NEW BLOG SERIES ON WHITE + GOLD

I am really excited about this new blog series on White + Gold. It will be posted every Wednesday, starting next Wednesday. I am calling the new series the "THOUGHTFUL DESIGN SERIES". You can see my Thoughful Design post I did about my bedroom below.

This series will feature a different designer/stylish woman every week posting a picture of their favorite room in their home and explaining why they chose the things they did for that room. The goal of this series is to show you the thought process that goes into making a room in your home your favorite.

I definitely have an agenda with this series. I want more people to ascribe to this way of thinking when they design their homes - have a purpose with what you put in your home. Not everything is going to me meaningful, but I know that the more of yourself you incorporate into your home, the happier you will be.

Forget the trends and the magazines. What do you like? And why? Think about what you really want to accomplish in that room. And make sure it all reflects who YOU are!

Now I'm stepping off my soap box and I hope you will check the blog every Wednesday to see the new series! (And if you are interested in being a part of my series - please email me! Everyone is invited to participate!)

 

 

THOUGHTFUL DESIGN POST

I was asked what my design style is and as I thought about it, one thing kept coming to my mind. I believe in THOUGHTFUL DESIGN. What I mean by that is to design and decorate your home with meaning and to reflect who YOU are.

I look at pictures of interiors daily, hourly even. I inundate myself with all the knowledge about this field as I can get. Sometimes I see things I love that I want to recreate in my house, but I always realize that I love the room because I can get a sense of who they are. If I were to "copy" their style, I couldn't pull it off like they did. You have to make things your own. 

I don't believe in design "rules" or trends, really. You like what you like. Sure, your taste will change, but try to be thoughtful when you are choosing the more permanent things in your home - like expensive furniture, art, tile, and lighting. Do you love it now but think you might fall out of love with it? Like the chevron pattern - is the pattern really trendy, or is it one that you love and could see in a room in the '40s, '60s, 80's, and today? (BTW, if your style is trendy, then it is being thoughtful to put trendy things in your home!)

I try and put a lot of thought into my own home. As an example I will use my master bedroom...

1. I had a white custom headboard made with extra padding on the back and the sides because my girls love to climb into bed with us and they lean against the back of the bed to watch shows in the morning. And white is my favorite color :)

2. That lamp is something I inherited from my Mom who died four years ago, which she had inherited from her mother who has a very impressive collection of antiques. And it's gold - my other favorite color!

3. I found these pictures in a consignment store. They are lithographs of landscapes in Brazil. My husband served his LDS mission in Brazil and we visited his mission area together 5 years ago so it reminds us of one of our favorite trips together.

4. My books are not on the nightstand just to look pretty - I do actually read at night :) I LOVE to read, (when I have time, which hasn't been as often as I would like) and I even have a couple of book ideas of my own up my sleeve that I truly do plan on writing one day. Books are very meaningful to me.

5. This print is a college graduation gift from my husband. It's one of my favorite gifts from him. Not because I particularly love the print and frame itself - it's just a Gustav Klimt "The Kiss" print that a million people have in their home as well. But it is special because the night he first told me he loved me we were in that exact same position! We both can't look at that picture without imagining that moment.

6.  This rug is from Ikea and it is a very popular rug. It doesn't mean anything to me besides the fact that I love it, and it's a flatweave rug. Because my King Charles Cavalier Spaniel dog, Chuck, (you know Lady in Lady and the Tramp - yep, he looks just like her) sheds, wool and high pile rugs collect his hair like crazy and I end up with hairballs all over so I need a flatweave. But I love the graphicness (yes I just made that up) of the rug.

7. The wainscoting I chose for my house is a more traditional look that I have always loved. My Mom is from Washington D.C. and her parents' home had wainscoting like this in their dining room that I loved. And the walls are white because I wanted my black side tables and gold frames to stand out.

So even if you put things in your home that might be trendy, like my Klimt print, if it means something to you, it's thoughtful design. Pretty things definitely have their place, but I like to add a lot of me and a little design.