Celia Fabric

Today, while talking to a client about making pillows from Celia Birtwell fabric, Suzan broke out a few small samples from the Celia Birtwell Pop Story collection. After the client left the showroom, I shyly asked Suzan "so, those Celia samples...what are those about?" ( attempting to sound like I didn't get really excited about a few fabric samples....) Suzan informed me that this is a collection that was released after the couture collection- which is what is in the showroom. Don't get me wrong, I love the couture collection, but this Pop Story Collection is really fun and SO different from what I have come to know as "Celia" fabric. Here are a few of my favs: 

More information to come on minimum order allowed, pricing etc. I just emailed our England contact to verify that information! 

What a lamp!

This lamp has serious character! I love it... I think it is both fun and practical, which is helpful with the current economic times. When I buy something now, I not only have to LOVE it, but I have to be able to USE it too. That is the beauty of this little guy! Not only is it cute, but it really works well for any area that needs some extra lighting.....

 

In the Showroom Today

Wow- what a crazy day! We had so many people into the showroom, which was nice because it always makes the day go fast. What was so funny is that EVERYONE who came in asked about the gold and silver plated French teaspoons. I already thought the spoons and forks were really cute, but after all the attention and sales we had today, I really want my own set! It was nice for me to have the chance to hear Suzan talk about the sets to clients. I feel like I know so much more about how special they really are!

As an added bonus, they are on sale right now. Every set is 50% off! Seriously. I don't think they will last long....

Vintage and Modern: Just Launched!

During my time with the Suzan Fellman Showroom, I have been working weekly on our new venture, Vintage and Modern Inc. We (meaning the showroom) signed up at the end of May to post some of our collection on Vintage and Modern Inc. This allows us to reach a wider client base and really showcases our product well. So far, we have been on the site for 2 weeks. We are please with the response and hope that our client base continues to build.

After spending a few weeks moving things to photograph, measuring items, and coming up with clever descriptions for everything (or at least what I think are clever!), I think we are really getting the hang of how this site works. I encourage you to check it out. Not only do we have some great stuff posted, but the site really has a nice variety of pieces available. Every Tuesday, new products launch. I will keep everyone up to date on what we are going to post as we have new items posted on the site. We have 2 new items today that are launching... Take a look:

A Fantastic Big Bear Time

Colin and I had the pleasure of staying at Suzan's cabin in Big Bear this weekend. It was the cutest cabin I have ever stayed in! We had a great time exploring the lake, the mountains, and the village of Big Bear. Here are some photos of the cabin which can only be described as charming. My photos don't really do it justice. It is TOO cute!

Now on Twitter....

Follow my personal Twitter account. There is now a link at the bottom of this blog page! 

A Closer Look

Ever since beginning my internship, I have had my eye on these beautiful Victorian gold antique magnifying glasses. I obviously don't need them for reading (yet.... maybe in a few decades!) but I LOVE them for a decorative item. How great to place on a book shelf or on top of a pile of old books? I think they not only look great, but are a really interesting piece to add to the home.

These are from Anthroplogie. I enjoy these because they have a stand allowing for display. And the three different sizes make it easy to decorate!

These are vintage gold magnifying glasses that we have at the showroom. I LOVE them!

These Remind Me....

I think these Chippendale chairs are beautiful! I know first hand that they are in MINT condition. They remind me of furniture I used in a project for my third year interior design studio. I love the detail on the chair back.... something that you don't see very often.

Bonus Post: A Delicious Discovery

Although this has nothing to do with interior design, since it is the weekend, I thought I could throw in something random. My husband and I went to Diddy Riese Cookies & Ice Cream in Westwood, CA. (Only about 15 minutes from Santa Monica) I enjoyed it so much I thought I would blog about it!





A yummy triple scoop of peanut butter ice cream....




A build-your-own ice cream sandwich!

This was my 'peanut butter cookie with

vanilla ice cream' sandwich. Best of all....

only $1.50!!


The best thing about Diddy Riese were the prices! 3 cookies for $1. The ice cream sandwiches for $1.50... All really reasonable. I know we will be going back!

Weekend Wandering

Friday is here! This weekend I am planning on doing as much 'discovering' as possible. Who knows where I will end up.... LA? Pasadena? Laguna Beach? Santa Barbara? I do know one thing- I am on the lookout for cool and unique showrooms at any of the above areas. Pictures to come on Monday!

Bright Bold and Beautiful

I typically play it safe. My wedding colors were earth tones. My car is tan. My bedroom is chocolate brown and shades of tan and green. Safe. Lately, and I don't know whether it is LA or summertime, or neither of the above, but I have been LOVING bold and bright colors. Everything I am drawn to is some sort of fun and bright color. Here are some of the random items I have found.....

Love these bright orange lamps!

Vintage scarf pillows.. all one of a kind!

Beautiful suzani that is hand-stitched. Amazing!

Back of the same suzani. Both sides have a unique pattern.

An OVERSIZED Father's Day Gift

So, in a couple of weeks Father's Day will be here. Fantastic. Not that I don't like Father's Day, but really- what do you get a Dad that they actually would enjoy? Gourmet coffee? No, that is a Christmas stocking stuffer. A tie? Yeah, my dad is an electrician. A tie is a waste of money. Gift card? Again, no. When I give my dad a gift card it is lost within a week and resurfaces after it has expired 2 years later. Sorry Dad. 

Anyway, for the Dad who has everything, or the Dad who loses everything.... Here is a really funny novelty JUMBO golf ball!  You can autograph and personalize these. They are ceramic and HUGE! The golf ball would be a great gift for any Dad who loves to golf. How fun to have your kids sign and customize! I bet he does not already have one.....

 

Only $25 for Father's Day.....

You can see a cell phone next to them for scale. These are monster golf balls!

Discovering the Showroom- Why Didn't I Think of That?

Every now and then I come across design items that I think are GENIUS! Which always leads me to question out loud- yes out loud- "Why didn't I think of that?" (Since I obviously think I am a genius, you know....I kid.) The Showroom carries Ideca tie-backs that are magnetic, so no drilling into your wall is required. This allows you to have stylish curtains AND not piss off your landlord. For anyone who has ever lived in a rental property, I am sure you have always reluctantly put nails and screws into your walls, thinking the whole time of never seeing your security deposit again. All for the sake of a pretty place. Anyway, Ideca tie-backs are the solution. They wrap around the curtain to give the appearance of a regular tie-back, but are being held together by a strong magnet. Seriously, why didn't I think of that?

I love the organic patterns to the design. Also, Ideca did a great job of having a variety of finishes available. (There are many not pictured) Just in case you are interested, these retail for $250 for the pair. I am seriously considering these for myself.

Working on the Weekend

Happy Monday! This weekend, I worked BY MYSELF in the showroom. I was a little nervous about being by myself for 7 hours, but it went well. It was a quite day in the showroom Saturday, which gave me a chance to re-stage some of the display areas. Here are the before and after pics. Can't wait to hear what Suzan thinks of my new design.....


The John Widdicomb credenza before....


Front table before.....


Old Lampe Berger shelf before....


Another Before shot....


Now the AFTERS!

Gold decorative balls next to the Foo Dogs were enough for this shelf. I didn't want to over-do it since these are such big pieces.



Moved Watts Stemware (gold glasses shown) to go next to other gold items. I thought it added a nice touch.




Overall shot of the tall shelf after my makeover.



I moved all of the bar ware from the front display to the long dresser.




The John Widdicomb did not change too much, except a few little accessories were added and taken away.

Until Next Time

Taking the Weekend Off.... Back on Monday
I will be amping up the blog this weekend with all of the new ideas I learned from "Blog Out Loud." Check back next week for new posts!

Until then- have a great weekend!

Blogging about a Blogging Event. Isn't it ironic?

So I just got back from "Blog Out Loud", a blogging event put on by a few very successful LA bloggers. It was both fun and informative. The event was held at Patio Culture, a cute little store in Venice that sells "outdoor living and entertaining" items. Anyway, there was a panel of 5 successful bloggers that did a question/answer with a crowd of 50 people, including myself. Without giving too much away, I hope that this blog will only improve with some of the great ideas I heard tonight!
Another bonus: a GOODIE BAG! I love nothing more that free swag from events! Also, another love of mine is stationary. Really, stationary has been one of my favorite things since I was 5 years old. Imagine my delight when my goodie bag included a small sampler of stationary from Urbanic.

Finally Finding the Farrow & Ball Showroom

So, I have been feeling pretty confident in my ability to find places in LA. I have my Garmin (GPS), my brain, and an innate sense of direction. Not once have I gotten lost. Famous last words.... Suzan lets me leave a 4 pm yesterday to do a little exploring of showrooms. After hearing about the wonders of Farrow & Ball paint from both Suzan and reviews online, I decided it was time to form my own opinion.
My journey included:
4 pm: leaving store and feeling confident in getting to the Farrow and Ball Showroom in under 15 minutes. (again- I have my Garmin...)
4:30 pm: get the Melrose Place (yes- this really is a street, not just a guilty-pleasure '90s show!) and can not see from the street where the building is at.
4:45 pm: circled Melrose Place 6 times. The Monique Lhuillier store right next to where I was headed was having a movie film there. Now I am not only looking for the showroom, but looking for celebs.
5:10 pm: annoyed. All faith in Garmin and myself is lost. Going home out of anger. Trying to keep road rage at a minimum.
TODAY:
So, upon investigation- I needed Melrose Avenue, not Melrose Place. I map out my route again and head out to the Farrow & Ball Showroom before work.
I did make it there this morning- and I was really impressed. They do have really nice paint colors. What amazed me the most was their collection of wallpapers. They are hand screened- it looks like someone hand-painted these beautiful designs onto a wall. It is not "wallpaper" in the normal sense. Check it out for yourself below:

On the job and ALL ALONE!

When Suzan told me last week that I would be supervising an electrical installation at a client's home, terror ran throughout me. I am such a worrier, thoughts like "what if I lock myself out of the apartment?" or "what if I don't have everything I need and end up looking like a fool?" or "what if I can't even find the building I am supposed to go to and am late for the appointment?" As the week went on, I had her explain to me at least 2 more times EXACTLY what I was supposed to do and where everything was at. 

When Friday came, I left so early to get to the client's home, I was there about 35 minutes too soon. (Side note: this building has a 24 hour valet service for the residents and guests which I have now decided is a luxury I can not live without. Having someone open your door, park your car, carry things inside for you, and get the elevator is something I could get used to really quick!) 

Anyway, everything went fine. There were a few problems, but overall, I think I handled it ok- considering. I did call Suzan about 4 times in  a 6 hour span, but she seemed fine with it. There was even time for me to walk to Pinkberry to get frozen yogurt for lunch while the electrician was working. 

Here are some of the photos of the process.....

Very important: cover all of the brand new furniture with large drop-cloths!

New fixture up in the kitchen......

What a mess. Drywall dust goes everywhere!