I saw this gorgeous inlaid bone mirror on Wisteria the other day and was immediately inspired to find a use for it in a fantasy powder room.  What came from it was this scheme- a little moody, but clean ad sleek too.  I'd paper all the walls in charcoal Imperial Trellis, paint the ceiling in Ralph Lauren's Regent Metallic paint in Silver Plated, hang my favorite Mini George chandelier and anchor it with Waterfall Bath's Louis Vanity in grey accessorized with Michael Smith for Kallista's drop-dead glass knob faucet.

I have always loved this foyer re-do from Cottage Living (still harbor resentment that it is no longer). I think it's an accessible, easy to understand re-do that came out a fabulous mix of unexpected and traditional. Let's break it down...

Here is the foyer before:
Here it is after!
The trim, woodwork and door were all painted a glossy rich grey, which is totally surprising and makes quite the impact! Since this is a long, high ceiling entryway the wallpaper chosen is the perfect compliment- large scale brick pattern with a hint of metallic silver. I love it (and the zebra pillows- of course)
The sofa was re-upholstered in faux cream ostrich- kid friendly and not something that will get ruined when you throw a wet umbrella on it upon entering! Faux leathers have come a LONG way and I bet you'de never be able to tell the difference visually. And nailheads make everything better. It's a fact.
Chrome hooks with name tags add spunk and storage.
Classic smoke bell lanterns, a silver mirror, ceramic gourd lamp and sisal runner complete the look.
No matter what the size of your entryway, consider it's impact on visitors when entering your home- it intriduces people to your style and should be a space for you to have a little fun!

Real Simple had a great little article about updating old furniture and I thought I'd share it and expand on it a little. Not only is replacing the hardware on an old piece helpful, don't forget you can also replace the hardware on a NEW piece of furniture to make it seem less "chain store" and more you. It won't cost you much and will take your item from "seen on page 56 of the catalog" to "where did you find this cool thing?".
Te Ma Hardware offers colorful hardware perfect for a beachy feel or a kid's room:

I saw this studio apartmenton Apartment Therapy the other day while researching small spaces...it's only 300 square feet but so chock full of style and chic-ness that it appears much bigger! Everything this guy did is pure genius- from the narrow wall mounted shelves and fabulous pendant in his mini entryway to the dramatic paint job on the wall behind the headboard and the color coordination of his pin boards and lamp to his turquoise foo dogs (you know I spotted those fast!) It's clean, cool and truly awe inspiring, no?
When decorating a super small space you have to use every inch your given, whether that be on the floor (like this teeny built in banquette area below (which you don't have to build in, Ballard Designs has a great corner banquette available) or putting bookshelves everywhere floor to ceiling (and even over the door).

Designer/ former Domino staffer Tori Mellott is pretty much the queen of making a small space rock- her former apartment was given a bold wallpaper and bright colors to punch up the space, while using an open book shelves to divide off a work space without blocking light (I love this trick)

We all LOVED the pictures of her new space, with stripes running floor to ceiling to accent the height (and draw attention fromt he lack of floor space).

She then used her signature bold wallpaper in the kitchen, alongside a brave cabinet color. Small spaces really can take big, bold colors since you never have to use much.

One of my favorite small spaces was Domino's coverage of Rashinda Jones' 450 square foot apartment. The serene color palette with just little touches of bold color make it to lovely. I also adore the pairing of the very modern chairs with a traditional pedestal table to give the room some complexity. She also covered some of her shelving with curtains to hide the clutter.


And finally, my favorite studio apartment ever- Ms. Carrie Bradshaw's (or should I say Mrs. Big's?). What can I say, it's a genius layout to begin with with the wide open foyer, kitchen nook, walk through closet/bathroom. Could there be a better floorplan for a studio? Nope. Adding to that are the new built ins around the tv (again, using every inch of vertical space), complete with bench for additional seating in the living area. So excited to see if her space stays the same for the second film!!!