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Sooo... yesterday we talked about the look of worn rugs acting as a neutral background for a slightly more traditional living space... While we're on the topic of rugs, let's talk about animal print... kind of the opposite of "traditional" Source I'm a fan. My favorite pair of flats are leopard print, and I wear them like a neutral - literally with everything.  Could I do a leopard print rug?? Or antelope?? Contemporary Staircase  by  Houston Interior Designers & Decorators   Sally Wheat Interiors Or cheetah?? Contemporary Entry  by  Ballwin General Contractors   Terra Nova Construction Modern Living Room  by  Burlington Interior Designers & Decorators   Cynthia Taylor-Luce Eclectic Hall  by  Burlington Interior Designers & Decorators   Cynthia Taylor-Luce I mean if it's good enough for the editor of Real Simple... Source And it's good enough for Erin Gates... It's amazing, right?? Well, I came across this bad ...

Ok people - the tree is down, the holidays are over, and I'm back from my short hiatus - ready for some fresh design inspiration for 2014.   Let's start with this living space... Source I love, loovveee, LOOOVVEEEE this space. Everything about it is perfection.  The wall color, the mirrors, the white tufted sofa, the rug... oh that rug. Traditional but worn.  Quiet, neutral colors so it tones in with the wood floors and wall color.  It's a soft background of pattern, and isn't the focal point of the room. It totally reminds me of the rug that Jenny from Little Green Notebook got for her Brooklyn flat living room. Right?? Amanda Carol also used this same rug in her dining room... I'm just totally obsessed with it... This rug ended up being discontinued, but I found it's evil twin online, and want to pull the trigger on it SO BADLY. The bad news?  Kris isn't sold.  He thinks it looks old, worn, and is not a fan in general, but I'm determined to change his...

Red is a color I stay away from in our own home... Perhaps it's from seeing a few too many homes in the 1990's look like this: Woof. There's a lot of red, and a lot of brown... and all together it equals... just a lot.  Too much.  I call this look "faux elegance". That said, I have a real appreciation for this loud color when used in the RIGHT way.  For me, that would be in accessories.  More specifically, I could really see myself incorporating this color through a Persian rug... but not an uber traditional rug - one with more of a tribal print.  I swear I'm not trying to be vague!!  If you're not entirely sure what I'm talking about, check out Jenny's (of the  Little Green Notebook ): She had this great little rug: from in her New York kitchen.  See what I mean?  With a less traditional pattern, that is more graphic and "chunky" it really makes this space come alive! Here are some other good examples of using red Persian rugs without go...

My old coworker (and fabulous friend) Margot just moved into a Studio (after living in a truly awful situation with roommates for a few years).  One of the BEST things about living alone is being able to make decisions on your own about what YOU want in your space.  You don't need to take other's tastes into consideration, and most importantly, you don't have to worry about your sloppy roommates ruining your new pretty things. Amen to that! Well, Margot already has a few things in place, but I was able to help her out a bit, by creating a few mood boards for how I see her studio coming together.  She has white bedding, neutral walls, and this fabulous, bold, cobalt sofa from Ikea.  With that in mind, I pulled together a few fun accessories, to create several ideas of how I see this space coming together. This first inspiration board was a fan favorite.  This rug (at the time, 75% off from RugsUSA) is the spitting image of  the Souk wool rug from West Elm ...