Live Beautifully

Samantha's Bedroom

2012-01-23T17:52:00.016-06:00

This sweet little space was designed for an even sweeter little Miss! Samantha is just the kind of precious little girl that makes you want to have a precious little girl of your own! She received a baby doll from Santa Clause this past Christmas and named her "Baby Alice"...oh, melt my heart!

We designed a little girl room for her that is sweet and sophisticated. She can gracefully grow into her new space, without it being too grown up or too juvenile, for a while.

In the image below you can see how the space looked before.

One of the first things that we did was replace the large sheets of glass from the windows. They were not insulated, not tempered and didn't meet code. In the image below, taken from another room in the house, you can see the brand new windows. We divided the large expanse of window into 3 sections. Notice the horizontal muntins, I love these!...and in a beautiful bronze too.

Here is the space now.

The new windows were layered with a gorgeous embroidered linen over a soft woven wood shade. The woven woods were outfitted with a blackout liner to help little peepers stay asleep.

I found this beautiful distressed dresser and paired it with an antique trumeau. I love the way the marigold in the trumeau complements the pale lavender walls. I forgot to snap a pic of the custom painted chandy but you catch a glimpse of it here in the mirror.

The dresser paint is chippy and rough and every now and then you can see a fleck of gold peer through. Love.

The trumeau. Double love.

See that cute little nightstand? It has a surprise when you open the drawers. The citrus green is the same green in the graphic fabric on the bedding. I love this. It's like a lined envelope, or a beautiful patterned lining of a jacket. Such a special detail that often gets overlooked.

Take a closer look at our bedding.

In the image below, you can see how the closet looked before. Yikes. That's no closet for a princess.

We took out the dated accordion doors and redesigned the shelving and hanging system inside.

The closet doors received a nice little piece of jewelry as well.

In another corner of the room, we designed a reading nook. I love to come into this space now and see Samantha's woobie blanket all balled up next to some books. Just precious.

I hung some chicken wire birdcages, adorned with large lavender bugs above, for a little whimsy.

Here's a closer look at some of the art details in the room.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing Samantha's sweet, little space.

I also hope that you are having a great week! Thanks for stopping by to see what we are up to at M. E. Beck Design, Inc.

*Due to client contracts, I am unable to share sources*

Our Little Doll Baby

2012-01-12T18:31:00.002-06:00

Just a little photographic update on the Smidgen...I do love her so!!!
I hope you're having a great week!

1920's Dining Room | Before & After

2012-01-04T16:27:00.008-06:00

I've talked about this home several times here, here and here. It is a wonderful home from the 20's that we have been restoring over the past year. Today I'll show you the dining room. The image below is of the room before. One of the things that we wanted to salvage for the room was the wall texture. The walls are solid plaster and have a beautiful, deep texture, but we needed to get rid of the glossy paint (bad idea in this style). We also salvaged the antique Spanish crystal chandelier.

The floor looks a little cool in the photos but it isn't an inlaid marble floor as it appears. It was an unattractive painted cement tile and so we didn't feel too bad removing it. We replaced the floor with an amazing French herringbone wood floor.

I tied the same graphic feeling into the custom sisal rug by Fibreworks.

The ceiling had been sprayed with popcorn at some point (see image below), and so we removed all of that and added a beautiful plaster texture to coordinate with the walls. We added birch beams to the ceiling as well. The beams give the room some architectural interest that was lacking.

We also cased the plaster openings to accent the 13" thick walls and to give the pass throughs a more finished look.

We replaced the old windows with stunning bronze casement windows. I love the graphic that a horizontal muntin creates. I use this look often in my work because I love it so much!

Cremone locks make me smile and stare lovingly at whatever they are attached to :-)

Linen French cord and nailhead detail on the custom dining chairs.

In the image below, you can see the beautiful Spanish crystal chandelier that was original to the home. Love! We had it rewired and professionally cleaned (which for those of you who don't know, this means it had to hang from an A-frame in the back of a truck so that it could be transported to the tradesman's shop for rewiring and cleaning-sidenote: I so appreciate someone who has perfected their trade and takes pride in their work) and it looks stunning!!!

I hope you've enjoyed another little peek into this fabulous home. I still have tons more to show you as we finish different areas.

How hard is it to come back to work after the holidays?!?!...couple that with a long maternity leave...sheesh!

I hope everyone out there is managing ;-) and getting a great start to the new year!

Our Joyful Little Christmas

2011-12-27T17:11:00.010-06:00

Our Christmas card - Merry Christmas from the Becks :-)
Here are some favorites from our holiday in Lubbock...

I did the backs in a chevron pattern...love!

All sealed and ready to go just by the hair of my chinny chin chin....

I was a little behind this year :-/

Cozied up with Aunt Beetle

Fun with photo booth

Fancy schmancy cheese ball thanks to Aunt Suz

Hula hoops full of gumballs

Caleb holding his new cousin Alice

Gram and Alice

I swear I was good Santa...

Christmas dinner

Bauble

nuff said

We got a white Christmas

Our family - Me, Frank & Alice

Intrigue

Me and my little sugar plum

I hope that your holiday was joyful as well, and that you celebrated the true reason for the season, the birth of our Savior.

Here's to a happy and healthy 2012!

The Past Few Weeks...

2011-12-14T14:17:00.015-06:00

I just thought I would do somewhat of a photo-dump on here of some highlights from the past few weeks.

We had a very intimate Thanksgiving this year. We weren't quite ready to travel with the smidgen, so a few of my family members traveled from Dallas to be with us. Not everyone could make it, so our usual 25 member dinner turned out to be just 5. Only my mom and 2 of my 4 sisters could make it for the actual dinner but another sister made her way down the next day. It was very sweet, easy and relaxing!

My momma, sister Carla, sister Angela, the hubs Frank and see that little pink in the bottom left corner...that was Alice's seat :-)naps

The smidgen and me.

My little sister Angela and Miss Alice

Another sister, Tina, her boyfriend Chris and my girl.

Sometimes only Daddy can make it better.

We did some Christmas tree shopping.

What?... What do you wear when you shop for a Christmas tree? ;-P

Every year I stand in front of the tree for at least 15 minutes debating colored lights vs white lights. This year I did both.

We are so looking forward to our first Christmas as a little family. Eventhough she doesn't know what is going on yet, a certain magic has returned and I am very excited for her :-)

After the 1st of the year I will be heading back into projects after a very comfy maternity leave. I have loved my uninterrupted time with the smidgen, she is just beyond precious!!!

Thank you to all who read this little ol' blog and leave me such sweet, encouraging comments and emails! It makes writing on here so much more fun!

I hope you've had a great week. It's the weekend, yay! :-)

Visual Comfort & Co. Feature

2011-12-14T11:10:00.002-06:00

Visual Comfort & Co. is one of my absolute favorite lighting sources and I am so flattered that they have featured one of my projects on their blog today.

Take a peek back to when I featured this project on Live Beautifully if you would like to read more.

In this project, I used two of the gorgeous Double Twist 5 Light chandeliers in hand rubbed antique brass by Eric Cohler for Visual Comfort & Co. Aren't they stunning?!

Thanks for the feature Visual Comfort :-)

Monochrome

2011-11-30T12:10:00.013-06:00

Monochromatic schemes are one of my favorite approaches! I love all design, colorful too, but time after time I find myself being drawn to monochromatic rooms. There is something that is ethereal and relaxing about them.

The project I am showing you today is one that I completed at the beginning of this year and is a study in monochrome. The client and I love it!
In the image below you can see how the space looked before. One of the restraints of this design was that we had to completely design around the house and paint colors as is because the homeowners were planning on moving. They wanted to spruce up their home with items that could be taken with them on their move. So, you will notice that the paint colors, light fixtures etc. had to remain the same.

The very first problem that we addressed was the scale of their furniture. The family room and kitchen are one in this home and have a 'great room' effect. While selecting their new pieces, it was important to keep this in mind and increase the scale to match the proportion of the space.

We decided on 2 matching sofas and reupholstering her existing chairs. We laid them out in an L shape but the beauty of these furniture choices is that she will be able to change the configuration if she tires of this one.

We selected light fabrics that have interesting textures and we let that be our focus instead of color. The lighter fabrics dramatically brighten the previously dull space.

Don't be afraid of light fabrics if you love them. Scotchgard!

To help define the spaces and minimized the 'great room' effect and make it more cozy, we put a refectory table behind the sofa holding two large ceramic pots and branches. This visually, and physically, defines the two spaces. I love the symmetry that we have created in this room as well.

One of the most important things that we added to the space were window treatments. In the 'before' picture below you can see how bland the windows were. The hard lines of the architecture needed softening. Plus, the lack of window treatments created a room darkening glare in the space from the strong backlight.

I had panels made to go well above the window to draw the eye up and take advantage of the wonderful ceiling heights in this room. Just look at what it does for those windows! They look almost twice their size, and dramatically brighter! The folds of fabric covering the sheetrock soften the wall.

The chairs in front of the window were the client's as well. We recovered them in a light graphic pattern that complements the floral pattern in the panels. Pairing a graphic with a floral creates a tension and provides a masculine-feminine balance.

We also kept the client's existing table, but we changed up her accessories and removed the dark, heavy lamp.

A cocktail table with a gorgeous, creamy marble top was added to our seating arrangement. We kept the accessories on the table light here as well.

We also added some light accessories to the dark, stained bookshelves to perk them up. These bursts of light and white throughout the space contribute to the overall brighter look.

In the image below you can see the fun bird fabric on the new barstools. My client loves birds and you'll see birds throughout her new space. Surround yourself with things that you love and make you happy!

We couldn't be happier with her new space! It's fresh, clean and bright.

I hope that everyone had a happy Thanksgiving. We hosted for the first time this year. My sweet family came all the way from Dallas to make it easier on us with our new lil bug. It was wonderful. Maybe I'll post some pics if I get around to it... :-)

I hope you're having a great week!

A Well Dressed Home Feature

2011-11-28T12:34:00.005-06:00

I am so flattered to have Alice's nursery featured on A Well Dressed Home today! If you haven't seen the link in the 'blogs I love' tab on my sidebar before, check it out. It is a fabulous blog written by my sweet friend and former Texas Tech interior design classmate Emily Hewett. Emily is talented, has great taste and does lots of fun projects that you will just love. Be sure to check out her kitchen renovation, it is awesome!!! Also, don't miss her 'Frugal Finds' series. I love this series and get lots of ideas for budget friendly specifying. I hope you'll stop by her blog today and take a peek at Miss Alice's nursery feature :-)

Thankful

2011-11-24T17:06:00.003-06:00

I have a million things that I am thankful for, but this little smidgen is at the very tip top of my list!
I hope that everyone out there is having a lovely Thanksgiving and enjoying time with the people in your lives that you are thankful for.
Happy Thanksgiving!

My Nursery Journal: Part VI

2011-11-17T18:26:00.009-06:00

I finally had time to take pics of the nursery and get them up on here...granted it has taken forever, because a newborn doesn't really care about blogging and her patience reflects that. But, alas, here it is, her humble little abode.

If you missed them, check out Part I, II, III, IV & V. There is more info in the previous posts about the specifics of fabrics etc.

I love the not-typical-girly-non-themeyness of it ;-) Now, don't get me wrong, I love ultra girly rooms, but I figured that she might want all of that pink later and so I put a little bit of me into it for now while I could still get away with it ;-)

I was able to complete the collage since the last post. I added a photo from our insanely talented friend that did our maternity and newborn photos. I also added a small mirror that was my mothers, a beautiful baked cross that was a gift from a sweet client/friend, and my favorite part is a tiny phrase I molded out of copper wire. Hopefully it will inspire her to imagine her own little fairy tales :-)

The bedside deets...all of which will have to be move when the little Miss is toddling.

The view back towards the closet. Do you like my dark doors?

For the changing table, I opted for a chest of drawers. I found this piece at one of my cool import vendors for when this space was our guest room. It is heavy, like really heavy, like solid wood heavy!...which husband loved getting up the staircase (it wouldn't be one of my projects for him if it didn't involve a little bit of a headache :-/) I love the raised moorish detail on the drawer fronts and the awesome iron drop pulls. One advantage of going with a dresser instead of a typical changing table is that she will be able to use it as a dresser when she is no longer in diapies.

This was an old mirror that I had that had a cheesy folk paint pattern on it. I painted it to look old. I love the antique mirror glass!

The rocker-glider that I love love love! It is so comfy! I had it professionally scotchgarded FYI.

Now, for the very most important thing in the whole nursery...

Who cares about the room after seeing that, right?!!! She is just beyond precious! I'm loving my days at home with her as we get to know each other. God is so good!!!!

I hope you've enjoyed seeing her little space.

I promise I'll be back soon (prob not too soon :-/) with some fun design posts. Thanks to all of my sweet readers that keep checking in. Big hugs!!!

Project Sneak Peek

2011-10-14T18:43:00.003-05:00

I ventured out of the house this week to check in on my 1920s restoration, that I've talked about frequently on here, and just had to show you a sneak peek of the awesome pool cabana. We created an amazing space out of what was basically a tool shed. I can't wait to show you the full space. I designed a vintage space but wanted to mix in a few modern elements like the chairs above, which I love!!! They are also durable for damp swimsuit hineys :-)

I'll save the in depth detail for the full post but here is the kitchenette area adorned with some gorgeous Thomas O'Brien Milton Road pendants...love.
Imperial Trellis, shiplap walls and beadboard on the ceiling...double love!

There was a stone wall where these doors are now. It will be fun to show you the completed space as the before and afters are beyond dramatic!

And another little sneak peek just for fun...
Remember this bathroom that I've shown peeks of before? It will be ready to show you soon too :-) It is stunning y'all!

Sorry for the crumby camera phone snaps. There will be better pics for the actual posts, promise.

I hope you had a great week! It's the weekend, yay!

My Nursery Journal: Part V

2011-10-11T15:35:00.000-05:00

Well, as you have seen our girl is here :-) The nursery hardly seems relevant now, we are so consumed with her, but since this is a design blog I thought I would continue to share her sweet little space :-) If you missed them, check out Part I, II, III & IV.

I am in love with the bedding. I had everything custom made at my workroom and I couldn't be happier with the finished product! I went ahead and had bumper pads made even though they won't be in the crib 90% of the time. I just really wanted them and eventually, when my girl is big enough, I will likely keep them in. I had them made in 2 sections so that when we convert the crib into a toddler bed, the front bumper will come off and the back section will fit like a daybed. I made them in washable cream linen corded in khaki and cream seersucker that can be unzipped from the pillows and thrown in the washer. The bed skirt is also adjustable so that it can be moved up and down with the bed as she grows.

As you can see in the first image, we painted the crib gold, a la Erika Powell style :-) It ended up being kind of an ordeal, which if my husband were writing this would be his description for all of my "projects" for him. Long story short, after several attempts at brushing, spraying etc. and several expensive cans of paint later, we ended up taking it up to Beck Industrial to be professional sprayed in their paint booth, sheesh! Let's just not talk about it anymore, ok?

In spite of everything it turned out beautifully!!! Thanks babe!...isn't he cute putting the crib together?!

All of my fabrics are F. Schumacher.

For the art above the crib, I bought these vintage Alice in Wonderland images at an Etsy shop and framed them in some stock frames I found at Stein Mart. The frames had some cheesy palm frond prints in them, but I loved the frames and the color of cream on the mattes, and so it was an easy switch out for the look of custom framed art...which can cost a small fortune.

These cute little metal bugs were part of the decorations for one of my showers. I just grabbed some branches from my yard and stuck them on the branches in a vase. I'm aware that this is not toddler-proof but we have a while before that ;-) The little glass table next to the glider will have to go, when that day comes, as well.

We kept the queen bed that was in the room when it was a guest room. We figured it would come in handy for the nights that I sleep in there and then eventually it will likely be her 'big girl bed'. That is hard to even imagine right now!

I did a little art collage over the bed that I plan on adding some other pieces to. The owl watercolor was a gift from a sweet client. The top piece is another vintage Alice in Wonderland scene of the Mad Hatter's Tea Party, and the Asian silk piece below it was Frank's grandmother's in it's original tortoise shell frame. I love this!

The headboard was actually something that I made from the old crusty shutters that were on the windows when we bought our house. They were very shabby and not in the chic kind of way. I took them apart and then screwed the pieces together using the old hinges. A little wood glue and paint and I think it makes a pretty cute headboard...kind of Somerset Bay-ish.

Here is what the shutters looked like before. Many of the slats were broken and they had been poorly painted several times. Plus they were just really old. I love a little patina but these were just kind of gross.

The room is finally done so I'll show you some full room shots when I get a chance to fluff it up a little. The past few weeks have been crazy with our new little one at home. This motherhood business is no joke! Props to all of you mommas out there!!!

By the way...

Have you seen our amazing newborn photos? I absolutely adore our photographer! She is a personal friend and I highly recommend her if you are looking for a creative and extremely talented photographer. Check out her sweet post about the little Miss :-)

I hope you're having a great week!

Our Smidgen

2011-09-29T15:51:00.002-05:00

She is here, she is here! Our perfect, little smidgen :-)
To say that we are in love would be an understatement!
Wow, the love that God gives you for someone that you hardly know is amazing!
We are truly blessed!

Posts may be few and far between these next few weeks as time is precious these days. Thanks for checking in on us and for all of the love and support for our girl.

**Please ask for permission before use of any photos - thank you**

A Staircase Before & After

2011-09-14T21:41:00.008-05:00

This gorgeous new staircase is part of the 1920's home that I, along with Shelly Home Company, have been restoring over the past year. It is such an amazing home that just needed some TLC and boy did she get it! We are in phase 2 of the decorating part, now that all of the construction has subsided. I can't wait to show you this wonderful project :-)
...But for now, this is just the staircase...
In the image below, you can see what the staircase looked like in it's former glory :-/

Yuck!

I designed all of the ironwork and my contractor sent it off to be fabricated. We couldn't be happier with the result!

We updated that icky, shiny brass lantern fixture for a stunning, antiqued mirror Moravian star pendant.

The antique brass medallions are my favorite part!

The landing at the top of the stairs, seen in the 'before' image below, was an awful pony wall that wasn't even close to meeting code. It was, like 2 1/2' tall!!! Besides being aesthetically dated, it was extremely unsafe, especially for the homeowner's two small children. So, we opened the space up with the new railing and brought it to a little above code height for some extra safety.

We ripped up the heavy, wool carpet and stained the treads and painted the risers for a fresh new look.
The whole space just feels like a breath of fresh air now.

Lots more to come from this home soon...

What I've Been Up To...

2011-09-14T20:58:00.008-05:00

Well, my lovelies, baby Alice still has not made her debut. I'm 3 days past my due date and just hanging in there, anxiously awaiting meeting our girl.

Sooo, in the meantime, I thought I would dump some phone pics on here of some projects I've been working on. Poor quality pics, in progress job sites and a little glimpse into what I've been up to lately :-)

I'm seriously obsessed with this light fixture!

Hicks pendants are in, holla!!!

There's a whole lot more where this came from. Lot's of fun projects to show you in the future :-)

I hope you're having a great week!

Remodelaholic Features M. E. Beck Design Again!

2011-09-02T19:44:00.004-05:00

Once again, I am so incredibly flattered and honored to have one of my projects featured on such a wonderful site. This website has loads and loads of inspiration and I hope you'll drop in to check out my feature :-) If you missed my original post, check it out here.

Check out my previous Remodelaholic feature here, and the original post on my site here.

A big, huge thank you to Cassity and Remodelaholic :-)

My Nursery Journal: Part IV

2011-09-01T20:59:00.000-05:00

Ok, I know I said I would post this last week, but I've been a busy lady. I'm on a bit of time crunch here :-) Forgive me?

If you missed them check out Part I, II, & III.

I've finally got the window treatments up, with the help of my handy husby installer :-)
You will recognize the trellis fabric from Part I, that I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to do with, but I thought it might be window treatments...well...it's window treatments and it looks great!
I layered the drapery panels with woven wood blinds that have a blackout liner. I often do this in my client's homes and I love the warmth of a woven wood next to a crisp, graphic fabric.

I am absolutely in love with the linen floral print seen on the pillow. This fabric is also the crib skirt.

That little bear was mine when I was a wee one. His name is Radar (when I was little I named him after my favorite guy's teddy bear).

We've also done some work on the little smidgen's closet. It was just a basic catch-all guest room closet before.

We brought the ceiling color from the room in on to the walls. I painted her hanging rods gold and we hung a sweet little chandelier in there.

I've begun to put things away but our dining room still resembles a Babies-R-Us at this point.

Look at those sweet little girl clothes! I can't wait to dress my little dolly :-)

The bedding is finally complete as well, so that's up next.

I hope you're having a great week, it is almost over and then a 3 day weekend, yay!

Elegant In Austin | The Family Room

2011-08-19T13:31:00.008-05:00

I'm back with another glimpse into my fun Austin project.

Today I'm showing you the family room. This home doesn't have a formal living area, and so our challenge with this space was to make the family room formal enough to walk right into from the front door, but casual enough to kick back and watch TV in as well.

All of the fabrics in the room are durable, upholstery weights that stand up to lots of use. We opted for a casual jute rug to tone down some of the formality of the space. I love the natural element that this introduces, especially paired with the brassy and antique mirrored cocktail table. The antique mirror is great for setting drinks on etc. and you don't have to worry about keeping a pristine glass top.

I went with a strong dose of symmetry in this room and I love the mirrored effect it creates. Sidenote...we eventually plan to mount a motorized painting over the flatscreen.

The ceilings are high in this space, so we warmed them up with distressed and gray-washed wood beams. We brought even more warmth down into the space with the iron and wood beaded chandelier. I love the rustic materials of this chandelier paired with some of the more refined finishes in the space. Notice the beaming is continued into the lintels of the pass throughs.

In the background you can see more of the delicious dark painted doors.

Behind those double doors is a gorgeous peacock blue lacquered study...but that is for another day :-)
Another fun architectural element you will see repeated throughout this space is the slurried stone. We brought this in from the dining room (that I wrote about here) and applied it to the gallery pass throughs and the fireplace. It is slightly rustic but just smooth enough that it works, again, with the more refined finishes and furniture.

This space is open, all around, to the entry, kitchen and hearthroom, but feels very cozy due to our warm finishes, fabrics and overall color palette.
Some of the details...

I love to use these antique leather bound books. I actually collect them myself. They are just beautiful!

A bronze lantern sits atop a cararra marble and black lacquer table.

The cocktail table sports some pretty cocktail books and a phaleanopsis orchid in a shell planter. Isn't that planter cool?!...those are tons of mini seashells.

I hope you are enjoying peeks into this lovely project and what has turned into a series :-)

There is still lots more to see from this gorgeous home!

I hope you're having a great week.

Check back later this week for another Nursery Journal entry.

My Nursery Journal: Part III

2011-08-16T19:45:00.000-05:00

In case you missed them, check out Part I & Part II.

Our rocker/ swivel-glider arrived...yay! It is perfect! I quizzed lots of mommy friends and everyone pretty much said the same thing and that was to get a comfortable rocker!

I listened.

This chair is so comfy, and the back is high enough that it completely supports my whole head, which is a plus since I've also been informed that I will likely be sleeping here in the beginning.

...and...

It is stylish to boot! I opted for a non-nurseryish fabric that can grow with our girl if it stays in her room or could easily be moved to another room in the house if needed. I love it!

*Scotchgard application scheduled ;-)
We are awaiting her bedding and drapes to come back from my workroom. I've also ordered room-darkening woven wood blinds that will be installed in the next couple of weeks.
This past weekend we worked on the closet for the princess. Daddy is painting it the same blue as the ceiling and I've painted her hanging rods gold. Cute! She also has a sweet little chandelier that it just waiting to be hung in there.
More to come!

Installation In Progress...

2011-08-15T17:32:00.001-05:00

My apologies for the lack of posts lately. All of last week, I was either preparing for or installing the project above. This amazing 1920's restoration has been a year in the making and it is fabulous! There is still lots to do, but I thought you might enjoy a little sneak peek :-)

I hope you're having a great start to the week!

Elegant In Austin | The Master Suite

2011-08-03T20:20:00.008-05:00

Remember my project in Austin that I keep gushing about? Well, here's a little more of it. This is the master suite. Dang, I should have ironed that duvet! These aren't my final photos anyway, there were a few things missing across the room and so you're only getting to see half of the space :-) It's about 90% done though.
I love the mix of the warm, rich woods amidst a clean palette of warm grays and creams. Not pictured, 'cause that side of the room wasn't done ;-) is a beautiful antique mahogany Chippendale piece with gorgeous carved blind fretwork on the glass doors. This piece was inherited from the husband's grandmother and complements the warmth of the nightstand wood. We are going to add a bench to the foot of the bed as well.

You might recall my meltdown regarding my interior door color and the subsequent repainting, by my way too accomodating-so-as-not-to-upset-the-pregnant-lady episode. Well, you are viewing the project where I specified the color on the doors that sent me reeling, and I immediately wanted my doors to be this color instead of black. Aren't they beautiful?!

I never get tired of sunburst mirrors!

Speaking of sunburst mirrors...there has been a lot of talk around the blogosphere lately about what is trendy and if sunburst mirrors are still "in". They've been around since Louis XIV for cryin' out loud people!!! He was known as 'the sun king', did you know that? Anyhoo, I think that eliminates categorizing sunburst mirrors as "trendy" don't you?!

Moving along...

The master bathroom is one of my very favorite parts of this home. We washed the whole space in delectable Cararra marble. The vintage style freestanding tub and it's cashmere finish made me stop what I was doing the day that it was installed and do a little happy dance to the interior design Gods :-) It is so beautiful!
We carried more of the rich wood into the bath on a linen cabinet instead of having a basic, builder grade built-in put in. It is the perfect warm contrast to all of the monochromatic marble.
The cabinet below has closed storage for items that aren't display worthy.

We used mercury glass knobs on the vanities.

Keep an eye out for more posts to come showing you more of this gorgeous home.

I hope you're having a great week!

My Nursery Journal: Part II

2011-08-02T20:29:00.005-05:00

Well, we've finally completed a little more work for little missy's room. If you missed it, check out Part I here. My husband and I had this past weekend free, which are few and far between these days, and so we decided to work on a few DIYs for our girl.
The photo above shows our handiwork :-) This is actually wallpaper but it is textured and paintable and really resembles true beadboard. Real beadboard was not in the budget, so I found this product and we gave it a shot. We hung the paper ourselves to save on installation fees. I do not recommend doing this with your significant other if... a) you are 8 1/2 months pregnant, ahem b) don't handle stress very well c) don't have a strong marriage.

Nah, I'm just kidding, it was only bad for a very short time, lol...

*exacto-ing the edges to line up the strips

Because the paper is foamy, it painted really easily, which made the hubs happy. We painted the ceiling the prettiest blue-green color that I pulled from my main fabric. It reminds me of a haint blue porch ceiling on an old colonial home.

You know...it's been said that people used to paint the porch ceilings shades of blue because it fooled bugs and birds into thinking it was the sky so that they wouldn't set up home there...hmmm.

I couldn't be happier with the result. It made the boring, smooth sheetrock ceiling much more interesting.

We also hung the chandelier once the ceiling was done.

I found the cutest antique Italian tole chandelier in a local antique store. It had been painted numerous shades over the years but had ended up all white, which I actually quite liked. I decided to spray paint the stems of the bouquet in gold (I'm accenting with lots of gold in the room) and leave the flowers, leaves, and tie all the old white. I love how it turned out!

Isn't it sweet?!

I love where the paint is getting chippy and the rust of time is showing through. I think that is so charming!

So, I'm feeling like the room is moving right along, which is good since our girl will be here before we know it! We'll be installing drapes and blinds next, eeek!

Project Sneak Peek

2011-07-29T12:56:00.003-05:00

Ok, I've given you various sneak peeks into this amazing project, but there are so many exciting and beautiful things going on that I just can wait to share them.

This week the custom railing that I designed went in and the gorgeous, stunning, amazing new windows were installed in the solarium!!! Aren't they beautiful?! We replaced very dated, floor to ceiling solid sheets of glass, that had been added to this 1920's home sometime around the 70's.

Lot's more to come from this historic beauty soon.

Have a great weekend!

Blake's Bath

2011-07-25T19:59:00.004-05:00

Blake is a pretty cool cat! In fact, he's one of the coolest kiddos I know! Soo, naturally, we had to design a super cool bedroom and bath for this super cool kid :-)

Blake loves baseball and so we took his bath on a little vintage baseball spin.

I, of course, love the vintage tiles, but that paired with the metal and wood ballpark signs of yesteryear and I do believe we have a winning combo!

The wooden Boys' Locker Room sign is pretty cute, huh?!

Bin pulls, pinwheels and a gooseneck faucet all complete the look.

The honed carrara bianco slab is absolutely perfect! We used a traditional subway tile in the shower, but created a favorite graphic of mine by pairing it with gray grout. The graphic is continued in the horizontal stripes of the shower curtain fabric.

The awesome sconces that we fell in love with! These are one of my favorite specifications for this bath.

Blake's bedroom will make an appearance a little later, as it still has some finishing touches that need to be done.

It is fantastic and ALL boy!
I hope you're having a great start to the week :-)

Elegant in Austin

2011-07-19T19:40:00.004-05:00

My Austin baby is finally coming to a close. After many, many months of planning and planning...and yes, blood, sweat and tears...this home has come together beautifully!

This darling client and I have designed 3 homes together and over the years, have developed a very close friendship. Her family is delightful and we always have tons of fun together. I truly cherish client relationships that develop into friendships and it makes me love what I do even more.

Together, she and I built this home from the ground up and there are so many wonderful things that I am dying to show off... I can't possibly fit them into one post.

Let's start with the dining room.
Many of the beautiful things in this space are pieces that we have been gathering over different homes. It is a true testament to what I always tell my clients and that is "If you buy what you love you will always have a place for it". In fact, the drapes are from her very first home and have continued to work in every home since. Aren't they gorgeous?! The fabric has since been discontinued. Such a pity when they do that to such fabulous things.

The fun architectural element to this space is the slurried stone wall that showcases the art. It is Austin stone with mortar slurried over it- stunning. These photos don't really do it justice. The bronze windows are another favorite specification from this space.

Did you know that I am obsessed with nailheads? My client is too. When we are planning together we have to be careful not to make EVERYTHING with nailheads and tufting :-)

This simple table arrangement works so well with the simple elegance of the home.

Ah, tufting, see, we love it!

I would like to say a very special thank you to the Campbell's for trusting me implicitly with your most personal space and always being a joy to work with. I adore you guys!

Stay tuned for more to come from this Austin beauty.

I hope you're having a great start to the week!

What I'm Loving...

2011-07-13T15:42:00.002-05:00

This amazing duvet from Anthropologie! This is gorgeous on the bed but how cool would it be to hang on the wall behind the bed like a huge tapestry?! Love.

Project Sneak Peek

2011-07-11T18:51:00.011-05:00

If you haven't noticed, I LOVE vintage design!!!

This project is actually the best of two worlds, it is brand new construction (by an outstanding home builder, Shelly Home Company, that I've been working with on several custom projects) but it looks like an old home. I love that! All of the modern conveniences, with everything new and working well, but with the image that it has been there for years and years. For the kitchen above, I specified honed cararra countertops and simple but classic beveled subway tiles.

This house is so charming. The architecture of this home is done in the Arts & Crafts style...but NOT in a kitschy, too many Tiffany light fixtures and Stickley knock-offs sort of way. The bright, airy colors give the craftsman style a fresh look that isn't generally characteristic of the aesthetic.

The above detail is an inset v-groove ceiling in the entry with one of my favorite bell jars.

Utility below. I love vintage schoolhouse pendants. I think I use a version of one in almost every project!

This is the son's bath. I love the vintage pinwheel tile! You will see versions of this pop up from time to time in my projects as well. In fact, I used it in another boys bath in my Austin project (I just got final photos of that project and I'll be showing it to you soon).

Don't you just love the cool doors that we selected?!

I used a gray limestone for the son's countertop. It is masculine and sleek and we love it!

This is the daughter's bath (below) and is one of my favorites! The Calacatta slab that we selected for her makes me want to hang out in here and pet the countertops :-) Isn't it a gorgeous piece with that beautiful vein running through it?!!

For the master bath, we opted for more gorgeous slabs of cararra and a vintage octagon and dot floor (another personal favorite!).

The watercloset.

We are loving how my fireplace design turned out. This fireplace drawing is a little glimpse into the technical side of my job. This is part of the CAD drawings that I provide for the cabinet maker.

Didn't he do a beautiful job realizing our vision?!
More gorgeous cararra on the surround.

We'll be installing furniture, drapes, etc. soon...
I hope you're having a great start to the week!

Happy Belated 4th!

2011-07-05T15:55:00.007-05:00

...and happy belated birthday to me :-) I totally took the day off yesterday for my birthday...oh yeah, and that other holiday that everyone else celebrates ;-) We seriously had the most relaxing weekend around here. I layed around in my jammers until about 4:00 in the afternoon, which was awesome! I played a marathon session of Angry Birds and watched movies. I listened to birthday phone messages and looked at facebook and felt loved by all the well wishers on my birthday. It was perfect. I know that our days like this are numbered and it makes them so much more precious! I'm aware that they will soon be precious in a completely different way :-)
Work has been so crazy lately that a weekend like we had was exactly what I needed. We had a maternity photo session with one of my insanely talented friends. You have to check her out, pure talent! If you are looking for a good photographer, she's your gal. Check out her amazingly complimentary and completely undeserving blog post about us here. I heart her!

I baked, which is relaxing to me. Our favorite, Georgia Peach Pie!

We made fresh bruschetta from the tomatoes and basil we've been growing in our backyard, delish!

We grilled hot dogs and made them "gourmet"...which basically just means we added a bunch of stuff to them and I like to steam the buns.

These are Frank's franks below ;-) I prefer mine "Dallas Dog" style (I stole that from Wild About Harry's), which is my favorite place to go for hot dogs.

We played frisbee with Blackjack (our guppy). It's completely ridiculous that we call him that but it's his nickname and that's what he comes to. It was a great weekend. I hope your holiday weekend was relaxing as well.
These next couple of months are going to be crazeee, as I wrap up projects (I can't wait to show you all the fun things I've been working on this past year) and prepare to take some time off to be with my girl.

I hope you're having a great start to a short week :-)

Bree's Room

2011-06-30T14:08:00.000-05:00

Hello my lovely readers. Today I bring you a sweet, simple and sophisticated little girls room I recently completed. This little girl is just darling and her mama wanted something for her that wasn't super little girly and a little different.
By the way, this little girl reads a chocolate baking cookbook for her bedtime story! How cute is that?! We definitely needed something special for this smart little cookie :-)
I chose a palette of purples and grays. Purple is her favorite color and was an easy sell.
The Thomas Paul bird print was the first fabric I found and we fell in love with it. It drove the whole space. We wanted to keep the space design minimal as, just like any little girls room, there would be tons of things in the space that were her personal items (books, dolls, toys, etc), and we didn't want the space to feel cluttered once all of her things were in the room.

The details...

I think it turned out very simple and sweet.I hope you're having a great week!

A Couple of Sneak Peeks

2011-06-27T13:36:00.002-05:00

Here are a few progress shots of current projects that I am working on. Cabinets went in last week in my 20's restoration. This is the master closet. Yeah, you read that right, the closet! It's absolutely fabulous!

Same project here. French herringbone floors were installed in the dining room. More fabulous!

My Austin project is in the final stretch, almost ready for final pics :-) Dining room below.

I hope you're having a great start to the week!

Remodelaholic Features M. E. Beck Design

2011-06-22T12:06:00.005-05:00

I am beyond flattered to have one of my recently completed projects featured on Remodelaholic today. This fantastic website is chock full of great design inspiration, fun before & after features and great design tips. I am honored to be featured on such a great site. I hope you'll swing by and check out my feature :-)
I hope you're having a great week!!!

My Nursery Journal: Part I

2011-06-14T10:45:00.006-05:00

Up until now, I have made zero commitments to the nursery. I've been so busy with work that I just hadn't focused on it yet. I've also had no direction, which obviously makes it tough to move forward when you have no direction. I am 27 weeks and I haven't done a thing!!! Yikes!

But alas, I have finally found my direction. I came across the above fabric, while I was pulling fabrics for a client, and I fell in love. It is setting my palette. There will be NO theme. I do not like themes.

It's funny how many people ask me about the nursery. I can only assume it is because it is what I do for a living. People usually ask about the nursery before they even know what I am having or what her name is...seriously.

So I haven't appropriated the fabrics yet, I just know that I am using them, and I have a good idea where they are going. These are just two of the fabrics. I'm pretty sure the graphic below will be on the drapes, but we'll see.

I've decided on a crib and I've bought some prints on Etsy, so I guess my little client might actually have a decorated room after all ;-) I'll be sending the fabrics out to my workroom this week, so hopefully I'll have more to show you in Part II. Check back soon.

In the meantime, I'm so enjoying being pregnant! I love feeling her move around inside of me and I feel so close to her already. I can hardly wait to meet her and see what her little personality will be like, and if she'll look like me or Frank...or both. Pregnancy is truly a miracle and I am feeling very blessed these days.
I hope you're having a great week!

What I'm Loving...

2011-06-08T19:37:00.005-05:00

Our powder bath door
I'm loving my new dark doors.
I've talked about this subject here before. It is something that I frequently tell my clients to do to their doors to help with the 'builder-basic' plague.
I wanted black doors, a la Thomas O'Brien, for my home and had my husband promptly paint ALL of the downstairs doors black. We set up a "paint room" in the garage that somewhat resembled a Dexter 'kill room'. My sweet husband painted all of those doors black and had them all ready to install in the house. Meanwhile, I was checking in on my Austin project, which I specified a dark door color for, and the minute I saw the color I picked for her doors I wanted it too and immediately thought "I have to change the color, like now, and Frank is going to kill me...and he's already got a kill room set up!". Soo, I got home that evening and politely told him that I wanted to change the color, which was followed by a laugh from him, because that is the sort of thing you would joke about after someone has been painting for 3 days! I then received a blank stare for what felt like a full minute and a loud sigh. I'm pregnant, so I get a lot of sympathy these days. Well, the doors are no longer black, they are a beautiful deep browny-black color and I loooove them! Thanks babe! ;-)

The door to our pantry

Our bathroom off of the sink area
What do you think? Do you love them as much as I do?
Speaking of our bathroom...I realize I keep promising those who are asking to show more of my own home and never do :-/. Designers are so much more critical of their own spaces, and they also are rarely "complete". Here are some details of our bath. I had to clean it up to show you the doors so I thought I would throw these in :-)

I will be posting 'my nursery journal' soon. I'm the worst. I haven't committed to a single thing for the nursery yet!...and I'm 6 1/2 months! I've ordered several swatches of fabric that hopefully will inspire me. The thing about being a designer is...your own home usually gets pushed back behind client's. I'm beginning the process though, and will document it here...if you are interested :-)

Happy 'What I'm Loving' Wednesday!

Project Sneak Peek

2011-05-31T11:30:00.002-05:00

Last week I began installing one of my Austin projects. There is much work to be done, like a motorized painting is going over that flat screen tv above the mantle, no art has been hung etc. etc. etc....but it is well on it's way. This project has been one of my babies for the past year and I can't wait to show you the finished product!

A very sincere thank you to all of my wonderful readers that sent such sweet messages and emails regarding the last post about 'mean girls'. I obviously touched on a subject that has pulled on many a heart string. You guys were so encouraging and supportive. It was so warming to read your thoughts and advice about what has been on your hearts at one time or another. Blogging is often one-sided and I so enjoyed a peek into your worlds!

I hope you're having a great start to the week!

Mean Girls

2011-05-23T16:07:00.004-05:00

Ok, you're gonna get personal, hormonal, prego, lady today. If you're not feelin' it, no hard feelings, come back again soon for the usual design bliss.

Mean Girls was on TV the other night. Have you seen it? It's awful but hysterical and so true, unfortunately. It's Saturday Night Live peeps and pretty crude, just a warning if you haven't seen it. Anyway, I've always loved this movie, I'll admit it, I think it's funny. However, the other night it made me really sad. I started thinking about this sweet, innocent baby girl inside of me and how someday girls will be mean to her and there is nothing that I can do about it. It happens to everyone at some point, including myself. I have awful memories of the crummy things that girls do to each other and how, at that youthful time, they have no idea that they are breaking someone's spirit. All I can do is do the very best that I can at teaching my little girl to not be one of those mean girls. That began the downward spiral of thinking of all of the heartaches she will have in her life, guaranteed. She will have hurt and disappointments and her heart will be broken by some boy and I have NO control over it!! This world can be so mean and I cried for my little girl. All of you moms out there are probably shaking your heads and thinking "wow, her hormones are definitely taking over" but you're probably also relating a little bit. If you're not, lie to me, and say that you are so that I don't feel so silly. Anyway, just thought that I would share.

Isn't her profile so sweet?! Goodness, I can't wait to meet that little angel.

If you're still here, thanks, and I'll be back soon with the usual...

Tall, Dark & Handsome

2011-05-16T18:47:00.006-05:00

I was perusing 1stDibs, looking for a unique bookcase for a client, and stumbled across this jawdropper! I am in love...the price tag, hmmm...not so much! I've always had an affinity for furniture with a Neoclassical flair. I also adore black and gold together, which is very characteristic of Neoclassical pieces, in fact, many things in my own home sport this color combo.
Well, it is fun to just look and pretend I could afford this anyway...
Isn't she beautiful! I would fill her with my antique leather bound books I collect and my milk glass candy dishes.

My personal budget version...

I found this piece at Nieman's Last Call, on clearance, tucked away in the corner, several years ago.

I couldn't believe the price and that it was still there for the low price that it was marked. I stood in front of it, guarding it like a freak, afraid that someone would buy it before I could (which is absurd), until I could get the hubs on the phone for the purchase agreement. This is the delirium that comes with this profession and spotting a killer deal, just FYI.
I love it and it makes me happy. Out of the furniture that we own, it is our favorite.
I hope you are having a great start to the week!

Fabulous Fêtes

2011-05-10T15:01:00.008-05:00

My girlfriend Allison introduced me to the most wonderful party idea site. It is called Kara's Party Ideas and is pure inspiration! *disclaimer - don't even go to the site unless you have a good hour to kill, because you won't be able to look away*
I spent quite a bit of time perusing each inspirational photo after another on Friday night. The site also has a side bar with links to any party theme imaginable!
These images are just a sampling of what you will find there. I was especially drawn to this decor because of all the hobnail milkglass, which I have a special place in my heart for.

Sooo cute!!!

It seriously makes me want to start planning a bunch of parties just so I can design all of the details :-)

I hope you're having a great start to the week!

Sneak Peek

2011-05-06T19:10:00.003-05:00

Ok, I need a moment of silence for some amazing things that installed in one of my projects today.
We have been anxiously awaiting the installation of our beautiful specifications. I don't want to show you too much, because this project is so phenomenal and I want the final reveals to be a surprise but... I just can't stand it...

The tub went in. It makes my heart go pitty pat!!!

There are no words. The axis deer carpet for the media room is installed and...just wow!

Do you enjoy seeing a work in progress? If you do, be sure to check out the Facebook business page, as I have a photo album dedicated to 'client progress photos'.

Have a fabulous weekend and shower yo' mamas with love!

*sorry for the small photo files...camera phone snaps :-/ Big, pretty photos for final reveal, promise.

Before & After - Arabesque Love

2011-04-30T20:26:00.013-05:00

This is my most recent kitchen remodel project. I collaborated with Dwell Construction as my contractor and the results are stunning, in my humble opinion. We replaced everything except the floor tile!
This is what the space looked like when the home was purchased. Clearly very dated, in not only the decor, but the scale of the cabinet uppers and the finish out materials.

This home was built in the late 90's and the finish out materials are clearly indicative of that...including shiny brass, ugh! We ripped those dated cabinets out of there and put in not only beautiful cabinets but much more functional ones as well. The real beauty of designing your own cabinets is planning for exactly what you need and a place for everything.
Here is what she looks like today...
Big difference, huh?! :-)
I took the cabinets all the way to the ceiling to really take advantage of every inch of storage space possible. This, aesthetically, just looks beautiful too. It draws your eye up and takes advantage of the ceiling height. The cabinets have lots of new organizational features that the original cabinets didn't offer. Some of the features include, a pop-up mechanism for the client's KitchenAid stand mixer in the far right base cabinet, pullouts behind the doors for ease of reach and finding items and the skinny cabinets on either side of the new Viking cooktop are pull-out spice cabinets, among other many other things.
Here is another view of how the kitchen looked before...
We also increased the island size in our renovation. This special client has a big family and entertains frequently. The larger island size is obviously an advantage for her yummy spreads and buffet style dinners.

Closeup of the new island.

The arabesque backsplash tiles from Mission Stone and Tile are probably one of my favorite specifications for the kitchen. Check out their site, my in-kitchen herb garden is their highlight photo :-) They were a pretty penny but we didn't need very much square footage and I think they add loads of character. I have yet to tire of the classic and traditional subway tile, but it is fun to throw in a different shape to mix things up every now and then. Notice the new pot filler behind the cooktop as well. Pot fillers are a nice luxury if you have the opportunity to put one in.
The new Viking cooktop :-)

Pot filler close up. So convenient!

New Viking double ovens :-)

A little in-kitchen herb garden.

In this image you can see our new bell jar lantern pendants...love. All the way to the left in this image, under the microwave, behind those doors, is a convenient little coffee bar.

The new space is bright, airy and most importantly functional.

A big thank you to Adam Luczycki of Dwell Construction (formerly known as Blank Canvas Const.) for taking our specifications and making the vision come to life. It is beautiful!

I hope you've enjoyed a peek into my most recent project completion and I hope you are having a great start to the week!

What I'm Loving...

2011-04-26T20:51:00.003-05:00

Inset arched wood doors, wood muntins, cremone locks, all white and clear glass dishes...what's not to love?!

Sneak Peek

2011-04-26T11:17:00.001-05:00

Here's a little sneak peek of the kitchen I've completed recently that I'll be showing later this week. :-)

As of lately...

2011-04-25T18:32:00.008-05:00

Austin - Butler's pantry - yummy calcutta!
My poor little, neglected baby blog....and my neglected readers :-( If you're still here, thanks for sticking around. As I've mentioned recently, I am busy! This, unfortunately, means the blog usually goes to the back burner, it's just the way it goes. So I thought I would show you what I've been up to in photos. If you are a fan of the facebook page you've likely seen most of these client progress photos.

Austin - Kitchen island - calcutta so yummy I could lick it!

Austin - Main kitchen - gorgeous beveled subway tiled backsplash

Austin - Main kitchen - the perimeter marble is ah-mazing!

Austin - mudroom cubbies & checkerboard floor is in, yay :-)

Lights going in

Entry lantern - all wood yet to be stained.

Son's bath - so perfect!

Son's bath hardware and bianco cararra countertops

Gorgeous things going into the master bath.

Master bath floor and wall hug

Master shower ceiling

Master shower - all yet to be grouted

Powder bath - more calcutta and stunning brass - love.

Powder bath light fixtures and mirror going in.

Switch projects :: Master bath final cabinets approved.

Same project - one wall of adjoining closet that I am so proud of. This space is going to be stunning!

Same project - Master suite terrace stone going in and looking perfect!
These are just a couple of the amazing projects and clients I am working with right now.

We spent our Easter out at the ranch and got some much needed R&R. The drive to the ranch is through the hill country and is nothing short of beautiful. This is the only picture I took the whole weekend :-/ Hopefully my sister-in-law will hook me up with her camera snaps. I hope that you had a blessed Easter.

He is risen!

I'll be back soon with another kitchen remodel that's getting her jewelry (aka hardware) in a couple of days and then she'll be ready to photograph.

I hope you're having a great start to the week!

Weekend Recap

2011-04-11T15:37:00.005-05:00

I've been busy. Really busy. Two of my sisters decided to come from Dallas to visit this weekend and it was exactly what I needed! A little R&R with my best friends (aka my sissies). Fiesta is going on right now in San Antonio, so there was no shortage of things to do. We went to Oyster Bake on Saturday. Oyster Bake is like the state fair without the rides and games. There's live music and tons of fair food. We ate our way through the booths - chicken on a stick, fried cheesecake, funnel cake, fried oreos, fried twinkies, chalupas...you get the idea. Yum! This baby inside of me was probably wondering what the heck was going on, it's ok, I don't eat like that all the time...one day is ok right?

We headed over to Gruene on Sunday for Gospel Brunch at the famous Gruene Hall. I've talked about how much I love Gruene here before. It is such a charming town!

If you live in Texas and you've never been to a Gospel Brunch I highly recommend it. You get a yummy southern style brunch - biscuits & gravy, ribs, mashed potatoes, etc. and an old school gospel band sings their hearts out. It's a pretty cool way to worship.

They ended the brunch on this...

We left there in smiles and milled around Gruene for a while.

I stopped into this antique shop. I always keep tabs on their milk glass pieces.

We strolled over to the general store and had ice cream from the old style soda fountain bar.

It was a perfect, relaxing weekend. Just what I needed! Thank you sissies for coming to see me, muah! I hope you had a delightful weekend as well. Now back to the grind...

With Silver Bells and Cockelshells?

2011-04-04T17:19:00.008-05:00

Or pretty maids all in a row? I love to garden. I don't do it enough. I think this is something that I learned about myself when we moved into our first home. I didn't know how much I liked to garden. I planted 50 tulip bulbs in our front flower bed and obsessively checked and photographed their progress. I then realized, hey, I like planting things and watching them grow :-) In our new home, in San Antonio, we inherited these beautiful rose bushes. After a lesson from my Mama on how to trim and care for them, I was certain that I killed them! I had cut them back to sticks and just knew that we were going to have to dig them up and plant new ones this spring. Well, clearly Mama knew what she was talking about and they came back and more beautiful than ever. My husband and I are constantly commenting on how big the roses are getting...we're kind of nerdy about the yard like that. They are so beautiful and fragrant and I just love them! We've always kept a little herb garden. This year I am growing flat leaf parsley, cilantro, rosemary and sweet basil. Last year my basil plants were as tall as my shoulders and I pulled from them every week! It is one of my favorite herbs!

This year my husband and I have embarked on gardening vegetables. I'm not sure how this is going to turn out but so far so good. Below are our tomato plants that are doing awesome! Truthfully, we would need to plant tomato plants in our whole backyard to accommodate for how many tomatoes we eat in this household. We love 'em!

We've also planted carrots, onions, and poblano peppers.

I can't wait to see how we come out of this deal.

Speaking of gardens...

All of you Nancy Meyers enthusiasts out there...Do you obsess over the garden in It's Complicated? I do.

Sigh...maybe someday, but for now we'll see how we do with our little 4'x4' garden.

Do you enjoy gardening? What do you grow?

"Like" it!

2011-04-04T16:19:00.003-05:00

Be sure to "Like" M. E. Beck Design Inc. on Facebook and get blog post updates right in your news feed. The Facebook business page is also periodically updated with client progress photos, fun quotes and sales info on fun finds. Go here to "Like".

My Latest Project

2011-03-28T17:39:00.005-05:00

I've got lots going on these days, but this project has by far taken precedence! Actually, I'm not even the lead designer on this project!

This new client has, well, completely taken over.

Frank and I are so very excited to begin this new chapter in our lives. This photo is an old one, our very first photo actually. I am 16 weeks now :-) Only 4 more to go to find out if our little blessing is going to be a son or a daughter!

Our world is about to change in more ways than we can even fathom right now. We are feeling very blessed, excited, happy, scared...you name it!

Since God's design is the only perfect one, we are excited to be a part of this project and look forward to watching it come together :-)

If you think of us, say a little prayer, we would be so grateful!

Living Room Before & After

2011-03-15T10:39:00.011-05:00

Hello my lovely readers! As promised last week, I bring you another recent living room project that I've been working on.

This home already had some groundwork laid in the form of beautiful, some antique, pieces of furniture inherited from their grandmother. Most of what we did for their transformation was update the upholstery on many of the pieces that were inherited and this, naturally, made the biggest impact in the space.
In this image below, you can see how the room looked before I was brought in. Lots of gorgeous furniture and upholstery frames in mismatched fabrics. You might remember the sofa from my sneak peek a couple of weeks ago.

In the image below you can see our updates.

We reupholstered all of the pieces in the room with bright, fresh fabrics. We added drapes to, not only, soften the hard lines of the plantation shutters, but bring a little color on to the walls. The drapes are Vintage Plumes in Birch from the DwellStudio collection for Robert Allen. The fabric is stunning!
The clients have this beautiful custom seagrass rug in the space and I wanted to soften and break up the expanse of it, which I did with a white cowhide. It is super soft under bare feet.
In this image, you can see another angle of the room.
Those little slipper chairs were so cute, they just needed a little face lift. We reupholstered those in another DwellStudio for Robert Allen fabric, Dotted Trellis in Dove.
Here is the sofa that you might remember from last week's sneak peek. The frame of the sofa is absolutely timeless, the fabric however, not so much. The sofa is by Century or Henredon, I can't remember which.

We reupholstered it in a fabulous textured fabric from Threads by Lee Jofa. I had the throw pillows done in a soft, snow leopard chenille by Waverly and a plush, high performance velvet by Robert Allen. We also had the sofa treated with a stain protectant to help maintain that beautiful white color with her little guy running around :-)

Here is a closeup of the nailhead detail on the arm. I love this detail and how the nailheads are horizontal instead of vertical, it's unique.

The sweet, little bergere chairs by the fireplace got a little update as well.

We reupholstered those in the same plush snow leopard chenille that is on the sofa pillows. It is really, really soft.

This classic lyre back desk chair received some new duds as well. Boteh Camel, also DwellStudio for Robert Allen :-)...We really liked that new collection!

Here is another detail of the great texture on the sofa, my favorite, nailheads, and the fabulous colors in the new drapery panels.

Our new fabrics gave their inherited furniture a whole new life in a happy and fresh new space.

A very sincere thank you to the Himoffs for trusting me with your home.

Your living room is beautiful!

My Art & A Fun Space

2011-03-10T18:46:00.009-06:00

I am not a big do-it-yourselfer when it comes to work projects, around my own house yes, but not for work. This isn't because I don't feel like I can do it, I just really appreciate the quality of work from people who have perfected their craft and that is what I like to provide for my clients. This little space, however, belongs to a family member, my sister to be exact, and well, you know family gets special treatment ;-)

My sister is a hair stylist and has her own space inside of a large spa/ salon building. Because this is a leased space, we were very limited with what we could do with it and also how much she wanted to spend on it. We needed to do 2 rooms for under $500, yikes! So, that budget equals quite a bit of DIY!

My sister is young and hip and I really wanted the colors and vibe of her space to reflect that. I opted for a fresh and vibrant color scheme with trendy patterns and fabrics. The space, again, is a leased space so we weren't looking for longevity. The new design feels very Tory Burch.

I upholstered the wall, behind where she stands, in a cool, acid green greek key graphic. I then made a center panel out of orange faux leather and piped it in midnight blue grosgrain ribbon. The orange faux leather has the texture of a handbag and gives you the idea of Hermes.
I then centered a Hollywood Regency style sunburst mirror in the center. When you are in the space, this mirror and the mirror that the clients are sitting in front of are parallel to each other and produce that interesting eternity effect.
We painted the walls an intriguing high gloss midnight blue. They are sleek, inky and very now. I accented with gold touches throughout the space. The gold on the deep blue is timeless.
I painted the sides of the custom art gold.

So, that brings me to the art. I don't know why but I was inspired by this Duralee bag that is sitting in my sample closet and I thought "that would look awesome on that wall that I don't know what to do with!". Something about the colors just made me think this would be fun. With our budget, a new piece of art would have been hard to find, not impossible, but hard. I decided to just paint a canvas. I really love to paint and wish that I had time to do it more often. It is cathartic for me. My husband knows this and has always encouraged me to create more art. One Christmas he bought me all of these wonderful art supplies...paints, pastels, canvases, a wooden easel.

Using the Duralee octopus as sort of a guideline, I free-handed my interpretation on the canvas in pencil.

See all those paints below, that was part of my Christmas gift. It makes me happy.

I painted over my sketch with an inky midnight blue acrylic that looks blue in some light and black in others.

I think that it works great with the space and my sister likes that I made something for her :-) She is always asking me to paint something for her.

The panel on the back wall was a little DIY too.

I, first, drew out the pattern in AutoCAD to get the dimesions and scale accurate.

I glued the grosgrain ribbon to the faux leather.

I mitered the corners of the ribbon to get an exact 90 degree angle on the pattern and to make it look more custom.

Ta-da!

I think the space turned out fun, updated and fresh...and most importantly, we made it work with our budget.

I'll be back next week with another fun living room project.

Have a great weekend!

Living Room Before & After

2011-03-09T11:24:00.017-06:00

I recently gave you a little sneak peek of this project and am now ready to show you the living portion of it. As you can see in the before image above, the space was basically a blank canvas. My clients didn't know where to start in the space and in turn the space became a resting place for unmatched furniture and no commitments on the walls. Here is the space today after I got my hands on it...

Not only was the furniture mismatched before, the scale was wrong for the height of the room. We placed a large distressed cabinet on the largest wall to fill in the huge void that was there before. Not only is it proportional to the space, it also provides storage for books and family photos. I flanked the sides of the cabinet with vintage garden prints that I found at a gallery in Manhattan and had custom framed. The historic green is echoed in the silk sofa pillows.
In the before image, you can see another angle and a little more of the space.
We added plenty of seating, that is not only proportional to the space but really comfortable as well. My clients actually sit in this room now. You catch a glimpse of the dining room in the below image. We did that space along with the living but the lanterns over the dining table weren't hung yet and there were a few final touches yet to be installed.

We used an inexpensive seagrass underfoot and layered it with a zebra pattern dyed cow hide. This creates interest and a bold graphic for the room...plus, the hide is super soft under bare feet. This is one of my favorite flooring treatments.

In the before image below, you can see how grand the scale of the room is. The ceilings are really tall and so is the window. This calls for custom drapery treatments to achieve the appropriate height.

I took the drapery panels almost to the ceiling which is dramatic and softens the hard lines of the wall and the plantation shutters.

Another image of the comfy new chairs and the vintage garden prints in the background.

...and a few images for you looky-loos that like the details like I do.
A detail of the cremone lock on the distressed cabinet. Love.

Nailheads and tufting. Love, love.

I simply adore these mercury glass mushrooms I placed under a cloche. I've previously talked about using mercury glass here.

The accessories on the cocktail table. I found this sweet little shadow box and filled it with faux mossy rocks and some shells from one of the family's beach vacations.

I hope you've enjoyed a peek into my client's home and one of my projects.

A very big thank you to the Jacksons. You are lovely, gracious and a joy to work with. I can't wait to work on the next space we've got lined up :-)

Happy Hump-Day!

Sofa Makeover

2011-03-01T09:39:00.003-06:00

Today I've got a little sneak peek into a small project I've been working on.

This is a gorgeous sofa that was upholstered in some not-so-gorgeous fabric. This sofa is part of a dining room and living room makeover.

Look at how beautiful she is now! I upholstered her in a wonderfully textured fabric from Threads by Lee Jofa.

Please pardon the camera phone snaps...I'll use my good camera for the final before & after :-)
I hope you are having a great start to the week!

A Blank Canvas

2011-02-24T14:27:00.002-06:00

Literally!

A simple treatment for art above the mantle, yet so interesting. Love.

Room by Suzanne Kasler

Before & After

2011-02-16T19:05:00.015-06:00

BEFORE

This is a lovely master bath remodel, in a bungalow from the 20s, that I have recently completed. There were several elements about the space that we liked and wanted to keep, so it was not a complete overhaul, but rather a 1/2 remodel. There were several problems with the space that the clients wanted a better solution for.

One of the main problems was that there was no natural light in the space. This made the entire bathroom, especially the back wall where the bath tub is, dark. The clients were also unhappy with the finish out from the previous owners. The floors were pine and the tile was a very dark, heavy gauge slate. These, among many other things, were a couple of the changes that we made.

This is what the space looks like now...
One of the most important elements that was added to the space was a window above the bathtub. This one change dramatically affected the lighting in the space. The next major goal was changing out all of the dark slate. My clients wanted something lighter and more ethereal. I encouraged the clients to use tiles that were characteristic of the era of their home. When remodeling you should always respect the integrity of the home and that will ensure continuity.

BEFORE

In this before image you can see the vanity. We liked the cabinets, absolute black granite and fixtures and incorporated those into the new design. I wanted to break up the expanse of mirror that so many homes are plagued with. I designed a center cabinet for face towels and toiletries that also helps to define his and her areas. I then specified vintage inspired decorative mirrors over each sink. This simple change, in what is a common problem in most bathrooms, makes the vanity more dynamic and interesting to look at, than a wall of mirror.

detail of the mirror mount

SHOWER BEFORE

Our next challenge was to improve the shower situation. As you can see in the before photo above, the shower was covered in the dark slate and has a small door, which made the entire space feel very, in the words of my clients, "cave like".

We weren't able to completely open up the space and do a frame-less shower because of a structural support that runs right beside the door. So, I opened the wall up with a window instead. This helped tremendously with making the shower feel larger and more open. We, of course, replaced all of the dark, heavy slate with vintage subway tiles and a vintage octagon and dot mosaic on the floor. The black gloss dot in the floor complements the black granite. On the back wall of the shower, I designed a frame with a herringbone pattern, to break up the amount of running subway. Herringbone is one of my favorite tile details.

This image is looking back at the shower from the bath tub. A major difference!

For a little sparkle and drama, I added a chandelier, with black accents, over the bathtub.

I loved the warmth that the original stained doors brought to the space so we kept those as well.

This was a fun, little renovation and my clients were a joy to work with. I hope you enjoyed seeing this project as much as I did working on it.

Delicious

2011-02-15T16:00:00.002-06:00

Backsplash has been recently installed in one of my kitchen renovations.

It's just delicious...that's all.

Valentine

2011-02-14T12:22:00.006-06:00

Happy Valentines Day! A day when everything is drenched in pinks and reds, and maybe you're feeling a little sweeter. Here are some lovely spaces washed in the colors of love. Enjoy!

I hope that you feel loved and that you will make someone else feel loved today.

Project Sneak Peek

2011-02-09T20:43:00.004-06:00

On Tuesday of this week I installed a project that I've been working on. We are waiting on some back ordered light fixtures and a few accent pieces, so this is just a sneak peek. As soon as the room is complete I will show you the full makeover. Just to give you an idea, this is what we started with...

Before

Here is where we are now :-) The space is coming together beautifully. I can't wait to show you the full reveal...and with something better than camera phone pics :-/

I hope you're having a great week!

What I'm Loving...

2011-02-09T12:43:00.009-06:00

Mercury glass accessories in bookshelves

I'm loving all of the mercury glass that is popping up on the market everywhere! I have always had a love for mercury glass. I have several of these antique mercury glass apothecary jars in my home.
I just love the patina that the mercury creates on the glass.

I just used these mushrooms on an installation on Tuesday in Dallas. How cute are these?!
I'm using these pendants in my Austin project over the kitchen bar.

I'm also using these mercury glass knobs in the master bath of my Austin project. This bath is so wonderfully decked in Cararra, I cannot wait until it is installed.

You can find lots of fun mercury glass accessories at most retail vendors and by using them it is a great way to add a little vintage to your space. In my opinion, every space should have just a hint of patina somewhere.

Lovely votives in a great price point from West Elm.

Pottery Barn has this great mercury glass lamp with burlap shade, a perfect combo.

More great accessories from West Elm.

Another gorgeous lamp that lends a little more towards the glam side with the ribbed gourd shape and crystal base and finial. Love this!

Keep your eyes peeled for mercury glass, it is going to be very popular this year.

Stay tuned for a sneak peek at a project that I installed in Dallas on Tuesday.

Happy What I'm Loving Wednesday!

What I'm Loving...

2011-02-02T12:39:00.005-06:00

I am loving these gorgeous mosaics from Studium! Studi-YUM!!! Look at that chevron!

Just stunning!

Just look at those listellos! I love every one of them, I had such a hard time choosing which sheet to display.

I will definitely be looking to incorporate some of these in some of my future designs.
I hope you are staying warm with all of this freezing weather everywhere.
Happy What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Casually Elegant in Atlanta

2011-01-31T16:06:00.013-06:00

I am totally picking up what Traditional Home is laying down! I don't usually like to just take something directly from a magazine but this home is right up M. E. Beck Design's alley.
I am washing every project I'm working on right now in shades of grays and so this palette immediately caught my attention.

Good Lord, look at those arched iron casement doors! In my 20's renovation project, I've specified doors, not arched, but very similar to these beauties. When I look at this room and see all of those nailheads, I'm at peace.

How cool is that banquette?! I recently specified a banquette in a kitchen remodel in Dallas, which I have yet to get final photos, but when I do I'll show it to y'all.

Gorgeous kitchen, oh how I love thee, let me count the ways...let's see farmhouse sink, stone floors, v groove planked ceiling, thumb mold stepout counter edges, bridge faucet, lanterns, custom riveted vent hood, wolf...my my my kitchen, you are lovely.

It is always a wink of confirmation when you see elements that you have incorporated into your own designs in a magazine. I used that beautiful chandy in a project about a year ago and am using it again in a current living room design. It is a gorgeous mixture of aged iron and wood beads.

Notice the cremone style locks on the windows and that scalloped backsplash!

Do I really need to caption this one?

I love the browny gray and orange combo in the study.

This home was a collaboration between Linda MacArthur, AIA (architect) and Amy Bergman of A. Bergman & Co. LLC interior design.

Simple, casual, elegant and lovely!

Blog Botox

2011-01-28T18:06:00.004-06:00

The blog got a little botox :-) What do you think of her new look? Isn't she lovely?
We still need to work out a few kinks and past images overlap on the new background, which will take forever to fix, so I might just leave them :-/ But, I'm loving her new look :-)
Many thanks to the talented Jess Nell Graves of The Front Porch Studio and The Love List.

What I'm Loving...

2011-01-26T20:23:00.002-06:00

Could this utility room be any more perfect?!

I hope you're having a great week!

A Sweet Little Nursery

2011-01-24T18:47:00.010-06:00

BEFORE

This is a sweet little nursery that I completed recently. My clients wanted a gender neutral nursery, as they weren't finding out the sex of the baby, and so I developed this neutral color scheme of taupe, cream and blue. The fabric patterns aren't gender specific either and feminine or masculine touches could easily be added later. You can view what the room looked like before above...a blank canvas. This is what it looks like now.

My client wanted to keep the design very simple and spartan. She is well aware that the room will be filling up with toys etc. and wanted to keep the design calming, clean lined and classic. We added crown moulding and painted the room a rich gray.

In this fabric detail you can see our color palette. I used all cotton fabrics andhad the bumper pads made with zipper enclosures for easy washing.

I added this Woodland Pendant for a touch of youth and whimsy.

*for all of you mommies out there...this chair is just for looks, her glider/ rocker is just a short distance away in the family room so that she can see their spectacular hill country view...or the tv ;-)*

All of the art in the room is custom. For some of the prints, I found this great art shop in Singapore that creates these unique prints on old French book pages. We used retail ready made frames and mattes to cut down on the cost.

My client also wanted something very simple and light weight above the crib. We settled on letters and custom painted them a distressed gold.

The blue grosgrain ribbon was used in touches throughout the room.

Here is more custom art. I found a vendor on Etsy that sells these great vintage book cover prints. I found the frames ready made and had mattes cut for a custom touch.

The nursery turned out sweet, simple and clutter free. My clients are now home enjoying their space with their new baby girl. They were a joy to work with!

A Little Inspiration

2011-01-20T10:35:00.001-06:00

My Austin Baby

2011-01-13T14:57:00.004-06:00

I checked in on my Austin baby on Wednesday and it is looking fabulous! It is so fun to see all of my specifications coming to life and so beautifully. The above photo is going to be such a neat space. It is called the hearthroom and is right off the kitchen. My client really wanted a fireplace in the kitchen and so we incorporated the hearthroom into the overall home design.

Here is a view of the gorgeous back patio doors overlooking the pool. I love this style door and was so excited when my client was on board to divide the light in this way.

This is the family room and is also the view of those doors from the inside. Notice all the great beaming we incorporated into the family and the hearthroom. This house is going to be delectably drenched in calcutta and cararra when all is said and done as well...my favorite! She is going to be lovely!

Back In The Saddle

2011-01-11T20:00:00.006-06:00

I'm alive! I've left the blog hanging for so long that I hope that I still have some readers. I had the joy of beginning 2011 with a stomach bug, ugh! But, alas, I am back in the saddle and projects have resumed as normal after all of the holiday madness.

I just wrapped a sweet, gender neutral nursery today. I can't show you the whole nursery yet because the sex of the baby is unknown, and going to be a wonderful surprise, but in order to get my "after" pics I had to hang both name options on the wall, so I don't know which one it will be :-) There are so few surprises in life, I just love this! The nursery is sweet and will be perfect for a boy or a girl. This is my second gender surprise nursery this year, well last year, and I just love that people are doing this.

Stay tuned for full final photos. It's cute!

I've also almost completed one of my new year's resolutions, which was to organize my sample closet. My husband built me new shelves and painted them the most perfect peacock blue on new year's day...that is a record for a new year's resolution! I need to finish organizing the stuff that goes in them and install the light fixtures and then I will show you the before and after. I'm really embarrassed to show the before but I'll do it for the sake of design!

Here is a half done glimpse of the pretty peacock feather blue.

I've got lots on the calendar for 2011, so check in every so often to see some of my fun projects coming to life.

Farewell 2010

2010-12-31T15:03:00.002-06:00

Here's to a happy and healthy 2011!

Happy New Year!

What I'm Loving...

2010-12-22T14:41:00.003-06:00

I'm loving all the fun, sometimes cheeky, photographs, quotes and art over at Pinterest. So many of these images would be great art for transitional and contemporary spaces.

This would be great in a gilded frame over a vintage drink cart.

Don't we all need to be reminded of this?

I'm seeing a lot of these prints on old book pages lately. There were a ton at Marburger, and I'm also using a couple vintage illustrations on top of old book paper for a nursery I'm doing right now.

Sweet.

yep, me too :-)

I need to have this on my nightstand!

This made me giggle.

Check it out...there's much to browse through.

Happy Wednesday before Christmas, eeek!

What I've Been Up To...

2010-12-20T10:23:00.011-06:00

New construction - Master bath
Here are a few images of what I've been up to for the past few months. Every image represents a different project. About a handful of my clients aren't represented here because their project isn't far enough along. Some that are farther along, but nothing to show yet, just have a fabric sample image.

Family room and kitchen redecorate

A sweet little girls room

House from the 20's - redesign and remodel master bath

Family room - redecorate

Master bedroom - redecorate

Complete kitchen redesign and remodel

Formal living & dining - redecorate

Another house from 20's - master bath remodel

A sweet nursery - gender surprise :-)

Kitchen remodel and redecorate

House from 20's - complete home restoration and remodel - lots to show coming up with this one :-)

Another sweet nursery - gender surprise also :-)

Complete new construction in Austin - complete home design - there will be lots to show very soon on this one as well

Living and dining - redecorate
...And about a handful more that will be further along in the weeks and months to come.
I hope you have a great start to the short week :-)

What I'm Loving...

2010-12-15T17:46:00.005-06:00

I am pretty enamored with this line of chairs from a new L.A. based vendor I've just been introduced to.
This vanity stool just might have to come home to live with mama. Isn't she lovely?

The frame of this chair reminds me of the Greek classic, Klismos chair...and all those nailheads, stop it! Plus she's got a hot finish on those gams!

So, so happy when I see this :-)

Are you as tired of seeing the typical wingback as I am? This one has some fun lines but still feels like a wingback for the traditionalists out there.

Ok, you had me at tufting and nailheads! What's that you say? You want to live in my dining room?...Oh okaaay! Money, ahem, I mean Honey, can I have these for Christmas???

I hope you're having a great week!

Happy "What I'm Loving" Wednesday :-)

What I'm Loving...

2010-12-08T13:52:00.014-06:00

Our Christmas decorations, and everyone else's that are everywhere right now, for that matter...who doesn't?!
We are traditionalists around my house. We do a collected, sentimental tree. It is what I grew up with and something that I look forward to putting up all year. I've never been a fan of "decorator trees" personally. They are very beautiful, trust me, I've decorated my fair share of them in my profession, but I love the character and the stories that come from sentimental and collected ornaments. I even love colored lights. In fact, every year our tree usually has colored lights but I thought I would see how I liked all white this year. I think they are beautiful but I'm going back to colored lights next year for sure. Some might think that's 'throw back' or even kind of country, but it reminds me of the trees we had growing up and I love it! We also always do a real tree. This can be impractical and inconvenient in many households but I seriously love the smell. The whole house smells like pine. And, we always do a noble fir. I like the fluffy, waxy needles :-)
When my husband and I got married, we began a tradition of buying an ornament every place that we traveled to. This has been really fun, sometimes a pain, but fun, especially when we get to pull them all out and remember our adventures.

Here are some our my favorites...

This is just gorgeous. This gilded Florentine wood cross is a true reminder of why we have a flippin' tree in the middle of our house to begin with. It is very easy to get lost in the decorating of it all. This is a true reminder of the reason for the season. We bought this in a little shop, down a cobbled street in Florence, Italy.
This one isn't actually from travels...it's from Tarjay, but I love peacocks so I included it :-)

This one is so cute. I bought this in New York right after my husband and I got engaged.

Of course this is a favorite. Is anyone (who reads this blog) surprised to see the black and white striped ribbon? I had to wiggle that in there somewhere.

There is plenty of whimsy mixed in with all the serious too. We bought this moose on our trip to Alaska. If you pull the star his wings flap. Ah, simple joys.

I have a few versions of these little guys all throughout. I love little mushrooms...it goes back to youth and my Alice obsession.

...ending on a serious one. We bought this beautiful Murano blown glass nativity in Murano, Italy.

I also collect nutcrackers. These guys make me happy! Another childhood obsession, with the ballet of course.

How do you decorate for the holidays at your home?
Happy Wednesday!

What I'm Loving...

2010-12-01T14:21:00.006-06:00

This gorgeous cabinet that I am using in a stunning living and dining room design. The wood is a perfect weathered gray and the iron x fronts and cremone locks are classic details that make me drool. A couple more details of this project...

I will be finishing this one up soon. It is looking lovely!
Happy "What I'm Loving Wednesday" :-)

Thankful

2010-11-26T00:19:00.003-06:00

We all have so much to be thankful for. I hope that your day was filled with family and friends...and a yummy, over-indulgent dinner of course.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Cheesecake

2010-11-15T14:52:00.007-06:00

If you like pumpkin pie and cheesecake you are going to thank me for this one. It is like the two got together and had a love child! It's g-o-o-d!!!
I don't have a lot of down time these days, with my workload, but I've got to take a little to keep myself sane. During these times you can find me either watching some mindless reality TV show or cooking/ baking something. These are the times when I am truly relaxed. Sunday, it was overcast and cool and so I took a little time for myself and baked.
If you are interested in whipping this up yourself, which would be perfect for Thanksgiving, here is what you are going to need:
10 graham crackers - finely crushed
1/4 c. finely chopped pecans
1/4 c. melted butter
4 pkg. (8 oz. ea.) Philadelphia cream cheese, at room temperature
1 c. sugar
1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin
1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. vanilla
4 eggs
cool whip and ground nutmeg for serving
9" springform pan
Preheat the oven to 325 F. Mix the graham cracker crumbs, pecans and butter and press into the pan and about 1" up the side like below. Bake for about 7 mins, remove and cool. Beat the cream cheese and sugar with mixer until blended and fluffy. Add pumpkin, spice, and vanilla and mix well. Add the eggs, one at a time, with the mixer on medium.
Pour into cooled pan and bake for 1 hour and 20 mins, until the center is almost set. Turn the oven off and let it sit in the oven with the door open for about 20 mins, then move to a place to cool completely. Once it is cooled completely, move it to the fridge for at least 4 hours.

A little trick with cheesecake - put a water bath below during baking and this will keep the cake moist. Something I learned from the food network ;-)

After you remove it from the fridge, use a hot knife to run around the edges before you remove the springform sides.
It makes the prettiest variation of oranges and light browns, perfect for your Thanksgiving spread.

Serve with a dollop of cool whip and a dusting of ground nutmeg.

If you try this out, let me know how it goes and if you love it as much as I do :-)

Enjoy!

Tablescapes and a Design Icon

2010-11-09T18:21:00.004-06:00

I took a very short break at lunch today to join some lovely new friends at Kappa Tablescapes. Tablescapes is a wonderful fundraising event that is put together by the Kappa Kappa Gamma Alumnae Association and is a well orchestrated collaboration of designers, boutiques, sponsors, fine table and floral designers and the like, all coming together to create beautiful, themed designer tablescapes. Kappa is the tribe that I belonged to in college ;-) so it is an organization that is especially dear to me. Here are a few of my favs...

Black and white stripes :-)

I wish the colors relayed better in this photo. This table was the most gorgeous peacock blue!

One of my favorite flowers, dendrobium orchids!

The featured speaker this year was Jan Showers. I simply adore her style! She is truly one of my designer style icons and I was thrilled I got to meet her! I've previously gushed about her here, here, and here.

Here she is signing my copy of Glamorous Rooms. This is one of my favorite cocktail books, not only for the content but the book itself is really beautiful.

I was so darn nervous that my hands were shaking and resulted in this blurry picture with my camera phone. I didn't have the heart to ask to retake it :-/

It was a fabulous event, a delicious luncheon, and a lovely time spent with some new girlfriends.

I hope you are having a great start to the week!

What I'm Loving...

2010-11-03T19:33:00.002-05:00

My new mini schoolhouse pendants over the bar in the kitchen, installed courtesy of my amazingly handy husband.
Happy Hump Day!

Project Sneak Peek

2010-11-01T21:55:00.003-05:00

I checked in on one of my kitchen remodel projects this afternoon and it is looking lovely if I may say so myself. Just needs a few more tweaks and she'll be ready for her close-up, Mr. Demille.
In the meantime, check out a few glimpses.

I hope you are having a great start to the week!

Happy Monday!

What I'm Loving...

2010-10-20T17:38:00.004-05:00

I'm gushing over this kitchen! It is the perfect mix of old and new!
I would take her just like she is!
Happy What-I'm-Loving Wednesday!!!

In My Mind I'm Goin' To Carolina...

2010-10-19T15:34:00.016-05:00

Last weekend, my husband and I took a little jaunt to North Carolina. Go on, cue the music. He had to go to Charlotte for work, so I used it as an excuse for a little getaway. After he took care of business, we drove over to Asheville for the rest of the weekend. Have you been to Asheville? It reminded me a lot of Austin. It is a really cool little town with a hippie vibe. Think art galleries, book stores, euro style street cafes, somebody playing guitar around every corner...you get the idea...immediate relaxation.

We had a late lunch at Modesto. Oh. my. yum! Mussels Diavolo done perfectly! Oh, and the maitre d' sings Italian opera on the doorstep, no biggie....yeah, I could have sat here all day!

Walkin' the streets of Asheville.

We stopped at Mayfels for dinner. Yep, "black and white stripped awning...we are eating here" I'm pretty sure that is how this restaurant was picked :-)

Fried green tomatoes with spicy red pepper aioli and goat cheese...wow, these were good. I had butternut squash soup. Perfect with the crisp mountain air!

The next day we drove a short 10 mins to see the Biltmore Estate. I thought I was going to have to drag my husband, screaming and kicking, but he was surprisingly down to check it out too.

Extraordinary wealth at it's finest.

I walked around barefoot on the front lawn...had to bring a little bit of that Texas class, y' know.

Frank partaking in acting like we lived there :-)

Gargoyle!

Me and the hubs.

I couldn't get enough of that herringbone ceiling. I looked at it forever!

That's quite a view you've got there Mr. Vanderbilt.

Some of my favs...

The leaves were just starting to change...so pretty.

I saw these little guys on our forest walk out and couldn't resist.

The Biltmore is pretty cool. If you are into that kind of thing I recommend checking it out.

I hope you are having a great week!

Marburger Farms

2010-10-07T19:24:00.015-05:00

About a week ago, my girlfriend Sarah and I took a little jaunt out to Marburger for some antique shopping. I needed to look for some things for some clients and that's how I justified the hours that I spent out there ;-) Good company, beautiful things, awesome weather...it was a great afternoon. If you have never been to Roundtop/ Marburger Farms, I highly recommend it!!! There are so many wonderful things. If you are into this kind of thing, I could easily occupy you for hours with image upon image of the sights to see but I'll spare you and just narrow it down to some of my favs.

It looks a bit carnie-ish pulling in, but those tents hide many treasures my friends.
I loved this. It is creepy and cool in a mid-century to 80's horror movie kind of way. I really wanted this, enough to ask for a price, but I would have had some serious explaining to do if I had showed up at home and this was what I chose to buy. Frank would have thought I had lost my mind....I really wanted it though! Plus, it would look so cool in an all white nursery with animals in it. Are y'all with me?

These were unreal! They were 15ft tall and came from a chateau in France.

I loved this old card catalog. A wonderful display of ironstone. This lot made me think of Joni when I saw it.
Farmhouse chic is so hot right now!

This was one of my favorites from the day. It appears to be dollhouse and that is why I went over to see it. *more on this in a minute* However, it is actually a full scale model of a home that was to be built. It is obviously very old. Can you imagine how well the house was made if they took this much care in building the model. It even had wallpaper, see below.

*Ok, Dollhouses...maybe it's the little girl in me, I don't know, but I'm obsessed with them. Actually all miniatures. Some day I can see myself building dollhouses as a hobby. I had a really amazing one when I was a girl. My mom poured her heart and soul into it. We didn't have a lot of money and that made my dollhouse all that more special. I truly treasured it. It had electricity, wallpaper, dishes, little books that you could open, I could go on and on. My mother really got into the details. Maybe these were some of the first seeds planted for my future profession...hmmm.
Anywho, now back to Marburger...

This is "The Saloon". It is an old building in the middle of all the tents and the old tin ceiling was really something.

A gorgeous lot of Louis Philippe mirrors.

This was both Sarah and my favorite piece of furniture. This came from an estate in France and was once a pair of built-ins flanking a fireplace. It was gorgeous!!!

Old tulip botanical chart. I'm really irritated that I didn't buy this. I'm really, really irritated that I didn't buy this.

Lots of birdcages. I guess birdcages are back. "Yes ma'am, you heard me correctly, I said that I would take everything in your booth, thank you".

Owls! Another love. (I collect crabs, owls, milk glass, leather books and nutcrackers) These were pretty fantastic. The vendor thought that they were pretty fantastic too. Checked the price tag...ouch, no go.

Belgian style certainly reigned supreme.

So, these were my personal finds. They have already found their homes in my home.

These are antique Italian engravings. Love. Now in my family room :-)

I also scored these Italian sconces. They are old but not antique.

We went late in the week and the vendors are ready to unload things by that point. These were a steal!

I couldn't leave without a new piece of milk glass (well, new to me, you know what I mean). I'm particularly drawn to candy dishes, can ya tell?! The middle one is my new guy. The top one was my husband's grandmother's and the bottom one was a gift from my sister-in-law Jane (Hi Jane!).

Isn't it cute. It looks like a little cake. I love it!

Sarah and I below. She is such a dear friend! She must have thought that I was out of my mind. I'm pretty sure she had to tell me to focus a couple of times because I was so excited and flitting around. Love you Sarah! It was a great afternoon!
We finished off the day with the best funnel cake I have ever had in my whole life...including the state fair! It was almost custardy in the center. Oh my it was gooood! We didn't talk to each other, just grunted while we stuffed our faces :-)

I hope that you enjoyed your weekend.

I'll be back soon with a little post about our short trip to Asheville this weekend. It was incredible!

P.S. I forgot my good camera so all photos were taken with my camera phone...sorry for the quality :-/

Happy Monday!

Sneakedy Peekedy

2010-10-07T19:09:00.003-05:00

Here's just a little glimpse into a bathroom remodel I'm working on right now. That's all you get! It will be done soon, don't you fret now!

I also just wrapped a killer kitchen remodel in Dallas that will be revealed soon. Trust me y'all, it's gorgeous!

I'm aware that I'm not doing a very good job of keeping "What I'm Loving" Wednesdays consistent...please forgive? I'm trying to git'er back on track.

I have many irons in the fire right now. A few words...Grateful. Blessed. Humbled. Excited. :-)

P.S. Sorry for the picture quality...images are camera phone snaps :-/

I hope you're having a great week!

What I'm Loving...

2010-09-29T17:34:00.007-05:00

I'm loving my little watercolors I fiiiinallly had framed! The hub and I bought these in Rome last year (actually right at the top of the Spanish Steps...see the pink arrows, right there!...and then we walked around the corner and had prosecco and strawberries :-) I love art that is collected and personal. Every time I look at these I am reminded of our time in Italy and that is special.

They are just basic little prints on watercolor paper (sold everywhere in Italy) and I think they were about six bucks each but the memory they spark is invaluable! I had them framed with dramatic mattes and burnished antique gold frames. I love them!

Hey - 2 for 1 today...
I'm also loving my new zebra print cowhide rug. It adds a little edge to our otherwise monochromatic dining room. I found a great deal on this little baby and just couldn't pass it up.
I hope you're having a great week :-)
Happy What-I'm-Loving Wednesday!

We Went To The Candy Shop...

2010-09-23T14:08:00.003-05:00

Well, my version of a candy shop anyway...
My wonderful client, in Austin, and I walked the slab yard on Wednesday and tagged some picks. I might have hugged that slab of Calcutta above, I can't confirm or deny this...

This home is going to be amazing! I can't wait to share all of our hard work!

I hope you are having a great week :-)

Dwelling with Robert Allen

2010-09-23T13:56:00.003-05:00

DwellStudio for Robert Allen?!!...SOLD!

Aren't they lovely?!

Listen to Christiane Lemieux, founder and creative director for DwellStudio, highlight some of the new fabrics HERE. Love.

What I'm Loving...

2010-09-16T09:14:00.004-05:00

I'm loving all of the old architectural details in my newest baby.
I am working with some amazing new clients on an incredible home from the 20s.

This old home and I will be getting to know each other very well over the next several months. I already can't wait to show you! She is beautiful now, just needs a little attention. She is going to be stunning!

That fireplace above is original solid carerra. Many treasures!

I hope you are having a great week!

I'm Here...

2010-09-09T16:24:00.002-05:00

I'm here, I'm here...just working through that-there to-do list. I've got a few large, exciting new projects on my plate :-) I am ever so grateful to get to work with some amazing new clients and some clients I've known for years, on some fun new projects. In turn this lil' baby blog is taking to the back burner, but I'll do my best.

Thanks for checking in on me!

XOXO

Taken Home

2010-08-30T10:35:00.002-05:00

On Saturday morning one of our dear friends, Keith Beasley, was taken home to be with the Lord. While we are mourning the loss of him on this earth, there is peace in knowing that he has been healed and made whole. He is home.
Keith was a Christian, a sweet husband, a loved son, brother and friend. He will truly be missed.
"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord." 2 Corinthians 4:16-5:8
Keith will forever live in our hearts and memories.
"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die."
John 11:25-26
Please keep his sweet wife, precious son, family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.

What I'm Loving...

2010-08-18T12:35:00.004-05:00

The luxurious soft goods from Sachin + Babi for Ankasa. I love to use Ankasa in my projects! The attention to detail on their bedding and pillow collections is extraordinary!
Give me the name of a designer out there that doesn't have some kind of weird collecting thing for throw pillows! I bet you can't find one :-)

This pillow would be an elegant addition to a bed full of creamy linens.

This collection is gorgeous! I used this collection, but in gray, in a bedroom for my dear client in Oregon.

The crewel work is very fine and soft.

My Oregon client's bedroom where I used the gray collection.

They have many, many beautiful pieces on their site if you would like to peruse further :-)

Happy What I'm Loving Wednesday!!!