A great mix of fabrics & style

I am working with a client in Catonsville, MD to redecorate her family room. She's artistic, has a great eye and has many treasures she wants to better display. This family of 5 wants to make over their family room for optimal chill time.

It's a lovely, light-filled room and is painted a burnt sienna color. They have a red television cabinet that is staying and everything else is being updated.

{Client's family room, color & tv cabinet are our starting point}

We began the design with a space plan so we could see what pieces worked best in the room. The focus is on viewing the television.

{Space plan incorporating new and existing furnishings}

Next it was time to shop for a new sofa and chairs to fit the plans and family. Comfort is key, but style is a close second. We found this chair at Shofer's Furniture in Federal Hill.

{Comfortable, stylish chair suitable for tv viewing and conversation. We'll take 2 please!}

The client also selected a leather sofa with clean lines (I don't have a good picture of that, sorry, you'll have to wait for the "after" pictures to see that!) and a storage ottoman and we then found fabrics to tie all of the pieces together. Check them out!

{The bold, modern paisley chair fabric (giving us some great accent colors to work with), the textured ottoman fabric (adding texture and bringing in the gold from the chair fabric) and the leather for the sofa (picking up on the wall color and making the room feel larger)}


{Finally, the wood finish for the sofa legs}

Now we have to wait a few months for the furniture to come in, but we'll be hanging art on the walls, shopping for pillows and bringing in window treatments to finalize the room so we'll be all set when the furniture arrives. Stay tuned.

If you are bringing in new furnishings think outside the box - leather doesn't have to be dark brown (not that there's anything wrong with that!), ottomans don't have to match your sofa and you can do a bold fabric -- the key is tying it all together by color pallet and style.

Be bold! Happy decorating!

Color or neutral decor—which do you prefer?

Every year Pantone, "the world-renowned authority on color," declares a color of the year. You may have already seen this year's color, Honeysuckle, on TV, blogs and in home and fashion items.

Pink was a big color at this year's Golden Globes and since fashion often leads home decor, you can now find a pink food processor for your kitchen!

{Pantone's "it" color of 2011, Honeysuckle}


{Using honeysuckle in the home, taken from Pantone's website}

I love color. There aren't many colors I don't like and I'm always looking for new ways to combine color and infuse it into my home. I also enjoy helping clients step out of their color boxes and explore new options for their homes.

{Lucy, by Target, is an example of how a client recently brought color (pink!) into her decor. We love Lucy!}

There are many people who prefer neutrals in decor and fashion. Ironically, neutrals are also a big "trend" in fashion and home decor now. Go figure. That's why I never really take a trend too seriously, it's really about what you like and can live with, but I digress.

I've posted last August about Restoration Hardware's new neutral look. As I walked through the store and then saw their catalog it was as if all color had been sucked out of their products. There is a clean, calm feeling going on there now.

{From Restoration Hardware's website, where calm & neutral rule.}


{Neutral living room from Martha Stewart.}

So is it color (dare I say honeysuckle?) or neutral for you and your home? Of course, skillfully combining neutrals and color is a way to embrace both in your decor, but where's the trend in that? Leave me a comment and tell me which you prefer and why!

Rustic kitchen tile ~ final detail

Last May I posted about a kitchen back splash I was creating with a Columbia, MD, client (creating finishing details). She and her husband are creating colorful kitchen, living and dining room spaces.

We completed the tile installation at the end of last year, so I am finally sharing the final results with you.

{Kitchen & back splash before tile...the orange walls are crying out for color on the back splash. The client wanted a rustic, colorful look to compliment her pottery collection.}

{Drawing of proposed tile layout.}


{Back splash now. This is the center art piece over the stove. The random pattern gives it a very casual feeling.}


{The finished tile to the left of the stove.
*Note, the switch plate covers are to be painted the same blue as the tiles in order to "hide" them and let the tile shine!}


{The finished tile to the right of the stove. The switch plate cover will be painted on this side as well.}

A back splash is a great way to add ART to your kitchen. Whether you go with a colorful, lively look as shown here, or with the clean look of subway tiles in one color, be sure to consider the overall feeling you want in the kitchen, as well as your overall color scheme. Look through magazines or books for inspiration and ideas.

Finally, always work with a professional installer to complete your installation—a quality installation is just as important as the tile you select.

What is on your kitchen back splash? Leave me a comment about your back splash, I'd love to know what decor is cooking in your kitchen!

Mixing fabric patterns

Mixing fabric patterns in your home is a great way to add interest, texture and life to your decor. Many people shy away from it though because while it looks great when done well, it seems difficult to actually pull off. I'll share a few tips to make it easier on you, with some pretty examples from a recently completed design project.

{This family room uses 5 different fabrics, not counting the solid fabric on the sofas}

Tip 1 for mixing patterns - establish a color pallet of 2 - 3 colors and stick to that. Add in neutrals as needed. You can also use different values (light and dark) of the same color, creating a monochromatic scheme. For example, dark, mid and light greys could make up your pallet.

{Our pallet for this room was plum, light green and cream, this fabric has all three!
We made 3 pillows out of this striped fabric, it has great texture and can be placed horizontally or vertically}

Tip 2 for mixing patterns - vary the scale of your patterns. They can't all be large scale or small scale or there is no interest.

{Medium scale plum fabric, used on 1 pillow}


{Large scale cream fabric, used on 2 pillows}

{Three fabrics together on love seat. Don't they look happy?!}

Tip 3 for mixing patterns - Mirror patterns among fabrics. For example, three of the fabrics in this room have circle patterns, but they are different in scale and color (following first 2 tips!). They don't ALL have to be the same patterns though. To add more interest add different shapes - like stripes and organic shapes (as shown here).

{Organic pattern, in light green, on 1 pillow in room}


{Smallest circle scale in room, in plum, used on drapes}


{Drapes in the smallest scale plum fabric}

Tip for pillows - vary the sizes and shapes you use to add visual interest. If you use one shape, vary the sizes so they create a layer when placed together.

Have you struggled to mix patterns in your home? If so, I hope these tips help. If not, send me pictures of your successful pairings! april@afpinteriors.com

Happy decorating!

huemor me: decorating with purple, plum & lavendar

Purples and plums have been on my mind lately as I spend time in my decorator show house room, accented with pops of plum. As people tour my room they often ask about "hot" colors and wonder if purple is a hot color now. I think purple (and the various shades of purple, like lavender & plum) are always hot! If you like those colors, there's a shade out there for you.

{My room in the Historic Ellicott City decorator show house, accented with Thomas Paul fabric in plum}

Much like when you buy a new car and then suddenly see it EVERYWHERE, I now find myself seeing plum and purple everywhere!

Purple is regal and royal, sophisticated or fun, happy or moody. When done in a lighter value it can read as a neutral. When added as an accent (in pillows, vases, a throw or featured in art) it can add an interesting pop to an otherwise neutral room.

Great pairings with purple are yellow - its compliment (opposites on the color wheel), green, red, browns and creams or black and white. Each create a different mood and feeling. Black and white will up the sophisticated level, while yellow will increase the happiness factor! Consider the feeling you want in the room before you consider the combination you want.

Here are a few pictures to inspire you and your decor.

{This living room is bathed in a warm purple with berry accents}


{In contrast, this room is bathed in white with purple accents}


{Purple and yellow are complimentary colors and add a bold contrast to this living space}


{This bedroom wrapped itself in purple and adds fun pops of green, pink and orange to up the energy even more!}


{Lavender, combined with black and white, creates a sophisticated space}


{Not something you see everyday, but wow, what a pretty purple tiled wall (say that 3 times fast!).
I would love to see some color on the adjacent wall too, something pulled from the tile}

If you decide to look for the perfect color purple or plum for your walls I always suggest you start with an inspiration for the room (art piece, rug, fabric, comforter, etc.) and pull your colors from there (vs. selecting paint first).

Either way, here are a few purple and plums I like from Benjamin Moore. Always look at color in your room to see how it works with your lighting and current pieces.

Happy decorating!

Great color & happy client

Don't you love before and after pictures? I thought so! I have a few new ones here -- with a twist! For this Columbia, MD client, who I worked with to select exterior paint colors, I did a computer-generated color sample for them to review before they picked their final colors.

Now you get to see how all three - before, sample & after - came together to create what their mail carried called "the best looking house on the street." The most important thing? The client is very happy.

{Columbia house before}


{Columbia house "painted" via the computer}


{Columbia house painted}

{Welcome home!}


{Freshly painted porch and entry}


{Warm and inviting}

Taking clients through the process at a pace that works for them helps them "see" the finished product before they take a big step and that's all part of great decorating!

Dark paint = ?

"If I paint my room a dark color will it make it look smaller?" I hear this question a lot. The answer is "no." Really!

Here's the deal. Contrast between colors (light sofa, dark walls) makes a room appear/feel smaller because your eye stops and starts instead of continuing through the room as it would with a dark sofa and dark walls.

Do you know what dark paint does to a room? Makes it dark! Just keep that in mind as you paint a windowless room or a room without a lot of natural light. Dark is okay if that's the feeling you want and you aren't surprised by the results!

Just a Monday morning painting tid-bit for you!

Happy decorating!

paying for peace of mind...and the right color

We're having a 100 degree heat wave in Maryland this week, so what have I been doing? Exterior color consults! The timing is funny considering that we had unseasonably cool weather (windows open and cool breezes blowing) LAST week and I had no exterior color consults that week!

On Monday I stopped by this great house with vertical wood siding, on a pretty tree-filled lot. The owners want to apply a solid color stain and wanted an expert opinion before taking on such a large job (or, paying a painter to take on the job). What they were really paying for was no surprises when the stain went up! Peace of mind is priceless.

Here's a look at the house now.

They had some sample colors painted on the garage door when I arrived, but we quickly decided they weren't exactly right. I guided them through a few other options and offered to load a picture of their house into an online color visualizing program (Sherwin Williams' has one that I like) and "paint" it for them so they could "see" it before one stroke of stain went on.

We settled on the house and trim stain colors, SW Sequoia (reddish brown for the house) and SW Yosemite Gold (warm gold for all trim). I then suggested they paint the front door black, but the color for the garage door and front porch were still up in the air. They wanted to "see" the options.

Here are a few of the online "painted" options I sent them...(of course you know that all online colors are just guides, never go by the colors you see online, always look at color in the area you will use it).

I put in my vote for my favorite and they agreed -- the "winner" is:

The house has a lot of great lines and peaks, but in order to keep it from becoming a big red building we had to ground it with some black on the porch and garage. It gives it depth and anchors each side of the house.


In the end, they paid for more than my color knowledge, they paid for peace of mind. I was more than happy to take the stress out of this decision for them! I'll drive by when it's complete at the end of the month and post pictures.


Tomorrow I'll visit a Baltimore City rowhouse -- this one should be fun! After we scheduled our color consult, the client (a favorite past client and friend) said, "I’m confident our house will go from ugly stepsister to homecoming queen!!" I used to live on her street and the colors on the architectural elements on the surrounding houses are amazing! I'll let you know what we come up with for this queen!

{Baltimore house before being crowned homecoming queen!}

Happy decorating! If you need me I'll be in the air condition between color appointments!

Colorful Chicago

I just spent 5 relaxing days in Chicago. I had my camera in hand every day and loved all of the colorful flowers that filled downtown. I know, Chicago is known for their architecture (and I have pictures of that too!), but the flowers that lined the streets at my every turn amazed me.

{Me on Navy Pier, a tourist trap, but we had a fun ride with amazing views, from the Ferris wheel}

Instead of looking for design inspiration in a magazine, book or store, try looking out your window or taking in the sights around you on your next walk or adventure. Nature presents great color combos that you can use in your interior (or exterior) spaces.

Want to spruce up your entry, deck or patio? Grab a pretty pot or container and fill it with color! Here's some inspiration.

{A lovely container in front of a house in the Lakeview community of Chicago. We went here for a music festival, but walked the neighborhood streets and loved their charming gardens and decks.}


{A deck in Lakeview. Simple and charming. Coffee anyone?}


{A view from our architectural boat tour on the river}


{A sign in The Lurie Garden in Chicago's Millenium Park}


{Purple and green as far as the eye can see in The Lurie Garden in Chicago's Millenium Park. Yep, this downtown of a thriving CITY!}


{One of hundreds of planters that line the streets of downtown Chicago}


{Love these colors!}


{Another charming Lakeview home with an inviting entry and garden}


{The garden of the home above}

We came across a boy and his lemonade stand in Lakeview. I couldn't pass up the 25 cent chocolate chip cookies and a 50 cent lemonade! Cute, huh?

{Lemonade stand in Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago}

Check back for more great Chicago architecture pictures!

Happy decorating.