The Best Beach Decor

It's my favorite time of the year.  I love being at the beach for our family vacation.

There is nothing better the cool breeze off the ocean and the smell of the salt air.  I love to sit on the beach and watch my children playing in the surf, read good books and visit with my summer friends. 

  What do you like to do at the beach?  

My beach house is happy colors.  Just being here makes me smile.  It is a rainbow

of lime, hot pink, sunny yellow and caribbean aqua blue.  This is my bedroom.

Sorry the lights were on for the pic!  It's a hodge podge of Anthropologie, meets

Target and few other things.  Nothing so precious  we can't climb on the beds and take naps if we want.  Totally relaxing!

 There are so many options for beach decor, what is your favorite?

Do You like a neutral palette ?

Soft creamy paint

What about dreamy whites and blues?

Or do you prefer bright colors like turquoise and lime with white?

More brights!

 Is a classic blue and white nautical theme

 more your style?

What is your favorite look?  I find it fun to have my beach house brights and my residence the rest of the year in more muted shades. 

Here are a few of my favorite beach paints:

Antiguan Sky Benjamin Moore 2040-60

Sherwin Williams Dishy Coral SW6598

Sherwin Williams Daffodil Yellow SW6901

Sherwin Williams SW6717

Sherwin Williams Hibiscus SW6851

Sherwin Williams SW6750 Waterfall

Now you know my favorites, what are yours?
No matter what colors or decor you choose, the best thing about being at the beach is the people who are there to share it with you!

Yes, it's really about who you are hanging out with! This crew could care less if the house decor was pea green yellow and black, as long as they all get to be together!  Life is more fun when you share it,

 even at the beach!

Here's hoping you are enjoying time with family and friends!

One Room Challenge Week Two

Last week was the first week of The One Room Challenge

 I am participating in with this fabulous group of women:

  

If you missed last weeks post you can go back and read  it here!

My challenge room is a client's family room.

Here are the inspiration pictures:

Designed by  Lisa Ball

Designed by Tobi Fairley

A look at our week:

First Task #1 Divide and Conquer

We made lots of progress in our family room this week!  The first step in the process was to make a plan of action.  I discussed with the client the functionality of the room.  We discussed what she liked and didn't like about the current layout of the furniture and worked on a new floor plan. We discussed the pieces we needed for the new floor plan and which of the current items in the room worked in our new plan.  This is what we decided:  

Sofa -  too large for the room

Yellow/Brown Floral Chair- client tired of print cheaper to buy new than recover

Cream Linen Chair-  same as chair above

Coffee table- keeper

Pair of green painted chests - keep & paint

Floor Lamp - move to another room

Rug- ready for a change of colors

Art- will be moved to another room

Drapery- was temporary fix, will be removed

Accessories-  client wants new

Yes, that's right, the only pieces we are keeping in the room are the two green cabinets on either side of the fireplace and the coffee table.  We plan for a smaller sofa, a pair of club chairs, a couple of tables, new art, accessories, and window treatments.

 I don't have a pic of the coffee table, but it is a classic, dark tray table.  If you look at the picture below, you can see it, even though the picture isn't very good.  The green and gold cabinets above are going to be painted creamy with a slight glaze similar to the stone surround on the fireplace.  

  The client felt her walls were cold and wanted a  warm neutral.  Her current color was Sherwin Williams Muslin SW6133. We chose Sherwin Williams Relaxed Khaki SW6149  Both colors are below.  You can see how much darker and warmer the Relaxed Khaki color is compared to the original Muslin color.

We did something that is a big no no in the design world, which was to chose the paint color before fabrics or rug.  I had a basic color scheme in mind from the inspiration pictures she had given me so I worked off of that and chose a middle of the road neutral that goes with lots of colors. It's not that I can't work from any direction for inspiration, but it is much easier to have fabrics first and then match the paint to the fabrics than vice versa.  However, when working with a neutral, as long as you know if you want a warm or cool neutral you can make it work.

I am a big fan of flat wall paint because you can use a little sponge brush to touch up dirty spots or blips unlike eggshell which requires repainting the entire wall so we chose Sherwin Williams Cashmere Interior Acrylic Latex in flat finish.  It has a velvety finish which is beautiful on the wall.  The trim remained the same which is Sherwin Williams Dover White SW6385.

  Muslin SW6133

Relaxed Khaki SW 6149 

Photos of the painting in progress:

Sorry these pics are so dark but I took them with my iPhone!

As you can see our room is coming along nicely!  Can't wait for you to see more!

Don't forget to hop over and check out the progress

 at the other participate's blogs:

Beth - Chinoiserie Chic

Lauren - The Cottage Mix

Sherry - Design Indulgence

Lindsay - Everything LEB

Barbara - Hodge:Podge

Kim - Kim Macumber Interiors

Tiffany - Living Savvy

Jessie - Mix & Chic

Linda - My Crafty Home Life 

Alison - My Little Happy Place

Danylle - Nana Moon

Nicole - Nicole Scott Designs

Julia - Pawleys Island Posh

Jennifer - The Pink Pagoda

Bethany - Powell Brower Home

Lindsay - The Pursuit of Style

Emily - Rue de Emily

Lindsay - Sadie + Stella

Lisa - Trapped in North Jersey

Have a Happy and Safe 4th!

Favorite White Paints

There's nothing plain about white!

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Are You a Fan Of White Walls?  Often when I suggest painting a room white a client will say "but I like color".  Does painting a room white mean lack of color? No, I think it means the opposite.  Painting a room white provides a clean, crisp canvas where color can take center stage.  Look at the rooms below, do these rooms lack color?

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When You start with a white base the options are endless.  The key is finding the right white for you room.  There are many things to take into consideration when choosing a perfect white.  Does your room get a lot of natural light?  Do you have lots of greenery from outdoors peeping through your windows?  Are your floors light, dark or somewhere in between?  What color palette do you want to use in your room?  There are many things to consider when choosing your "just right" white.    

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Here are some of my "go to" favorite whites:

In each of these groups are pure whites, whites with creamy undertones and grey undertones,  which make the whites either warm or cool.  If you are confused, take out a piece of white paper and put your paint chip on the paper, the undertone will jump out! 

Benjamin Moore:

Super White, Decorators White, White Dove,

Chantilly Lace OC-65, Simply White 2143-70, Acadia White,

Ballet White OC-9, 

Sherwin Williams:

Pure White, Extra White, Alabaster SW7008, Marshmellow SW7001,

Antique White SW6199, Moderne White SW6168, Dover White SW6385

Pratt & Lambert:

Ancestral #20-1, Seed Pearl 27-32

Farrow & Ball:

Great White No. 2006,  1/2 Lime White No. 1

What's your favorite white?

The Ultimate Designer....

Topsail Beach July 2012

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There is one thing for certain, we all can try all we want but there is one ultimate designer.  He created all the original colors, combinations, and beautiful objects.How lucky are we as designers to be able to play with his creation!

Being at the beach magnifies how magnificent he really is!

Happy Vacation to all!

What To Wear To The Beach....

I'm getting ready to head out on the beach and this is what I'm wearing.

I have a book about Chanel, my Havaianas and all the other necessities 

necessary for a great day in the sun!  Happy "Sun" day to you!

What Up For The Beach.... by lisamende featuring nickel free earrings

Calypso St Barth knit poncho
$395 - calypsostbarth.com

Flora Bella beach bag
$155 - calypsostbarth.com

Button jewelry
$24 - etsy.com

Nickel free earrings
$13 - modcloth.com

Kate Spade sunglasses
$148 - katespade.com

Fat Face floppy hat
£28 - fatface.com

Havaianas Kid's Slim Missoni Hearts Havianas Rachel Flip Flops
$50 - saksfifthavenue.com

Chanel The Vocabulary of Style
$61 - amazon.com

Don't forget to leave a comment about the ecolos skincare system if you want to try this great product for free!!!  Leave comments telling me which item you are excited about trying! 

If you missed the post about the giveaway click here!

Drawing will be this Friday, July 6!!!!!