One wall of wallpaper

Last night we were looking at houses for sale up in Bass Harbor and North East Harbor Maine, the whole Mount Desert area at large. Being in the interior design business, of course the details of the photographed rooms stood out. What colors are the walls, is there wallpaper, what style of bed is most prominently used, curtains, furniture, lighting?  One of the most important elements that stood out to us is the color on the walls and how it photographs. It seems that we study how a room is photographed a lot around here. We have found that rooms with wallpaper really are exceedingly beautiful and photograph very well.  Rooms look alive, interesting, and vibrant, so much more than simply painting the walls. So if the budget will not afford a full room of wallpaper try just one wall and see how much more interesting your room will be.

Click the images for link information

Room Collage

Elise Allen sent me this room collage she had created from three pieces of art. The poster I gave her daughter for her birthday last year from Made by Girl and two custom pieces Elise painted for Annabel. She has stripes in her room and the colors of these three pieces work really well with the green stripes in her room and the art combined in the collage is a great way to combine different shapes and sized together on a wall.  

*Images compliments of Elise Allen Art

Will & Grace

Over the weekend I came down with a wicked cold

so I hunkered down and ended up watching a bit of Will & Grace.

It was a blast from the past, having not seen it since probably High School. 

What really blew me away was Will's apartment, with elements

of traditional and a perfect masculine feeling. The leather, blues and 

oriental rugs mixed with layers of artwork really set the tone.

Hope everyone weathered Irene with not too

much damage and that everyone is safe!

Monogrammed Bedding

We were really excited when Houzz emailed and asked us to 

be part of their Ideabook creations. The idea is to come up with a 

set of images that reflect a certain design idea or a set of product ideas.

So for our first Ideabook is all about Monogrammed Bedding!

We're super old school and love anything with a 

monogram and can't help but adore bedding with 

a twist of color!

Hope you'll keep updated on our monthly Ideabooks!

Monogram Headboards

What is it about monogram headboards that make me completely swoon and make me want to draw a big MOC on the white tufted headboard I currently have? The idea of a monogram on my headboard is really intriguing and I think it would be a fun idea to try with a large initial "C" like the last image. Do you have a monogram headboard or would you want to try one?

This is actually a pottery barn headboard decal...a very inexpensive way to try something new!

(click each image for a link to the website) 

Splash of Paint

The use of paint to outline or highlight a building can add such character and charm. Three simple lines painted on this barn in the Hamptons makes it eye catching and comment worthy. Where these buildings would be charming in their own right, the paint just adds so much to them. Even just a little splash of color will do.

Images compliments of: House Beautiful and Coastal Living

Going Ga-ga for Gingham

Of course gingham has been fashionable for ages, but

recently it's been popping up more and more on my radar. 

Even for fall! Paired with a blazer, it's pretty sharp.

Anthropologie Cissus Button-Up

Custom Plates from La Plates

handmadebyemy Yellow Gingham Bowtie 

J.Crew Perfect Shirt in Medium Gingham

Gap Men's Gingham Shirt

Clean Lines

Whenever I look at rooms that have clean lines, sophisticated and classic pieces and simple lines, I am immediately envious of the space. I always find myself wanting to throw a ton of color into the mix of design, but the simple combination of white, gray and silver just look amazing together!

*Images compliments of House Beautiful

Bloomings

This is a collection of blooms that I put together today. The color and texture, with the pink and yellows all mixed together are so pretty. I think nature is the best inspiration for designs. Flowers are a great example of this. Have a great weekend!

Cat Days of Summer

It's another fantastic feature of Dog Cat Days of Summer!

Today we bring you the totally adorable Griffen enjoying a snooze in the sun. 

Griffen belongs to Sara, one of Mom's oldest friends. 

Sara shared a little bit about this guy...

 "This is Griffen.  He's 18 yrs old, can drive and vote
 and looks forward to the day he can legally drink, too.
  Most of the time he just sleeps!"

New Sponsor {Ruby Lane}

Our newest sponsor on Chic Coles is Ruby Lane, an e-commerce website that is unlike most. It is an online community of individual shops within the one company of Ruby Lane.  This allows a customer to have a one-stop shopping experience.  There are fourteen "lanes" or categories of items sold in the marketplace, some of which include; Antiques, Fine Art, Antique and Vintage Jewelry and Silver. While on this site, you have the benefit of visiting antique shops, art galleries and jewelry stores without ever leaving home, and most shops ship internationally! All shops are pre-screened and must meet specific qualifications and standards. 

Below are some items that are featured on Ruby Lane that I would love to incorporate somewhere in my home or in a few design projects.

19th century gilded metal frames

Impressionism Oil on Canvas NY Landscape

Tiffany & Co. Large Shell Dish

*If you would like to become a sponsor on Chic Coles, please email us at clmw.cole@gmail.com for our affordable rates!

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A p-l-a-i-d Announcement

One of our sponsors p-l-a-i-d has some exciting news! The first announcement is that they have a new blog; p-l-a-i-d blog! This is a blog where diy meets before and after as well as some great interiors they have designed. 

The second announcement is that they are starting a monthly column on The Nest blog, the first of which is debuting today! The column will be inviting readers to submit rooms in need of renovation for a virtual makeover. One individual will be selected every month and will get the royal treatment from the p-l-a-i-d team, free of charge. The cool thing? Anyone can send in submissions for a possibility of winning!

Here is a sneak peek of what the virtual makeover on The Nest by p-l-a-i-d looks like...

Congrats to the p-l-a-i-d team, and I can't wait to see next months makeover!

*If you would like to become a sponsor on Chic Coles, please email clmw.cole@gmail.com for affordable rates.

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Heading to Hawaii

This Thanksgiving, I am headed to Hawaii! The Tulane Football team is playing the University of Hawaii and so Joey's family and I are going for the week to relax, watch some football and go to the beach! I am so excited and just couldn't resist showing a few pictures of the house we are staying in.

Hopefully there will be a lot of this...

via

and this...

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*all home images compliments of Luxury Retreats

Colored Front Doors

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There is something so extremely happy about a painted front door

in a bright color! We've been playing with the idea of painting our door 

orange but these other colors are making the decision pretty difficult!

Do you like colored front doors?