French Fancy

I was having a look at some fabulous interior images featured in the late Domino magazine last night and came across these gorgeous pictures!

Catherine Golden was the 1997 winner of Domino magazine’s decorating contest with her beautifully decorated French-style master bedroom.  The pretty French boudoir furniture and soft colour pallet with ‘pops’ of colour really work well together.  I love the attention to detail, from the stencilling on the wardrobes to the carefully selected colour of the flowers.

 Located in Mill Valley in California, the rest of Catherine’s house is work in progress, soon to be complete…

the fireplace is so pretty!

posted by Emily

with thanks to the late Domino magazine for these beautiful images

Our favourite black & white shots from Domino mag

It seems everyone and everything has been hit by the credit crunch and the latest victim is one of the US’s best interiors magazine and website Dominomag. It’s a shame as they brought interior design mainstream and they were used by many for inspiration… Thankfully, we still have Architectural Digest! Anyway, I managed to salvage some of my favourite room photos before their website closes down for good, so I’ll be sharing them with you over the next few days… black & white palette for today – enjoy…

Now this is what I call an entrance hall to remember! Of course this wallpaper would only work in a room such as the hallway where one doesn’t spend too much time, otherwise you’d go crazy… This photo made me laugh because it reminded me of when we moved house when I was about 12 and I begged and begged my mum to paint my walls in red and black stripes! Well, let’s just say, thank god she didn’t listen to me…

Animal prints are all the rage at the moment and this zebra- patterned rug makes an otherwise simple room (the tables and sofa are quite Ikea – like) look fantastic, whilst the different- patterned cushions add a bit of much- needed excitement!

I don’t think I’ll ever quite understand how people manage to keep their white houses, white walls and especially white sofas clean (guess they’re just not as messy as me…), but boy, white houses do look great if accessorized correctly! The key is to add items that are warm and rich in texture, like throws and cushions. Although this room isn’t exactly brimming with home furnishings, the dark floor, exposed brickwork in the fireplace and fresh flowers are enough to do the trick.

Strictly speaking, the colour palette of this dining room is black and cream, not white, but who’s checking?? Anyway, the dining chairs serve to bring the dark wooden floor and cream coloured walls together in this dining room, whilst the small touches of gold (chandelier, fireplace, vase) give the room an air of sophisticated opulence. For similar french country furniture, try Sweet Pea and Willow.

Aaahh, what a bedroom! I wish I had the space for a four-poster bed… It just screams of grandeur and serenity. I absolutely adore the black and white stools at the end of the bed (even though they’re not my style!) and I love the near perfect symmetry of the room…

I’ve included this living room in my favourites as I’m a huge fan of screens… I much prefer to use them as room dividers instead of bookcases, or even walls, as they are less obtrusive and they bring a certain je ne sais quoi to a place! My favourite is our very own Shoji screen of course, but if you’re on a tight budget and have some artistic skills (and even if you don’t, you can use stencils), why not try and make one yourself?