A Luxe Master Bedroom Retreat

This uber luxurious master bedroom retreat belongs to one of our favorite clients of all time. A young couple who called us for help to rescue them from their design woes. Brace yourself. It was a doozy.

With a professional athlete as half of this duo, their home was already a thing of beauty to behold. Expansive rooms, with soaring detailed ceilings and rich hardwood floors it had great bones. But the master bedroom, like the entire home, was overwhelming for the couple to tackle on their own and they needed a major design rescue to bring it to life. 

Our first order of business was to make this a sexy master retreat that reflected their love of modern glam yet. I knew right away that a padded headboard wall would be a great focal feature to make a bold statement. We went back and forth about the various design possibilities and technical details to make the headboard, and finally settled on this design using multiple squares from floor to ceiling. 

This gold leaf light fixture was our second major decision and it caused us soooo much anxiety as it went into back order status for months. Alas, good things come to those who wait. It kinda made us sing when it was finally installed. 

I'm a firm believer in having chairs or a sofa in a bedroom if space allows. The bed is for sleeping and other shenanigans. Plus folks will always wanna see your master bedroom and they should never have to sit on your bed. Ever. This sofa therefore was insanely practical for seating those random visitors, watching television (not shown) and for sitting to pack for travel, which is often the case for this couple.

We used chests, instead of traditional nightstands, which would have been too small and out of scale for this large space. It's a great alternative that offers loads of storage. We loved the fun detail of these rings/handles that suggests twelve small drawers but alas, there are only three drawers. The squares and color of the chest also mimic our headboard. Details, details. We design with intention around here. 


Since I'm also a fan of mixed metals, we suggested gold lighting and accessories to play off the many shades of grey throughout the design. A small tray holds jewelry and other knickknacks. Since they are a couple of a faith, a bible is also a mainstay on their nightstand. 

The adjoining room was an empty and lonely space when I first visited. 

There are glass doors leading to a balcony so the challenge was to create a seating space with enough room to access that balcony. A cozy seating area to chat and catch up on the days events, or read a book while sipping a glass of wine made sense.

We mimicked the window treatments from the other side of the bedroom to connect the two spaces and continued with greys, gold and off whites.

We mixed high and low throughout the project as well. Custom window treatments were balanced with budget-friendly finds like the rug, mirrors and these gold end tables.

All photos by Sublime Photos.

 We took several months to work on this project and that's what made it such a treat. Good design takes time. Our clients had an exhaustive travel schedule, and a newborn to boot, but were patient, understanding of shipping and other unforeseen delays, and allowed us a lot of autonomy. Once we settled on our overall design plan, selected  fabrics and the design for the headboard, we were left to own devices i.e. we did not need approval for anything else. 

I cannot stress how important it is to trust your design team once you've agreed to hire them, to see your vision through. It will always, always lead to better results. Trust me on this.

In a rare moment, I was also on site for their reveal and this was after an exhaustive and grueling two days of installing the master bedroom, playroom, living and family room and powder room, the majority of which was completed a week before Christmas. I was near comatose when they arrived that night, and my feet were about to stage a major revolt, but it was well worth it to see their shock turn into tears of joy when they stepped inside. The shell of a home they'd purchased months before, had finally become their home. And that my friends, was a happy sight to see.

Whew. That's all folks. We'll reveal the living, dining and family rooms next week.

P.S. Thanks for putting up with our slacker of a blog schedule these days. As you know, I'm at writer at heart and by training and I truly enjoy sharing what's cooking with us. But since our schedule has gotten insane, it's just easier to post quick updates over on Instagram - like hello, we have a new intern and Xavier is almost 10 feet tall - and save the detailed reveals for here. 

Wherever, and however you stay in touch, just know we are grateful for your unending love and support.

   

Want the look? Here are some similar items:

Source Guide
Custom Headboard - Similar here; here 
Nightstands - Similar here; here or here
Lamps - Similar here; here or here
Chandelier - Similar here; here or here
Rug - Similar here; here; here or here
Loveseat - Similar here; here or here
Art - Similar here; here or here

Seating Area
Rug - Similar here; here or here
Chandelier - Similar here; here; here or here (in chrome)
Arm Chairs - Similar here; here or here
Stools - Similar here; here or here
Mirrors - Similar here; here or here 
Custom Curtains - Similar here; here or here

A City Girl's Retreat - The Master Bedroom

Our favorite city-living client Paula D, rests her head in this very bedroom every night. We revealed her living and dining room earlier this week, a space filled with loads of personal flavor, color and light. 

Her bedroom equally reflects her fun and quirky personality. For starters, let's say hello to that sexy lady/piece of art floating around in a field of galactic color above the bed shall we? 


As I mentioned in the reveal of her living/dining room, Paula is lover of books and has an extensive collection, many of which she'll keep handy in her bedroom as well. Now let's chat about this stylish upholstered bed. Paula and I fought a tad about this bed. She wanted an all wood bed, including a wooden headboard, but sometimes, just sometimes, I put on my designer "Oh hell no" hat and stand my ground about certain items. In this case, we had already installed new wood laminate floors and had decided for sure on these awesome mid-century modern inspired wooden nightstands.

So getting a bed of all wood would have easily pushed us into lumber yard territory. Let's just say I believe she's happy with the sass I gave about needing to go upholstered. Her head also thanks me for thinking oh so kindly of its comfort. 

  Hello bed. You are welcome. 

Confession time: Did you notice something amiss about this post? There are  no before pictures of the bedroom! For the first time in my design life, I forgot to take em. You cannot imagine how many photo files we searched all week but alas, I found zero, zip, nada. So just rest assured it was all white and blah with beige carpet blah blah. Just take my word for it or refer to my before pics of the living and dining room to get a sense...

 

Now back to the scheduled programming. Every respectable bedroom needs a place to sit. If you're tight on space and can't squeeze a chair, please get a small bench or stool. It's not just an extra place for you to sit and chill for a few, but nosy folks popping in to check out your bedroom decor, should not be sitting on your bed. That's just my rule of thumb.

This colorful vignette may be my favorite area of this room. So many happy colors working harmoniously together. The white walls, white dresser and grey floors help to balance out the color party so consider something neutral in the mix when considering how best to mix your favorite colors.

 Sit, read, sip some wine. Repeat. You get the picture.

So let's talk about this awesome white lacquer dresser. I'm usually not a fan of dressers in a room. They can take up so much real estate. But Paula needed extra storage and so there so no sass from me in this round. This piece also wears many hats as a dresser, television stand and all around great place to display some fun accessories.

Simple succulents add so much life to any space, including a bedroom. Low maintenance, and clearly a great backdrop from some jewelry. 

Much like the gallery wall in her living room, this display includes pieces of art and fun pieces she's collected over the years from her many travels. We left plenty of room for her to add more pieces as she sees fit. And that's all folks. Definitely one of our favorite projects of the year, in particular because A. Paula is just kinda awesome and B. she allowed us to do our thing and that my friends, is a recipe for great design. Cheers to a fab weekend!  

Source Guide
West Elm: Dresser (Similar here)
Urban Outfitters: Reading Nook Chair (Similar here or here)
West Elm: Bed
West Elm: Night Stands (Similar here)
Overstock: Floor Lamp.
Target, HomeGoods, Ikea: Pillows, accessories
Gallery Wall and all art: Clients personal collection

Condo Project Reveal: A City Girl's Retreat

This very reminder of Spring of a condo, belongs to my dear friend and former colleague Paula D. We transformed her boyfriend, Mr. B's apartment  almost two years ago,  and she'd promised to call me if and when she bought a place of her own. True to her word, I got an email late last year that she was closing on a shell of a condo in Miami and wanted me to add some life. 

Hello shell of a condo. It was a standard builder grade of a condo. White walls, beige carpet galore and lots of strange decisions and locations of bulkheads and closets. No worries. We love a challenge. Paula also asked that we take our time to do the space, to sift through the very personal art she'd collected over the years and the treasure trove of books she'd amassed. Music to any designer's ears, a client who doesn't want a shopping blitz but a carefully curated space. Hip Hop Hooray!

First in. New grey washed floors. A laminate that looks pretty damn good. 

Once we settled on the floors, we decided to keep much of the walls white and create a gallery wall around the TV, to not make the television such a focal point. To maintain a light and airy feel to the condo, we added sheer curtains on a track for easy open and close to control the light. A glass media stand with lots of open shelving to display books and collectibles also fit the space perfectly. The framed photo of film stars Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni were a fave among Paula's collection, so we used them to anchor the gallery wall, then layered with her smaller framed pieces. We added the antlers and worded piece for some whimsy.

We knew we wanted a shade of green in sync with the rug (which looks more blue here but it's more on the green spectrum). After lots of back and forth, we settled on this minted shade which brings a fresh burst of energy to the condo. The tailored fabric of the sectional tones down the green a tad, and the black and white cityscape she purchased from Ikea years ago, finally found a home.

Fresh flowers, candles, books on her native Brazil and a woven piece, also from Brazil help personalize the coffee table. 

Let's head over to the dining room/entryway shall we?

Here's how we started. Remember those weird bulkheads and closets I mentioned? Why, why would someone place a closet smack in the dining room? It made no sense, so we removed the door, added a chest of drawers for dining storage, and shelves to display more personal items.

 

There was no formal entry way, so we created one at the back of the dining room with a slender desk, round mirror and baskets for additional storage.

Paula doesn't cook much, so we made budget conscious decisions in the kitchen by painting the cabinets white, adding a chalkboard for her to unleash her inner artist (she sketched said curvalicious image), bar cart and a rather massive fiddle leaf fig to give her a true sense of the outdoors. 

This small gallery wall in her kitchen was both functional (it hides her breaker panel without violating code rules that said panel be accessible) and truly speaks to Paula's personality. A city girl on a busy schedule with amazing wit, who appreciates the glorious Miami weather, and knows how to find time to chill. 

Definitely one of our favorite projects of the year. Call us if you have a tricky space that needs some clever design solutions. We'd love to help.

Sources Guide:
LIVING ROOMWest Elm: Sectional (Similar here or here) 
Ikea: Oversized Art (Similar here)
Overstock: Coffee Table (Similar here, here or great wood option here)
West Elm: Media Console (Similar here or here)
Wayfair: Nesting End Tables (Similar here, here or mirrored option here)
Lamp (Similar here, here or here)
Wayfair: Area Rug (Similar here, here or here)
Home Goods, Target: Throw Pillows
Accent Wall Paint color: Behr - Garden View
DINING ROOM
West Elm: Chandelier 
Lexmod: Dining Table (Similar here)
Ikea: Dining Room Rug
Overstock: Dining Chairs
Ikea: Foyer Mirror (Similar here)
Ikea: Foyer Table/Desk (Similar here or here)
Art: Client's