Fauxology: Studying the Visual Magic of Faux Finishing and Interior Design (brought to you by Garay Artisans)

Sometimes, I refer to white walls as The Barren Wastelands.  For the most part, I think they are flat and cold as far as the eye can see.  However, the other day I walked into the house of my friend, Victoria Cerrone, and I was floored at how beautiful her all-white home was.  Granted, there were gorgeous artworks and sculptures all around since she does represent and sell art — but what a way to use white as her supporting color.  Victoria says that the goal was for her home to be “an art gallery of sorts, focusing the eye on the creative works”.  She did a great job. 

It made me think of other spaces that were white and yet still had great personality…and I found some!   

I’ll never look at white the same way again.  Even on that last pic on the left - the one with the gorgeous inset panels on the walls - the white works works due to the modern design.  Not to say it’s right for every home (I will still shudder at most white walls and ceilings) but it works when paired with great design and accent elements.  Until next time!

I struggled with which color to profile next.  September/October was easy, you know?  The start of Fall could only mean gorgeous orange tones to me.  In August, we were doing so many gray samples that it was our Garay on Gray post.  But this month?  Tough.  Should I go with White — no, we’re not that deep into winter just yet.  Green — that’s more for Spring.   Yellow?  More summer.  Then, I thought: Red!  To me it signifies both the Love you feel for your family and getting ready for the holiday season.  Also the color my ears get when I don’t get what I want for Christmas.  (No, no I’m just kidding…they really get more of a deep maroon tone than red.) ;)

Here are some pretty pics with our chosen color of the month — some have decorative painting and some are just deliciously Red.  Hope you enjoy them and that they inspire you!

Today, I’m starting a new segment of our blog: Elements of Design.  I’ll take a pattern, ornament or any other element of design and share a little info of its history and modern day applications.  I love researching the origins of everyday patterns and find it satisfying to have that knowledge when it comes to a particular commission.  It’s also cool to see an element of design pop up unexpectedly in everyday life and be aware of its symbolic meaning or special origins.  I hope you find enjoyment in these posts as well. 

We are starting things off with The Greek Key.  It is also called Meandros or the Hellenic Key and has its origins in Ancient Greece.  The ancient river Meander was twisty and doubled onto itself, giving a symbolic meaning to the key of “the eternal flow of life”.  According to the Dictionary of Ornament, the Greek Key is actually part of a group called the key patterns.  The key patterns are variations of a continuous geometric pattern meeting at right angles.  The design is sometimes broken up and can also be found with oval forms or rosettes.  During the medieval period, the key form was used primarily due to their interest in labyrinths.  This is interesting because the Greek myths claim that there is a connection between the key’s pattern and the Minotaur’s labyrinth. 

The design itself is crisply graphic but unobtrusive enough to use in both modern and more formal settings.  Today’s design variations give a nod to ancient Greece but have a personality all of their own.  As you can see, its use can transcend substrates.

Fabric

Seating 

Furniture

Flooring

Decorative Painting: As Accent (with tiles) or as a Subject (stripes) 

There are several stencil companies with wonderful key patterns.  You can easily find most of them by using Stencil Search.  Royal Design Studio has a nice one called the Victorian Key stencil in their Sophisticated Borders line (in fact, it’s the one used for the key stripes above) and its sister company, Modello, has some under their Ancient Worlds collection.  The Stencil Library also has great designs (click here) and Stencil Kingdom has a full line of Greek stencils.  I really like the following one from Stencil Planet but you can see their whole line here as well.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this…until next time, be well!

Well, I hope you enjoyed my brother’s guest post – I cracked up at the posing praying mantis.  What a ham!  Isn’t Jason great?  He and I are playing around with the idea of doing a monthly “radio” show (read: podcast) for you called Sibling Artistry.  Discussing faux and stuff, maybe try to figure out which one is really Mom’s favorite.  You know, the really important things in life.

So, I’ve found some nice images incorporating squares.  Here’s the pics:

I profiled this pic when I talked about my love for crosswords.  Still have it in my Idea File. 

We did this accent wall a few years ago.  I was trying to give the designer a few color options and taped up the sample board in squares.  She said “Yes, all of them, just like that”.  Amazing what one person sees that another doesn’t.  It’s one of the most picked ideas in our book. 

Hope you’ve enjoyed these ideas.  I’m sure we’ll “talk” soon!

Whichever way you voted, it was a historic election evening.  I still am feeling very uplifted and hopeful for the future.  I am glad, as well, that the event is over and we can move forward with a firmer idea of the direction America will be taking — not only internally, but also with a sense of world unity.  Now, back to our regularly scheduled blog…

I thought I’d start back off with rooms that have vastly different designs, but are each beautiful in their own right.  They all have lovely decorative painting.  See if you agree.

I wouldn’t mind a nice couch in the bath since I can then sit down to put on my strappy heels to attend that cotillion I was invited to.  [A girl can dream ]  BTW, the chair legs - cute!

Upon first look at the ceiling, I thought “…decoupage?”  Now, I believe it’s painted….I think.  Either way, I’m enjoying the abundantly lush visual stimuli and I’ll take that chocolate martini as well, thank you very much.

LOVE red coral in any incarnation.  What a cool job this must have been for the artist!  How nice would it be to have a Sunday brunch in this room?

Well, going off to work…we’ll talk soon! 

I’ve been seeing and working with a lot of gray samples and gray design schemes lately.  It’s a beautiful neutral that’s easy on the eyes — alone (or with another neutral, like taupe, white or off-white) creates a relaxed, modern ambience and paired with a bright warm color adds a bit of punch to the overall design.   It can be used as a wall finish with blue-gray, brown-gray or even white with gray undertones and also mixed in with other colors and tints.  Here’s a few pics I’ve had in my idea books that were found in shelter mags:

Yesterday, I received the latest Vahallan Papers postcard and it had a familiar scheme…  This particular design is new and called Veyda II.

The weather here in Florida looks like it’s following some designs: gray, gray, gray.  Tropical Storm Fay (or “Stay”, as my friend Monica calls always-circling back storm) is just dumping buckets of rain here in Central Florida.  We’re leaving for an out-of-town commission tomorrow but there’s no break — it’s still here in Florida, LOL! I’m also working on putting together The Wallnuts post – it’ll be up soon.  Have a great day!

A few years ago, we helped a designer avoid a crisis with these doors.  Ever since then, I have begun taking a second glance at this oft-overlooked surface…and sometimes the sheer artistry and creative detailing brought to them might take you by surprise. 

I’ve gathered up a few pics I’ve had in my “Idea Book”.  Take a look…

I almost had a heart attack when I saw this pic.  Let’s see…beautiful dominant color?  Check.  Intriguing curved moldings?  Check.  Some decorative work inside the door’s panels?  Check.  Making what would have been just a pair of pretty doors into something extraordinary?  No more calls, we have a winner!  So, I wandered around my house to see which door would be so graced.  To my utter chagrin, no doorways were going to work well.  Oh, how I shook my fist at the faux gods!  Still waiting for that perfect client to come along…

Here are two different examples of decorative painting surfaces on doors– one is the wood itself and other on the tiles surrounding the door.  The painted wood door on the left is from the 18th-century and comes from Morocco.   

These are along the same idea as the first pic but dialed down a bit and executed with the color white.  Isn’t the bird detail so sweet?  I love them both!  

Sometimes, entrance doors can come in just the one color.  It works nicely with some exterior design schemes but you can always throw in a bit of interest.  Here, I like how a bit of gold was used to highlite the frames and center design.  Really makes you appreciate the scrollwork even more.

Thought I’d throw in this door just because it was so interesting.  The pic on the right is a close-up of the detail of the door.  Unusual, no? 

…and this one I thought I’d throw this one in because it’s welcoming…but it’s got a slight Tim Burton vibe to it.  Looks like a lovely garden, too.

Amazing what a difference a beautiful doorway can make.  Even just approaching one with an artist’s mind can open the door to a world of wonder.  (smile)  Yes, I had to go there, LOL!

Black & White is probably not the first color combo that jumps to an artist’s mind when seeing a new area.  However, when I saw the fun way they were used in these rooms, I knew they would now jostle for attention in my mind (”pick me!”) along with all the other colors and finishes.  (Yes, I have a vivid imagination.)  Thought I’d share the pics.  

What I like is that paired with the furniture and treatments, the wall treatment doesn’t make this room look too “cute”…

Columns — so many finishes to choose from!  Two of the three here get a touch of whimsical stripes and a matching accent wall.

For a bright dash of color, faux flowers are glued onto the painted branches on the wall for a more three-dimensional effect.  You could build the “tree” using the Garden Room Designer Range or Exotic East Panels 114A or B.  You could also forego the flowers and try it in full relief. 

Although Black & White will always be striking together and can be more of a serious combination, it’s nice to remember that you can still have a bit of fun with it, too.  Cheers!

OK, so was there ever a doubt I would pick this book as our Book of the Month?  Especially since we were chosen to be a part of it?  I do have to say, in all seriousness, that this book is a wonderful resource for decorative artists.  It is chock-full of photographs of gorgeous rooms using the Modello decorative masking patterns in innovative and creative ways.

Modello by Design - Inspiring Images from Artists’ Portfolios is authored by Melanie Royals.  She put out a nationwide call for artists to submit their best images featuring Modellos.  As I understand it, the plan is for it to be a series of books with this one being Volume 1.  Her goal was to provide a beautiful visual guide for decorative artists to show their clients a smorgasbord of design ideas.  This book will be valuable during consultations because it is hard for some clients to visualize the proposed finished room.  The old adage certainly rings true: a picture is worth a thousand words.  These photographs will help get your ideas across or will jumpstart a new level of creative brainstorming between you and your client. 

Here are some images — it doesn’t even touch the amount of good ideas the book contains.  I didn’t even have room to post up most of my faves!  I’ve also provided the links to the artist websites, when available.  Enjoy!

Walls by Heather Mueller, Todd Oberndorfer & April Long of Metamorphosis Designs in Ogden, Utah.  The idea of “pattern everywhere” in the wrong artist’s hands could go so badly but this is Absolutely Perfect.

The stunning curved ceiling is by Katherine Enguita of the Final Detail in Fort Myers, FL. The flooring is by Joan Kingsbury of Joan K Design in Canton, MA.  Check out the floor’s curves and corner designs – super cool work.
 

I actually saw the left pic on Talk Faux a few months ago and LOVED the room.  The work is by Kris Kuchavik of Casa Bella in Waxhaw, NC.  The gorgeous ceiling on the right is by Barry Harris of Painting Elegance in Homestead, FL.  I like the idea of an additional layer of design starting outside the fixed medallion.

The accent wall on the left is by Joanie Valenti of Joanie Valenti Decorative Wall Finishes in Pittsford, NY and the peacocks on the barrel ceiling is painted by Carolyn Hewitt of Lasting Impressions in McKinney, TX.  Both are samples of outstanding work. 

The windows at left are by yours truly and the cool sink design (with the great faux on the walls) on the right is by Michele Molek of Fashionable Finishes in Southern Pines, NC.

We had three projects chosen for the book.  The first one is this room with the full ceiling view here, the second is featured above and the third is pictured below.  As a bonus, I put in the “before” pic.

Please click on the links for the available websites of the artists above — there is more beautiful work to be seen.  Love these pics?  Maybe one of them is in your area!  Have a great day!