Andrew Barnes Lifestyle: gallery wall

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Sourcing for mom... the dining room edition

My mother, Lois, has a new house in the NC mountains! And, it is freaking cute.

I am sooooo thankful that she sold the log cabin. That silly thing was a maintenance disaster. And, mom referred to it as the Rice Krispie house -- as the ambient temperature of the of the house changed during the day, the wood would "snap, crackle, and pop." Good riddance.

Her new home is only 1400 sq ft.... so McMansion it is NOT. Fortunately, it is absolutely adorable, and she's done a wonderful job getting it together.

As you might imagine... {hint hint}.... there are a couple of ideas which could make her little mountain cottage the envy of all of her neighbors. And, it might just piss off a few family members, too! That would be like a gift from sweet baby Jesus.

But, I digress.

Let's start with the dining room. The back wall of the dining room can be seen as you walk in the front door. So, since that is the first sight line in the house, it needs to be amazing. I know, it needs to be practical, too. Don't burst my bubble!

Ok... the basics.

1. Crown moulding.

The cost is only about $1 per linear foot installed. So, that shouldn't completely break the bank.

2. Back wall. Options: textured paint, wallpaper, or grasscloth.

http://www.dwelement.com/blog.php?post=200

Hmmmm.... that might really be a good thing! Simple and tasteful. Me likey.

3. Light fixture. Oh, did I mention that the light fixture in the dining room was TINY??? It is awful! Simple drum shade to the rescue. Fortunately, my mom is not a Venetian glass chandelier kind of girl... that could get expensive.

www.westelm.com

...and it is ONLY $100. Score!

4. Dining room table. This is where there may be some gnashing of teeth. History: The table is over 100 years old. Beautiful lines. But.... it has been beaten all to hell. Despite multiple attempts to strip, sand, and stain, the top of that little beast still looks dreadful. Currently, it is hidden under a tablecloth. Ick.

How about some color????? Red maybe. It IS mom's favorite color.

THAT could be....... amazing!!!

Ok, Joseph, focus.

5. Storage. Since she is seriously lacking storage, a buffet might be the practical and pretty solution. And, since that crazy painted table is going to be the center of attention, lets stick to white or natural wood colors.

http://www.colemanfurniture.com/glen-cove-white-buffet.htm

Reed buffet

Ok, I LOVE that Reed Buffet. It's perfect. But.... it is located in AUSTRALIA. Thanks world wide web! Grumble. And, since I've previously shipped a didgeridoo from Sydney, the cost of that little trans-Pacific trip would be insane.

That Coleman one isn't bad. Dimensions are 16 x 18 x 62 inches at a cost of $765, with free shipping.

6. Lamps. Need two lamps for the buffet.

http://www.circalighting.com/

Great looking balustrade-inspired lamp from Circa. Sadly, there are 2 problems. First, the $630 price point is a tad high. Second, it is french wired... which means that the cord comes out of the socket. Personally, french wired lamps are the aesthetic equivalent of nails on a chalk board. HATE! But, I do like the idea of that lamp. Guess that I'll keep looking. It may be Home Goods to the rescue.

7. Chairs. The current chairs in the room are Queen Anne with upholstered cushions. They have great lines but the off-white damask on the cushions looks a little too formal for the room.

Guess that we need to find some fabric. Something fun and festive...

Ikat?

For some reason, I'll bet that she will pass on the Ikat idea.

Camel in velvet?

Pebbles in mocha? I want THIS for me!!!

Vingage floral???

The best option... send her a pile of fabric samples and tell her to pick.

8. Rug? The floors are a light oak stain.

Bold stripe rug??? Not blue.

Hmmmmm.

Graphic pattern?

Simple jute?

She will need to give me some ideas on the rug choice. But, I suspect that we will steer clear of the imported Turkish varieties from ABC Carpet and Home. Some of them are not very budget friendly.

Holy sticker shock, Batman.

9. The wall above the buffet. Oh, I have a great idea which was inspired by this 100(+) year old photo.......

My grandmother, Mollie, and her twin sister.

What about a gallery mount of family photos????? Personally, I love the idea and have about 25 black and white picture frames in my closet. So, it would be cheap. And, I think that mom would adore it!!!

http://accessorizeandorganize.blogspot.com/2011/05/gallery-wall-inspiration.html

I think that we have a plan. Now... I need to talk her into it!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Gallery wall

"Empty frame" gallery arrangement

www.marthastewart.com

"Hello. My name is Joey and I am a gallery wall snob." There, I said it... but, I'm not certain that I want to recover from this affliction.

We've all seen rooms in which the art is hung near ceiling height. Or, those poor 15 ft feature walls that are accessorized by a lonely 8 x 10 photo. In this case, my prayer is, God bless them... and "forgive them for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23.

Why is it soooo difficult for people to figure out where to hang a piece of art? It just ain't that hard.

Ideally, art -- be it from the dime store or an auction house -- should be hung at eye level. Most agree that the center of the piece should be 60 inches from the floor. There are, of course, lots of exceptions. But, it is important to know the rules before you decide to break them.

With gallery or salon displays, most of the rules get thrown out the window. But, while the "rules" may be more permissive and lenient, there are still some guidelines to follow that will prevent total aesthetic disaster.

1. There should be one unifying element. For example, keep the frame choices consistent... maybe, black or white. Though a bit "girly" for my taste, this is an amazingly well done space.

http://its-like-tiffanys.blogspot.com/2010/09/photographic-collection-of-design.html

2. Understand that the eye reads "collections" as an upside down letter e. The item in the center is seen first and then the natural tendency in Western cultures is to read the collection "counter clockwise." So, the most important item should be hung in the center with the supporting art hung around it. And, this center element should be hung at eye level.

http://interiordesignhq.com/2012/02/hang-head-high-artwork/

Look at this collection. What is the first thing that you see on the wall? The black and white flowers??? What is the last thing that you see... the small round silver object at the 8 o'clock position? It's a cool trick!

3. The space between the items should be as similar as possible in order to help unify the look.

http://www.happysammy.org/2011/02/looking-for-ideas-wall-photo-gallery.html

4. "Hang your head high, NOT your artwork."

http://theinspiredroom.net/2011/03/30/gallery-walls-inspiration-pictures-a-linky-party/

I HATE everything about this gallery wall. There is NOT a cohesive element linking all of the elements. It is hung waaaaaaaaaaay too high. Check out the art on the right hand wall... it is at eye level. So, why did they mount all of the gallery items at the ceiling? And, there is just too much crap on that wall. This wall needs a big ole...RE-do!

5. When combining multiple items, keep the color palate simple. In this case, the entire wall "reads" as a black and white art instillation. Why? The frames may be different colors, but... all of the items have white mats. And, the art itself is all black and white. It works!

Room by David Jimenez

www.davidjimenez.com

http://www.housebeautiful.com/decorating/kansas-city-style-0807

6. Scale is important. The idea is to use between 2/3 and 3/4 of the wall space above a piece of furniture to compliment it and not overwhelm it. For instance..... this entry is DREADFUL.

http://www.thecreativityexchange.com/category/wall-ideas

In all honesty, I think that the rug is great... and the faux taxidermy horns are clever. But, the scale is all screwed up. To accomodate that much art, the table needs to be MUCH larger... the art dwarfs that little table. I also think that it is a little odd to have a perfectly symmetrical arrangement on the table while not carrying that symmetry idea onto the wall. It just seems off.

Don't get me wrong, I don't always practice what I preach. The mirror above my foyer table is waaay too small. Currently, it is just not on my "to do" list.

On the other hand, this space rocks.... The scale is great, especially with the edition of that large floor lamp in the corner to anchor the arrangement.

Room by Preston Lee

http://designers.elledecor.com/designers/11-preston-lee-design-west-hollywood-CA-designers

7. The pieces of art should compliment each other or help to tell a story. Just because you have 26 pieces of art, it doesn't mean that you should hang them all together on the same wall. What in the world were they thinking? Just say, NO.

http://museumca.org/exhibit/gallery-california-art

8. Start with a plan. I've certainly been guilty of putting 10 nail holes in the wall to hang one item. But, you don't have to do that... plan it out before you start destroying the walls.

http://interiordesignhq.com/2012/02/hang-head-high-artwork/

9. Keep it simple... When I first started working, art wasn't really in my budget. Unfortunately, I had a great deal of wall space. And, gallery collections can be a cheap way to fill up some of that space. In my home office, I used frames made out of glass and bleached wood to display postcards from my favorite trips. Sorry that the photo is a bit blurry, but you get the idea.