Shower or Bath?

When designing a bathroom, creating a separate space for your bathtub and shower is a true luxury. A trend has also emerged locating the shower in front of the bathtub (as seen in the Everything Simple image and the House Beautiful image). What do you think about this design concept?  

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via andreas manolioudakis

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via everything simple

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via if its hip its here

Welcome to My Home

Your home's entrance is one of the most important spaces to consider since this is your guest's first impression. Unfortunately, it tends to be one of the more neglected spaces as people want to put their money into rooms they get the most use from. I am actually one of those people.  

However, I recently designed my entry way and in hindsight wish I hadn't put it off for so long. It is so nice to be able to come through my front door and see a pretty vignette rather than an empty space.

Below are some lovely images that may help spark your creativity in creating a beautiful entry for your home. Note some important items you may want to include; a console, some type of seat (whether a stool, chair, etc), a mirror, a place for keys, a vase with beautiful flowers to add color, books, art, frames, etc.

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via delight by design

via delikattassen

via seesaw

massuco warner miller

via the city sage

Let's Play

Playrooms - one of the most exciting spaces in the home to design. Lots of color and whimsy help to create playful spaces where your children will love to spend time.

It is very important to think through what your children's needs and interests are when creating the playroom.  

Some possibilities to consider:

(1) Chalkboard wall or dry erase wall for your kids to color and/ or learn to write

(2) Bookshelves

(3) Homework Area

(4) Video Game Spot

(5) Project Table - space to color, construct Lego's, play with Play Doh, etc

(6) Storage for toys, board games and crafts

(7) Comfortable seating; comfy sofas, beanbags, etc

(8) If possible, large surface area to play sports (Check out last picture of a hockey floor I designed)

Check out this fabulous rooms...

Interior Design Magazine

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via design is mine

via designer pad

via New York Times Magazine

Lauren Santo Domingo

Feathered Nest Interiors, LLC

La Cucina

Sorry I have not posted in quite some time. Been super busy on different projects and have been neglecting my beloved blog. As an apology to those loyal Feathered Nest followers, I thought I would post about something everyone always seems to be interested in... kitchens.

I LOVE to help design a kitchen because it is truly such a central part of a home. Not a day goes by that you do not spend time in your kitchen (even those moms that don't really cook, the kitchen is still the place to lay out the take in cartons ;-)

Some tips I have if you plan on doing a kitchen makeover:

(1)  If at all possible, install two dishwashers.  Whether you have children or tend to entertain a lot, having the second dishwasher will make your life a lot easier.

(2) Some kitchen designers recommend installing the microwave in an island, thus giving you more room for upper cabinets. As far as I am concerned, this is a big mistake for two reasons. One is, if you have children that you do not want to have access to this appliance, then why would it make sense to install it at their eye level? Another reason that this is a bad idea is because if you do use the microwave often, you are constantly bending down to work it - not good for you back.

(3) If your sink is far from your stove, a pot filler is a great luxury.

(4) Install "friendly" countertops. When I redid my kitchen, I so badly wanted to do marble countertops.  I actually vacillated for quite some time before I finally decided that I did not want the maintenance of worrying that they might stain. Instead I installed caesar stone and I am thrilled! LOVE the caesar stone and highly recommend this NO maintenance alternative to marble.

(5) If you have the space, I highly advise you to put in a banquette. You can see some beautiful images of banquettes on a previous post I did about a month ago.

(6) Pendant lights over an island are a wonderful way to add some style to a kitchen. There are tons of options from as inexpensive as IKEA to phenomenal custom lighting. (Maybe an idea for another post?)

(7) Most important advice.... Make sure that you have a professional help with the actual design. The placement of appliances and the scale of the kitchen is major. You do not want to spend tons of money to realize after the fact that you should have put the dishwasher closer to the sink...

Here are some real beauties that may spark some ideas for you...

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via coco and kelley

via delight by design

via delight by design

via massuco warren miller