Cin Design Studio Blog

Looking Backwards - The Mirror Trick

Just a short tip today for those of you who, like me, have grown so accustomed to your own idiosyncratic spaces that you can't figure out what's what.  You know it's an issue for you when you can instantly see what could be improved in someone else's space, but pull your hair out trying to figure out your own needs.  

After living so long in the same space, I become blind to the actual merits and flaws.  Everything is just too familiar and my brain can't make the distinctions and analyze the design correctly.

So - I use a mirror.  What I do is I look through the mirror to see the room BACKWARDS.  Wow. Totally different.

Now all the flaws become obvious.  Easy to see where you need to adjust, shift, replace, perk up, remove.  I can see it now because in my mirror it is a NEW ROOM.

Here I am,  
evaluating my living room,  
backwards,  
in my unmentionables.  
Clearly I need to move  
   the fainting sofa.  

 

And better yet - a fresh look will help you see how FABULOUS your room really is.  Your design was spot on all along - you just got so used to it that you forgot!  It's like putting on a new pair of glasses.   With the nose.   Try it.

If you need a little help (or a lot) call me.
I'd be delighted to make your interior world rock! 

Cindy Kunz, owner of Cin Design Studio, Easthampton MA.   413-695-4370
www.cindesignstudio.com  cindesignstudio@yahoo.com

 

Boob Lighting

Please don't be offended.  I have to talk about boob lights.  They are still running rampant and I want them to go away.  They are almost as bad as paneling plague. 

Take a look up at the ceiling fixture in the middle of the room, or at the top of your stairs.  If your house was built or remodeled after say 1990, and you haven't done anything about your lighting, I'll bet it's sporting boob lights.

Here's how they started.  Perky.  Annoying.  Ugly.  No amount of oil-rubbed bronze finish could help them.

     

 

Oh but it gets better.  They are really fancy-schmancy now.  All kinds of tassles, glitz and fun stuff.  Like they were all spiffed-up at Frederick's of Hollywood.  Ba-da-Bing!

Now don't be alarmed.  There are options.  For the chaste victorian look, these boobs are disguised.
 

 

They even have implants now - enhancing their size.  All that extra hardware just to make them bigger. But not better. 

I don't get it.  Why the boob lights?  Why not a drum shade?  A chandelier?  A pendant?  A bare bulb, for crying out loud?

Is it just me?    Yeah, probably.

 If you need a little help (or a lot) call me.
I'd be delighted to make your interior world rock! 

Cindy Kunz, owner of Cin Design Studio, Easthampton MA.   413-695-4370
www.cindesignstudio.com  cindesignstudio@yahoo.com

Is Your Stairwell Decorated for Hurricane Irene?

So it looks like we're going to get a bit of weather this weekend.  Our part of western Mass is not on the coast, but we're inland only about 90 miles.  Enough for us to get drenched and blown around.

She's coming, and she's colorful

Which gets me thinking about cowering from bad storms, which leads to my hide-from-the-tornado stairwell, which of course leads me to a new design and decorating topic: decorating stairwells.   As you might guess, all roads lead me to "yes, but how does it LOOK?"

Forlorn

Here's a sad stairwell.  Actually it's a haunted staircase in a house in NYC.  Spooky.  But all ghosts aside, it looks like many stairwells I see.  Even in nice houses.  It's just a blank, boring forgotten space.   Sigh.  But check out those interesting planes, angles, ups, downs and turns.  So much potential!  You'll only be passing through - so go bold.  What are you waiting for?

photo Ryan Rivadeneyra

Color and Pattern

Go ahead and give your house a boost of color.  Really makes the stairwell special.  Draws your eye through and makes the room look bigger.  And it's a great place to use dramatic wallpaper.  Jeez I love wallpaper.  It's come a long way since your grandmother's roosters.

 

photos House Beautiful, Paul Raeside via Tudorks

 

Bold and Bright Runners

Feeling a little foot-frisky?  You can jazz up the stairs with carpet runners.  The first staircase image is a DIY project using Ikea area rugs.  I used to have that rug under my desk.   All you need are a couple of rugs, a rug pad, and a staple gun or nails.  How easy is that?

 photos Living Etc. and Colony Rug

 

Look Down

Sand, prime and paint the stairs.  Or wallpaper the risers.  You could even Mod Podge wrapping paper, maps, love letters.  You should add a few coats of polyurethane to protect the surface.  But don't use a high gloss finish where you step - it'll be too slippery.

 

photos Fortheloveofpainting, Elle Boo, Apartment Therapy

 

 The Gallery

We all know about using the stairwell as a gallery - but so often it's just not done right.  Those walls should be packed salon-style, like you see below.  Gorgeous!  Cohesiveness can be established through framing, mats, or the images themselves.  (all black and white/sepia photos, for example.) But there's nothing wrong with a collection of unrelated art - as long as it is arranged tightly with some relation to the surrounding wall edges.
 

 

photos Eric Cohler, Kate Spade London, Tony Soluri

 

Thoughtful Arrangement

I think I just said pack it all together salon style but I break my own rules all the time.  Whi needs rules anyway?  Here are carefully spaced arrangements that allow each piece to live on it's own, yet they are placed close enough to visually hold together as a group, and follow the slope of the stairs.  The art and mirrors (and the stairwell ghost) ascend right along with you. 

photos House Beautiful, House to Home UK


Quiet.  I Hear Crickets

When things drift apart with too much space between, it looks skimpy and unfinished. This space has plenty of room for more.  Or a different compact arrangement.  Left as is, they look a little lonely, and I can't figure out why these framed prints are so far apart, and why that top one is crammed up against the door frame.  I hate to be critical but there I go.       

    photo Naomi Turner  (Off to a good start, keep going!)

 

But Then Again...

If you have a groovy piece of art, or a simply spectacular stairwell, why it doesn't feel lonely or spooky at all.  Not at all.   BTW I want that framed bat.

             
                                                       photos Scott Engler, Maya Marzolf via Design Sponge

While I'm thinking about it, remember to light your stairwell completely.  Cast light from a ceiling fixture (maybe a funky chandelier, a gigantic globe...) or from sconces on the wall. 

Anyway, stay safe during the hurricane.  Please use a flashlight on the stairs.  Part of the creepiness of spooky staircases is the lack of light.  And the ghosts.  

 
If you need a little help (or a lot) call me.
I'd be delighted to make your interior world rock! 

Cindy Kunz, owner of Cin Design Studio, Easthampton MA.   413-695-4370
www.cindesignstudio.com  cindesignstudio@yahoo.com

White Ceiling Should Not Be Ceiling White

Do you have white ceilings in your house?  Most of us do.  But take a look at them.  A GOOD look.  Do they look gray?  And do the corners and shadows look even grayer?  But - you painted them white!  "Ceiling White" straight from the can!  What happened? 

Why are they so gray?

 

someone's freshly painted white ceiling, looking gray.  sigh.

Why?  Because white has no where to go except to gray when the lighting is dim.  And who shines a bright light onto the ceiling?  Think about it:  a red wall will be darker red in the corners.  A blue wall will be darker blue in the shadows.  But "pure" white only goes to gray.  That's why ceilings can look so dingy even after they are freshly painted.  The same thing happens to white walls - but that's another post for later.

Most paint manufacturers offer a selection of standard whites - what I like to call the "builder" whites.  With names like Decorator White, Pure White, Ceiling White.  Some of them are even pre-mixed, ready to go.  Sorry guys, but they all turn gray on the ceiling.

 
ceiling tinted to cut the gray
via Elle Decor

If you want a white ceiling that doesn't go gray, skip the "standards" and select a tinted white.  Some of my faves include Sherwin Williams Ivory Tusk and Mayonnaise.  And Benjamin Moore Acadia White, Cotton Balls and Antique White.  If you must have pure unadulterated white, try an "Extra White" or "Super White."  They reflect light better than regular whites, but it'll still gray out in the shadows.

There are so many whites that are simply very very light versions of the selected wall color.  It might look like a "color" on the paint chip, or up against a white sheet of paper, but once it's up on the ceiling and you have your wall color up, it will look "white" in comparison.  Eyes are tricky things.  They make adjustments based on surrounding colors.  So fool your eyes into thinking white - but not with white.  Really.

Besides, who says your ceiling has to be white?

 
by amanda nisbet

 If you need a little help (or a lot) call me.
I'd be delighted to make your interior world rock! 

Cindy Kunz, owner of Cin Design Studio, Easthampton MA.   413-695-4370
www.cindesignstudio.com  cindesignstudio@yahoo.com 

 

 

I'm Getting That Butterfly Feeling.

I have this thing about butterflies.  Unlike my friend Louise, I LOVE the real ones, but I HATE butterflies in prints.  So many gorgeous fabrics have been ruined for me because there's a butterfly.  When I worked in clothing design, every fabric sample I saw with butterflies was an instant NO.  Even the tiniest little ones make me cringe.  My daughter once threatened to get a butterfly tattoo just to see me squirm.  (She got 3 roses instead.  Phew.  I think.)

Well I'm not sure what just happened.  I've fallen in love with this shower curtain and intend to order it.   Now.

   
from West Elm

I love vintage botanical prints, pen and ink illustrations, scientific drawings.  I think that's why I actually, honestly, really and truly love this print.  Especially the big butterflies.  Which will be in my face.  While showering.  Nakey.

Our little bathroom has chocolate brown beadboard wainscot, white tile and fixtures, creamy white trim.  Perfect curtain, no?  The upper walls are papered with a very subtle yellowy green toile print - which I love but not enough to keep.  (Buh-bye!)  The floor is natural pine with a  bad coat of  paint on it.  I need to sand that off.  I'll post pics when the bathroom is done.  Any day now.  Yup.

We just replaced all our old non-functioning crappy bad 70's remodel windows, so I have a nice clean new 2-over-2 window with a simple white roller shade.  (I will gush over the value of sweet white roller shades another time.)  I wish I had a clawfoot tub, but I do have a deep soaker tub that is pretty darned nice.  I can be found floating in it most winter nights.  Yes, I can float in it.

Anyway, I still HATE most butterfly prints.  But like I tell clients, even things you think you don't like may feel completely different once you see them rendered differently, or in the context of a complete design.  Never say never.  Even if saying "yes" gives you butterflies.  Ba-da-doom-chaa. 

If you need a little help (or a lot) call me.
I'd be delighted to make your interior world rock! 

Cindy Kunz, owner of Cin Design Studio, Easthampton MA.   413-695-4370
www.cindesignstudio.com  cindesignstudio@yahoo.com 

I Hate To Clean Mine, But Will Clean Yours.

Today when my neighbor and I were over at our other neighbor's gorgeous little cottage, we commented on how neat and clean her place is.  I said what I always say - "I love to clean other people's houses but I HATE to clean my own."  

what I rarely use, but like to look at (via etsy)

Well that got me thinking.  I have my share of stuff, even though I'm in a very small cottage too along with a messy husband,  my only-clean-her-own-room daughter, a poodle and 2 stinky cats.  I've pared down over the years - simplify, simplify - but I always feel like there's too many things in my way.  And when it's time to clean I start thinking about it, and get pissed off about all this stuff, and then flog myself over this materialistic streak I have, start throwing things away, and then it goes down into a spiral of self loathing and frustration. 

Of course, I break for a little chocolate and a cuppa tea to soften the edge.  Better than throwing old magazines out the window.  Sort of.

So cleaning my house ends up making me mad.

my living room, clean (ish)

But cleaning someone else's house is like curating a special collection.  I love to tidy, scrub, polish, shine, even toss out the trash and compost.  I'm so damned helpful when I visit my mother I'm sure she thinks something's wrong with me.  All she remembers are piles of my clothes and wet towels on the floor.

On design jobs I love to help people rearrange their rooms, rediscover beautiful things they forgot about, declutter, and honor their special possessions.  Making their space "just so" is like giving a gift.  Of course having permission to poke through someone else's things is pretty wonderful.  I am a snoop, there's that.  

So I'll come over and clean your house if you'll come over and clean mine.  I have to warn you, though, I haven't touched the kitchen floor in months.  Bring rubber gloves. 

If you need a little help (or a lot) call me.
I'd be delighted to make your interior world rock! 

Cindy Kunz, owner of Cin Design Studio, Easthampton MA.   413-695-4370  www.cindesignstudio.com  cindesignstudio@yahoo.com  

Wait! Don't Pick a Paint Color Yet!!!!

Oh boy - it's so exciting to choose wall colors for a new space.  I just met with clients who don't even have their addition built yet - and they are antsy to pick colors.  While I share their enthusiasm (oh the choices!!!!) I have to put the brakes on.  Really - we'd better wait.

When redoing a room, or creating a brand-spanking new space, it's best to design in order.  Get the walls up, and the flooring in. Tile, fixtures and countertops.  Those things are limited in choice - so work out those first.  And if you are buying furniture - get that sofa selected as well as any other upholstered pieces.  You might LOVE the apple green paint color you found at Benjamin Moore. but it'll be tough to find many fabrics that will work with that exact color.  Better to find the AWESOME sofa fabric you want, THEN work on the correct paint colors.  

You've got a billion (okay maybe a trillion) paint color choices to work with - but maybe only 5 or 6 upholstery fabrics you really love.  So start with what's most limiting first - and then work your way into the wild-wild world of wall paint.  Sure beats painting the walls way too early in a gorgeous raspberry plum, only to find out later that the sofa fabric print you just found, and totally LOVE, requires a tweaked raspberry.  Argh.  Give up the print, or repaint?  I'd repaint.  See what I mean?

Designing without a foundational plan makes for tough decisions and bigger compromises later on with the fun stuff....so stay on track, do things in order, and ENJOY the process. 

If you need a little help (or a lot) call me! 
I'd be delighted to make your interior world rock!

Cindy Kunz, owner of Cin Design Studio, Easthampton MA.   413-695-4370  www.cindesignstudio.com  cindesignstudio@yahoo.com      

HGTV - Blessing or a Curse?

I admit to spending way too many hours watching back-to-back episodes on HGTV.  I love Candice Olsen, Color Splash and Design Star.   But I can't stand House Hunters (Uh huh... Mmm... Nice...Oh granite...crown molding...uh huh...)  Anyway, after every blitz of home design shows, I feel guilty for being sloth-like in front of the tube.  But mostly I feel a little miffed.

These shows don't show you the whole story. 

 

That $1000 "project cost" doesn't account for the designer's fee, permits, cost of demolition and disposal, carpenter, electrician, plumber, sheetrocker, floor installers, painters.  And the time it takes to source all the materials, finishes, furniture and accessories.  Then add in those DIY projects. $1000?  Nope.

Full kitchen reno in a few days?  Maybe if you already had the perfected design plan, purchased all the building materials, flooring, tile, countertops, lighting, appliances, plumbing fixtures...stored them in a nearby warehouse, and had a crew of people waiting to do their work when it was their turn.  And maybe if nothing comes up like dry rot or a pipe that isn't where you thought it was. 

Fabulous custom designer living room in a week?  Walk in, make a few sketches, BOOM it's done?  Hardly.  It takes at least 6 weeks (in a rush!) to get an upholstered sofa.  Sigh.

Oh well.  The shows are fun and they encourage people to experiment and be brave.   But they also set  unrealistic expectations. I feel bad when I have to tell someone that the curtains they really want, on sale, even with a trade discount, are $200 per panel.  Fortunately I love a challenge and am a crafty creative person.  I can make something from almost nothing.  I work with teeny budgets and get fab results.  But it isn't like HGTV.  I don't have the crew, or the right hair. 

What shows do you love or hate?  And do you have the right hair?

There Are No Bad Paint Colors - Except One.

Do you ever say you hate a particular color?  Or that you're "not really into" blue, or purple, or pink...

We all have preferences and are typically attracted to certain colors over others. As trends change, our preferences can change too.  And some colors remind of us something - not always good somethings.  Maybe your mom made you wear a lavender wool sweater that scratched like rat claws and made you so itchy you ripped it off as soon as she wasn't looking.  Or your ex insisted on pale blue sheets - and now that blue makes you think about long nights listening to the ex snore and cough out smoker's breath.  Not pretty.

But color is all about context.  Maybe you still hate lavender - but put a bit of lavender with nice saturated orange and BAM it's all new.   That pale blue could be just what you need to balance out an elegant aged gold.  Suddenly, all colors have possibilities - it depends on where it is, what it is, and what it is WITH.

But there's one color, just one, that I can't make work.  No matter what I do.  Not on a wall, not on a floor, not even a tshirt.  It's that pinky beige.  It haunted us in the 80's - mixed with forest green, burgundy and mauve.  The builder's choice of wall-to-wall carpet color.  Ouch.  It's not a warm beige.  It's not a pale french plaster pink with a bit of brown like my friend Joan's dressing room.  It's not organic, earthy, creamy, sandy, or even modern and stark.  It's just blah.  Big blah.  Haven't seen a wall surface or a human being yet who can sucessfully own that color.

Do you know this color?  Have you seen it work?  I would love to know how to learn to love pinky beige.  I feel kind of bad for it.        

 

My Winter Kitchen Color Fires Up The Grill

I painted my kitchen a color called "Emberglow" by Sherwin Williams.  I love the color better than the  Hearts of Palm Green I had, and the Spa Blue before that, and the India Trade ochre before that, and the Canteloupe before that, and the Honeydew before that...

All this serial painting annoys the hell out of my daughter, who thinks I'm indecisive.  I'm not - it's just that there are so many gorgeous colors and I want to see them all.  I like variety and change.  And THAT'S why I have natural wood floors and creamy white cabinets.  EVERYTHING WORKS.

Anyhoo

The kitchen color is exactly the same as a glowing ember in my fireplace.  Intense, hot, fiery.  Great in the winter, when it's 10 below zero and the furnace is heaving out it's  best attempt at radiator heat.  And I'm wearing my wool hat all day in the house.  Perfect wall color on a cold day.  But maybe not so good in the hot summer.  All that sizzle!  All that burning ORANGE!  BUT today I realized it matches the color of the charcoal embers in my grill.  Right when it's perfectly ready for a little marinated chicken breast and a big fat marshmallow.  So I guess that warm-you-up in winter color is a good summer color too.

Seasons - schmeasons.  Pick a color and give it a try.  Oh and try those new jumbo marshmallows.  Awesome.