’re afraid of making a mistake in decorating their home and that fear takes the form of indecision. Then they call me.

How many times have you found yourself in that place of knowing you need to step into that fear to get what you want but instead decide to stay comfortable and not do anything?  Yoga has given me the clarity to now recognize those moments in my life. At first glance, a handstand may not seem like it has much potential to become a life-changing moment but a handstand gave me a powerful experience to fall back on and new motivation to step through the fear as I go forward.  

Namaste.

Hugs,
Karen 

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.

It's all about "the pretty" when it comes to organizing my office. It's that time of year when we need to get new calendars and of course, it has to be "pretty". I love that so many things have come on the market now that allow us to not only get organized but make it look inspiring and beautiful at the same time. No more boring black date books and plain manila folders! Desk calendars are the latest to join this design revolution and I wanted to share two great options we found and just ordered for the office.

My assistant Kelly chose this one from Dabby Lee, very bold and colorful.

Love the unexpected play on pattern and colors – perfect for her and really speaks to her style!

I chose this one, the Modern Desktop Calendar from Boatman Geller – love the strong graphic prints and bright colors. It just makes me feel happy .

I love that these calendars sit on our desk and are easily visible for a quick glance as we work through schedules and deadlines. Plus, they're fun to look at . I'm late in updating our calendars for 2013 and never realized until now how many times a day I refer to it. I still have my 2012 calendar up and can't tell you how many times I've already scheduled something based on December 2012 dates – oops! Time to get that baby down and move on to 2013! If you've found any great sites for fun and inspiring calendars, please share. I'd love to know!

Hugs,
Karen 

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.

This morning I did something I haven't done in a long time!  I sat back with a cup of coffee in hand, computer on my lap and took time catch up on blogs, magazines and Pinterest – I took some time to "find inspiration".

It seems like someone started a stopwatch about a year ago and I've been running ever since. I've slowly let those things go that energized and inspired me to live better and be better.

For 2013, my goal is to make time for inspiration.  Especially being in a creative field, it's imperative I do this! To not feed that creative side is ignoring something that truly feeds my soul and I can feel its absence. When I take time to enjoy something that inspires me, I feel my heart race but in a good way – it's racing with energy and excitement because I'm connecting to my passion and giving it life!

It's important we all take time to do things that feed our soul. When we do, it allows us to feel complete and brings us closer to living our purpose. So, starting today, find something to feed your soul and let me know what that is. I'd love to hear from you!

Hugs,
Karen 

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.

I just received an email from AF Lighting who carries a gorgeous line of lighting inspired and designed by one of my all time favorite designers, Candice Olson. I love how she brings just the right touch of bling and sparkle to everything she designs. It's always is classic, simple and elegant!  Here's a sneak peek at some of her latest introductions for AF Lighting (my apologies on picture quality – this truly is "hot off the presses"):

                   Sweet Dreams

I'm loving the Zigzag desk lamp – very fun! Do you have a favorite?

Hugs,
Karen 

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.

I've seen several blog posts about forgoing the traditional New Year's resolutions and instead, picking a "word of the year". I stumbled upon a blog post from Christine Kane right after Christmas, Resolution Revolution: A Better Way to Start Your Year and what she said really resonated with me. She talked about why resolutions don't work because they don't get to the heart of what's holding us back from keeping them. We make promises to ourselves that are only at the surface and the thing we really need to overcome to stay true to those resolutions is ignored in the process. Ultimately we give up or just let the resolution slip away, leaving us with a sense of frustration and guilt. Selecting a single word is a powerful process of self reflection and gets to the heart of what's standing in your way and becomes authentic to who you really need to BE in the year head.

Small Business Coach Expert Fabienne Fredrickson used to always say, "How you do one thing is how you do everything" and every time I'd hear her say that, it would tug at me. Now I know why.

Because I somehow thought how I showed up in one area of my life could be different in another area. We can't live our lives compartmentalizing who we are. There is only one authentic you and to think otherwise only holds you back. I now get it!

Selecting a word of the year gets to the heart of the matter; forcing you to really self-reflect on who you are today and who you need to be going forward. Christine has an AWESOME workbook you can download for free to help guide you through selecting your "word of the year".

It really helped me walk through the process and gain clarity and understanding around what my word is. She talks about the tendency to rush to pick a word and not allow the process to really work its magic. I'm guilty of doing just that and realized it last night when as Christine promised and Tobi Fairley in another powerful blog post on finding your "Word of the Year" promised as well, "your word will find you". It did so last night. How do I know? Because it resonates deep within, fits like that perfect dress you accidentally find on an unplanned shopping trip. You somehow know it's meant to be. So what is my word for 2013? COURAGE.

I initially thought my word was focus; then switched to growth and then strength was where I settled until last night. I realized through reading Tobi's blog post last night that I need to act with COURAGE in order to grow, focus and become stronger. My word indeed "found me".

I need COURAGE to push through my fears and go beyond my comfort zone.

I need COURAGE to find my voice and let that shine in 2013.

I need COURAGE as I step into unfamiliar territory and put taking care of myself at the top of the list.

I need COURAGE to take my business to the next level and do things I've never done before.

Yes, COURAGE is my word. It's my touchstone that I will repeat over and over again as I move forward this year reminding me that "YES, I CAN DO THIS!" when fear sets in.

It's almost as it God knew this should be my word before I did. As I reflected on this word last night I was reminded of a scripture that just popped into my head awhile back and felt as if God had whispered it in my ear…

I encourage you all to read Christine's and Tobi's blog posts and take the time to find your "word of the year". You'll be amazed just how powerful an exercise it is in allowing you to connect with your authentic self and identifying what you need to BE to achieve your goals, dreams and desires in 2013. Thanks for allowing me to share a more personal side today and may 2013 be the year you truly reach your goals and dreams and then some .

I love the New Year! Really we can make a fresh start any day of the year but there is something about turning the calendar and starting a new year that gives added incentive. I spent yesterday organizing our pantry as we're making a commitment to finally eat healthy as a family in 2013. Out went the Pop-Tarts along with many other not so healthy sweets (sniff, sniff) and I ended the day baking some Blueberry Power Muffins to fill my morning carb/sweet craving. These muffins taste really yummy and will definitely help wean me from my Pop-Tart habit!

{CookingLight.com}

After the pantry, I organized the bathroom linen closet and threw out umpteen bottles of old shampoos, medications, lotions, etc. Not sure how the shampoos and lotions end up there half-used in the first place but it freed up a lot of room. There's something so satisfying with seeing a clean, open and organized space.

{iHeart Organizing Blog}

Today, I tackled my business. I've felt like I can't see the forest through the trees lately so I decided to stop and just organize. I looked at all my tasks and categorized them into daily, weekly and monthly. I then scheduled them into my calendar with specific days and times for each. So I have a scheduled time to check and respond to email daily, visit showrooms weekly, handle tax filings monthly; even made sure to schedule in a daily lunch and time each week to catch up on the shelter magazines =).  It's so freeing to see it all down on paper and realize it's all so doable! It was just a matter of thinking it through, making a plan and now doing it!!

{Val & Words Blog}

Yes, I love this time of year for all the newness it represents. If you want some great tips and printables to get organized in 2013, please visit Jen Jones blog,
iHeart Organizing. I just discovered it while writing this post and love how Jen makes organizing simple, fun and colorful! Wishing you a very Happy New Year and a healthy and organized 2013!

It's been a little crazy in our household for the past week. We're fostering 5 kittens and their mother. It feels like I have a newborn or should I say several newborns all over again. With feedings every 3 hours and lasting about an hour each time, it does bring back memories! I'll have to post some pictures. They are too cute!

Between feedings, I have managed to squeeze in some design work and have two installs as well this week. We're installing a bedroom tomorrow for my one client's daughter and putting the finishing touches on another project we started for another client earlier this fall.

My one client moved into their home earlier this year and were more than ready to make it their "own". Based on the existing paint colors and window treatments, the previous owners must have had a southwestern style going on which was totally opposite from my clients' taste. It was killing them and they couldn't wait to change things up. We first updated the paint colors to a palette that was softer, more neutral and natural in feel.

Just repainting alone had a huge impact! I specified wallcovering for the dining room and powder room and we just got that installed yesterday. Here's the dining room before:

And after:

What a difference! I added wainscoting but only took it to 24" in height. I saw Alexa Hampton (an amazing interior designer who has designed spaces for many of the rich and famous and also recently published her book, Alexa Hampton, The Language of Interior Design) do this in a space and absolutely fell in love with how it looked. It really finishes off the space in a unique but elegant way.

We just installed this Manila Hemp wallcovering from Phillip Jeffries in Silver Blue yesterday and it transformed the space! The color is so calming and the texture brings added depth and dimension. On Friday, we're installing a beautiful pendant light in the dining room that will truly feel like jewelry in the space. I can't wait to see it installed!

I have to give a shout out to Michael DiGuiseppe who installed the wallcoverings and Ruben Aristondo who did all the painting and trim work. Both are amazing at what they do and I feel incredibly lucky to have their assistance on these projects! Here's an example of the level of detail Michael goes into when he's installing wallcovering. Look at the air vent cover below, not only did he cover it but it's perfectly matched to the wall so it blends in seamlessly. It's those little details that make all the difference in the end! This picture is from the powder room.

Fabric is on order for the window treatments and after a few more finishing touches, my client's project will be complete. I've so enjoyed working with them – they have been open to going outside their comfort zone and the results have been wonderful so I'm very grateful for them putting their trust in me. I'll post more pictures as we tie up the remaining pieces.

Hugs,
Karen

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.

Sometimes researching for inspiration for client projects can be a double-edged sword. You start down one road, find something you absolutely love and you're off a totally different direction. That's exactly what happened today when I was researching something for a client. I stumbled upon this home on Houzz and it just took my breath away! This home very quickly went into my Dream Home Ideabook on the Houzz site so I can save for that day when I'm ready to build my lakehouse. : ) Here is quick tour from the Houzz site:

LOVE the front elevation!! The roofline, combination of stone and wood and all those windows are so stunning! This home is located on Lake Keowee, SC and was designed by Wright Design located in Greenville, SC.

This is exactly what I picture for a lakehouse bedroom; lots of wood, dark trim, and earthy color palette that mirrors the surroundings. Notice the exaggerated crown detail and it looks like they used planks for a ceiling detail – very cool!

The vaulted ceiling and fireplace are unbelievable! Imagine the fire you could build in this fireplace!!

Can't you see kids up all night talking and giggling in this room with their flashlights on under the covers? Love the plank walls and ceiling – very rustic and perfect vibe for this space!

This is one kitchen that was designed with entertaining in mind! There's lots of open space to move around and plenty of seating and counter space on the island. Love the wood details and the windows on the far wall keep it from feeling too heavy or closed in with the wood beamed ceiling.

I think I would live out here! I can so picture curling up on one of these sofas in front of a roaring fire on a chilly evening. Ahhh, just the thought is so peaceful. : )

If you'd like to see more photos of this gorgeous lakehouse, visit Wright Design's website and click on the Portfolio tab. I know I'll sleep well tonight dreaming of this home!

P.S. – If you'd like help creating a space that is uniquely yours, contact me about our design services and setting up an inquiry call to learn more.