Casual

I've been working on a collage of photos for class to convey a feeling or an adjective that describes the photos with one word. I thought this would be super easy but it was a little more difficult than I assumed. I first started with the word "Relax" but I had too many exterior photos and the teacher wanted more interior photos. No photos of humans allowed, but she didn't specify the furry sort. ;-) The second word I came up with was "Comforting" but not sure if that's the appropriate descriptive word either so I'm going for "Casual" for now. Any ideas?



Here are some of my favorites...



















(images from The Lettered Cottage, Country Living, and My Sweet Savannah)

Off to a Bad Start

Well, I'm already off to a bad start with my first project. I was going to attend Dixie Stark's seminar but was too tired after working all day. All I wanted to do was get home and relax with my husband. I'm tired of working 9 hours, commuting 3 hours, and then sitting in class for another 2 hours. It was too much for me on Tuesday. Of course on Wednesday I heard all the students raving about her new office cleverly constructed of shipping containers in downtown Seattle, so I'm mad at myself for not just pushing through the tiredness and going to her class. So to replace that "project" I'm going to attend a color seminar at Haley's Cottage on February 25th. Kathy Banak from Authentic Home Color Paints will be the guest speaker and I could use some color advice for not only my own home but my final project (more on that later).

And most importantly, Leatrice Eiseman, Pantone's Color Forcaster shared with everyone that the color for 2010 is TURQUOISE!

So here to inspire all of you...










(all images by House of Turquoise)

Madonna Sing-a-long

Tonight my husband and I are off tonight to go downtown Seattle to the Central Cinema. This place is a riot and so much fun! You sit on couches and dine on pizza/burgers while you're served beer and wine. Everyone interacts with the movie which makes it so much fun. They usually pick the campy movies, so all the better to comment and laugh out loud. However, we got word that traffic is down to 2 lanes on 405 so we had to cancel our plans. BUT I got excited when I found out the Madonna Sing-a-long is at 9:30PM. We could be there in time for that...I wonder if Robert would come with me? Probably not ;-)

(photo from Central Cinema)

If interested, directions/calendar can be found for Central Cinema HERE.

Project #1

I've been in my class for the first week now and was a little apprehensive at first if I was making the right choice. But we attended a 1 hour orientation at the design lab and saw some of the previous student's portfolio work. It was fun to see other student's work and exciting to know what we had in store for us this quarter.

The first project is to get to know the design business a little better. The teacher wants us to review/interview/attend something design related. You have to choose three subjects so I chose to review the book by architect Thomas Bosworth "Building with Light in the Pacific Northwest" available for purchase HERE


(photo from Houzz of Bosworth Hoedemaker)
The second choice I made was to attend the Bellevue College's seminar on January 20 of Dixie Stark. Dixie is the Founder and Principal of DA Stark Interiors in downtown Seattle and I'm excited to hear her speak at the college.


(photo from DA Stark Interiors)
And the 3rd choice I made for this project is to interview the Interior Designer Marija Mayo of Interior Fix in Everett. She's a wonderful designer that I met on the Snohomish Historic Home Tour years back. You may view her store HERE


(photo from Interior Fix)

So I'll let you know as I finish each of the 3 subjects a little more about what I learn of the design business.

I'm looking forward to this project!

Mrs. Brooklyn Limestone

For about a year I've been following this blog. I first saw Stef's work on HGTV's Rate My Space and was hooked from that point on. As the name of her blog suggests, she's been renovating her Brooklyn Limestone and she has an incredible eye for beauty and attention to detail.

Before

After

Fun use of color in the office!
(Images from Mrs. Brooklyn Limestone)


Along with remodeling her home, she travels with her husband all over the world and sells her photos here. But if you want to enter her giveaway for three prints (11 x 14 or smaller) or one large poster print (up to 20 x 30), enter HERE.

Good Luck!

The Home Bar

I have a small hutch in our office that normally houses photos and random objects, but since the cabinet was narrow and the shelves fixed I wasn't really able to fully utilize it like I wanted. Until now. Why not a bar? Now before you think my husband and I drink martinis every night when we come home from work, I actually prefer non-alcoholic drinks. But when we have a party it's nice to have it available to mix drinks. And I discovered, it looks cool too...

Subtle.
Hip.

Organized.

Cool.

Colorful.

Sophisticated.

Moody.


Now let's have a party!

(Images by Bosworth Hoedemaker, Rita Konig, David Hicks, Deborah Needleman, Miles Redd, Tori Mellot, and Cathy Post.)

Happy New Year!

(photo by Faded Elegance)

After reading many home decor blogs for the past year, I decided it was time to join the blogosphere. So as I sit here in my pj's, Starbucks coffee nearby, my dog Lucy snoring and my other dog Ricky tearing apart the head of a stuffed animal, I wonder where do I start and how do I do this? What am I possibly going to talk about?

Well, first a little about me. My name is Bethany and I live with my husband Robert in a small town, Snohomish, Washington. My husband and I both grew up in military families and moved throughout our entire childhood. I honestly expected us to have the 'travel bug' and continue moving around once married, but we got hooked on the charm and idiosyncrasies of Snohomish. We purchased a 122 year old home four years ago and it's been fun (sometimes not) remodeling our home. I also work full-time for a professional Northwest sports team (I'll let you guess) and on the side spilled out my obsessive fascination with interior design. So after 20 years of talking about it, I'm FINALLY taking "Introduction to Interior Design" at Bellevue College this Winter quarter.

So, I think this blog will be about the learning process of Interior Design while in school, rants about commuting to/from home/work/school, working in what feels like the "cube farm", and my remodeling projects at home. Oh, and of course, the continued obsession with other interior design blogs.

"Red Poppy" by Georgia O'Keeffe

So why the name Red Poppy Interiors? The first flowers that bloomed when we moved into our home were these large, vibrant red poppies. They are completely amazing with their texture, rich color, and beauty. So in their honor, this blog is christened Red Poppy Interiors.

Enjoy and Happy New Year!