100 Year Old Farmhouse Goes Modern

Trudy Crane January 6, 2014

This 100 year old farmhouse owned by designer Tobi Tobin has been redone into a modern, beautiful home. Full of mirrors in every room mimicking Mondrian paintings of rectangles and squares. There is also a wonderful mix of modern furniture in pale tones beside antiques in darker shades and you see the mix of black and whites in the bedrooms as well...and what about the wallpaper! Really gorgeous! The use of glossy black in the kitchen and on the doors really grounds the rooms and the wonderful chandeliers keeps it all bright and sophisticated....

Linking with Savvy southern Style, French Country Cottage, My Romantic Home

Enjoy!

Trudy

Hey I was featured over at Savvy Southern Style! Check it out here!

via: House Beautiful

Photos: KARYN R. MILLET

Top Posts for 2013 - Part 1

Trudy Crane December 30, 2013

What a year it has been! Not always easy but a year to grow and learn for sure. A year and a half ago I left my life as a corporate VP of Marketing and decided to start my own business in design. This was not an easy decision for me as I have always managed large teams and loved that environment of being around a large group of creative individuals. Day after day alone in my office at home was hard and challenging but through the year I began working with a wonderful design partner that I laugh with everyday. I also worked very hard on my ceramic business this year and have been lucky enough to have wonderful people buy my pieces to put in their homes and I am ever so happy and grateful for that as well. I even rented my own studio with two other artists so I now have my own space to create! I am starting to wholesale my pieces as well and I will let you know what stores will be carrying them soon!

I saw a wonderful response to my blog this year as well and the incredible feedback from all of you has really kept me going. Sometimes it is hard after the workday to come up with new ideas and research for new homes to post but I really love it and will bring some new changes to my blog in the upcoming year. I so appreciate you coming to visit each day or whenever you can and I really love it when you drop me a note.

I am off to visit my 92 year old mom in British Columbia tomorrow and so I will be less in touch this week but I just wanted to wish you and yours all the best for 2014! I think it is going to be an amazing year!

Big hugs,

Trudy

My Top Posts for 2013

Shabby London Home

Inspiration in White: Olive Trees and Myrtles

Inspiration in White: Red and White

Romantic Home

Victorian Beauty

Linking with Savvy Southern Style, French Country Cottage, Common Ground Do, My Romantic Home

Architect and Photographer: Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen

Trudy Crane December 29, 2013

Wonderful photos of this home in Elle Decor this month taken by Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen who is an architect and photographer. Beautifully done and the interiors on the website of Norm Architects are really amazing. All in these white and pale tones similar to this house below. Oh, the clean lines and wonderful simplicity that is Scandinavian design....I even see a few Ikea touches here and there in some of the homes he has done. Things I love in this home....the concrete floors, copper details and the entry tile! Very talented...

Enjoy!

Trudy

linking with My Romantic Home

via: elle Decor

Paris Chic Antique

Trudy Crane December 27, 2013

A refurbished loft space in Paris is the setting for these fun ideas and interesting vintage and antique finds. Exposed surfaces include brick and stone left with a rough edge giving it a kind of industrial feeling. Love the butterfly wallpaper and the vintage cars in the kids room. So inventive the way they are featured on the wall....I love creative ways of showing things to make them stand out!

Enjoy!

Trudy

vai: Milk Magazine

Photos : Louise Desrosiers.

Pretty Winter Plants

Trudy Crane December 26, 2013

During this season it is so nice to decorate with greenery, plants and flowers. There are so many wonderful bulbs and flowers to plant during this time. We planted white amaryllis this year but they did not come out in time for Christmas. I usually plant paper whites and they always look so beautiful in the living room near the Christmas tree with all of my mercury glass decorations. Here is some greenery and flowers used in a gorgeous way in this New England style home in Scandinavia.

Linking with French Country Cottage, Common Ground Do, My Romantic Home

Enjoy!

Trudy

via: Skonahem

Photos: MARIE DELICE KARLSSON

Toffee, Black and White

Trudy Crane December 23, 2013

I have posted about how much I love the look of black and white before and I have even talked about how great brown or wood looks with black and white......but toffee...well that is a really beautiful colour. The warmth of this tone...it really is very special...It can be wood, leather, copper, fur, artwork....really the list is endless. Here are some great inspirations.

Hope your pre-Christmas celebrations are going well! We have had parties and guests over so much this past week I feel a bit behind in my own Christmas prep and in my posting too! It is so fun though to have friends and family near us and I feel so grateful for all that I have. How are all of your pre holiday activities going?

Linking with: French Country Cottage, My Romantic Home

Enjoy!

Trudy

via: Pinterest

A Life Less Ordinary : Part 2

Trudy Crane December 21, 2013

On Thursday this week I featured Part 1 of this post on the book A Life Less Ordinary. In the first part I showed you photos from the authors store, I gigi, and today I would like to share some photos from their homes. As I said the other day I find the book incredibly inspirational and their homes...well they are amazing!

Enjoy!

Trudy

All photos from: A Life Less Ordinary

Artful New York Penthouse

Trudy Crane December 19, 2013

This stunning penthouse from Architectural Digest is an amazing home full of beautiful paintings for art lovers. Gorgeous color against a white backdrop, the paintings and scultptures create the feeling of being in an art gallery with the warmth of a modern home. In the entrance is a sculpture garden with an authentic japanese teahouse and an incredible bentwood sculpture. The living room features modern paintings and sculptural furniture while the kitchen is a work of art on its own with bright red laquer cabinets. I just love the lounge that features a Tresserra billiard table with wonderful photography and artwork...really such a perfect mix. This luxurious home really showcases the art within the home but I know that I can take lessons on how to feature the art in my own more humble surroundings to it's best.

I will post more pictures from the book "A Life Less Ordinary" tomorrow!

Enjoy!

Trudy

Linking with French Country Cottage

via: Architectural Digest

Photography by Anthony Cotsifas

Good Book: A Life Less Ordinary

Trudy Crane December 18, 2013

This week my daughter came home with a book that she bought at Anthropologie called A Life Less Ordinary. She is a photographer in her last year of college and bought the book for inspiration for some photos she is doing next semester. Well, I took one look at this book and settled on the couch with a cup of tea and took some serious dream time for myself. WOW.....I came away so inspired to move furniture, take pictures and think creatively. The two authors and best friends, Zoe Ellison and Alex Legendre, are the owners of I gigi General Store in East Sussex, England. The book is a history of their lives and friendship and of the inspiration for their homes and for the store. Every page is a delight and their story is really lovely. Take a look at just a few of the photos of the store and tomorrow I will show you pictures of their homes...See Part 2 and the owners homes HERE !!

Linking with: French Country Cottage