So, sofa.  What shall I do with you?  Recover you?  Slipcover you?  Or send you to the frat boys?  Perhaps my earlier re-upholstery story scared you a little  bit. You probably didn’t think it would cost quite so much to re-upholster, did you? I’m sorry. That’s just the way it is.   Before you spend $1,000 or more re-upholstering, you might want to consider the option of just replacing your sofa with a new one. If your sofa or chair didn’t pass the spring tension bar test  I mentioned in the earlier article, you might not want to re-upholster because you won’t be putting that effort and …

There’s a hole smack dab in the center cushion. The piping is coming out of the cushions edge, and lord only knows what that stain is on the arm. Sigh. To recover or to ditch it? That is the question. Oh, girl, you are LONG past getting it steam cleaned. You can just forget that. It’s time to get serious. That sofa has definitely seen better days.  Does a trip to the fabric store leave you frazzled?  Do the “Upholstery” yellow pages make you green?  Did the price tags on new sofas in the furniture store frighten you?  What’s a girl to do?  Or a guy for that matter. As if guys care about …

Here’s my idea of fun:  Roaming around Lowe’s or Home Depot and looking at stuff and thinking of what I can make with it. I know.  I need to get a life, right?   I just find it fun to get creative with raw materials.  What an item is intended for doesn’t necessarily lock the item into that role.  The fun part is thinking about what else an item can be.  Recently I had to fabricate some enormous draperies, made of burlap, for a restaurant in Woodstock, Georgia.  I was working with my friend and fellow designer Jordan Woodruff.  She was converting an old train station into a restaurant for her …

I'm about to rock your world, people.   I bet you didn't know you can paint your upholstered furniture pieces! Yep.  It's true.  And it's not too difficult or expensive. Recently my friend Trisha asked me to keep an eye out for a cherry red chair for story-time in her little girl's room.  She said she had found the perfect chair at Goodwill, size-wise, at least.  It was only $35 but was an ugly green plaid.  I told her about textile paint and she 'bout knocked me down running to her car to go back to Goodwill to get that chair! There is such a thing as textile paint. (gasp!)  You heard me!  …

The first two articles on this subject made mention of wood poles with rings in regards to one method with which you can hang your drapes.  The functionality of fabrics definitely come into play when considering your drapery hardware. I mentioned in last week's article that I had used wood poles with wood rings in the sunroom of a client in which we used sheer, white, pinch pleated drapes.  We used wands as our method of closure.  This worked great because despite the large span of windows, the weight of the sheer curtains was so light that the wood rings glided easily across the pole. …

Last week we talked about appropriate fabrics for my clients' roman shades.  Of course you can make Roman shades out of several other fabric selections such as silk or sheer fabrics, but her room-darkening needs helped us narrow down what to choose from given an almost unlimited number of available fabrics. Today let’s talk about what kind of fabrics one might choose for drapes, and while we’re at it, we will touch on the style of drapes you might want to consider for your rooms.  Drapes can be functional or just decorative.   And that is the number one factor you have to consider when …

Recently I heard from a previous client, Lynn, who has decided she wants new Roman Shades for her bedroom.   We have done lots of window treatments for her home in the past.  Everything from adding silk accent bands to her existing Pottery Barn velvet drapes, to custom drapes on wood poles for her living room, to sheer stationary shades with beaded trim in her stairwell. She and her husband like their bedroom to be dark for sleeping, and they decided they wanted to block out as much light as possible from the streetlights in their neighborhood.   Their upstairs bedroom windows are short, so …

Several years ago I made a few appearances on HGTV's "Decorating With Style".   One of the projects I featured was one I had just completed for my own home: a skirted vanity table that required no sewing. I purchased a kidney shaped particleboard table and used fabrics from which I had custom designed my guest room.  As you can see on the video, I used fusible webbing, an iron and ironing board, and a staple gun to create my "no sew" table skirt.   Over the years I have created several similar vanities or night tables in this fashion for my clients and for my own home.  It's an easy and …

My friend Bryn is one of the most talented, hilarious, artistic people I know.  Every time I step foot in her gorgeous home I feel like I should go home and paint something, re-arrange some shelves or prop some pillows in a more Bryn-like fashion. She and her landscape architect husband Chris have, over the last 10 years, restored their five points home with lots of tender loving care and do-it-yourself talent. The house is a myriad of added-on rooms with strange connections compliments of the previous owners, but it makes for very interesting twists and turns and intriguing passageways.  …

In last week's article I introduced you to the phases of our master bedroom in our beautiful old home. I mentioned that window #2 looking out onto our laundry room had been an annoyance.  It took me a couple of years to find the solution and the time and funds to correct it.  I was busy with my design business and, like the cobbler with no shoes, I rarely had time to think about my own house! I had made a wall-mounted canopy for a client's bedroom, and decided that would be the perfect solution to that one icky window in our room.  Making this change would also allow us to have larger night …

There's a world where I can go and tell my secrets toIn my room... I do my dreaming and my scheming... -Beach Boys "In my room" My Dad's job and my own life's journeys had me move a zillion times in my life until I was married in 1993.  However, my room has always been a haven to me.  Things that were constant despite the four walls being different were monumentally important to me when I was growing up and even into my adult years. Since the superb discovery of wedded bliss, and our current room being the second of two we have shared, our bedroom is even more precious to us. Bedtime chats, …

Halloween is coming up, Thanksgiving right behind that, then, of course, Christmas.  All of these holidays have one thing in common. No, not fruits and vegetables with a common color theme of orange.  The desire to wreath.   You heard me.  You know what I’m talking about.  Door wreaths.  For some reason these particular holidays make us want to decorate our doors.  Why? I have no idea.  Personally, I have a love/hate relationship with the circular door décor.  While many wreaths can be, well, allow me to be blunt….TACKY, I adore a well crafted naturalistic display.  One that is the definition…

Last week's article introduced you to the concept that how you design your kids' rooms might have an impact on their personality as they get older.   There are studies all over the Internet about just that subject.   It has become a current trend to pay attention to.  It can’t hurt, can it?  To help your child choose a color she loves, to cater to her interests within her personal space?  Children’s imaginations are so vivid, their viewpoints so open.   Why not use those treasures to help create a comfort zone for them? Over the years I have assisted in many such cases.  Sometimes décor for …

What do you remember about your childhood bedroom?  Did you share with a sibling?  Bunk beds or a trundle bed?  Was your room something you cared about and kept tidy or was it a big mess? If you are from my generation you likely had a store-bought or hand-me-down bedspread and Beatles posters on the wall.  Maybe even black-light posters or a lava lamp! I had a tri-fold poster, from the inside of a '78 record, of Bobby Sherman in tight leather pants, a huge collared shirt open down to his navel, gold chains, and a white chair shaped like an open palm in the photo with him.  Ha!  “Julie, Julie…

My clients Scott and Charmayne had both lived on their own for several years before they happily found each other and got married.    The wedding was lovely, the couple beautiful,  and the honeymoon romantic.  Once they were back home, two houses full of accumulated furniture and art had to be combined into one happy home.  In order to retain the wedded bliss, they enlisted my help! Scott had some great art work.  Collections of vintage black and white photos, nicely framed, of his home town of St. Simons Island, waterskiing competition photos, and lots of Bulldog memorabilia.  He also had …

Are you enjoying the grand tour of Martha’s fantastic home?  I enjoyed every second of that job.  Martha was so easy to work with and so happy with everything we did that the entire experience was a joy.  In fact, I can only think of one thing she wasn’t happy with, a watercolor art piece that I adored, but she did not!  I pouted.  She crossed her arms.  She won.  I kept the watercolor and it’s now in my dining room and one of my favorite things, so it’s all good! Okay, onto the upstairs.  First on the agenda was her stairwell that turned at a landing halfway up.  One of the first things I …

I told you Martha’s house was fun!  The last two weeks I’ve introduced you to Martha’s project, and shared with you her living room,  den, and office design solutions. Today I want to tell you about her fabulous kitchen and dining room.   They turned out so gorgeous! Martha’s kitchen had been recently remodeled by a high-profile kitchen designer in Atlanta.  Martha is a fabulous chef in addition to her many other talents and she and the kitchen designer concentrated on making her kitchen gourmet-chef friendly.  They put a lot of thought and effort toward sleek cabinetry, storage, and top-…

Last week I introduced you to Martha's house.  It is an eclectic blend of craftsman exterior, traditional antique furnishings, contemporary art, colorful collections, and fine exotic Turkish rugs! Quite a combination, eh?  Well, it's a known fact among my peeps that I am a miracle worker.  So here is how I made it all work for the downstairs rooms. As I mentioned before, Martha's den and living room flanked each other with a cased opening separating the two, and a portion of the living room actually served as the foyer since the front door opened directly into the room. A shelf-lined office …

A brick craftsman style two-story, sitting on a quiet tree lined street near campus is the picture of home-sweet-home perfection.  And when I pulled up curbside for our first meeting and saw Martha traipsing around her front yard in black slacks, a crisp, white linen blouse, and flat sandals embellished with big pink flowers, I said to myself, “I love her already”. I knew I would.  Martha is the sister of one of my favorite clients and friends, Sara.  Both girls are attorneys, and like most sisters, they share a lot of fun things including their decorator! Once I stepped into Martha’s house, …

In last week's article I mentioned that one of my gifts as a designer is putting stuff in its proper place and having a vision for unusual applications. I also mentioned that this gift is not necessarily something that can be taught, but is instead developed.  I have to give my sweet mother credit for at least part of my developed gift. Her style was not at all cluttered and was always organized and tidy. On a recent visit home I started noticing things I’d taken for granted over the years but now saw more vividly since I’ve been writing these articles.  I think so much now, in story-speak, …