What I've been up to

I'm proud to say what has kept me from blogging this past year has been my work and family and work...

I've had some great jobs over the year and every job has taught me something valuable. They have taught me that the most important part of doing good work is believing in yourself. Your vision is your expression, some people will relate to it and some people wont and that's OK. 
As long as every time you produce work that relates to you 100% of the time, the clients will be happy. 

The last year has also given me some perspective when it comes to couples and their homes. It's important to listen to both parties and create a space with both of their needs in mind. Women are usually more vocal with what they want; "I want it to feel modern but not cold, like a warm modern; I want it to be sophisticated but also inviting; I want a serene space but not boring; I love color but I also love the neutral look; I need this home to function for my kids but I also don't want it to be a kids' space." Men usually tell me to go easy on their card. 

I've also learnt that handymen come from another planet that is not Earth. They come from a place where up is down, 9am is never and men know that socks belong in the hamper. I have no idea how these handymen are making it over here but it's very deceiving.

I've really loved all my jobs this past year and feel truly honored to all those who have welcomed me into their homes to help create a space that is true to them.

Here are some of my highlight moments..

This is the 'before' space of a Bal Harbor home. The space was really open and and light it just needed some TLC, which meant warm paint colors and some layering.

The paint color I went with in the end:
Benjamin Moore; Big Bend Biege

Some of the layering that was done:

This project taught me how important it is to layer texture and color to create a home. So many people ask me how to get that 'finished' look. It's really about finding pieces that work together and compliment each other. Don't be afraid to play with shapes and sizes; big with small, tall with short. That's what's going to give your home depth- that 'finished' look.

Then there was this master bedroom that I loved for many reasons but mostly because I was given the opportunity to bring life to this room right before the arrival of their new baby. Knowing this space would be used to love and nurture a baby really made me happy. The room also turned out beautiful so there was that part that made me really happy. Here's the little area that was created in the bedroom for some special mommy and baby time.

Being involved in this next Miami Beach home 
was so enjoyable for me. I loved transforming it into a home that felt more youthful.
This is the living space before;

Here it is after;

This was a little nook in the kitchen area that needed a lot more attention than it was getting;

This is after;

This job taught me that when you have a client who is realllllly good at scouring out items on Craig's List, you end up with perfect yellow kitchen tables like this one. It also taught me that I need to be better at it.




I think the most transformative job I did over this past year was this office. It meant a little more to me because I knew it was an area my husband would spend most of his days, so I wanted him to have happy thoughts. It was also a commercial space rather than a residential so it pushed me to think outside the box which was hard because I love boxes.

Here are some before pictures of the entrance; 

Turned it into this;

Receptionist desk;

After;

The conference room before;

After;

This is how a small office was being used before; 

This is the space after;

Before;

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After;

The world map that was on the wall before was painted over when the office was re painted. I was feeling bad about it because the person working there had specifically chosen it for the office. So I reinvented it in a way that doesn't make me sad as a designer and a person in general.

This project taught me that deep down all men want to be surrounded by pretty things, I don't know why they bother to fight it.

And then there was the biggest change of all which was my new baby boy who melts my heart. I've learnt that besides sleepless nights, non stop diaper changing and the 75 pounds of baby gear that's useless because it's not you, babies are the most beautiful beings and watching them grow is a treasure.

Having said that, there are some things I've taken away from being a mommy of two. For example, car seats have gotten a lot heavier since I had my daughter. I think they weigh like 40 pounds now, pre-baby, which is great for those of you who don't have time to work out. All you need to do is carry your baby around in a car seat that hangs off your forearm awkwardly until you want to cry. 

I've learnt that there are certain words that don't exist anymore when you have more than one child, like the word "effortless" I said good bye to that word with my first baby. "Sleep" is a word that has been replaced with "snooze" or "nap." The words "fun" and "family day" don't exist together either. Instead "fun" usually stays home to binge watch Netflix and sends along words like "stressful" and "overwhelmed." Of course this lesson didn't come to me early on. I did a lot of family days before I realized that "fun" never joins in.

I've learnt that most events in my 3 year old daughters life will take place by the car. We'll be coming out of the car when suddenly she realizes she needs her hello kitty sticker from last week and let's face it we all know I threw that sucker out before it even came into the car (oops). And for some reason all cheerios MUST be picked up from the floor of the car immediately although that same urgency doesn't exist when it comes to cheerios on the kitchen floor. The important thing to take away from this is light layers and sunscreen for those of us in Miami. For those in colder climates, bundle up, because I think it takes less time for elderly people to exit a car than toddlers.





The biggest lesson I've taken away from this past year is that not blogging for so long is not fair to all my readers out there and for that I apologize.