Monogrammed Linen Slipcovers

Tis the season for slipcovers!

This is a pair of linen slipcovers commissioned by a decorator from Yessicks Design Center here. Natalie Sims' eye for scale and color is very obvious in this pair of chairs - slipcovered for a client in the North Chattanooga area.
Natalie opted for a clean look (sans welt cording) and put a punch in with the oversized monograms in a pumpkin/clay color. Before, these simple open-armed chairs might have been regulated to a rarely used spot in the house. But now, they can take star positions in the now beautiful living room.

New Project-Vintage French Bed

I'm so excited over my latest find! ...Well, actually it's my cohort Lori's find. She knew I was looking for a full/double size bed for the room my daughter vacated when she left for college. This was spied by her eagle eyes in one of our favorite vintage furniture stores - and she knew I'd fall in love with it. It's still sitting in the store and I plan to pick it up tomorrow when I get a truck. Lori and I have discussed several possibilities (I'm sure they're limitless!) but we've come to no hard conclusions on what we are going to do. We've discussed fabric colors and types as well as how we are going to treat the wood. I love the idea of painting it because I already have a mix of wood colors in that room.
Hmmm. It's exciting to be working on a project for myself. I'm like the shoemaker whose children have bare feet!
What to do...what to do.
Any suggestions?

Slipcovers with Print Trim

Hot off the press! This pair of slipcovers is displayed at our downtown Chattanooga store called Chrysalis. The main fabric is a cotton/linen blend and Lori got a great idea to put a grommet closure in the back. We have matching lumbar pillows in the seats...love 'em! You may also get a hint of the 42" table that is covered to match.

Red Toile Slipcovers

We did a pair of these armed dining chairs recently. The customer had recovered the slipseats and wanted us to do just the backs and the arms. Notice that the ties are really fun and casual with the back vent/pleat softly falling open to reveal the pattern on the inside. The other chairs in the set are side chairs but these will serve as the captains chairs in a French County style home.

Green Silk Drapes

These drapes are still hanging on our "drapery horse" in the West studio. I will be taking them to the decorator on Lookout Mountain (just West of Downtown Chattanooga) and we will gently lay them across her spare beds like formal dresses awaiting prom night! They are incredibly full and lush. This picture doesn't quite capture the true color depth of the green silk....it's really brilliant.
They will be installed in a dining room in Columbus, Georgia next week and hopefully I will receive pictures to post here soon. I was in Columbus to do the original measure, but won't be going back for the installation....Boo Hoo! Hopefully, I will be able to go sometime soon and see them hanging.

These are interlined in heavy English Bump cloth. It is a fat blanket-type of interlining fit for castle drapes! It gives the pleats a plump, fat look as well as gives ooomph to the hems as they break gently on the floor.

I've featured the work of this decorator before on my blog...she's just amazing. It's Carol Brown of Carol Brown Interiors. She has done many Southern homes, is available in the Chattanooga region, and often travels to other areas as required. Always a delight to work with, Carol is tops in our books... we especially love her passion for slipcovers!

Slipcover for a lampshade!

This is a slipcover for a lampshade! We created it out of a fairly heavy, washed bull denim. When it gets dusty or dirty, the homeowner can just put it in the washing machine. In the mean time it adds a bit of softness to the room. This fun lady is totally in LOVE with French Country decor and has been working with us to give her living room that soft, beautiful, livable look she is going for. We had already slipcovered 2 chairs in this same fabric.
We are currently working on toile chair back covers for the captain's chairs in her dining room. I will post a picture of that when we get them done. She had seen something similar in the set design of the movie, "Something's Gotta Give" and wanted that for her own dining room.
If you see something in a magazine or even in a movie....chances are that The Brick Path Studio can create it!

Slipcovered wooden chair

This is a chair that is covered very simply, yet in an elegant way. There is no welt cording on the cushion or the chair cover. The body piece has a Velcro closure and helps with the pared-down look. It is actually a rush bottomed chair and is owned by an adorable toddler that can't touch the floor when sitting on it yet! His mother arranged for us to cover it to be used as his desk chair in his bedroom. As he grows, he will be able to use this classic chair to sit, color and cut; then later to do his high school studies. His mother brought us a picture she had seen in a magazine of a similar chair and said she knew we were the people for the job to create the fat and crested cushion. This customer is "all about" the crest on her cushions! ...We are too.

Slipcover in Linen with Button Detail

This is a heavy washed linen slipcover on a cute little slipper chair. The full view picture makes it look a bit "catawumpus", but it's not...it's the angle that I took the picture from! ...I guess I was going for the surreal look.
The next picture is of the button detail. This is a detail usually found in couture clothing items. The button holes are set into a small welt cording. Very tailored and beautiful. I really love this.
We set the skirt slightly on the floor for a casual, yet elegant look.

Pictures from the Hidden World of the Workroom!

We've been busy with a couple of top secret projects and I haven't had time to post pictures of the slipcovers or window treatments we've sent out lately, so I thought this was a fun picture to show. This is the cabinet in our East workroom that holds our small hardware parts like metal grommets, Roman shade pieces, decorative upholstery nails, cording, and all kinds of rings, pins and fasteners. Lori and Patsy discovered this cabinet at a local thrift store and snagged it for us. Its perfect. We love the way it looks...from any angle!

Vintage Fabrics! Roman Shade

This is still on the cutting table, but I just had to show it! This homeowner has an eye for beautiful vintage items... she collects everything from old advertising to lovely old fabrics like this. It is actually a handstitched table cloth that we've fashioned into a Roman shade for a guest room window. We have left this totally uncut so 20 years from now it could be a table cloth again! Luckily there was plenty of room around the smallish window so we could make the shade large enough to accommodate the design. In the background of the top picture you can see the results of decorator Becky Wilson's idea to use the 6 matching napkins. It is a pillow that we backed with a similar natural linen. The napkins are simply appliqued onto the surface. Since it ended up to be an odd size, we have ordered a custom down/feather form to fit ...and it has yet to arrive.
Projects like this are so fun and usually end up being very special to the client.

Galleries at Southside

We keep adding new merchandise to our kiosk at The Galleries at Soutside in downtown Chattanooga. Take a look at our new vintage silk "Astro Bags"! Also, here's a detailed shot of a new "Origami" pillow we just put in the other day. These are mostly in our heavy weight linens because they are SO crisp!

Visit this weekend and you can also shop the Galleries at Southside spring garage sale! There's lots of merchandise to meander through on huge tables in the garage area of the store. Visit them on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Chattanooga-TN/the-galleries-at-southside/309019604554?ref=ts and see the latest!

Slipcovers with More Knife Pleats

This is a different take on knife pleats! It is really more of a edge trim instead of a skirt. This slipcover is done in a cream colored brushed denim. We LOVED the little tab and button detail on the back kick pleat. --what fun! It's a great way to add interest when a chair is floating out in the center of the room and will be seen from the back.

Slipcover with flirty knife-pleated skirt!

Here's a slipcover for a French armchair that's hot off the press! The customer hasn't even seen it as it was just finished by Lori late on Friday. It is done in a pre-washed white twill fabric and will function perfectly for the homeowner - after her much loved cats lounge around on it for a while. This customer knew exactly what she wanted and even brought in a picture from a magazine to show us the look she was going for.
The arm covers fasten on with hook & loop closures, but anything goes. We could have used buttons, ties, tabs, zippers...you name it. Anything you would find on a dress, a pair of pants or even a great designer handbag can be incorporated into a slipcover. Sometimes we think we've done it all, but then someone will bring in a great magazine picture with an odd, yet fabulous idea that we've never dreamed of. Or we will get new inspiration while browsing a vintage magazine or looking through an old apparel design book. Ideas are hidden EVERYWHERE! It's an exciting adventure to ferret them out.

Pillow Details

I had to show the detail of the swirling rosette on the origami pillow. The written description was just not working! Also, I wanted to say that the white slipcovers on the wing chairs are a cotton duck and are very washable! Just pop them in the old Maytag and pop them back on the chairs if you get a spill! We pre-washed this fabric prior to making the slipcovers. It make for great function...but still has a fabulous look.

Latest in our Showroom/Outlet

We have the first wave of merchandise installed at our showroom/outlet at the Galleries at Southside in downtown Chattanooga. Here is a quick snap of what some of it looks like. The going colors are deep ORANGE, bright white, and rough natural linens. We've thrown in a bit of spice with a deep aqua color called "Rain" as well as some muted greens. The small pillows you see in the white slipcovered wing chairs are part of our "origami series". There is a highly dimensional, swirling rose design with some incredible mitered corner work surrounding it. I'll be posting more pix of the origami babies soon!

Pillow and Cushion Details!

Here's some more details from the job I've been posting about lately.

The kitchen chair cushions are covered in a classic Cowtan and Tout check in the dark brown color the decorator repeated throughout the kitchen, dining room and den. We created a paper pattern of the chair seat and had a high-quality/high-density foam cut to match the shape before covering them with zippered covers with ties. This foam will give good support for years to come and not go flat & lose their spring after a few months of use. When it comes to foam quality, you really do get what you pay for! A while back, when the price of petroleum based products soared, foam prices went right along. But it is always worth investing in a quality cushion insert.

The pillows for the living room sofa were divine. We especially love the flanged, boxed lumbar pillow in the coral stripe you see in the foreground. Lori has a secret "magic trick" to stitch those babies!

Roman Shades with Grosgrain trim

Here are the Roman shades that were shown in the last post after installation! The wide, chocolate brown grosgrain ribbon on the creamy white linen fabric was a totally genious decision. I'll be posting pictures of other window treatments and pillows for this job in their new home in the next few days!

"House Beautiful" Fabric

This is how a job can look before going out the door to be installed! Here the window treatments and pillows are gathered on our drapery horse in the shop. The fabrics look great together and were carefully chosen by the decorator...in this case, Susan Lesourd of Chattanooga. Notice the main print fabric she chose? It is featured on page 124-125 of the December/January 2010 issue of House Beautiful. In the magazine, its shown in a blue/brown colorway. It is great stuff with a fabulous feel to it.

Window Treatments Dramatic & on Display!

Well, while we are on the subject of dramatically colored and high impact draperies.....
We had a comment posted here on the blog by a recent shop visitor wanting details of a top secret drapery project we had squirreled away in a corner. Since the cat is partially out of the bag, I've decided to post a "teaser" shot of this venture. This is a fabric swatch of some amazing window treatments we are making for display. The fabric is a pumpkin-colored stylized print from Duralee. It is very young and fresh. It will look sublime against our brownish-gray walls.

They are part of our new Spring collection that we are unveiling late February or early March at The Brick Path Mercantile. For those who don't know, "The Mercantile" is our design showroom & store located at The Galleries at Southside. The Galleries is a home decor mall located in the 1400 block of Cowart Street in downtown Chattanooga (It's 2 blocks West of the Historic Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel and Train Station.)

We will be be stocking a fresh batch of distinctive pillows (some outlandishly striking) that we've dreamed up (as well as elegant traditional ones.) Past purchasers of our pillows have enjoyed and appreciated the luxury of the 25/75 down/feather pillow forms as well as the zippers on the covers that allow for removal for cleaning.

The collection will also include our standards like the beautiful white table cloth and napkin sets, tea cozies, neck warmers, and unique grommeted bags we call Astro Bags. New will be some out of the ordinary shopping bags you won't be able to resist! We have more "Chattanooga Made" items that we will be putting out as surprises...but for now, they will remain that - surprises!

Window Treatments - Red Drapery - WOW!

These incredible red, faux silk draperies were designed by a local decorator for a client in North Chattanooga. Becky Wilson of Galleries at Southside wanted a dramatic dining room in this adorable, light filled home that was built in the 1930's. When Becky showed me the fabric sample, I suggested she line and interline them with a product called Bella Notte Duet. It is a light-blocking lining/interlining combination that has the bonus feature of turning window treatments into something closely akin to a ballgown...with a crisp, flowing elegance. We chose this mainly so that light wouldn't pass through the red fabric and cast a red glow into the room. The bright red color is an energetic choice that will make for lively dinners... but an overly bright red glow would have created an almost "surreal" effect that might have been a bit over-the-top! This is the type of technical advice a workroom like ours can offer designers, decorators and homeowners. Unless you've had the experience with certain products and materials, it is easy to make a decision with an unexpected consequence --- like an unearthly "science fiction" feel to your dining room!

Also, note the beautiful iron hardware Becky selected and the long, thin wrought iron wands used to open and close the drapes. They become a design feature instead of a strictly utilitarian characteristic.

Roman Shade with Contrast Banding

This is a Roman Shade that Lori made for our West workroom. This is called an "inside mount" as it sits inside the window frame. If light leak isn't a consideration, this type of mounting has a great look and can show off great-looking window framing. (A good choice if you have a beautiful window that you hate to cover up!) The contrasting bias trim gives this shade a perky look.