Modern Planters from 18Karat

We never forgot the first time we saw the 18Karat showroom... This Canadian company sells the simplest things, yet they display them in such an incredibly clever way, the overall effect was just...genius! It's like Pottery Barn but with WAY, WAY more style. Their style is very simple, very organic (a very overused word, we know, but it's very true in this case).

Our favorite things to buy from this line are the modern planters. Oh my goodness, they are simply beautiful! It's the kind of planters you see in very chic and modern restaurants or hotels.

Here are some samples:








18K puts out beautiful catalogs that you can view online. In addition to planters, they also sells fabulous home accessories and dinnerware (we highly recommend the later). You can view the catalog and purchase online at the 18k web site.

Note: Be warned that planters are heavy and very expensive to ship...

Jamie Young Lamps Featured in Melrose Place

Are you looking forward to the relaunch of Melrose Place, premiering tonigh on CW? We just hope it's not as bad as the last few seasons of the old one, where the plots were getting so ridiculous it was laughable.

If you do watch it, look out for the Jamie Young lamps that were featured throughout the apartments. Jamie Young lamps are really, really popular with the set decorators, they are in a bunch of movies & TV shows.

This image is really small, sorry. Click on it to see the enlarged image...



The images are very fuzzy, sorry. It has to do with copyright and all the legalese stuff. If you want to see the entire collection more clearly, check out the Jamie Young lamp section on our site.

Postscript: We watched it and it was pretty good. The acting is way better, thank God!

Cool Wall Arts from Farm Boys

Have you ever walked into a really cool restaurant or hotel and say to yourself, darn, that decor is so hot, I wish I have that at home?

We find that with wall arts all the time. It's really difficult to find cool artwork for your walls, plus, you kinda want something different than just frame arts. Something that makes a STATEMENT, right?

For example, we have an empty loft that we're trying to decorate now. What do you do with a huge white wall that's 12-feet tall? We thought it would be really cool to take a favorite black and white photograph and blow it up as wallpapers, you know. Just one wall. How dramatic woud that be?

So where do you find that really? Well, because we're the kind of folks who share, we thought we let you in on a resource that we just discovered, Farm Boy Fine Arts. They usually work in commercial applications for hotel and restaurants, but we think they do individual work too. They have some amazing, amazing stuff for the walls/divider/headboard etc.

Here are some samples:

To see the rest, visit Farm Boy web site. We have to warn you, it's REALLY slow, so you'll need to be patient. There is a 800- number that you can call for assistance.

We think you can deal with them directly, but if you need help, send us an email...

Fresh & Pretty Bedding from WildCat Territory

A bed is usually the focal point of your bedroom and we think you must pay as much attention to it as possible. That usually starts with having a good bedding set. Most bedding sets are disappointing though, especially the bed-in-a-bag combination that you find in most retail stores.

We've used Wildcat Territory bedding in the past for various projects and we're pretty pleased with them. They are not wildly expensive. Most sets are under $1000.

Here are some pretty ones:





These will be posted on our site shortly. In the mean time, if you want to see the rest of the collection, visit Wildcat web site. If you need help with pricing/purchasing info, drop us a line...

Modern Wallpapers from Osborne and Little

Don't you just love "Mad Men"? Aside from the fabulous characters, clever dialogues and story lines, the set on the show is just awesome. They really got it down. Doesn't the wallpapers in the show make you just dizzy though?

Things have changed since then obviously. Nowadays you most likely see wallpapers in the bathroom, powder room, hallway or just one wall. They are used as an accent or an exclamation point.

We thought we show you some new patterns from Osborne and Little this spring. If you follow this post you'll see that this is our favorite wallpapers line. It's not for the faint-hearted though, as it's rather bold and daring. You'll have to have steady nerves to take on this line.

Osborne and Little wallpapers runs about$120-200 per roll. You can get a quote for specific pattern here. Note: the rolls is 11 yards x 22 wide, which covers about 55 sq feet. It is the equivalent of 1 1/2 American roll.

You can see the rest of the collection and the colorways here.

Fantastic Faux Leather from Silver State

The other day we came across an artitle about the danger of cheap food in Time magazine. The article talks about how our food has become so industrialized to make it as cheap as possible, and how we've endangered our environment and our health as a result.

We probably can easily dismiss it as one of the many things that is better not to know-- as it only makes us depressed, really. Besides, what can one possibly do? It's not like you can grow chicken in your backyard, right?

But the article did make us pause and think about what we do eat, and how by doing little things we can change our habits, and hopefully, do our part to help the world in the process.

If you are interested in the article, click here. A note of warning: it's really, really long. Like 3,251 words long to be exact! And it makes you want to stop eating for a few days...

So may we suggest looking at faux leather vs real leather when you decorate? We were doing a restaurant project a few months back and we discovered a great faux leather line from Silver State. No one heard of them, but if you follow this blog you'll know that we are suckers for small, boutique vendors that are not well-known.

We ended up using the faux leather for the restaurant banquets and they turn out marvelous. Not only that, they are way cheaper too. Whereas real leather is sold by the square foot, faux leather is sold by the yard like fabric, which means you get way more for your money.

What we like best about the collection is the colors. You might not be able to see the real colors here, but trust us, in person they just POP! The quality is really good too. It's very soft and supple, not plastiky at all...









The faux leather shown here sells for about $80-100/yard. You can find pricing information as well as the rest of the collection on our faux leather section. To see more of Silver State products, check out their web site. It's not a very well-designed web site though, so you have to click around a bit.

Suggestion: these are awesome as wallpapers as well. You need to find a good and patient wallhanger, but they look amazing as wallcoverings, and they are very durable.

Five Favorite Round Dining Tables

We love round dining tables, mainly because they are cozy and pretty. People say round tables make for more intimate conversation, but we don't think that's the case. It's not like you can't have an intimate conversation with a square table or a rectangular table!

At any rate, we think round tables are sexier and they fit better in a small room or a kitchen nook. Here are five of our favorites:

This one is a perential classic. It is called a Versailled Pedestal table and it's from Nichols & Stone.
This one is made of solid iron. It's from Noir.
This one has a stone base with a top that can be custom-finished. It's from Hickory Chair.
We love this one. It's from Oly Studio. We sell tons of these. It's fabulous in a black glossy finish. It's from Noir. If you need pricing information for any of the above, drop us a line.

Check our post on some fabulous dining chairs that you can use with these tables.