The Shiny Pebble Designer Challenge Party...

A while back I was asked by the lovely Catherine at The Shiny Pebble to participate in her Dining Room Designer Challenge... Now she is having a lovely little party to celebrate all of our virtual hard work.

Here is what I suggested and a little about me... (and yes I am obsessed with that mirror from Oly just in case you were wondering)

How do you define your style?

Humm that is hard- I would say that it is a transitional eclectic mix. I like just about every style mixed together in some way.

What inspires you?

Everything. I love to see spaces that are a true reflection of the person who lives/works there. I have a couple of best friends who are designers also and to go into their homes is like walking into my own home (minus the kids). We gravitate towards the same things, even when we are not together and going into their houses makes me have an amazing new feeling of inspiration each and every time because I feel like I can see them in every item they have. Everything has a type of purpose and special ness (is that even a word). I also love to travel and I find that old cities make everything new again to me.

What designer or life experience has influenced your design aesthetics?

I think that my biggest influence in design has to be my Mom. She has always taught me the value of your surroundings. Where you live should always be special and a reflection of what you love. She also helped me appreciate antiques as she has been buying and selling them for the last 30 years.

Where is your go to resource?

Is it bad to say the internet?? I do most of my resourcing online and at shows. The pictures are at hand and that makes it so much easier to express what I want for a space. People need to see things to want them in their home or space.

About your dining room:

I fell in love with the lifestyle photo and thought it would be a great way to dress up/dress down Catherine’s dining room a little. I think that the dining room can be a little bit fancy and fun at the same time. Adding the hanging pendant above would give you a chance to use the dimmer for this space which is a necessity in the dining room and draw your eye to the woodwork. The deeper paint colors would help to bring out all of the wood detailing in the room too. I am not really big on matching pieces so I thought it might be nice to change up the dining chairs a bit by adding these great Louis XVI chairs from Paris 1^st dibs in there. Switching out the smaller art pieces with a pair of the Astrid Mirrors from Oly will really put a wow on that wall and draw your eye into the room. Adding in some less traditional accessories makes for great dinner conversation too. Switching the traditional plaid chair for a leather piece from Oly with a fun pillow from Romo paired with a garden stool makes the corner area more interesting. Finally, I think I would add some rich texture by putting some stacking roman shades in a thick linen on the French doors- for looks or for privacy either one and always fresh flowers in the room.

And here is what I intend to virtually party in...