Youth Gone Wild

What is it about summer that makes us all feel like kids? Maybe its the fact that you can walk around without shoes on and not be judged, or the fact that your hair can take on that “beachy” quality without people questioning if you have actually been at the beach. What I do know is that summer puts me in the mood to be youthful and to enjoy each minute in the sunshine. 
And as a result of my feeling youthful during this season, I seem to have developed a fondness for bunk beds or bunk rooms. Not just bunk beds that you put in a room, but bunk beds that are built in as part of the architecture of the space. How cozy. I look at these pictures and wonder how I possibly missed out on what is a seemingly a very American experience. 

 In one’s mind, camp looks a bit like this … but obviously in reality it did not. This is all adults creating stylized versions of summer camp inside their homes. They probably all really enjoyed designing these spaces because it allowed them to take advantage of their inner child – if only for a moment. 
Clearly WWB and I are going to have to give our children this all American experience. I mean, how much fun do all these rooms look? Even now, what about a weekend with your girlfriends all shacked up in bunk rooms like these? Love. Ahhh summer. 

Photos courtesy of Country Living, Southern Living, Elle Decor, Traditional Home and House Beautiful. 

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Living Outside THE City

So now that we’re officially leaving NYC and moving to Charleston, I’m going to have to change a couple of things – specifically in the world of blog inspiration I will have to change my access to some of my favorite interiors magazines. Most of you know that in THE city, magazines come out a day earlier than they do anywhere else, so if you want to be the first to see it, best to buy it and not have a subscription. So when it comes to House Beautiful, Elle Decor, Vanity Fair, Vogue etc. etc. best to just go to your magazine guy and buy it the day it comes out. For my other favorite magazines, which are all from overseas, I had this amazing magazine store in SoHo which always stocked Marie Claire Maison, Elle Decoration UK, and Vogue Living Australia, so I would pop in and buy all of those every month. I can’t get these magazines in Charleston, so it looks like subscriptions for me! However, one thing I can get in Charleston, which I have been consistently surprised with of late, is Country Living. 

 These minimalist interiors almost have the feel of many of the interiors I love in the foreign publications! And this is in a former blacksmith shop in the countryside outside of NYC.

Although I will be sad to leave my little magazine bodegas with Marie Claire Maison at my fingertips, and resign myself to waiting for the mailman, Charleston definitely has some good magazines to offer … and plus, its Charleston. 

Images courtesy of Country Living

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Maximizing Minimalism

There are certain topics that I cannot stop talking about – especially when it comes to the intersection of historic preservation and interior design. Today’s particular topic, minimalist interiors in historic buildings. This particular project: a Chelsea townhouse belonging to a man who produces TV commercials (just like my dad!). Even though I would not call my design aesthetic minimalist, or even modern, there has always been something about a minimalist interior in an ornate historic building that gets to me. The minimalism of the decorating and the interior design always allows the beauty of the building to shine through. 
When you’re not distracted, the architectural details jump out at you – like the moulding and the archways … that’s his refrigerator BTW. 
You all know I also love when modern pieces are added to the rear of townhouses, as I posted about here and here. Again, the minimalist nature of the add ons does not distract from the beauty of the historic building. The deck and staircase, as well as the sliding glass door all just seem to fade away. Not only do they seem to fade away, they give a sense that they are easily removed, where if one day another owner wanted to restore the original back of the house, it wouldn’t be hard to take the staircase out without any damage to the property. 
What used to be windows, are now doors, that open onto the deck. Again – moulding, door casings, and the transom lights are all the stars of the show. 
The minimalism really allows the owner to stay in touch with the historic nature of the house. Open his medicine cabinet and voila! There is the exposed brick of the party wall between his house and the neighbor. 
Honestly, minimal decorating may not be my style, but in a room like this are you looking at the couch, or are you looking at the bones of this Chelsea beauty? 

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