Living Room Mood Board

I recently had the privilege of working with a wonderful new client who asked me for help in "casting a vision" for her new living room.  Her and her husband had purchased a home, and after living in it for almost a year, it still isn't feeling like "home" to my client.  She wants to start working, room by room, and have an overall "plan" and vision to work toward.  Great idea, and I got to work creating a floor plan, and a couple of mood boards for her living room and adjoining dining room.

Although the overall scheme looks somewhat "white" in this photo, trust me, for this young family, we're upholstering those pieces in rich, kid-friendly fabrics and colors.  I'm seeing that sofa in a fresh olive green color, with one of the accent chairs in a chocolate microfiber, and the other in a chunky natural linen.  The walls will be painted Sherwin Williams "Amazing Gray", which will provide a lovely backdrop and bring in some of the gray tones in the zebra rug, and floral accent fabric.  For another hit of color, I'm seeing the backs of those shelves painted Benjamin Moore's "Stratton Blue".

My client wanted a scheme that had some personality, but was neutral enough to bring in different color tones throughout the seasons of the year.  I think a warm gray is the ideal backdrop, with the green bringing in a pop of color, but acting as a neutral with the ability to blend with blues, turquoises, ambers, violets, etc., depending on the time of year.

We also chose this gorgeous metallic damask for the adjoining dining room.  It will pair with white paneled wainscotting on the lower half of the walls, and add a hit of glamor and shine.

I'm excited to see this come together, and shop for the "finishing touches" once the room is furnished.  Its hard to show one-of-a-kind finds on these boards, but I think that's definitely what this room needs to pull it all together--a little bit of vintage, and a little bit of modern.  I'll be on the hunt!

It Must Be Special

Wow, two posts in one day.....I don't think this has ever happened for me!  There must be something special about this day that warrants a mention.  And there is.  Three years ago today, after months of immigration paperwork, years of long-distance, and a lifetime of anticipation, I married my best friend and started our journey together as husband and wife.  We've had a wonderful three years of marriage, and what was the sweetest wedding day ever, has gotten even sweeter with time.  I loved him to pieces on that day, and I love him even more today.  Cheers to three years, and a lifetime of anniversaries to look forward to.......

How To Decorate Around a Huge T.V.

We were recently gifted with a beautiful antique buffet by my parents-in-law.  The piece is quite traditional, and I wasn't sure how it would integrate with my more modern decor, but I wanted to give it a try.  I asked my husband to bring the piece over one weekend while I was out of town, and to my delight, when I arrived back, it was sitting in its place in our living room, with little floor protector pads under each leg.  What I didn't notice, however (not right away, anyways), was the GIANT new television that was sitting on top of the piece, perched prominently in our living room.  Obviously, Mr.CottageModern figured that if I got something new for the living room, he should too.  So began the quest to try and "disguise" this black beast, and make that side of the room look nice despite it.  Avoiding the issue, this is what that area has looked like for the past while:

This space had really become a junk collector with a big blank wall behind it.  All of the component cords showing underneath drove me nuts, but that was secondary to the huge television that dominated the arrangement.  Last week, I was a guest presenter to a lovely group of women on the topic of "Designing on a Budget".  One of my budget design principles is to 'shop your own home' to refresh and revive your space, so I decided to take my own advice and do that here.

While the television hasn't magically shrunk in size, now there are some pretty things to "distract" the eye.  I moved the art piece to a new wall, and added a mirror (it had been lying on my floor, in a box for months) to reflect light in its place.  A chair was moved from another area in the room, and pillows were added for an injection of color.

I moved a lamp from another area and placed it on the opposite end of the television.  Together with the art as a backdrop, it adds some weight and height and helps balance the scale of the T.V.  A stack of books, frames, and other collectibles, including a vase from my Ernest Miller pottery collection (my favorite things) help to personalize the arrangement, while trying to take some attention away from the other video components.

Finally, I cleaned up all of the hanging cords, and added some larger pillows and a ceramic stool under the buffet for extra "seating" when guests are over.  I would say that while not "perfect", this area is definitely improved from what it was, and the television is somewhat less of a distraction.  The best part--it all cost $0.00--budget design at its finest!

French Apple Tart

Life and work have been very hectic for the past couple of weeks.  There's been a lot going on, and when that happens, I always feel like there are less hours in my day than there seem to be in everyone else's.  So often I get the impression (which I'm sure is false) that the rest of the world is accomplishing everything they set out to do, and I'm stuck in the slow lane with a huge list in front of me, barely scratching the surface of all of the tasks to be done.  That's how I'm feeling these days, but I've found that the best remedy for this feeling is to bake stuff.  Baking is a nice little distraction for me, and most of all I can get something started and completed in relatively little time--a small, but rewarding accomplishment.  The other day, I tackled the Barefoot Contessa's French Apple Tart, and it turned out beautifully.

The recipe has you make homemade dough for the crust, which turned out light and flaky with a subtle richness to it.  The fun part is the pretty arrangement of apples (and butter and sugar) that top this dessert

Pop this sheet into the oven for an hour, and it comes out looking carmelized and delicious:

Don't worry about the burnt stuff--its just the juices from the apples.  Looks pretty good, but it gets better with the addition of an apricot glaze.

And yes, it tasted as good as it looks.....after the tart cooled, I cut it up, put it into a pretty box to take and share with family......topped with vanilla ice cream, this is a great and pretty alternate to apple pie--delicious!

Here's the recipe:

For the pastry:

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tbsp. sugar

12 tbps. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, diced

1/2 cup ice water

For the apples:

4 Granny Smith apples

1/2 cup sugar

4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, small diced

1/2 cup apricot jelly or jam

2 tbps Calvados, rum, or water

For the pastry, place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.  Pulse for a few seconds to combine.  Add the butter and pulse 10 to 12 times, until the butter is in small bits the size of peas.  With the motor running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse just until the dough starts to come together.  Dump onto a floured board and knead quickly into a ball.  Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Roll the dough slightly larger than 10 x 14 inches.  Using a ruler (I just eyeballed it) and a small knife, trim the edges.  Place the dough on the prepared sheet pan and refrigerate while you prepare the apples.

Peel the apples and cut them in half through the stem.  Remove the stems and cores with a sharp knife and a melon baller.  Slice the apples crosswise in a 1/4" thick slices.  Place overlapping slices of apples diagonally down the middle of the tart and continue making diagonal rows on both sides of the first row until the pastry is covered with apple slices.  Sprinkle with the full 1/2 cup of sugar and dot with the butter

Bake for 45 mins to 1 hour, until the pastry is browned and the edges of the apples start to brown.  Rotate the pan once during cooking.  If the pastry puffs up in one area, cut a slit to let the air out.  Don't worry! The apple juices will burn in the pan, but the tart will be fine.  When the tart is done, heat the apricot jelly with the Calvados and brush the apples and the pastry completely with the jelly mixture.  Loosen the tart with a metal spatula so it doesn't stick to the paper.  Allow to cool and serve warm or at room temperature.  Serves 6.

The instructions seem long, but trust me, this is an easy recipe with great-tasting results.  The couple of hours I spent on it certainly helped me to destress!