Interior Design Reference No. 5 - Bookcase Anatomy

 

Bookcase anatomy is studied best with an open mind for breaking the rules, kind of. The design theory for setting up a bookcase using a geometry format like diamond or triangle shapes can come in handy but don't get stuck on that theory or you might find yourself a bit on the anxious side. My suggestion is to block out some time, acquire a good bottle of wine, and put on some Frank Sinatra, start the process of loading your bookcases and then when the wine is gone you are done for today. Repeat another day with a fresh block of time, a pitcher of martinis and more great music until you have aced bookcase anatomy. 

Yes, the geometry theory of organizing a bookcase is a good rule of thumb but it is not necessary to abide by this theory for every shelf, in fact I advise against it. Why? It's too repetitive and lacks personality. Afterall our bookcase is our story - the books we read, the trinkets we cherish, the art or photography we love - how we display it all is our biography. So, let's talk about breaking the mold with my bookcase anatomy theories like redefining a bookend, placeholders, overflow, showcasing, creating a backdrop, hanging with flair, illumination, and what to say no to. 

My Bookcase Anatomy Theory No. 1 - Redefining a Bookend. As a matter of fact, can we either get rid of the bookends or if they are really cool keep and use just one of a set. Anything can be a bookend. Anything! A wooden artist sketch model is one of my favorites - this guy can be manipulated into so many different poses to create an attitude and deserves a shelf on any bookcase. What about your kid's clay creation from last year's summer camp, that is a great bookend. Try anything and see if you like it, if you do that's your bookend for that shelf. And remember it can just be horizontally stacked books holding up the vertical stack.  

My Bookcase Anatomy Theory No. 2 - Placeholders. Bookcase anatomy finds us either having more than enough bookcase storage or not nearly enough. For those that have more than enough placeholders are important when styling your bookcases. Empty shelves are a no-no. This doesn't mean we just fill them with stuff. Ponder and very thoughtfully select placeholders. Placeholders are those elements that hold shelf space for future library acquisitions. Be sure that these placeholders don't even resemble something temporary. You might be surprised to find that what was a placeholder remains and finds its niche in bookcase anatomy. 

My Bookcase Anatomy Theory No. 3 - Overflow. Welcome to my world. This bookcase anatomy theory is for those that have bookcases that are full or that one who doesn't yet have any bookcases. If your bookcases are filled and yes, you've crammed to the brink of clutter but somehow maintained a passing grade in bookcase anatomy. How do you handle the overflow? This is where a great piece of occasional furniture comes into play, propped up against your bookcases. A handsome chair with a shape that could be considered a piece of art becomes another bookshelf. A vintage gateleg table is an additional bookcase shelf stacked with overflow books that doubles a romantic place to win an impromptu game of go fish with a night cap in hand. A long hand-hewn bench with a worn leather cushion becomes another library shelf and provides a perch to sit and peruse the other shelves for our latest read. 

For those of you that have yet to acquire any bookcases are just mastering bookcase anatomy backwards. You are already using clever well-selected occasional furniture pieces as bookcase shelves around your home to hold stacks of your library. You've created a well-designed way to handle the overflow until bookcases are in the budget. Bravo! 

My Bookcase Anatomy Theory No. 4 - Showcasing. There are books and bookcase elements that deserve to be showcased and only you know which ones they are. This is where your dissection skills come into play. You might find that it works best to gather these elements you want to showcase and place them at random on shelves then work other things around them. It may take some strategic chess playing moves to get it just right but keep dancing on that checkered game board, it will all fall into place. Another way to showcase elements in bookcase anatomy is to hold these items until the end then listen carefully, they will tell you where they belong. 

My Bookcase Anatomy No. 5 - Creating a Backdrop. This theory is actually two-fold. Creating a backdrop inside the bookcase itself is one option. This is where a bit of boldness comes into play. Remember dissecting that frog in class? It was either the smell of formaldehyde or the first cut that got us, alright maybe both but we persevered and did it. So, suck it up buttercup and get through this theory of creating a backdrop. Not all bookcases need a backdrop, but it needs to be explored. A bookcase backdrop is simply treating the backwalls of the bookcases with either a wallpaper or a few coats of paint to give the illusion of depth and/or eliminate starkness. The need for a backdrop depends on your bookcase anatomy and only you can decide if it's necessary. 

Some of the best wallpaper backdrops are organic textures like natural grasscloth, tortoise shell, and papers that mimic bookbinding all in neutral palettes so as to not compete with the bookcase contents. The set-and-go backdrop at the academy awards never competes with the actor's fashion so your backdrop shouldn't compete with your bookcase anatomy.

The other option to creating a backdrop in bookcase anatomy is when the bookcases themselves are the backdrop. This becomes the option when your bookcases are creating a backdrop to a seating arrangement. If your best room layout is placing your sofa or other seating in front of your bookcases, do it. It is important that you remember to leave enough walking space behind the seating arrangement to enjoy reaching for your next read with ease. 

My Bookcase Anatomy No. 6 - Hanging it With Flair. Defiance at its best. Hanging art or a mirror where it shouldn't belong. True bookcase anatomy is all about defiance. You are the author, and you are writing your bookcase anatomy biography. This theory is especially obvious when your best room layout places a sofa or other seating arrangement in front of your bookcases. While the books and other elements on your bookcases provide an attractive backdrop to your seating area, hanging a piece art on the bookcase directly over the seating can create a dimensional affect that is worth considering. Hanging art or a mirror directly onto your bookcases isn't reserved for this placement though you can do this regardless of the placement of your bookcases. Trick of the trade when installing art right onto the bookcases while still having access to your books without removing the art from a nail or hanger is to install using hinges along the side of the art frame. When installed this way the art works as a door, swinging open when you need to get to shelves behind the art.

My Bookcase Theory No. 7 - Illumination in all the Right Places. Just as understanding the principles of lighting in a room plan it is important it is a must to know how to illuminate bookcases. Selecting the proper lighting for your bookcases can depend on where they are located in your design layout. Lighting will enhance the function and appearance of the bookcases. In bookcase anatomy ambient, task, or accent lighting can all be options and your design choices are vital. 

My Bookcase Anatomy Theory No. 8 - Bookcase Don'ts. You know those last few pages of that fashion magazine where the models either donned a big red "X" over their photo or they didn't? The fashion do's and don'ts. I have a few bookcase anatomy don'ts. Keep mind that these are mine and you don't have to adapt them to your bookcase styling. 

Don't use artificial greenery if you have the right natural lighting for live plants to thrive and you have a green thumb then use them. If you don't, please do not use fake plants to fill your bookcases - not on the shelves and not on the top of the cases. 

Don't use a pair of bookends, it is too contrived and outdated. If you have a cool pair of bookends, consider using just one of them and give the other one away. 

Don't color coordinate your book covers. This is contrived and tacky. Bookcases are for book lovers, people who love to read about things they enjoy. They can be books about travel, self-enrichment, fantasy, autobiography, childhood stories, classic literature. They are meant to be individual and unique not chosen because they have the right jacket cover. 

Don't display your books backwards. When you see this in a showhouse or photograph it is a staging technique not real life. 

Don't put limitations on your bookcase anatomy. Your bookcase can be a double agent. It can be a bookcase for your books and other elements, and it can be a place for your mini bar or record player and album collection. 

A favorite of mine in bookcase anatomy is to know that any special trinket or element can have a place of prominence on a shelf. As I mentioned earlier, I don't have the luxury of bookcases...yet, but that doesn't stop me from picking up things that make me say, "this would be great on a bookcase". Just looking around me as I'm writing this blog, I see my vintage wooden camera slide lens, a pewter labyrinth with its crystal tipped wood pen, the smallest carved turtle I have ever seen that has been with me for many years, my collection of busts and phrenology heads, my zebra hair on hide round lidded box, and my vintage crystal inkwell - all great elements of bookcase anatomy.  

Are you ready to study bookcase anatomy and show what you've learned in class? Be inspired to look at styling your bookcases in a whole new way. Cheers!

Sources: Instagram, Nikki's Plate, BHG, Alice Lane Home, HGTV, Carla Aston, A Touch of Grace, House Beautiful, Elle Decor, William Sonoma, My Notting Hill Blog, Nashville Interiors, Tumblr, JB Architect, Decor8, Parade, Leanne Ford Interiors, Pinterest

Rethinking the Look of Things No. 70 - Playing Around with Grandma's Silver

 

Let's rethink keeping Grandma's silver in storage and only getting it out on rare occasions. I say let's play around with the silver, it's too beautiful to not! Whether you like the polished look or patina look there are so versatile ways silver can be used in our homed. Elevate your everyday using silver and don't worry if there is a ding or two it adds character. 

Silver is associated with prosperity and good fortune. It is called the metal of the moon and is believed to evoke calm and balance. I'd say those are meanings that are great to warrant display in our home. Add to those wonderful qualities the memories that the silver pieces may hold and any vignette you create with Grandma's silver is sure to represent reflection and symbolize the passage of time.

Interior landscape plants like orchids, fern, herbs, seasonal bulbs, and succulents are elevated to a new level in silver. Dusty Miller and Lamb's Ear never looks so good! Remember to use a liner in your silver containers when planting, this respects the silver and helps maintain the moisture level of the plants easily regulated. I would recommend this for fresh cut arrangements in silver containers as well. Plant foods that help maintain the longevity of fresh flowers could have a negative effect on the silver over time.

Storing or displaying collections in silver is a stunning alternative to other options. It could be the tasting spoons next to your cooktop, the never-cook-without collection of wooden spatulas, that French rolling pin, basting brushes, and the cocktail stirrers on the home bar. Even everyday self-care elements like make-up brushes, cotton swabs, fragrances, lotions, and soaps become a bit more special in silver. 

Although it is important to give reverence to the memories of Grandma's silver it doesn't mean there are limitations on where it can be displayed and what use we put to it in our home. An artist's painting is a bit more special when brushes are at the ready collected in a silver pot beside another silver pot of colored pencils. 

Tablescapes with potted silver containers mixed in adds color and texture to pottery and reflective ambience. Imagine a mix of floral-patterned dinnerware stacked on top of cabbage ware, and a collection of silver containers in all shapes and sizes planted with blooming spring bulbs and the just-right linens. Bon Appetit! 

Delicate silk floral arrangements are a winner in silver containers and can be utilized throughout the home from the night table in a guest room to the vanity in the powder room to the breakfast or dining table. Think ahead when creating these permanent botanical arrangements. If you are planning to use the silver containers for their intended purpose in the future, you won't want to affix any foam or other elements with any adhesive. 

If your grandma was a simpler gal and didn't fancy silver or if her silver collection was just a few pieces, no worries this means your playtime with silver starts with vintage shopping. 

Here are a few shopping tips before you grab your purse:

• Take pictures of things you are considering for your silver displays. Don't forget to include pictures of your flower and herb gardens. Set a file up in your phone labeled "Silver Display". You'll want to refer to these pictures when selecting the perfect silver containers and trays for your displays.
• Create an on-line ideas board of silver displays for inspiration.
• Grab a sturdy shopping bag and tuck a few of your favorite linen napkins, dishware pieces, silk floral stems, and other pieces to reference while shopping for the perfect silver.
• Measure! Measure the height of your wooden cooking utensils, measure the diameter of items you are wanting to display in silver containers, measure the surface you are sitting the container on, measure the centerpiece area of your table, measure the height from the tabletop to the chandelier or other hanging restriction. Jot these measurements in a small pretty journal-like book and add this to a pocket in your shopping bag.
• Pack a lunch, drink, and snacks!
• Call a friend and plan a road trip to vintage shop for your silver pieces.
• Have fun!

Silver trays of any shape or size can also be a dramatic yet fun display element. The engravings alone that can be found on most silver trays is art in itself. Keep in mind the whole plan for your silver display. The whole vignette needs to be kept in mind so that engravings, embossing, relief patterns and monograms need to be considered when creating the pairing of silver containers, so each piece is a well-selected, meaningful part of the entire display. For example, if the tray is heavily engraved with pattern and piercings then perhaps the containers sitting on the tray are of a simpler design.

Play around with the silver pieces set it up, move it around, replace one piece for another it will all come together. You might even find that you finalize the silver pieces first and then determine what is right for the collection your created. 

I know how it can be when a new inspiration is found like playing around with Grandma's silver and maybe you don't have the right pieces to put in the containers for now but just can't wait to put them out. Find something temporary like a bunch of silk stems or a collection of feathers and stand them in the silver pieces for now. It might be a single silver urn for now placed on a stack of books and that may be all it will need to be. Experiment and figure out what is right for you. 

The more mixed up the silver pieces are the better. The monogram on the silver picture or engraving on the silver trophy don't have to be yours or someone in your family heritage. Tarnished standing next to polished doesn't matter. A teapot used for a rosemary plant, or an ice bucket used for an orchid - that's okay. Remember we are playing around. We are finding fun ways to appreciate life and put it on full display. 

Be inspired!

Sources: The Polohouse Blog, Peeking Thru the Sunflowers, Decor to Adore, Vibeke Design, Hubpages, Tumblr, Style Blueprint, Content in a Cottage, Creative Ann-tics, 1010 Park Place, The Home Envy, Designthusiasm, Wordpress, Antiques Diva, Pinterest

Be Inspired No. 96 - Unexpected Red Theory

 

It's been said that red lipstick is the beauty equivalent of a shot of espresso. I think that's a great way to explain the recently popular design topic known as the "unexpected red theory".   This design theory means adding a shot of red to a room even if it doesn't seem to go with the existing color palette. I mean why not? Have you ever seen a red lip that ruined an outfit? And a Louboutin red-soled shoe that clashed with a dress? It's a signature, iconic color accent so the theory seems to a workable thought process in shaking up a design plan.

Fancy yourself as a barista and whip up a shot of espresso for your next design project. Start curating those red elements into your design resources and find joy in why James Bond likes his martini shaken not stirred. Let red have its moment. But remember to keep it classy. 

So, if we approach the unexpected theory of red like adding a shot of espresso to a design plan let's have some fun and look at it like making the perfect shot. There is a careful process to creating the perfect shot of espresso. Grinding and weighing your coffee - your grounds should be powdery and fine, using the finest setting on your grinder. Apply this to adding red to the design plan - it should be of fine quality, tried and true with thought put into the red element to give the perfect dose and yield (what is the ratio) in the space.

Next in the espresso shot process is time - this is the fine-tuning step. Distribution and tamping - what is the level of the red before we tamp it into place on the design plan. Then we ultimately pull the shot - this is the discovery step. We try the red element, tasting its flavor in the design plan. Perfecting the art of the unexpected red theory takes practice, patience, thoughtfulness until we discover the most pleasant interruption for the design plan. Once we have sipped the perfect shot of the unexpected red theory it is pure bliss. We've shaken things up and it feels good.

Steps to the Perfect Unexpected Red Theory Shot

• Grind and Weigh: Make sure your red element is the finest ground and the right dose.
• Time: Fine tune the red element, change the grind (red element) until is the Goldilocks bed.
• Distribute and Tamp: Add your red element to the design plan and tamp in place once you know the level is just right.
• Pulling the Shot: Shift the red element until it feels like the perfect espresso shot tastes. Perfecting the unexpected red theory takes practice, don't give up until it's right.

The way to destroy a pleasure is to overindulge. The unexpected can become the expected when overdone. Take the unexpected red theory and treat it like a unicorn. Respect it like the perfect shot of espresso. It is not for every design plan. It may very well be your Pina Colada song, your one-hit wonder of this design theory and that is just fine. You did it well and you gave the world a classic that is memorable. 

Artistry is found in so many of life's journeys. The artistry of conversation. The artistry of a writer. The artistry of a baker. The artistry of a painter. The artistry of photography. The artistry of the barista. Application of a talent is the definition of artistry. How we take something brewing in our soul and interrupting it to the world is our artistry. Pay attention to this because once you do you will be in awe of so many people. More often than not this artistry is shown to us by humble persons because they are just doing what they are built to do without need for applause. But don't withhold that applause. Dish out encouragement and joy and you will be rewarded. 

Show your artistry in the design plan. This has such an impact on how your client lives their life in their home. You affect that, do it well. Whether it is the unexpected red theory or another element of your design plan for them, do it well.

How loud or subtle the unexpected red theory is in the design plan is individual. The intensity of the tone of unexpected red, the dose of the unexpected red. The unexpected red could be a hidden gem that is picked up by the eye after the rush of the overall design plan is drunk in.  Or it's what greets you right at the entrance into the space. 

The unexpected red theory can be like walking into a surprise party if you like surprises. It is either right for you or it's not. If you are not sure, then play with the theory. Look at the design plan and add a small dose of unexpected red if it feels comfortable try changing the dose to a larger amount, a bit much then back it down. You'll find your perfect shot of espresso, or you'll find you prefer a perfect plain cup of coffee.

The great thing about this unexpected red theory is that it fits into any plan regardless of the design style. I wouldn't define this unexpected red theory as a trend. Designers have been adding a pop of color to interiors for many years. Red is just having its moment and it brings an energy to a design plan that can be felt instantly. Red in the dining room will increase appetite and liven conversation. Red captures attention and conveys confidence. Red represents passion, joy, and warmth. Not a bad combination of things to add to our home.

Be inspired by the unexpected red theory. What will your shot of espresso taste like in your design plan?

Sources: BHG, House and Garden UK, Clive Coffee, Home to Love AK, Katharine Paravicini, Instagram, House and Home, Foter, Charlotte Gaisford, Sherrill Furniture, The Nordroom, Kelly Wearstler, Decorilla, Laurel Bern Interiors, This is Glamourous