Category Archives: Design

Design

O + P Color Palette 2015 – Gold

March 30, 2015

This week on the blog is going to look a little different.  We are spending our Spring Break in LA working at a inner city mission. (I’ll post a little about our adventures on Instagram and Facebook, if you are interested).  Since we’ll be off the grid a bit, I’ve put together a week of color inspiration for you.  I’ve been working on picking a color palette for my home and studio.  There are definitely colors I gravitate to. If you’ve followed me for I while, you know Grey, Green and Gold are pretty much a constant here. But, I’m pushing myself a bit and adding to my palette.  I’ve been playing with color combinations and experimenting with colors that compliment what I already own and love.  So, join me this week while I share my Oleander + Palm color palette.  I’m sharing a variety of home accessories in these colors that can easily be added to any space and work well with a lot of styles. And all these items are about $50 or LESS! 
So, for the first color, no surprise, it’s GOLD. I used to be an all silver girl, my wedding ring is even white gold.  But, I have a new love for metallic yellow gold and brass. I love it mixed with silver in my home.  If you don’t have touches of gold, here’s some great pieces to get you started.  Gold doesn’t have to feel stuffy and uptight, like you like in an Victorian castle.  It can be playful and add a fun vintage vibe to your space. 
Come back tomorrow for more color inspiration and sources.  And Happy Spring Break!!!

Design

Oleander + Palm Studio

March 24, 2015

Well, are you ready to see a first look at my new studio space?  I’ve been in the space for a couple of weeks now and although I don’t get to go there everyday, I’m sure productive when I’m there. This dedicated work space is really paying off.  I don’t have the distractions of laundry and dusting my house.  And I can leave a project half finished, and return to it the next day without having to pack everything up.  So far, I just have a couple shelves and some folding tables in the space, but I’ve got big plans.
The studio is actually divided into two rooms. You can get a better look at the space below (sorry for the bad iphone pics).  The first room you walk into is smaller and has no windows.  It leads to a bigger room that has a whole wall of windows.  The first room I’m dedicating to storage and my office space.  I already have some shelves in there with all my craft supplies and equipment and I will have a desk for my computer very soon. You know I’m a huge fan of The Land of Nod, and I love their stuff for grown up spaces.  So, I’m using a few of my favorite Nod pieces for a clean, efficient work space.  
This is the larger of the two rooms and the one with all the great light.
The second room, with all the windows, I’m keeping as a blank canvas.  This is where I will host workshops, do my making and then photograph the finished products.

This picture is taken from the first room, where I will have my storage and desk space,  into the second room.
This is the first room and the entrance door.  This picture is taken from the second room, the room with the windows.

I hope that gives you a better idea of the space.  I will show more of the progress as the space begins to take shape.  I hope to find sometime this week to put a fresh coat of paint on the walls. I’m keeping them white, but there are a lot of scuff marks and smudges that need to be covered.

Design

Studio Inspiration

March 14, 2015

Now that I have a Studio, it’s time to work on a desk and office space.  I finally get to use some of the office inspiration I’ve been gathering on Pinterest.  Here’s a few of my favorite office images.
As you can see, I’m obviously drawn to mid century styled pieces.  I want my desk area to be a place that will help me be productive and efficient and I also want it to inspire me.  It’s exciting to have this space where I can express my style.  I know that my style is evolving and I’m trying to define it. What I know about my style is that I love vintage pieces, relaxed, clean interiors, monochromatic palettes, global touches, and lots of green, nature influences.
Can you clearly define your style? Are you like me in that you know what you like and dislike, but just don’t have a title and good description for it.  Maybe you can help me come up with a name for the Oleander + Palm style.  

Design / DIY

Global Eclectic Bedroom Reveal

March 3, 2015

I’m really excited for you to see my latest room makeover.  I’m calling it the Global Eclectic Bedroom.  This is one of those dream projects you guys.  I was asked to create a “lived in”, traveled, collected feeling, somewhat weird space for a creative fun college kid.  And then, the rest was up to me.  I was really given total creative freedom.  The only thing that stayed from the original space was the mattress and one eggplant colored wall.  I would say that about 90% of this space is thrifted finds and DIYs, which made for a unique look on a budget (my favorite kind of room).
Over the next couple of days, I’ll share more in detail about the sources and DIYs in this space.  But, for today, I’m just going to mostly let the pictures do the talking (because there are plenty of them).  
I loved being able to play with so much color in this room.  With the walls being white, the splashes of color have nothing to compete with.  I didn’t have a color palette for this space.  I just knew that my client loved lavender.  So, I played with saturated colors and repeated shades of purple throughout the space.  I kind of made it my mission not to match colors.  And pattern, I mixed and hardly every matched, and somehow I think it all works.  
I started with a fun graphic duvet cover from West Elm.  I knew the pillows would be very colorful and ornate, so I wanted something angular to compliment them.  I had already created the hand drawn gold grid wall, so when I found this grey grid duvet, I loved the idea of repeating the pattern.  And then pillows, pillows and more pillows.  I few of the pillows are actually ones I bought while living in Yemen, and the others are fun Crate and Barrel Outlet, Urban Outfitters, and Target.  Oh and the cute plus sign sheets are also from Target. 
The bed is the simplest pine bed frame from Ikea.  I didn’t want it to be a focal point, I wanted the gold grid wall to be the highlight.  And the table, I’ve already shared, is an easy DIY.
I’ll share more about the shelves soon, but almost every item on the shelves and dresser are thrifted treasures I’ve been collecting over the last couple of months.  When I find something interesting, I stick in in a box and save for a future project.  
And the gorgeous credenza, you may recognize.  It’s a craigslist find I gave a little makeover to.  I have a piece of glass cut for the top so that it would be protected from drinks and make-up that could be spilled on it.  At one end of the dresser, I created a little “desk” area.  It’s simply a place to keep her laptop, a calendar and some desk essentials.  And yes, that is a neon cactus light, weird was a must for this young space. 
I love how this starburst mirror picks up all the colorful splashes throughout the room.
At the end of the bed, I added a little sitting area with a fun craigslist chair and a pouf from World Market. Above the chair I hung two tree people carvings that I found at an estate sale.  
The room before was painted dark red and this eggplant purple color.  The space felt small and dark.  I convinced my client to paint the walls white, but she really wanted to keep one purple. We left the back wall the dark color and I think it totally works.  The closet didn’t have doors, so I hid the mess and clutter of the closet with simple curtain panels and a tension shower rod.
And with pillows, you must have throws.  This inexpensive grey throw got a little makeover with some pom pom trim.  That’s a post that is coming soon.
And athough the ceiling are not high in this room, I wanted to bring your eye and not neglect this space.  I found the macrame plant hanger and pot at thrift stores and the gorgeous brass hanging lights at World Market. 
And because my client insisted on having some weird elements in the space, the sad clown paint-by-number was a must.

Phew, that was a lot of pictures for one post.  I’d love to know what you think?  And if you have any questions about the details from this space, please ask.

Design

Dark Green Inspiration

February 24, 2015

After a few years of the same old same old, I’m ready to change things up a bit.  I’ve been sharing a lot of pink and blush inspiration for the home, but I’m looking for colors that will compliment it as well.  Green is already my favorite color, so I’d like to play with this gorgeous dark shade of forest/emerald green a bit.  My Green Pinterest board is probably my favorite board of all time.  Here’s some striking dark green interiors that have me wanting to experiment with it in my home as well. 

Bathtub and Tile (Via)

Do any of these dramatic greens appeal to you?  What color would you pair with pink/blush and all the grey that is already in my home?  

Design

Modern Rugs

February 18, 2015

Living in a 1920’s bungalow, I want to maintain the character, but still decorate in a modern fresh way.  Having hardwood floors throughout our house, allows us to play with pattern in area rugs.  Our living room rug has seen better days.  We’ve lived on it for over 4 years now, and it’s served us well.  Now I’m an the hunt for something new.  I’m looking at rugs that will give my space a little modern edge. And right now, that means geometric shapes and lines and a little touch of blush for me.  
1 // 2 // 3 // 4

Number 2. is probably the safest with it being just grey and white.  But, the touch of blush/pink in the others makes for a bit more unexpected and edgy design for a living room. Is there one of these rugs that speaks to you more then the others? Are you loving the trends of this season?  I think geometric shapes and pastels are still here for a while.

Design / etc.

Living Room Makeover

February 17, 2015

I’m excited to finally share a little living room makeover I worked on over the Thanksgiving break.  I helped my sister-in-law, Jess, who lives in Idaho, give her new grey sectional a little personality.  
Jess already had a couple great furniture pieces to start with. We had 4 main goals for the room:
1. Give the sectional personality.
2. Create a gallery focal wall.
3. Rethink the mantel.
4. Accessorize the surfaces.  
Head over to The Land of Nod‘s blog, Honest to see all the details and the full reveal.  And then come back here and let me know what you think.  

Design

Friday’s Fabulous 5 – Pink Interiors

February 7, 2015

I’ve been sharing a lot of pink lately, but I’m just loving it in grown up spaces so much.  My girls definitely have pink in their room, but I’m a fan of this color seeping into other rooms in the home. It’s soft and quite unexpected.  You aren’t going to see it in every home, and that might be why I like it so much. I think it’s a color that could totally be done wrong and end up looking like something for the 80s and early 90s.  But, I’ve found some great examples of pink done right! (And for even more pink inspiration, check out my Pink Pinterest Board.)

And yes, I realize its’ actually Saturday that I’m posting this Friday Fab 5, but yesterday was a busy day.  Better late then never, right? I hope you have a fabulous weekend.

Design

Blush Crush

January 7, 2015

I’m really loving this blush color, I must be ready for Spring.  Peach, rose, pale pink, whatever you call it.  It’s here for another year and I love it.  I am a huge fan of the color green, I never get tired of crisp black and white, and if you have followed me for a while, you know grey is my neutral of choice. But, I think I need to change things up a bit and add a splash of something new to my palette, I think this pale blush might just be the color for me.  
I added a few fun Ferm Living accessories to my kitchen last year and I love how it looks with my green tile backsplash.  
Is there a color you are loving right now?  How do you feel about pastels?  Can they be grown up and sophisticated? And does taking down all your Christmas decor make you want to redecorate your home like it does for me?  

Design

Coffee Table Styling

November 30, 2014

I’m partnering with Glade to bring you this post.  Thank you for supporting the companies that help make this blog, Oleander and Palm, possible
I love to accessorize and change up my decor often. I’m not talking about going and buying a whole bunch of new stuff, just rearranging and grouping things I already own.  My coffee table top is one place I love to display treasures and favorite items. Now that Olivia is old enough to not be messing with my stuff as much, I can put out my favorite candle and special trinkets. It’s fun to add personality to my space and give it a little of my own flavor. I want guests to feel comfortable and maybe even a little inspired in my home.
I’ve styled my coffee table 3 ways with items I already own. I love to start with a tray or plate as a base and then style it with a Glade Clean Linen Jar Candle paired with a few objects that vary in size and shape. This Clean Linen candle has notes of watery melon and clean, crisp air with sparkling citrus blends. It’s a fresh, bright scent that works for every season. It fills the room with a light, clean feeling. 
1.  I used a Papua New Guinea basket as a base and topped it with one of my father-in-law’s cut and polished rocks, painted pom pom flowers and a thrifted brass quail.  

2.  I used a graphic black and white platter and added a small antler, a mini potted fiddle leaf fig, and my favorite white ceramic fox (that I got at Target a couple years ago).

3.  I started with an inexpensive silver charger from the dollar store and then add a couple mushrooms and my little squirrel light.

Which coffee table look do you like best?

Oh, and be sure to check out Glade’s Pinterest page, it’s packed with inspiration for creating cozy and inviting spaces.