I’ve been on a quest for drapery hardware for my dining room.  I mean, I am finally getting curtains made – you know what they say about the cobbler’s children have no shoes, right? – and it just won’t do that I can’t put them up.  But it’s been a tougher search than I expected.  So many companies either don’t offer any finials that I like – too fussy!  too ornate! – or don’t have the finish that I need.  Until now.  Enter The Finial Company!  Seriously, with a name like The Finial Company, how could they not carry something that fits my clean and modern, yet classic aesthetic??  The Finial Company also offers an amazing array of finishes – really, I don’t know any other line at its price point that has such a great selection – so I knew I’d be able to find the finish I needed. 

What do you think?  It’s part of the Neo-Classics collection, which I think describes it perfectly.  I love how the finial is almost the “typical” crystal ball … but not quite.  I think the little “bubbles” are fabulous.  I’m still waiting on the finish samples – pewter is shown in the photo - but I will likely go with silver patina or platinum.  Now my drapery hardware really will be the jewelry my windows “deserve!”

Where did you find your drapery hardware?  Are you interested in drapery hardware from The Finial Company?  It’s sold to the design trade only, but I’d be glad to help you!       

Photo from Read Window

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“I’m all about exuberance.  We only have one short life to live, and we shouldn’t waste it being tasteful.”

- Isaac Mizrahi (as quoted in Elle Decor)

Photo via A Mom in Red High Heels

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I have so many fun things that I want to post about, but I’m feeling as though I should close a few of the topics that I’ve opened before I go on to something else!  I’ve already told you that we just redid my laundry room.  Hardly the most exciting renovation, I know, but necessary all the same - as you will soon find out.  Let’s just say that motherhood doesn’t always look like this …  

My twin boys are now toddlers, but it was only a few short years ago that they were eating every three hours around the clock … and Mommy and Daddy were perpetually exhausted!  They were also reflux babies – meaning spit-up everywhere and every time – which meant lots and lots and lots of laundry.  The one-minute-older twin’s reflux didn’t stop until he was a year old (adjusted age), so I went through cases of Dreft stain spray.  (Works like a charm, by the way!) 

Where am I going with this?  Well, one day I needed to let some stained clothes soak.  I turned on the water to fill up the sink and left to do something else (there was always something else to do!) while it filled up.   Figured it out yet?  I forgot that the water was on … and didn’t remember until the sink was overflowing, every drawer in the cabinet box was filled with water, and the floor was flooded.  Not. A. Good. Idea.  At that point, I got out the Rainbow vacuum and sucked up as much water as possible.   Unbelievably, the drawers and the cabinet box dried out well … and there was no apparent damage. 

Until I did it again.  That’s right; I did it again.  My hubby and I like to say that our family motto is “go big or go home.”  Well, I went big!   This time I flooded the laundry room with hot water.  I didn’t remember that I had left the water running even when my husband asked why all of our windows were steaming up.  Finally, I went into the laundry room and found water everywhere.  Again, the sink was overflowing … only this time, the water had peeled the paint behind the sink.  Again, every drawer of the cabinet box was flooded … only this time, the drawers were swollen and warped.  Again, the floor was flooded … only this time, the quarter round at the base of the cabinet split.  Impressive, huh?  

I broke the Rainbow vacuum out again and did what I could.  Weeks later, when the cabinet finally dried out, the drawers were functional again … but the warped drawer fronts didn’t magically return to their previous condition and the quarter round stayed split.  Of course, the paint behind the sink was still peeling.  At that point, we knew we’d have to replace the cabinet box, but it didn’t seem worth it to turn a claim into our homeowners’ insurance.  When we built the house, we used inexpensive materials in the laundry room to save money … and the countertops and faucet always looked out of place.  So we knew that, when we replaced the cabinet box, we would redo the rest of the laundry room … but given that it’s just a room for laundry, it was hardly our top priority. 

Fast forward to today … I was really tired of my warped drawers (not to mention that laminate countertop I never liked), and I knew that Kara at Navmak could help me renovate my laundry room for a reasonable price.  So here’s what it looked like once the cabinet box got ripped out …

And stay tuned for the after.  Just because it’s functional (and not too expensive), doesn’t mean it can’t be pretty!   

Photo from Second Sister Suaviloquy    

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As I mentioned in an earlier blog post, Molly M. from Charlotte emailed me a while ago with the following question -

Hi Traci,
I read a post you had written about paint color, specifically how the iPhone has an app allowing you to color match by simply taking a picture of a paint color. My question is this... I'm trying to figure out the exact paint and trim color that B.D. Jeffries used in their new Morrison Blvd. store in Charlotte. When I asked, even the store clerks said they didn't know. So, would using this app be the best way to determine this? If not, any advice you could give would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

After some exhaustive research, here’s my answer to Molly!

Thanks so much for writing, Molly!  I love getting questions from my blog readers, so I really appreciate your email.  Unfortunately, you inadvertently gave a great example of an instance in which the iPhone applications (either Ben Color Capture or Sherwin-Williams Color Snap) really do not work at all!  As anyone who has visited the B.D. Jeffries store in the Shops at Morrison can attest, the main wall color is very unique shade that seems to vary between blue, green and gray depending on the light.  The iPhone applications only work to the extent that the photograph you use in the application accurately represents the color you are trying to achieve.  I found it impossible to take a photograph – either on my iPhone or using a good quality digital camera (and then importing that photo into my iPhone) – that accurately reflected the wall color in a way that would allow either of the iPhone applications to give an accurate color match.  I also tried using my Benjamin Moore Pocket Palette – a portable spectrophotometer (the more sophisticated and non-portable versions of which are used in Lowe’s, Home Depot and every major paint chain to match colors to an existing sample) that has generally given me very accurate results.  As you can imagine, the advantage of the Pocket Palette is that it works directly from the surface of the wall, fabric, or other material.  That means you don’t have to worry about a color being “lost in translation” when photographed.  Interestingly, however, the Pocket Palette did not give me an accurate result either … which meant to me that the B.D. Jeffries wall color was not a standard Benjamin Moore color.  That left three options – that the wall color was custom-mixed by Benjamin Moore, was a standard color from another paint manufacturer/brand, or was custom-mixed by another paint manufacturer/brand.   

Now I was curious … and maybe a teensy bit frustrated.  So I decided to “impersonate” the Designer Detective and see what I could find out.  Let me add here that the “real” Designer Detective is one of my blogger friends Shay Sampson – and she’s just as beautiful in person as her picture – and I highly recommend you add her Designer Detective blog to your must-read list!

At this point, Molly and I emailed back and forth a little more, and she shared with me that the wall color in the previous B.D. Jeffries store – which was located in Phillips Place – was a custom-mixed Duron color.  That piece of information immediately made me think about the Millenium Collection, a wonderful color collection used by Duron years ago and since discontinued.  Now here is where it gets confusing …  Duron sold the Millenium Collection to California Paints … so it became the California Paints Millenium Collection.  California Paints also discontinued the Millenium Collection … so you cannot get sample paint chips anywhere.  If you have a Millenium Collection fan deck (either Duron or California Paints, because they are identical), however, you can ask to have a specific color made.  Of course, the original Duron Millenium Collection was mixed using Duron colorants … which, because Sherwin-Williams acquired Duron – are no longer available.  So, even if you have the color made up – by Duron, California Paints, or any other paint retailer – it may still vary slightly from the “original” Duron version because the colorants used are different.  Whew.  I’m exhausted already.  Still following me??  These facts also mean that the formula for the wall color in the previous B.D. Jeffries store is meaningless, as the “new” Duron has no way to translate a formula using the old colorants to a formula using its current (Sherwin-Williams) colorants.  In other words, to all of those folks who got the paint formula for the previous B.D. Jeffries store (and I know there were a lot of you), I hope you’ve already had it mixed up … because, if you haven’t, you are out of luck. 

Fortunately, I am the proud owner of a California Paints Millenium fan deck … which, now that I own one after seriously a year of perusing eBay, I intend to never let out of my possession!  So I took both of my Benjamin Moore fan decks (Color Preview and Classic Colors), my California Paints Millenium Collection fan deck, and my Sherwin-Williams fan deck to B.D. Jeffries to see what I could come up with. Yes, I’m pretty sure the B.D. Jeffries staff thought I was insane.  I think I was in yoga clothes at this point, so it was hardly an impressive sight. 

OK, to fast-forward this painfully long process just a bit, I had a quart of each of the closest matches made up over at Eastway Paint, painted sample boards (I do them basically like Maria at Colour Me Happy does), and hauled them back to B.D. Jeffries.  At this point, I had nailed the trim color, but I still wasn’t completely satisfied with the wall color.  So I marched myself back to Eastway Paint and asked Frank to tweak my existing colors – making one a little bluer, one a little grayer, and then mixing the two colors 50-50.  I painted sample boards again and went back to B.D. Jeffries.  Fortunately, they still had not called security to deal with the crazy stalker lady.  Ha ha ha!  And, after all of that, finally I was happy.  So here’s the rest of my answer to Molly. 

Molly, the trim color is almost certainly California Paints 8775D, Metal Shavings.  The wall color is still not exact, which might be due to the unavailability of the old Duron colorants.  That being said, I think I’ve gotten really close, so I hope you are happy!  The best approximation of the wall color that I was able to find seems to be California Paints 8613M (Shenandoah) made a little bit grayer by the addition of 1/2 BV.  (Don’t worry, Frank knows what that means.)  Benjamin Moore 472 (Aganthus Green) is also pretty close, so Molly, I’m going to send you all three of these sample boards so you can judge for yourself.  Happy painting … and I’d love to see a photo if you use these colors in your own home!   

Do you have a burning design question?  Email me; I’d love to do more question-and-answer posts.  Heck, I’ll take your non-design questions, too, but no guarantees that you’ll get a high quality answer to those!  Ha ha!   

Photo from the B.D. Jeffries Facebook fan page

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You may know Barbara Cosgrove for her lamps … which are rather fabulous.  I particularly like the Antique Pewter Bamboo Lamp, the Turned White Table Lamp, and the Pharmacy Floor and Table Lamps.  But I’m currently in love with her super cute and reasonably priced X-Framed Corkscrew Prints, which are part of a modest selection of home accent pieces.  

To me, the prints almost look like a version of something Natural Curiosities would do.  When I first saw these, I thought of The Bachelorette in particular.  She’s a wine aficionado (or if you feel like being fancy, an oenophile), so the prints are perfect for her kitchen/breakfast area … and we just happen to need some art in there.  I think we’re going to get back to the rest of the to-do list, so hopefully there will be more photos from The Bachelorette very soon! 

Photo from Barbara Cosgrove Lamps.

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I’m back in North Carolina – and back to work – after a fantastic little vacay to southern California.  Lest you think that I didn’t do anything productive, I have a few tidbits to share with you, my dear readers.  So here goes …

(1) Toddlers touch everything.  Twelve hours of traveling means that one cannot avoid taking said toddler to the airport bathrooms.  Eeewwwww.  There’s not enough Purell to make that OK.    

(2) Twins really, really, really, really miss each other when they are apart. 

(3) More airports should have toy stores that show Dora the Explorer videos.  Thank you, Houston.   This does nothing to change my opinion of Dora the Explorer furniture.  

(4) Even sunny California experiences yucky January weather.  Mother Nature must still have a hangover from the holidays.

(5) I am now obsessed with Sprinkles cupcakes but I’ll pass on the Pinkberry’s.

(6) There’s nothing better than a good friend. 

I miss SoCal already.  Back to our regularly scheduled programming tomorrow!

Thanks to Jo Dee Messina for the title of this post!

Gratuitous photo taken at the October 2009 High Point Furniture Market for the sole purpose of showing my twins.  Lea Furniture – which does manufacture some really great youth furniture – debuted their Nickelodeon-themed furniture at market … and SpongeBob and Dora were everywhere!   

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I'm walking on sunshine ... or at least I hope to be!  We've been experiencing record low temperatures here in North Carolina, so I am especially delighted to be headed to sunny California on a mini-break.  One of my twinnies and I will be taking off in the morning to visit a fabulous friend and her family.  The O.C. is my home away from home - my husband and I got married at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel - and I'm thrilled to get back there just in time to celebrate my friend's birthday.  So, I'll be taking a brief break from the blogging ...  but I'll see you back here next Thursday.  If you really need a design fix, check out a few of my favorite design blogs; the links are on the right side of this page.  À bientôt!

Hey, alright now ... and don't it feel good!  Thanks to Katrina and the Waves for the title of today's post.  Photo from the St. Regis Monarch Beach.

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I told you back in December that Santa’s elves were busy with some minor remodeling around my house … so have a look at the first project!

As an early Christmas present to my husband, we bought a Bosch induction cooktop to replace an existing gas cooktop.  Cooking with magnetic induction is increasingly popular because it is faster, more energy-efficient than either gas or electric, and safer (because only the part of the cooktop surface that is covered by a pot becomes hot to the touch).  The temperature can also be adjusted instantly and with great precision.  I was thrilled by the cooktop for several reasons.  Because the cooktop is flat, it’s easier to clean than the gas cooktop was.  My toddler boys like to stand close to my husband while he’s cooking, which made me nervous with the gas flame.  And then there’s that one time that I put a dish towel too close to the flame and the towel caught fire.  Whatever. 

Our options for an induction cooktop were limited by the fact that our installation is in a kitchen island and requires a popup downdraft, but so far we have been really pleased with the Bosch.  A huge thanks to Queen City Appliance who figured out that the Bosch would work for us and to NAVMAK for handling the entire project!  NAVMAK employed an experienced installer and local celebrity, Ray Terry of “Around Your House” on WFNZ, to handle the actual installation.  He did a great job … and even convinced me of the benefits of an almetal dryer vent.

That leads me to the next project – the laundry room re-do.  Stay tuned for this amusing story … but all’s well that ends well!

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“The glamour and glitz are fine, but at the end of the day, a comfortable place to come home to is what it’s all about for me.”

- Kelly Hoppen (as quoted in Metropolitan Home)

Photo of Kelly Hoppen’s London loft by David Garcia for Metropolitan Home

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I’ve already confessed that I am no Jenny (of Little Green Notebook).  But I had a great idea for my closet that prompted a little do-it-yourself … tzd style!

If you are facing the entrance of my closet (from the inside), there’s a tiny little space to the left of the door that is occupied only by a light switch.  I had hung a little – and I mean really, really little - ribbon memo board above the light switch so that I could stick up photos, memorabilia, and little odds-and-ends.  Obviously, the board couldn’t hold much … but I figured it was better to use that space for something rather than nothing. 

But then I had a brainstorm and decided to use …

Rust-Oleum Magnetic Primer!  Have you heard about magnetic primer before?  Most of the buzz you read is about chalkboard paint this, and chalkboard paint that.  Well, I am just too much of an allergic neat freak to tolerate chalkboard dust.  But a magnetic bulletin board – now, that’s no mess, no fuss … and, like a diy chalkboard, you can use every last inch of your space! 

Here’s how easy it is – slap the primer up on the wall and paint over it with any color you fancy.  That’s it … and voila! 

So what do you think?  It’s the black space to the left of the French doors.  Now I can use the entire space, from baseboard to overhead shelf, to post anything I please.  You can see a few things that I’ve put up already – pictures of my precious goddaughter, a Chanel ad that I think is just fabulous, and a Polaroid from long ago. 

Can’t you imagine all kinds of uses for this magnetic board project?  I would totally use it in a child’s playroom, in a mudroom or other main “family” entry to the house, or even a wall in a kitchen.  If you don’t want to do an entire wall, but instead a defined area, you could frame it out with inexpensive pieces of molding.   Super cute way to get organized … and cheap!

I do have a few little tips to make it even easier and more successful.  First, the Rust-Oleum packaging suggests that three thin coats are better than two thick ones.  This only makes sense really – you need the tiny, tiny pieces of metal in the primer to be spread as evenly as possible over your surface.  Without the little pieces of metal in a particular area, your magnet won’t stick.  For that reason, I used five thin coats of paint.  In my space, the magnets are sticking really well, although you still can’t use a super-heavy magnet (like a clip-style magnet).  But it is more than sufficient for holding up photos and magazine tear sheets.  Also, you can paint any color you want over the magnetic primer, which makes the wall surface magnetic and able to blend into any surrounding space.  As you might imagine, however, the primer is a dark gray … so if you go for a light color, it will likely require more than a few coats.  Because I already have black French doors at the entry to my closet, I just decided to do my “magnet board” black as well.  I ran to Home Depot and purchased a Behr Premium Plus Ultra sample size ($2.99!), mixed up in Ralph Lauren Bone Black.  That little jar did the trick for my small space!        

Are you going to try this diy project in your own home?  I’d love to see your photos!  You can send them to me at traci@tracizeller.com or upload them to my Traci Zeller Designs fan page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/tracizellerdesigns). 

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