Nichols & Dimes Design

I believe that you can tell a person’s decorating style by their own personal style.  Your favorite outfit is telling of what interiors you would be most drawn to. I often joke that I dress like a bag of Skittles.  You can usually find me with a candy colored sun dress paired with a bright cardigan, a fun hued bag, some beaten cowboy boots and a dash of rock n roll.  It’s really indicative of the rooms I design.  I am certainly not afraid of color and I love mixing feminine pieces with worn, aged pieces.  If you look back at my previous post on April 25th, you’ll see just that.  Every color of the rainbow is represented in this room because that’s what makes me happy. 

So if you’re having trouble finding inspiration for your next design project, pull out your favorite outfit.  It doesn’t have to be fancy, it just needs to make you feel amazing. 

Having trouble translating your favorite outfit into a room?  Call me, I’ll help in a heartbeat!

The stars at night, are big and bright…Deep in the heart of Texas!

This past week I had the honor of attending and being in a dear friend’s wedding.  We went back to Texas to celebrate these nuptials and it was so amazing to have all of our friends back in one place.  We were truly blessed with perfect weather and Julie’s parents’ background created the perfect space for a garden ceremony.  It really made me miss the south with rocking chairs on the porch, outdoor ceiling fans, and the gentle lull of a train nearby.  Being in nature under a blanket of stars and celebrating the love of two close pals really made me appreciate the small things in life.  There’s something so simple and mesmerizing about a mess of flowering vines, fragrant mini roses, and a trickling fountain.  It really made me want an outdoor space of my own.  Blast you apartment living! But there’s no reason not to bring the inside in. 

Unfortunately I am the kiss of death when it comes to plants.  They take one look at me and whither away at the very thought me over loving them.  So I get fresh flowers, as often as possible, as cheaply as possible.  I’m no Elton John with his extravagant daily fresh flowers and I’m certain Elton John is not hitting up his local Trader Joe’s for a budget bouquet.  But fresh flowers liven up a room, and they bring nature in without the pleadings of daily maintenance.  Some people fret too much when arranging flowers.  They use floral foam, tape, and wire.  I prefer a more wild unfussy look and I have many tricks for easy and elegant floral arrangements.

• Buy your flowers at the farmer’s market, a flower district (every major city has one) or even the grocery store.
• When choosing flowers, pick within the same color range.  Pinks with reds and fuschias, yellows with oranges and corals. It takes the guessing out of arranging and you never have to worry about clashing.  Never buy anything that’s been dyed because it looks unnatural and strange (I’m looking at you blue roses).
• You don’t necessarily have to buy the same flowers in one arrangement, but if you’re nervous don’t mix and match.  I loathe the “garden bouquet” at grocery stores.  The flowers all die at different times and then you’re stuck with some baby’s breath or some random stems of a fern.  
• Now for my favorite arranging secret…  Before trimming, hold all the flowers like a hand bouquet.  Move things around where’d you like and even play with heights.  Measure your vessel, see where you’d like the flowers to crest and then trim the bottom stems all at the same time. Don’t even bother trimming them one by one, it’s just too time consuming. Also, make sure that no leaves are touching the water, it accelerates the rotting.
• Don’t limit yourself to just vases.  Use mugs, tea tins, milk bottles, tea pots, or any other water tight vessels. 

Seeing fresh flowers in my home really brightens my day.  They can beautifully scent the air, bring out your home’s accessories, or simply make you feel like Elton John. What more could a girl want?

This was our small one bedroom home in Houston’s Historical Heights neighborhood.  It was such a pity to have to leave this tiny jewel box of a house.  I even dreamt of somehow picking up the whole house and shipping it to L.A. with us.

Unfortunately I only have one before picture.  The others are lost in a very dead computer. First we start with the living room.  It was painted a light mocha color that blended right in with the hardwood floors.  Every window was outfitted with ruffly cafe curtains and did not fit my modern sensibilities. So I chose a cheery blue to liven up the walls and showcase the floors and beautiful apple green silk dupioni drapes hung high to heighten the ceilings.  Besides the pocket doors, there wasn’t much architectural detail to the room and I desperately wanted a fireplace.  So we went to the hardware store, bought some MDF and decorative molding and went to town building one.  I think it was quite a success and it’s portable!

The bathroom originally looked like a serape blanket.  It was bright turquoise and the shower curtain was multi colored stripe.  It was way too intense of a color in such a tiny room.  I lightened the walls with the same blue of the living room and brought in all white accessories.  It looks so much more inviting and peaceful now.

Now for the dining room, it was frightening.  It was macaroni yellow and it had been sponge painted.  Sponge. Painted.  So instead I chose the most magnificent velvety brown.  It made everything look amazing! I painted the back of the built in bookcase light blue and it really made all of our books look fantastic.  Then I refinished an old dresser we found in the garage, hit it with a mini sander to age it and it became a fantastic credenza.  I added some art work, popped in a few peacock colored accessories and it was done!

The bedroom was a garish red so I chose a peaceful olive to make it more soothing.  I copied some really pricey bedding I saw at a home goods store by sewing my own decorative pillows and layered on some luxurious textures.  It ended up looking bohemian and cozy.

This was really the first home where I had complete design control and I think it really reflected our personalities.  Brian was such an amazing trooper throughout the whole process.  He was my handyman, he reigned me in when I was frazzled, and he never told me anything was impossible.  It’s a good thing I married him, he’s definitely a keeper!

Kelly Wearstler is my hero.  Some of her stuff might be too outlandish for most but I love her boldness and her complete disregard for the norm.  She has a quirky design aesthetic and a wicked sense of color.  It’s also unfair that she is stunning. Any time she’s photographed in one of her rooms it looks like a fashion editorial.  Kelly Wearstler, I bow to thee.

These are quick weekend projects anyone can do!  With a little black paint and a steady hand, these rooms were completely transformed.

After watching Grey Gardens during a heat wave in L.A., I was inspired to tackle my bathroom.  The house in the film (before it’s demise) was breathtakingly beautiful.  I wanted a space with a chinoiserie wallpaper too!  But of course, those hand painted silk wallpapers cost more than everything I own, so I sought out to duplicate it. It doesn’t have to intricacies of a traditional chinoiserie wallpaper, but I feel that it captures the essence.  I don’t know if it was the scorching temperatures that made me rush to my stepladder with a paintbrush, but I’m sure glad I did it!

I also very simply traced the inside molding of my kitchen cabinets.  It ended up highlighting the great high ceilings we have all over our apartment.  We also painted the front of our pantry (an old fashioned icebox with the original hardware) with a coat of chalkboard paint.  It adds interest and it’s an easy space for notes and messages.

This is the most recent redecorating project I tackled, our living room.  We are fortunate to live in a building with deep historical roots.  Because of this, we have original light fixtures from the 20s, beautifully textured stucco walls and a fireplace (even though it’s not functioning).  The walls used to be the palest of blue, so pale you couldn’t even tell it had been painted.  It was pretty, but it was safe.

So I decided to go bold, and it definitely makes quite an impact!  I wanted all the texture in the walls to be highlighted and worked really hard to bring out the different nuances in the wall texture.  We simply bought a small quart of paint, watered it down, and washed on the color with giant sponges.  My goal was for it to look like it had been there for years.  It resulted in a really festive but cozy room.  You can say one thing for sure, I am not afraid of color.