Monthly Archives December 2006

Minimalist Bath Room Design

As I’ve written in prior posts my husband and I are planning the design of our future home and I’ve spent countless hours researching the perfect spa style bathroom for my personal “Spa at Home”. I’ve actually surprised myself during this research phase because I do tend to gravitate toward a more traditional design however for some reason I am finding myself deeply drawn to the seductive allure of modern design for this spa bath I am designing.

In my last post I shared the image of my ideal spa bath room (shown on left) but I really wasn’t entralled with the location of the toilet. Today I found a wonderful bath room design called Darling (shown on right) by Duravit that will complement the Kohler bath design I love so much. I hated the idea of having the toilet seat so close to the bath tub in the Kohler design – it just seems all wrong. I am a firm believer in having some seperation between the WC and the rest of the elements in the bathroom. The Duravit design captures that requirement well.

(Image on left: courtesy of Kohler, Image on right courtesy of Duravit)

So to recap I would like to take the beautiful floating sink, garden tub and shower from Kohler and add to that the wonderful mosaic tiled wall with floating toilet and bidet design. My more practical side also loves the Duravit floating toilet and bidet design because it will make bath room cleaning so much easier.

Paint Colors 2007 – The Fashion Inspiration

Pantone posed the following challenge “translate your 2007 fashion colors to interior paint colors and describe the room” to several fashion designers and shown below are the designers’ creative and inspirational Pantone color selections and room descriptions.

Best of all these gorgeous paint colors are available to you. According to the Pantone website:

Through a relationship with Fine Paints of Europe, designers, architects and discerning homeowners can now confidently specify and match Pantone’s color standards in paint.

Quick drying, easy-to-apply and eco-friendly, PANTONE-matched paints from Fine Paints of Europe represent the pinnacle of the Dutch art of paint making. These real Dutch paints are formulated to the highest quality standards using expensive resins combined with high concentrations of finely ground pigments. Tinted by a unique proprietary tinting system and product-specific colorants, PANTONE-matched paint provides superior color accuracy, enhanced color depth, and excellent coverage for long-lasting value.

With over 3,000 designer colors to choose from, the new PANTONE matched paints yield the depth and vibrancy of color to dramatically enhance any environment.

Pantone Interior/Exterior Paints can be purchased online at Pantone .

All of the paint colors are beautiful and here are my favorites:

• Zac Posen – Quartz Pink
• Rachel Roy – Almond
• Tia Cibani – Fuschia Rose
• Lela Rose – Vaporous Gray
• Naeem Kahn – Pearled Ivory
• Elie Tahari – Pink Lavender
• Alvin Valley – Caviar
• Bill Blass – Magenta

Which paint colors are your favorites?
(Image Source: Pantone)

My Spring Color 2007 Pick

Spring certainly feels quite far away but that doesn’t mean that we can’t start thinking about how we want to change out our winter decor come this spring. Pantone, the recognized leader in color trend forecasting, has developed eight interesting 2007 color palettes. My favorite is the Light Touch Color Palette shown below:

Luxury Linens Go Healthy

As a life-long allergy sufferer I was delighted to learn that Cuddledown, a luxury linen retailer, will be marketing “down comforters, bedding and other home fashions that are certified by Oeko-Tex to ensure that they are free from harmful levels of dangerous chemicals”. I am incredibly sensitive to a variety of natural and synthetic products and must use the utmost care when purchasing items that will be in close proximity to my skin. In the past linens for allergy sufferers and those sensitive to certain chemicals were less than desirable. A high thread count or an elegant style were rarely to be found. However it now appears that we sensitive allergy sufferers will finally be at peace with our healths and our bedroom decor thanks to Cuddledown because according to HomeTextiles Today:

Cuddledown recently introduced a line of mattress and pillow protectors that are Oeko-Tex certified.The Anti Bed-Bug Mattress Protector and Pillow Protector are made with all-natural wool infused with natural botanical extracts including lavender, lemon, eucalyptus, and chrysanthemum. The protectors do not simply repel bed bugs but have been proven in lab tests to actually kill them, according to Cuddledown. The protectors are also effective against dust mites.The fiber treatment will eliminate bed bugs for up to five years and dust mites for up to ten.

” all-natural wool infused with natural botanical extracts including lavender, lemon, eucalyptus, and chrysanthemum” I for one am impressed and looking forward to replacing my old anti-dust mite mattress and pillow protectors with these products from Cuddledown.

Home Remodeling Software

Home improvement can sometimes be overwhelming but it doesn’t have to be if you have the right tools. In this case the tool is home remodeling / design software. A really good home remodeling or home design software package is one of the tools that should have a permanent space in your Decorating Diva toolkit. If you don’t have one yet, perhaps one of the following may be of interest to you:

SketchUp by Google (free)- is an easy-to-learn 3D modeling program whose few simple tools enable you to create 3D models of houses, sheds, decks, home additions, woodworking projects – even space ships. You can add details, textures and glass to your models, design with dimensional accuracy, and place your finished models in Google Earth, share them with others by posting them to the 3D Warehouse, or print hard copies. (description from the Google SketchUp Site). Download the software here.

I’ve downloaded the application and actually was pleasantly surprised as I used it. The tutorials make using this home improvement software application quite easy to learn. SketchUp has many of the features I have come to expect from more expensive home remodeling software and a price that can’t be beat FREE Google does have a commercial version of this design software available for those who are in the market for a truly powerful and comprehensive modeling software application.

Soothing Zen Spa Bathroom

My husband and I have been planning to build a larger home in the near future and I’ve been spending quite a bit of time flipping through shelter magazines getting ideas for the design of my dream spa bath. Recently, while perusing the Kohler bath design site I came across this etheral spa bathroom pictured below. I was attracted to the simple lines, the elegant functionality and the colors that remind me of my favorite place – the beach early in the morning before the maddening crowds arrive.

Related Bathroom Spa Decorating Article: Luxury Home Spa – Getting Inspired

Tip for the DIY Decorating Diva:
Kohler has a wonderful interactive bath design tool that you can use to visualize and plan your dream bath spa.

Bamboo Floors – 101

When one thinks of Bamboo floors they typically think that they are a variety of wood. However, bamboo is a grass that is grown throughout Asia. The process used to create the planks is what gives this incredibly durable natural resource it’s hardwood appearance.

After the bamboo is harvested, which occurs every three to eight years after the grass has matured, it then is processed into strips. Those solid bamboo strips are then bound together and processed utilizing various methods.

Bamboo makes for an interesting “wood” floor, it has an exotic look with an affordable price tag compared to actual hardwoods. Prices for bamboo floors can range from $2.00 SQFT to upwards of $12 SQFT

Rugs Go Haute Couture

Something extraordinary must be in the air because really great designers are lending their amazing design talents to the world of rugs. Just today I found out that both Tommy Hilfiger and Nanette Lepore have teamed up with the Doris Leslie Blau Gallery ,the finest rug makers in the world, to create exclusive rug designs.

“This collection is unique in that no other company has partnered with these two top designers to create a line of rugs,” said Nader Bolour, president of the Doris Leslie Blau Gallery. “The new collection represents the marriage of interior design and home fashion.”

The aptly titled collection, The Fashion Designer Collection, is scheduled for an all star high fashion debut at a March 8th fundraiser for the Gilda’s Club World-wide. Four signed rugs will be auctioned at the fundraiser with all proceeds benefiting the charity.

Rugs from the Sandra Lee Home Collection

I was delighted to learn that Sandra Lee (yes the one from the Food Network) has teamed up with Feizy Rugs to create a unique and interesting collection of machine-made and hand-tufted rugs. According to Home Textiles Today:

This new licensed program, titled the Sandra Lee Home collection, comprises casual, urban, sophisticated and classical looks. It is set to debut in January at Feizy’s new showroom at the Las Vegas World Market.

Sounds exciting and I am looking forward to seeing this new collection. I will definitely post updates and images of the Sandra Lee Home Collection rugs as soon as I get them.

Source: Home Textiles Today

Luxury Nursery Linen Firm Serena & Lily Grow-up

The famous Serena & Lily nursery bedding and linens are now available for toddlers and children. These amazing nursery linens are quite often found in the beautiful nurseries of celebrity babies and are also available in over 400 retail outlets for those of us who want to wrap our little loved ones in luxury and beauty.

2008 Nursery Decorating Articles:

• Contemporary Nursery Changing Tables – The Nursery Issue 2008
• 8 Tips for Decorating The Nursery for New Parents – The Nursery Issue 2008
• 10 Tips for Designing a Unique and Whimsical Nursery – The Nursery Issue 2008