Love it / Live it: The Art of Simplicity [Kenneth Noland]

Lately I've been going back and forth between a love for clean and simple, and my love for layered and complex patterning. In both my painting and building my new website, I'm constantly striving for just the right balance, but I definitely admire artists and designers that have the ability to hold back in their work and keep things minimal while still intriguing...

art by Kenneth Noland, chair via Finnish Design Shop

Artist Kenneth Noland does just that. Light and airy palettes and sharp horizontal lines make for an incredibly calming and stable effect. Which do you prefer? When branding yourself do you feel like less is more or is it better to put it all out there and let your personality shine through?

Love it / Live [in] it: Color Therapy [Mark Rothko]

    Good morning readers! Though I'm a lover of pattern and design, I'm also a huge believer in the power of color and find that sometimes that is all that you need...

image via Luis Barragan 

Just another one of Rothko's brilliant works, and a bright yellow hallway from Mexican architect Luis Barragan for a little color therapy today. The color yellow is said to represent optimism, enlightenment and happiness, I hope you're finding all of those today and more...Enjoy!

My Daylight 6.28.11

So as some of you may know, I had a birthday this weekend, and it just so happened to be my golden birthday as I turned 26 on June 26th. Though I'm busier than ever, I made sure to find the time to relax a little bit and soak up some of life's little moments. I thought I'd share with you where I draw design and color inspiration from daily...

I received this amazing handmade birthday card from the talented Amy of Strataflora. Don't you think she should start a card business?! Hallmark just does not make 'em this good.

My man surprised me by sweeping Phinney and me away on a mini vacay to Victoria, Canada where I powered down for 24 sweet hours and just enjoyed the scenery.

Saturday night found me enjoying the company of some of my favorite girls and getting all gussied up to celebrate Pride on Capitol Hill.

 And lastly I spent my birthday evening in the company of loved ones on a sun-soaked deck with veggie burgers on the grill and grapefruit sangria in my cup. I can't think of anywhere else I would have rather been. Anyone else celebrating a Cancerian birthday?? Whether or not it's your special day, I hope you all get a chance to kick back a bit this week and really, truly, Enjoy!

Love it / Live it: Layered Waters [Tobias Tovera]

         Good Morning readers! With Summer underway, I'm longing for the ocean. Though I love living in Seattle, I miss the piercing blue of the California coast and the unbelievable shades of turquoise the sun made on the crashing waves. Though I'm far from the ocean now, the stunning work of Tobias Tovera takes me right back there...

I'm a huge fan of colored glass and have collected the vintage kind for years, but this new design from the Finnish Design Shop is absolutely striking don't you think? I love the way the curved silhouettes create tonal changes in the blue...Enjoy!

Love it / Live it: Tribal Classic

I always love a little juxtaposition. I love the contrast here of the doll-faced girl in black and white looking like she just got placed on the street on the other side of the world. There is something incredibly modish about the whole look that's enhanced by the unexpected setting...

image via hiddenite, sofa via wisteria

In the same way this sofa takes a traditional style with classicaly polished and carved legs and combines with a tribal print making it splendidly current. I love the way the fabric is railroaded to run the print horizontally across the front and how the brass nailheads finish off the corners. And in classic black and white you could put this with any color palette and add instant texture, rhythm and a touch of the Southwest meets Moroccan...Enjoy! 

Love it / Live [in] it: Skies of Blue [Suzanne McClelland]

Today I'm dreaming of blue skies and even bluer waters. Though there is no ocean side vacay in my near future, I'm scheming up ways to make my space at home feel like a retreat everyday, like painting the walls in shades of turquoise...

art by Suzanne McClelland via amateur couture, photo via housetohome

The softer hues make for a calm and peaceful space while the brighter shocks of color add a gentle energy, the overall effect being that of being immersed in crashing blue waves on a hot summer day. I hope wherever you are your summer is off to a beautiful start and you're basking in skies of blue...Enjoy!

Art + Interiors: Painted Daylight [Shae Acopian Detar]

Bohemian photography AND fluid painterly brush strokes? An absolutely stunning combo. While perusing one of my favorite sources for inspiration, Strataflora, I was completely blown away by these multi-media gems from artist Shae Acopian Detar. Her photographs have such a soft, effervescent quality to them and I love the addition of such a sultry palette... 

pendants, coffee table, end table, sofa via anthropologie, baskets via wisteria, pillows via etsy shop hettle and kelly wearstler for sferra

I love a mix of textures and natural materials with color washed accents in fresh cool tones. On the verge of beginning to design and decorate our bedroom, I'm loving this palette for a calm space to decompress at the end of the day. Now if I can just get my hands on these incredible color dipped glass pendants from Anthro I know the rest will just fall into place...Enjoy!

Love it / Live it: Calmness and Clarity [Carly Waito]

Today I'm conjuring up as much calmness and clarity possible. I have lot on my plate, a lot of unknown ahead, and a lot I want to accomplish in a very short amount of time. So, I thought the unbelievably beautiful paintings of Carly Waito and these stunning amethyst pieces by Brenda Houston were a perfect fit today...

Amethyst is not only the stone of calmness and clarity but is also said to raise your mood and vibration. So here's to taking a deep breath, finding that inner calm and peace, and getting ready to take on whatever comes your way with as much optimism and positivity as possible...Enjoy!

Love it / Live it: Hello Sunshine [Jennifer Sanchez]

Happy Monday everyone and HELLO summertime! The sunshine has finally arrived and I could not be more ecstatic that my favorite season will be officially underway with Summer Solstice tomorrow. I've been sprucing up the deck and gearing up for barbecues and happy hours in the sun with the Olympics as our backdrop.

I love this piece by artist Jennifer Sanchez with its bright wheels of color and radial energy. And I wouldn't mind bringing a little sunshine into a room year round with this accent chair from Crate&Barrel either. Hoping you got a little sunshine in your weekend wherever you may be, and please stay tuned as Summer here will be full of colorful inspiration, do-it-yourself projects, home tours, personal style close-ups and more...Enjoy!