Cocktails & Art

Yesterday we had a little fun. The folks at Palmetto & Cannon Properties threw a cocktail party featuring my art in their newly renovated, historic Charleston home. The house was a perfect backdrop for my paintings with exposed brick and beams, reclaimed floors and accent lighting. Perfect weather, great company and yummy food. Here are a few snaps from the party.

Winds over Kiawah could not look any better in this setting.

It's as if this space and painting were made to be together.

Banff Cascades Garden popped against the brick and was the focal point downstairs.

Mod Undercurrents No. 1 & No. 2 set against an exposed fireplace.





Mod Undercurrent No. 3 sold at party.

Kari, Liz and Jill. Liz was kind enough to loan me two of her purchased pieces for the show that she expertly framed, such as the Fashion in Repose illustration below. 

Chi Town Interiors

I will be working non stop all week in Chicago, so I won't have lovely architecture and fab pics to share. But, if you've ever been to Merchandise Mart and longed over every bath and interior you could see, then you know Chicago has some serious style. It's style without trying to be pretentious...like they don't really have to try to hard...just regal and unexcused. You might want to shield the eyes of your wallet on these...a few Chicago design loves:

You don't expect some incredible sunrooms, but Kara Mann took black framed, metal windows top and bottom. Let the light in!

Gray blue walls, deep turquoise settee and a serene condo living area. James Thomas.

Love a black ceiling with this wallpaper. James Thomas.

Summer Thorton Design.

Thornton again with a closet that should be in a boutique!

Quite possibly the most amazing jade and gold bar cart ever. This has "out of my price range" written all over it! Via Summer Thorton.

Kara Mann is not messing around. I don't like drama in my life, but I wouldn't mind a room that has some drama to it. What a hot bath!

Art Features & Thank You

Happy Sunday! I'm off to Chicago for a week, but before leaving I wanted to show some photos of my art framed by clients in their homes as well as give a special thank you to those that have featured me on their blogs.

A commissioned piece works brilliantly with a client's fab pillows. Via To Kansas With Love.

Two Banff Paintings placed in gorgeous gold frames that carry the movement all the way to the edge!

If you want to see the Banff Poppies & Roses framed and placed near some pink and green, Charleston Revisions has these two up next to some Turkish Ts. Love the way they pop against a gray wall.

And, a special thank you to recent blog features!

The Couture Life

It's Like This

Beau V

The Mean Mom Chronicles

Top Shops of Etsy

Lime Zinnias

More Campaign Finds

While I was posting not too long ago on Campaign Furniture and my new found vintage dresser, I stumbled upon the most fabulous nursery furniture. No, I am not prego, but if I was, these would be snapped up so fast. Think of that soft pink, black and white pairing. Or, ring in a boy with just black, white and maybe a few safari animal prints. Hmm, or go with some regal navy and sailboat pics for a boy. The possibilities are endless. Anyway, I found House of Honey and fell in love with their style.

Changing table/chest.

Super chic crib.

Hampton Designer Showhouse. See my post on it here.

Moving into a big kid bed!

And, just a few more from House of Honey designs. Tamara Kaye-Honey is the designer behind the company. I like her exclamation of "The New Vintage." Think that's what I'm calling my style now:-)

Love, love, love. Her blog is going up on my favorites!

How to Light Art

Hi! I’m Joanna, a writer for Arcadian Lighting, a must-shop source for brilliant lighting fixtures including the types shown here. I’d like to thank Jennifer for allowing me to share a guest post about lighting artwork. Not only is correct lighting important for aesthetics, artwork can be damaged by the wrong lighting. Below are some tips and examples for successful lighting.

Meant for smaller artworks, picture lights (pictured above) draw attention directly to the details in the piece. Want to bring warm colors out in your artwork? Use incandescent bulbs.

"Fashion in Repose" Ink and Gold on Professional Archival Paper would look lovely lit by a single picture light to pick up its gold details.

Bendable and adjustable, monorail lighting is versatile enough to create unique light schemes in a sophisticated and highly aesthetic way. It is the perfect lighting fixture for a wall gallery of paintings or photographs.

Jennifer’s Spring Missoni & Chanel Inspired Series would look lovely lit with monorail lighting. Tip: Be sure to steer clear of direct natural light and fluorescents as the UV rays can damage and fade artwork.

Gooseneck lights provide focused directional light on artwork. They’re adjustable so you can pick out a specific area of the art you’d like to highlight.

Coco Chanel Garden "Camellia" Inspired Abstract would look lovely highlighted by a single gooseneck light. These lights are made to prevent upwards light.

Some experts like subtle indirect light sources to light art such as floor lamps, wall sconces (shown here) and table lamps. All of these in addition to a picture light will bring the beauty out in your art.

Jennifer’s 31 RUE CAMBON #2 would look lovely over the fireplace and lit with several of the light sources shown above to make the gold glow and the pinks pop. Images 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

I hope these tips help when it comes to lighting you artwork, it is always great when lighting enhances a painting instead of overpowering it. Which type of lights do you prefer to use when showcasing your art? Comment below and don't forget to check out all of art worthy monorail lights at Arcadian Lighting.

Haute Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas are everywhere right now in decor---pink, blue, purple, white, faded green... For us in the South, they were gone long ago except for the homes that bought the Endless Summer variety. For those up North, they seem to be wrapping up in glory. In addition to them being all over the Hampton Designer Showhouse, they seem to be making a bit a lead over the all time winner peony. It's obvious that I love flowers...goodness knows I paint enough of them! Here's an homage to hydrangeas:

Via Decorista. She might have my all time favorite design blog tied with La Dolce Vita. They aren't constantly trying to make a buck promoting sponsors and silly product features. So, back to the picture --not only are the pillows popping, but love the floor canister filled with fresh blooms.

House of Interior Designer Patricia Fisher. She has a different color (which I'll explain later) in every room freshly cut...plus a full suite of bursting bushes off her patio! Featured in Traditional Home.  

Love that back splash.

Yep, you kind of wish that was your side yard. Via The Enchanted Home.

Vintage sunburst mirror with a serious floral display that is possibly outshining the fab purses.

You can take them into black and white posh. Full white blooms set off black and gold. Via Decor Pad.  Kelly Wearstler fabric in background of course!

So, in that tone, here are my Haute Hydrangeas in Acid. For most hydrangeas, they will be in an acidic soil and bloom blue and purple.

Haute Hydrangeas in Alkaline. I wanted the pinks to show some edge for their unique color. Very hard to get the pinks, but you can doctor the soil to get them this color.

Home Feature - Hampton Designer Showhouse

We all dream about it...you know, the Cape Cod looking beach house with weathered cedar shake siding, white trimmed windows adorning every space, hydrangeas bursting over the lawn, sweeping ocean views... Sigh, in the mean time, we can still take out pics of Diane Keaton's home in As Good as It Gets, but also take a peek at Traditional Home's Designer Showhouse.



Perfectly colorful, rich and bright all at the same time!

More of the entryway.

Bakes & Company Kitchen. Hello backsplash!

Guest suite. I am in love with the chair and curtain fabric.

Great gallery art wall in the den. Blue hydrangeas were everywhere in the house.

More beautiful, rich blues!

Master bedroom by Robert Passal.

Of course, Tobi Fairley nailed this bedroom.

Check out the ceiling stripes!