October 31, 2013

When vintage is in...

Not much you can say about this lovely room other than, its GORGEOUS!  I love the all white look, its no secret.  Nice balance of design and texture - wood, crystal, linen, metal and wicker. The faux fireplace is a great focal point. This is just perfect, don't you think?

Yes, please I will move in today!


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Please visit my Pinterest Vintage board for some
more inspiration or my board Snow White's Decor
from 'Once Upon a Time' -

Have a great day!


If you need assistance styling, rearranging,
choosing colors, art, accessories or need
space planning, please contact me at
monacointeriors76@yahoo.com.

October 28, 2013

7 Top Ideas for Being Crafty & Playful for the Bedroom!

7 Top Ideas for Being Crafty and Playful for the Bedroom
Make your bedroom fun and cheerful by getting creative and crafty!


Please welcome guest blogger Jessica Christian from 4 Interior Design blog in the UK!! 

She has some great ideas for adding some fun and unique decorating tips for the bedroom. Please let us know what you think and which idea might be a good addition for a client's home or your own home. 

Unique lighting

Invest in some unique lighting for your bedroom. Create your own unusual lamp shades, designed to cast pools of light and shade on your walls, or even featuring cut out circles, triangles and other shapes. Light does not have to be standard white light anymore, there are colour LED lights on sale at most hardware and home furnishing stores. These allow you to 'paint' with coloured light, creating a wonderfully playful effect in your bedroom. 

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Wall Art
Wall art no longer refers to just paintings, and photographs. You can find or make 3D pieces of art for your room. Once finished and installed on the wall these textured pieces can give a room a wonderful depth, making them excellent for brightening up plain or dull walls. Many shops sell 3D artworks, but they are relatively easy to make, with paper mache, paint and patience! For wall art and wall stickers I always prefer Wall Stickers website or Urban Walls.




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Bean Bags are In!
Bean bags are all the rage this season for stylish yet quirky bedrooms. Invest in a ready-made bean bag in colours that match your bedroom, or make your own using remnant fabric and polystyrene pellets. You can even find a storage bean bag that you fill yourself, with clothes that you do not need at present – for example summer clothes in the winter!


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DIY Furniture
Purchase some modular furniture and have fun rearranging every day! This furniture looks like giant-sized building blocks and you can endlessly make and remake your furniture configuration, changing the look as many times as you like! Modular furniture adds a delightfully fun and childlike air to any room, making it great for all ages, from toddler to pensioner!



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Faces It All
It may sound ridiculous but put faces on your furniture! Large stickers, self-adhesive googly eyes or even carefully drawn or painted faces instantly brighten up any room, adding a touch of whimsy to the atmosphere. Even the back of your bedroom door is a great place for a crafty face as you will be the one who sees it the most – almost as your bedroom is looking out for you and watching over you as you rest and sleep! For comfortable bedding options my utmost personal favorite is Yorkshire Linen Company's website.



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Food Inspirations

Delicious cupcakes, velvety chocolate and even colourful pizza can all be part of your bedroom! Not only can you get your bedding covered in pictures of your favourite foodstuff, you can even find cupcake storage units, chocolate table and chairs and even pizza and lollipop cushions! While perhaps not the best idea if you are trying to diet, food-based décor is very popular at the moment, especially with teenage girls and young women.  The photo below is one example:

(image) + davidelfin







Neon Geometric Designs

Bright neon colours and unusual geometric shapes are perfect to add difference to any room. Make or buy funky lampshades, angular furniture and distinctive bedroom accessories. If this sounds a little too dramatic for your tastes, you can still add that unique mystique to your bedroom by choosing vibrant and unusually patterned bedding! With the great range of styles and fabrics available you are sure to find the perfect playful look that will make your bedroom pop!
 





Be sure and visit Jessica and her blog here for more inspiring design ideas!! Thank you Jessica for contributing today to start the week out with a BANG!!


Enjoy your week and thank you for stopping by!



Please contact me for design services at monacointeriors76@yahoo.com.

October 27, 2013

Sunday in the kitchen...

Care to join me for a scone and some strong Vanilla Spice Chai tea??  Ok, so what don't I LOVE about this kitchen? Its definitely colorful and I really love the happy yellow juxtaposed to the black + white.
The floor is lovely as well - so clean and the yellow lamps - love.  Notice the black and white details above the cabinets and against the wall near the window.  It looks like every detail was very planned and executed just right.




What are you loving?  Do tell -



Enjoy the rest of your day!


Please visit my Pinterest boards for lots more inspiration!!


Need assistance with decorating your home for Christmas?
I can help with holiday, art selection and decoration, room
refresh, color consultation, organizing, textile selection,
office redesign, bath fixture selection, kitchen fixture
selection and space planning.  

Please email me
for more details at monacointeriors76@yahoo.com.











October 25, 2013

Dear Design Diary...the all white bathroom...

Dear Design Diary:  Yes please!! I LOVE and WANT this bathroom!

It has a vintage tub, check, all white walls, check, white pedestal, check, chrome fixtures, natural fiber rug...oh my...I would love to hang out in this space or better yet, have designed it myself. I may have added a little more color with the shower curtain - would it look great with a turquoise curtain??

From Coastal Living -


Do you love this space? Would you design an all white bathroom? What is your
favorite part of this space?

Perfection in a bathroom



Have a great day and don't forget to go to my Pinterest Bathroom Inspiration Board -

or  my other Pinterest Boards

for inspiration -


I am available for VirtualDecor anywhere in the world-
please contact me for details -
I would love to help you make the most of your home
or office!

October 23, 2013

WOW! This is new...INC bedding collection

I found some GREAT bedding at Macy's and didn't realize that the clothing design company 'INC' has created a new home bedding collection.  This collection called 'Bloom' is particularly sophisticated- I couldn't find other pictures except these two.  What do you think? Will you buy these for a client or your own home?

I love the mix of white with the colors and the black
and white - very elegant

A night view still looks great and the furry pillow adds
texture -

(images Macys.com)


These look fresh and modern to me, and gives a
designer lots of options to mix colors.


Have a great day!

Please visit my PINTEREST BOARDS for
more inspiration.


I am available for VirtualDecor from anywhere in the
world.  Please contact me at monacointeriors76@yahoo.com.


October 22, 2013

Design idea #1...curtain as a room divider...

I want to share with you a design 'tip' that I have used and would like to highlight for inspiration.  If you have a hallway or entrance that needs to be visually separated from a living area, or that might be draughty in the winter, or, just needs a little spicing up with color and pattern, then go ahead and add a single panel or pair of curtains.

In my cottage, I added a single panel curtain, though I have used a pair in the past.  One curtain does the trick here. The hallway is a brick floor and one wall is wood paneling (the other is two windows), so, to give it some 'oomph' and add color and pattern in both the living room and hall, I added a blue and white check Swedish style curtain. It also distinguishes between the two areas since there is no door here. I got these curtains a long time ago on sale at JC Penney's home store. I don't think I paid more than $15 for them, so they were a bargain.

View from hall into the living room giving the impression of two
distinct spaces

Curtain is blue, but shows as 'grey-ish' here because of the light


Rugs add more color and tie in with the blue checks in the living room

Looking into the hallway, I know, the paneling is very 70's,
but I love the look of it here - mirrors are from IKEA
and the 'LAKE' sign is vintage

Here, you can see the brick floor and a glimpse into the front
bedroom with my vintage leather footstool I scored for $25!!
The chair is IKEA's Poang with white cover, antique Art
Deco rug


The curtain adds just enough to this application to give the room some
'oomph' as I like to call it.  I can switch it up with a different colored
curtain or add a sheer with it.

When I lived in England, I knew some friends who liked to cover their
front door with a velvet curtain to keep out the cold.

How have you visually separated a space with no door?

What do you do to add some warmth, color or pattern to an entrance
or hallway?

(images by me)
Don't forget to visit my PINTEREST BOARDS FOR INSPIRATION!

THANK YOU FOR STOPPING BY!

I am available for myVirtualDecor design service from anywhere in the
world - my rates are reasonable and I can assist you
with any design project. 

October 20, 2013

Top 8 living rooms...

Hello Bloggers!  I have compiled a list of my picks for the top 8 living rooms.  Please keep in mind these are only my choices and I know there are thousands of living rooms out there that deserve inclusion, but, courtesy of House Beautiful, my choices have lots of similarities as you will discover.  What makes a great room? Color? Texture? Balance? All of the above? Which is your favorite and why?

How is your weekend going?  I spent the day yesterday out in the New Jersey countryside, yes, New Jersey has fabulous country, at the Far Hills Race Meeting.  It is a steeplechase horse racing event on grass for charity and didn't disappoint. Lots of tailgate parties, tweed, wellies and wine to go with it.  Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!


White walls, leggy furniture, pop of color with soft reds, rustic beams
design by Jason Bell; image Simon Upton

White walls, leggy French furniture, natural rug, gold
accents, crystal chandelier - neutral and stunning
image by Bjorn Wallander

White walls, natural rug, leggy furniture, gorgeous pop of pink
design by Jonathan Berger; image Francesco Lagnese

One of my top two!  white walls, pop of yellow and blue,
striped black & white floor, star chandelier
design by Ginger Barber; image Victoria Pearson

White walls, curtains, rug, pops of colors - blue and orange, zebra
chair, gold accents
design by Melissa Warner; image Victoria Pearson


White/creamy walls, natural rug, leggy French chairs, metal tables,
lots of gold, LOVE that sofa
design by Dana Lyon; image Reed Davis

White walls, animal rug, white chairs, leggy tables, bust,
hint of gold in the pillow, black & white
design by Stephen Shubel;  image Luca Trovato


MY FAVORITE:
Design by Hal Williamson
Image John Kernick


Mauve walls, leggy French furniture, gold
accents, natural blinds, silky curtains, crystal chandelier

I LOVE French and Swedish furniture
in this type of room - it always looks
beautiful and adds 'legs' -

See any similarities?  I do - lots of white, animal
accessories, gold accents, natural elements,
pops of color, symmetry in some of the rooms;
my favorite room has mauve walls, but I could
see them with a soft white as well - this room is perfect to
me.  The crystal, the gold and the furniture are 
just wonderful; I only wish I could see the front of 
the sofa!!  I have studied this room ad nauseam and I never
tire of it.  Great design should never be tiresome, it 
should always be inspiring.  

With that said, I am available for e-design from anywhere
in the world - please visit my 'Services' page for information-
I am flexible as well, depending upon the project or work
needed.  

Do you have a favorite room from this list? Please let
me know which one and why in the comments below!

Also please visit my Pinterest Boards and
my Whites and Neutrals Board in particular 
for more inspirational rooms-





October 3, 2013

Olivia Newton John's kitchen...

Hello bloggers! Hope you are all doing well!  I am taking some time off for myself after moving and am always looking for inspiration.  I came across one of my favorite celeb's house for sale and really love the kitchen and had to share it with you.  

The kitchen is light with natural wood - the cabinets are stunning

Another view with furniture and lots of glass

I love this bathroom with the vintage style tub, glass and light

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I also added the picture of the bathroom as I love the look as well.
I could definitely live here, could you?

Thanks for visiting!
Have a great rest of the week!


Please contact me for interior styling, staging or assisting
with choosing fixtures for kitchen or bath.