More Paint on the Floor Please

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Well here we are Friday already, where do the days go? I can tell you it is not so fun playing catch up from being away on a relaxing vacation. My daughter has been at a Spanish camp this week and it started at 8:00 each day, hello reality and early mornings again. I came back committed to posting on the blog a few times a week but barely have had time to look at my blogger dashboard..I know, can I get some cheese with that wine, don't even get me started about the sweltering 102 degree heat!

On the other hand I was able to catch up with a few of my clients, make some head way on my website, and even the ole office got a good cleaning.

I have been contemplating painting the floor of my screened in porch but I just can't decide if solid or pattern is the way to go for that space. After watching Mary McDonald on this season's  Million Dollar Decorators I have been inspired to go a little more bold in my flooring options. Mary's signature look is glamour but she is also known for her bold use of pattern on the floor as shown in the images above and below. In my collection there seems to be more paint on the floor in kitchens and a color favorite, green, excellent choice. 

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Mary McDonald, Elle Decor, Miles Redd, Windsor Smith, Coastal Living, and Tory Burch

Before and After

I thought I would share a few photos of a project I am working on. This project is phase 2, we are moving right along and marking off our list. It is amazing how much fresh paint livens up any space! I can't wait to show you the finished work it is so exciting when a plan comes together.

Before a 1960's living room in need of a little TLC.

After, a fresh coat of paint, beautiful seagrass rug with zebra hide overlay. 2 gorgeous purple ikat pillows that were made from a custom shower curtain in her previous home. Next week we will be hanging the stunning chocolate chevron panels that I just picked up...can you get the picture?

So chic

Before, a severely outdated dining room adjacent to the living room, love a challenge.

After, luscious eggplant with the most magnificent light fixture! Reminds me of Ruthie Sommers' dining room light...can't you just imagine beautiful gold up there too?

Ruthie Sommers dining room as seen in House Beautiful

The foyer which my camera does not even hardly do justice is hand painted by local artists Klutz Thompson Designs. A few years ago when we were working on another home I showed  my client the below image from wallpaper company Fromental. She stuck it in her idea folder and when planning for this home came about, the look was perfect for the foyer. 

The bamboo stalks, hydrangea, lemon tree, birds, and butterflies are lively, colorful, and help bring together all the colors she is using throughout her home.

Fromental Chinoiserie Wallpaper

I am really looking forward to updating you on the progress of this beautiful home.

Dietary Guidelines for Americans, My Way

I just saw this on BoingBoing.  Simple but true. 

This image was created by Adam Fields. 

The people who design government dietary guidelines are gagged by the fact that politics and business are so tightly intertwined in this country.  Their advice will never directly target the primary source of obesity and metabolic dysfunction-- industrially processed food-- because that would hurt corporate profits in one of the country's biggest economic sectors.  You can only squeeze so much profit out of a carrot, so food engineers design "value-added" ultrapalatable/rewarding foods with a larger profit margin.

We don't even have the political will to regulate food advertisements directed at defenseless children, which are systematically training them from an early age to prefer foods that are fattening and unhealthy.  This is supposedly out of a "free market" spirit, but that justification is hollow because processed food manufacturers benefit from tax loopholes and major government subsidies, including programs supporting grain production and the employment of disadvantaged citizens (see Fast Food Nation).

Interview on Super Human Radio

Today, I did an audio interview with Carl Lanore of Super Human Radio.  Carl seems like a sharp guy who focuses on physical fitness, nutrition, health and aging.  We talked mostly about food reward and body fatness-- I think it went well.  Carl went from obese to fit, and his fat loss experience lines up well with the food reward concept.  As he was losing fat rapidly, he told friends that he had "divorced from flavor", eating plain chicken, sweet potatoes and oatmeal, yet he grew to enjoy simple food over time.

The interview is here.  It also includes an interview of Dr. Matthew Andry about Dr. Loren Cordain's position on dairy; my interview starts at about 57 minutes.  Just to warn you, the website and podcast are both full of ads.

JP Gaultier - FW - Paris

Island Life

Good day friends and happy Monday to you! 

It has only been a little over 2 weeks since my last post but it seems like eternity...I suppose when you start documenting parts of your life on a blog it helps to remind you each day what it is that exactly you do.

 Now what have I been doing the last couple of weeks?

Well, I am not entirely sure and I didn't intend to take such a long break but after a weekend at the beach I returned home and felt like my family and home needed a little extra TLC. So I put away my computer, wrapped up the work week, packed the family, and headed back east for a nice, long, much needed vacation. It was wonderful visiting with out of town friends we hadn't seen in quite some time, relaxing, swimming, and eating... a lot! 

Any time I spend an extended amount of time at the coast with my kids I pledge my allegiance to moving to some small Caribbean island where the boys can run around with their shirts off, shoes are only for special occasions, the water is a crystal color of bluish green, and everyone is on island time. I tell myself it seems just dreamy but I suppose the grass is always greener. Maybe one day that dream will become reality, who knows? 

India Hicks, British model, designer, author, hotel owner, and daughter of famed designer David Hicks is the quintessential island "it" girl for me. In fact I turn a split pea soup shade of green when I see images of the impeccable colonial plantation style home, Hibiscus Hill she shares with her husband David Flint Wood and 4 children in the Bahamas. India has a worldly, chic, yet relaxed style and the use of white with rich woods, is absolutely delicious...yes too much Million Dollar Decorators and Martyn Lawrence Bullard. 

So for now I will keep island dreaming and continue to be inspired by India from afar.

Neon Girls - FW - Paris

1 Alexia Niedzielski

2  Elisa Sednaoui

3 Astrid Munoz