Sometimes a modicum of denial is a good thing.  This February, we’re putting on the rose-colored glasses that Edith Piaf immortalized in her signature song.  While the winter chill is still in the air… so is love.  Our ideas and inspiration abound on creative ways to lighten the winter load with romance.

I met Ruard Veltman when our homes in Bald Head Island were being shot for the same magazine.  The truly world class architect has worked with other crushes of ours including Bobby McAlpine.  His simple fluid lines and minimal color speak to our aesthetic and if you can’t get enough of him check out his web site for more of his gorgeous work.

A wise person (yes, it may have been your mother) once said, “all things in moderation.”  We can only retort sometimes a little splurge a little excess is good thing. Cutting to the chase, this brings us to the topic of BUTTER. Much maligned by new wave chefs and just about every diet doctor, butter often makes stuff better. Do your best Julia Child this VD and think about baking a cake from scratch (it will require beaucoup b-u-t-t-e-r).  See below for the recipe fromMowielicious.

Chocolate Sponge Cake:

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

6 eggs, separated

A pinch of salt

1 1/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup cold water

1/4 cup (heaped) cocoa powder

1. Preheat the oven the 325F and butter a circular cake tin with baking paper. Mix the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in one bowl.

2. Beat the 6 egg yolks in a separate large bowl and mix in the sugar.

3. Fold in the flour/cocoa mixture alternately with the water in roughly 2-3 additions each.

4. Whip the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form, then fold this gently into the batter.

5. Pour batter into the tin and bake roughly 45-60 minutes. Check to see if the cake is ready by inserting a metal skewer into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean, the cake is ready. Take the cake out of the oven and allow to cool.

6. Once cool, slice in half, and add a layer of chocolate buttercream. Place the top half back on, and layer another level of buttercream on top. Don’t worry too much about adding a layer of buttercream to the side of the cake, or about how the cake looks. Once you top it with the macaroons and fruit, it doesn’t matter what the bottom half looks like!

Chocolate Buttercream:

Ingredients:

3 egg whites

1 cup sugar

300g butter, room temperature

200g good quality dark chocolate, melted over hot water bath (I used 80% Green & Black’s)

1. Hand whisk the egg whites until foamy. Mix in the sugar, and place mixture over a water bath. Keep whisking by hand until the mixture turns whitish, is piping hot and the sugar has dissolved.

2. Remove from water bath and mix with an electric mixer on high speed. Keep mixing until the bowl starts to cool down.

3. Add butter, one tablespoon at a time at first, then two tablespoons at a time. Make sure to incorporate the butter properly into the mixture each time you add butter.

4. Add melted chocolate and incorporate completely.

5. Layer chocolate buttercream onto cake as described above, making sure that the top layer is quite thick. Again, it doesn’t have to look pretty as that’s what the macaroons will do.

6. Place the macaroons one at a time all around the cake to form a circle, as seen in the pictures. Add fruit to the middle and decorate with daisies or any flowers my happen to have lying around.

Keep refrigerated and serve cold.

Recipe  from Mowielicous

A handpicked bouquet of fleurs… such a sweet expression of love. But winter can be a deal-breaker unless you live in a warm climate. Fear not Minnesotans (and the like). Creative thinkers can always find blooms for beloveds! With a little bit of luck and good timing you can capture delicate ice flowers early in the morning after a cold night with little wind. Grab a digital snapshot or better yet simply blind-fold your (trusting) honey and lead him in slippers and parka to the special spot.

At risk of appearing shallow, we think “trendiness” gets a lot of bad press. To be clear, we love classic styling and looks that endure through years and generations. But, we reserve the right to be whimsical, spontaneous and adventurous. If that means pink kicks with a oversized taffeta bow, so be it.  Guys who come along for the ride in hot pink and plaid score high marks in our book.

Christmas is not the only holiday worthy of a greeting card. Don’t miss the opportunity to reach out to people you love this Valentine’s Day with a heartfelt message. We love Red Stamp’s offerings (redstamp.com). You can actually customize a VD card for as little as .96 cents. Their site is so easy to use (you don’t have to be a graphic designer to figure it out). While we totally support emailing, blogging, tweeting and the like, there’s nothing like a lovely card in the mail to let someone know they’re special.

We all know that Dorothy had to go all the way to Oz to find delight in her own backyard. If you’re lusting after a long weekend with your love, but are time and budget challenged, please do this. Get a compass and outline a 100 mile radius from your home base. Pick a destination. Then pack a bag, gas up the car, keep an open mind and set out on the road to adventure. With the right company and the right attitude, a great time is guaranteed.

This Valentine’s Day connect with the person you love through gentle motion, stillness and serenity.  We’ve heard about a number of yoga studios offering a couple’s yoga class for Valentine’s Day. We say “beats a box of chocolates.” If you’ve been eager to introduce your man (or woman) to the quiet beauty of yoga, hop on this gift idea. Find a resource in your town with a google search.

Books, movies, videos!  In today’s world we all consume media in so many forms and fashions (our collective heads are still reeling).  We love, love, love Jane Campion’s Bright Star.  The art direction is so dreamy and evocative.  Saw the movie, but still want to see more?  Immerse yourself this digital scrap book.

We’ve been busy searching high and low to nab unique finds for our retail locations.  Below is just a taste.  Go to our Facebook photo album to see more.  Of course, for you Charlotte locals see the great finds in person at Interiors Marketplace located in Myer’s Park.  For those of you farther flung check out the current offerings at our online boutique.

I wonder if any element of interior design is more personal than color.  Nothing can more quickly reveal aspects of personality and character than the choice or absence of color.  ~Van Day Truex

Color plays  a variety of roles in the drama of the design practice; sometimes cast as extras in supporting roles and many times the star of the show.  In these roles a particular color selection can show the audience a bit of the character and personality of both the designer and their clientele.

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Color, when used precisely in one or a select few choices, will add a focal point in a space that says, “Here I am.  The one, the only, come on over!”

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Here the star of the show is an acidic green, paired with a very neutral yet cool background.  There is a balance here that makes for a space  anyone can enjoy… If you didn’t like the color green before, you love it now!

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We LOVE black!  When a color consumes a space , the result is an intimate place , a sanctuary.  Here I could see myself curling up in my favorite PJ’s and reading a great book, or rummaging through all my old domino magazines.

The more I work with white the more I have come to understand nothing is ever void of pigment.  White is endlessly changing according to context.  To some white connotes absence and void, but the use of white can open our perception to texture,  shade, and shadow in a way other colors may obscure.

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This tear sheet from Elle Decor is a great example of the endless range of texture white enhances.

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Some may say a limited color palette of white will be cold.  I think this pair is evidence that white can be quite cozy thank you very much!

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I’ve taken down the holiday decorations and things seem a bit bare.  The holidays have passed, but the winter weather is still upon us.  It’s the perfect time to cozy up with a project; editing that collection of adored objects you just can’t live without yet never find a spot to show case.  If this sounds a bit overwhelming the help of a great designer can lend an objective eye and ultimately create a cohesive display.  In the studio we just love the challenge posed by working-in our clients’ favorite things.

Via Domino

One object we all tend to collect are those inspirational pieces of art.  We all have sentimental family sketches or precious originals passed from generation to generation.  Whether museum worthy or taken from a calendar we just love to mix a variety of pieces.  With creative care each piece can be unique right down to the frame.

Via Shelter

Via Domino

Collections can be continually changing.  A loose grid organizes this temporary inspiration wall.  The simple act of installing and adding to an inspiration wall can be a daily meditation on goals.

Here subject matter provides the relationship with this collection of “Nudes Descending a Stair Case”.  Meanwhile, hanging the works in loose columns acts as another organizing element.

Collections don’t have to remain along walls.  I know we’ve seen this for years, but I still marvel at the innovation of overlapping art onto a book case.

Via Met Home

Word truly becomes art in this creative installation.

Here the standard display case is certainly less than traditional.  We love this over the top pair of stacked cases.   We’re all suckers for a shell collection, but it can get old.   Forget the bowl and go for an over the top terrarium constructed from sea life.