:: Mt Laurel Public Library Design by OCAI ::

I was thrilled to be a part of designing such a wonderful library. I'm commonly asked for the exterior paint colors that were used. The body is Benjamin Moore Gloucester Sage, the trim is Benjamin Moore Clarksville Gray, and the shutters are Benjamin Moore Narragansett Green. I love the unexpected pop of color the shutters provide. 

One of my favorite parts of the interior is the hand painted oak tree done by artist Rorie Scroggins with it's faux wood grain pendants from the Land of Nod and tree stump chair for little bodies to sit and read a book. 

I am absolutely in love with every light fixture in the building. They are the perfect mix of craftsman style and modern simplicity. 

This library is such a blessing to all living in our community and surrounding areas! Thanks for letting Olivia Charles Antiques and Interiors be a part of something so special. 

Tweet

:: My obsession with NAVY ::

Blogging with three boys (two of which are two and under) is proving to be almost impossible so I've decided to throw perfect out the window and just blog what I can, when I can. Which in translation basically means you'll get a lot of images and not much text. Sorry!  It's better than nothing, right?

Today I'm sharing some images from my own home which feature my current favorite accent color - NAVY!  

One of my favorite tricks is painting woodwork an unexpected color. In this case, our mantle. 

I echoed the navy color (Benjamin Moore's Hale Navy) on our custom baby gate. After two years of staring at our ugly metal gate at the bottom of the stairs I finally decided to have a custom "pretty" gate built to keep my boys from escaping to the second floor. It's one of the first things I see when I walk in my front door and it just makes me happy. 

The antique gold pull is from House of Antique hardware and I love that it elevates the style of the simple wooden gate. Not shown in the picture is the latch, which is behind the gate to keep little fingers from finding it. 

And the Hale navy doesn't stop at the gate!  It continues in the form of a painted stair runner down to my unfinished basement. I wanted to jazz up the unfinished floor so I painted the stairs to mimic the look of a runner and added brass house numbers from Lowes that ascend as you go up. 

 As the painted "runner" makes the corner it turns into a down arrow on our kid's basement slide, which was lovingly crafted by their daddy (also known as "Bob" as in Bob the builder). 

As you can see there are touches of navy throughout the main living spaces of our home from the living room through the dining room and into the kitchen. 

 If you are looking for the perfect navy I highly recommend Hale Navy from Benjamin Moore. It has just the right amount of black to keep it sophisticated. There's nothing worse than painting a room thinking it's going to be navy and it turns out looking like the perfect space for a little boy to live! (If you want a little boy navy, try Newburyport Blue, also by Benjamin Moore) 

Hope this blue post cured some of your Monday blues! 

Tweet

::Vance's Outdoor-Inspired Nursery::

The inspiration for this nursery came from Cavern Home's 'migration' wallpaper. I wanted to keep the wall and ceiling colors the same and the paper was in the perfect color scheme to do just that. It added a bit of outdoorsy sophistication that can grow with Vance and the brothers that may eventually use this room without requiring a new paint job, which cut down on costs. 

The walls and trim in the room are both Benjamin Moore's 'fieldstone', the trim was painted in a high gloss while the walls are eggshell.  This provides a subtle visual contrast without the choppiness that can be created with bright white trim in a small room and lets the dark brown ceiling and wallpaper accent wall take center stage. 

I framed Vintage felt shooting badges myself using inexpensive white gallery frames and pre cut mat board to save money. Glue dots were used to secure the badges in the middle of the mat board (frames are from Michaels). These are hung in a rectangular pattern that almost reaches the baseboard to frame out the crib and to break up the patten of the wallpaper. The badges themselves give a nod to the hunting/camp theme without going overboard.  The VW garage sign was a shower gift from a clever friend and references Vance's initials in a cute and decorative way. 

I love to use antique store finds whenever possible in my designs. They give a room character and a uniqueness that can't be found when using only brand new pieces. 

The nursery lighting is an example of this. It is an old, caged gym-light-turned-chandelier and I love that it has a history and is another subtle nod to the fact that a boy lives here. 

In fact, the boy that lives here is the precious one laying on his changing table in this picture. :) But I digress. 

The changing table itself is an old chest that has been used by all my babies. Originally completely finished with a dark stain, I decided to update it with a coat of glossy white paint on the body while leaving the drawers in their original finish. This two tone design updates the piece, allowing it to work in both traditional and transitional spaces. 

The shield mirror (another vintage find and nod to boyhood) is surrounded by framed pictures of Vance's grandparents and parents as babies. 

In the middle of the gallery wall is a monogrammed plaque made from another thrift store score...large laundry bag pins from WWII that I overlapped and glued to a red-painted plaque to form a "V". Don't the pins look just like diaper pins?  Just goes to show it often pays off to leave no stone unturned in an antiques store, including the glass display cabinets with their daunting amount of small objects and ugly jewelry! ;). You just may run into some inspiration like I did when I spied these pins!

The rocker used by Vance's big brother was updated with a gray camp plaid on the seat cushion and wooden buttons on the back in place of covered buttons. 

The bookshelf side table is actually an old concession stand rack from Bryant Denny Stadium and a vintage folding camp stool does double duty as an ottoman. 

Curtains were made from inexpensive black out lining fabric and trimmed in the same camp plaid. The valence was personalized with a 12" felt Varsity 'V' for Vance and is another reference to masculinity without taking the theme too far. 

A throw pillow stitched with a camper also brings in subtle personalization and was purchased from the etsy shop 'a little world.'  

Vintage Girl Scout canteens make a decorative statement on a wall in the room while also lending some color. 

The final sentimental touch for the room is a framed collection of arrow heads found by Vance's great grandfather. I used a camel toned fur fabric as the backing for the arrowheads and purchased the shadow box frame from Hobby Lobby. My favorite part is the piece of paper identifying where the arrowheads were discovered in Big Jack's handwriting. Family heirlooms make such a decorative statement, but more than that they are treasures that will be enjoyed by generations as reminders of the unique interests of the family members that came before them. Things like this are what, in my opinion, make a house a home!

Along with the people who live in it!  💙💙💙

Tweet

:: A Room to Grow In ::

I finally got around to visiting a client in Vestavia to take some pictures of this finished space and it is gorgeous!  It says a lot when my seven-year-old little boy looks over my shoulder as I'm uploading these pictures and exclaims, "Whose room is that?!?  It's awesome!  I wish I had a room like that!"  Enough said.  Every little boy's dream room come to life!

My client's husband had the great idea to carve out the bunk-like niches into the wall when they were remodeling their house.  We propped an Olivia Charles Antiques ladder up against the wall for easy access and I commissioned an etsy shop owner to make the bottom bunk curtain out of vintage nautical flags and a vintage military tent.  (She also makes great pillows!  Check out her "Cove Cabin" shop here.)

My client picked an awesome rug from Dash and Albert (one of my favorite companies for rugs, especially for children's rooms!) and got the burlap storage bins from The Good Life in Vestavia.

She already had the awesome framed Auburn jerseys - one for each of her boys - and the gorgeous antique twin beds, so before I got there she was already off to a great start!

The wooden Whale with the aged nautical scene was something I loved on etsy months ago.  I was excited to have a project to use it.  Similar items can be found in "Edie's Lab" here.

The striped blue and white fabric we used on both the bolster pillows at the end of the beds AND as backing for the antique fishing lures we grouped above the boys' dresser is reminiscent of menswear - think button-up shirts - and I love the nod it gives to becoming a big boy while still retaining the youthful fun of a bold pattern.  If you ever have remnant fabric, I highly recommend this unique use of your scraps.  It adds pattern, depth, and an element of the unexpected to your walls.

The room has a fun alcove where we added a custom Olivia Charles Antiques storage bench so the boys can read and mom has another place to store toys and necessities when they're not in use.

We wanted each boy to have a special sense of belonging in their room, so we chose an oversize monogram on a standard pillow sham to help them lay claim to their individual beds.

The reclaimed wooden ceiling and antler chandelier are stunning and were already there when we started this project.  I love the way the wood brings the height of the tall ceiling down and the chandelier just screams "boy."

The antler pillows on the window seat were made from Lee Jofa's "antlers" fabric in rust. And the box pleated valance was designed to coordinate with the drapes on the other side of the room and hung where the ceiling meets the wall above the window so no natural light was blocked, the window seems even taller, and the backside of the valance can't be seen when looking at the front of the home from the outside.

What little boy wouldn't love to climb that ladder to a secret hide away??

I found the antique dresser in this picture for a steal at an estate sale.  With a little elbow grease it cleaned up nicely and looks very stately, if I do say so myself!

One of my favorite parts of the room is the art rail that I created from the left-over rod in the double curtain rod pack used to hang the drapes and oar above the beds.  All I did was add twig ball finials to the end and purchase x-small umbra curtain brackets at Bed, Bath, and Beyond to hang it from the wall.

Another etsy find, the precious and coloful animal prints were personalized for each boy's first and middle initials.  "C" is for Clay, "H" is for Harris, "M" is for Miller, etc.  The images are playful but have a feeling of age which just fits right in with the overall feel of this space.

Here is an image of the small clips I used to hang the boys' artwork.  These were actually left overs from the double curtain rod pack too.  However, you can easily do this same thing using mini curtain rings with attached clips, which can also be found at B,B and B.

The military curtain was personalized with the client's last name using an old WWII metal stencil and off white paint.  I love the authenticity it gives the vintage materials.

Folded at the end of each bed is a "Badlands Park" Pendleton blanket.  I love these blankets for boys' rooms...each one in this series carries the name of a different state park as well as a unique design.  They are at once rustic and refined, little boy and grown-up.  See all the choices here.

The narrow space between the beds was the perfect spot for our Olivia Charles Antiques bedside table bookcase.  These can be made in any color and size.  Email info@oliviacharlesantiques.com for information.

The vintage wooden moose dress up the window trim and playfully peak through the drapes when they are closed.

My favorite part about the window treatments is the jute "fringe" trim we used to frame the fabric band.  In my opinion, if you are going to pay for custom window treatments they should look just that...custom.  Using trims and tapes is a simple and easy way to create something truly unique.  If you don't have the money for custom drapes from scratch, adding embellishments in the form of trim or tapes or fabric bands is an inexpensive alternative that will give you a similar high-end and custom look.

The reclaimed barn wood storage bench is also by Olivia Charles Antiques.  4" foam was cut to size and covered with a coordinating tweed fabric.  The client's son slept on this window seat the first night it was in the room, so I think it's safe to say the boys love it as much as mommy does!

I am in love with the tobacco-leaf frames we used for the fishing lures.  I think they scream "Southern gentleman" and the texture and rich color go beautifully on the light walls.

For those of you wondering how we managed to hang the oar in front of the drapes, here is a close-up of the double curtain rod we used.  By purchasing a double bracket with screws we were able to secure the oar tightly, which was important when you consider the number of boys that will be playing in this room!  :) 

With the left over trim we created double-sided pillows using both the cushion fabric and the bolster fabric and used the fringe along the seam.  Don't limit yourself to one-sided and one-look pillows.  Coordinating fabrics can be used on either side, giving you the freedom to change-up your look.

This was such a fun room to work on.  I absolutely love designing for little boys, and I love that my client wanted a room that would work for her boys well into their teenage years....I think we definitely achieved a room they can grow in!

Tweet