BUTTON DREAMS….

I do love a Button…..

In fact…… I love any button!

Buttons of all kinds, all colors and shapes

                                          and especially on pillows!!!!

And….

               I love pillows too….even without buttons!!!

Put a flower on a pillow and I will buy it!

Put a ruffle on a pillow……and I will buy it!

BUT BUTTONS……….

      HAVE THAT WAY OF ADDING A CERTAIN SOMETHING!

Add a touch of SWEETNESS  to a valance top…..

SOPHISTICATION AND POISE….

                                                          TO DRAPERY PLEATS.

BUTTONS IN ANY FORM OF FASHION…..

are remarkably distracting of my attention!!!!!!!

Visiting  a blogspot of a fellow “button believer” I was introduced to a  myriad of button creations that I never evened dreamed of:

http://bonkersaboutbuttons1.blogspot.com

Please visit also and catch some

              BUTTON FEVER!!

Have a great weekend!

GREAT CAUSE….GREAT FUN!

We have been humbled to work along side of many talented professionals and contribute in a small way to this fabulous design project  in our city which will now serve to benefit the GREAT humanitarian organization of the American Red Cross.  Marvelous designers, marvelous house, marvelous event!

Grand Rapids Magazine

The Jeffery Roberts design of this French farmhouse is arguably the most expressive artistic home design we've featured with our Design Home series. It's a must-see home exceeding anything one would find in a standard Parade-type event. And, we'll be raising money for a good cause. Has any charitable, volunteer organization worked harder than the Red Cross this year?
Reservations are required, as are comfortable shoes.  We look forward to seeing you this week!

The current Design Home program couples builder/designer Jeffery Robert’s expansive vision of Wilcox Gardens with his acumen for re-designing a heritage Reeds Lake home. Homes in France blush at the authenticity he captured in his French farmhouse design. Grand Rapids Magazine invites you to experience Jeffery’s artistry first-hand during an exclusive private tour September 22. All proceeds benefit the American Red Cross. You’ll be wined, dined and exhilarated, all the while doing your part to help those who never question helping us.

French Farmhouse Reception and Tour

Date/Time: September 22, 2011 6 PM – 9 PM

Tickets: $125 each

VIP Tickets: $225 each

VIP Tickets include a private preview tour with designer Jeffery Roberts

from 5:00pm until 6:00pm, a champagne toast and a deluxe gift bag. 

Limited to 16 and sold strictly on a first-come first-served basis.

Authentic French Cuisine and Pastries provided by Above and Beyond

Special Live Auction to Benefit American Red Cross

 

A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:

If you are unable to attend in person, please feel free

to attend in spirit by donating to your local chapter

of the American Red Cross!!!

ONCE A CHILD, ALWAYS A CHILD!

What designer doesn’t love 

                                     to decorate a child’s room!

It allows us to BE a CHILD once again!

To put ourselves in a child’s shoes and to

              SEE life through their eyes.

Full of  FUN,

              fizzles,  

 

                 frisbees,

 

                       and frills!

GREENHOUSE FABRICS GIVES US THAT OPPORTUNITY with KID INSPIRED FABRICS!!!!!

SMILEY!!!!

SWEET!!!!

TWIRLY!!!

AND DREAMY!!

“Children make you want to start life over.”

                                                  ~Muhammad Ali

AU NATUREL

NOOOOOOOO, this isn’t about LADY GAGA………but it is an attention getter!!!! 

(By the way, don’t you think she is quite attractive without all the publicity makeup?)

Anyway…..

I had no sooner posted my LAST blog blurb when I received a

delightful box at my back door containing none other

than…..you guessed it…..Au Naturel fabrics by Carole

(which, I am sure you know, is owned by Hunter Douglas!!!!)

I have snapped my own photos so the colors are

poor  however, these are a truly must see cotton and linen,

neutral palette of  colors, and marvelous tactile sensation!

 

Of course, CAROLE FABRICS  do have the

fun and spirited

cotton blends as well as the polyester blends……

and a SALE! 

MAHVELOUS DAHLING!!!!!!

LET’S GET REAL…..

I know this seems a tad early to say……but we are looking at the back side of 2011.   Before you know it….you guessed it…2012 will be knocking at the door.

The current 2011 design trend in colors will spill over into the new year with tweaked hues and individual flairs but I would venture to say, we will maintain our current tendency of creating comfy, casual living spaces to sooth our harried lives and to share with friends while entertaining.

Natural woven products like the Provenance Woven Texture Shades of organic materials are certainly here to stay and when paired with the marvelous textures and prints of the wide variety of environmental friendly fabric, we have a sassy, classy duo!

Silk fabric is another time tested winner that transcends decades of trends and keeps coming out on top.

This year the embroidered silks took the fabric industry by storm…….so much so that we were finding it difficult to locate “a plain ‘ol solid color” in (my favorite) tussah silk.  Along with cotton fabric (of the eco-friendly variety), I consider silk “green” and of low eco-impact.  Besides, I am so very tired of polyester I could scream!  I am sure other designers out there share this same  maddening dilemma!!!

I am always on the look out for a “real” linen fabric as well.  You know the one – made of “real” flax fibers and dyed with organic dyes. 

I imagine with more designers demanding “purity” of fabric, we will be able to locate these desirable weaves more readily.  Yes, they do have their flaws and drawbacks, but they are REAL!!!!  And in this current world of  knock-offs and synthetics, REAL seems refreshing!

The older I get, the more REAL I like things……….well, the REAL older body is a bit hard to take…….but I’m adjusting!

FOR ALL YOU DOG LOVERS

Kravet Inspired……

 

Isn’t this just an adorable design for a

pillow?????

A SUMMER OF REMEMBRANCE…

Do you believe it is August already???????  Summer has sizzled by here in Michigan – busy, fun, memorable, hot, laughter, tears, graduations, engagements, births, deaths, struggles, triumphs, successes, failures – sound familiar?  It is just that it all happened so quickly!!!

August is Michigan’s month for hot, steamy storms and beautiful sunsets.

For lush, fragrant flowerboxes full of lemon thyme……

and rosemary…….

indestructible roadside chicory….. (love that color!)

and, my favorite, black-eyed susan.

Designing window treatments for client’s this summer has been full of “adventure” as well.  From “wake-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night” sweats – “DID I REMEMBER TO ORDER THAT TRIM???!!!” to “I am sorry! That fabric has been discontinued also!” (after weeks of searching every book in town!)

But really what has pulled me through these hot, sticky, sluggish days of summer and sleepless night’s of design projects have been the delightful, creative, deliciously, adventuresome posts of my blogger friends!

Delightful creations by designer CJ VanDaff

Scrumptious dishes by vegan chef AND designer Margaux Drake..

Fascinating and adventuresome picture trips from places I only dream of by friends Jane and Lance Hattatt…

Histoires extraordinaires de par l'ami de Belgique Jerome...

Heartfelt stories that bring my heart alive from writer, dreamer, designer Pamela Terry…

and new inspiration from Jade Creative and her lovely roman shades designs and soft treatments!

THANK YOU TO ALL FOR UNKNOWINGLY MOVING MY HEART, MOVING MY FEET FORWARD, AND MAKING ME SMILE WHEN I NEEDED THAT LITTLE EXTRA SOMETHING!