Thanks for the Mention!

A few recent shout outs I'd love to mention... 

My latest boy's room design was featured in the newest issue of House of Fifty. 

It was also featured on Apartment Therapy a few weeks back. See it here.

I am glad people are still enjoying that room!

Etsy Valentine's Day Roundup

Valentines' Day is such a neat holiday! It makes me happy that we all come together and celebrate all the people we love. Here are some items from Etsy to make that celebration easier.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.

Top Home Decorating

2012 brings forward old ideas remodeled according to new trends, effortless elegance, vivid colors, striking and out of the ordinary combinations and contrasts. Chic design style and comfort themes will define interior decorating ideas in 2012. Soft home furnishings, luxurious and pleasant materials, attractive and cheerful colors, comfortable and beautiful furniture design with interesting details will help create welcoming, unique and stylish homes. Interior design trends 2012 will celebrate your personality and take care of details, creating pleasant, comfortable and personal interior decorating.

Alt Recap

me, caitlin and amanda 

I honestly wasn't sure if I was going to make it to Alt this year. I was so excited to go but the morning sickness hit me earlier than I expected. But lots of prayers and zofran later I managed to show up for the two day conference and I'm so glad I did. 

photos by b.a.d. photography 

I hung out with Caitlin Creer and Christina mostly but I was able to chat with some friends that I met last year and some new friends that I met this year. 

photo by moss + Isaac 

Alt is fun for a number of reasons. The people are interesting, the atmosphere is exciting the food and hotel are amazing and the all of the speakers are so inspiring. 

photo by Justin Hackworth 

Ben Silbermann from pinterest shared his inspirational story and received a standing ovation afterwards. It was truly amazing and an experience I'll never forget.  Let me just say that Ben is one-of-a-kind. I've never met anyone like him.

His speech was so inspirational and he got a well deserved standing ovation at the end of it. 

There were a few panels I really enjoyed this year. 

Jenny, Kirsten, Morgan Satterfield and Emily spoke on a panel The Ins and Outs of Interior Design blogging. I was really interested in Jenny's portion. She talked about how she always though the blog and the separate design business were really hard to manage at the same time but she realized that the business fed the blog and vice versa. I agree. It's so much easier to find things to blog about when I'm working on client projects. She also touched on spending 10% of your time on inspiration ie. blogs, pinterest, magazines.. and 90% of your time on perspiration meaning actually getting out there and shopping, working on clients homes or your own home etc. 

Photo by b.a.d Photography 

Emily Henderson gave some great tips on styling your projects for photographs. This was advice I really needed. A few of her tips that I liked:

- It's okay to show stems in vases

- If you have tight flowers use a blow dryer to open them up a bit.

- Combine open and closed flowers in a bouquet to make it look more natural. 

- Create asymmetrical shapes

- Don't use gerber daises unless it's for a kids room or party. 

- Use lots and lots of pretty books to style. 

- Fake or half eaten food is a no-no.

- Square objects should be straight on and have stuff on them. 

I also enjoyed the panel by Erin, Danielle, Meg and Sarah on Building Relationships with Ad Networks and Sponsors. 

I feel like sponsors and giveaways are still a mystery to so many people. There are new rules coming out all the time on regulations and laws regarding these things and the only way I get to hear about them is by going to things like Alt. Honestly I'm still a little confused. Basically I know that I need to start doing some research before I do any more giveaways. You can read some more info on what I'm talking about here. I also learned about the types of sponsors you should be taking. Make sure they are a good fit with your brand and blog. Make sure they are honest and have values as a company. You can even think about having some kind of document for them to sign stating that they are such. Go into blog advertising as, "Once I take money from you you are on my team and I will do everything I can to help you make money". Don't be a person that will just take any sponsor or any giveaway. Know your worth. 

Friday morning I attended a round table discussion on Tax and Accounting for bloggers. I'd been looking forward to this one. Caroline Devoy spoke at this table and she was really knowledgeable. Basically you can write off what you blog about if you feel it is promoting your business or is a business expense. You need to be careful though as to how you label things. Make sure you call them "Creative Supplies" 

photo taken by Justin Hackworth photography 

One of my favorite panels last year was Growing Your Readership so I decided to go again this year. Jordan, Kelly, Nicole and Maggie spoke at this one. Some of the points I liked from this one:

- A well designed blog is a prerequisite now. Have a professional look and make yourself look bigger than you are. 

- Blog about what people are searching for on search engines. For example holidays, big events like the super bowl etc. 

- What's your story? Are you the girl who is building a house, fixing up a house, starting a business, writing a book etc. 

- If you have a good idea put it out there immediately before someone else does it even if you don't have the idea perfected right now. 

Jordan gave the best advice on my opinion on growing your readership. She outlined ways to actually post original content.

- Design beautiful layouts for your posts. Take a normal photo and add a beautiful graphic. This will also help your pictures get pinned.

- Blog about your experiences. No one else can have the experiences that you have. Experiences with travel, clients, in school, in your everyday life etc. 

- Share expertise. If you are an Interior Designer teach people how to become better designers. If you are a party planner guide people on planning the perfect party etc. 

- Post from your own research. Find ways to pull inspiration from the past and put your own spin on it.

I attended lots of other great panels but those few were my favorites. I hope I get to attend next near and I hope to see you a lot of you there!  

Wow that post took me like a whole week to write.  I would work on it for 5 minutes and then take a nap or get something to eat or just stare into space. Seriously I'm a mess right now! I hope you enjoyed that recap now I am going to go watch some t.v an lay on the sofa.

It's a jungle out there...

Zebra has been around a while, I mean a really long time.  The use of animal skins in interior decorating has a long and distinguished history dating back centuries.  It recently made a comeback a few years ago and still seems to be going strong.  As crazy as it seems, that classic black and white almost geometric quality of the zebra makes it a cool match for a wide array of interiors and styles. It can go classic or crazy.  It does seem to be everywhere, but despite this I still love Zebra -- especially paired with neutrals or even in a crazy Moroccan theme...So what do you think...too trendy and close to the exit or is it here to stay a while longer?



Jan Showers via decor pad


Damiano Biellas black and white library.
via decor pad


elizbeth culter
via decor pad


via decor pad

eclectic living room design by los angeles interior designer Kelley & Company Home

eclectic living room design by los angeles interior designer maison21

http://www.houzz.com/

eclectic living room design by los angeles interior designer maison21

eclectic living room design by los angeles interior designer Elizabeth Gordon

traditional staircase design by providence interior designer Kate Jackson Design

traditional bedroom design by new york interior designer Tiffany Eastman Interiors, LLC

traditional family room design by atlanta interior designer Valerie DeRoy Interiors, LLC

eclectic living room design by san francisco interior designer Kendall Wilkinson Design

traditional hall design by new york interior designer Anthony Como of Luxe Interiors

modern living room design by new york interior designer Tara Seawright

via apartment therapy






via decor pad


via decor pad

Alt Overload

photo taken by Moss + Isaac

I am back from my 2nd time at Alt Design Summit and I am on information overload. I have so many things to share with you! I'll try and get it all organized into a nice blog post for you. 

I can't even begin to tell you what an awesome time I had. I doubled up on my zofran prescription during Alt and managed to actually feel pretty good. It was seriously a miracle. 

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! 

Well, hello there...

My name is Amal and I am inspired --- some would say obsessed --- by beautifully designed spaces. I decided to start this blog to track my favorite trends and share my musings about interior design as well as chart the progress of my own design dilemmas. 

I have always had a love of fine art and painting – a gift from my talented artist mother, Lucelle Raad http://www.thewonderofchildren.com/.  I was born in South Africa, but grew up in Garden City, New York. My childhood was filled the coming and goings of a bohemian artist  --- I grew up running around art shows and helping with the family art business.  A graduate of Amherst College and Vanderbilt Law School, I practiced law until the birth of my first boy (I have two). Despite having chosen law as a career, my creative juices were constantly looking for an outlet and I found it in interior design. Following some soul searching, I decided to succumb to my addiction to beautiful interiors, forgo law, and return to school to study interior design.  Currently I am working with a well known designer on the North Shore of Long Island and I could not feel more blessed. My design aesthetic is somewhat eclectic -- it has classical roots with a modern flair. I love mixing comfort and beauty; the ideal space to me is inviting, cheerful, layered and embodies a relaxed, unpretentious elegance. 

My wonderful husband, two boys and I live in the Huntington, NY area, overlooking a lovely little harbor.  In addition to interior design, I love gardening, being on the water and cooking (when it doesn't involve chicken nuggets or hot dogs). My design style is new traditional in that I am somewhat eclectic -- I swoon over chinoiserie, despise clutter and dig bright colors and graphic prints (at the moment). I guess I would describe myself as a little black dress type; my secret indulgence is chinoiserie anything -- but have been known to swoon over some contemporary art pieces now and then. My favorite haunt is a fabric store or an art show, and I can barely refrain from passing an antique shop without going in. Whenever I enter a friend's house, I start mentally rearranging the furniture (after a few drinks at a party, this sometimes makes it into reality).

I have decided to hang my shingle out in the interior design business and I started this blog to help chronicle my journey.  I feel blessed to share what I love with others. Please stop by from time to time to check out the posts. I hope that you enjoy the items and pictures, and would love to hear your thoughts and comments, so please share. 

If you would like to get in touch or have a question, feel free to email me at amalkapen@gmail.com or 917-701-8383. 

Cheers!

Jett's New Headboard

Thank you all SO much for your nice comments about morning sickness. I read each and everyone of them. I think even just having all that support helped the most! I switched my Zofran prescription to the melt in your mouth kind and so far I'm feeling a little better. 

With a new baby on the way I'm more motivated to get Jett's bedroom done. Guess what got delivered over the weekend!

His new headboard! I had Brian from Rocky Mountain Upholstery make it and he did an incredible job. Now as soon as I get some energy back I'll hopefully get this room finished! 

And in other news I picked a winner for the Caitlin Wilson Giveaway. 

Congrats to Lisa! 

Thanks to everyone who entered! 

Home Theater Furniture Ideas

Home Theater Furniture that fits with your lifestyle will make your time to enjoy watching movie in comfortable. If you are planning to design your own home theater design or having a DIY home theater design, it's important to choose the best home theater furniture that fits with your personality.

Home theater furniture for seating

Home theater furniture

Choose the best style for seating furniture, sofa with leather or else, whatever the material that used for the sofa, you should ensure that the seating furniture are comfortable.

Modern Table for home theater furniture
A home theater usually doesn't need a big table, small table with modular steel and glass is the best table, Here is the figure.

Table for home theater furniture

Storage furniture and decoration
Home theater need more storage, use a cabinet or shelves to store CDs, and all your movie collection. Use also a rug in front of the sofa, sometime we can use the rugs for relaxing while enjoy the movie.

Storage home theater furniture and decoration

Guess What....

via rockpaperscissor

I'm pregnant! 

It is great news and we are very excited but as some of you may have already noticed I've been really sick. I thought for some reason that I would be able to push through this yucky stage and just be myself and get things done but it's not shaping out to be that way. I have spent mot of the last week and a half in bed trying to keep food down. I hope you will all bear with me while I take a short blogging break. I'll blog when possible but for the most part I'm going to be focusing on keeping this baby and myself healthy. I'm still really early. Only 6 weeks so I debated if I should even say anything but I'm sure you'll all start to wonder sooner or later why I'm not blogging as much. 

Keep me  in your prayers while I try and get through this difficult first trimester. Thanks everyone! 

...and if any of you have any tips you can share on morning sickness relief I would love to hear it! I'll take all the help and advice I can get. 

Feature Friday: A Newfound Treasure

Today I am featuring the home of Anna from A Newfound Treasure. Here is how she describes her style: 

Enjoy! 

read more about the entry here.

read more about the living room here.

read more about the master bedroom here. 

read more about this bedroom here. 

read more about the nursery here. 

Thanks to Anna for sharing her home with us!