Posted in Inspiration, Musings, tagged chartreuse & co, home, mantel, vignette on February 29, 2012| 7 Comments »
So many beautiful, unique items leave Chartreuse & co every month, and I’ve always wanted to see how each one fits into it’s new home. Here’s one customer’s delightful new mantel vignette of Chartreuse finds. Click on the pictures to enlarge.
I’d love to see images of how your Chartreuse & co finds have nestled into your home.
Thanks for reading,
Virginia
Posted in Inspiration, tagged decor, laundry, laundry room, style on February 28, 2012| 6 Comments »
I hate doing laundry. And I blame my laundry room. You see, I love the fresh smell of clean clothes. I like to wear clean clothes. I like my family to wear clean clothes. But somehow the whole process of laundering is unappealing. Clearly it’s the laundry room environment that’s the cause of my problem.
Yet the room itself isn’t bad. A rather awkward 10′ x 20′ space, all brick with a 20′ wall of glass.
It's a great view. Unfortunately, the window sill is also my storage shelf for laundry supplies. Treat this as a 'Don't' photo, please.
So why complain?
I really can’t stand the raw red brick; it’s not that wonderful, old, crumbly, exposed brick. It’s circa 1969 industrial brick.
It's way too much like ugly, fake brick, but it solid, and must be dealt with.
Not good. And there’s just zero order (okay, this part may be my fault).
I have shelves with bins from The Container Store for all the sheets. But what of the towels, tablecloths, vintage linens, out-of-season clothes? They’re everywhere! I don’t even want to clean them before I need them, because I have nowhere to put them. It’s very sad.
Clearly I need some intervention, so here’s some inspiration I’ve found:
Love the white-painted, beaded board walls in this one. I also like the texture and order of the natural baskets.
Notice how the supplies are in pretty containers. Note to self: Get rid of the huge, orange box of Tide.
This is a cool idea, but as I'm 5'1", it's just never gonna work. But I like it.
I also like the little caddy, nicely comtaining all the stray supplies.
Source: remodelista.com via Virginia – on Pinterest
Ahh, this is the one. This is the inspiration for my new laundry room. So what do I take away from this one (besides the obvious element: I don’t like to see my washer and dryer)?
1. White walls and ceiling
2. No curtains on the windows
3. Minimal accessorizing
4. Limited, neutral color palette (although I may need to add some soft blue to the mix)
5. Soften with natural wood
What do you think? I’d love to see your laundry room, and/or the laundry rooms that inspire you.
I’ll keep you posted on my progress.
Thanks for reading,
Virginia
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged chartreuse & co, flea market, occasional sale, style on February 21, 2012| 2 Comments »
Have you seen Flea Market Style magazine? I knew I would love it when their first ever issue (just a year or so ago) featured a map of the USA with all the best huge flea market/vintage sales in the country. I just wanted to jump in the Suburban and hit every one of them!
And how do they follow such a trove of information? Why, by listing all the best ‘occasional sales’ in the USA by state. Grab your copy, your GPS, and hit the road.
Check out p. 14 for Chartreuse & co!
Posted in Uncategorized on February 18, 2012| Leave a Comment »
I just knew you’d all love what we created this month! The crowd and the reaction was all we’d hoped, and more. We’ve been busy today bringing fresh things in, and we’ll all be starting off our morning bright and early tomorrow, bringing truckloads of fabulous new items into the barn.
Here’s a slide show of some of what’s in the barn right now:
See you tomorrow!
Thanks for reading,
Virginia
Posted in Uncategorized on February 17, 2012| 2 Comments »
I’m blown away by how spectacular everything looks in the barn tonight! Everyone’s been in, adding fresh flowers, pillows, all those final touches you put on a space before company comes.
So here’s a slide show (it takes a moment to load because there are so many pictures in it!) of your final peak at what’s at Chartreuse & co this weekend:
Come see us this weekend, Fri/Sat 9-4pm, Sun noon-4pm. Details are on our website:
Hope to see you this weekend,
Virgina
Posted in Inspiration, Uncategorized, tagged bride, visitation academy, walled acres on February 15, 2012| 4 Comments »
I love decorating. So when Kristen Tydings of Visitation Academy asked me to decorate a small suite of rooms for brides and their bridesmaids (Visitation provides a spectacular locale for weddings in it’s early 19th century building and gardens located on 5 walled acres in downtown Frederick) I was intrigued.
“Sure, I’ll throw some furniture in here. Love the high ceilings, original casement windows, wood floors,” I responded.
But I struggle with doing things only half way. So 3 trucks, and many measurements, drawings, and lists later, the empty rooms were reborn.
It’s all open to the public Sunday, February 19 from 1pm-4pm. All of the items are available for sale, but not for pick up until the open house is over. Plan to spend some time there, it’s 5 acres of beauty, and they’ll have music, food, flowers, the whole nine yards on Sunday. Think of it as a wedding reception without the family drama! Have fun.
Details about Visitation Academy Weddings is at www.facebook.com/VisitationAcademyWeddings.
Virginia
Posted in Uncategorized on February 10, 2012| 5 Comments »
While I’ve been preoccupied by my bedroom redo, the creative crew at the barn have been totally rethinking how beautiful their spaces can be.
Here’s a slide show of what The Robin’s Nest is up to: (followed by a brief how-to)
Robin’s gone all-out-glam. Hard to believe this is a barn wall, isn’t it? How did she do it?
1. Install a plywood floating wall. This step ensures a perfectly flat surface (the stucco barn walls are not).
2. Paint the wall a solid color (in this case a pale grey, but you can make it any color you want as your backdrop to the design).
3. Get an amazing brocade stencil (see Robin of The Robin’s Nest for details), and create it, not with just one color of contrast paint, but with a whole series. This extra detail is what gives this amazing treament its exceptional quality and depth. Robin used white, medium grey, metallic silver, and metallic gold.
4. Stand back and be wowed by the results!
Virginia
Posted in Inspiration, Tag Sale Updates on February 8, 2012| 10 Comments »
Despite the snowy weather and chilly temps, the barn was full today, just spilling over in creativity. I just dropped in to do a few quick things and was so inspired that I had to run back to the house for my camera. Here’s the result, so you can feel like you’ve been there, too!
Just click on any of these gallery pictures to enlarge.
Be sure to let me know what you think!
Virginia
Posted in Inspiration, Musings on February 7, 2012| 7 Comments »
Have you ever wanted something REALLY badly? For over a decade? And it’s decorating?
Yes, dear reader, that’s just how sick I am. I’ve lusted after Farrow & Ball’s Light Blue on my bedroom walls for over a decade. In fact, every Christmas since 2001, my dear family has asked me what I want for Christmas.
“My bedroom walls painted Farrow & Ball’s Light Blue,” I would reply with what I thought was earnest enthusiasm.
But my loved ones would look at me, admiringly, yet disappointed. And I would know that what they heard was, “Oh, I suppose we need a new trash can. I’ll take that for Christmas.” They just didn’t understand my need, my sincere desire for such subtle beauty in the room I spend up to 1/3 of my life in.
Because I know that you understand this, here’s an image of what my bedroom walls have been since we’ve moved here in 2001:
And I’m figuring you’ve guessed from the stylish blue ladder in the image, that this was my year. Yes, this year they finally believed me, that I am not a martyr, but a person very sensitive to my surrounding. (It also helped that I finally just handed my husband a wallpaper stripper’s business card and said, “Call him.”)
The wallpaper stripping took several days (which included sleeping on the sofa – my husband is the saint in this family), but look at the cool color uncovered:
There was a part of me tempted to just leave it and only paint the woodwork. But the not-so-artistically done patching kept me on track. So here it is, my beautiful, perfect paint color, on MY bedroom walls!!!
I know. Soooo subtle. So perfect. Here’s a little slide show of the transformation so far. I have the major pieces in place, and am taking my time placing my artwork and picking the just-right lighting and accessories.
As I work to complete my little sanctuary, I’ll share the details. (’cause I know you understand.)
Virginia
Posted in Inspiration, Tag Sale Updates on February 5, 2012| 1 Comment »
Wow, has it been busy in the barn lately! I’ve been strolling through seeing changes literally every day since we closed after our last sale. Here’s a few images of just a teaser of what’s happening:
Madison and Mabel’s barnwood wall, The Robin’s Nest’s floating floor, Tableaux and Bountiful Harvest’s jawdropping chandelier. I’m in awe of what’s being created!
Stay tuned for images of 3 NEW DEALERS: Rubbish, The Cottage, and Sally, Rara & Ry. And huge changes from & Coco, Molly Susan Strong, and Wild Rose Decor. Stay tuned!
Thanks for reading,
Virginia
The Chartreuse Life 