House Beautiful

Tag Archive for 'tabarka tile'

Karrie’s House in HGTV Mag!

UM – you GUYS! Look what just hit the streets! …well, the official newsstand date is Tuesday, August 6th… but Karrie & I both picked ours up at the grocery store checkout, and we’ve been getting all kinds of fun messages from friends who have gotten theirs in the mail. The fun, day-long shoot HGTV did of Karrie’s kitchen is finally splashed across the glossy pages of HGTV Magazine’s September 2019 Issue.

Hollar!

AND the adjacent breakfast nook is on the table of contents page!

We got to work with photographer Lisa Romerein who was THE most amazing photographer, and bad a$$ stylist extraordinaire Liz Strong – the acronym “BFD” scarcely does her talent justice.

Basically **any** spread in any magazine you see – Coastal Living, Better Homes & Gardens, etc – read the credits and Liz is usually the one who styled the photo shoot. Interior Design is one thing, but styling is a really unique niche – and takes serious talent. Building materials are one thing, then finishes, then furnishings and accessories… but styling is like the cherry on top – the final layer that really makes everything come to life, and that’s why using murals from sites as muraledesign online, could be a great choice to add color to any room.
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I met Liz haphazardly when I replied to a Craigslist ad she had posted for a Lee Industries settee that I was about to shamefully low ball for my dining room. We got to chatting over email, and I quickly discovered that she’s a stylist and works with tons of national magazines (what are the chances?)  She asked if I had any work I thought was magazine-worthy and I promptly sent her Karrie & Tim’s freshly finished digs (we had JUST completed their renovation)… and you know the rest. Liz is one of the most laid-back and coolest chicks you’ll ever meet and so fun to work with. Karrie and I both have girl crushes on her… I even ran into her on the street in Harbour Island last year (Bahamas) – we passed in golf carts when I was on the way to a rehearsal dinner, and she was on the way to – you guessed it – a Coastal Living shoot. Anyway – Liz brought her own amazing gaggle of photo shoot props to the house that day, but also sent me on a Crate & Barrel run for… you know… just a few things:

If you’ve watched any of my Insta stories prepping for photo shoots – or any other designers’ – you know they are WERK… in the form of weeks of prep, car loads of accessories, usually hundreds of dolla dolla bills at the florist, and then lots of agonizing over things like scooching this vase 3 centimeters to the right, etc etc. We spent a super fun day with Liz & Lisa shooting JUST Karrie’s kitchen and nook (still totally need to shoot the rest of the house) – here are some behind the scenes snaps:

And here she blows in glossy print!! Run out to the groc and getcherself one!

Um… the most hilarious part of the article is this quote from Karrie.  BAAHAHHAHAHAHA – they don’t even know how right they got it:

She’s not kidding.

Special thanks to my home skillet Nick Gonzalez and San Diego Custom Cabinets, who built ALL of the cabinetry in the house! At the time of this reno, I had just gone solo with my own Interior Design biz but was also working for Nick, designing custom kitchens, baths, closets – all things cabinetry. He was the best, and I learned an ENCYCLOPEDIA’S WORTH of cabinet knowledge from him – which is, to this day, a pimp tool to have in my arsenal as a designer. Nick isn’t only a great friend and trusted mentor, but his WHOLE TEAM is amazing. They also made the gorgeous built-ins in my current office in Crested Butte and are the ones I trust to do all my SoCal projects. Best in the biz!

If you weren’t a Covet Living reader back in 2015-2016, we blogged through the entire renovation – here are the throwback links to the project!! And the hashtag on insta is #casacovetliving if you want to peruse more pics there!

1 – Casa Covet Living: Karrie & Tim’s Gut Rehab – December 17, 2015

2 – Casa Covet Living: Brainstorming a New Layout – December 30, 2015

3 – Casa Covet Living: Kitchen Finishes – January 23, 2016

4 – Casa Covet Living: The Close Overtime Thriller of the Kitchen Island – January 27, 2016

5 – Casa Covet Living: People, We Have Liftoff – January 31, 2016

6 – Casa Covet Living: Plumbing & Lighting & Tile, Oh My! – February 24, 2016

7 – Casa Covet Living: Wanna Help Us Choose Lighting? – February 25, 2016

8 – Casa Covet Living: World War III of the Master Bath – April 17, 2016

9 – Casa Covet Living: She’s All Done, Folks! – June 20, 2016

10 – Casa Covet Living: Guest Room Plan – June 26, 2016

xoxo!!!

Steph & Karrie

 

 

 

 

The Coolest Kid in School’s Bathroom

Playroom Bath | Covet Living Interiors

Y’all wanna vote on something far less mind-numbing than the election??  I’m currently designing 3 kids baths, which ps are about the most &#%@$ fun things, ever. This bathroom in particular is inside the playroom in one of my current projects. The sweet kiddo who holds court in these parts is in kindergarten, so Karrie’s giving me flack for it not reading “kid” enough…  however, here’s the thing about why I didn’t do a rubber ducky tile theme:

a) This kid is wise beyond his years – like a little old soul in a precocious 5-year old’s body.  He’s also def smarter than me, which makes him at LEAST 29.

b) The rest of the house is moving towards a very Santa Barbara, It’s Complicated vibe… but with a few modern touches.  Think unlacquered brass and antique rugs and steel doors & windows and Tabarka tile and clean-lined, cozy sofas. #nomnomnom.  So, I wanted to keep the look of this bath consistent with the rest of the house – yet still subtly playful.

c) Renovations are $-P-E-N-D-Y, and this bathroom needs to be able to grow with this little wizard, and/or be repurposed as a guest bath in a few years.  Here is an insightful article that you can click to view to understand the various techniques of going about the renovation. These doodles aren’t to scale – just designed to give you an idear of the finishes we’re working with.  The Tabarka tile will go on the floor… generally looking to do a calcatta gold marble countertop for the vanity, and an unlacquered brass faucet (this one is the Henry from Waterworks – I saw it yesterday at Cabochon and it was everything I could do not to lift it and sleep with it under my pillow at night… just kidding! #notreally).  Anyway, GO:

1 – COPPER PATINA

This one slays me.  Good luck getting me not to move in if this bath goes into my client’s house.
Playroom Bath | Covet Living

2 – SKY BLUE & RUST

Close second favorite.  I love the play of the blues against the rose-colored unlacquered brass faucet, and the rusty hue in the tile.

Playroom Bath | Covet Living

3 – BLUE HEAVEN

I love the deep pigment of this vanity, and the playful shape of the tile.  OMG THIS IS LIKE TRYING TO CHOOSE A FAVORITE STAR IN THE SKY, fer cryin’ out loud.  That vanity color almost reminds me of Vegas Peacock, if you know what I mean…

Playroom Bath | Covet Living

4 – NAVY, NIXED

We already nixed this one…. though it is baller, so I included it just for S’s & G’s.  The floor tile (Zaha 1 from Tabarka) is actually one of my favorites – brand new for them.  We would’ve done the vanity in Farrow & Ball’s Hague Blue, which is **basically** the most perfect color known to man… (a note on F&B: I’ve tried many times to match their colors, and you actually can’t do it.  Because they’re so perfect and so rich).  I’d take this bathroom any day, but the thing about a navy vanity + bistro sconce look is, I feel it’s been done.  Or it’s currently bein’ did, and circulating Pinterest the world over.  So, this one’s out for now.
Playroom Bath | Covet Living What say you, Campers??

xoxo,

Steph's Scanned Signature