Hunters and Gatherers

OK, who’s a collector? Raise your hand! See, look around you. There are lots of us living amongst you minimalists and you “can’t stand the clutter!” freaks. Some of you collectors may be married to one who simply doesn’t understand that if one frog is cute, an army of frogs is absolutely adorable!

Collectors know that the need to collect is really not just  about the acquisition—it’s  about the journey, the mental registration that  alerts us to the possibility that a “Reed and Barton” jelly spoon in the grape pattern may be in that shop you just drove by. The alert that pulls us over to park at a yard sale or scroll on eBay 'til midnight… looking, seeking, searching, hunting for yet another one-of-the-same for your collection.

I personally am from a long line of “Hunters.” As I grew up, hunting for items in a like category was normal behavior. Today, several collections later, I am currently surrounded by my collections of mid-century pottery, glass paper weights, vintage broaches, mid-century cocktail shakers, toothbrushes, vintage salt dishes, world globes, china creamers… somebody STOP ME! Yet, I still get a rush when I stop at a shop or win a bid or cruise a yard sale and discover a “find” at a great price. It makes my day!

That said, the only reason collections work in my life is because of the way they are displayed. When integrated properly, collections can be a charming personal statement, a showcase of one of your interests, the results of your diligent hunt and an opportunity to live with what you love. You may have a client who is a collector. You would love to box up and hide her ‘kine of cows’ collection, but it is her home and her hobby, so consider the following display ideas before having that nasty cow conversation with her.

A good collection rule is: always display like items together.

Multiples set up a rhythm that controls the chaos and can be juxtaposed with the eclectic quality of a room. When you display objects in multiples, the aesthetic impact is more than the sum of its decorative parts. Physiologically, the eye is drawn to repetition; it registers this kind of regularity as it scans the room. The same applies to clusters and groups, as they anchor the visual flow from element to element. The display of a collectable should be in consideration of scale, style and mood of collection.

Once you have gathered the collection together, decide on the best application for the collectable. For example, ceramics are great in clusters on a bookshelf or as a table decoration. If the ceramic collection is a specific category, like pitchers or tea pots, line them up single file on a long shelf. For platters use shallow shelves or display them on plate hangers as art. For salt and pepper shakers use old “knick-knack” shelves with little cubbies for each pair of shakers. For my creamer collection I had little shelf units built to fit them, then hung the shelves in a patchwork on the wall (see creamer shelf, right).

Anything you can frame is good! A collection of “smalls,” like vintage keys, old jewelry, luggage tags, hat pins, buttons and beads, vintage lighters or compacts…etc., can become charming artwork when displayed in a shadowbox frame.

For glassware, like snow globes, crystal elements, decorated eggs, perfume bottles—anything with a precious quality—use a wall-mount display shelf unit, an étagère or a china cabinet with interior lights. These units were made for display. Glassware will sparkle and encourage nose-to-glass viewing by visitors. Also, consider using the cabinet units for little figurine items like unicorns or Hummel characters. Bottom line, if your client collects elephants and the herd is scattered around the house, round em’ up and display the entire collection on a shelf in the china cabinet. It will look interesting and lush verses lonely and corny.

Let’s face it ladies. Finding unique artwork or one-of-a-kind accessories (you'll never find them  at HomeGoods) is tough. Nothing is new and predictability in a design concept is the kiss of death. However, if your client just happens to collect antique evening bags or vintage maps, reconsider them framed and hung in your design. It’s customized for your client and becomes an accent NOBODY else has.

For collectors of like-subject artwork, again hang together in a group if possible, like this “dog paintings” collection seen here.

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As promised, here are my tips on hanging a large group of various sized pictures on one big wall—good for “Family Galleries” and art collections!

1) AFTER, you have addressed all the framing and created a coordinated group of pictures, lay them out and divide into like-sized piles:  3x5, 4x6, 5x7, 6x8, 8x10, etc. Then pull all the oversized pictures—anything over 16x20—or pull the 3-4 largest pictures. These are your “anchor” pictures.

2) Hang the largest “anchor picture” in the center of the wall. Then lay the remaining two to three pictures on the floor, down to the right and left, to be hung later.

3) From your piles, create groups of two or three pictures that work together; i.e., three 4 x 6 pictures of your client’s three kids, or two 8 x 10 pictures of their grandparents. These will fill long or wide spaces. IF the frames are not the same that’s okay, but the size should be.

4) The shape rule for the overall picture group is the same as in designing a room—the eye should easily flow from picture to picture. So, always hang in a pyramid or sideways diamond (marquis cut). When the wall is particularly long make more “peaks and valleys” like a mountain range.

5) From your pile, remove good “topper pictures” to be at the top of your pyramid. Pick interesting frames, ornate styles or unusual shapes. These are a focal point.

6) If the images need a certain cohesion or timeline, like the husband’s family hung together, divide your pictures into the required order and lay along the wall, as the story goes.

7) Remember to mix it up and use all available sizes consistently. Don’t be stuck with a pile of little frames and three feet of wall left. Work right-left, right-left, so you don’t get lopsided. Lastly, make an invisible border line at the top and the bottom so you have horizontal balance, too.

GOOD LUCK DESIGNERS!

A Room of Her Own

I am a woman who supports women. I think women are amazing and I meet remarkable women every day at Design Alliance. Women who are loving wives, nurturing mothers and successful Interior Designers—multi-tasking at its finest.

During my design years I was invited into the homes of many remarkable women, interesting women who spent their days orchestrating the family lifestyle. It was not uncommon for these selfless women to abandon their own dreams to become the support system for their family, while their own talents and inspirations went dormant.

Sally was a client like that. Adorable, petite and gregarious, she had raised four boys (three offspring and one husband). Her youngest son, 28, had moved out about a year ago and Sally was ready to make some changes when I was called in to consult on a kitchen remodel.

I was oblivious to what lay ahead when I arrived at Sally’s 4/3 Ranch-style home. The garden was pristine, with a dichondra lawn. So mid-century! She was the first on her block to have the beds lined in annuals and hanging baskets flanking the front door. This yard had been lovingly maintained.

When Sally answered the door she was pure sugar ‘n spice, with a slight Texas drawl, a corona of platinum hair, sporting a pink top, mint green capris and white mules with three-inch heels that click/slapped as she walked. She invited me in to meet her house. It was not so colorful. This was a home that had survived 32 years of growing testosterone. It was a war zone where nary a surface had been spared the blows of boys in a brawl.

Sally then led me to the main event, the kitchen. When I saw the space I think I bowed my head and said a few words. This room had the pale, marred face of a healing accident victim… a boot toe dent in the refrigerator door, a dozen cracks in the counter tile, a pock marked vinyl floor and the oven door askew. I looked at little Sally and wondered how she came out unscathed!

I then started to take a few cabinet measurements when I opened the door to the broom closet and discovered stacks of cookbooks, maybe 40 or 50, on the floor.

“Sally what’s this?” I questioned, pointing to the piles.

“Oh, my cookbooks,” she said. “I love to bake. My mincemeat has won two ribbons,” she proudly stated.

“Wow!” I eloquently exclaimed. “Don’t let me forget to build you a bookcase above the desk I’m planning to replace your end-of-the-counter ‘phone center’ with!”

“Oh!” Sally squealed. “That will be lovely!”

As Sally and I toured the rest of the house, she spoke lovingly of her boys and husband Bud. I learned she met Bud in college, had received her Masters in Fine Arts and had minored in dance, with dreams to join a company. At night she would sit with Bud in front of the BIG SCREEN and knit blankets for the local shelter. She pulled a plastic bag from under the sofa to show me. I saw how they had turned her middle son’s room into an office for Bud and her youngest son’s room into a gym for Bud. Sally got her oldest son’s room.

“I’d like to see your room Sally,” I stated.

“But it’s such a mess,” she complained.

“I’ll try not to notice, lead the way!” I said, standing strong.  

She apologized over and over as we approached, then she opened the door and announced, “We call it the “Junk Room.”

I peered in and nodded, “Quintessential!”  And it was. There was a 6’ slider looking out on the pool, a missing closet door, piles of clothes, papers and books, an ironing board, a card table holding a small laptop, a sewing machine and an easel, set up over a laundry basket, supporting a painting in progress. I made some mental notes.

On the drive home I thought about Sally and how talented she is, as a gardener, baker, knitter, seamstress, artist and dancer. I thought about her passion to be creative and what joy it brought her, yet day-to-day she would hide her self-expression in the shadows, amongst the clutter of the “junk room,” in the broom closet, or under the sofa to gladly attend to her family’s needs. My next thought was that this is not a project JUST about this deserving woman’s battered kitchen. Frankly anything I did to that interior would be an improvement. This is “My Brilliant Idea” project!

So I designed the kitchen, drafted plans, compiled my samples and collected the appliance literature for my remodel presentation. Then, without solicitation or permission, I started designing Sally’s “Room of Her Own.”

She was in the largest of the three boys’ rooms, 15 feet’x13 feet, with the slider to the backyard. First, I replaced the sliding door with a pair of French doors, widening the casing with 4” molding that led into 4” base around the room. Then I took off the remaining closet door and designed a sewing area in one third of closet cavity with a permanent surface for her machine, lighting and her chair.  The remaining two thirds of the closet became customized storage, with stand-up canvas storage, basket bins for fabric, cubbies for her yarn skeins and drawers and cabinets for all her painting supplies.

I painted the room a beautiful soft pink/salmon and the moldings and French doors a pristine white. I set her easel near the window and added a stool. On the main wall I put a built-in daybed with bolsters on three sides and a ridiculous number of accent pillows. I set a distressed mint green end table with aqua lamp next to a comfy down club chair in a “Sister Parrish” cotton floral.

I added a small flat screen TV on the wall, an iPod for music and an additional book case for her favorite books and pictures of the beasty boys. I imagined the floor underneath the carpet would be hardwood, so the carpet came up and a soft, fluffy, area rug defined the seating area. It was scary-girly, void of boys. It smelled like a girl, all pink and flowery and lacy, full of cuteness and sweetness, fresh and beautiful… just like Sally.

Sally was over-the-moon excited about the idea and Bud footed the bill, as well he should.  A Room of Her Own was a big success for this altruistic, would-be ballerina and for me, it was an idea I applied four more times over the years—for a writer, a collector, an editor and a die-hard crafter.

These ardent women were easy to spot: dedicated, selfless and passionate about all that they do. Women like this may cross your path—deserving women who need a place to be with self. Maybe it is just a corner where you create custom storage, or a surface to draft or draw, a chair and lamp in which to read, a potting bench in the yard or a mirrored wall and a ballet bar—it’s just for them. Women, who in spite of all their creative suppression over the years, still have a sense of wonder and imagination with an ongoing need to create their vision… whatever it might be.

  

The Family Gallery

The most classically grand home I ever worked on was a hand-me-down—a project passed on to me by my dear friend Eva, an elegant, well-seasoned designer with an impressive body of work. Eva’s clients were upscale, from neighborhoods I had never heard of, so when she suggested I call this family from “Fancyland” for an appointment my first question was, “What should I wear?”  Eva assured me that I would be fine and although she found this challenge baffling, she knew I would know just what to do. So I dressed up and made the call.

It took an hour to get to my appointment and a grilling by the border guard before I was parked in front of this awesome estate. The architecture was neoclassic, symmetrical and grand, complete with a pediment atop a row of Doric columns. I rang the bell and “the husband” answered. Middle-aged, cheerful and chatty, he waved me into the foyer, no, the rotunda, with dome!! The floor had a beautiful round marble inlay design and the dome was a detailed leaded glass. A curving staircase flanked the round and led to a bridge on the other side of the dome. Supporting the bridge were two columns, which led to three steps descending into the living room. As the husband carried on with the back story of the French settee, I stood there wondering what my role was in this scenario. What could I bring to this iconic environment that this world traveler had not already considered?

In that moment I was led to the living room entrance. It was a huge, impressive space, maybe forty feet wide, with a wall of French windows opposite the steps, which looked outside to a court yard. It was old school formal. On one end was the fireplace, on the other end a grand piano and three seating areas in the middle. The lighting was recessed in a coffered ceiling, the upholstery was velvet, silks and tapestries... then I saw it, my purpose had been revealed. In this classically sublime space, every surface was littered with little stand-up framed pictures of their four children! It was wrong, specifically in this formal setting AND a pet peeve of mine…Eva knew that! 

I realized it would not be easy to suggest they banish their offspring from the living room. I knew I would need some life threatening reason before Mr. Lucky and his wife, the breeder, would surrender this showcase display of their proudest accomplishments. Oddly, these people hire designers to ensure they have a well-appointed interior, projecting a certain ambiance that reflects their privileged life. Yet, when you find this sea of frames in the middle of this fantasy you are slapped back into reality, like Christopher Reeve when he pulled the current penny from his pocket in “Somewhere in Time.” Dream over!!

It took two meetings to convince them to relocate this exhibit. I explained that a home this grand has visitors, meetings, parties, holiday gatherings, etc. You don’t have such an extraordinary abode and not show it off. Due to this truth, the living room would be considered a “public” area. Really, no matter what size the living room is, casual family photos are too intimate, particularly in such mass.

I also told them that these photos cannot be viewed properly broken up across the landscape. If left there they would need to station a Docent at the steps giving “Table Tours” to identify the child and event. Ultimately we moved them to a gorgeous, sky-lit hallway where Mama could guide tours down memory lane and tell the tale of their family. She was thrilled.

Everything has changed since “desk-top photo processing” has become the norm. Every little moment that moves us is now captured digitally. No more, “Oh, look at that, I wish I had a camera!” You do, and it’s in your pocket or purse—it’s called a phone!

It sets you up for a successful shot: lighting, focus, find the face and BAM, you are Ansel Adams. The other culprit is the readily available, affordable and adorable stand-up frame. You simply can’t buy enough. Well, it’s enough already.

Documenting your memories is a wonderful thing. Seeing our children’s evolution or our grandparent’s history connects us and gives our life substance. However, overkill turns your life into a flip-book. You would not write your life story with such redundancies so why do we need six pictures of Tommy at two when one cute one will do? Remember that a picture is worth a thousand words.

There are several appropriate areas in the home for groupings of family photos: any bedroom, the family or great room, an office or den, but the best gallery location is the HALLWAY. It’s a natural long walk, free of furniture and generally an area not “decorated.” This is my favorite area and no matter how small, a grouping can be hung!

Hands down the most effective application for me over the years has been the Family Picture Gallery. The task of gathering and framing all the photos that live in a box under the bed is overwhelming, so there they sit. For many, gathering and framing the photos of a lifetime and creating a cohesive timeline that tells the story of said life is priceless. It’s a fond memory, a validation, a diary of experiences, a foot print on the planet of all that really matters in one’s life. 

This effort on your part will give your client warm fuzzies again and again. You have the power to do that… so why wouldn’t you?

For those of you who feel intimidated by a pile of 100 framed photos and a long blank wall, I will give tips on how to hang a gallery or picture group in my upcoming  blog on “Collectors.”