Design Lines heads back to school! Here are our Top 5 Must Haves that we wouldn’t leave home without. School is a big deal and we always want to be stylin!

1. The Coolest Kids on the Block Must Have The Coolest Lunchbox.

These lunchboxes are handmade just to show just how much we care in preparing our lunch. I can’t help but smile at the patterns. These can definitely get us through the rest of the day and the horrible science experiment at 2:00pm. By the way, interior designers prefer art class over an science experiment.    

2. Color Pencils Brighten the World

Color always enriches life. In the design world we spend a tremendous amount of time matching and coordinating colors so why not bring those color pencils to school.

3. Notebooks = A Simplified Life

When in doubt right everything down, especially in school. While juggling many projects we find ourselves using several notebooks. It’s the only way not to loose  information….well unless you loose the notebook. Now that’s a different story.

4. Enjoy the Sweet Life

Around the Design Lines office, cupcakes are a guilty pleasure. The whole team enjoys a little sweetness and if I remember correctly my Granny use to always say, “Be good to yourself.” Why not enjoy a little sweet, school is hard enough.

5. When Homework Becomes to Much to Handle…Surround Yourself with Summertime Memories.

In any work space whether you are doing homework or surfing the Internet, the team believes you should always surround yourself with the people you love and/or enjoy.

What are your back to school must haves?!

images are from Handmade Vendors or Local Stores: 1. Edan Rose 2. Urban Harmonie 3. Edan Rose 4. Google 5. Red Star Ink 6. Cake + Milk Paperie  7.Spoonfed Raleigh  8. Frames Can be Purchased Locally at Furbish

Remember a few weeks ago when I posted about these fabulous knobs from Anthropologie?  We had a local artist, the talented Jamie Goffman, paint our client’s existing furniture-from an ordinary stained maple bed and nightstands to a fun red bed with cream nightstands- to make quite the cute transformation. This makeover has inspired me to consider painting other pieces of furniture.  

Stay tuned to see more of this whole room transformation!

-Brittany

Some of the kids (if they are in year-around school) are heading back to school and many of you might be thinking about sprucing up the kid’s playroom or even creating a space to write down all your grocery reminders in the kitchen. What about using a chalkboard!! The chalkboard not only gives the room character but it also creates a unique way to use the wall space.

Here are the always popular chalkboards from Potterybarn and Restoration Hardware.

Bonnie from Go Home to Roost Blog has a great recipe for creating your very own chalkboard at home without spending a lot of money. Want to personalize it, try adding some paint too!

 RECIPE

Here is What You Need:

- flat latex paint in your desired color

- unsanded tile grout (2 tbls for each 1 cup of paint)

- a roller or brush

- 150 grit sandpaper

- painter’s tape

- chalk

How To:

- For small areas, mix one cup at a time.  stir 2 tbsp of unsanded tile grout into one cup of paint, making sure any clumps dissolve.

- Apply the mixture to either a roller or brush and and begin painting your surface.  make sure to coat evenly and thoroughly (mine took about 3 coats).  then, let it dry.

- Once dry, sand the surface with your 150 grit sand paper to smooth it.

- To condition, run your chalk completely over the entire surface, and wipe clean.

- Enjoy your new chalkboard!

 * Let  us know if you want to see more DIY projects. We are always open to suggestions.

images: 1. Potterybarn.com 2. Restoration Hardware.com 3. The Bella Life Blog – Photography by: Mark Olson

The 7 Takeaways On Finding the Right Picture Frame

1. Have a frame swap with friends.
2. Create an artful wall/grid using black and white photographs.
3. Leaning/propping up frames on a mantel or shelf is fun to do.
4. You can use black and white pictures but spice up the grouping with colored frames.
5. Don’t be afraid to use small and big frame sizes together.
6. Display frames by groupings.
7. Not only group the frames but group the subject matter to make more of an impact.

I attended a friend’s wedding reception a few weekends ago and fell in love with Orange County’s Fairmount- the place of the party. Upon parking on the property, I couldn’t stop drooling over the gorgeous views in every direction.  I had the pleasure of meeting the home’s owner, owner of Durham’s Somerhill Gallery  & visionary  Joe Rowand .  Joe told me the brief history of the home.  His inspirations include the work of William Wilson Wurster’s Gregory Farmhouse & the clean, yet warm austerity of Hugh Newell Jacobson.

Everything was my favorite, though I can’t decide if my favorite thing about the home was the gorgeous pool & adjoining cabana, the outdoor shower just outside the Master Bath, or the interior floorplan-so liveable & clean feeling. The warm oushak rugs brought life to the cool Vermont slate flooring and natural light poured into the house through the perfectly placed windows- the walls seemed to disappear. I also spotted plenty of contemporary classic pieces of furniture, including  an outdoor favorite- the sling chaise by Richard Schultz-gorgeous! Enjoy these images, and for a link to the floorplan, click here:

Images & Credits go to: http://somerhill.com/em/about.html.  If you’re dreaming of the space too, you may be happy to know it’s for sale here:

-Brittany

I couldn’t help myself. I follow A Creative Mint’s photostream and fell in love with her recent pictures from Copenhagen. The splashes of red throughout remind me of the fabrics that arrived this week from Villa Romo and Boussac. Don’t be afraid to use a splash of color, it can transform any room.

1.&2. A Creative Mint 3. DLL 4. Cupcakes

Summer is officially here…have a great weekend and talk to everyone on Monday! Whatever you do this weekend make sure you grab a cup of sweet tea and gather with friends or family.

Brittany has some great father’s day posts that you don’t want to miss!

Image from: Going Home to Roost

With the 2010 World Cup underway we wanted to share with you four interior design styles from four different countries, who also happen to be playing in the World Cup.

SWITZERLAND

An underground mountain house literally built inside of a mountain in Vals, Switzerland. The architects on this one-of-a-kind project are seARCH and Christian Muller Architects. This house definitely has a ton of character and provokes a warming and cottage like feel.  

I love this kitchen!! Especially the sink.

Need some gas? Below are two pictures of a gas station in Grisons, Switzerland by the famous architect Iseppi Kurath. Neat huh?!

The exterior facade is made of metal.

GERMANY

This minimalist style home is nestled in Leipzig, Germany and is designed by Atelier St. The house also has sustainable elements such as solar panels on the roof, a water use chimney and many large windows to let natural light into the house.

CHILE

Hotel Indigo is located in Puerto Natales, Chile. Chilean architect Sebastián Irarrázaval designed this hotel and created all the distinct modern characteristics. There are 29 guest rooms and spectacular views of Fjord of “Last Hope” and Glacier Balmaceda.
 

This guest room looks so peaceful. The natural wood on the walls and floors is stunning.

Guests receive dinner promptly at 7pm and can do a variety of different activities including: horseback riding and glacier tours.

BRAZIL

Brazil’s own Arthur de Mattos Casas creates KAA, a modern resturant  in SaoPaulo, Brazil.  The most unique feature  is a green wall on one side of the restaurant. It has more than 7,000 living plants. The natural color scheme and wooden accents allow guests to enjoy their evening with friends or family in a very relaxing environment.

The two pictures below are from a house situated right inside the heart of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The homeowner worked with the architect Marcio Kogan to create a harmonious space between the indoor and outdoor entertaining areas. 

 The final environmental friendly house is designed by designer Affonso Risi. I love the splashes of color throughout the house. The red chair makes a wonderful statement in the living room.

 We hope you enjoyed our own mini tour of interior design from around the world. I must say, there were a lot of design similarities among the four countries while still creating totally different design concepts.  Which one was your favorite?

Images: 1. Switzerland-Mountain Home Freshome.com 2. Switzerland-Gas Station Arch Daily3. Germany-Bertram Bölkow & HomeDug.com 4. Chile- Hotel Indigo & Cool Hunter.com 5. Brazil - Chictip.com 6. Homedug.com 7. Homeholic.com

Perusing our outdoor rated textiles yesterday and this happy stripe from Janus et Cie caught my attention. Doesn’t it just make you crave summer?

A few of us are relaxing in the triangle for the holiday and Molly & Ashley are headed to the beach (lucky!)

This photograph by Paul Octavious  at 20x 200.com will be this weekend’s inspiration.  Yes, please. Bring on the summer.   

 Hope you have a fabulous holiday!

-Brittany

What a fun afternoon!! Above Judy and Sharon Delaney from NBC 17  talk about when trying to pinpoint your style your  jewelry can tell a personal story for the second segment. This is all a part of a 13 part series with the local television show — My Carolina Today.

The focus of this first segment is to give the viewer tips on how they can change the whole feel of a room by changing the art, lamps and pillows. We felt like quick change artists as we showed 4 separate vignettes using the same sofa and chest. We show the viewer that they do not have to change the investments pieces like upholstery and case goods to get a new look .

When determining what accessories to use Judy explains it all starts with the things you love that tell your story, whether a hand made needle point pillow from your grandmother or the tree of life picture you bought on your travels to Egypt. From there find a consistent thread as you explore the things to combine together. 

Above, Kim Green, the Executive Producer for My Carolina Today caught in the act of tweeting for the show and Justin, the camera man in action. Thanks Kim, Justin and Sharon.  We look forward to many more!

Stay tune, we will let you know when the segments will air and of course bring you the live footage right here on the blog.