Art and Artist Kerry Steele

I have been an artist all of my life....

My Mother put an art brush in my hand as early as I can remember....


Everything I read and touch becomes visual......

 it was natural for me to go into designing interiors...

I  can see pictures in my mind of what things will look like before it becomes reality....

CLICK, CLICK!

 My mind takes a picture like a camera.... 

are you visual and do you do that?




 

Art makes such a statement...

especially the real MC Coy....

every room needs art and if you can afford the real deal... 

by George.. buy it!


 I love Kerry Steele s art work....

she has her own style and palette...
 it is fresh, pretty and original....

(Gary Riggs)


Wouldn't the piece above look great in this room...

This too...








 

(Candice Cavenaugh) 




 I don't know who the artist is in this image..but it does make a statement..

 Kerry s art would look great in a space like this also....





 

(Kenneth Brown)



A home with tall ceilings needs a large piece of art to balance the height of the wall...


If you have high ceilings and walls.....
don't be afraid to put a statement piece on them..

take advantage of it....


by the way....


I love the chandelier that Kenneth Brown used in the picture above.....

 There's something about original art that is so special... 


The artist pours their heart and soul into every piece......


I love that...


it becomes something they have created and birthed..... yes, birthed....


it is a part of them and a gift to you.


If you would like to see more of Kerry s art.. 
go here...and her web-site here...

and Jennifer at the Pink Pagoda Blog has a post on Kerry's art...the post shows some great pieces
go here. 

I hope you visit them and see more of this talented artist!


Thanks for stopping by,
Julie 



 

Bookcases in the Living Room

(Phoebe Howard)


Hello Blog-land...

hope you had a great weekend....
Ours was fabulous....

Our Granddaughter was dedicated on Sunday and we spent the day with family....  

We ordered food in and it was so good!

I'm working on a living room design that is going to have bookcases on both sides of the sofa...

we want it to look like a loft and my client has a lot of art...
 Restoration Hardware has a lot of examples of bookcases...

 If you know who designed this..please let me know.





 

(Restoration Hardware)




The walls are very high and the bookcases will keep everything in balance...
It's a smaller space..but with high ceilings..




 

(Phillip Jeffries)



 

We decided to use this one from Noir 

I considered this one, but thought it might be to busy looking.....

This one didn't have the pizazz we needed...all of these bookcases are from Noir furniture..


 

This will probally be the sofa...
we are looking at one other choice. 

We like this chair...

Our pillows and drapery fabric...

This room is going to be a multi- functional living space...
they wanted it to be a room that they could work in and entertain.... 
Do you have a living room that serves different purposes? 
Or is it a room that no one really goes in?






 

The Perfect Mothers Day

What would your perfect Mothers Day look like?
 
 My Mothers Day would be with my family.... 

I would love to start the day with Gluten Free blueberry and banana Pancakes...

Doesn't that sound good?

 

You know its always about the food! 




3 ripe bananas
6 organic eggs
1 cup / 100 g shredded coconut
1/2 cup / 70 g fresh blueberries or thawed frozen
1 tsp ground cinnamon
coconut oil, for frying
 Make the batter: 
Peel the bananas and mash with a fork. 
Whip eggs in a bowl and mix it together with the mashed bananas. 
Add shredded coconut, blueberries and cinnamon and stir to combine.
Fry the pancakes: 
Heat coconut oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Pour 3 small portions of pancake batter in the pan at the time and fry the pancakes on both sides. Serve with shredded coconut and blueberries and dust with cinnamon.

(Recipe...The Green House Story blog)

An orange juice drink and maybe some bacon with those pancakes!

And there has to be flowers... 
all over the house...
What would Mothers Day be without beautiful flowers?

How lovely would Carolyne Roehm's table setting be looking over the garden...

now that would be nice! 

But.....
let's be a little spoiled...we also have to have lunch prepared for us...

  We can't forget about that!

Lunch would start with a Raspberry Pomegranate Cocktale

INGREDIENTS

• 1oz/30ml Grey goose/Absolut/Belvedere vodka
• 1 cup frozen raspberries
• Juice 1 lime
• 15ml sugar syrup (see below)
• 2 tablespoons fresh pomegranate juice.
• Extra raspberries for garnish
• Lime or lemon zest to garnish
• Ice

To make the sugar syrup:

1. Add 1 cup water and 1/2 cup sugar into a saucepan and bring to the boil, stir often then reduce heat and simmer until all the sugar has dissolved into the water – approx. 10 – 12 minutes. Allow to cool thoroughly. Note this will make enough for a few cocktails.

METHOD

1. Place vodka, frozen raspberries, lime juice, sugar syrup and pomegranate juice into a chilled cocktail shaker along with a handful roughly crushed ice.
2. To serve pour strained cocktail into a glass and  garnish with a few extra raspberries and some lime or lemon zes 
3. (Recipe....What Kate ate blog)

Salmon with an avocado salsa would be served for lunch....

Ingredients (for 4 people):

2 lbs salmon, cut into 4 pieces

1 tbs olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp paprika powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp black pepper

Avocado salsa

1 avocado, peeled, seeded and sliced

1 small red onion, sliced

3 mild hot peppers, seeded and deveined, diced or sliced

Juice from 2 limes

3 tbs olive oil

2 tbs finely chopped cilantro

Salt to taste

Preparation:

1. Mix the salt, coriander, cumin, paprika, onion and black pepper together, rub the salmon fillets with olive oil and this seasoning mix, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Pre-heat the grill.
3. Combine the avocado, onion, hot peppers, cilantro, lime juice, olive oil and salt in a bowl and mix well, chill until ready to use.
4. Grill the salmon to desired doneness.
5. Serve the salmon topped with the avocado salsa, and with rice and patacones or thick green plantain chips on the side.
6. (Recipe from Laylita blog)   

Yum...this salad would be perfect

•  
•  
• 1 Cup of Rasberries
• 1 Cup of Blackberries
• Avocado
• several sliced mushrooms (optional)
• 6 cups of Fresh Spring Mix or Spinach
• 1/2 cup of Goat Cheese or Feta Cheese
• 3 Tablespoons of Napa Valley Naturals Olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons of Oilerie Balsamic Vinaigrette aged 25 years
• a dash of salt
•  (Recipe..The Primitive Foodie)     

OK ..... your on your own for dinner...

What are your plans for mothers Day?

 Hope you have a wonderful Day....






(All recipes are found on my Pinterest page)
first image Providence LTD Blog,
flower images.. Marcus blog and 5th and State,
Orange juice Traditional Home.

A Fire and a Brewery Up-Date

Well, the fire is out! 
Thank God....
I want to thank all of you for your kind thoughts and prayers.....
and a thank you to all the firefighters for their bravery and hard work...




 

It's a little eerie looking...
all of the hills around us are burnt....
but, no one was killed and no one lost their homes in our area....
We are very thankful and so glad it is over....


 

We were able to go to my son's new brewery, Saint Archer for a peak before the grand opening sometime in June... 
It was nice to get away from the smokey air...

We had a tour of it before the guest arrived...take a peak....

The Brewery

This is the serving room at Saint Archers Brewery....still waiting for the tables..



 

Here we are in front of the hotel...my husband and I, my daughter, my brother and my son, Mike...


 

This my daughter in-law and my son at the party...






 

My son-in-law and daughter..

These are my son's partners....
The one on the right is Paul Rodriguez...another pro skater. 
A lot of the ambassadors of the company are pro surfers and skaters....
It was fun to meet all of them and see how the beer is made...it's really good!

At this point, it's only available in San Diego....
  I will let you know when its available in other areas...
Thanks again for your sweet messages and emails.... 
I have some updates on projects to show you soon....

Thanks, Julie




 

 

What a day

This is what I woke up to this morning......

All of the hills behind us were on fire! 

The wind was blowing so hard....

I cancelled all my appointments and my hubby and I were glued to the news....

We live in an area in California called Dos Vientos....
which means two winds in Spanish.... 

It was a little scary......and at times I was nervous! 

Especially when my hubby wasn't home and I couldn't get a hold of him...

He rode his bike down the road to see if we had to evacuate...

I loaded all of my clients fabrics into my car that had just come in and a $3,000 rug that belonged to another client.....
All I could think of is that they were paid for and I didn't want anything to happen to them...

My friend called who is married to a fire fighter and told me to take pictures of every wall in the house and all of our rooms....

Smart idea for insurance reasons...

 

We heard helicopters all day.... 

I grabbed all of our birth certificates and some important papers and packed them... 

I couldn't think of what to pack....but just everyday needs....
tooth brush, makeup, my camera, our meds and vitamins... 

What would you pack? 

I totally went blank!


 

News trucks were all over reporting the fire......



 

This is down the street from us...

By evening the wind had died down and the fire was headed towards the ocean...... .. 

we are still here and packed....

Boy, You never know what your going to wake up to!



 

Classic Black and white Decor.

I've had black and white on the brain lately.....
I've been buying black and white clothes, shoes and designing a living room for a client using some beautiful black and white fabric.....
I find it a classic color combo...... 
It looks wonderful in clothing and decor.

  

(Mimi Brown)

It doesn't go out of style... 






 

Color looks great with black and white, or  simply go with an absent of color.........but I love when an  animal print is added.........like this belt!

(Daryl Carter)







 

(Briggs Edward Solomon)

AAAAHHHH 

(Designer Jimmy Stanton)
(Lori May Interiors blog)



 The art is going to be the focal point in the living room that I'm designing.....

Designed by Bob Brown

 The art is the focal point in this room....
 the eye isn't distracted by color but it simply gazes at the gallery wall...
it looks classic and sophisticated....
and well balanced...

 A good designer has a natural eye for balance...

I'm not sure that can be taught...
I believe it is instinctual...

you either got it or you don't!



 

(Glamour Magazine)

(Tom Scheerer)

The details and the fabrics create the interest in your room... 
I always suggest to my clients.......
buy great fabric for the pillows it will add interest and it will help your home look unique...
don't skimp on the details....
other wise your home looks like everybody
 else s..
 it should  represent you and your family.
 


 

(Janet Rice)

Try to find accessories that add a little surprise...
it doesn't always have to be expensive... 
I like going to flea markets or antique stores to find vintage lamps and those one of a kind items...

(Joy Tribout) 


Ok... this could be dark brown and white, but it looks so great that I had to add it to the mix...

This is our fabric for the pillows...the leopard might be an ottoman...
or 
I might suggest a black lacquer coffee table or a marble and gold table......

Which table idea do you think you would like?

I like the detail in the drapery that Toby Fairly added and the wallpaper in the wainscoting.

This is the drapery fabric on the right....


 

(Atmosphere interior design)


There will be a little mustard added to the room....but our walls will be dark and our furniture will be ivory....

 

This is the sofa we will be using but in an ivory Linen....the wood will be in an ebony.

 

and this is the chair we will be using....but also in ivory.

Like I said....classic!

(Toni Chi)

I missed all of you....the wedding was wonderful..and I got a lot of work done but missed visiting some of your blogs.......
I think this is the longest break I've had from blogging. 
Next week I will be going to San Diego to look at my sons new brewery...his beer is called Saint Archer and the brewery will be open soon..

It's available in the San Diego California area....
you will have to try it...
you can find it at Trader Joe's and other stores.
 It will be available in other areas soon......I will keep you posted about it and I will take pictures for you of the brewery....

Thanks for stopping by, 
Julie