Bodacious Bamboo & Black Bath

I mentioned the pink marble top to my hall bath vanity last post. Have avoided showing this room (from my renovation in case you are new to the blog) as the wallpaper that I LOVE is a bugger to photograph. Will break down & have it shot professionally once the shower curtain arrives. But for now put on your sunglasses.....

I fell head over heels for the mylar foil  Sampan wallpaper by Meg Braff & knew right where I would use it. The drama behind the black door is a tiny bath which became tinier when we divided it into a "powder room" area & the bath/toilet area. The tightness of the spot brings new meaning to the term water closet..... The Chinoiserie mirror and the silver foil wallpaper help the space feel larger, sorta' not really....

The foil effect of this Mylar paper is wonderful with dim lighting. Full force of the light used to take these images is wicked. Do not enter under the influence... The slab of marble was a flea market find hidden in the corner covered in shellac that made it appear apricot. Could not see any details but I knew it had potential. What a great surprise when it polished up to a shell pink with gorgeous veining.

The Karl Ens pair of flamingos have the perfect spot to preen. Ain't they the just the coolest???

The chest is "all lacquered up" in black. Love the effect of the total piece including hardware in a high gloss black. It pops against the black & white marble in an "offset" pattern with a light grey grout.

The drawers are done in a silver metallic to coordinate with the wallpaper. Sexy huh??? Yeah, it is a captivating touch.

The toilet & tub are now behind the frosted glass doors. Waiting for the shower curtain for the big reveal. Note; wrapped the ceiling in this paper to heighten the drama.

Sampan by Meg Braff

The coral & pink in the bamboo patterned Sampan is so Palm Beach Chic! Now that wallpaper is back I think we will see more foils. Def have that 60's vibe  that I love ~ so Babe Paily! Why yes I am as old as dirt..... While not for the faint of heart in a small space or on a ceiling, foils can add just the perfect touch.

Before ~ White Of Mebane Vintage Chest

Found this French Provencial chest @ a tag sale & it was the perfect size for the space in the bath. Here is the inspiration to do the all over high gloss lacquer & coordinating drawers from Pinterest.

Pinterest

Black doors.....

The bath is behind the door on the right. A subtle space that makes for quite a surprise when the door opens. For the most part all my interior doors are black except for a few closets that just needed to disappear. Along with being oh so Dorothy Draper-esque black doors are awesome for hiding finger prints & for me they add a calming effect.

My friend Linda @ Calling It Home  has black fever too! Check out her post When In Doubt, Paint it Black. I think it is contagious!

Little Dancer of Five Years

Not to be confused with Degas Little Dancer of Fourteen Years but easily confused by the quality of sculpting. This here little ballerina is by far my favorite thing in my house!

How about these two beautiful gals! Back Story; in the South there is always back story.....  Above the gorgeous blonde is Kaye Pass Lambert the sculptress who molded & sculpted this amazing terracotta sculpture of my namesake niece; Junior. Kaye won the lottery when she became my roommate in college ~ HA! Actually, I was the lucky one! We met back before the war through our sisters who had met in college & we became fast friends. Lawsey does she know some back story.... I have a few things on her so her lips are sealed..... And as it goes in the South the namesake niece & Kaye's son became friends in college & even went on to law school at the same school. I know, right??? Hard to keep up....

Anywho, I wanted a sculpture of my niece; the ballerina in her tutu. Commissioned Kaye Lambert Sculptress & we went through old photographs. Kaye picked this adorable pose.

How about we go behind the scenes of the artist studio where the real magic happens! Kaye is skilled at her craft & so precise. All things I am not... for sure opposites attract.

This is where it all began, that hunk of clay reminds me of that song He Took a 100 pounds of Clay.... Check out those tools, this is a serious process.

How talented is she??? I mean it, Kaye has got the gift. And check out the profile on that child, the girl can sculpt!

Look at the details. The tutu is so stinking cute & those ballerina slippers are precious!

The neck ruffle & tutu are a beautiful bisque porcelain with an overall terracotta glaze. To die for!

Here are the girls showing off! The Ballerina is strutting her stuff atop a beautiful piece of shell pink marble

that was rescued from the center of the top of my hall bath vanity.

Here they are perched in the resting spot of the sculpture. Don't you love how Kaye's dress goes with all the pink. Totally unplanned, really.

Kaye does custom work & is delightful to work with. Visit her site & you can see for yourself she is one talented lady that I am lucky to call friend & blessed to have in my life. As for the ballerina, she is still obsessed with tutus as seen here on her way to court in her adopted hometown of NOLA.....

Original art sets your house apart like no other element of design. It truly lets the uniqueness of your personality shine through. Find artist that you connect with & have some fun with it.

Ebay Alert

Oomph Lanterns

I watch Ebay like a hawk for all thinks pagoda. Here is a great chance to score not one...... drum roll..... but two lanterns that are just rip for a makeover. If I needed these I would low ball an offer & see what happens.... just saying. Then try higher..... Scrap the glass, get going with some lacquer & boy howdy these suckers will shine!

Ebay Lanterns

More ideas.... love the contrast below....

Urban Electric

Paint them like pineapples and hang over an island!

Coleen & Company

Add bells....

Charles Edwards

Love the sophistication below....

Coleen & Company

Not to be forgotten.... Classic Chinese Red

1st Dibs

Now to really spruce them up add some groovy candle covers! I love these by Kaarskoker.

Kaarskoker

What are you waiting for?????? Go now ~  I may change my mind & buy them myself! Listen to Linda, go low or go home!

Live, Laugh, Decorate is Tawking 'Bout Me

Live, Laugh, Decorate

The lovely & talented Nicole of Live, Laugh, Decorate has a fun series called One Chair, Two Fabrics seen here. She is featuring my Mid Century Butterfly Wing Backs this week. Not only do they love pink over @ LLD but they have the flamingo fetish too!  Check them out stat!
Happy Friday & a lovely weekend to ya'

Updated Foyer + a Rockn' Lamp

Beth over @ Chinoiserie Chic featured small foyers today which reminded me I needed to post my updated foyer as I re-staged it for summer back in May. Yeah.... not one to rush my postings..... If this is your first time seeing the foyer the chevron lantern featured is the Bargello Lantern by Dana Gibson. This petite pagoda lantern comes in additional colors & designs; see it here in grey.

My sister & I tried what seemed like a million several different vignettes in an effort to lighten up & give a more "relaxed sophistication" feel to this small space. The Hollywood Regency vibe (seen here) was great for winter but too heavy for the lazy days of summer.

Above & below were my favorite but....  the space seemed to need a lamp to throw out the maximum welcoming effect @ night. My sister also thought it appeared the Foo Dog was gunning for Pinkie, my Audubon Flamingo. Nuff said.

Clean & serene but still no lamp....

I broke up a set of vintage blanc de chine pierced lamps from my bedroom to warm the welcome. Above & below is where we landed. Cool, Calm, Collected or is it Calm, Cool, Collected???

Beth has more great ideas for small foyers over on her Pinterest Board The Small Chinoiserie Foyer.

Here is a lamp I tried at one point but never took a picture as it totally sucked  was the wrong look for the foyer. Plus it looked just perfect perched on this orange lacquer Asian table in the breezeway. I am crazy for this vintage porcelain bamboo lamp with a hand painted Dana Gibson shade.