Master bedroom makeover

05.13.13

It’s a master bedroom before and after, and it’s one of my favorites. We had finished their kids’ rooms and it was time to move on to working with mature adults, whom strangely didn’t want any One Direction posters in their room no matter how hard I tried to sell them. This was really a case of just decorating and styling — they already had a great bed and a great high boy dresser, but they needed some style, color, and a cohesive design plan. Luckily, they have good taste and had a budget; nothing too luxury, but they knew that if they were going to hire a designer it’s best to actually give them resources to do a good job — how very refreshing, indeed.

styled nightstand

But first, let’s start with the very first “before.” When we got the call from these new clients, the first request was paint colors, and FAST. We had just a couple days to choose, swatch, and make final decisions about the paint in all the rooms downstairs that were under construction without seeing what they already had or having a design plan. So yes, we had to be a bit on the safe side.

master bedroom under construction

Luckily, after designing the 26 rooms on the show and 10 houses since, I have my go-to’s that everybody universally loves. So I chose my favorite gray, Benjamin Moore, Gray Owl for the room and they went for it. Phew.

master bedroom before

So that is really where we started. The bed is great but other than that they needed everything. Stylistically they wanted it to go a little Hollywood regency, but still have it feel calm and quiet; nothing too insane and no busy patterns. They were open to any colors although they LOVE peacock blue and teal — it’s like I’m a magnet for people who love blue. I swear that it’s not always my idea. It’s just style fate.

gold and teal bedroom

The biggest challenge was where to put the bed. There were only two wall options. The first would be the wall that you see when you walk in and it would have made the bed really hug one side of the room, and then the bed looks straight at the door when you walk in and it made walking tight, which is fine if you need to but it’s definitely not ideal. The other wall is the window wall, and the bed doesn’t fit in between the two windows as is, so we had to come up with a solution. We decided to put extra curtains behind the bed so it kinda becomes the focal headboard wall and you don’t notice how the windows are small. It made the windows look bigger, and added so much softness behind the bed. We just floated the bed out a few inches to allow for the curtains to hang properly.

Resources: Beautiful blue Chadna rug, Lulu and Georgia. White shams with gray border, West Elm. Gold silk curtains, Pottery Barn. White linen duvet, Eileen Fisher for Garnet Hill (and yes, they are my favorite bedding — I’ve bought it now for 4 different clients). Blue king pillows , HD Buttercup. Bench at the end of the bed, vintage. Chandelier, West Elm.

master bedroom before

The nightstands and lamps were too small and just didn’t have much of a design point of view.

styled nightstand

So I found those blue lamps at the flea market and it was VERY hard to give them up, the hoarder in me was chanting, but, but, but, those are miiiiiine … , but we wanted them to take up more visual space since that king bed is big. So we added these larger scale rectangular shades that made them look more modern and were a better proportion to the bed. Also, if a lamp has a rectangular or base, I say go for a rectangular shade. It instantly makes it more modern and a little more masculine.

Nightstands, vintage $750 for the pair. Vintage lamps, flea market $200/pair. Lampshades, custom from Replacement Shades, $70 each. Blue pitcher/vase, Crate and Barrel. Gold bowl, Tom Dixon set of three $90.

vintage dresser

Across from the bedroom is a high boy dresser that they already had, and I love. And we styled it up with a pretty white geode lamp from Lamps Plus and some of their books. The paintings were done by, I believe a mom or grandma of theirs, and we just had them framed/floated in simple walnut frames — something that felt traditional and modern at the same time (as opposed to like a modern white lacquer frames or ornate traditional frame).

Resources: Dresser, vintage. Lamp, LampsPlus $166.91, Vase, roost. 8 ball in dome, New Stone Age. Brown leather jewerly box, Pottery Barn. Huge bird Painting, Dwell Studios, $1195. Antique paintings framed at Curve Line Space.

white geode lamp

130405_EmilyHenderson0602

vintage dresser

So there you have it. A master bedroom redo that makes me jealous all over.

Shoot was produced/designed and styled by me and Orlando, shot by David Tsay.

My 12 Styling Essentials

04.12.13

I’ve been meaning to write this post FOREVER. I have so many go-to’s, or styling essentials, things that I buy and re-buy, and the world simply must know about them. So here goes … As a stylist you do a million different styles of jobs at the same time. One might be a interiors shoot for Good Housekeeping and the next might be a Anthropologie ad, but regardless you need a lot of good cheap “filler” — those pieces that don’t necessarily stand out, that aren’t show stoppers, but are inexpensive, accessible, and available. They add texture and depth in the places, or dare I say “moments” where they are much needed. These 12 pieces are pieces that I have bought so many times IT’S CRAZY. If you go up to my portfolio and click through (and look closely) you’ll see a lot of them. Let’s break it down.

emily-henderson-styling-essentials

1. West Elm Martini Table, $149. Every stylist’s best friend. I’ve bought the white and the gold both probably five times. They are perfect for next to a credenza, as a floating cocktail table, under a sofa table to fill that empty space, in the foreground so the shot has more depth. They are simple enough that you don’t really notice them, but they have a shape that is interesting (as opposed to a straight up and down cylinder).

2. Ikea White Racka Curtain Rod, $4.99. I used this less as a stylist because normally for styling you tape the curtain to the wall, you know, with gaffer tape. Which is why when I started designing I truly had no idea what the rules were to hanging drapery. Well now I do and I have learned that unfortunately they can be as expensive as all of Paris Hilton’s Burkin bags combined. Especially if you have like five windows in a room. So I took the risk once and used this rod and white ring set, and I’m telling you, it’s awesome. So cheap, so clean, so simple, and so far none of them have broken.

3. Ikea Sheepskin, $29.99. The amount of chairs I’ve thrown this over is stupid. But it just softens something hard so fast. It adds texture without adding pattern and warmth without color. It’s just good.

4. Ikea Ribba Frame (square), $19.99. I like the whole Ribba line, but the square one has a larger profile and the art sits in the back of the frame with the glass at the front, making it look custom framed. It looks so high end for $20. It’s my favorite go-to frame.

5. Gold Rhino, Dwell Studio, $35. I’ve technically only bought two of their gold animal menagerie; they have a horse, antelope, giraffe, and elephant. But I use shapely animals all the time for the sculptural, and yes, glamorous effect.

6. Ikea linen pillow, $12.99. So simple and in a lot of ways unexciting, but I keep buying them because they look pretty (very textural linen), are a good size, and perfect to put a bright, poppy, patterned pillow in front of it. And the ties make it look more expensive for some reason.

7. West Elm Mongolian Sheep Pillows, $59 – $139. Again with the texture. These suckers aren’t cheap, but for some reason I can’t not throw them in a shot. They reflect the light so beautifully, look rich and luxurious, without sparkles or shine, and again add texture and depth without pattern or high contrast. It’s the perfect quiet “moment” — of which I own two myself because that sheep is very cuddleable.

emily-henderson-styling-essentials

8. LampsPlus Robert Abbey Lamp, $166.91 Great shape, scale, and size. It doesn’t steal the show, but it’s not boxy and boring. It could be for someone traditional or modern, so it’s just kinda a good extra option for a pretty lamp that every editor likes. I just used it again last week and was reminded that it is the perfect scale/height for most situations. Perfect for nightstands or side tables and it looks handmade and pretty, when its really only $160. (P.S. if you click on the link and get a bunch of question marks like I do, open it up in Safari or Explorer — for some reason their site has bugs with Google Chrome).

9. CB2 Marta Glasses, $1.95/each. Every dishwasher’s (and Brian’s) worst nightmare. These things can’t wait to break. It’s like they have a contest on the shelf before you buy them which one will break first and potentially dismember or de-thumb a husband. I’m technically not allowed to buy them anymore because we are just constantly picking up the glass. But they are just so god-damn pretty because they are so thin. They are modern, simple and terribly cheap. When I grow up, I will have them, but until now I just buy them for shoots.

10. Ikea Eivor Throw, $19.99. This one has more contrast and doesn’t necessarily “go away,” but what about when you need to effortlessly throw a blanket in a basket next to the roaring fire? Or fold a blanket on the top of a bench next to a stack of books? I love this blanket and have found myself buying it over and over again. It’s graphic, simple, and cheap.

11. West Elm White Lacquer Trays, $24 – $69. They come in a million colors and sizes, but I’m partial to the white or small rectangle. Nothing special about this tray other than it’s simple, functional, graphic, cheap, and available. At times I’m even sick of it, but then I find myself buying it again because it’s so god-damn necessary.

12. Container Store lacquer boxes, $7.99 – $19.99. Again with the simple, nondescript, and graphic. Perfect for shelf/coffee/console styling to put next to the more decorative pieces. Every shelf needs some simple boxes to kinda fill it out. The white ones totally go away, and the hot colors are super poppy and graphic. I have an arsenal of these in my prop closet ready for that sad lonely credenza.

So there you are, folks. The real question is what of these things do you also have? I’m sure i’m not alone here, so let’s here ‘em.

How to make your small office space look and feel bigger, (and happier)

01.11.13

Small space solutions are obviously very popular. So when I decided to redo my office, I figured I should really assert all my small space knowledge to make this office work.

Ready for the breakdown, friends? Here’s how and why I transformed my office … (This pic is right after we moved in, don’t worrry.)

The goal: To make this small space functional for two people, and feel pulled together but visually quiet. As much as I love contrast and color, for this room I really just wanted it to be calm and fresh. Frankly, there is so much mental and physical chaos that happens everyday here that I needed it to have a calm and serene background.

1. Paint your walls/background white or a light color. Done. As you know, lighter colors make a room feel bigger, darker smaller. (Although you’ve probably heard me lecture that a very small space without natural light shouldn’t be white or it will look “dead.”) My walls are “Oyster Shell” from Benjamin Moore, which is a very soft blue-gray. It’s quiet and calming and almost white, but it contrasts nicely with the molding. Low contrast = not very busy.

2. Keep the color palette very simple. I chose white, blues (duh) with pops of green (just in the plants) and gold/brass.

photo by Kimberly Genevieve

3. Choose symmetry whenever possible. Reduce the amount of contrast in the furniture. Instead of eclectic desks and different vintage chairs, I decided to do matching desks (see sources) and matching vintage chairs with matching sconces above them. Symmetry is just so calming. Your eye doesn’t need to bounce around to see everything because everything is really simple to understand immediately. It reduces the chaos in an instant. You can keep personality in by mixing styles and finishes, but keep the furniture very same-sy if you want your space to feel bigger and cleaner. “Same-sy” — that’s an architectural term, not sure if you know it.

photo by Kimberly Genevieve

4. Don’t clutter the middle of the room with massive furniture. Oh I thought about getting a huge table for us to sit at because I love a big ass work table, but two smaller desks off to the side keep the room feeling so open and big. They also allow for the much needed walkway from the sliding glass door to our bedroom.

photo by Kimberly Genevieve

5. Go with sconces instead of lamps whenever possible. Sconces free up important real estate on tabletops. By taking them off the tables and attaching them to the wall, you’re making the desk way more functional and keeping the desk a lot free-er. Plus these wall sconces don’t have to be hard wired, but their chord is covered by a super chic chord cover so it looks more intentional than a chord hanging down.

photo by Kimberly Genevieve

6. Choose shades over curtains. Curtains/drapes are great in living rooms and bedrooms, where you want a lot of softness and texture and dare I say romance and glamour. BUT in the office, you want it to feel really organized and clean and curtains can add a lot of movement and distraction, especially if you have so many windows like I do. So having shades kept it so much cleaner and made it feel so much bigger. I got these at The Shade Store and I love them VERY much. I highly recommend you don’t mess around with cheap Roman shades. I have before and regretted it. These are so strong, such high quality, and if something goes wrong with them I can call the company and they’ll fix ‘em.

I thought about getting a pattern, but I wanted something more timeless and less busy. I thought about getting a dark color, but then when they are up, they would be a dark messy stripe around the top of the room and I wanted it to feel cleaner. I thought about getting white, but that seemed way too safe and could look too “ready made” and I wanted these to be more custom. I chose a color that was closest to the color of the wall, but in raw silk! It’s really beautiful and textural and slightly reflective. I love them very much. Again, less fabric/movement, less contrast in color = cleaner and quieter. I got a flat panel, so it’s more modern, but for a more traditional/romantic look you could get it pleated … there are a million options. Check out this post on ready made options.

photo by Kimberly Genevieve

7. Match your storage pieces. I have white lacquer Ikea Pax units across from the desks, so I got white lacquer filing cabinets and white lacquer desks. Mixing is totally fine and great, but if you are starting from scratch and want a clean modern feel, then try to keep the storage pieces either matching or high contrast — beige with white can look dirty and weird. Wood and white? Great. White and black? Great, but high contrast obviously. Office furniture doesn’t have to be stylish and often the more stylish pieces (like vintage filing cabinets) aren’t terribly functional.

UPDATE: Since the shoot I’ve added white filing cabinets under the console. I didn’t have them in time to shoot them but that was always kinda the plan:

One is for clients, one is for office/blog, and one is for all things personal. It is totally amazing. I searched for these, making sure they were the perfect fit for that console. I really didn’t want to spend over $150 each since I was getting three of them. These are from Ikea and I can’t seem to find them on the site right now, they were super hard to find in the first place. They are categorized as something strange not, “filing cabinet,” but the Eric is similar, $69.99. These that I bought were the last three within three Ikeas. I had to drive to two Ikeas and 45 miles to buy them, but they are totally worth it.

And then just to give you a sense of the space with relationship to the cabinets, I took this Instagram:

8. Bring in style with accessories, storage, and plants (but within the color palette). I’m not good at leaving surfaces totally empty, but I didn’t want a ton of clutter, so I chose to mix plants and objects in glass domes (to bring pretty reflection and still feel “light”), with pretty design books.

9. Minimize your patterns. The rug is my pattern and it’s bright and fairly bold, so I decided not to bring in any other patterns. Again, more contrast means more visual chaos.

Overall, I love how the office looks and I love going into it every morning. I never knew how emotionally influenced I was by my lack of pretty work space (which is why I REALLY need to redo my nasty rental kitchen) because now I love working at 7am, when the sun has just risen.

So hey big corporations, here’s some advice: If you make your offices attractive and pretty, people will work harder and happier. I can absolutely attest to that.

In case you want to “get the look,” which would flatter ever so much, here are my major sources: