Decorate a little boy's bedroom two weeks?

A very nice family came to visit the shop in the latter part of June. The little boy was just a complete sparkle of a kid. Having only boys myself,  I so appreciate the idiosyncracies of boys. He loves airplanes, trains, big trucks, loud construction equipment, etc.. The family was moving to Westchester from NYC in about 2 weeks time. They needed to have a room ready for their little boy, on moving day. He was leaving his crib behind and needed a big boy bed. New neighborhood, new house, new bed. We needed to work quickly.  Ofcourse, we had a holiday weekend in between. Adds a little more stress to the equation. This is the room when I first saw it. A classic bedroom from a house built in the 1920's.

The couple really wanted wallpaper. We chose this Ralph Lauren paper..

The company did a quick ship on the artwork..

The window treatments just couldn't be done in time. Obviously, panels would overwhelm the windows.  I really didn't want to do standard shades or romans. The windows are quite low to the floor. Any kind of cord is an issue. We chose a roller roman shade. It is a new shade, that we are beginning to use. No outside cords. They will be ready by the end of July. The flush mount light fixture is also back ordered, but will be in shortly. Made of glass, it will give off ample light.

The room was ready for the little boy..

I was there to  see the excitement on the little boy's face. Some really good perks  of my  job!

See you...

Christina

The sofette

I posted about a little girl's bedroom  I was working on in April.  It was the room with the poodle lamp. I will show it shortly, as we are still waiting for a few key items. Mainly the  poodle lamp itself.  Backordered since April,  the waiting is driving  me crazy. We also needed  a very small sofa. Not really a loveseat, more like a sofette. Something so very petite, but can fit an adult as well as a child.  There are really no little sofas out there that work for a child. Why is furniture so oversized??  We liked the Jonathon Adler junior lampert sofa. But the dimensions are for a child. It is tiny and very uncomfortable for an adult.

So we changed the dimensions, and angled the seat to make it more comfortable. We had it made by a great workroom in Mount Vernon, NY. I got a little tour of the place. From carpentry to upholstery a piece which starts out on paper comes to life...

So many interesting custom made pieces. Much of their work is for hotels and restaurants...

Then there was our sofette..

And finally in the room. Perfect for a little girl and her mom...

See you... Christina

Studio Four Showroom

I stopped into Studio Four Showroom in NYC for research.  A boutique showroom filled with Indie designers. It was inspiring to see a showroom that is so different.  So very interesting...

Wallpaper of different varieties...

We will be using this one for a little girl's bedroom that will be decorated in  pink and yellow.

Beautiful fabrics..

You can custom color some of their fabrics...

A new rug collection just came in from Denver..

I took away many ideas..

See you...

Christina

Girl's bedroom with lots of Flair

A mom asked me for help in finishing the decorating of her daughter's room. She already purchased the furniture and some fabric and wallpaper. Now she asks me to make it all work. This can be a very difficult task and  sometimes it can really work out smoothly. Her new furniture  is fairly modern, but the new wallpaper is pretty traditional. Here are her items. The top piece is the wallpaper and the fabrics below the wallpaper  are all very raspberry.

I chose some  fabric, trim and carpet to pull it together. The new carpet to me is so very important. The client is  unfortunately on the fence about it.

I would really like to use this lamp that I did for another customer. This client loved the lamp. She described it as a girl in a ball gown..

I chose some additional pieces that would complement the client's pieces.

A great ball chair...

And a nice bench for the foot of the bed...

There is a dressing room that is sandwiched between the bedroom and bathroom.  It is somewhat small and has a built in vanity with a green marble top.

It is a great little space that right now looks so ordinary. I want it to pop. Like opening a jewelry box of fun little  trinkets. I want it to to be Dorothy Draper inspired. I chose this crazy fun  wallpaper..

I love this Frances Elkins chair

It's definitely an interesting and challenging project. See you...

Christina

Warhol and the Poodle

It is true that our tastes change over time. I am seeing more clients that would like to refresh their current, relatively newly decorated rooms. The rooms are currently traditional, but they would like to make them more transitional. Add more modern. Give the room lightness. Add something that is unexpected. Ok the last sentence is my theory.  My current client has a little girl that is growing out of her crib. The nursery was very traditional. We will have to keep some of the furniture from the nursery.  Her  crib bedding, named Greta,  was from Serena and Lily. All very lovely.

The pink in the Greta bedding is a bit dusty. It is a tough pink to work with, since it is hard to find complementary pink fabrics.  The old decorator made a valance out of the same damask pink fabric and the walls are also the same pink. Lots of pink!

Realizing how difficult the pink was to match, the mom bought the complimentary sheets for the big girl bed in the same Serena and Lily pattern.  Called Gracie, Serena and Lily has since discontinued it.

So now, my job is to change the nursery into a little girl's bedroom  and add a modern feel to the space. So lucky that this Gracie bedding  can easily harmonize  with some modern elements.   The mom also  bought this fun Andy Warhol print that we will use as inspiration.

For the bed, I would like to do a high headboard upholstered in white faux patent leather.

I found these pillows at the last gift show that will add a little sparkle to the bedding. They are so delicate and sweet. From one of my favorite companies, Sivaana.

At the end of the bed I would like to put this upholstered  brown and white linen storage bench .

We will keep the nightstand.

I found a crazy fun lamp to put on it.  We may change out the shade.  But how fun is it!

We will keep the simple white dresser

And add this mirror.

A nice bookshelf is needed...

A loveseat will sit underneath the Warhol with a very cool fixture

I wish I could blink and it would be done. How easy that would be....

See you...

Christina

So Audrey Hepburn!

A favorite among bloggers is Audrey's incomparable style. So defined and refined.  Sometimes I see a piece of furniture and think how Audrey Hepburn it is. Pieces by Christopher Guy...

Her face was everywhere at the New York International Gift Fair last week. All great decorating ideas for a tween and teen.

I ended my day in the book section of the show. A new childrens book about Audrey's life as a little girl will end up on the shelf at Cici Crib this Spring...

See you...

Christina

Around the World in Eighty Days

Once again it is trade show time.  I completely look forward to checking out all the new stuff!  Yesterday I spent the day at the New York International Gift Fair.  It was a day of exploration.  A trip Jules Verne would be proud of.   Whether one is decorating a baby's nursery or child's bedroom or even a playroom, using world travel as inspiration is endless. Could see these hot air balloon prints in a nursery...

So love these  riveted aluminum pieces made in the same way as an airplane's body. The bookshelf and desk...

The round desk is really cool..

A trunk used as a side table..

Framed reproduction racing car steering wheels...

A very worn leather chair..

Pillows are just fun..

These pillows will be in the shop soon...

As will these animal heads that are made of paper mache in Haiti. I liked them because they seem so friendly. Not at all scary.  Slightly rounded in nature and handmade...

Like these elephant prints...

It was quite a trip to the show... See you..

Christina

Art created from children's shoes

At the intersection of Main Street and Maple Ave, in Armonk,  is an incredible frame shop,Framings. Every work day, I stop at the intersection before turning into the parking lot for Cici Crib. Yesterday, I couldn't keep my eyes off of a large piece that was in her shop window. Cars behind me honked. So I quickly turned and parked and marched right over to Judy and Carter's jewel of a shop.  Not only are they some of the nicest people I have met, but also some of the most talented.

Judy told me she completed this project  for a designer. The designer had saved all her daughter's shoes and Judy created this long shadowbox. I think it is about 12 feet long. I can imagine it will be hung in a bedroom,playroom, really anywhere..

It is so sweet. It really tells a story from the parent's excitement of having a baby girl to her first walking shoe, a ballet slipper, a trip to Disney World  to a the last shoe, that perhaps the little girl picked out. A black rugged hiking shoe.

I hope the Mom keeps the shadowbox. Fast forward 25 years.. Wouldn't it be nice to see in her granddaughter's nursery.....

See you..

Christina

Honeysuckle bedroom welcomes the new year!

A gutsy pink called Honeysuckle was named 2011 color of the year by Pantone. Ok I am kind of puzzled by the name, honeysuckle, but I will go with it.  It is a color that is very familiar at Cici Crib.

A room that I worked on is almost complete. It is for a little girl who loves pink.  I believe in creating rooms that grow with the child. The little girl is lucky to have enough storage space in her double closet. I just added a little bit of style to the room. Even the inside of the lamp shades are swathed in pink to create a little glow.

We  reupholstered the tufted bench in a faux pink croc..

The window treatments are sheers with touch of sparkle, to keep the room light and airy. The vanity is anchored by the custom bulliten board.

The bulliten board is covered in rasberry linen.  An inexpensive starburst mirror serves 2 functions...

The wall opposite is long and framed with fashion prints.

Yes it is a pink room, but not too overwhelming. Just sweet as honeysuckle...

See you..

Christina

It's time for the Nature House

Every holiday season we reserve  a weekend afternoon to go to the New York Botanical Gardens to see the Holiday Train Show. My teenage boys still enjoy the visit, but more for it's nostalgic content. It was a real moment of excitement when the boys were little.

This year's new addition is Sarrinen's TWA building..

The creations are made by a low key guy, Paul Busse.  I struck up a conversation with him one year at the show. His group of guys come up from Kentucky and stay at the Ardsley Motel.  Yes, that was their lodging budget.  I told him how inspired I was by his creations. When the kids were little, we made our own nature house. Not at all as impressive as Mr. Busse's creations, but just as fun for us.

Our nature house is part of our Christmas decoration that makes an appearance each season. It is one of many boxes that come down from the attic.

The structure of the house came from a cheap kit dollhouse. The aluminum basin was made by my HVAC guy.  We found all the natural materials in our neighbor's and our yard. The siding is from birch tree. The roof is from branch of an oak tree. We found shelf mushrooms and acorns and bittersweets. The fake  green moss came from Martha Stewart catalog. The window glass is "antique glass" from a mirror and glass shop.  And the fence was purchased at a flea market one hot summer day .  Three hours at a flea market  in 100 degrees and all I had to show for it,  was the fence. The perfect fence for the nature house. I was thrilled!

See you...

Christina

Wallpaper on the ceiling

As far as children's rooms go, we are oh so familiar with clouds on the ceiling. Whether they are painted or wallpaper, it seems like we see it quite often.   But what if we just chose beautiful wallpaper to line the ceiling. How nice... House of Turquoise

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original

Nursery  by Rhoney Design. I so love this sweet home for baby...

2009-09-rhoney
2009-09-rhoney
47b9d639b3127cce98548ffe747600000045100AaNXLhq3csmSg
47b9d639b3127cce98548ffe747600000045100AaNXLhq3csmSg
47b9d639b3127cce98548ffc747400000045100AaNXLhq3csmSg
47b9d639b3127cce98548ffc747400000045100AaNXLhq3csmSg

Girls bedroom by David Cafiero...

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194027-33-009

Then there is Miles Redd, oh so chic constellation ceiling.Ok maybe this isn't wall paper, but so inspiring...

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7-10-2010+5;45;56+PM

See you...

Christina

Touch of Aqua

Mom of 2 tween girls needs to update their bedroom. Everyone loves the aqua, but not in huge doses. The Mom and the girls loved  House Inc.'s  new collection.  House Inc., creator, Annette Tatum, delicately layers  fabrics in such a casual way.  For a room that could have touches of modern, but  is pretty firmly traditional, Annette Tatum is for you. Her combinations are just lovely...

The  fabric they chose the bedding...

Now to integrate the aqua with the pink that is scattered throughout the girls' bedroom.Found great inspiration in House of Turquoise...

Love Toby Fairly's  room as shown in  The Neo Tradionalist.

It will all come together...

See you..

Christina

It's getting chilly.. Think Plaid!

Ooh it is getting a bit chilly outside. We haven't turned on the heat, but as I write, I am wrapped up in my plaid, cashmere throw. It's cozy warm.  Classic plaids are used in many ways. We see it everywhere in the decorating world. On tables..

On light fixtures...

In bedrooms for both girls and boys...

As wallpaper...

On sheep, oh my...

Plaid at Cici Crib has taken a calmer tone.  New in the shop this week is a little toast to  the   Burberry plaid baby...

Delightful little burps and bibs...

Coming soon are  hooded towels and crib bumpers trimmed in the signature fabric.

See You ...

Christina

Decorate with vintage toys

What is it about vintage toys and games and pictures that  make us smile. Is it their innocence that stands out  in this i-everything world we live in? Does it make us feel warm and cozy? This week, Velvet &Linen, one of my all time favorites, blogged about her  fantastic design project.  Her talented family business, Giannetti Home,  created this most inviting family game room.

The room had strong bones and much potential to start out with.

They gathered  collections the family had accumulated over the years...

And created a room that tells  a beautiful story...

I love these images from a French children's bedroom...

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The lamp below was made in NYC in the 60's and 70's..

Vintage blocks are small touches that create nice atmosphere.

Love this room by design team Lila & Tom from Design Sponge:

Vintage games are quite inexpensive and can make a nice statement.

What a sweet shelf. I gave my sister in law a baby present, similar to the See Saw toy below. It was long before Cici Crib was born.  I thinks she puts it out for Christmas every year..

See you..

Christina

Rocket ships at the flea market

Soon the flea market days will be coming to an end  in the northeast. I used to be able to stick it out until November. Guess I am getting old, but by November, it is just too cold for early mornings at the market. So I took advantage of the warm morning and headed to the field with my younger son, James. He found the coin dealer he was looking for and I found some really cool amusement park cast offs? Yep. It was a strange market.  Not that I purchased any of them, but they were just too cool to not notice.

An aluminum horse  that escaped from some cruel carousel....

Silly animals...

And the piece de resistance was a rocket ship that really lights up!  How cool would this be  hanging from the ceiling in a loft playroom or kids bedroom. Perfect for the Novogratz family!  I was really tempted to purchase it. But I could hear my husband, loud and clear, complaining about storage issues. So I took the dealer's card.  Maybe one day I can find a home for it.

Another fun morning at the market with my flea market buddy, James.

See you..

Christina

Ode to Madeline Weinrib

How beautiful are Madeline Weinrib's goods.  I see why she is a favorite of design blogs. I was picking up some her fabric samples of  the other day at ABC Carpet. Weinrib's atelier is a bit gallery and a bit workshop.

The ikats are hand dyed and woven in Uzbekistan. The fabric was intended for a chair in a little girl's bedroom. Because of it's nature,  it must be lined before upholstering. Unfortunately, I think  it will be the deal breaker in an already tight budget.

But look how fantastic they could be...

Not sure what else to say about her rugs....

They fit into all different interiors. From traditional to modern to eclectic. This rug below  is such  a pleasant surprise..

The chair,  upholstered in a Werinrib fabric in Gweneth Paltrow's home.

The photo of this big girl's bedroom  is taken from one of my favorite blogs,  Cote de Texas.  Just fantastic..

See you...

Christina

Flecks of gold

A customer came into the shop this week to work on her  daughter's new room. As we worked,  I was  reminded of Anna Shea‘s chocolates.  Anna Shea used to have a tiny shop in Tarrytown. Just for a moment you could imagine you were in Paris.  Her chocolates are delicate and dusted with flakes of gold like it was made by a fairy. So lovely, yet another recession casualty.

Back to decorating… The mom was inspired by Zoffany wallpaper that had speckles of gold and raspberry on a light pink background.

Elizabeth Allen bedding had the right vibe.

The bedding she chose  for her little girl was as delicate as the wallpaper.

Her bedding would work well with these new pillows from Sivaana that came into the shop this week.  It would just add a little twinkle. They are handmade with Swarovski crystals and gold fabric.  They have already created such buzz. See Hamptontoes did a nice post about them. My pictures do not do them justice. They are just beautiful.

Another Sivaana pillow..

A little sprinkling of gold for my customer's little girl.

See you...

Christina

Leryn's Nursery

I would say one of the nicest parts of my job is meeting some really good people.  I remember the first time Bari  made her way into Cici Crib. Her smile filled her entire face as she talked about the upcoming birth of her daughter, Leryn.  We discussed many details of the nursery.  After months of planning and waiting, the moment finally came. Leryn arrived in early July.  It' s so nice to see good things happening to good people. Bari wanted the nursery to have a bit of a bohemian feel. Very soft and relaxed.  Perfect for baby. The bedding completely inspired her. It is by Elizabeth Allen.

A petite chandelier was needed in this cozy little nook.

Storage bins from Macbeth were purchased from Bari's registry at Cici Crib.

The artwork is from Oopsy Daisy.

Birdies and butterflies are delicately painted  through out  the room  The inspiration was taken from the bedding, as well as the artwork.

A lovely nightlight fits right in.

And, of coarse, a vintage pin caddy that came from Bari's nursery when she was a baby.

Thanks Bari for sharing your daughter's lovely space.

See you..

Christina

Welcome back

Everyone is returning from their various summer journeys. It's time the kids get back to school.  I am back from Pittsburgh for a bit.  So far, everything is going very well with my mom and sister. They are getting stronger every day. My mom has a new future. It is just amazing what the doctors can do.  I am so thankful! The huge weight that lies on my shoulders is beginning to lift.  Life is ok right now... Tina and Beth  have been  great  caretakers of  the little shop.  I am thankful for them too!

We put together a new window display celebrating the return of school. I picked up these cheap vinyl floor tiles from Home Depot to cover the base of the display.

I recently purchased this giant abacus from an auction that was selling items from a schoolhouse from the turn of the century. It is enormous. It would be fabulous in a great playroom or bedroom that needs to fill space because of high ceilings. It would look great on top of a bookshelf. A piece of sculpture.

Bookends came into the shop in late August. The vintage globe also makes a nice addition to the window.

Another set of new bookends...

So we put it all together  along with some other items and made a welcoming display.

See you...

Christina