Look Familiar...So Chic!

Does this 'So Chic' Living Room look familiar?

It should - it's Candice Bushnell's living room and also the cover of the Elle Decor 'So Chic - Glamorous Lives.Stylish Places.' decor book....

[above - image/caption via Elle Decor] In the living room, Caio Fonseca’s Fifth Street Painting C04.13 overlooks a 19th-century tufted bustle chair from Bijan Royal, a vintage brass floor lamp from Retro-Modern, Moroccan poufs from John Derian Co., and an Oushak rug from ABC Carpet & Home. The couple purchased the Louis XVI sofa from writer Jay McInerney, and the ivory-and-ebony box is from Amy Perlin Antiques.

Here's some other great images of Bushnell's tres chic home she shares with dancer Charles Askegard, and was decorated with the help of Susan Forristal.....

[above] A 19th-century Venetian chaise is dressed up with a pillow from Geminola; the palm-leaf lamp from Le Décor Français dates from the 1800s.

[above] A pair of gold-leafed sheaf sconces from Downtown flank the living room mantel, which is original to the apartment.

[above] In the den, ebonized campaign chairs with white cowhide seats from Gray Gardens face a velvet upholstered sofa with a pillow made of vintage fabric from Geminola; the rug is by Madeline Weinrib from ABC Carpet & Home.

Photographer: William Waldron

Images via Elle Decor & Amazon.com

Re-Decorating & Lighting Inspiration...

I have recently been helping my wonderful mother-in-law [yes I am super lucky - we have a fabulous relationship!] with redecorating her master bedroom, we have worked out a wonderful fresh contemporary colour palette that has resulted in a few jobs repainting built in wardrobes, architraves & window frames, and walls; a fabulousus contemporary art work - laser cut triptych of an oak tree, and a custom ordered furniture drawer unit, as well as seasonal bedlinen & decorator cushions - for summer, winter, and a set that will work all year round... And amongst a number of things also involved was looking for new lighting options! This cannot be taken lightly [excuse the pun!]!

Often we will redecorate and sometime overlook our lighting options  this can be a huge mistake as this is the one area that will dramatically effect how we see the colours & textures we have worked so hard to change and make new! For this room they love reading lights over their bed and want to replace them with something in keeping with the new look of the room and the new dresser will be another great place for a table lamp for some ambient light...since their isn't a need for an overhead light - it was all about the reading lights - wall sconces and table lighting. Thought I would show you some of my inspiration and some great pieces I found through this project...

Table Lamp - Lighting Options

Buyster's -Brilliant - Baltimore Table Lamp in Brushed Chrome

Buyster's -Brilliant - Fresno Table Lamp

Buyster's -Cougar - Capiz 1 Light 64 cm Table Lamp

Buyster's -Cougar - Capiz 51cm Table Lamp

Buyster's -Cougar - London 1 Light 46 cm Table Lamp in Satin Chrome

Buyster's -Elan - Elysees Table Lamp in Brushed Chrome
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Bedroom Lighting Checklist

To make sure you have proper lighting in your bedroom or master suite, ask yourself the following questions. (Tip: You want to be able to answer "yes" to all!)

1. Can I see well enough to get dressed?

2. Is there a light in the closet?

3. Are there individual reading lights on each side of the bed?

4. Is there an overhead light source?

5. Do I have enough light to determine the colors of clothing in my drawers?

6. Do I have a light source near the door?

7. Have I installed outlets in convenient locations while building/renovating my bedroom?

8. Can I fill dark corners with portable lighting sources?

9. Do I have a dimmer installed on the overhead light source?

10. Are there lights at the dressing table to help with makeup?

Do you need to update your lighting needs?

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Wall Sconce & Reading Lighting Options

Buyster's -Cougar - Diamante 1 Light Wall SconceSKU #: COU1090

Buyster's -Cougar - Morrison 1 Light Wall Sconce

Buyster's - Cougar - Hilton 1 Light Picture Light in Satin Chrome

For some great lighting ideas and products check out Buyster Lighting online - they deliver Australia wide.

Images from Elle Decor, & buysterlighting.com.au

Palatial Loves the V&A Museum Books on Pattern...

Undoubtedly the world's best art & design museum - The Victoria & Albert Museum [or affectionately known s the V&A] I never have enough time to 'get everything in' when I visit this fabulous museum, but I always make time for their museum shop! I love these beautifully designed book covers, strikingly beautiful - pieces of art by themselves & all on glorious 'pattern'...

V&A Publishing/Abrams

V&A Pattern - Indian Florals

Secret Garden/Novelty Patterns/Owen Jones/Kimono - V&A Publishing

V&A Pattern - The Fifties

V&A Pattern - William Morris

From Elle Decor.In decorating, as in fashion, everything old becomes new again. And now pattern is back, popping up in a wide range of high-style interiors. The Victoria and Albert Museum makes it easy for anyone looking for inspiration with the second in its series of charming pattern books. The four compact volumes survey two centuries of kimonos; prewar British novelty patterns; the elaborate designs of Victorian architect and designer Owen Jones; and lush fin de siècle florals. Each comes with a CD of high-res images so designers can transfer, rework, or recolor the patterns for their own projects.

Images from Abrams Books & Elle Decor

Visit V&A Museum + V&A Shop

Happy Friday... Welcome Weekend!

Happy Friday... Welcome Weekend! I came across this wonderful article on artist Maureen Gallace - an Amercian artist who draws upon memories of her New England childhood for landscapes both serene and haunting. I love this piece 'The Woods' by Gallace it's so fresh, calm, and inviting...and is perfect with the latest Elle Decor cover that this article belongs in... Hope you have a wonderful weekend! Thanks]you for joining me at Palatial Living this week - take car, S xxx 

'The Woods', 2007.Credit: Courtesy of 303 Gallery, New York [via Elle Decor.com]

Article from Eller Decor -

Imagine Emily Dickinson working as a 21st-century visual artist, and you get a sense of what Maureen Gallace’s paintings are like. Her canvases of houses and landscapes in her native Connecticut are small, usually no larger than nine by 12 inches. But they seize your attention, commanding white walls in galleries or, recently, at the Whitney Museum of American Art, where her work was featured in its 2010 Biennial.

Gallace lives in Greenwich Village and teaches painting at New York University. But the homebody ethos in her work is undeniable. “The house is a very primal place,” she explains. “As children, it is often the first thing we draw.” The pitched roofs and white-shingled structures in her paintings suggest an austere New England aesthetic, although Gallace points out that it’s not the stereotypical patrician one. “I’m a total product of Ellis Island,” she says. “Connecticut just happens to be where I grew up.”

Some viewers find Gallace’s paintings reassuring. For others, they update Nathaniel Hawthorne’s spooky New England Gothic. Francesco Bonami, a curator of this year’s Biennial, sees “a tension that exists in American culture between the vastness of the landscape and the obsessive need of the individual to inhabit a private, almost claustrophobic environment where one can hide from society.”

Gallace observes that her work moves from personal to public and back again. “I’ll tell my brother that I made a painting of Crosshill Road, and he’ll say, ‘Which part?’ And then visitors from Australia have said, ‘That looks exactly like where I grew up.’” Gallace subtracts details and expressive touches from her landscapes, and viewers project their histories—what their own homes and families were like—onto the missing parts. “The house doesn’t mean anything per se,” she says. “It’s an empty vessel.”

Images & Article from Elle Decor

For more pieces by Maureen Gallace visit artnet and 303Gallery

Mid Week House Snoop...Sydney's Eastern Harbourside.

A stunning, beautiful and very Palatial locale & home situated in Sydney's Eastern Harbourside suburb of Darling Point.

 Darling Point, originally named Mrs Darling’s Point after the wife of the then Governor, traces its genteel and distinguished origins back to the 1830’s when the road east from the city, New South Head Road, was completed. The first buildings were not the worker’s cottages normally associated with inner city development, but the grand homes of Sydney’s society leaders.

Whilst many survive today, equally as many departed since the World War 2, making way for the elegant apartment buildings with the jaw dropping views of the harbour that forms the suburb’s northern, western and eastern boundaries.Though only a few minutes from the city, Darling Point maintains the quiet elegance of its past. On the western harbour foreshore is Olympic sailing headquarters and base for the Sydney to Hobart race, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia.

Upon the crest of hill is the “Swifts” formerly the home of the Resch’s brewing dynasty, and on the rare occasions it changes owner, usually Australia’s most expensive non water front house. Moving down the harbour front is the peaceful McKell Park, home to picnickers and lovers for over a century, overlooked by the National Trust’s Lindesay, and that masterpiece of Sydney art deco style, Craigend.

This home that is featured in this week's Mid Week House Snoop is simply devine... when you're in this price guide there's nothing better than reading 'expressions of interest welcome' - my search engine was $5mil to $10mil so start looking for those extra dollars behind the lounge, although the price guide may need to be narrowed down a little!  Take a look... I mean a 'snoop'! Enjoy x

Agent's Blurb - realestate.com.au > Sensational Harbour Vista in a Premier Address

A classic period residence transformed into an elegant, architect designed family haven, this casually sophisticated home is crafted for effortless indoor/outdoor entertaining, boasting a captivating vantage point above Rose Bay and the Royal Motor Yacht Club.

•  Light flooded interiors with timber floors and high ceilings
• Casual lounge with skylight windows, elegant dining room
•  Formal living area with open fireplace, spacious study
• Glass doors open to a vast, sun drenched alfresco terrace
• Kitchen with eat-in timber bar and Smeg/Miele gas appliances
• Secluded home office and guest suite, both with own ensuites
• Luxurious, fully tiled designer ensuite with double shower
• Skylit spa bathroom, guest powder room, video intercom
• Internal access to double garage, ducted air conditioning
• Set in one of Sydneys' most tightly held harbourside enclaves

For Sale By Expressions Of Interest - View Saturdays & Thirsdays 12:00 - 12:45pm
Contact Bill Malouf Ph: 0411 428 354
Emma Prgomelja Ph: 0434 515 787
Alain Waitsman (McGrath Estate Agents) Ph: 0419 221 111

 

 

Images from realestate.com.au

Living Room Lust...

So many favourites in one room -sunlit, blue & white, stone, a fireplace, ginger jars & delftware style plates, a generous armoire, a cosy [toile print] lounge and two velvet plush french blue armchairs! It's my decor candy store - all my favourites! Living Room lust - you bet! Enjoy x

Image from Country Living

Folkloric Colour Splash...

[images 1,2, &3] Australian Counrty Style June 2010 issue 

image 2

image 3

image 4 - courtesy of black*eiffel

Colour Splash... I'm in love with the June '10 issue of Australian Country Style, especially with several stories in the issue - one in particular on the home of the Van Loon & de Colomb de Daunant family located in the idyllic south of France near Saint Remy de Provence and ...here their home shows beautiful simple furniture pieces combined with splashes of [my favourite colour combinations] - vermilion orange, ruby red, cerulean & china blue with off white, white & dark walnut -teak stain timbers. Whilst I was blog watching I also came a gorgeous stamp that Black Eiffel posted from her stamp collection and I just love it - would love this as a large framed poster, perfect colour combo for my living area! S x

Images from Australian Country Style June 2010 issue, Black Eiffel, & Ikea

Flowers for Friday...Happy Weekend!

Happy Friday! I love this bright living room - I don't usually like 'yellow' as a main decorating colour more as an accent tor highligh, than as a main hue - but somehow in this space - combined with the raspberry pink red & off-white it really works. All colours share a 'muddier' grey base - they share the same value - and are therefore cohesive - one is not 'fighting' the other because they all share the same base. But really - I picked these images because I love the mixed pink peonies vased and placed on the tray coupled with a few books & favourite objects on the ottoman. A small casual vignette  that brings an 'organic' personal touch to the room.

This weekend I am 'taking it easy' getting rid of this bug for a start, and preparing to organise & de-clutter the home office project before ordering furniture & pieces. Plus a nice late afternoon sunny snooze somewhere fitted in!

I hope you have a lovely weekend [the weather in Sydney is set for sunny brilliant blue winter skies] and rejuvenate over the weekend, with family & friends, for a another wonderful week ahead! Thank You for joining me this week at Palatial Living - and your kind emails whilst I've been a 'tad under the weather'! See you next week! S xxx

Images from Traditional Home

A Cosy Spot...

A cosy spot is what I am putting myself in today...I am a little under the weather, I think the past 8 or so weeks have caught up with me & new motherhood and seem to have a nasty cold-chest infection. I suspect that a combination of early morning feeds and realising I probably can't try to fit it all in within a single sleep time - like trying to finish my 'Verandah Home+Garden Living Solutions' website [will let you know when it's ready - stay tuned!]; redesigning a home office area; securing a new client; & like when I painted a back yard fence the other day 1 whole coat in under a 1 x 3hr sleep time - hmmm, a bit much maybe!

So this brings me to 'cosy spots' in our homes. I think 'cosy spots' in any home are super important and incredibly necessary - for peace of mind and healing after a long day or week. And with a few simple items you can have your own 'cosy spot' by incorporating a soft throw blanket, maybe a small side table to rest a cup of tea or coffee, or cool drink; and a lamp for reading - by adding some soft cushions to your chair or lounge, and a rug for floor warmth  - by a window - these small things make a space more personal, more 'homely' and instantly comforting. I know that my two poochies - Lucy,  our 5yr old King Charles Cavalier & Zach our 4 yr old Cavoodle, can find a cosy, snoozey spot anywhere! Where's your 'cosy' spot at home? Do you need to think about creating one for you?

My posts might be sweet & brief whilst I tackle this bug... please bear with me! Stay cosy [and warm - here in Sydney it's been a tad chilly & breezy over the past several days] & Take Care. Thank You - S x

Image from Country Living

Mid Week House Snoop...Sydney's Inner West on the Water.

A truly Palatial home - here a Federation style home that has been lovingly looked after takes the cake for Inner West Water Front Living in Sydney's Drummoyne, this week on my Mid-Week House Snoop! Complete with views, views and more views, as well as a self contained guesthouse and private mooring - not to mention a stone's throw from Sydney city centre. So very Palatial... with a multi million dollar price tag - of course...

Take a look and you'll see what I mean... Enjoy! S x

Agent's Blurb - McGrath

DRUMMOYNE NSW 348 Victoria Place - A flawless combination of style, quality and location, this divine Federation residence with self-contained guesthouse boasts stunning views from a picturesque deep waterfront position and is architect redesigned with an enhanced focus on family living.

• Exquisitely restored, brimming with elegant period features
• Soaring ornate ceilings and glorious stained glass windows
• Gracious formal living room and new open plan family areas
• Inspired floorplan for entertaining or intimate gatherings
• Four double bedrooms plus the self-contained guesthouse
• Spacious rumpus/entertainers' retreat encased in sandstone
• North east alfresco terrace and a front sandstone courtyard
• Landscaped easycare gardens, level lawn, easy water access  
• Private tidal sandy beach, jetty, boatshed, slipway and cradle
• Separate mooring pen, two separate double garages

 

Images from Domain.com.au / McGrath

Palatial Find... Mobiles for Big Kids & Little Ones.

[above] Tree Friends Mobile

Dimensions: Total height, hanging approximately 20 inches

Medium: 4 laser pieces made from sustainably harvested bamboo plywood and clear thread. Minimum assembly required.

PRICE: AU $120

      

[above] Owl Mobile 

Dimensions: Total height, hanging approximately 20 inches

Medium: 3 laser cut birds made from sustainably harvested bamboo plywood and clear thread. Minimum assembly required.

PRICE: AU $120

[above] Bird Trio Mobile

Dimensions: Total height, hanging approximately 20 inches

Medium: 3 laser cut birds made from sustainably harvested bamboo plywood and clear thread. Minimum assembly required.

PRICE: AU $120

Mobiles are not just for the little ones - they're also for the big kids - like you & I! And these gorgeous laser cut wooden mobiles are no exception! They cross all ages, genders and almost all [decorating] styles. I love the folkloric feeling, and the clean, simple lines these forest friends present in a suspended wistful arrangement. I have a 'gypsy-esque bird/ forest theme' - for want of  better words -  for my little Isabelle and these mobiles would take her form newborn to toddler with a whimsical simple style that I wouldn't have to coordinate another colour into the room schematic - the natural timber would 'go' with everything!

I have previously posted on Palatial Living on the fabulous artists through the fantastic Kinder Gallery [based in Sydney and a second home in Berlin] - these mobiles are made by one of their represented artists Lorena Siminovich, who also has a number of gorgeous works that can also be found & purchased on Kinder Gallery's web site. Contact Kinder Gallery or subscribe to their newsletter to find out more... Enjoy! S x

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From the Kinder Gallery website...

Petit Collage is a line of modern wall decor and accessories with a vintage twist for children and grownups alike founded by Buenos Aires born artist, Lorena Siminovich.

Lorena Siminovich started to draw when she was very young and couldn't seem to stop. She would sit in her room and fill sheet after sheet of paper with her nascent artistic visions. And the intoxicating potential of the blank page has never left her since. Having worked in San Francisco as a creative director, Lorena has amassed a wealth of experience in graphic design, illustration and art which she brings to Petit Collage.

Kindergallery offers Petit Collage’s range of prints on wood, screen prints and bamboo mobiles, which easily mix and match together.

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Images &Info from KinderGallery

Also A Big Thanks to Kinder Gallery for listing Palatial Living's posts on their artists through their online advertising!