Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Pink.... NotJust For Little Girls' Rooms

While pink is the most popular paint color for a little girls room, using pink elsewhere in a home can create a sexy and sophisticated space. If you don't have a lot of natural sunlight, a pink paint color can create warmth and elegance. Of course, there are many different shades of pink. It doesn't have to be bubble gum or pepto pink! You really need to study the colors and the underlying tones of the different shades as pink is a very difficult color to get right! However, when done right, the results are delicate, crystal-like, and gorgeous.

P Four recently designed a home using pink or "blush" as the accent color and we painted the powder room and one of the guest bedrooms pink. Some of the pink colors we considered were:

* Wild Aster by Benjamin Moore. It's subtle and sophisticated.
* Tutu by Martha Stewart. It's glamorous and would work well with lots of mirrors and chrome.
* Natural Berry by Ralph Lauren. It's muted, soft, and delicate.
Ultimately, we landed on Pink Viburnum by Sherwin Williams. It's soft, powdery, and feminine. Check out the results - glamorous, dazzling, and memorable.

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Amazing Wallcoverings!


We recently completed a model home for EYA at Capitol Quarter in Washington, DC. Capitol Quarter is the nation's largest LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for Homes community, with town homes certified by the U.S. Green Building Council as being more environmentally friendly and energy efficient than typical new homes. This community was the perfect opportunity to design an eco-conscious interior. We used no-VOC paint throughout the home and selected fabrics such as cotton, bamboo, and linen. We researched the suppliers and manufacturers of our furnishings and elected to purchase from companies that have a strong environmental commitment and that have integrated eco-friendly practices in the workplace. In our search for eco-friendly wall coverings we came across Maya Romanoff. We selected the Ajiro Basketweave pattern in bronze. The Ajiro wall covering is actual micro-shaved farm raised Paulownia wood. The Paulownia tree is fast growing . The growth the Paulownia tree reaches in 3 to 5 years takes other hardwoods generations to achieve. This tree is an excellent choice as a renewable and sustainable resource. Maya Romanoff uses only water-based glues to adhere the wood veneer to the paper backing, thus eliminating the disposal of any toxic waste. In addition, the glues are water-soluble, containing no formaldehyde or other VOC's. The paper backing is pulp based. The stains and dyes that are used to color the wood wall covering contain no heavy metals or VOC's -- they are also earth friendly.

Maya Romaoff is a leading force in the design community with a passion of using uncommon materials to create uncommon art. The use of precious metals, wood veneers, inlaid shell, and fabric create innovative collections that are truly remarkable and breathtaking.
UPDATE - 9/30/09. Maya Romanoff has added our photo to their web photo gallery!