Thursday, January 14, 2010

Readers Projects: Casting Call for Cowhide, Ikat, And Suzani


Thank you for the great response to the casting call for photos of how you are using cowhide, Suzani, and Ikat in your homes. Decor bloggers and readers are dedicated to making their homes beautiful, and we constantly inspire one another.

First up, is Roybn Henderson from My Southern Cottage. Her classic and clean use of a zebra printed cowhide is beautiful. Check out her blog - she has so many great tips and a DIY project for the cute burlap pillows on her sofa that is genius.

Robyn says: "I feel that's what these blogs are all about- throwing yourself (or your home) out there for everyone to see and take the good with bad comments. I definitely need another eye to see things and tell me what to do. I just don't want to pay for it, so I blog. Sometimes 100+ bloggers is alot better than one interior designer."

Robyn Henderson's cowhide on seagrass

Jamie Rogers from Doxa Home sent this to me. She has a great post on living with pets and light color furnishings.
Jamie Rogers has a cowhide on the floor of her home


I had to dig in the vault for some more photos, and I found this image of a beautiful living room from the home of Gina from Willow Decor. She recently added a white cowhide rug.
Gina from Willow Decor added a white cowhide rug on top of sea grass

Another example of white cowhide comes via a photo from my friend Peg DeFilippis. This is her New York City loft apartment.
Peg placed a white cowhide on under a modern chaise on the hardwood floor in her NYC home


Y
ou know by now that I'm a huge fan of cowhide. Here's my living room with a brown and white cowhide rug.
I just purchased two white cowhides on eBay.
To parapharase eBay, I am awaitng their delivery!
I already have one white cowhide that I used in my office.
Valorie Hart white cowhide on the floor in the office

I said, used. I have started a new project! I am turning my red office back to a dining room, and after five years, am changing the red walls for another color! Stay tuned for how it turns out!
In the meantime, I threw the rug from the floor onto the table! I love it!
I predict draping cowhide on tables and on furniture will become a hot trend this year!

Valorie Hart - A sneak peek at the office conversion to a dining room
The white cowhide moved from the floor to the table!


The next call for entries is about Suzani. I didn't get any photos from you! So I dug in the vault for this photo from Joni from Cote de Texas, who really informed us all about Suzanis. This is photo of how she used it as a table covering in her home.
Joni Webb - Suzani table skirt in her home

She also has one as a throw at the foot of her bed.
Joni Webb - Suzani throw at the end of the bed in her home

My friend Peg got this cute bedspread from Urban Outfitters a couple of years ago for her daughter's room.
Peg's Suzani bedspread

Joni inspired the Suzani I got for Christmas 2008. I love it, but I really didn't know what to do with it ha ha. Here I draped it on a counter in my office/dining room.
Valorie Hart - Suzani tablecloth

My Suzani is small. It's actually a vintage tablecloth, so I thought I'd try using it that way on my kitchen table. This vintage Suzani came from directly from Uzbekistan.
Valorie Hart - Suzani in the kitchen

The Ikat trend came out of the Bohemian/Hippie Chic fashion and home decor trend that was a hot topic among decor and fashion bloggers starting in 2007. Courtney Barnes of Style Court enlightened all of us, and we fell in line.
One of the most charming images she showed us was of a vintage chair frame reupholstered with an Ikat fabric Jen West found on eBay. I think Jen West launched a thousand Ikat chairs! And I think she had this chair for sale in huge purge HERE! Jen if you didn't sell it e-mail me!

Artist Anne Harwell made a painting of this chair, and subsequent prints, that are still a huge seller in her Etsy shop.

Blogger Renae Moore and I have been searching for well priced Ikat fabric. We both love Madeline Weinrib, but that company is an independent, and only gives a 20% discount to the trade of its very high priced fabric. I have been trying to get our shop to carry MW but the owner thinks the line is too pricey and the trade discount too small.
Another line Renae and I were excited to see is Trina Turk for Schumacher. Renae got some memos and sent me some photos. She was thinking of doing up some Ikat pillows for her couch.

The Trina Turk fabric wasn't what she had in mind, and she found something else for her pillows.
Renae Moore Designs - Ikat pillows on her sofa

She also was getting ready to reupholster a pair of wing chairs, and considered this beautiful burnt orange fabric.
Renae Moore shows some Fabric choices for her chairs and pillows
But in the end she chose this classic gray green.
Renae Moore Designs - a pair of reupholstered wing chairs


The last images are certainly not the least.

Rebeka Lambert of artsy-crafty babe send me some photos in a e-mail entitled "Love My Ikat!".


She says: "Well, I'm no designer or decorator, but I love ikat! This summer I slipcovered a thrift store wing back chair and made a table skirt from some blue ikat-ish fabric. I'd have a cowhide rug in my house if my little dog wouldn't chew it to pieces - I can see that disaster already :)".

Rebeka Lambert - artsy-crafty babe - made this Ikat slip cover

She also made this very cute pillow!
Rebeka Lambert - artsy-crafty babe - made this Ikat pillow

And she made this table skirt!
Rebeka Lambert - artsy-crafty babe - made this Ikat table skirt
She has an Etsy store too!


I love doing Readers Projects posts. Thanks again for participating.
You don't have to wait for another casting call. Just e-mail me your projects, especially of the things you are doing in your own homes.

21 comments:

  1. Oh man, I have been away working and not up on my blogs hence me having missed your request. Here is a snapshot of my living/dining/library, lol...seriously;)

    There is also a photo of my rescue kitty, Shenanigans, who suddenly passed away this past weekend:(

    http://doxahome.blogspot.com/2010/01/shout-out-to-decorno.html

    Thanks Val, this was a fun post to read!

    Best,
    Jaime

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  2. Very interesting post, Valorie! Thank you so much for the mention - you're the best! xo

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  3. From Peg via e-mail:

    Thanks Val! love it. I also used a black and white one in my last staging project. My sister has a brown one in her living room in Houston. Great minds think alike!

    Love ya!
    XO,
    Peg

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  4. How fun! I am slowly getting ready to do my big butt chair in my great ikat velvet...I'll let you know when I finish!

    Great post!

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  5. Nice, I love the zebra hide,and I am getting the suzanni & love the ikat. Lots of pics for inspiration!
    Leslie

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  6. i totally have the exact same suzani direct via ebay via uzbekistan!!! same one exactly.
    i also have a cowhide on my floor and an anthro suzani over a table acting as tv console.
    i LOVE it. is it still too late to send pics??

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  7. Oh Mz. Valorie! Thanks so much for including me...I feel very special!
    Mmmmmwwwwaaaahhhhh!
    xoxo

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  8. Oh Mz. Valorie! Thanks so much for including me...I feel very special!
    Mmmmmwwwwaaaahhhhh!
    xoxo

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  9. Love all three decor elements. The ikat slipcovered chair is fab!!!

    xo,
    cristin

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  10. Thanks for featuring my room!
    Robyn
    mysoutherncottage.com

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  11. When will people learn that trying to "do it yourself" is more expensive than getting professional help. Some of these rooms look like they were done with the help of a girlfriend at a slumber party. Cut coupons, but please get professional help even if for one element at a time. Have a master plan. A designer will work with you in achieving your look if you show you have a vision. Stop the madness of decorating by "blog".

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  12. Valorie, my friend, thanks so much for including my living room in your post. I am honored (and a bit scared) to be put in the same post as Jill Brinson, whose work I admire so very much!

    Thanks again!! You are the best!!
    xx-Gina

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  13. well, well, well - disregard the rude anon comment - that's just be crazy stalker. She lives to be rude to people about their houses. Without thinking that not everyone can afford a designer (even with a coupon - that's rich!) (a coupon!) - besides - I think everyone's house looks fabulous!

    Btw - My suzani on the den was sold long ago. I still have the one on my bed and I throw on over an ottoman. AND I just bought a new white cowhide, thanks to the Vamp!!!! I totally copied her - bought mine the same night she bought hers!!! haha!!! she's a big troublemaker.

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  14. Well for me, it hurts my heart to see cow hides laying on floors. Check out this website.
    http://www.farmsanctuary.org/
    They gave their all, they shuddered at the hands of men, they cried and fought for their lives.

    "The question is not, can they reason? Nor, can they talk? But, can they suffer?"
    Jeremy Bentham

    I'm sorry. I just had to say that.

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  15. V.

    So love this post. I wish I had my pics together. Beautiful & a great idea for a post!

    Gwen
    Ragland Hill Social

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  16. Oh, Valorie, I'm sorry to see the beautiful red walls of your office go! I'm sure you'll do something else wonderful there, but I did love that room!

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  17. Since copy cat has become the new design dogma, perhaps we should try cloning as an option for finding those awesome skins we like to throw everywhere. Swoon, swoon, swoon!

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  18. Valorie - please don't tell me you're painting over your red room. Any time I think of doing something daring colour-wise I think of this room to give me courage. Even though I'm a neutral person, I love your bold colours. I will be very interested to see what you come up with.

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  19. What a great post! LOOOVE your living room!! And love the other ones you posted as well!

    Here's my zebra cow hide: http://b-living.blogspot.com/2009/11/zebra-has-arrived-zebraen-har-landet-og.html

    Have a fabulous Tuesday!!

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  20. Well, you know I loved your office, and now boom it's gone (pauses to reflect). But, change is in your designer-blood, so can't wait to see what's next. I know it will be special and will incorporate all the new knowledge and experience you've been absorbing the past two or so years.

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