San Franciscan Caitlin Moran is an interior designer who “balances a certain timeless grace with an unquestionably modern sensibility”. I love classic shapes mixed with modern colours and patterns. It’s such an eye-catching melange that is so pleasing to the eye. And might I add that she was once employed by design legend Vicente Wolf. Yes, Caitlin Moran has it going on. (Do I ever need that closet in a bad way).

Joel Robare of JR Studio wanted to share his latest project with us – an 870 sq ft Chicago condo remodel. The concept was “Luxe Living in Intimate Scale. This project maximizes living using detailing and furnishings that are both luxurious and functional – keeping an eclectic aesthetic that incorporates interior, skyline and color in sophisticated harmony. Low furniture was selected to emphasize the ceiling heights, reflective materials move the abundant natural light around the rooms, the dark wood floors run across the condo and up the back wall enlarging the sight lines. Playing on a modern interpretation of a traditional Chicago brownstone, vintage furnishings were recovered in restyled plaids, paisleys and otherwise rethought conservative patterns.” Fantastic project, and I am loving the vintage/mid-century vibe of the spaces. (Photos by Nathan Kirkham)

Since that was just a little taste of what this firm can do, here’s a bit more to really get you going.

I am a big fan of decor when it’s a mix of sophistication and a high comfort level. California based C.W. Eisner is that – muted tones, ethnic details here and there, and some really gorgeous timber furniture. Oh, there’s that gorgeous backsplash…

Some time ago Jo blogged about the fresh and vibrant designs created by Patricia Healing and Dan Barsanti of Healing Barsanti. I love the vibe of their spaces and was delighted to find many more photos I could show off to you all. There’s something about a mostly white space with bold hits of colour in small doses that makes my heart skip a beat.

There is always a project going on at my house. The latest project was for the cats. I finally sold my vintage retro sofa I had in the living room that for the past 3 months had been piled up in my office under the window. It had turned into the cats favourite spot to sleep in the sun and watch squirrels. When the sofa was picked up, I knew I had to create something for them to use in it’s place so my boyfriend and I went to Ikea to look for something we could hack and use as a cat perch. We made it through most of the store without finding anything and I was starting to panic, until Jeff spotted a baby change table (the Sniglar).

It was only $49.99, had 2 shelves, and could easily be chopped in half (I wanted it to be pretty narrow, just deep enough to fit a cat comfortably). It turned out perfectly. I painted it white (yellow first but it was way too bright), bought some stryofoam (fabric store was out of the foam I wanted) which I wrapped in batting and then fabric (thanks Jo!), and placed the “cushions” in the shelves. And voila, a perfect under-the-window cat perch.

I have to give Jeff credit for coming up with the idea of using the leftover piece of the change table as a new display unit for my West German pottery collection. The table I had been using was too deep, and this new shelving created a much wider space to walk from the living room into the kitchen. (In a 12 ft wide house, the narrower the furniture the better!) I painted some chalkboard paint roughly along the front edge and wrote what was on display. It’s a perfect use for the rest of the table that I would have otherwise thrown out.