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The texture of your life evolves from the elements that make you uniquely you.



April 21, 2018

Encaustic tiles

Encaustic tiles are incredibly popular right now. You will find them on walls, as I’ve applied them in this Upper West side kitchen, or on floors.

Edited from Wiki: The use of the word "encaustic" to describe an inlaid tile of two or more colors is linguistically incorrect. The word encaustic from Ancient Greek means "burning in". The term originally described a process of painting with a beeswax based paint that was then fixed with heat. The term did not come into use when describing tile until the nineteenth century. Supposedly, Victorians thought that the two color tiles strongly resembled enamel work and called them encaustic. Despite the error, the term has now been in common use for so long that it is an accepted name for inlaid tilework.

 


June 24, 2016

Space Impacts Behavior


May 19, 2016

Hollywood at Home – Martha Plimpton

In addition to their print story, People magazine interviewed Martha Plimpton for their "Hollywood At Home" series.  If you want to watch it without the advertisement, watch the cell phone version.

Again, it was such a pleasure to style Martha's home for this series. I hope the video makes you smile—warning, she's kind of adorable!

A note on the styling: although the quirky aesthetic of her home lends itself to a chandelier with some burt out bulbs, that was not intentional. It was an error on my part. What can I say, the sun flooded her dining room with gorgeous light and I was never drawn to the lightswitch.


April 10, 2016

People Magazine talks to Martha Plimpton

I had the pleasure of styling Martha Plimpton's home for a People Magazine story shot by Larsen & Talbert

It was such a pleasure to work with Martha—she has great taste, a laid back nature, 
and a dream home filled with unique conversation pieces collected throughout her kaleidoscopic life.

To read the interview click here.


January 24, 2016

Covering Chairs

Sometimes you love a chair (or a mirror, or a dresser, or a ...) but it doesn't quite go with your decor. I've become a big fan of car vinyl for quick changes. It's virtually seamless and it is incredibly forgiving – if it's going on crooked, peel it off and start over.

These chairs now make sense with my client's red, black and gold decor. In fact, once I finished applying the vinyl, the question was "why were these legs chrome to begin with?" :)


January 18, 2016

Choosing the Right Flooring

Choosing the right flooring can be a daunting task. There are a lot of things to take into consideration. 

Clients for whom I was only supposed to hang art, ended up being the victims of a flood. Enough of their parquet wood floors were damaged that the entire wood floor had to be replaced. 

An insurance company was involved so the flooring samples were limited to the company they worked with. My clients had a dozen samples to choose from—they asked me to help them make a decision. 

Their decor has a lot of different wood grains and patterns, so the trick was to compliment, not upstage. I also had the opportunity to choose a floor that would make their existing furniture feel more cohesive. 

I immeditely ruled out the lighter shade planks, I wanted a color that would be grounding. I also wanted their area rugs to sing a little more—they were currently lost on the parquet floor. I narrowed it down to two boards. Both were dark but one had more pattern and variation in color. On it's own, it was easily the more interesting choice, but next to their custom built entertainment credenza, it fought for attention. 

My final choice was Lauzon's Hard Maple, Antique Cherry in Semi-Gloss, from their Ambiance collection

I can't tell you how TICKLED I was when I walked into their home—post intallation. It was truly the perfect match. The existing wood furniture feels newly refined and the rugs practically shimmer. The entire apartment feels grounded in a way it didn't before. 

More important than my opinion is my clients': "Beyond pleased! Thanks to my designer." 

:)


January 13, 2016

3M Command Picture Hanging Strips

3M Command Picture Hanging Strips are for more than just hanging pictures. They are a go-to tool for me. They are strong, versatile and allow me to make very creative choices.

In this home I wanted to update the fireplace for the owner—who's taste was Mid-Century Modern. I chose ModularArts Interlocking Rock Tiles for the fireplace surround, however, I didn't want to "ruin" the brick by drilling into it or plastering over it. I realized I could preserve the original structure if I installed the tiles with 3M Command Picture Hanging Strips. This would allow the current owner to change the design in the future, and a future owner to revert back to the brick fireplace.

With grooves between the bricks, and grooves on the backs of the Nexus Interlocking Tiles, it was tricky to adhere the Command Strips to corresponding flat surfaces. In the end it all worked out and, over a year later, the 3M Command Picture Hanging Strips are still holding up the unique fireplace surround. 


December 26, 2015

Personalized Gift Ideas — Ornaments

When your holiday plans are full of family and friends, but you are light on finances, here is a fun, thoughtful, personalized holiday gift that is easy and affordable to make:
- Purchase 3" round mirrors. You can find them at Michaels, but they have bumpers on the back that are tedious to remove. I bought mine from COD Wholesale.
- In a layout program, create a series of 3.125" circles, import the images of your friends and family. 
- Print the document. I had ProImage print my document on adhesive paper. I loaded the document onto a flash drive, and the 16" x 20" print was less than $25. The adhesive paper is more absorbant than photo paper so make sure your images are crisp and bright. You can also print the images yourself (I recommend using photo paper), and purchase double sided adhesive paper from an art supply store. This just requires more steps and, depending on the cost of your printer ink, will cost more money. 
- Before applying the image to the back of the round mirrors, cut down some OOK self adhesive hangers (I found them at ACE Hardware) and apply it to the back of the 3" mirror. Lay the adhesive photo over it. 
- Turn the mirror over so the mirror, not the image, is facing you. Using a very sharp exacto blade, cut the excess paper off. 
- Use a needle or safety pin to create a hole in the adhesive hanger, and thread the ornament hanger through it. 

Voila! You have your holiday gifts.
Use funny photos of your friends and family to add laughter to the holidays. 

I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays, and I wish everyone a happy and healthy 2016.

~ Tobi Wright, InsideWright


December 11, 2015

Holiday Window Display

Tobi Wright of InsideWright created a holiday window display for Summit Rug in Bernardsville, NJ. It was so much fun to create a snow scene out of rugs. Ivan DeGonzalez of Peacock Home & Garden Design added to the fun by assisting with the installation. Photographed with a Hasselblad, by David Shechter Photography, who captured it beautifully. Thank you all.


September 25, 2015

Give New Life To Old Furniture

I'm a huge fan of re-imagining furniture. Throwing away perfectly good furniture just because, in it's current form, it doesn't fit into your idea of your newly renovated home, can be shortsighted. Even if the furniture is Ikea. Ikea is often shunned for the grownup home--the Ikea-free home being a badge that identifies you as a successful adult. What many don't realize is, very few brands parallel Ikea in it's ability to be entirely reimagined. A portion of this desk was once an Ikea Malm headboard. The drawers, oriented 90 degrees to the left, sat under a much deeper desk that protruded into the room, disrupting the flow into the neighboring room. Together they've become a completely unique desk which fits perfectly on this wall. http://www.ikeahackers.net/2015/08/malm-headboard-vika-alex-slim-desk.html


September 1, 2015

Add Color To Your Life

Habitat For Humanity: A Brush With Kindness. An easy way to add color and texture to your life, and the lives around you.