Monthly Archives: April 2011

Happy Weekend!

SVSarahandGrant29 Happy Weekend!

Bronco, Photo by Dawn

This pretty much describes how I’m feeling right now…what a crazy week this has been!

We finally let the word out about what we have been working on here at Prairie Hive, and I am so overwhelmed by the enormous positive response we have received!  All of your kind words, support and suggestions have been fantastic and very much appreciated.  We can’t wait to show you all the other exciting things we have been working on…

Next week on the blog we will have lots of suggestions for celebrating Cinco de Mayo and Mother’s Day, as well as some Kentucky Derby inspiration.  I also can’t wait to share pictures from the IIDA (International Interior Design Association) fashion show event that Alayna, Dawn and I participated in last night in OKC…the pieces that the designers created left my head spinning with ideas on ways to use materials in unconventional ways!

In the meantime, enjoy a few of my favorite finds this week, while I go out and enjoy this beautiful weather!

Best idea ever.

Gorgeous Imagine Nations globes, via Honestly WTF.  I am soooo getting one.

Loving this paint can art installation!

Wish I had stairs so I could do this.  What song would you choose?

And in case you missed it, this happened.  Huh?

 

Have a great weekend!

Streamlined America

RDPioneer Zephyr full Streamlined America

Image from Denver Public Library

Imagine a time and place where you could hop on the Burlington Zephyr for a quick day trip or your ride to work.  Earning the nickname “Silver Streak” after a quick promotional run from Denver to Chicago of 13 hours and 5 minutes, it then continued regular operation from 1934 to its retirement in 1960.

You can still “ride” this icon at the Museum of Science + Industry Chicago on this tour, but until then I highly recommend visiting Philbrook Museum of Art before the Streamlined exhibit moves on May 15, 2011.   I am so inspired by the dedication to streamlined design.  Everything from the most mundane everyday use item such as a mixing spoon to the highly stylized and sleek forms of transportation have examples of streamlined design.

RDstreamlined airstream Streamlined AmericaAirstream Travel Trailer at the Philbrook Museum of Art

Here you will find inspiration ranging from blenders to scooters and vacuum cleaners and irons to pitchers and refrigerator containers.  Some items I wouldn’t mind adding to my collection include the Relax-It Massager, GE Turntable and the Vornado Standing Fan.

RDStreamlinedEveryday Streamlined AmericaLeft and Right Images from Atomic Warehouse, Center Image from Radiophile

To get the look today I would recommend:

Gorenje Refrigerator

RDblack oldtimer gorenje 554x737 Streamlined AmericaImage from Appliancist via DigsDigs

Mecca Console Table

RDMecca Console Streamlined AmericaImage from Exclusively Home

Crate and Barrel Bread-Storage Bin

 Streamlined AmericaImage from Crate and Barrel

West Elm Bead Vase

RDBeadVaseWestElm Streamlined AmericaImage from West Elm

or this First Aid Kit

RDMedicFirstAid Streamlined AmericaImage from ModCloth

I hope to have inspired you to learn more about the sleek, stylish designs of the 1930′s in a hopeful America.  To learn more about the exhibit itself, read at Tasha Does Tulsa.  I will leave you with the beautiful “Royal Blue” a  President’s class steam locomotive on the B & O New York – Washington DC line.

RDB&O Royal Blue in 1937 Streamlined AmericaPublic Domain Image found here

Meet the Hive – Alayna B.

 

PHOTOS%20alayna%20b%20hive%20photo Meet the Hive   Alayna B.

I love design.  Whether it is through interiors, photography, fashion, or graphics I love it.  I enjoy creating something from nothing and looking at things in a different way. 

Prior to starting my own business, Ruby Jewel Studio, I worked in both Dallas and Tulsa as a commercial Interior Designer.  Now, I am able to merge my love of commercial and residential Interior Design with my love of photography.  In both fields I am able to be expressive, creative, and work with color. 

I strongly believe that good design can come in all mediums, price points and styles and should be available to everyone.

My personal style is somewhat hard to pinpoint.  Being in the design world, I see all the many beautiful things out there, which makes it nearly impossible for me to settle with one “style” {and explains why I have about a 3 year limit on the paint colors in my home}.  I love being able to incorporate personal items into a space…something that I bought on one of my travels, a hand down from my grandma, or a fabulous collection of photos.  I want my home to tell a story of where I’ve been and what I’ve done.

I married my high school sweetheart.  We love traveling and experiencing different places and cultures together.  It’s a great feeling to escape your everyday life and immerse yourself into a new setting…although my husband jokes that I only see the new places through the lens of my camera! 

Along with my love of travel is my love of food.  I come from a long line of great cooks and I enjoy recreating family recipes as well as winging it and creating something new.  Some of my favorite family memories are in the kitchen with everyone.

To me, the word hive symbolizes collaboration and community.  This whole Prairie Hive project is a huge collaboration between six different gals that all have amazing talents.  Each one of us brings a different view point and perspective to the table which allows us to {hopefully} connect with our community on many different levels.  I come away from each meeting energized and full of inspiration, which is our goal for you, the readers of Prairie Hive.

Current Design Obsessions:

     wallcoverings, natural wood, mixing of patterns, white

My eclectic array of music:

     Empire State of Mind, Jay Z & Alicia Keys

     Rolling in the Deep, Adele

     Edge of Desire, John Mayer

     Radioactive, Kings of Leon

     Use Somebody, Kings of Leon

     Rock your Body, Justin Timberlake

     Don’t Stop Believin’, Journey

      Fishing in the Dark, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

Travel Wish List:

     Seattle

     San Francisco

     Napa Valley

     Ireland

     Greece

Modern Furniture for the Kids

Do you have kids or are you about to embark on the journey of parenthood?  Are you yearning to keep your house void of an abundance of molded plastic?  Well, look no further!

It seems that every single one of my friends (only a slight exaggeration) is about to have/just had a baby.  (Seriously.  My coworkers now automatically ask me every Monday: “How did the baby shower go?”  Again, only a slight exaggeration!)  So, as of late, I’ve been surrounded by baby furniture and accessories galore and have made a few for-future-reference mental notes of great pieces to accent a baby’s or kid’s room.  Here are some of my favorites:

 

DTModernBabyFurniture Modern Furniture for the Kids

1. Svan Chair, Svan 2. Classic Crib, Oeuf 3. Cameleon Stroller- Special Edition Color, bugaboo 4. Coco Stylewood Baby Lounger, Bloom 5. Perch Bunk Bed, Oeuf 6. Mini-E lounge chair and ottoman, Little Nest 7. Nesting Birds, P’kolino

Spring Table

 Spring Table

 Spring Table

 Spring Table

 

Just a few shots of the Easter Table I set for our family gathering.  I only use my wedding china on Easter, so I like to set the table differently every year;  and because my china is so traditional and frilly, I like to try to add something a little more modern or quirky to balance the frilliness.   I love this fun, swirly grass (I wish I had asked what it is called ) and white pots I found at Ted and Debbie’s the other day, paired with the  vintage glass huricanes from The Retro Den (both stores are in Tulsa).  The pink freesia adds a wonderful smell to the table, as well as tying in the pink from the china pattern, and the rough twine keeps the whole thing from getting to fussy.

Herbs in a hurry

 

herb12 Herbs in a hurry

I have a confession: I’m not much of a gardener.

I know I’m supposed to love it, but frankly I’d rather be whipping up something in the kitchen or, let’s be real, shopping.

So, every spring I spend exactly one day planting my container herb garden, and it’s a breeze thanks to several years’ experience.

Last year, I bought two large planters from Home Depot and a few bags of organic potting soil. So this weekend, all I had to do was clean out the containers, stir up the remaining soil — it was full of earthworms, which means it’s well aerated — and plant away!

herb3 Herbs in a hurry

My parsley's ready to go.

I love basil — it’s by far the most versatile herb for me. So I planted two basil plants in one large planter — it can grow really tall. The second large container is my Italian herb garden with oregano, flat-leaf Italian parsley,and dill.

In a smaller pot,  I planted fragrant rosemary. And in a tiny pot I decided to try out some cilantro this summer,even though it’s really hard to grow.

It took about 20 minutes to arrange my herbs and nestle them into the soft soil. One bit of advice: follow directions on your plants for spacing, etc. Amazingly, I learned that the experts know what they’re doing!!

herb21 Herbs in a hurry

Clockwise from top left: Rosemary (in brown pot), basil, Italian herb container (with oregano, dill and parsley), and cilantro,

 

I can’t wait until my basil grows in. I’ll serve up some of my famous (and very garlicky) bruschetta.

 

herb43 Herbs in a hurry

Bruschetta for Two

Ingredients:

Three or four ripe plum tomatoes, or about 2 cups cherry tomatoes (heirloom varieties have the best color in the summer)

2 cloves garlic, minced (or more to taste — I’m a garlic freak!)

4-5 large basil leaves (or about 7-8 medium leaves)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (now’s time for the good, more expensive stuff)

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Steps:

1. Seed tomatoes, and cut into a chunky dice (for cherry tomatoes, simply cut in half or quarters)

2. Julienne basil by rolling leaves into a cigar shape, then cutting crosswise into tiny shreds.

3. Add olive oil, salt and pepper, garlic and basil to tomatoes. Stir.

4. Serve with slices of toasted baguette, crackers or as a garnish to fish, chicken or whatever. It’s usually gone before we get to the entrees!

Happy Easter Weekend!

SVeasteregg Happy Easter Weekend!

 

A few things that caught my eye this week:

A great Easter craft featuring irresistible tiny chicks (pictured above) via not martha.

A way to make Peeps a little more tolerable over on Poppytalk.

The launch of the new website The Beauty Department.

Some mid-century inspiration from homedecoratorsed.com.

2011 design trends highlighted by Fifthroom Living.

A new project to add to my honeycomb obsession, over at design*sponge.

And finally, something so random…you have to look.  Kinda want to make one.

Hope you have a fantastic weekend, enjoy the holiday and what Spring has to offer (which here in Oklahoma, is lots of outdoor plan ruining stormy weather!)!

 

T.V. to Reality

Have you caught any episodes of ABC’s Mr. Sunshine on Wednesday nights?  I have a seen a few, and each time Crystal Cohen’s {actress Allison Janney} office catches my eye.  I love the color combo and the quirky feel.  I decided to look it up online and see what I could find.  Low and behold David A. Keeps, with the Los Angeles Times, wrote this great article on the set designs for both the home and office of Crystal Cohen.  As you will read in his article, he gives many of the sources for the office.  I thought it might be interesting to see if I could find similar objects that might be less expensive, but still have the same feel.

To start with, here is a photo of the office

AB%20 %20mr.%20sunshine%20office T.V. to Reality

Photo credits: Danny Feld / Sony Pictures Television via Los Angeles Times

Let’s start with the chairs.  LOVE them!  This is a great contemporary take on your traditional arm chair.  The Duralee fabric is designed by Thomas Paul.  It can be found here in Tulsa at Calico Corners, Interior Fabrics, and I am sure other fabric stores as well {I have personally drooled over it at the afore mentioned stores}.  In trying to keep down the costs, I would suggest definitely sticking with the fabric and using it to reupholster chairs that you already have or chairs that you find at an estate sale or in the clearance section at a local furniture store.  OR you can buy this adorable slipper chair from Target online for a mere $224.99!

AB%20 %20mr.%20sunshine%20chair T.V. to Reality
photo via target.com

Next let’s take a look at the white bookcases on the back wall.  They are a great display space with glass doors.  I am an admitted IKEA junky, so my mind automatically goes to the EXPEDIT bookcases…those don’t have large glass door options…so next in line is the HEMNES glass door cabinet for $325.

AB%20 %20mr.%20sunshine%20ikea%20hemnes%20glass%20door%20cab%20325 T.V. to Reality

photo via ikea.com

To fill those shelves with the bright orange and blue accessories I would head over to our local IO Metro store, Target, or Ross and see what I could find.  IO Metro has beautiful accessories in vibrant colors that are super afordable.  And you would be surprised at what you can find in the vase section at Ross!

Round mirrors are pretty popular these days.  I found this one at Pier 1 for $149.99.

AB%20 %20mr.%20sunshine%20pier%201%20gold%20circles%20mirror%20149.99 T.V. to Reality

photo via pier1.com

No, it’s not exact, but it’s large and round and has great gold accents that makes it a great focal point in between those two blue lamps.  Those are great!  The actual ones cost about $200 a piece.  Which honestly I understand why….look how tall they are!  But, I did find a pretty good substitution from Crate and Barrel for $59.95.

AB%20 %20mr.%20sunshine%20c%20and%20b%20sadie%20surf%20table%20lamp%2059.95 T.V. to Reality

photo via crateandbarrel.com

Doesn’t have the same fun shape, but the color is there so I think it would do.  Especially since it’s a fraction of the original’s cost!

For the additional two chairs I would scower craigslist, etsy, and local antique shops to find a couple of old chairs that have a similar round back.  Then, I would spray paint the wood parts gold and find a great orange fabric and have them reupholstered.

The carpet in the office is from Interface FLOR.  They used two different colors of carpet tile to create a blocky pattern.  I love carpet tiles.  Working in the commercial Interior Design field, I specify similar ones all the time.  Check out the website and see all the different patterns and colors that they have….you can get super creative!

Finally, the wall color is Benjamin Moore Cool Aqua.  It’s a great backdrop for the office and allows the furniture and accessories to really stand out…..without being a bland neutral.  Blue and orange are complimentary colors, so they will always look great together!

The charm of this office is that it mixes traditional pieces with more contemporary colors and patterns.

Next time you see a room that you love in a magazine, on T.V., or in a movie, think about doing some research and making it work in your space with your budget!

Bedding by You

Recently, while searching for furniture for my new house, I stumbled across Inmod.com’s “Design Your Own Bedding” site… and it’s so cool!   

You can customize bedding or pillows by choosing one of their many different patterns, then select a color for each (and every) aspect of the pattern.  I had so much fun just playing around with the different options!  Once you’ve created a pattern/color combination you like, you can place the bedding into a room scene (that you can also customize!) for the full effect before ordering your custom-designed-by-you bedding.  Check out these cool comforters I created in minutes!:

DTBedding01 Bedding by YouCreated on Inmod.com

DTBedding02 Bedding by YouCreated on Inmod.com


DTBedding03 Bedding by YouCreated on Inmod.com

DTBedding04 Bedding by YouCreated on Inmod.com

Now go try it out yourself!  Enjoy!!

Meet the Hive – Kim

Kim1 Meet the Hive   Kim

 

I know what I like when I see it, and I’m lucky to be a part of Prairie Hive. All the collaborators are so creative, artistic and inspiring.
I don’t have a design background, other than having a massive magazine habit (at one point I had 10 subscriptions), so I’ve developed my sense of home style all on my own.

Renovating a 1950s home with my husband on journalists’ salaries can be challenging, but I’m inspired every day at work (I’m a home and garden and features writer) and all around me. Good design to me is making it look easy and effortless. The first challenge we took on when moving in our home were the living areas. Dark paneling and 1980s carpet were the first to go — we painted over the paneling in the living room with a almond-colored paint and it turned out far better than I could have ever imagined.

I love to place bursts of primary colors to break up the browns and neutrals, and again, I’m lucky to have creative friends, namely my best friend, an artist. The two paintings and sculpture she gave me are my prized possessions and are all about color –reds, oranges, yellows. And the works are so special because they are custom.

I guess that’s been my design theory over these last 5 or so years: Make it custom, no matter what your budget is. And have patience. That’s something I continue to struggle with. My home is a work in progress and so am I.

That’s how the word “hive” really resonates with me. Making my hive my home is a long but meaningful process, and the mistakes are part of the journey. We hope we can help inspire your hive here.

Design obsessions: Gray has been an obsession of mine for some time. I love pairing a stone-gray with a bright hue, especially for my spring wardrobe. But I’ve recently put a kibosh on any more gray, black or white clothing purchases!

At home, I like gray with a smoky purply color, especially in the bedroom area. We recently remodeled our master bath with white and gray tile, and we painted the walls with a color called “Wet Cement.” I absolutely love it! In fact, my tiny master bath is my favorite room in the house because I chose every inch of its design.

I’m also obsessed with the lack of color — I love a good neutral, so I can change the accents with bright, bold colors. I hope to repaint my kitchen white this year, so I can finally hang my favorite Ikea purchase of all time, a square Wassily Kandinsky print that is bursting with color.

What’s on my Kindle:

  • Bossypants by Tina Fey
  • Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  • The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins

What I’m listening to:

  • Hang Me Up to Dry by the Cold War Kids
  • These Fangs by Say Hi to Your Mom
  • Bixby Canyon Stairs by Death Cab for Cutie
  • Debaser by the Pixies
  • Cities by Talking Heads

 

pixel Meet the Hive   Kim