Precious Nurseries

TOO MUCH PINK. But there are still some cute elements. From Restoration Hardware Baby and Child.

Designing a room for a baby can be tough, but I imagine it's equally as fun. My friend and fellow designer is having a baby in a few months so we've been talking about how to design the room for her little girl! We both agree to stay away from the cliche pink everything with giant flowers and pink curtains theme etc. So then how do you design a room for a baby without crossing the line into a cliche pink (or blue) mess or just a room for an adult with mini furniture? Here are some of my favorite ones:

This baby's nursery has tons of room for toys and playing. I often wonder if it's okay to have hard wood floors in a room with a baby. Bruises? No? I love the ark though--so cute! Lucky baby to have such high ceilings. By the Art of Everyday Living.

Celerie Kemble actually designed this room. To be honest if I were a baby, I'd be scared out of my wits lying there looking at those butterflies. I do love the white bobbin crib though and love a floppy stuffed animal!

Massucco Warner Miller. This is a perfect preppy nursery for a preppy little baby girl. You can get letters like that at Anthropolgie or Ballard Designs. This is so precious I can barely breathe.

Houzz. No need to wallpaper! You can keep it simple with white or cream colored walls so that it's easier to adapt to as the little munchkin grows up.

David Netto went all out with plush furniture and a soft rug. The drapery is even soft and fluffy. I appreciate that he didn't use one of his cribs from his own line of furniture too because they are rather...prison like (maybe just too modern for my taste).

In the nursery (which later became my father's office) that we (my two sisters and I) all had as babies, we had cute pastel wallpaper and a blue carpet...or was it green? It was a mini room but so cute with stuffed animals and eyelet white curtains on the windows. I think stuffed animals are really the key ingredient...


Alicia B.

Cool off Blues

Robert Stilin put a beautiful abstract painting over this table with different blues. Clearly a focal point.

Summer can get pretty steamy, especially here in NYC. In August the heat can be almost unbearable! Coming home and sitting directly in front of the air conditioner is one way to solve the overheating that comes with summer, but another way is to visually cool off your home! Adding cool colors to your home in the summer can be a way to take the heat down a notch and add some freshness too.

A blue geometric rug sets the tone subtly for this room by Thad Hayes. Also different blues are all around the room in throw pillows, a blanket and the drapery.

Simply adding blue accessories is also a fun and less expensive option. Massucco Warner Miller used different blue glass vessels in these cabinets.

Blue and white cachepots for the plants around your room also catch your attention. Wouldn't this be a nice place to sip lemonade after being outside for a bit? By Joann Barwick from Traditional Home.

My favorite idea, which is temporary for the change in season, is to switch up the throw pillows and lampshades. It's an easy way to freshen up the room and you can change the pillows back to orange in fall or tartan in the winter! By Frank Roop.

Pastels and different blues are nearly everywhere throughout this large living room by Diamond Baratta. Blue lampshades and lanterns are molto fun!



Don't want to repaint your walls or buy new lampshades? Want a project? A fun idea is to paint your bookcase blue, or even just the back wall of it for a pop of blue when you're admiring your books/bookcase display. From Remodelista via HERE.

Painting the walls blue is also a fun and inexpensive option. I love how this dining room is painted above the very high chair rail. Draws your eye up to the amazing ceiling too. By Marshall Watson.

When I started this and was thinking of cool fresh blues, I immediately thought of Bunny Williams summery room for the Kips Bay 2009 Showhouse. It's more of a turquoise blue but bright and lively. From Habitually Chic.

Do y'all ever change a room based on the season? Slip covers are also a good idea for an inexpensive seasonal change if they are done in a very tailored way though. My living room has yellow walls and a brown plaid love seat so I'd probably change (sew my own!) the throw pillows before I did anything else.


Alicia B.

Tuesday Fun: Pink Edition

Pink is my favorite color. Possibly cliche and girly, yes, but I don't care. It's a happy, pretty color and there are many ways to infuse pink into a room. Observe.

Do you think this room has pink "infused" in it? I think so. From Houzz, this bedroom is girly but light because of the yellow print drawing your eye to the end of the room.

I had a pale pink rug growing up. The room has the pink carpet to ground it, and then glam/chic wallpaper with pink outlined flowers. By Jennifer Flanders.

This bedroom is a wee bit more subtle with pale pink pinstriped wall paper (I believe its Ralph Lauren) and then absolutely gorgeous drapery fabric used on the pillows and bed skirt. Found in Country Living and designed by Elizabeth Mead.

This bubble gum pink wall is so fun and I love how it is broken up a bit by the white paint underneath the chair rail. This could be very cliche but it is made glam by the venetian mirror and beautiful linen bedspread. West Village apartment by Benjamin Noriega-Ortiz.

Oddly enough, I have no pink in my apartment except for the stripes in my Dash and Albert rug in my bedroom. Perhaps I limited it to my wardrobe (I might be wearing pink shoes today!). Do you decorate with your favorite color? Or mix it up a bit? Grey blue certainly isn't my favorite color but I love the way it looks in my bedroom.

Alicia B.

My Weekend in Pictures

Summer Grass

I had a super relaxing weekend and as always, it was much too short. Monday was my day to get myself together and catch up on all the things I had missed--oh yeah, and I worked. Anyway, I had so much fun with my friends from high school, my current life, and even made new friends! Here are a few images that make me wish we had patriotic 3-day CT beach weekends EVERY week!

Beach Parade at Dusk

A Day on the Beach

Beachy Keen

See more of my photos HERE. I hope you all had fab weekends, too full of relaxation, fireworks, 'smores, and celebration!

Alicia B.

Patriotic Interiors

Gary McBournie. I'd love to be out here with a book and a G & T.

Today's Inspiration Friday is being put on hold for something even better...Patriotism! Since it's the Fourth of July Weekend, let's all enjoy some Red White and Blue interiors. These interiors remind me of Summer, New England, the beach, and relaxation.

Markham Roberts mixes a whimsical bedspread and a geometric rug in this bedroom.

Red white and blue geometric patterns are in this room too. How cute is that teddy bear in the chair? By Meg Braff.

Digs By Katie pairs this distressed red painted bench with a dark blue backing and a gorgeous sunburst mirror in this little nook. PS you should really check out her portfolio--it's genius.

Red walls are usually to much for me but if you put it with a blue and white striped rug, I calm down a bit. This entry way (with sticks used as coat hooks) is from Country Living.

Pretty paisley bedspread but what really gets me here (besides the Windsor chair) is the basket full of throw pillows. Country Living.

I hope you all have a great and patriotic Fourth of July. If the weather cooperates we'll be going up to the CT shore and enjoying some time on the beach! Maybe some ice cream, fireworks, and some good old fashioned fun. Ya know, things that make America so awesome! What are you up to?

Alicia B.

White Interiors for a Color Monger

I have a bit of a reputation for being a color monger, so I thought I'd expand my palette, so to speak, and love on some white rooms. I'm finding them very calming and full of personality as they can't rely on color to make them beautiful.

Marie Claire Maison. These beams and this little elevated seating area looks like a great place for a mini party with tapas and mojitos with friends!

This living room is designed by Lynn Morgan. It looks so peaceful with the pretty pale colors and the tall simple drapery (not to mention the amazing beams and wooden brackets).

This is a tres romantic bedroom, oui? Love the fur, love the headboard, swoon over the chandelier. Elle Decor.

What a lovely dressing room. I love the contrast of the deep rich floors with the sweet feminine wall paper and white walls. Madeline Stuart.

This is designed by Benjamin Noriega Ortiz, who loves to design with white. If you need tips on how to live in a white home, skip on over to If the Lampshade Fits who reviewed BNO's home from the NY Times.

So, what's the verdict? I'm thinking very beautiful to look at, but not practical for someone like me to live in. They are graceful, feminine, and calming looking to be sure, but every time there is a little bit of color, I'm more drawn to that in the end. Happy Thursday!


Alicia B.