May 17, 2009

We've Re-decorated!


Check out our blog site's makeover at www.materialgirlsblog.com!! Please update your RSS feeds to http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MaterialGirls-TheInteriorDesignBlogForStylishAndAffordableHomeDecor

May 12, 2009

TAKE THIS ROOM!...SEND ME PICS!


So, I was looking through some old files I had on my computer of rooms I had put together a few years ago when I had just started my business. They weren't for anyone in particular. I was just anxious to start creating beautiful spaces, and I guess I must have been a little bored. Two kids and two businesses later, I can't even remember what "bored" feels like.
Anyway, this was one of my favorite room designs that I came across. It is for a dining room concept. So take it, it's yours! Put it to good use and if anyone actually does it, just send me a picture please!
Oh how I do love YELLOW! Any bold graphic wallpaper will work in this room!

These weren't in my original design, but a client sent me this photo the other day of two chairs she found in Soho at Penine Hart Antiques but they had been sold so she wanted me to reproduce them. It was love at first sight for me! I told her that even if she doesn't order them I am going to make them for myself!
I love a good zebra print rug! Nothing like a nice bold graphic pattern to make a statement in a room! The Rug Company also make a gorgeous uber-expensive zebra print by Diane Von Furstenberg. (Why do all designers have such cool names except me...Hilary Mary White...BORING! And if I take my husband's last name it will be Hilary Mary Mayer! Oh, hell no! But I still love you sweetie, just not your boring last name!)xoxo

Moooooooooooooi Chandelier:
Available at Unica Home, but there is a cheaper knock off sold at Modani in Miami, but be careful with Modani, two of my client's complained about their customer service. Apparently they are a little snooty (DON'T BE SNOOTY! WE HATE SNOOTY!) ...but their furniture is so cool and their prices are great too!




Dining Table by Oly Studio
I'm a sucker for a claw foot and a good lacquer!



Lamps by Barbara Cosgrove:
I saw these first a few years ago at the ICFF in NY. I'm sure they aren't cheap, but they are really a showstopper! Very Kelly! (Oh, you know who I mean!)


They are really starting to get trendy with their pieces! Of course, you can't go wrong with black and white!Then I would accessorize with a funky mirror over the buffet. Maybe a starburst ( I know, they are so overdone, but I love them anyway!) or something ornate. I'm not sure what color drapes I'd do...any suggestions???

These Walls Are Made for Chalkin'


I recently came across these images on the Project Nursery blog and loved them! Thought I'd share!

And while on the subject of chalked walls, thank you to the Daily Decorator blog for featuring a playroom I did for a project (which also featured a painted wall of chalkboard paint).

May 8, 2009

MG B-day!

Just wanted to wish one of my besties and blog-ees a very Happy Birthday!

So..

Happy Birthday Lauren!!!

Eat lots of cake for us...


Hope you get to relax and are treated like a queen!


I wonder if Bryce is going to have trouble wrapping this? ;)


Have a great day, you old woman!

May 6, 2009

"JEWEL TONES" are a girl's best friend!

Yesterday I posted about just one color, Yellow, and it DID bring some sunshine to us here in NY! So today I thought I'd continue with the color theme and go with my favorite little set of hues, "jewel tones". I do a lot of these colors in my own work and they never cease to do wonders with a space! I'm very into "haute-femme" decor, and these babies are key to achieving that look. These tones are also very hot in fashion and whether you are wearing them or sitting on them, they always seem to make the blood rush!

I am totally putting together my dream house with this post! And this would be my couch! Emerald green is such a beautiful color and on the sofa it really is the main focus of this photo! It's mesmerizing!
What a great eclectic mix! A little mid century a little baroque and of course the jewel tones make it so femme. I really wish I could see the rest of this French pink chaise. It is totally my style!

Jonathan Alder-Elle Decor

I am so in love with this bedroom, and that insanely cool bed! I also love the jewel tones in this room and I am totally going to steal that wall color (Benjamin Moore "Pre-Dawn Sky"). I am so jealous of that little girl! I want your room!
All in all, if you want some sexy, flirty fun in your home, take a visit to Tiffany's for some inspiration! If your husband/boyfriend objects to your girly palette, just do what I do and wait until he goes out of town! They are usually too lazy to repaint!

Personal Shopping - Made Easy!

If you haven't visited Mrs. Howard Personal Shopper yet, go there now! It is the blog written by Leah Kennelly of Mrs. Howard. What is Mrs. Howard? Read the biography of Jim and Phoebe Howard here, and visit a private tour of their house as seen here.

On Mrs. Howard Personal Shopper, Leah is now listing items for sale in their stores with prices and dimensions! Such great eye candy! Here are some of my favorite pieces...make sure to visit the blog for more specifics (and many, many more pictures).

May 5, 2009

HELLO YELLOW!

I am hoping that this post about such a sunny color will help to take away this gloomy weather we are having here in NYC. It really is a cheerful hue!
This is one of my favorite bedroooms and it was designed by one of my favorite designers, Jamie Drake. It is actually his own bedroom in his NYC apartment. I almost went there once...almost.
But I have met him atleast 4 times because I am a little bit of a stalker when it comes to my favorite designers! I went to his book signing, his open house tour, his speech at High Point, etc, etc. Hopefully he'll remember me next time we "bump into eachother" ;)

Yellow goes RETRO! It's a great detail in some unexpected places like around the doors and on the sides of the chairs. Thanks for the pic FLICKR!
Office by Jessica Claire. You just can't beat black, white, and yellow! It's so dramatic and I'm a bit of a drama queen!


Betsey Johnson's Dining Room
OMG! I absolutely freakin' LOVE this dining room. The yellow totally makes it all pop. Pink and yellow together is definitely one of my favorite color schemes, and of course a nice bold graphic black and white rug to amp up the funk factor. I found this photo here, but I believe it was first published in Domino or Elle Decor. Love them both!
Yeah, I did it again. I'm obsessed! I literally can't help myself because I LOVE KELLY WEARSTLER, ...and I think she invented yellow, so it only makes sense! ANYWAY, this is the Viceroy Palm Springs.

DAVID SEIDNER: Exhibition at the International Center of Photography


I am excited to announce a new exhibition at the International Center of Photography in New York, that of the late photogrpaher David Seidner. The exhibition opens on May 15th and is titled "David Seidner: Paris Fashions, 1945." The exhibition features photographs of couture-clad dolls made for the Theatre de la Mode, a creative effort by the French fashion industry to broadcast to the world they were back in business after World War II. In 1990, the dolls were rediscovered and returned to Paris, where they were recoiffed and restyled for an exhibition at the Musee de la Mode. David Seidner was asked to photograph them. In his images, he captured the essense of French postwar style using rough, abandoned sets to reflect postwar Paris.


David Seidner was born in Los Angeles and had worked as a top fashion photographer for twenty five years, best known for his work with Yves Saint Laurent. He had homes in Paris, New York, & Miami and spent much of his time in Paris before his passing in June 1999.

My favorite book by David Seidner is "Portraits" which features elegant and timeless photographs of well-known people:

Portrait of Marie-Chantal Miller (1995):

Portrait of Princess Alexandra Von Furstenberg (1995):

Portrait of Pia Getty (1995):

Portrait of Honor Fraser (1994):

Portrait of Helena Bonham Carter (1998):

Portrait of Bernadette Jukowski (1995):

The exhibition runs from May 15th - September 15th, 2009. For more info, please visit the ICP website.
To view the David Seidner archive at the International Center of Photography, click here.

May 4, 2009

Morgan's Hotel Group is my DREAM LOVER!

I was so excited to do this post until I realized how hard it is to find pictures of the Morgan Group's Hotels that they will actually let you download! Their hotels are AMAZING and I was only able to find a few pictures that I could post, but PLEASE, PLEASE check out their site if you really want to see some cool decor!
....below I have posted what few pics they did share or what I managed to find on flickr!
The Hudson Hotel-NY
I met a client here last year and it really is breathtaking in person! Of course, the rooms are small, but it's NY, what do you expect? It's all about the lighting at the Hudson. From the neon yellow back-lit walls that enclose the escalator as you first enter which brings you to the front desk where you are greeting by momentous chandeliers! Then in the bar area the floors are made of back lit opaque lucite that create such a sexy, modern, NY vibe. I thought Carrie Bradshaw was going to walk in any second!

This is the bar I was explaining. So chic! I love how they use the modern ghost chairs and fiberglass elements with the traditional pieces.
Definitely my style!
Mondrian Hotel in Miami

You really have to go to their site to see all the amazing photos which they BLOCK ME FROM DOWNLOADING! That's a little annoying. Fortunately I somehow found a few online that in no way do this GORGEOUS hotel any justice!



The Royalton-NY
Oh, how I do love a good tuft!


The Sanderson Hotel -London
I LOOOOOOOVVVVEEE how outrageous this decor is! It's so surreal and unexpected, like a dream I never want to wake up from!



Notice all the eyes are different! So cool. They really put a lot of thought into the details! It pays off!


Wow, I'm inspired! I think you will see more hotels from me this week!

May 3, 2009

Alice's Collection: I'm in Wonderland!

Alice Temperley has designed a small, but attractive collection for The Rug Company consisting of pillows and what else? Rugs!
You can see color and pattern similarities between her clothing line and those products that she designed for The Rug Company.


This 7 foot diameter, rose shaped rug has us wishing we had an extra $4900 on hand to spend!


Her woven cushions consist of fashionable leopard and floral prints, that are completely handmade.


We love when fashion designers move into the home, because what place couldn't use that extra bit of style designed by some of the industry's best!
Now if only I could afford her precious RC pieces...but she has designed clothing for Tarjay before, so there might be hope of me owning an Alice Temperley SOMETHING one day!