As promised, here is a snapshot of the one gray (called Seal by Martha Stewart) wall in my studio. In the beginning when I decided to keep the wall gray, it was because I was too lazy to paint around the Murphy bed. In my head, it was too complicated.
After painting the American White onto the first wall, I sat and watched the paint dry. It did not take long for me to realize that the white behind the dark piece of furniture would be too harsh.
Now that everything is painted, I am very happy with the results.
Happy Friday!
A few weeks ago, a childhood friend sent me a text in the middle of the night. We had not spoken in the longest time so I was surprised to hear from him. His text said:
"If we were lawyers, we would be the guys on the show, Suits. It's on right now. Check it out!".
After finding the buried remote control (it somehow found it's way at the foot of the bed) and flipping on the show Suits, I had to laugh to myself.
Office design on my brain today which is what made me think of Harvey Specter's office. The design is serious, straightforward and all about business...it says just enough about the person who occupies the space without saying too much.
While a collection of signed basketballs is not an option for me, I'd love to bring in something that reflects my personality that isn't too personal, too childish or that's going to confuse people. Time for brainstorming! As Nate Berkus says, "collections look better in multiples". So true.
Most ppl bring in their favorite lamp from home to the office. It's usually more functional than decorative. I've got a great lamp from Target right now sitting on the corner of my desk. However, I like the idea of bringing in a lamp (or two) with a white drum.
Even though I do not have a glass door, I do have glass windows along side my office door so that people can see in or I can see out when the door is closed. Perhaps I can convince my boss to have everyone's names put on their glass windows similar to Harvey's in picture #3 (without the title of course). Am I the only one who likes this? I can't see her agreeing to the idea.
I love all the ample amount of seating in Harvey's office. I have two seats directly in front of my desk for guests. The problem with that is that I have 3 people on my team (not including me). So if they all come in at once and demand a meeting, someone has to stand. Not sure where I would put another chair without it looking like I am holding a meeting everyday or expecting a guest...but it's a thought. More brainstorming.
Check back in tomorrow for a post about my studio.
Photos pulled from: Entertainment Weekly
I survived the office move. There had been discussions about my office moving locations. At one point, someone mentioned moving the office to the suburbs. Yikes! That suggestion thankfully lasted only a week. Then it was decided that we would stay in DC but should begin looking at new spaces. On one very hot summer day, my boss and I walked the city with our broker looking at empty office spaces. We found nothing that met our needs. Needs = gym, good lighting, views, windows, close to a variety of restaurants, metro accessible and we wanted to be able to renovate the space to our liking. To make a long story short, we decided to stay in our current building and take over the suite next door...the very space we once occupied but later subleased to another company. The subtenants were pushed out as soon as their lease ended and our build-out began shortly thereafter. It took about 4 weeks for us to move into our new office space. I can not say that we are settled yet as the kitchen is still very much under construction. New appliances arrived on Friday. Shiny white cabinets were installed over the weekend. Granite countertops were installed today. The kitchen should be completed by the end of the week. Next on the list is reconfiguring the reception area, adding glass doors for our suite and picking out furniture(which I will be involved with of course). Exciting.
I have slowly started to style my office. One wall is an entire window-floor to ceiling, wall to wall. Because the view is A+, light is great and it's an office, I want to keep things simple.
I found this great postcard which I framed and the white pencils(picture #2) at a little shop in Old Town Alexandria called Simple Song. The cute shop is housed in one of the row houses along King St just a block or two from the metro stop. You will find fine paper, postcards, greeting cards, custom invitations... The owner is an amazing woman with the warmest personality. Check out her website. Check out her store.
Enjoy the sneak peak.
Your eyes are not playing tricks on you. The gray walls I once had (Seal by Martha Stewart) are newly painted "American White" by Benjamin Moore. In person, it reads white with gray undertones.
I had that sickening feeling so many people on tv have when their home has been invaded by designers to repaint and redesign. It was twice that I had the sickening feeling during the paint process. The first time happened when the Benjamin Moore sales guy handed me the invoice detailing the cost of the paint purchase. OUCH! The first sentence that slipped out of my mouth:
"Does this include labor sir?"
I should have
known that when you buy paint from a paint store in Georgetown and not from a big box
store that there is may be a shocking price tag. I blame myself for not checking the price before ordering 6 cans of custom paint. I am in no way suggesting that Benjamin Moore is bad. It's a good product...a great product with an excellent paint selection. Just remember to check prices before placing your order. I am so thankful that I looked a little homeless that day as the sales guy was kind enough to extend me a discount which shaved off a chunk. He also explained why the cost was high. I had selected a flat finish you can use in bathrooms/kitchens.
As I rolled the paint onto the gray walls, the sickening feeling came back to visit.
"Is this going to look like standard apartment white?"
After painting all four walls while old episodes of Parenthood played in the background, I slowly began to fall in love with the newly painted white walls and forgot about the gray walls I once loved so much (and at one time never thought I would fall out of love with).
Lesson learned.
Entryway is done and looks great. The kitchen, bathroom and interior of the closets are also getting a coat or two of American White. You cannot see this in the photo but I actually kept one wall Seal gray, the Murphy bed wall. It's such a large dark piece of furniture and the dark wall hides the size while also keeping the perfectly square room balanced. I will snap a shot and post later this week. Tell me what you think.
