Over a year or so ago I started to use tape trim on chairs for a fresh interior design detail.  As an interior designer I check out my subscriptions and notice them liberally applied in magazine photos.  Tapes are a departure from welts and stuffy gimp. 

Pink trim with small nailhead

At Hickory Chair I  provide  a drawing to customize upholstered dining chairs  for my clients such a as the chair shown. Each  chair design is distinctive and are hand made according to my specifications.  Suzanne Kasler’s Amsterdam Side Chair featured above is antique ivory covered with natural linen and  pink grosgrain ribbon secured with petite nail trim spaced every third nail in lieu of welt trim.

Samuel and Sons

Samuel & Sons Passementerie is a leading importer, designer, and distributor of  fine trims  for interior design. Exclusive collections are created with materials such as silk, wool, glass and jade. Samuel & Sons is headquartered in New York City and was founded in 1982.

More from Samuel and Sons

The next time you consider recovering upholstery let your imagination take hold and turn to tapes as a decorative element.

What is an “al fresco” design inspiration?  Interior design expert, Faith Sheridan  interprets her client’s wish list.

Clean, uncluttered lines and abundant windows

My clients found a home in the Madrona neighborhood of Seattle and quickly embarked on a major remodel of the main floor including a custom kitchen. An overriding desire to connect the kitchen to the outdoors results in an eight foot window instead of traditional upper and lower cabinets. Peeks of garden foliage and abundant light from all four directions via the stairwell and other windows unify the main floor remodel of this Madrona home with an open theme. My clients prefer a Zen-like concept of clean lines, sleek surfaces and minimal clutter.

Before remodel shows upper cabinets and refrigerator

After image shows undercounter refrigeration and storage

I located all refrigeration undercounter and customized storage throughout the remodel with pullouts that organize recycling, tableware, glassware, cookware and spice storage.  A wall of cabinets 24″ deep collects small appliances, baking supplies, linens and other kitchen essentials.

The use of horizontal Wenge and horizontal rift-cut white oak veneers maintains a recurring horizontal design element throughout the home as do the simple cabinet pulls parallel to the grain. The Basalt counter material continues to the floor on the island and maintains smooth, continuous lines.

Enjoy the before images and the transformation. Learn more about Faith Sheridan and her team.

As an interior designer, I follow numerous design blogs.. one favorite being Design Sponge.  This week Grace featured a headboard with ‘otomi’ fabric.  Since I am captivated with textiles, see the Suzanis post,  I wanted to share more about this particular textile, Mexican otomi fabric,  handmade by the Otomi Indians of Central Mexico. Then I learned about the Mexican Indigenous Textile Project.  “Mexican textiles have existed for more than 5000 years, but now in many villages traditional embroidered blouses (huipils) are worn only by the grandmothers. Mexico’s indigenous textile culture is in danger of extinction.” Look for some Otomi fabric in upcoming projects! You can also purchase from Ebay and support the effort to preserve the textile culture.

Colorful bedspreads from www.jacarandahome.com

Embroidered coverlets, known as tenangos

Inspiration headboard from Design Sponge

Interior designers know about planning in advance and especially for holiday entertaining. All right, I know it’s mid-September but I am still sending an alert. If you are the designated family member to  host this season, it’s time to consider all options and get started. Our sad economy isn’t a quick resource anymore. Deliveries are worse than ever due partly to the fact that factories have laid off employees and stopped stocking extra goods. As a result, lead times and delivery cycles are stretching out.

Yet, in these times a connection seems even more important.  We  look forward to eagerly welcoming family and friends  into our homes.  In today’s economy with many folks working from home, dining rooms serve a dual function as home offices too. There are practical considerations occuring in our dining rooms other than eating.

 Narrow tables such as the one shown in the photo are perfect for dual function. Pushed against a wall, this table offers generous work surface area during the week.  On a weekend or for a holiday, it serves another purpose entirely as a dining table. Think of a table less than 42 inches wide as an optimal size. 

Recently my interior design eyes spotted Tabrasa and I wrote about it….No surprise that this company continues to receive raves most recently at HD Boutique. Tabrasa garnered a Best of Boutique award at the Hospitality Design conference.

Available in white as well as four new neutral colors, tabrasa^TM complements any interior design while transforming working environments into collaborative spaces – increasing functionality, and evoking creativity and impromptu teamwork. It is a more functional and operationally superior alternative to traditional white boards and dry-erase wallcoverings, as it: Learn more here.

Aesthetics & Style

tabrasa^TM can create various shapes for dry-erase writing surfaces including: a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall writing surface; a strip in a hallway or around an entire room; a rectangle or variety of shapes scattered across a large wall; or a design element placed over a colored surface. No other dry-erase surface offers the aesthetic options of tabrasa.^TM  

Environmental Sustainability

Tabrasa has the lowest environmental footprint of any dry-erase product.

• No wood, steel, aluminum, vinyl or resin typically used with other dry-erase products-just paint.
• It doesn’t require the baking or curing process that other dry-erase products use. We use less material and fuel to ship since our box is small weighs far less than a similarly sized whiteboard.
• You simply paint over tabrasa^TM when you’re done with it. We’re happy to not contribute to the millions of pounds of whiteboard materials being dumped in landfills every year.
• tabrasa^TM conforms to all U.S. EPA regulations (including California) and is formaldehyde-free and, once dry, produces no off-gassing.