Interior & Landscape Designer - Suzanne Gibson

John found this desk on Craigslist.... And it was FREE!!!! SO after some cleaning, sanding and tightening up of the wiggly bits checking the slides and drawers Fiona and I will need to find prettier handles and drawer pulls. John helped and lifted it onto some raised wood so I can start prepping to paint it. The tabletop was sanded, but overall in great condition.  Not bad for a free desk. I just took out the Gesso.... I wonder what it will be like when it is finished!!!!!?????? Stay tuned!

 Mask off the Walls and Corners  Cream Walls:  a little boring, right?  Not for long Apply 1st coat of "Melted Chocolate" (paint color)    Working with my small roller, I purposely move in a variety of directions to create layers.  I add taupe and cream to create variations and layers which will add to a FAUX MARBLING  effect. I remove the tape edge to make a clean border around the paint effect   I finish the room by adding details and hanging art and towel rail.

Our house, like most in our neighborhood, has the original doors, or doors that have been hung, painted and re-painted over and over again....  replacing them is the ideal option, however, it is not in the budget at this time...  so what to do? Option one:  a fresh coat of paint...   Option 2:  Add a different color paint and some accent colors... the lower image is a test panel I did to see if I liked the option.. it was okay, but not a permanent option for us....  Here's the winning option... A combination of Paint and Wrapping Paper... yes... I said WRAPPING PAPER... and Fiona has a lovely "Butterfly" doorway to her bedroom....

Including a child in the re-decorating of their bedroom is an important part of the job.  Making Fiona take ownership of part of the painting has kept her excited about the new room... and she is always waiting for the next color of paint to be opened.  As you can tell from the video (I recommend documenting this type of activity with your children).... It is truly entertaining. We started with blue and turquoise, and have now added a light purple around her window...  I am debating between using turquoise around the window, or using bright white...  and adding some beautiful lettering that says "Fiona's Fancy Cake Shop" or something similar is in the works.  Perhaps something in French... 

I am taking a moment to write while a layer of paint dries.  If you note the "before" pictures of the bedroom, you will notice that the upper portion was painted in a purplish blue, and the lower is in a peachy beachy color... The new color scheme is Blue, Turquoise and all the "princessy - mermaid" colors that will make a girl want to play for hours...  in applying the first layer of blue it was apparent that the upper half would take an extra layer to cover the deep blue of old...  I made a point to brush paint the corners first, and also brush a layer where the border used to be....  then apply paint with the rollers. Today I'm waiting for the turquoise wall, layer one, to dry and in a few minutes will apply the second layer. More photos will come as I move to the purple walls and get the new curtains hung... and of course, for the "design reveal" which will happen on Feb 5th....  that's when Fiona will see the finishing touches all put t...

Fiona puts some pull into her bedroom make-over... down with the Laura Ashley "Seaside Border"... which was my dream children's nursery.... we pull off the paper layer we scrape and spray with water to get the glue and paper layer off... this is to make way for the grown-up "girls" room that she is getting color samples and design images will be posted soon.... Stay tuned for the next design installment....

Taking Cues from the Clients existing Furniture... This beach city home was beautiful with the homeowners Provincial Country furnishings. A China cabinet in a deep blue, a baby grand piano, and a blue and buttery yellow sofa. Using the color palette of Country French Blue, we brought the yellow into the dining room, and used white with just accents of yellow in the "tiny" kitchen. The yellow walls in the dining room are deeper toned toward the top, gradually becoming lighter towards the floor. This gives a beautiful effect as the home transitions from room to room. The pale yellow was continued up the narrow staircase (not pictured) and into the upper floor hallways. The yellow of the dining room is complimented by the blues of the living room. A variation of blues and glazes were used on the ceiling, walls and the fireplace surround, offset with bright white trim. The entire space is about 400 square feet.