Nepalese Felt Ball Rugs

Luca Inspiration Leave a Comment

One of the best parts of my job is discovering new companies and products that I can share with my clients. My most recent infatuation is Felt Ball Rug, a company which produces beautifully handcrafted rugs from Nepal. When they offered to send me a rug of my own, I jumped at the opportunity!  Felt Ball Rug practices only fair trade and employs a team of talented artisans from Kathmandu, Nepal. The company shares the names of each rug’s maker, so you can see exactly who crafted your piece. My rug was made by Sarita Thapa, whose picture can be seen here! I am so impressed with the craftsmanship and quality of my rug. It is super soft underfoot and incredibly intricate. The rugs are made with 100% New Zealand wool and AZO-free natural dyes, so they are great for nurseries and children’s rooms. They offer round and rectangular rugs in 65 different colors. I chose the 90cm round rug in color 63, but multicolored rugs and even custom …

Color Combo: Olive + Pink

Luca Inspiration Leave a Comment

Olive green and pink is one of my favorite color combinations at the moment. It’s a surprising pairing that you don’t see every day. Olive and pink are essentially complementary colors, depending of course on the exact shades you choose. Take a look at some examples of this color palette in action.  1) via Burnham Design and 2) via Natalie Clayman  1) via Dering Hall and 2) Detroit Institute of Arts  1) via CWB Architects and 2) via Real Simple  1) via Ikea and 2) via Madeline Weinrib

How to Decorate with Animal Prints

Luca Inspiration 2 Comments

Animal print decor can go one of two ways: chic and timeless or gaudy and garish. If you’re worried about falling into the latter category, here are a few simple tips for taming your wild side: Pick one statement piece. Isolate animal print to one stand-alone accent. It could be a small item, like a throw blanket, pillow, or upholstered stool, or a large item, like an area rug or stair runner. Either way, you can’t go wrong with a single animal print statement. Pair with solids and simple geometrics. Animal prints go best with solid colors or simple geometric patterns. This Scalamandré Tigre pillow, for example, would pop against emerald green walls (Benjamin Moore’s Seaweed). Low contrast color combinations. Unlike the real animals, you are not restricted by the laws of nature! Your animal print accents can come in any color combinations you like. Zebra is one of the trickier patterns because the high contrast black and white is so dramatic. If traditional zebra prints don’t work in your space, try a subtler …

Curl Up by the Fire

Luca Inspiration Leave a Comment

As the nights close in around us and winter settles in, we crave cozier surroundings. The idea of home as shelter and safe haven becomes more and more important. There are very few things as restorative and homey as a bedroom fireplace. Lapping flames, crackling wood, warm flickering light– fires are the perfect remedy to the cold winter season. Here are some cozy bedrooms that will make you want to throw on your PJs and jump into bed. 1) Home My Design 2) Primer Magazine 3) Rela Gleason 4)Home My Design 5) Linen and Lavender 6) My Lovely Things 7) Home My Design 8) House & Home 9) Home My Design 10) Blood and Champagne  

Tilton Fenwick for Target

Luca Inspiration Leave a Comment

Tilton Fenwick is a New York-based interior design firm founded by Anne Maxwell Foster and Suysel dePedro Cunningham. They are best known for layering colorful textiles and giving a modern twist to traditional patterns. I have been secretly lusting after this Tilton Fenwick pattern at Duralee for some time now, so I was super excited to discover that the design firm has put out a line of upholstered furniture at Target. They offer a range of settees, pictured above, as well as skirted chairs, headboards, and ottomans. This is high end style without the high end price tag.

Shopping Guide: Nantucket

Luca Shopping Guide Leave a Comment

I just returned home from a long weekend on Nantucket for Thanksgiving. Even though I grew up in Boston, I had somehow never been to Nantucket before this trip! The island is full of traditional Cape Cod-style houses: low, symmetrical cottages with weathered shingles or wood clapboard siding. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Nantucket prospered inordinately as the hub of the whaling industry; but by the mid-19th century, whaling was in decline and a large fire destroyed most of the island’s earliest buildings. Jethro Coffin’s house, known in typical straightforward New England style as the “Oldest House,” is Nantucket’s oldest house still standing in its original spot and one of the few structures to have survived the devastating fire. Built in 1686, this saltbox house features a distinctive horseshoe design on its central chimney. I spent several days poking around the little shops in Nantucket Center. As it turns out, Nantucket has a notable retail history; R.H. Macy, founder of Macy’s department store, was born on …

Mineral Lust: Malachite

Luca Inspiration Leave a Comment

I am a big fan of emerald green interiors, so it’s no surprise that malachite is one of my favorite patterns. Malachite exudes opulence and luxury. Products made with real malachite can be very expensive, but luckily the pattern is easy to replicate. Design blogs are full of DIY faux malachite painting techniques– something I would love to try one day– but in the meantime, I’m enjoying these inspiration images! Malachite wallpaper via Lonny. Malachite throw pillow via Etsy.   1) Malachite chair via Dwell Studio and 2) L’Objet dinner plates via Architectural Digest.   1940’s faux malachite dresser, which has been covered in Fornasetti wallpaper and then lacquered via 1st Dibs. Tony Duquette’s home via Architectural Digest.

Trendcasting: Fish Scale Pattern

Luca Trendcasting Leave a Comment

I have been seeing fish scale patterns all over design blogs and magazines recently, and I have a feeling they are going to be a big new trend. Of course, this isn’t the first time fish scales were in vogue. They were a standard feature of art deco design– see Coralie Bickford-Smith’s Great Gatsby cover for proof! One of the best aspects of this pattern is how different it feels depending on its orientation. There is no “right side up,” so it can be arranged in any direction. I recommend giving this look a try! 1) I adore these fish scale iron gates 2) Gold stainless steel fish scale tiles would make a stunning backsplash or bathroom. Blue fish scale tile.  Corteo 4 pattern from Tabarka Studio’s Palio Collection. I love the color gradations and texture in these hand-painted tiles. 1) This emerald wallpaper from Mimou reminds me of ginkgo leaves. 2) The Collect cabinet from A2 is overlayed with leather fish scales.    

Trendcasting: Scottish Style

Luca Trendcasting 3 Comments

Lately I’ve been seeing a lot of Scottish influence in interior design. The iconic Scottish style is of course plaid, but Scottish influence comes in many other forms: pheasant motifs, needlepoint hunting scenes, rich velvet sofas, and (faux!) mounted taxidermy. Here’s how to add a wee bit of Scotland to your home! Sources: 1) Braemore Phaesant Hunt Leather Fabric 2) Dark Green Tapestry Hunt Scene Pillow 3) Off-White Belgian Hunting Pillow 4) Lyre Chesterfield Sofa 5) 5th Avenue Throw in Breslin Plaid 6) Resin Stag Head 7) Cooper Navy Plaid Rug 8) Rustic Saltire Flag Pillow 9) Thomas Kay Weaver’s Plaid Pillow in Cedar Bark  Sources: The Gifts of Life, Betsy Speert  Sources: The Enchanted Home, Apartment Therapy  Source: House Beautiful via Tartanscot 

Gotta Love a Library Ladder

Luca Inspiration Leave a Comment

There are few design elements I covet more than a library ladder. Of course they are functional, but there is something so dreamy and romantic about them. Check out some inspiration images below: Sources: 1) Book Riot 2) Indulgy 3) Rebloggy 4) Architectural Digest 5) Home Adore 6) Design by Milada 7) Las Cositas 8) Elements of Style