Pom Pom Pillow

This really is a simple pillow to make.  It's just rows of pom-pom fringe sewn on with a zig-zag stitch.  The back is an easy envelope closure.  Really, the hardest part was coming up with a color combination.  I was pretty much at the mercy of what Joann's had in stock, but I could see this done all in one color, or different hues of the same color. 

Instructions after the jump...

Materials:

14" pillow form

1/2 yard white duck or twill fabric.

12 yards of pompom trim

Coordinating thread

Instructions:

1.  Cut your fabric pieces.  

Cut 2:  15" x 15"

Cut 1:  15" x 14"

Cut 1:  15' x 7"

2.  Cut all the pom trim into 15" lengths.  You should get at least 7 pieces of each color (if you are using 4 colors)

3.  Place your first 15" pom trim piece 1.5" from the bottom of the 15" square piece.  The top of the trim should be at the 1.5" mark as seen above

4.  Using the same colored thread as the trim, sew on with a wide zig-zag stitch.

5.  Add the next row right next to the other one, working your way up.  I found there was no need to pin the pom trim once you get started.  It is easier to keep it close with your hands while you are sewing than trying to pin all that trim down!  Sew on 7 rows of the first color.

6. Continue with the rest of the colors.  Each color will be 7 rows high.

7. Trim the poms off on the ends so you can sew your 1/2" seam.

8.  Take your cut pieces for the back. (7x15 & 14x15)  On the 15" side,  fold over and press 1" down on the top and then fold over and press again 1" to create a hem.  Sew in place .  Do the same on both pieces as shown above.

9.Take the now 15" x 12" piece and place it RST on the pom fringe piece.  Sew with a 1/2" seam allowance.  

10.  Take the now 15" x 5" piece and place it down and sew it onto place, making sure to reinforce around the edges. Clip corners and turn right side out.

You're done!

20 Shoppers Guides for Renters, Room by Room

Renters usually have to make do with a few less-than-perfect aspects of an apartment, but there are solutions — like temporary wallpaper, space-saving furniture, and smart organizers — that can help to customize a home and make it your own.

REMOVABLE, ADAPTABLE & MODULAR SOLUTIONS
1. Peel and Stick Wallpaper & Coverups for Renters
2. Top 10 Sources for Modular Furniture
3. 10 Temporary, Removable Products for Renters

STUDIOS AND TIGHT SPACES
4. On the Cheap: Space-Saving Furniture Under $100
5. 12 Good Sources for Dorm Room Decor
6. 10 Out-of-the-Ordinary Convertible Beds

KITCHENS & BATHROOMS
7. Best Bathroom Space-Savers for Renters: 10 Sources
8. Best Sources for Small Kitchen Organization
9. Best Dish Racks: 10 Sources

BEDS & SLEEPER SOFAS

10. How to Shop for a Sleeper Sofa
11. Top 10 Sleeper Sofas & Sofa Beds
12. Small Space Beds on a Budget: Under $1,000

ENTRYWAYS, CLOSETS & ORGANIZATION
13. Best Shoe Storage: High & Low
14. Best Laundry Bags & Baskets for the Bedroom
15. 12 Sources for a Streamlined Entryway

LIVING ROOM DECOR
16. Rugs on the Cheap: 12 Good Sources
17. High & Low: Drapes, Curtains, and Window Coverings
18. Lighting for Renters: 10 Sources for Plug-Ins

DINING
19. In Search of the Perfect Small Space Dining Set
20. Best Folding Chairs

Good Shepherd Charity Design Project / Inspiration

While cleaning out a huge stack of fashion and design magazines I ran across an article in Marie Claire and found this image above from a Favela type painting project in Rio De Janeiro. The message behind the painting project was to beautify a low income area into a bright and happy place. This image could not be more PERFECT for my inspiration on how I am going to decorate my room at Good Shepherd - and to boot the message behind what the artists wanted to create and our design project. What a happy accident.




(Click here to see more images of the project and click here to watch the video.)

Vintage Regency Chair

So yesterday I tweeted a picture of this vintage regency high back chair and could not believe how many fellow bloggers and designers tweeted how much they loved the chair as well! And to that I have decided to go buy it today. I am excited to see what the new and improved chair will look like next month. So stay tuned...



And in the meantime you may want to follow me on twitter for more sneak peeks of my vintage furniture finds. @TurquoiseLA




(And if you have any ideas on how to re-create the look of this chair, I would love to hear your thoughts.)

New Press: Angeleno Interiors Spring 2011

Was looking through the new Angeleno Interiors Magazine and to my surprise was a photo from an Angeleno/Miele party hosted by Snyder Diamond. So great to be with my wonderful talented designer friends at that party!

Click here to view the new issue.

New Press: TRADHome Magazine

A big thank you goes out to Jenny Bradley at Traditional Home Magazine for featuring Vanessa Kogevinas and I in the premier issue of TradHome regarding our Good Shepherd Charity Design Project! Click here to read the article we are featured on page 344. (Vanessa De Vargas)

Sun Valley, CA / E-Decorating Project

Above are images are from my latest E-Decorating project I completed for a client in Sun Valley. The client wanted to incorporate an ethnic mix in her TV room that felt grown up but that was kid and baby friendly.



I added lots of upholstered items the were good for kids. She need some storage options for toys so I suggested the baskets to be placed on the white shelf for easy clean up in the room. The dark sofa with its modern lines is the perfect base to add textile prints like Ikat which I have shown. You also don't see spills and stains because if its dark fabric. The client wanted color so punches of red like the small side table (again not squared- thinking of the kids), was a nice compliment to the rest of the room.



And please note out of respect for my paying clients I do not give our product information.

Pottery Barn Event May 11, 2011 at 6pm!

You are invited to creating buzz for your brand a special panel discussion moderated by Julia Noran, Founder of EditorAtLarge.com



The rise of new media and social networking has afforded design professionals an infinite amount of information, resources and opportunity.
This in-depth discussion with industry experts will provide tips for marketing yourself online and giving your business a competitive edge.



With Panelists:
Crystal Gentilello Editor & Co-Founder of Rue Magazine


Keith Granet Management & Licensing Expert, Granet & Associates


Vanessa De Vargas Interior Designer & Editor of TurquoiseLA blog


Jason Oliver Nixon Interior Designer at John Loecke & Editor of demystifyingdesign.com



WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2011 AT 6:00PM
Pottery Barn Beverly Hills 300 N Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
6:00pm Reception / 6:30-7:30pm Panel Discussion Champagne and hors d’oeuvres will be served
Space is limited.



RSVP online at WSIDesignerMarketplace.com/events or 415-616-8404



Members of the Williams-Sonoma, Inc. Designer Marketplace receive exclusive
trade pricing and benefits. To register for our program at the event, please
bring your trade credentials.

New Turquoise Website

Check it out here.

Musique D'Express (1990)

Express clothing stores were the number one source for fashion-savvy American women to indulge in sleek, Parisian style. Conceived as a younger, hipper version of its parent company, The Limited, Express channeled the streamline fluidity and comfort of European fashion. Even their clothing displays were chic. One of my earliest memories in a shopping mall is of an Express display: mannequins resembling surrealist painter René Magritte’s bowler-hatted men with apples hovering in front of their faces, set against red brick walls with silhouettes of cut-out sky behind them. During this golden age in the clothing retailer’s history, Express was miles ahead of the rest of the mainstream. Yet amidst all this thought-provoking fashion there was one key element that cemented and secured Express’ slick ambiance - the amazing playlist of French pop music they piped through their speakers.

In 1990, through Polygram Records, Express released a compilation cassette, called Musique D’Express. The album is rich with the energetic stylings of sophisiti-pop at the ’80s-’90s cusp. Even today its tracks are a lush selection of fresh sounds and artists that most American ears are unfamiliar with. I was six-years-old at the time. I remember the display for the tape next to the register, and I remember my mom buying it. It must seem strange that I have such vivid memories of a clothing store. However, something profound and subconscious was at work. I grew up without MTV, there wasn't a hip older relative bringing the mainstream world to me, and I was too young to pay much mind to the pop culture surrounding me. The tape's attractive harmonies and mysterious, moody lyrics. were a first taste of what I'd been missing. New wave, pop, modern rock and all the other music of the time was trapped in the background as melodies I was effected by but could never capture. I distinctly remember overhearing Phil Collins’ “Another Day in Paradise” and Bruce Hornsby’s “The Way it is” in a grocery store around this same time and being bewitched by them. It was many years later before I ever figured out what the songs were and who was behind them. 


Musique D’Express was a crystallization of many musical sensations I was only beginning to understand.  Niagra’s “Soleil d’Hiver” glistens like sunlight through glass bricks, Claudia Phillips’ “Picasso” and Luna Parker’s “Fric Frack” are collages of splashy synths and summertime fun, and Pauline Ester’s “Oui, Je l’adore” is a big band twirl through night rhythms and soft focus lenses. Meanwhile, on the opposite spectrum, legendary French singer, Serge Gainsbourg, re-renders the French classic “Mon Légionnaire” into a grungy, grinding funk set to a sexy bass line. The video for the song is a gem of conceptual excess, featuring a smokey factory setting with muscly urban dancers. François Feldman’s “J’ai Peur” shares “Mon Légionnaire”’s dark beat but with a faster, more danceable, tempo. Feldman’s other track on the album, “Joue Pas“, is a duet with the soulful-voiced Joniece Jamison where pop and R&B meet at a compelling middle ground. From the jaunty stroll of Lio’s “Tu Es Formidable” to the dreamy saxophone-lit melodies of Vanessa Paradis‘ “Soldat” and “Joe le Taxi“, Musique D’Express is perfect for any kind of cool you want to be.

I listened to the album all through my childhood, but at some point in my adolescence it got swept by the wayside. When I wanted to find it again, I couldn’t remember the name of the album, the titles of the songs, or any of the artists - I hadn’t paid attention to any of that as a kid. I only remembered the tape itself. With the nagging memory in mind, I spent a good deal of time fretting over finding the tape, or at least figuring out what it was called. I searched online, I scoured thrift stores, I even e-mailed Express and asked about it, but they didn’t know who to go to with a question about a promotion that old. Finally, I managed to type the right combination of words and Google delivered to me an Amazon page where used copies were being sold.

I now present to you Musique D’Express ten succulent tracks (plus the weird little tones that play before the side changes). It is one of the finest compilations of its time, personifying a specific moment in music that is frequently overlooked - a virtual time travel transport to the harmonics of 1990s France, or perhaps a shopping mall somewhere in the past.

SIDE ONE:

1. Claudia Phillips "Picasso"

2. Niagara "Soleil d'Hiver"

3. Francios Feldman "Joue Pas"

4. Luna Parker "Fric Frac"

5. Vanessa Paradis "Soldat"

SIDE TWO:

1. Vanessa Paradis "Joe le Taxi"

2. Serge Gainsbourg "Mon Legionnaire"

3. Lio "Tu Es Formidable"

4. Pauline Ester "Oui, Je l'adore"

5. francois Feldman "J'ai Peur"

FILE: Musique D'Express (1990)

BUY IT: Amazon.com